The Night Devil was dead, and those Black Darkness creatures gathered by it either fled or mindlessly continued their assault. The mindless ones were generally weaker, and these weak creatures were quickly dealt with. Raymond and the others didn’t clean up the scene, instead, they quickly made their way to Zheng Yichen.
"This wound doesn’t look like it was made by a normal weapon," John said as he examined the wound on the Night Devil’s body, expressing some amazement. Whether Zheng Yichen could defeat the Night Devil was something they had previously only considered possible.
John was very clear that if he were to face such an opponent, he wouldn’t stand a chance at surviving, and though he might struggle to flee, if he were pursued, he would definitely be doomed.
Yet such a powerful creature was truly slain.
"I have a Sword of Hell that I snatched from a Headless Knight," Zheng Yichen said. Everyone present was an experienced Hunter-Demon; even if he tried to destroy the wound on the Night Devil’s body, he couldn’t completely erase the traces, so it was better to be straightforward.
"...So that’s how it is," John said as he deeply scrutinized the sword that Zheng Yichen carried, no wonder Zheng Yichen had never used that weapon in many missions, only occasionally utilizing that very sharp and pointed horn.
A sword of a Headless Knight, he had heard of it, and he also knew that the owners of such weapons never met a good end, but now it was this sword that had smoothly dealt with the threat of the Night Devil, so he really had nothing more to say about it.
"Let’s hurry and leave," Raymond said succinctly.
The death of the Night Devil didn’t mean it was safe here, and the main priority was to get away quickly. As for the issue of Zheng Yichen using the Sword of Hell, they were currently companions, weren’t they? Hunter-Demons were not men of the church; John had failed to join the church, so they presently had no relationship with the church and weren’t averse to these matters.
Once they had distanced themselves from the battle area, Raymond looked at the map, checked against some landmarks, and sighed deeply, "Without these obstacles, according to our itinerary, we should be able to leave the dangerous area in no more than two days."
But now, any delay changed the situation, and nobody could guarantee that there wouldn’t be other obstacles on the road ahead. Along the way, they had encountered too many attacks by Black Darkness creatures, some in groups, some suddenly springing up alone.
"What’s most important now is whether we should give up this commission..." one of the Hunter-Demons in the team said.
Knowing there was an issue with the Subduing Item they were carrying, the bounty this time was higher than the last when they dealt with a vampire nest. However, after encountering a multitude of werewolves and the Night Devil, the nature of the commission had changed. Had they known what they were facing, they wouldn’t have easily agreed even if the bounty were doubled.
They had anticipated danger along the way, but they never imagined it would be so severe. A nearly extinct Night Devil had even emerged, and it was unclear what could appear next.
"Having come this far, wouldn’t it be too much of a loss to give up?" another Hunter-Demon said, "If we move at our fastest speed now, how long would it take to get through the dangerous area?"
"Even at our fastest, it will take three days. We’ve lost too much progress," John hesitated and then continued, "If we abandon the horses, we could make it one day earlier."
With the horses, they had to circumvent some places that were not passable for the horses, but without the horses, they could attempt a new route.
"Captain, what do you think?"
"..." Raymond stared at the black metal box in his hand, his face showing anger, "Abandon the horses! Having come this far, none of us would be content to give up. The best outcome would be to find the Dusk Cathedral; we need an explanation!"
John no longer hesitated and took out the map, "If we abandon the horses, we’ll have to travel these areas on foot."
Traveling on horseback they had to make a detour, but the journey on foot was nearly a straight line once the horses were abandoned.
When giving up the horses, Zheng Yichen looked at the horses that carried many of their belongings. Fortunately, this time they hadn’t brought along Katrina’s favorite white horse.
After taking what they needed and leaving the horses behind, their progress slowed considerably, but their choice of routes became more flexible. They could quickly overcome the rough terrain they encountered, and overall, their speed increased.
Along the way, they were attacked by Black Darkness creatures, but as long as they weren’t elite werewolves or Night Devil types of bosses, the difficulty wasn’t too high.
"We’re almost there!" exclaimed John, exhausted as he looked at a distant mountain, an important landmark on the map, "We’ll soon leave the danger zone."
Zheng Yichen looked at the mountain and breathed a sigh of relief. Riding horseback, though tiring, at least provided a means of transportation, and the resulting fatigue could be easily relieved. Traveling on foot was a different story, as they had to carry many things and navigate through various dangers. Two days of travel felt like a week’s journey.
The harassment from Black Darkness creatures made Zheng Yichen feel as if he had aged considerably.
John and the others had beards that looked as if they hadn’t been shaved for two months, and their hair had even turned whiter.
Suddenly, an arrow flew and pierced John’s arm.
"Damn it! It’s humans!!" John cursed angrily, having identified the source of the attack. He quickly found cover and snapped off the Crossbow Arrow in his arm.
Encountering Black Darkness creatures was expected, but an ambush from humans truly infuriated him. There was definitely something wrong with the client who commissioned this mission!
Zheng Yichen took cover behind a rock, observing the attackers who seemed to have been lying in wait. They were a small cavalry squad of over ten riders.
The moment Zheng Yichen peeked out, a crossbow bolt shot towards him. He quickly withdrew his head, and the bolt struck the rock instead. Zheng Yichen glanced at the tail end of the bolt and slightly curled his lips in disdain—crossbow bolts were no bullets, after all.
He could handle this kind of attack, but a squad of over ten riders was problematic. Zheng Yichen touched the Sword of Hell he was carrying. Raymond, hiding elsewhere, noticed Zheng Yichen’s movement. They weren’t far apart, and Raymond whispered, "I’ll cover you. Try to take those guys down and grab their horses!"
"Be careful."
Raymond nodded and gestured to the injured John and the other two Hunter-Demons. As the sound of hoofbeats drew closer, Raymond was the first to charge out, tossing two cloth bags along the way.
The bags exploded in mid-air, releasing clouds of pungent smoke. The smoke wasn’t from a smoke grenade but it interfered with the cavalry’s vision, albeit to a limited extent. As Raymond and his group charged, the cavalry began shooting arrows.
A Crossbow Arrow hit the Subduing Item on Raymond’s chest, and another bolt struck his thigh. John and the rest faced similar attacks.