Chapter 148: The Advantage of Primordial Power

Lian Deng didn't even need to get off his horse. He tilted his head, observed for a moment, and then said, "The army convoy came this way."

The west road had many branching paths, and the soldiers must have put in considerable effort to choose this specific route.

Further ahead, massive logs lay haphazardly by the roadside, blocking the way.

"Huh," Lian Deng bent down to examine them closely, "there are traces of something heavy being dragged on the ground. The weight is astonishing; a layer of topsoil and sand has been scraped away."

"Is it these massive logs?" He Lingchuan dismounted to inspect the giant firs. "Their cross-sections are fresh, and the sap hasn't dried yet. They were cut down less than two hours ago."

"It was clever of the soldiers to use them to block the road."

Despite this, both of them felt a bit uneasy. They realized they were already so close to the soldiers; their journey had taken less than two hours. So, where was Lu Yao?

How far was he from the soldiers?

He Lingchuan's expression was grim. "Let's go faster."

Further on, as they crested a hill, they were met with a thick, oncoming mist.

"What dense fog!" Lian Deng exclaimed, annoyed. "I can't even see the road now."

He Lingchuan glanced at him, with a puzzled look. "You can't see clearly?"

"It's almost impossible to see your hand in front of your face," Lian Deng said, puzzled. "Don't you feel it? Huh, you have a light on you."

"Light?" He Lingchuan looked down. Sure enough, a faint, hazy glow was emanating from his body.

Primal energy?

This indicated that his direct proximity to the soldiers was now very close, within the effective range of He Chunhua's command scroll.

When they had set off from Blackwater City, He Chunhua had temporarily enlisted his eldest son into the army and promoted him to lieutenant. This wasn't favoritism; it was a minor military rank. However, being officially part of the military qualified one for a primal energy bonus.

What need was there for primal energy here? To He Lingchuan, only a very thin layer of mist drifted through the mountain forest, which didn't obstruct his vision at all.

No sooner had he thought this than Lian Deng started walking towards the mountain forest on the right. He Lingchuan grabbed him. "What are you doing?"

Lian Deng looked bewildered. "Walking, of course."

"The road is here," He Lingchuan said, pointing ahead. "Where are you going?"

"Isn't that a cave?"

He Lingchuan understood. "Come with me. I don't know what formation my father set up, but only with primal energy enhancement can one see the way clearly."

Lian Deng had no choice but to comply obediently, gasping in surprise as they walked:

"My goodness," he exclaimed, "aren't we just walking straight into trees?"

But then they passed right through.

Although Wu Shaoyi intended to pledge allegiance to the royal court, he hadn't yet met He Chunhua and hadn't officially become part of the regular army. Thus, Wu Shaoyi and his men couldn't benefit from the primal energy enhancement. To Lian Deng, He Lingchuan was leading him to either run into trees or walk through mountains. Sometimes, even more disturbingly, they would head straight towards a cliff, where white clouds drifted below, making his heart pound.

Yet, they both passed through without any problems.

"It's great to have primal energy enhancement," Lian Deng sighed, missing the days when he, too, could benefit from it.

As they walked, He Lingchuan suddenly stopped, letting out a soft exclamation.

"What's wrong?" To Lian Deng, they were about to walk into a mountain wall.

"I see Lu Yao, on the mountain path directly across the gorge," He Lingchuan said gravely. "Pei Xinyong is with him, followed by a large contingent of men, at least seventeen or eighteen hundred."

He kept his voice low. In this "ji"-shaped terrain, sound easily reverberated through the valleys.

He and the bandit army on the opposite side were like the two opposing strokes of the Chinese character "几" (jǐ); and though a deep gorge separated them, their line of sight was unobstructed.

At least for He Lingchuan, this was the case; he could clearly see every single person on the opposite mountain path.

Lian Deng whispered, "Are they also going in circles?"

"No!" He Lingchuan observed for a moment before replying. "They are on the right path, not taking a roundabout way, and not going in circles."

Lian Deng said, perplexed. "That's not right, is it? We're all insurgent forces; I'm being misled, but Lu Yao isn't? What kind of justice is that?"

He Lingchuan sneered. "He's holding a strip of cloth, and the other end is up in the sky... Hmm, I see that kestrel. It's flying above, leading them out of the mist."

Lian Deng's eyes widened in understanding. "Of course! A raptor flying high above won't be fooled by the formation!"

If the kestrel could see through it, then the formation naturally couldn't trap Lu Yao.

What should they do?

"Can you shoot it down from this distance?"

Lian Deng shook his head decisively. "Too far. If it were closer, it might be possible. Uh, my archery isn't particularly remarkable, actually."

He Lingchuan gave him a look of disdain. Was that a polite way of saying "terrible"?

*I gave you a chance, and you couldn't deliver!*

"There's a small path nearby. Let's get closer first, then figure something out." The soldiers' group was moving slowly. At this rate, the bandits would catch up to them sooner or later.

They spurred their horses to a faster pace, circling around the massive "ji"-shaped gorge. About a hundred zhang (333 meters) behind the bandits, another small path led deeper into the mountains.

The path was uneven and overgrown with thick branches. After barely half a li (250 meters), their horses could go no further.

He Lingchuan and Lian Deng had no choice but to dismount and proceed on foot.

They were now running through the woods halfway up the mountain, moving almost parallel to the rebel army. Their elevation was about four or five zhang (13-16 meters) higher than the rebels'.

The reason they didn't climb to the ridge was that it was bare, making it difficult to hide from the kestrel's sharp eyesight.

