Chapter 118 Finding Ye Xunqin

After being attacked repeatedly, the team lost several members, and most of the remaining members were injured, so morale was inevitably low.

The Blackwater Marsh is like a huge, living labyrinth, not only devouring life but also eroding people's will.

The thick fog seemed endless, and the road beneath our feet became increasingly difficult to traverse.

After wading through waist-deep sewage, the compass completely failed, and Arno could only rely on his vague memory of the terrain and Lou Jin's exceptional sense of direction to barely discern his location.

"This can't go on," Ye Xunyang said in a low voice, wiping the mud off his face and panting.

"Your Highness, our rations and water are running low, and our medicine is also dwindling. If we don't find Second Brother or a way out soon, we might..."

Lou Jin was well aware of the dire situation. He looked around and saw nothing but fog, as if they were the only lone army left in the world.

"Hold on a little longer. Based on Miss Nuo's assessment and the traces we found earlier, we should be approaching the core area of ​​the Blackwater Marsh."

Arno crouched down, carefully examining some blurry marks on the muddy ground that had almost been washed away by the rain, and then looked up to sniff the air.

"The composition of the miasma here is changing, carrying a hint of blood and the smell of burnt herbs. Someone has been here, and not for long."

This news cheered everyone up.

"Can you tell which way is which?" Lou Jin asked.

Arno closed her eyes, focusing intently on sensing the faint flow of energy in the air. After a moment, she pointed to a narrow waterway hidden by dense vines to her left: "Over there, the energy seems to be coming from that direction. But the waterway is narrow; there might be an ambush."

One of the wounded guards gritted his teeth and said, "Master, let me go scout ahead!"

Lou Jin pressed him down: "You're injured, stay here."

He looked at the misty mountains.

"Mist Mountain, take two skilled fighters and carefully investigate. If anything seems amiss, retreat immediately and do not linger in battle."

"yes!"

Wushan accepted the order and, with two bodyguards, silently slipped into the dark waterway.

Everyone held their breath and waited anxiously outside.

Time passed slowly, and the thick fog above the waterway drifted gently, creating an eerie silence.

Ye Xunyang's palms were sweaty, and Lou Jin's gaze became even sharper.

Suddenly, a short bird call came from deep within the waterway; it was a safety signal from Misty Mountain.

"Safe, let's go!" Lou Jin immediately ordered.

The group entered the waterway one by one.

The waterway was extremely narrow, allowing only one person to pass by bending over. On both sides were slippery, sticky rock walls, and underfoot was icy, bone-chilling sewage.

In the darkness, all that could be heard were their heavy breathing and the sound of flowing water.

After traveling for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a faint light appeared ahead, and the waterway began to widen.

When the last person stepped out of the waterway, the sight before them stunned everyone.

They seemed to have arrived at a secluded valley, isolated from the outside world.

The fog in the valley thinned slightly, and although it was still gloomy, the general outline could be seen.

In the center of the valley, there was a small, relatively dry highland. On the highland, a few makeshift shacks were built with branches and tattered tarpaulins, and there were figures moving about.

"Be on guard!" Lou Jin shouted, and everyone immediately went into battle mode.

The people above also noticed them, causing a commotion. Several burly men, armed with simple weapons, quickly gathered together and looked over warily.

"Your Highness! Your Highness! It's Your Highness who has come to save us!"

Lou Jin then recognized that these people were from the Dark Guard Camp.

"General Ye, the Prince has come to rescue us."

As they were talking, a man with bandages wrapped around his neck and limping walked out of the camp.

"Second brother?" Ye Xunyang looked at the man, who was pale and thin, covered in dust, but it was indeed his second brother, Ye Xunqin.

"Xunyang? How...how did you find this place?"

The brothers reunited, as if a lifetime had passed.

Ye Xunyang rushed forward and hugged his brother tightly, his voice choked with emotion: "Second brother, it really is you!"

Ye Xunqin hugged his younger brother tightly, his gaze lingering on Arno behind him for a moment, filled with scrutiny and wariness: "This is not the place to talk, come inside!"

He led the group into the makeshift camp.

The situation inside the camp was worse than it appeared outside. There were about a dozen people, all wounded and emaciated, clearly having held out there for quite some time, and supplies were extremely scarce.

"Second Brother, what exactly happened? How did you all end up here?" Ye Xunyang asked anxiously.

Ye Xunqin leaned back on a rock and took a sip of water: "I led the prince's secret guards and discovered an important stronghold of the Shadow Serpent. I wanted to sneak in and investigate, but we were ambushed."

"The enemy has a large number of people and uses strange methods. There are also monsters that are not afraid of swords. We fought our way out of the encirclement, but suffered heavy losses and were forced to flee into the depths of this Blackwater Swamp."

He pointed to the surrounding environment: "We discovered this valley by chance. It is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Moreover, the miasma here seems to be thinner than outside, and the water source is relatively clean, which is why we have been able to hold on until now."

"But we were trapped. Outside were the Shadow Serpent's minions and the dangers of the swamp. We tried to break out several times, but failed each time and lost several brothers..." His voice lowered, filled with regret.

“It’s Shadow Guards and Corpse Puppets,” Lou Jin said in a deep voice. “We’ve encountered several attacks along the way.”

Ye Xunqin looked at Lou Jin with a complicated expression, but finally clasped his hands in a salute: "This humble general thanks Your Highness King Jin for risking your life to save me!"

“General Ye, there’s no need for such formalities. It’s my duty.” Lou Jin helped him up. “How many of you are still able to move? We must leave here as soon as possible.”

Ye Xunqin counted: "Those who can still barely fight, including myself, are less than ten. The rest of the brothers are seriously injured..."

Just then, one of the wounded soldiers on guard duty at the high point suddenly lowered his voice and warned, "Boss! There's movement outside! It sounds like... it sounds like someone else has come in!"

Everyone tensed up instantly and gripped their weapons tightly.

Could it be that Shadow Snake's men have come after us again?

Lou Jin and Ye Xunqin exchanged a glance, then quietly moved to the vicinity of the valley entrance and peered out through the gaps in the vines.

At the waterway's exit, a surge of mist appeared, and several figures stumbled and fell out.

They were also dressed in rags and had injuries, but judging from their attire, they were not the uniform of the Shadow Serpents; they seemed to be... mountain people or people from some other force.

The leader was a man with a hideous scar on his face. He looked around warily, and his gaze quickly locked onto the direction of the valley where Lou Jin and the others were hiding. He spoke in a hoarse voice, and his words were in a somewhat broken Central Plains Mandarin.

"Friends inside, we mean no harm. We were forced here by the Shadow Serpent. Could you please do us a favor?"