After Transmigrating Into the Book, I Picked up the Protagonist-Shou

Not to mention Xie An’s sensitive sense of smell, even Xie Shuci, who was usually slow, could smell the strong and overwhelming scent of blood.

A scent of death, like a black vortex, swallowing everything around it.

“Xie Shuci, take them away quickly!” Li Song suddenly turned back and shouted at him.

Xie Shuci instinctively glanced at him and saw numerous dark figures leaping out of the alley behind them. Their eyes were bloodshot, revealing their sharp fangs, and long tongues dripping with putrid saliva. Like an arrow, they shot toward the young disciples.

Xie Shuci was stunned, but he couldn’t afford to hesitate. With one hand holding Xie An and the other carrying Ah Dong, he ran towards the direction of the inn.

Ah Dong was perched on his shoulder, watching the scene of carnage behind them. The howls of beasts and the screams of humans intertwined, forming a hellish painting that emitted sound.

“Brother Xiaoci, please help them,” Ah Dong trembled in his embrace, his small hand clutching Xie Shuci’s clothes. His voice was like a mosquito, but Xie Shuci could hear it clearly.

Xie Shuci knew what was happening behind them. All the sounds tore at his eardrums, and he had never seen such a terrifying scene. His legs trembled with fear, but he had to muster the courage to keep running with them.

Help them? If Xie Shuci went back, he would undoubtedly be bitten to death by those things, not to mention he was still carrying two burdens!

Xie Shuci clenched his teeth and remained silent, continuing to run forward. He wanted to cover Ah Dong’s eyes, but he couldn’t spare a hand. His palms were covered in cold sweat, and the rushing wind felt like needles on his face. He knew he couldn’t stop. Once he stopped, he wouldn’t be able to run anymore.

“Ah Dong, close your eyes,” Xie Shuci’s voice was hoarse.

“Young Master, it’s bad! Baiyi can’t hold on anymore!”

“Young Master, let’s retreat!”

“They’re being controlled by that demon. We can’t kill them at all. Let’s retreat!”

Li Song gritted his teeth and persisted. After beheading a ferocious dog, he turned around and glanced in the direction of Xie Shuci and the others. They hadn’t run far.

“We can’t retreat. We must kill all of them. Don’t forget there are other innocent people!” Li Song said.

“Baiyi can’t hold on much longer!”

Finally, Xie Shuci brought the two of them back to the inn. He set Ah Dong down and released his grip on Xie An’s hand. As expected, his legs were indeed trembling slightly. He clenched his teeth and patted Ah Dong’s head, saying, “Take Brother Xie An back to the room. Don’t come out until I return.”

Ah Dong asked with a pale face, “Where are you going?”

Xie Shuci forced a smile and said, “Didn’t you ask me to help them? How can I help them with both of you in tow? Alright, I’m leaving.”

Xie Shuci pushed the two of them into the inn and was about to close the door when Xie An suddenly grabbed his wrist silently, asking, “Where are you going?”

Xie Shuci bent down and pressed his lips against Xie An’s hand, saying, “To uphold righteousness and chivalry.”

Afterward, he pulled Xie An’s hand down and quickly closed the door, turning around to leave.

On the way, he picked up a wooden stick as a weapon. He could faintly hear the roars of wild beasts, making his scalp tingle.

Xie Shuci, don’t be afraid. Don’t you fucking be afraid! Hold your ground! Can you live with a conscience if they die? They’re just a few dogs, and you have a stick. Don’t you know dogs are afraid of sticks?

“Ahhh! Ahhhh! Ahhhh!” Xie Shuci shouted several times to bolster his courage. Then he closed his eyes and swung the stick in front of him, charging forward.

“Ah! Ah! Ah! Take my Dragon Tail Strike—take this!”

Xie Shuci swung the stick wildly, afraid that something might approach him.

Li Song felt the gust of wind and turned his head. He narrowly avoided being hit on the back of his head by Xie Shuci’s stick. He dodged to the side and, upon seeing it was Xie Shuci, he became both furious and amused. It took some effort for him to grab Xie Shuci’s flailing hand. “I told you to go back to the inn, why did you come back?”

Xie Shuci squinted his eyes and, for a moment, thought those creatures could speak. However, when he saw Li Song standing intact in front of him, he couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

“I’m also a cultivator. Let me lend you a hand… Ah!!!” 

Before Xie Shuci could finish his sentence, a bloody mass lunged towards them. Its mouth was wide open, and half of its body had been shredded, yet it hadn’t died. It could still attack! This was clearly cheating!

Xie Shuci’s face turned pale with fear. Li Song swiftly severed the creature, but not before blood splattered onto Xie Shuci’s face. In that moment, Li Song looked like an Ultraman in Xie Shuci’s eyes!

Originally, Xie Shuci had intended to appear heroic and valiant before them, to bravely lead them out of danger at the critical moment. But now, for the sake of his own life, he should just hold onto Li Song’s thigh.

No sooner said than done, Xie Shuci grabbed Li Song’s sleeve, afraid that he would be left behind amidst the swarm of demons.

“To the right! Fuck! How can it move without its head?”

“To the left! Ahh—damn it! There’s blood, blood splattered on my face!”

“Shut up!” Li Song pulled along a burdensome companion, already struggling. Xie Shuci kept babbling in his ear, annoying him to the point where he wanted to smash Xie Shuci as well.

“Where is the blind boy and the child?” Li Song asked.

“I took them back to the inn,” Xie Shuci replied.

“Young Master, Baiyi…” one disciple shouted.