"There's a chance!" Although Lu Yao and his men were proceeding on horseback, the kestrel's guiding direction constantly shifted, so they didn't dare to gallop. After all, the terrain was complicated.

With one guide in the sky and the group on the ground, the common problem was that the roadside trees were too tall, and the cloth strip would occasionally snag on the treetops...

Whenever this happened, the kestrel had to adjust its flight path to untangle the cloth strip and then resume leading. Otherwise, it would lead its master astray.

He Lingchuan quietly explained the situation to Lian Deng, then said, "At that point, it has to fly lower. We can exploit that. We're closer to the treetops here. Can you hit it within eight zhang (26 meters)?"

He was actually overestimating at eight zhang; the treetops ahead were at most six zhang (nineteen meters) high.

"Yes!" Lian Deng was confident now. "I could hit it even with a slingshot!"

"Alright, keep up."

The two quietly trailed alongside the bandit army, using the dense tree canopy for cover, while they waited for an opportunity.

Heaven was truly generous to He Lingchuan.

Half an incense stick's time (about 15 minutes) later, the opportunity arose.

This time, the cloth strip accidentally got caught on a massive camphor tree.

It was too large for the kestrel to easily avoid.

Lu Yao saw the cloth strip was firmly snagged. He tugged it twice but it didn't budge, so he whistled to alert the kestrel above.

The kestrel heard the whistle and descended, preparing to maneuver around the branch and pull the cloth strip free.

If it couldn't free it, the bandits would have to climb the tree themselves to untie the cloth. This had happened once before, so Lu Yao had also reminded the kestrel to be extra careful.

For He Lingchuan and Lian Deng, who were positioned on the mountainside, some three or four zhang (10-13 meters) above the bandits, this moment was a godsend.

Not hitting it would be an insult to themselves.

Seeing the kestrel fold its wings and descend, darting towards the treetop, He Lingchuan's voice was barely a whisper: "Quick!"

They were too close to the bandit army. If Lu Yao and his men discovered them, they really weren't confident they could escape.

Having run all the way here, Lian Deng, without pausing to catch his breath, took a deep one. He unslung his bow from his back, nocked an arrow, and aimed. With a faint "swish," he fired!

Success or failure hinged on this one arrow.

The arrow's whoosh was very faint, but the kestrel was incredibly sharp. Before the arrow even touched it, it slightly spread its wings, twisted its body, and incredibly, narrowly dodged it!

The arrow flew so close it practically grazed its belly.

However, a miss was a miss.

Both their hearts sank instantly.

"This is bad," he thought. Not only had they missed their target, but the kestrel would now give a warning. If seventeen or eighteen hundred bandits below ganged up on the two of them, they'd be in for it.

*Useless! Useless, useless, useless!* He Lingchuan cursed inwardly. He saw the kestrel, after its flip, turn its head, looking directly at their hiding spot. Its sharp beak opened, ready to cry out.

*No, I have to silence it!* He instinctively drew the broken dagger from his waist and flung it with all his might.

Although the dagger flew swiftly, its trajectory was erratic, tracing an arc in mid-air. It even flew past the kestrel, behind its back. Of course, the kestrel didn't pay it any mind.

To their surprise, the dagger inexplicably curved back, circling around again.

The kestrel turned to dodge, but it was too late.

The two saw a spray of blood mist burst in mid-air. The kestrel let out a sharp cry, and plummeted straight down!

"That... that worked?"

Both of them were stunned.

He Lingchuan instinctively gaped, looking at his right hand.

The hand of a god.

"Run!" Lian Deng had no time to give him a thumbs-up. He grabbed He Lingchuan's arm and pulled him forward. "Let's go, or we'll be mincemeat!"

Without a word, they sprinted towards the mountain ridge, initiating a desperate dash.

Naturally, He Lingchuan led the way, with Lian Deng close behind. The dense mist was their best cover; once they were far enough, they would be safe.

The bandit army below also realized something was amiss. Lu Yao took a few steps forward and caught the kestrel. He saw half of its wing was gone, and a long, deep gash on its belly, revealing its internal organs. But he couldn't tell what weapon had caused it.

Was it an arrow? It didn't look like it.

Heartbroken and furious, he pointed straight ahead. "Someone's over there!"

The bandit forces charged forward.

Pei Xinyong, however, pointed to the right and said gravely, "I heard footsteps over there, and falling stones."

"Within this formation, even our hearing might be distorted!" Lu Yao, despite his anger, still had his wits about him. He said without hesitation, "Split up and pursue! Watch your step!"

Without further discussion, each of them grabbed an end of the cloth strip. They led their respective subordinates, one group straight ahead, the other to the right, in pursuit.

They both understood clearly: the kestrel was severely injured and on the ground, no longer able to guide them. Their only option now was to capture their attackers and force them to show the way; only then would the bandits have a chance to escape the mist.

Only a scout from the regular army could have injured the kestrel in such dense mist.

Meanwhile, as He Lingchuan ran along the ridge, Lian Deng, running alongside him, said, "Chuan Ge'er, why didn't you show off your amazing throwing knife skill earlier? Did you have to wait for me to make a fool of myself?"

He Lingchuan gave a dry chuckle. "I've never practiced it," he said. "I just threw it blindly." He hadn't given it much thought at the time.

Lian Deng's face wrinkled in disbelief. If he could throw so accurately by just blindly throwing, how humiliating was that for someone like him who actually practiced?

He Lingchuan then recalled the arc traced by the broken dagger, which was both graceful and bizarre. It had delivered a direct back attack to the kestrel from behind.