Qiu glanced behind him and said, "Child, if you expose your archery skills here, no one will thank you afterwards. You will be arrested and tried as a suspect."
"But……"
Qiu pulled her up, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, and began searching for a safe route: "I didn't bring a crossbow, and I won't let you go to rescue anyone."
"But are we just going to let these barbarians kill people with such impunity?"
"The strong humiliate the weak; this has always been the case!"
Qiu pulled Zheng Quchi and continued climbing up the mountain. They were not slow, but Gan Yimanzi behind them was even more agile. They were like natural warriors, with nimble and swift limbs, rushing up the mountain with great momentum.
In particular, the range of arrows can shorten the distance. Even if the distance is hundreds of meters, dozens of arrows can be fired at once, and many fleeing figures can be targeted.
Qiu even managed to break several arrows for her, but while he was taking care of two people at once, he inevitably got injured as well.
"Don't worry about me, let's split up. I'll try to go into the dense forest. With the trees as cover, if I'm lucky, I'll be able to escape the pursuing barbarians."
Zheng Quchi saw that he had sacrificed absolute safety to protect her, but she did not want to be a burden to him, nor did she want to owe him a favor, because their positions and goals were destined from the beginning that they would not be friends, but enemies.
Qiu ignored her words: "We are companions, I will not abandon you."
He thought for a moment, then stopped dragging her along and instead carried her on his back, dashing into the woods.
Running away wasn't a solution; he planned to launch a fatal counterattack once he had penetrated deep into enemy territory.
Qiu moved very fast, and gradually they were left without their companions. Most of them had either been killed or left behind by Qiu.
A loud, arrogant voice with a heavy accent shouted.
"You scum of Ye Kingdom, keep running! Become our prey, hahaha... We'll slaughter you and offer you our blood and heads to Qatar."
"Help!"
Zheng Quchi froze, turned around abruptly, and saw that the barbarians had forced the captured craftsmen to their knees, then grabbed their hair, pulled them back, and slit their throats like slaughtering chickens or ducks, causing blood to spurt out.
After they finished doing all this, they grinned and laughed heartily as if they had received some interesting reward, and celebrated with their accomplices by linking arms.
At this moment, Zheng Quchi couldn't help but tremble all over. Anger and sorrow gathered in her eyes, and a seed that she didn't yet know the name of was planted in the soil of her heart.
"Why did you do this...?"
A barbarian wearing a sheep bone on his head inadvertently raised his eyes and aimed in the direction of Zheng Quchi. Perhaps sensing Qiu's extraordinary skills, having escaped death several times, this time he nimbly climbed the tree like a monkey, squatted in a standard and stable posture, and drew his bow to aim.
Zheng Quchi turned her head to look behind her. She hadn't missed this scene, and immediately said in a tight voice, "Qiu, get out of the way!"
Qiu hesitated. There was nothing in front of him, and his opponent was on high ground with superb archery skills. From either side, it would be difficult for him to escape unscathed. But at least... Qiu made a quick decision and threw Zheng Quchi aside with one arm. As soon as he turned around, he was hit in the chest by an arrow.
Well--
Autumn!
She scrambled to her feet, but out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the barbarian wearing a sheep bone helmet, his face contorted in a ferocious grin as he charged toward her. He held a curved blade high in his hand, its cold gleam reflecting in his pupils, turning her vision a ghastly white.
But the slash did not sever her head. Instead, as Sun Chao leaped into the air and slashed down, a huge impact shot from behind, slamming the barbarian hard into a thick tree trunk.
His eyes widened, he spat out a mouthful of blood mist, and then turned his head in fear.
"Gan Yi barbarian?" A long spear was pressed against his face. A tall and burly man of similar stature stood against the light and shadow. He bent his arm and stepped back a few inches. His usually playful and carefree fox eyes were now filled with a storm of fury: "You deserve to die!"
puff--
The spear tip pierced his eye directly, and the barbarian howled in pain, gripping the spear tightly with both hands. But Wei Yao did not stop; instead, he continued to apply force and twist the spear.
After enduring excruciating pain, the barbarian finally collapsed.
Zheng Quchi's chest heaved as he stared blankly at Wei Yao: "Brother Wei... Brother Wei..."
His cold, expressionless face turned to her, and after staring at her for a moment, he placed a hand on his forehead and gave a bitter laugh: "At least, at least I saved you..."
Did a lot of people die?
She wanted to ask.
But she quickly shut her mouth, because she thought it was a pointless statement.
Didn't she witness it with her own eyes before? How those barbarians who broke through the pass cruelly tortured and slaughtered those craftsmen, staining the city walls red with their blood.
"They're all dead?" she murmured absentmindedly.
Wei Yao's Adam's apple bobbed a few times, and he said in a dry voice, "No, but... not many will survive. We're too late."
But then he added sinisterly, "However, with the general here, none of these animals will escape."
General?
Yuwen Sheng?
Zheng Quchi's mind was a little sluggish at the moment; it took her a beat to remember him.
Yes, with him around, as long as he remains in the Kingdom of Ye, it won't be constantly slaughtered and humiliated by these heartless nomadic barbarians. But...
She looked up: "Why are you late?"
Wei Yao paused, clenched his fists, and said heavily in a low voice, "Sang Xuanqing, Fuxian County has more than just Guixu Ridge, and there are several major passes to guard in the six prefectures. Wherever your eyes are focused, disaster will befall you, but our eyes cannot be fixed on just one place."
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