Under the light of the torches.
Cheng Jing brought one leg down, unleashing a dull whistle through the air.
Both were experts who had broken through Qi and Blood once. Her leg techniques were upright and proper, her movements calm and unhurried. Though it was half a sneak attack, her posture, strength, and precision were exceptional in every respect.
Caught off guard, Wei He knew that her words had provoked him into losing the initiative. He had no choice but to cross his fists before him, shielding his head and chest.
Bang!
Her long leg, carrying the stench of muddy shoe soles, smashed viciously into Wei He's arms.
Legs were generally much stronger than hands. Even though Cheng Jing was a woman and somewhat weaker, the strength in her leg still exceeded that of Wei He's two hands.
That kick struck squarely, knocking Wei He back several steps.
"Nothing special!"
A trace of disdain flashed through Cheng Jing's eyes as she prepared to press the attack.
Suddenly, a fierce wind howled past from not far away.
Aah!
A caravan guard standing at the edge suddenly screamed and fell to the ground. Both hands clawed frantically at the earth, tearing up huge clumps of dirt and turf.
But it was useless. Some immense force seemed to be hidden in the darkness, swiftly dragging him into the shadows. His cries rapidly faded away, then cut off abruptly.
Everything returned to silence.
The caravan guards no longer had the mind to watch the spar. They hastily raised their torches and shone them in that direction.
Unfortunately, all they could make out were the finger marks left in the ground and a pool of fresh blood.
"What was that?!" "Old Sun was dragged away!"
"How is that possible?! Sun Zhu's strength is among the best of us!"
"I saw a black shadow grab his legs and run backward! I wanted to throw something at it, but that shadow was too fast. I didn't even have time to react, then—"
One caravan guard trembled from head to toe, whether from fear or regret at failing to save him in time.
Wei He and Cheng Jing both forgot about their fight and hurried over.
At that moment, Cheng Kai was already crouching at the spot to inspect it.
His face was grim and his gaze solemn. He reached out, touched the ground beyond the claw marks and bloodstains, then brought his hand to his nose and sniffed it.
"It's the Black Madman! Everyone, get inside, now!!" His expression suddenly changed as he shouted.
Aah!!
Before his words had even faded, another scream rang out from the other side.
Another caravan guard was seized by the legs and dragged into the darkness in an instant.
"Die!!" A new caravan guard swung his torch at the black shadow.
But he was still far too slow.
The torch only managed to illuminate a small part of the shadow's body.
In that fleeting glimpse, everyone saw a strange creature with black and red coloring.
It had a black-and-red bird's head, milky white eyes, and a body over two meters long. Half its body remained in darkness while the other half stood exposed in the torchlight.
The creature's two foreclaws resembled human hands, each bearing five fingers. Its claws were incomparably sharp, gleaming silver like metal.
The monster grabbed the caravan guard's legs and yanked backward. Its enormous strength dragged him down on the spot, then pulled him into the darkness, where he vanished in the blink of an eye.
"Get inside! Now!!" Cheng Kai roared, jolting the stunned caravan guards awake.
Everyone swiftly backed into the bridgehead house. They shut the door, then used thick wooden planks from the caravan carts to seal the two window openings.
Most of them quickly crouched down, staying quiet and suppressing their breathing.
A newcomer, terrified, could not stop himself from gasping violently. In this environment, it sounded as clear as if it were right beside everyone's ears.
An older guard immediately reached out and covered the newcomer's mouth with a towel.
Wei He was alarmed as well. That monster had moved like the wind, incredibly fast. Even he had only seen a shadow.
He thought that if he were attacked, the odds of being dragged away versus breaking free might be fifty-fifty.
Everyone held their tongues. For a moment, the only sounds in the room were the two burning campfires. In the stillness, the firewood occasionally crackled, echoing with the mournful wind outside and making the silence feel even deeper.
Wei He looked around and suddenly realized that the man beside him, who had been carving wood just moments ago, was gone. Only a small bundle of luggage remained on the ground.
His heart went cold as he swiftly scanned both sides.
He remembered that man's face. There had only been a little over twenty people in the party, and after spending these past days together, he had grown familiar with most of them.
Yet after looking around, he still could not find the woodcarver.
The only trace the man had left behind was this bundle of luggage on the ground beside Wei He.
An old caravan guard nearby understood what he was thinking. He lowered his eyes and sighed softly.
"Life and death are ever-changing."
Bang!!
Suddenly, the wooden plank over the window opening was struck viciously.
The immense force nearly knocked over the two caravan guards holding down the opening. Only when two more rushed over and pressed against it did they manage to hold it back by sheer force.
The old guard's face turned pale with fright. The quiet words he had only half murmured were swallowed back down in terror.
Wei He's heart also lurched in fright, but he had seen blood and dealt ruthless blows before. His courage had grown considerably now. He forcibly calmed himself.
"Fire!"
Cheng Kai stood and shouted.
Someone picked up a torch, lit it at the campfire, and quickly handed it over.
Cheng Kai reached out to take it.
Bang!!
The wooden plank over the window opening was suddenly knocked away, and a mass of black shadow charged in, sending the torch Cheng Kai had been about to receive flying.
"Get out!"
