Chapter 131: Endurance Battle in the Darkness

Lu Yao, of course, understood that He Lingchuan and his companions intended to slow down their pursuers. He never truly believed that a mere short stretch of icy road could halt a determined band of bandits.

Once everyone had crossed the frozen path, Lu Yao waved his hand and commanded, "Pursue!"

At that moment, a bandit timidly raised his hand. "General," he stammered, "the horses... the horses didn't make it up!"

How could two legs possibly catch up to four?

Lu Yao glared. "What are you waiting for? Lead them up!"

The bandits had no choice but to retrace their steps and retrieve the horses.

This, however, presented a new problem:

While a person could climb by stepping into the ice holes, a horse could not. The ice was too slippery, with only a few small indentations offering any purchase. Horses, unlike people, hadn't been specially trained, and their footing was far less nimble. Their long, slender legs slid across the ice, sometimes finding a foothold in a hole, sometimes not—it was entirely up to chance.

Growing anxious, the bandits lashed out with their whips. Two horses, unable to bear the pain, frantically pawed upwards. Instead, they missed their footing and slipped. With a sudden slide, they dragged the bandit behind them over the edge of the cliff. Human cries and horse whinnies echoed, ending abruptly at the base of the cliff.

The bandits' scalps tingled with dread, and they could only turn to Lu Yao. If the horses couldn't move, how were they supposed to pursue? Lu Yao roared in frustration, then bellowed, "Why are you all just standing there stunned? Dig! Dig a path for me!"

A path wide enough for horses to walk!

Fortunately, the village had shovels and hoes, which proved far more effective for chipping away at the ice than knives or axes. By the time three impossibly thick layers of solid ice had been chipped away from the road, allowing the horses to trot along, nearly another hour had passed since He Lingchuan and his group made their escape!

It had taken almost as long as breaking through the triple chariot formation! Lu Yao shivered with cold fury, a thought recurring in his mind more than once:

Had that scoundrel He calculated this all along?

Dying so cleanly was far too easy for him!

The bandits, panting, dropped their tools. Ignoring their aching limbs, they quickly mounted their horses at Lu Yao's urging and began to pursue along the road. By this point, the sun was almost directly overhead. Some stomachs rumbled, as no one had eaten or drunk anything since dinner the previous night. They were starving. They truly regretted not having snagged some flatbreads from the village. But seeing General Lu's livid face, no one dared to utter a sound.

Just as they galloped past a small grove, Lu Yao suddenly roared, "Who's there?"

Before the words fully left his mouth, an axe flew. The flying axe struck, and amidst the sound of snapping branches, someone tumbled from the tree, landing with a broken leg.

Lu Yao went over to look and grunted, "Aren't you Old Pei's scout?"

The man wailed pitifully, "General Lu, spare my life."

"Where is Old Pei?"

The man stammered, too afraid to speak. Lu Yao swiftly decapitated him with a single stroke, then ordered his men to search the body. There was nothing useful to be found.

Just then, a rustling sound came from the woods, and something flew out, striking the deceased man. The bandits looked closer and saw it was a mechanical wooden bird. Lu Yao, however, was quite familiar with this type of wooden bird. He opened its belly, pulled out a scroll of paper, and read it. Then he sneered, "That Pei fellow wanted him to continue monitoring my movements, eh!"

***

"Splash!" Something thrashed in the water, sending spray in all directions.

Then, to He Lingchuan's surprise, he heard someone cough. The series of coughs sounded like someone choking on water—urgent, gasping, and raspy. He Lingchuan had sustained many injuries himself over the past two months and had witnessed countless others. He could tell, just by the sound, that the person had at least sustained a lung injury. Moments later, he detected the scent of blood.

Below, there was also a strange sound, like someone exhaling with effort:

"Hah-hah, hah-hah..."

He Lingchuan held his breath, quietly observing.

The coughing suddenly ceased. A full forty to fifty breaths passed. He Lingchuan was starting to think the person had left when the water began to churn again. Something struck the rocks with a powerful crackling sound.

Soon, the coughing resumed. This time, the person coughed even more violently, as if they had just emerged from the water. And then, with great difficulty, he uttered two words:

"Filthy beast!"

The voice sounded vaguely familiar. He Lingchuan felt he had heard it recently. Very recently. Was it within the last couple of days, or just a few hours ago? A flash of realization crossed his mind, and He Lingchuan gasped softly, "Wu Shaoyi?"

His voice wasn't loud; it should have been drowned out by the sound of the water. Yet, to his surprise, the person below heard him perfectly and suddenly cried out, "Who, who's there? Quickly, save me!"

When He Lingchuan uttered the name, he was already somewhat certain. Hearing the plea for help, he also guessed that the man posed no threat to him. So, he tore off a strip of cloth, lit it with a fire starter, and tossed it down. The burning cloth fluttered downwards, landed on the water, flickered twice, and went out.

But even with that fleeting light, He Lingchuan managed to get a limited view of what was below—

He didn't see Wu Shaoyi himself, but instead, a body covered in dark, glistening scales! Three rows of sharp hooks were tightly arranged along the scales, polished to a dark sheen by the splashing water. The burning cloth seemed to have landed near the creature's head, startling it. It thrashed its head, churning the lake water into a violent spray. He Lingchuan thought he even caught a glimpse of a pair of glowing green eyes.

"Hss—" He sucked in a sharp breath. It was indeed that colossal creature—

The Crocodile King.

Earlier, Wu Shaoyi had been ambushed by the giant crocodile by the lake, and both had disappeared. Everyone else assumed the Crocodile King had simply dragged him off for a meal. Who would have thought it had brought Wu Shaoyi here?

"General Wu?" He Lingchuan asked tentatively. "Where are you?"

When he raised his voice, an echo confirmed that the cavern was a large, empty space.

"In... in the Crocodile God's mouth!" Wu Shaoyi immediately replied. "I'm using my long spear to prop open its lower jaw! You... you come down and help..."

He was cut off before he could finish. He Lingchuan guessed the giant crocodile had pulled him back underwater. The man below was the rebel leader. Should he help him or not? If he didn't help, could he escape on his own? He'd ask him next time.

Soon enough, "next time" arrived. Wu Shaoyi surfaced again with the crocodile's mouth. He Lingchuan seized the moment of its struggle to ask, "Where's the exit? How do I get out?"

"You can't get out, there are more outside..." Wu Shaoyi accidentally choked on lake water. "...Other crocodiles!" He quickly added, "Help me, and I have a way! Trust me!"

He Lingchuan didn't believe him. "Do you even know who I am?"

"Anyone! Even that son of a bitch Lu Yao will do!" Wu Shaoyi screamed. "This is a crocodile nest; there's no other way out! If you don't help me, we'll both die here!"

He Lingchuan thought for a moment, then tore off a large section of his own sleeve and threw two more lit strips of cloth down. The giant crocodile happened to roll sideways into the water. Using the flickering light, he finally caught sight of Wu Shaoyi. The man was indeed half-reclining inside the crocodile's mouth, his long spear firmly wedged between the creature's upper and lower jaws. He himself had to cling desperately to the spear shaft to avoid being flung out by the violent thrashing.