Chapter 242 Blackwater Bay is bustling tonight.
The lame man grew angrier the more he looked at it.
The white-browed old monkey expressed its hope that its owner would not steal the treasures from those two good people, nor blame the other monkeys, but only punish itself as the leader of the monkey troop.
It also said that as long as its owner punishes it for venting its anger, it will bring the monkey troop back to continue serving its owner.
"Well... you've really got some nerve! You've even learned to negotiate with me now?" The cripple was furious and swung his whip at the white-browed old monkey.
With two lashes, the white-browed old monkey screamed and howled in agony.
The cripple was still not satisfied, so he used a rope to hang the white-browed old monkey from the roof beam and continued to whip it while spinning it around.
The white-browed old monkey's long, light brownish-gray fur was gradually stained red with blood.
"You beast!" the cripple gasped, cursing, "If I hadn't pulled you all out of the mud a few years ago, you'd all be fed to the crocodiles! And now you dare disobey my orders? I'll beat you to death!"
The white-browed old monkey did not struggle; enduring the excruciating pain throughout its body, it closed its eyes.
After catching his breath, the lame man swung the whip again.
Snap!
Suddenly, a soft whistling sound pierced the air.
The rope suspending the white-browed old monkey suddenly snapped.
The old monkey landed with a thud.
The cripple's whip missed its mark, and the whip's tail swung back, hitting him on the cheek instead.
He covered his face and clicked his tongue, then suddenly felt a chill run through his body.
Turning around, I was startled to find that the window had been open at some point, and the damp, cold night wind was howling in.
I was so angry that I didn't even notice this abnormality.
Immediately afterwards, he seemed to see two figures appear in the corner.
One was extremely tall and robust, the other tall and slender; they were clearly a man and a woman.
"Who...who's there?!"
The lame man took two steps back, pointing his whip at the figure.
His room was converted from a large ship cabin. It was quite spacious, but it was cluttered with messy items, and with only an oil lamp lit, he couldn't see the visitor's face clearly.
However, he knew the eight hundred or so people in Blackwater Village very well, and in his memory, none of his own people were of this size.
Swish—
A tall figure in the dark corner raised a hand.
A finger-length piece of hardwood flew towards the cripple, cutting a bloody gash on the back of his hand. The cripple recoiled in pain and the whip fell to the ground.
The lame man was terrified and quickly took several steps back.
Without a doubt, the rope that had been suspending the white-browed old monkey was also severed by something this person threw out in mid-air as a hidden weapon.
"You...you are the man and woman who trespassed into our Blackwater Village territory!" The cripple finally realized what was happening and blurted out in surprise.
That's right, it couldn't be anyone else but these two!
As expected of someone who ran away with a treasure, their skills are truly impressive!
What shocked the cripple even more was that Blackwater Village was the most secluded place, surrounded by traps and natural barriers, yet these two were able to enter it.
"Didn't you have people watching us for days?" Ning Jinli's teasing voice rang out. "How come you only recognized us now?"
Upon hearing this, the cripple broke out in a cold sweat.
He didn't realize that his supposedly discreet surveillance had already been discovered by the other party.
The other party sneaked into my residence without my knowledge, so their intentions must be malicious!
However, the brothers of Blackwater Village were not to be trifled with. They weren't going to let these two come and go as they pleased!
Without time to think further, the cripple decisively pulled hard on a thick rope hanging from the wooden wall beside him.
Ding ding!
A series of crisp metallic sounds rang out outside his house.
In an instant, countless figures surged toward this side.
At this moment, torches were lit one after another in the Blackwater Village, which was built from various broken ships.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi were both amazed by the speed and efficiency of these river pirates' reaction.
Such a well-trained gang of thieves is very rare.
However, the two did not come to deal with Blackwater Village. Ning Jinli stepped forward, picked up the white-browed old monkey, and turned around to rush out of the cripple's room with Xiao Qidi.
The cripple leaned against the window and roared at the top of his lungs, "Brothers, chase them! Don't let them get away!"
at the same time--
On the edge of the Blackwater Bay area, four people were fleeing in panic through dense reeds.
One of them was a girl around sixteen years old, another was a pregnant woman in her early twenties with a large belly, and the other two were an older man and a younger man.
The middle-aged man was injured and bleeding as he ran.
The other three people helped each other, making it especially difficult for them to run.
