"Is there a matter, Brother Chen?" Zhou Mei asked when she noticed the frown on his face.

"Oh, it's nothing. Something just got inside my eye," Yi Chen said while rubbing his eye with his finger.

"I hate it when that happens…No, I hate bugs in general!" Zhou Mei declared with disgust apparent in her voice.

"They indeed are hateful creatures," Yi Chen nodded as he eyed the person from the corner of his eye while they were making their way back to the Inn.

After a while, it became clear that this person had no intention of attacking at the moment and was only observing them.

'Looks like they'll be attacking tonight,' Yi Chen thought to himself as they safely entered the Inn with Zhou Mei.

A while after they had finished their dinner, Yi Chen approached the two guards who had planned to guard Zhou Mei's door tonight in shifts.

"Greetings, Young Master," The two of them bowed with respect and gratitude apparent in their voice.

"Yes," Yi Chen nodded at their greetings and continued, "I'll be standing guard outside her door tonight, and the two of you can go to the room and rest a little."

"Young Master, this…" They showed an uncomfortable expression and wanted to refuse.

"I've already talked with Guard Bai, so you can relax," Yi Chen added.

"Yes, Young Master." Hearing this, the two of them nodded and went to their room.

'It would be troublesome for our journey if they get injured by getting caught in the attack,' Yi Chen thought to himself.

They were the only ones, apart from Guard Bai, who knew how to handle those first-grade horses.

With Guard Bai severely injured, if they too get injured, then it would definitely delay the journey.

With this thought, he turned towards Zhou Mei's door and knocked.

"Brother Chen?" Zhou Mei soon opened the door and asked inquisitively.

She was in her regular night robes and was just getting ready to sleep.

"I'll be standing guard outside your door tonight, so don't close the door from inside. If there's anything you need, you can call me," Yi Chen told her.

"Thank you, Brother Chen," A grateful expression formed on Zhou Mei's face when she heard him.

"Just doing what I promised." Yi Chen said with a smile.

"Still…you have my gratitude, Brother Chen," Zhou Mei bowed her head lightly towards him.

Knowing that he would be standing outside her door made her feel at ease.

"Then, good night," Yi Chen responded with a nod and seeing this, Zhou Mei too reciprocated and went back inside her room.

With this, Yi Chen sat cross-legged on the floor outside her door with his sword resting on his lap.

It would be more practical to stay inside her room so that he could prevent any sudden attacks immediately, but Yi Chen didn't want to make Zhou Mei panic needlessly.

'Although she's hiding it well, she must be worried. It's only natural when there are people who are after your life.

I won't be taking even a wink throughout the night, so even with being outside, I can still take care of intruders at a moment's notice.'

Yi Chen thought to himself. He had full confidence in his hearing ability, which he had honed after several encounters with bandits and thugs.

Time passed gradually, and it was soon nearing half past two in the morning.

Occasional snores could be heard from the nearby rooms, but Yi Chen's focus was entirely on the room behind his back.

Bang!

A loud noise alerted Yi Chen the very next moment, and without a second thought, he pushed open the door.

A burly-looking man smashed through the room's window and was currently standing motionless inside the room.

His eyes first fell upon Zhou Mei, who was sitting with her legs curled up on one corner of her bed.

Her whole body was shivering with fright as she looked towards Yi Chen, who had just rushed in.

"B-Brother Chen…s-save me…" Zhou Mei's trembling voice reached Yi Chen.

Just at that moment, both Yi Chen and the burly man's eyes met for the first time.

While the burly man was looking towards Yi Chen with interest in his eyes, Yi Chen was looking at his status panel with a hint of excitement.

It wasn't that he wasn't afraid. It was just that he had learned to make his fear feel like excitement.

"Such a young man dares to block my way? Even that Fifth Meridian Refinement guard with his legs broken would pose more hindrance to me than a chick like you," the burly-looking man snorted.

Unlike Guard Bai, who was in his early thirties, Yi Chen was a young adult. So, such a statement was only normal.

"Cut the crap and fight me," Yi Chen said as he pulled out his sword.

The burly man in front of him was at the Fifth Level of [Meridian Refinement Stage], just like the bandit leader from earlier.

Earlier, Yi Chen was able to win easily because of a sneak attack, but now that the situation was different, he didn't dare to take it easy.

"Are you taking me lightly, boy?" the man glared, and the very next moment, his right fist was laced with a red Qi.

"Eat this!" The next instant, the man rushed towards Yi Chen, ready to strike his face to smithereens.

Seeing this attack, Yi Chen immediately dodged it using his leg strength.

Boom!

The wall behind him was broken through and disintegrated to dust the next moment.

'!!!'

Yi Chen couldn't help but hold his breath when he saw this scene.

'It was the right call to dodge it,' he thought to himself.

Tightening his grip on his sword, he rushed towards the man's neck to land a fatal strike.

'The quicker I end this, the safer it would be,' he thought while clenching his teeth.

However, the burly man was fast enough to anticipate it, and the next moment, the sword and the Qi-laced fists met!

Boom!

Chik!

The two of them rebounded a few steps back because of the force. A serious expression on both their faces.

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