Xiao Youran felt a little relieved and looked around. Sure enough, they were in a forest. Fortunately, the forest wasn't dense, and the path was quite wide. She then asked, "How many Westerners are behind us?"

"We don't know yet. We only saw flames coming up the mountain. The guards at the foot of the mountain gave us a signal, so we came out immediately."

Yun Laoqi's voice rang out from behind again, "Hurry up! The Westerners are coming! Survival is the priority! With this grain, can you really move fast?!"

Xiao Youran was very worried. Yunjia Village and Zhaojia Village together had four or five hundred people, half of whom were old, weak, sick and disabled. It was dark and they could not escape the lightly armed and strong Westerners.

Moreover, isn't the western end of this deep forest the even steeper Western Mountain?

That was a place no one had ever set foot in, there wasn't even a road, it was probably even more difficult to travel.

Thinking of this, she patted Song Er and said, "Carry me out of the woods."

Mrs. Su was startled, "Little Ranbao?!"

Xiao Youran said, "Mother, we can't leave that cave. We have to go back!"

"Why?!"

“Although this is a forest that can block the Westerners’ view, have you considered that if they set a fire, this coal mine will immediately catch fire, and the entire forest will be burned down? Wouldn’t we become roasted pigs in there?”

Those who could only walk by the moonlight stopped in their tracks, looking at Xiao Youran with fear and astonishment.

The people behind urged, "Hurry up, you're blocking the road!"

Little Youran called out in a clear voice, "I'm not going anywhere! Let's go back to the cave!"

The group immediately erupted into chaos. "What? Going back to the cave means we'll be caught red-handed by the Westerners?"

The guards leading the way stopped, but then a terrified shout came from behind, "Hurry, hurry! The Westerners are coming!"

The line began to stir again as it moved forward.

Xiao Youran sighed. Seeing that it was too late to go back to the cave, she could only pat Song Er on the shoulder and say, "Take me to the side and let the villagers go first."

Su immediately moved to the side, using the moonlight to see where she was stepping on a stone. Once she was firmly on her feet, she anxiously asked Xiao Youran, "Little Ranbao! What are you doing?!"

Xiao Youran said to the guards protecting the Yun family, "Mother, I know what I'm doing! You all go first, and wait for me in a clearing once you're in the woods!"

"What can you do as a child? The priority now is to escape!"

“Mother, I am Master Wuwang’s disciple! I don’t have the chance to fight in battles, but if I can put what my master taught me into practice, I can hold off the Western barbarians for as long as I can! Don’t worry, Mother, I will be fine!”

Tears welled in Madam Su's eyes, but she knew she couldn't be a burden to her daughter at this moment, so she pushed the guards beside her forward, saying, "You go and protect Xiao Ranbao! We'll go with the villagers; we don't need guards!"

Madam Yun called out from the front, "Little one, put me down and go help Xiao Youran!"

They all clearly knew that Xiao Youran was about to do something big again.

Although they were worried about Xiao Youran's safety, there were hundreds of lives on this mountain, which was no joke.

Xiao Youran hurriedly shouted, "Song Da, you carry my great-aunt on your back! The rest of you who can fight, follow me to cover the rear! The old, weak, women and children go first! Be quick!"

Some young people, upon hearing this, quietly stepped aside, letting the women and children go first.

Besides the few guards leading the way, the remaining dozen or so guards also slowly moved against the flow, carrying Xiao Youran to the back of the group.

Soon, they saw Yun Laoqi at the edge of the forest, pushing a few old women forward, while Uncle Dashan and a few young men brought up the rear.

Torches were already rising from the foot of the mountain below, winding their way up.

Upon seeing Xiao Youran return with her guards, Yun Laoqi was shocked. "Xiao Youran, why are you back again?!"

Xiao Youran smiled and said, "Grandpa Chief, don't worry about it. Hurry up and follow me. Let's find a well-ventilated place with water in the woods and settle down first. This mountain path is difficult to walk in the dark, so be careful not to fall."

Yun Laoqi glanced at the dozen or so guards behind her, as well as the dozens of young people who had spontaneously followed, and his eyes immediately welled up with tears. "Alright, alright, I'm too old to get involved in the affairs of the young people. You can handle the rearguard!"

“That’s exactly right!” Xiao You nodded.

Uncle Dashan disagreed, saying, "Little Youran, if you're not worried, you can leave these guards to me. You're just a child, so you should go with them first!"

Xiao Youran patted Song Er's shoulder, "Put me down."

Then she pushed Yun Laoqi towards the woods, saying, "You guys go quickly, don't worry, we'll all be fine!"

Yun Laoqi kept turning back to look at himself as he went, saying, "You all must come safely and reunite with us!"

After seeing them off, Xiao Youran looked around and immediately said, "Uncle Dashan, divide the men into four groups. Two groups will guard this mountain path on the left and right, while the other two groups will go to the opposite mountain path and prepare some handy stones. Remember, they must wait for my order before they can make a move."

Da Shan immediately made the arrangements.

Torchlight was already shining in, and the voices of the Westerners could be heard, clearly very excited.

Unfortunately, they were speaking a Western language, and Xiao Youran couldn't understand a single word.

But judging from their excited tone, one could guess that they must have discovered cooking utensils, buckets, and other items in the pit, and knew that many people and a lot of food were hidden on the mountain.

Xiao You Ran gestured to her dozen or so guards to prepare their arrows.

Soon the Westerners approached the forest, carrying torches and swords.

Da Shan and a dozen other young men nervously stared at the newcomer, holding stones, waiting for Xiao Youran to give the order.

The Westerners, laughing and joking, numbered about twenty or thirty, as they came up the mountain path, which was narrow enough for only three people to walk side by side.

Suddenly, a stone flew out from the side, and one of the Western soldiers shouted and rushed in that direction.

A young man was dragged out, and two Westerners immediately rushed forward with their knives.

Several able-bodied men who were nearby were also discovered, but before they could rush to their aid, they were immediately surrounded by the Westerners.

The group only had brute strength and quickly fell into a disadvantageous position. Fortunately, the mountain path was narrow, and only three Westerners and villagers were locked in combat, while the rest of the Westerners were blocked behind them.

The guards looked anxiously at Xiao Youran, waiting for her to give the order.

But then, Xiao Youran put her index finger between her lips and whistled.

With a few fierce howls, three small lynxes leaped out of the forest and pounced on the Westerners.

The Westerners were blocked at the crossroads and suddenly attacked by lynxes, so they had no choice but to release the villagers.

The villagers quickly scrambled back into the woods, leaving three wildcats to block the Westerners at the mountain pass.

A large knife flew from behind, forcing the three lynxes to retreat. The Westerners then moved from the mountain path to the open space.

Immediately, twenty or thirty Westerners stood in front of Lin Zi.