His left leg had already been broken, his trouser leg stained red with blood. His face was etched with exhaustion and grief, yet he still forced himself to come before Yan Shuangfei.
"Shuangfei, everyone in the village knows how capable you are. Now that our fellow villagers have suffered such a calamity, and several little girls have been taken away, I beg you to lead them and rescue the children!"
The Village Chief paused, panting heavily. "Also, send someone to the county seat to report this to the authorities as soon as possible. These bandits are far too rampant; unless they are eliminated, the people's fury will never be quelled!"
Yan Shuangfei took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the rage in his heart. In a low voice, he said, "Rest assured, Village Chief. Rescuing our fellow villagers is my duty.
But where did these bandits come from? Where is their lair?"
"They're bandits from Qingfeng Village!" the Village Chief said hurriedly, his tone urgent. "On Qingyun Mountain, eighty li from here. The terrain there is steep and treacherous, easy to defend and hard to attack.
They have occupied that place for years, often coming down the mountain to plunder. Several nearby villages have suffered greatly at their hands!"
"Good."
A cold gleam flashed through Yan Shuangfei's eyes. Turning to Murong Zhi and his wife, he said solemnly, "Auntie, take good care of Uncle and Axiao. Rest and recover in peace. I'll go rescue Feiyan and the other girls right now. I will never let them suffer the slightest indignity!"
With that, he ran swiftly into the house and took a long spear he had forged himself from the corner by the wall.
The shaft was made of hard ironwood, with a finely sharpened steel spearhead set into its tip,