Doing One's Best to Cure the Poison

In the white torrent, the expedition team had no way to control its direction or speed.

Bolg led the orcs on the shore in a relentless pursuit, while a small group blocked their path, waiting for an opportunity to attack.

However, these dwarves were all elites, one in a hundred, and some of them could even be described as battle veterans, who skillfully resolved every crisis.

An orc was about to attack Nori floating by, but was dragged into the swift river by his weapon. Another orc stood on a dead tree at one end of the river, ready to attack Balin, but as soon as he jumped down, he was impaled on the tree trunk by a spear thrown by Thorin, and his weapon fell into Thorin's hands. Yet another orc pounced on a barrel in Dwalin, but was headbutted by him and also had an axe taken from him.

After drifting along the river for several hundred meters, the expedition not only suffered no losses but also captured three axes and a spear, and used these weapons to kill more than ten orcs.

The river flows past a tree bridge, where a row of orcs stand on the tree trunks.

The dwarves displayed remarkable teamwork, each time someone floated by, they would chop an axe into the tree trunk. After a few blows, the tree bridge broke, and a row of orcs were swept into the raging torrent.

The most outrageous was Bombur, who was lifted ashore by a half-orc's spear, but in the process of bouncing around with a wine barrel, he crushed more than a dozen half-orcs to death.

After stopping, he kicked open the bottom of the barrel, using the dilapidated wooden barrel as armor. Holding an axe in his left hand and a halberd in his right, he killed several orcs before jumping into the empty barrel.

"My goodness!" Aaron exclaimed in astonishment, "He's really a fat guy? He's incredibly agile! He single-handedly doubled the score!"

Meanwhile, Legolas and Tauriel caught up with them.

The expedition team has been able to hold on until now because they have relieved most of the pressure on the elves.

Legolas leaped onto the heads of Dwalin and Oin, using their heads as footholds to continuously fire arrows at the orcs on either side.

His superb archery skills were perfectly embodied in him; it would not be an exaggeration to say that he never missed a shot.

"Gaius." Legolas's disgruntled voice came from ahead. While shooting arrows, he also managed to spare some energy to find Aaron's figure among the dozen or so barrels.

"Uh... is there something you need?"

"I have already asked my father, and he will agree soon. You should not break out of prison."

Aaron smiled awkwardly but politely. "Do you think it makes sense to tell me this now?"

"After we're safe, you and I will go back to help my father heal his wounds."

"Your Highness, even elves need to be reasonable."

You locked me up without any reason, deprived me of my personal freedom, and forced me to do unequal trade. Do you think this is appropriate?

Upon hearing this, Legolas drew back his bowstring and shot both orcs through the throat. "The elves will reward you handsomely, and you will also gain the friendship of the Wood Elf."

Aaron's eyes lit up slightly. He had already gained the friendship of the dwarves on this expedition. If he could add the friendship of the elves to his list, he would surely thrive in this world!

Looks like they've escaped; we can't skimp on the Potions they need!

"Your Highness, you're being too polite by saying that."

I will heal King Thranduil, but first I must complete the dwarven pact.

"What contract?" Legolas asked.

"That's none of your business."

"I can guess even if you don't tell me."

"I've had enough. Take your foot off my head," Dwalin said angrily. "Otherwise, I'm not sure if I'll chop it off."

Upon hearing this, Legolas stomped on the head of several Dwalin, leaping onto the shore and engaging in battle with the nearest orcs.

He fought four against one, but the third enemy appeared behind him, raising his axe high.

In the critical moment, Thorin threw out the only long spear he had, saving his life.

Legolas watched Thorin drift away with a complicated expression. He wasn't unaware of the enemy behind him, but he couldn't understand why Thorin, the dwarf prince who hated the elves, would save him.

As he remained puzzled, the last orc slowly pulled back the bowstring.

The orc's arrow was broken by Tauriel's arrow, and she leaped and kicked the orc's weapon away, then put her dagger to his neck.

"Tauriel, wait."

Don't kill him, spare his life.

"Chase them, kill them, don't let them get away."

At this moment, Bolg led dozens of orcs along the river in pursuit, but Legolas and Tauriel were powerless to stop them and could only watch helplessly as they chased them across the border.

Several hours later, the expeditionary force escaped the orcs' pursuit and stopped at the bank of a slow-flowing river.

However, this is only temporary. The slower current means they are moving slower, and Bolg and his men will catch up soon.

The group scrambled ashore, and Kili, who had been holding on, let out a painful roar and collapsed to the ground, his right leg stained red with blood.

