Immediately afterward, seeing this rare opportunity, the others charged out at breakneck speed, swords raised. People also began to pour out from another cave entrance, another group led by Alhatu. The cave they entered was even larger than the previous one.
The soldiers began a chaotic battle with a group of people dressed in unidentified clothing. As more and more soldiers emerged, they all began to stand back to back, forming a circle. The soldiers completely surrounded them.
Fourth Master and Alhatu both came over and saw that one of the men in blue was indeed one of the ones they had captured that day.
"Where are Thirteen and Cui Da?" Fourth Master asked the enemy surrounded by the crowd, his face ashen.
No one answered the Fourth Master's question. They attacked blindly, and the soldiers, seeing that every move they made was aimed at killing, had no choice but to use their own deadly moves to fight back.
"Fourth Prince, they're more than capable of handling this. Look, there seems to be a red light over there, let's go in and take a look," Alhatu said.
Fourth Master saw a few steps leading to a passage on the other side of the cave, from which a faint red light emanated.
Fourth Master nodded, and then they, along with the other people, headed directly in that direction.
Before they could even take a few steps up the steps, a large group of men in black surged out and encountered Fourth Master and his men. Immediately, swords clashed and a chaotic battle ensued.
There were nearly 300 people following Fourth Master and Alhatu, while there were about 40 or 50 men in black, a ratio of almost six to one. Gradually, the men in black were killed by the blade and fell to the ground dead.
Fourth Master and Alhatu barely drew their swords; they were simply surrounded and protected by several people.
Fourth Master looked in the direction the men in black were rushing from; a bright red light was shining there, as if something was burning.
Al-Hatu's elite troops were indeed well-chosen; the men in black were quickly overwhelmed, and in no time, almost half of them were covered in blood.
They retreated step by step, while Fourth Master and Al-Hatu led their men forward step by step.
Just then, a loud shout rang out: "If you advance any further, the Thirteenth Prince's life will be in danger!"
Just then, two men in black pushed out the Thirteenth Master, whose hands were already bound. His eyes were covered with black cloth, his mouth was sealed, and a knife from Cheng Liang was held to his neck.
"Stop!" Fourth Master shouted as soon as he saw Thirteen.
Instantly, everyone stopped fighting. The black-clad men who had been locked in a fierce battle quickly retreated behind the man who had held a knife to Thirteen's neck. His face was obscured by a mask resembling Maitreya Buddha.
"You'd better release Thirteen right now, or I'll tear you to pieces!" Fourth Master stepped forward and stared at Thirteen and the group of people over there.
"Fourth Prince, what a brilliant plan! I didn't expect you to find it so quickly. It seems this plan is doomed to fail," the masked man said.
"And the other person?" Fourth Master asked.
"Fourth Prince, rest assured, I didn't kill him. However, out of respect for the Thirteenth Prince, please allow us brothers to leave," the masked man said.
Fourth Master's expression changed slightly, and he sneered, "How do I know that after I release you, you will release Thirteen and Cui Da without any trouble?"
The masked man remained unmoved and said, "Whether Fourth Master believes it or not, we must do this, because if our lives can be exchanged for the life of the Thirteenth Prince, it is still worthwhile, isn't it?"
Fourth Master clenched his fist. He hated being threatened the most, but seeing Thirteen being controlled, he had no choice but to concede: "Remove the gag from Thirteen's mouth. I need to talk to him and make sure he's alright. Otherwise, forget about it."
The Fourth Master spoke these words with a stern voice, yet the other party was still intimidated by the irresistible majesty emanating from him.
The masked man hesitated for a moment, then ordered the people around him to remove the cloth strips covering Thirteen's mouth.
"Fourth Brother, Fourth Brother, all the missing people are inside. Cough cough cough." Thirteen twisted a few times and shouted loudly.
Fourth Master was startled and hurriedly said, "Thirteenth Master, don't get agitated. Leave everything to your Fourth Brother. Just do as they say."
“Alright, Fourth Master, I’ve done as you asked. Can we leave now?” the masked man said.
The Fourth Prince exchanged a glance with Al-Hatu, then ordered the soldiers behind him to make way for them.
The masked man pinned Thirteen down, the knife still against his neck, and began to walk away. Behind him followed the remaining dozen or so men.
"Where is Cui Da?" Fourth Master asked.
"That guy's inside, he won't die." The masked man carried Thirteen and ran quickly towards the passage. Alhatu and his men followed closely behind them.
The Fourth Prince led his men and rushed into the cave that was emitting a red glow. As soon as he entered, the scene before him was so shocking that he stood there dumbfounded until his soldiers quickly occupied every key spot inside.
Fourth Master saw a group of tattered laborers with their hands tied behind their backs, all kneeling in a corner. The rest of the cave was filled with iron furnaces of various sizes, each containing unfinished knives and spears.
"Master!" A familiar voice came from the group of laborers.
"Master Cui!" Fourth Master immediately recognized the voice.
With his hands tied behind his back, Cui Da squeezed through the crowd and ran to Fourth Master, saying, "Master, all the people here are commoners who were kidnapped from the surrounding villages of Yangzhou and brought here to do hard labor."
Fourth Master immediately ordered someone to untie Cui Da's ropes.
"Sir, help! Help!" The crowd began to stir.
"Go and untie those people's ropes," Fourth Master immediately ordered.
Led by Cui Da, Fourth Master looked around at several smaller caves surrounding the large cave. Some of these caves contained knives and spears, while others were probably the laborers' rest or dining rooms.
"Master, these people actually kidnapped people and brought them here to have weapons made. This is illegal weapon manufacturing!" Cui Dadao exclaimed.
"Go ask those people." Fourth Master nodded, turned around and walked out of a small cave.
Those who were originally strong and healthy laborers have become very weak because they have not seen the sun for a long time and have been forced to do very heavy labor here.
"Do you have anyone here named Ding Changming?" Fourth Master asked the group.
After a moment of silence, someone muttered, "He... he's dead!"
"You, come out and speak!" Fourth Master said, pointing at the person who had just spoken.
A thin, short man came out, bowed to Fourth Master, and said, "Sir, I know Ding Changming. He died not long ago and was dragged out. Alas, we are the only ones left here. Almost every month someone dies. The dead are dragged out and thrown away."
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