Two caravan guards and Cheng Jing swung their blades simultaneously from three different directions.
Three sabers crashed viciously onto the black shadow, forcibly smashing it back out.
Someone immediately picked up the torch and hurled it at the shadow.
The black shadow was ultimately somewhat afraid of fire. Borrowing the force, it swiftly retreated, leaping out through the window opening and vanishing.
Huff. Huff.
Everyone panted heavily. In the firelight, every face was deathly pale.
Cheng Jing and the two others dropped their sabers. Only then did they realize that the webbing between their thumbs and forefingers had already been mangled and bloody, injured by the recoil from that strike.
"It's the Black Madman. Block the window opening and keep watch! Wait for dawn!" Cheng Kai shouted.
He was the one who had just picked up the torch.
His face was slightly pale as well, but there was no fear in it, only calm composure.
The older caravan guards promptly obeyed, lifting the heavy plank back over the window opening.
The plank was no ordinary wood. It had been treated through special methods and was wrapped with many tough vines and leather cords, making it exceedingly sturdy.
Even after the monster had rammed it several times, only a small section in the middle had caved in. It could still be used.
After the window opening had been blocked for a while, Cheng Kai gestured for them to leave a few gaps around the plank to let air circulate inside.
With so many people crammed into this enclosed space, along with two campfires, it only took a short while before some began feeling stifled and short of breath.
Once the gaps were opened, a faint whistling wind immediately seeped in from outside. The cold mountain breeze, carrying a trace of blood, drifted into the bridgehead house.
It made everyone's mood even heavier.
No one spoke. Those who intended to open their mouths were stopped by the old guards beside them and reminded not to make a sound.
Everyone held it in.
The people bracing the plank were switched out every so often, then switched again. Wei He also took two turns.
And so it continued.
At last, a streak of fish-belly white gradually appeared in the sky outside.
Faint birdsong slipped through the gaps, instantly lifting everyone's spirits.
Some birdsongs were shrill, others low, while still others came in sharp bursts like woodpeckers pecking wood. Sometimes they were near, sometimes far, sometimes joining into a continuous chorus.
"It's dawn. Open the door. I'll take a look." Cheng Kai gave the order in a low voice.
An old caravan guard immediately opened the wooden door slowly, leaving only a crack.
Cheng Kai moved like a hare and shot outside in an instant.
The door was swiftly shut again.
Everyone waited slowly. Before long, Cheng Kai's somewhat weary voice came from outside.
"It's fine. Come out, everyone."
After a moment of silence, the caravan guards moved aside the planks blocking the windows and doorway, then emerged from the bridgehead house one after another.
Outside, two pools of blood were clearly visible on the ground, drying in the grass.
The bloodstains seemed to have been licked by some animal and were thin in places.
Yet when combined with the surrounding traces, it was still possible to see how desperately the two men dragged away last night had struggled before their deaths.
Wei He walked over to the bloodstains and crouched down to examine the tracks carefully.
He soon found four claw marks, each far deeper than a human handprint. Every mark showed five fingers driven deep into the turf, piercing all the way down.
Printed between the claw marks were also clear, fine lines resembling palm prints.
Not far away, Cheng Kai and several caravan guards used the belongings and clothes of the two men who had been dragged away to make simple graves. They then used a few objects that would not rot easily to create distinct markers.
These were the only traces the two men had left behind.
Everyone quickly packed up the caravan carts without lingering. They brought their things across the bridge and left the area.
Before departing, some poured a few cups of water in place of wine before the two cenotaphs, while others silently placed a few things atop the graves.
Everyone fell silent. No one spoke anymore as they quietly packed up and quietly drove away.
Only as they left did Wei He notice that they were also missing a horse. It had likely been dragged away by the Black Madman last night.
They crossed the long, ancient stone bridge and continued until they reached their destination town.
Only after handing over the escorted goods did everyone finally feel somewhat relieved.
They spoke not a word all the way back. With no goods to escort, they traveled light and moved much faster.
The journey there had taken eight days, yet the return took only six. They had saved two days in total.
But no one had any interest in chatting or sparring anymore. They only occasionally spoke as required by procedure.
When they passed the stone bridge again on the way back, they rushed straight across without stopping at all.
When they were nearly back at Feiye City, they stopped briefly to rest.
Wei He saw Cheng Kai take out a crude hand-drawn map and use something like a red crayon to make a heavy mark at the stone bridge.
At a glance, he saw that the map was densely covered with at least a dozen red dots along the route.
Yet throughout the escort journey, they had not encountered nearly that many dangers. The bridgehead house at the end should also have been a new point they had never encountered before.
"Do you feel like we didn't run into nearly that many dangers?" Cheng Jing plopped down beside him and asked quietly.
Only here had everyone's mood improved enough for them to have the leisure to talk.
"..." Wei He glanced at her, not knowing how to respond.
"Every red dot on that map represents a place where someone died," Cheng Jing said quietly. "The reason we can escort goods safely most of the time is because of the Head Caravan Guard's leadership."
"The Head Caravan Guard knew by heart how to avoid each red dot, when was best to travel, and what needed to be prepared.
"And maps like this—I've seen them before. The caravan agency has this many." Cheng Jing held her hands apart to indicate a thickness roughly the length of one palm.
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