"Kili is injured; his leg needs to be bandaged," Bofur said, looking at him with concern.

"A bunch of Orks are chasing us, we can't stop," Thorin said.

"I'll do it! It'll only take two minutes," Aaron said, Kili forward as the others discussed how to get there.

How should I put it?

There aren't many people I admire, and you're barely one of them.

"Should I thank you for the compliment?" Kili said with a bitter smile.

"What are you joking about at a time like this?" Aaron's face hardened as he bandaged him while looking at him seriously. "Not to mention the deadly poison on the arrow, the blood loss alone would be enough to take half your life. You probably won't live for more than a few days."

"Can you save me?"

"Okay." Aaron hesitated for a moment before nodding thoughtfully. "I have a secret weapon that I won't use unless absolutely necessary."

Besides, we're not even that close, life-or-death bond, so even if we did, I might not give it to you.

"Then why are you bringing this up?"

"Explain yourself clearly, so that I won't feel guilty after you die."

Kili:...

Such a bizarre reason, I'm speechless.

"I have a teacher, and I also know some medical knowledge."

I will do my best to save you, but I'm only slightly confident, since I know absolutely nothing about this poison.

"Thank you," Kili Lizheng said, then looked at Aaron, "Can you tell me who you really are? Considering I'm about to die."

Don't misunderstand, it's not that I don't believe you, we all believe in you.

"You're so special, you know so much and you're incredibly capable."

"We'll talk about it when you're dead." Aaron patted his wound, and Kili immediately winced in pain.

Just then, footsteps approached slowly, and a human man appeared behind them, holding a bow and arrow and aiming it at Ori. The atmosphere instantly fell silent.

Dwalin grabbed a stick and stood in front of Ori, but before he could move, an arrow pierced through the stick.

In less than a second, he fired a second arrow, knocking the stone from Kili's hand, and the next moment a third arrow was already nocked.

Aaron was deeply moved by what he saw.

Are all people in this world so skilled at using cold weapons?

It's one thing that Legolas's archery skills are better than his, after all, he's Elf King who has received professional training.

But this person was dressed in tattered clothes, clearly indicating he had no family background, and his archery skills were superior to his. It was truly outrageous.

"If you dare to do it again, you'll lose your lives."

No one dared to make a move for a moment. Balin glanced behind the man and immediately felt relieved.

"Excuse me, if I'm not mistaken, are you from Long Lake Town?"

"Could we rent that barge over there?"

The man hesitated for a few seconds before slowly putting away his bow and arrows.

"Poor people," Aaron murmured.

"Anyone with eyes can see that," Kili said in a low voice.

"No, I mean he's short of money, really short of money, he's not a bad person."

"How can you be so sure?" Bilbo asked, puzzled.

"Although he was alone, he had the advantage of timing and location. With his archery skills, killing a group of unarmed and exhausted people like us would not be difficult at all."

Even if he kills us, the money on us is still his, so he still chooses to make a deal with us.

"It seems... that makes sense."

The man carried the empty wine barrels onto the boat. "Why do you think I would help you?"

"Your boots are old, and your coat is shabby. You must have several mouths to feed at home!" Balin said with a familiar smile. "How many?"

"One boy and two girls."

"And your wife, she must be a beauty!"

"That's right." The man paused for a moment. "He was in life."

Balin's smile froze instantly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"Oh, alright, stop pretending to be a good guy," Dwalin said impatiently.

"What's the rush?" the man asked.

"Why are you asking this?" "I want to know who you are and what you're doing here."

"We're just businessmen from the Blue Mountains," Balin said with a smile. "We're going to visit some relatives in the Iron Hills."

The man nodded, then turned his gaze to Aaron, a playful look in his eyes. "Don't tell me he's also going to Iron Hills to visit relatives?"

Aaron's lips twitched, and he was about to explain when Balin interrupted him, "He went to visit a friend."

"Hehe! His mother is really trusting. Jurong is willing to let a child travel with you through mountains and rivers."

"He ran away from home and joined our group on the way."

You have children of your own, so you should know that children's friendships can sometimes be just that... magical.

"His ability to lie through his teeth is fucking amazing," Aaron thought to himself.

"And what about him?" The man looked at Bilbo again. "If I hadn't looked closely, I might not have noticed that there was a Hobbit in your group."

"He's also going to visit a friend." Balin smiled kindly. "Although Iron Hills is a dwarf kingdom, the dwarves living there are not without friends of other races."