"What is Phoenix Tears? Why do people who are infected with it either go mad or die?" she asked urgently.
Just as Letai was about to speak, a soldier ran up to Zheng Quchi and reported, "Madam, a fight has broken out ahead. There are quite a few people on both sides. To avoid getting involved in other people's feuds, we must leave this place immediately!"
"What's going on? Who is it?"
Zheng Quchi frowned, quickly turned around and stood up.
"It's hard to see clearly from a distance, but judging from their attire, they don't look like people from the Central Plains. Instead, they seem like two different tribes of barbarians fighting..."
Where is Gan Xin?
He said he was going to check the situation and told us to go ahead, saying he could catch up.
After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Alright, I'll listen to him and leave now."
Zheng Quchi ordered his men to help Le Tai mount his horse. Just as they were about to leave, Le Tai, who had been quietly cooperating, suddenly shouted, "Ada, I'm here, Ada—"
Zheng Quchi was startled. She guessed that there must be some barbarians like "scouts" monitoring the surrounding area. Sure enough, when she turned around, she saw that Le Tai's shout had alerted them. A group of people came after the sound, parting the reeds and holding long spears.
The barbarians' spears had sharpened bone tips, making them look both primitive and bloody.
Zheng Quchi glanced at Le Tai, unable to hide the anger in his eyes: "What if you attract enemies instead of your Ada's people by shouting like that?"
Le Tai was taken aback.
As Zheng Quchi's words proved prophetic, the group of barbarians wielding spears were not from the Kezhu tribe. They rushed over, and upon seeing the Central Plains clothing worn by Zheng Quchi and his companions, their malevolent nature was immediately revealed. They threw their spears, ready to shoot them dead on the spot.
The soldiers who remained naturally had to protect Zheng Quchi first, while Le Tai, with his hands and feet bound, was thrown off his horse by the angry soldiers and had no power to fight back or dodge the spears that were being shot at him.
Just as she was about to be hit by a spear, Zheng Quchi reacted quickly, dismounted, and pushed Le Tai away. However, she herself was cut on the arm, and blood immediately flowed out.
Le Tai turned his head and saw her clutching her bleeding wound, her lips pale with pain, her forehead covered in cold sweat. At that moment, his eyes instantly revealed the most genuine emotions—gratitude, guilt, and helplessness.
"Are you...are you alright?"
Zheng Quchi did not answer him, but instead ordered the soldiers, "Take him with you!"
The soldiers dared not disobey, so they put Letai back on his horse. However, they saw that the barbarians behind them were still in hot pursuit. Fortunately, Gan Xin returned at this time and dealt with these people in a few moves.
Seeing that the crisis had passed, Zheng Quchi relaxed and immediately asked Gan Xin, "Who were they? Why did they fight?"
"It's a fight between two barbarian tribes. It seems something from one side was stolen by the other, and they've been arguing about it endlessly." Gan Xin had traveled all over the country and naturally understood some of the barbarian languages.
At this moment, Letai whispered, "It's the Xidi tribe. They've never had a good relationship with the Wamen Kezhu tribe. Some time ago, the Xidi tribe's chief got a beautiful woman from the Central Plains from somewhere, but she disappeared after a few days. He insisted that our Kezhu tribe stole her and has been causing us trouble ever since."
Zheng Quchi heard this, and of course she knew that Letai was saying these words to her.
It seems that she saved him, and even though she injured her arm in the process, it wasn't a complete loss. This kid may be bad, but at least he still has some basic moral principles and knows how to repay kindness.
Just then, a large number of footsteps came from the stream and reeds. Zheng Quchi had excellent hearing and immediately caught them. She became nervous.
"Someone else is here."
Because they couldn't tell which way to go and were likely to run into trouble if they wandered off, they dismounted and carefully led their horses forward.
Gan Xin glanced at Zheng Quchi's bleeding wound, a sudden chill and self-reproach flashing in his eyes.
"The footsteps were heavy and muffled, but the movements were swift and light, not chaotic or disorganized, but rather orderly and disciplined... It must be the army," Gan Xin listened intently.
Zheng Quchi never doubted the accuracy of Gan Xin's judgment, and her first reaction was—
"Is it him?"
Her eyes widened slightly, and her voice was a little hoarse.
At this moment, the reeds were filled with dust and grime, accompanied by a scream. Everyone present felt a chill run down their spines, as they could all sense a dangerous and sinister aura spreading in their direction.
The chaotic footsteps, the heavy breathing, and even the strong smell of blood... all blended together to create a heavy atmosphere that made it hard to breathe.
People were frantically fleeing towards Zheng Quchi, getting closer and closer, until they collapsed from exhaustion, crushing the reeds that were providing cover. Their faces were covered in blood, their mouths were wide open, and their eyes were filled with terror, as if some demon was chasing them...
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