Li Song’s expression froze as he hacked through several creatures that couldn’t even be called “dogs,” then walked towards Li Baiyi, who lay pale against the wall.

Xie Shuci quickly followed.

Li Song extended two fingers to check Li Baiyi’s breath, his expression becoming significantly more grim.

“Young Master, we don’t have a Resurrection Pill, and Baiyi won’t last until we return to the Immortal Sect. What should we do now?!”

Li Song’s face turned pale, and his lips trembled slightly. A pained expression appeared on his face. They had overestimated their capabilities. How could they, a small group of Daoists, covet the inner core of a 200-year-old spiritual beast? Even if the inner core could help Li’s family participate in the selection of the Immortal Sect, it wasn’t worth sacrificing the lives of the disciples.

“I…” Li Song shook his head in confusion. He didn’t know what to do. His master uncle was still chasing after that demon. And he didn’t know how to save his fellow brothers…

At that moment, a pair of pristine hands reached out, holding several small porcelain bottles in the palm.

“Um, I have a few pills in my pocket. See if there’s a Resurrection Pill among them?” Xie Shuci said.

Although Li Baiyi, this little brother, had drawn his sword against him yesterday, Xie Shuci decided not to dwell on the past. After all, life was more important than anything else, whether it was the lives of others or his own.

Li Song was stunned, his eyes filled with both surprise and complexity.

Xie Shuci continued, “I have many more pills in my room. They were given to me by my fellow sector brothers. Why don’t you take him back to the inn for now?”

His eyes were sincere and clear as if filled with stars. Li Song stared blankly for a moment before averting his gaze. His throat felt dry, and his voice was hoarse as he said, “Thank you.”

Li Song poured out a pill from the porcelain bottle and fed it to the unconscious Li Baiyi.

“You don’t need to help here. Please carry Li Baiyi back to the inn. We’ll clean up the bodies and return immediately,” Li Song said.

Although there were many of these manipulated vicious dogs, they were originally just ordinary domestic dogs. They were no match for a group of cultivators, despite causing some minor injuries to the disciples. 

However, the wound on Li Baiyi’s chest was obviously different. It wasn’t caused by those vicious dogs.

Xie Shuci looked at the bloodstains covering Li Baiyi’s body with some distaste. He also felt that the person he was carrying had more incoming breath than outgoing breath. He couldn’t help but ask, “He won’t die on my back, right? I won’t carry him if he’s going to scare me.”

Li Song glanced at him, feeling somewhat amused and exasperated. “No, he won’t. Although your pills are not Resurrection Pills, they can temporarily save his life.”

“That’s good,” Xie Shuci nodded and, Li Song helped Li Baiyi up and placed him on Xie Shuci’s back.

“Oh… Fuck!” He is so damn heavy!

Xie Shuci gritted his teeth. Everyone else was injured except for him, so he couldn’t possibly burden them with this unfortunate person on his back.

He forced himself to carry Li Baiyi back to the inn. Pushing open the inn’s door, his legs felt weak, and every step felt as if he was walking on cotton. His calves trembled. Finally stepping over the threshold, the string in his mind suddenly snapped. His legs gave way, and his body fell toward the ground.

Just as his legs were about to kneel on the ground, a pair of arms supported his shoulders, lifting his half-kneeling body into an embrace.

Xie Shuci caught a whiff of a faint fragrance from the Little Blind and thought of the blood stains on his own body. He instinctively pushed him away to prevent him from getting bloodstained. However, Xie An’s movements were a bit strong, and the hand gripping his arm was like a pair of iron tongs. He casually threw the unconscious Li Baiyi, Xie Shuci was carrying to the ground.

“…” Seeing Li Baiyi being thrown at his feet, Xie Shuci couldn’t help but gasp when he thought of his injuries, “Hey, he’s injured! What if he dies!”

Xie An couldn’t hear his muttering and pressed the person in his arms closer, sniffing at him. He caught a strong scent of herbs mixed with a heavy, metallic smell. Xie An’s face darkened, and his slender fingers roamed over Xie Shuci’s body as if checking for injuries.

“Hey… be gentle! It’s itchy!”

“Enough, enough!” Xie Shuci hurriedly held down his hand and pressed his face against Xie An’s collarbone. His legs were a bit weak, and he couldn’t exert much force. He turned his head to the side, using his teeth to pull Xie An’s collar aside. His dry lips touched the warm skin of Xie An’s collarbone, moving in a rhythmic manner. “I’m not injured. It’s all the demons’ blood.”

Xie An’s body trembled, and he tightened his grip on Xie Shuci’s shoulder, causing Xie Shuci to cry out in pain. “What are you doing!”

Presumably, after confirming that Xie Shuci was unharmed, Xie An released his hand.

With the support gone, Xie Shuci almost knelt down directly. He struggled to stabilize his body, turned his eyes to Xie An, and muttered, “Crazy.”

Xie An, “…”

“Brother Xiaoci, are you okay?” Ah Dong ran out from the corner, looking at him covered in blood. For a while, he didn’t dare to approach.

Xie Shuci shook his head. “What can happen to your Brother Xiaoci? Can’t you see? This blood all over me is my trophy. Not a single one of them survived.”

“Wow! Brother Xiaoci, you’re amazing!” Ah Dong ran up, hopping with excitement.

Xie Shuci stood with his hands on his hips and laughed heartily. “Of course! Who am I?”

Xie An’s lips couldn’t help but twitch.

“Cough…”

The wounded person lying peacefully on the ground let out a faint voice.

Xie Shuci quickly realized and helped the person up from the ground.

“Sorry, sorry. I forgot about you.”