Not far behind them, five men in black, wielding long swords and exuding murderous intent, were hot on their heels.
"I... my stomach hurts so much... I can't take it anymore, you... you can leave me alone." The pregnant woman staggered and almost fell.
The girl steadied her and encouraged her, "We've reached Blackwater Bay. If we keep going a little further, they definitely won't dare to chase us anymore! Hang in there!"
The pregnant woman was already exhausted, and the elderly man next to her was also nearing exhaustion.
Taking advantage of the darkness and the cover of the reeds, the four men kept dodging in the mud. After an unknown amount of time, they finally managed to shake off the men in black who were chasing them.
The men in black seemed unsure of their whereabouts and slowed down to search around.
The four of them huddled in a puddle, curled up, and breathing on the surface of the water with their faces upturned.
The surroundings were eerily quiet; the only sounds were each other's breathing and the distant sound of the man in black parting the reeds.
Gradually, the movements of the men in black became more and more distant, clearly indicating that they had gone in the wrong direction.
If the four of them wait a little longer, they can shake off their pursuers.
Just then, the pregnant woman couldn't help but let out a muffled groan.
She was already close to giving birth, and the pain from running away and hiding in the icy water made her stomach ache even more.
It was this muffled groan that caught the attention of the man in black, who was about to walk away. He immediately turned back and pinpointed the approximate location of the four men.
"Damn it, we've been exposed..." the burly man gritted his teeth and said, "I'll lure them away! You all get out of here as soon as possible!"
Before the girl could say anything, he got up without hesitation and rushed out of the puddle.
The girl had no choice but to lead the pregnant woman and the elderly woman slowly in another direction through the puddles and mud.
Before long, the middle-aged man was fighting with five men in black. He was very strong and could fight five men at once despite being seriously injured. Unfortunately, he quickly fell into a disadvantageous position and was only able to hold on by sheer willpower.
At that very moment.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi passed by nearby.
The two were planning to take the injured and unconscious white-browed monkey back to the delta for treatment when they suddenly heard the sounds of fighting.
Looking in the direction of the sound, one could vaguely see figures moving not far away, and it was roughly clear that five people were attacking one person.
Given the unclear situation, Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi did not intend to meddle.
Who knows if it's the bandits of Blackwater Village fighting amongst themselves?
Moreover, the rescue of the White-browed Old Monkey had already prompted the Blackwater Village to mobilize a considerable number of people to capture him.
Just as the two were tiptoeing around, Ning Jinli suddenly heard a splash at her feet, and a slender, pale hand emerged from the muddy water and grabbed her ankle.
Ning Jinli was startled.
Fortunately, she reacted quickly and had a strong mental fortitude; otherwise, she would have been so frightened that she would have jumped up and screamed.
"Help...help us..." a weak voice then rang out.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi squatted down and took a closer look, only to find that the person asking for help was a young girl, and there was also an old man and a pregnant woman next to her.
The girl fainted after saying those words.
The elderly man and the pregnant woman had already fallen into a coma before this.
"Could it be that civilians who wandered into this place were discovered by patrolling river pirates, who then wanted to kill them?" This was the first possibility that came to Ning Jinli's mind.
As for other possibilities, I can't think of any at the moment.
But no matter what, since they are ordinary people, and especially young girls, elderly people, and pregnant women, we certainly cannot stand by and watch them die.
So Ning Jinli tied the white-browed old monkey to her back, then picked up the pregnant woman, while Xiao Qidi carried the old man on one arm and the girl on the other, and turned to leave.
At the same time, the middle-aged man was no match for the assassins and was surrounded by five men in black who simultaneously stabbed him through the chest.
To the surprise of the men in black, the middle-aged man suddenly turned his body, blocked their weapons with his chest, and in the blink of an eye, delivered a backhand slash.
Before the five men in black could react, the middle-aged man's longsword had already slit their throats.
Whoosh—
Five men in black fell to the ground.
The middle-aged man coughed up blood, looked in the direction where his three companions had just fled, and collapsed to the ground.
Before long, a group of Blackwater Village members who had been tracking Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi arrived at the scene. They immediately checked the situation and found that all five men in black were dead.
The middle-aged man, still clinging to his last breath, told them, "The second-in-command... was... taken away by a strange man and woman..."
He wanted to describe it more clearly, but unfortunately, his life was coming to an end.
