Chapter 130: False Experience Kills People

The horse neighed in distress, stumbled mid-gallop, and went careening off the cliff!

His treasured steed, a piebald beast he wouldn't trade for a fortune, capable of covering a thousand miles a day, was gone just like that.

He Lingchuan seemed to have a sudden realization.

That thing had targeted his lower back. No matter how a rider dodged on horseback, their waist and buttocks generally remained still. If he hadn't had a sudden stroke of intuition and jumped off the horse, he would probably be the one now exploded into a bloody mist.

But now... he would likely be smashed into a pulp, which wouldn't be much better than exploding into a bloody mist, would it?

He Lingchuan also heard the surprised cries of Maotao and others from the cliff top, while the wind howled in his ears as he fell faster and faster.

The cliff face was completely bare, not even a single tree!

Below, there was a slightly protruding rock face. He Lingchuan gritted his teeth, drew his long saber, aimed for a crack in the rock, and plunged it in with force.

In movies, this trick always worked.

With a clang, the long saber snapped cleanly in two, right at the hilt.

Was it all a lie?!

Fortunately, he had another knife.

At least one more try.

He Lingchuan pulled out the broken blade and thrust it into the next crack in the rock.

It went in!

The hard rock face was gouged open, leaving a long blade mark.

There were no sparks, but it felt as satisfying as sawing through a hard loaf of bread.

With the knife slowing his fall, He Lingchuan slid down another several yards and finally came to a stop.

Below him were jagged, crisscrossing rocks extending out over the lake. If he had fallen directly from the cliff, he would probably have been smashed to pieces here. At least, that's what happened to the horse he saw fall earlier.

He hadn't reached the lake surface yet, but directly ahead, there was an irregular small hole, or rather a gap, in the mountain wall, and a cool breeze blew from it onto his face.

What now? He Lingchuan wasn't sure if he could climb back up the cliff. Besides, Lu Yao would certainly bring people to pursue him, so climbing up right away might not be a good idea.

As he hesitated, that familiar chill returned.

This time, it came from directly above him.

The thing that had just shattered the shield and killed his steed had targeted him again.

He Lingchuan cursed under his breath, pulled out his broken knife, and jumped into the small cave directly in front of him.

Inside, it was even narrower. He hit his head on the rock wall, bleeding and getting a bump.

But he had made it inside.

As soon as he pulled in his legs, the white shadow swooped past the cave entrance with a whoosh, scorching the soles of his feet.

What in the world was that thing?!

Calls from Maotao and others seemed to echo from above, but He Lingchuan didn't dare to peek out or even pause. Seeing that the fissure ahead was quite deep, he quickly scrambled further in, using both hands and feet.

After only a few steps, there was a tremendous crashing sound from outside, as if there had been a rockfall.

It turned out that the rocks on the mountain side had already weathered, and with the impact from He Lingchuan's steed, a large section had suddenly collapsed.

As fate would have it, two large pieces of falling rock landed precisely there, blocking the crevice he had entered.

The crevice was winding and difficult to navigate, and it was pitch black, with even two forks. He Lingchuan didn't hesitate, choosing to advance in the direction from which the wind came.

At this moment, his mind was still clear; he knew that where the wind blew, there was a way out.

After crawling for a while longer, his divine bone necklace suddenly grew warm.

What was ahead?

It was pitch black all around, and he couldn't see anything. But He Lingchuan remained cautious, slowing his climb.

A moment later, the space ahead suddenly opened up, and his left hand found nothing to grip.

Fortunately, his heightened vigilance prevented him from falling.

Below... it was empty.

At the very least, the space was large, and he could hear the sound of water.

The wind was indeed blowing up from below.

This meant that this part of the mountain contained a cave or fissure connected to the lake.

He Lingchuan breathed a sigh of relief; perhaps he could find a way out from here.

What now? Jump down?

From the sound, he wasn't far from the water's surface, at most a few yards.

He Lingchuan leaned forward, about to jump down, when he heard another strange movement from below.

***

He Lingchuan's sudden accident caught the other officers off guard.

By the time Maotao and the others turned around, Young Master He had already plunged off the cliff, horse and all.

The horse's death cry was exceptionally piercing, yet few heard He Lingchuan's own shouts.

Zhao Qinghe was scared senseless. He immediately reined in his horse and rushed to the cliff edge to look down.

Below, it was empty. A protruding giant rock blocked his view, preventing him from seeing the bottom of the cliff.

But... it didn't look good.

He searched around and soon spotted the horse's carcass lying on the pile of jagged rocks, its blood staining the lake red.

Maotao also dismounted and hurried to the cliff edge. He looked down and exclaimed, "Oh dear, Young Master!"

Zhao Qinghe quickly asked, "Where is he?"

"I, I don't see him," Maotao said, craning his neck. "Could he be pinned under the horse?"

"..." Zhao Qinghe grabbed a coil of rope. "I'll go down and check."

"I'll go! I'm thinner than you, more agile," Maotao snatched the rope, tied it around his waist, and secured the other end to the saddle. He then slid down the cliff face, his movements indeed nimble.

The mountain bandits also noticed the situation here and began firing arrows. Zhao Qinghe called out to his men to form a defensive line: "Protect the horses!"

A moment later, he shouted down the cliff, "Did you find him?"

The first few times, Maotao replied "No," but as he slid too deep, his voice became indistinct, so he resorted to signaling by pulling the rope.

Zhao Qinghe and the others struggled to pull him back up.

As soon as Maotao climbed up, he said, "There are knife marks on the cliff face, but I didn't see the Young Master!"

Everyone's spirits sank.

Just then, with a loud clang, the last barrier of carts was forcibly broken open, and the bandits charged forward.

The first two charged too quickly, slipped, and fell.

The rest tested the ice surface; it was solid but very slippery.

However, they were now only fifteen to twenty meters away from the officers. Forget arrows; those with strong arms could even throw axes to reach them.

How could they rescue anyone under these conditions?

A soldier said anxiously, "We have to go. We can come back when it's safe later..."

He couldn't finish his sentence. Come back to retrieve a corpse?

Zhao Qinghe looked at the bottom of the cliff, then at the yelling bandits, knowing there was no other option. He ordered everyone to mount their horses.

Finally able to retreat, the officers spurred their horses, wishing their steeds had two more legs.

Watching the officers ride off into the distance, Lu Yao looked at the ice-covered path, fifteen to twenty meters away, and sneered, "Petty trick. Do you think this can stop us?" With that, he swung his axe and smashed it hard onto the ice.

With a crack, an ice hole appeared.

He just needed to carve out two more, and they could step across.

Other bandits followed suit. For a moment, the ice was filled with the clinking and clanking sounds of ice being chipped.

In fact, some of the mountain bandits possessed magic, but a small fireball would just fizzle out upon hitting the ice, leaving only a shallow mark.

The ice, solidified using elemental energy, was incredibly hard and durable, making it difficult for ordinary magic to affect.

Although it was an uphill path and their progress was slow, having footholds to step on, everyone eventually made their way up, one hole and one step at a time.