Chapter 10: Bad News

“Brother Lei, my house is on the left…” Zuo Qianqian turned pale in the face after killing someone with an arrow. She twisted her small waist, straightened her body, and pressed against Lei Qing’s back, urging him on.

Lei Qing knew that saving people was like putting out a fire. Although he was shocked in his heart, he did not dare to delay. He turned his horse around and went down the small path on the left side of the village. It seemed that they were affected by the two whistling sounds from before and after. Before Lei Qing had ridden for more than a dozen zhang, several riders emerged from the slope again.

Zuo Qianqian, having steadied her mind, drew her bow and shot an arrow in her strange posture again, killing another person. Meanwhile, Lei Qing urged his horse forward. The Ice Flame in his hand was like the scythe of the reaper, harvesting the heads of the enemies.

It was only about a hundred zhang to reach Qianqian’s house, but the two of them encountered several waves of enemies, totaling seventeen or eighteen riders, among whom four were at the Black Iron-rank. Lei Qing also consumed a huge amount of Fighting Qi due to the intense combat in a short time. When he was surrounded and attacked by the last wave of cavalry, which reached six people in total, he was unfortunately slashed on the chest by a Black Iron-rank cavalryman. Fortunately, the Fighting Qi had infinite uses. As he circulated it, he sealed the wound to stop the bleeding.

After the continuous fierce battles, Lei Qing’s eyes were filled with exhaustion, and his body muscles were sore and numb beyond bearing. Although the Fighting Qi was magical, it was not infinite. In the midst of a battlefield, fighting alone against many, and with the possibility of getting hurt or dying at any moment, it was also a severe test of a person’s spirit and energy.

“Grandpa.” Zuo Qianqian, from behind, suddenly jumped off her horse. After crying out in a tragic and panicked tone, she rushed towards the dying old man who was lying beside a pile of firewood and helped him up.

Lei Qing’s pupils also tightened. With his rich experience, he could tell that the old man was probably on the verge of death, especially with that hideous axe wound on his chest, which had soaked half of his body with blood. Even a strong man in his prime would find it difficult to survive such a serious injury, let alone an old man with white hair and beard, who seemed to have no Fighting Qi aura at all. However, what made Lei Qing slightly surprised was that near the old man, there were three corpses of bandits scattered around.

Although no more enemies were bursting out in front of them, Lei Qing was still extremely cautious. He dismounted, drew the Ice Flame, and stood in front of Zuo Qianqian: “Qianqian, this place is not suitable for staying for long. Quickly help your grandpa bandage his wound. We need to leave immediately.”

Although Zuo Qianqian was capable and not arrogant, she was ultimately just a teenage girl. Sudden misfortune had made her cry in a mess, and in her panic, she had no idea what to do. But she obviously trusted Lei Qing and regarded him as her pillar of support at this critical moment. She hurriedly took out herbs and bandages, trying to treat her grandpa’s wound.

“Qianqian, you… you are still alive. Tr… this is really good.” The old man’s breath was faint, but at this moment, it seemed like a final burst of energy. There was a little rosiness gradually appearing on his face.

“Grandpa, don’t worry. Brother Lei and I will definitely save you. You won’t die.” Although Zuo Qianqian was sorrowful, she felt much more at ease with Lei Qing by her side. She wiped her tears. Her face was pale, but her hands and feet were nimble as she started to treat the wound.

“Qianqian, please… don’t waste time.” The old man struggled to stop Zuo Qianqian. He panted repeatedly and said weakly: “I… I know this wound. I can’t survive. The… under the kang, go get… hurry up.” By the end of his words, the old man seemed to be a little angry.

Zuo Qianqian naturally refused, but Lei Qing took over the bandage from her and said seriously: “Qianqian, go get the item. I’ll handle this.”

“Grandpa, you must hold on.” Zuo Qianqian panicked and rushed into the house.

Lei Qing was not unfamiliar with some first aid techniques. While helping the old man treat the wound, he sighed in his heart. Zuo Qianqian’s grandpa probably wouldn’t survive.