After giving this crucial clue, he stopped breathing.
The news quickly reached Blackwater Village, and the bodies of the middle-aged man and the five men in black were also taken back.
Tonight will be a sleepless night for Blackwater Village.
The chief leader, the crippled strategist, and all the managers and minor leaders of the stronghold gathered in the main hall, while the remaining hundreds of brothers stood outside the hall.
Both inside and outside the lobby were brightly lit by countless torches.
Everyone looked solemn and their eyes were red.
The leader, in particular, held the body of the middle-aged man and wept uncontrollably.
This person was not only a member of the Blackwater Stronghold, but also a bodyguard that the second-in-command would take with him whenever he went out on business.
This person's martial arts skills are second only to the leader, and he is also extremely loyal and reliable.
Half a month ago, he went with the second-in-command to investigate the situation of the official ships transporting grain. Unexpectedly, when he returned to his own territory, he was found dead. How could the chief not be saddened?
"Did he say anything else before he died? Did he mention who was chasing them?!" the leader roared.
The crippled strategist said softly:
"Boss, you've asked several times, but they haven't said anything else, just that... the second-in-command was taken away by a strange couple. And the five men in black didn't have any items on them that could prove their identities, so we can't know where they came from. We'll only know the truth once we find the second-in-command."
The leader wiped away his tears forcefully, his eyes bloodshot, and shouted, "Skin those five men in black, tear them to pieces!"
The crippled strategist beckoned, and several burly men dragged the body of the man in black away.
Next, the leader will personally lead all the brothers to find the second leader.
The crippled strategist hurriedly stopped him, "Boss, you absolutely mustn't! We don't even know who's chasing the Second Boss, or if there are more assassins lurking outside. You must have some of the brothers stay in the stronghold to keep watch. And the one who took the Second Boss away must be that mysterious couple who broke into our territory. I already know where they're hiding, and I'm sure I can lead the brothers to bring the Second Boss back unharmed!"
Before this, the cripple was quite cautious. Considering various factors, he sent people to keep watch and hesitated to take action to seize the treasure.
Things are different now.
The second-in-command had fallen into the hands of those two men, and those two men had even sneaked into the village to provoke him. He had reached his limit and could no longer look back.
For the sake of the second-in-command, and to let those two know the consequences of provoking Blackwater Village, we must take action tonight!
Soon, the crippled strategist left one hundred brothers behind to stay with the chief and keep watch, while he led the remaining seven hundred brothers, armed and menacing, out of the stronghold by boat.
——
On the other side.
Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi brought the elderly woman, pregnant woman, and teenage girl they had rescued to the vicinity of the delta.
Xiao Qidi couldn't help but complain, "Tonight is really anything but peaceful. After rescuing the monkeys, we're rescuing people. Blackwater Bay is much more lively than I imagined."
Ning Jinli was also quite helpless, but she still had to do what she had to do. As long as it didn't affect the collection of moth-wing grass, she was fine with it.
For reasons of secrecy, they only brought the white-browed monkey back to the delta, but not the three people they rescued. Instead, they found a relatively suitable place nearby and used local materials such as branches and leaves to build a simple tent that could provide shelter from the wind.
Then they lit a fire, which could provide both light and warmth.
Ning Jinli checked on the three people. The old man and the girl had injuries, but fortunately they were not fatal. They were unconscious because they were severely exhausted.
As for the pregnant woman, she only had a few minor abrasions, which suggests she was protected the whole way.
But her water broke at this moment, and since she was also unconscious, her situation was the most dangerous.
Just as Ning Jinli was about to take the pregnant woman to the modern world and send her to the hospital, she discovered that the fetus had already poked half its head out.
In this situation, trying to deliver the baby on the spot is actually more likely to save the baby than spending time getting it to the hospital.
"Qidi, come and support her legs, bend her knees, and prepare to help with the delivery!" Ning Jinli instructed while disinfecting her hands with items from the emergency medical kit.
Xiao Qidi blushed, but with lives at stake, he didn't hesitate and quickly complied.
Ning Jinli almost lay down on her stomach, placed several clean towels under the pregnant woman, and quickly cleaned and disinfected the mud and dirty water from her lower body.
Then, Ning Jinli gently placed one hand on the pregnant woman's high, protruding belly, circulated the Heavenly Profound Heart Technique, and slowly infused her with strands of internal energy...
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