“Cough, cough. Young man, although I don’t know what your relationship with Qianqian is, I can see that she trusts you very much.” The old man spoke while coughing, and his complexion became a few shades rosier: “I won’t survive. I hope… I hope you can send her to her Grandma. Her Grandma is at… Wan Family Fort…”

Before he finished his words, the old man’s head tilted to the side, and his eyes closed. Lei Qing checked his pulse and shook his head with some regret. At this time, Zuo Qianqian also rushed out quickly, carrying an iron box. Seeing this scene, her little face turned pale, and she was stunned as if struck by lightning. The iron box in her hand dropped to the ground with a thud.

Just as Lei Qing was about to step forward and comfort her, his face changed. He quickly pressed his ear to the ground to sense it. While the ground was trembling with slight vibrations, some rumbling sounds came along with it.

Cavalry, a large number of cavalry.

He had killed more than twenty riders just now, which was probably already the limit. And those hoofbeats were fast and heavy, sounding like muffled thunder. Even if Lei Qing was not a professional scout, he knew that this was obviously not the momentum that a small group of cavalry could create. There were at least a hundred enemies, or even hundreds.

Even if he was in his prime, a frontal collision with this cavalry group would mean death with no chance of survival. Although he had already broken through to the High-stage Bronze, the one who could command such a large-scale cavalry would not be a weakling.

Moving as swiftly as a leopard, he leaped, lifted the grieving Zuo Qianqian, picked up the iron box with his other hand, mounted the horse at the fastest speed, and whispered sternly: “Zuo Qianqian, a large group of enemies is coming. If you don’t want your grandpa to die with regrets and want to avenge him, quickly hug my waist.”

Zuo Qianqian’s slender body trembled. A chilling killing intent emerged from her blank eyes, and she hugged Lei Qing’s waist tightly.

Lei Qing sighed with relief. At this critical moment of life and death, the most taboo thing was for a companion to suddenly become arrogant and hold him back. Zuo Qianqian’s understanding of the big picture and her not causing trouble made Lei Qing quite gratified. He stuffed the iron box into her arms, tapped his legs against the horse’s belly, and roared lowly: “Giddy up.”

The dappled nag horse, controlled by Lei Qing, neighed and dashed forward across the wet, muddy ground.

Just as Lei Qing rode out of the small village, a large group of cavalry had already approached the village from the left rear. They were a dark mass, like a formidable torrent, probably two hundred riders. Sharp-eyed ones discovered the two riders fleeing.

A whistling sound came from afar. Among the galloping cavalry, a group of dozens of riders branched off and turned, rushing obliquely towards Lei Qing’s front. Obviously, they wanted to intercept Lei Qing.

Lei Qing was not a fool who would charge head-on. Even dozens of riders were not something he could confront directly. So, he reined in his horse and galloped towards another side. He only pumped Fighting Qi into the nag horse’s legs. Stimulated by the attribute Fighting Qi, the horse was triggered to unleash its ferocity and potential, galloping wildly.

Although there were two riders on one horse, Zuo Qianqian was relatively light in weight, and the nag horse was running madly. The speed was actually not slow. It was even slightly faster than that group of cavalry.

But that group of enemy cavalry, although not appearing to be a regular army on the surface, was obviously experienced. They were not stupid enough to chase blindly behind, which would only make them fall further behind. They split into three routes, with more than ten riders in each route. The middle route continued to pursue fiercely from behind, while the left and right routes turned their horses’ heads diagonally and galloped to the sides.

Diagonally, they formed a sparse but comprehensive pursuit net, forcing Lei Qing to only gallop forward. However, the front was where the Hengduan Mountains were located. The so-called Hengduan Mountains referred to a whole range of mountains stretching for thousands of li. In reality, the environment along the foot of the mountains was very complex. There were gullies and lakes, miasma and swamps, and endless jungles that swallowed people.

At this moment, Lei Qing had just ridden the horse up to a highland. Looking far from the height, his heart sank slightly. He cursed in his heart.

……