Escape

Lian Qing desperately wanted to reclaim his master's Xumi Jie Divine Skill, but Shangguan Ru shook her head. "Now isn't the time. We haven't escaped the danger yet."

Lian Qing glared, and for a moment he looked less like a monk than a lawless bandit. But he quickly reined in his emotions. "Please forgive me, female benefactor. Ever since Master passed away... Let us set out now."

This was an "escape under orders," so the initial plan went remarkably smoothly. More than half the soldiers in the camp had been transferred elsewhere, while the remaining guards had relaxed their vigilance, leaving only a handful on duty. Lian Qing sealed their acupoints one by one without waking a single person. He called this coincidence luck.

Shangguan Ru did not believe in luck. "We have to take those nuns too."

"What? How can we do that?" Lian Qing's agitation teetered on the verge of going out of control.

"What's so impossible about it? You're a monk. Are you really going to watch them remain in prison?"

Lian Qing gritted his teeth. "Only these people. No more."

Yet he himself brought along several more. Ku Mie and six other monks joined the escape party, and he even put on an alarmed, terrified expression, as though he knew nothing about Lian Qing's plan.

"They know the way," Lian Qing added by way of explanation.

There were not many horses in the camp, and most people had to share a mount. Shangguan Ru rode alone, following close behind Lian Qing and Ku Mie.

Ku Mie naturally knew the way. They soon circled out of the prison district, and after traveling two or three li, Shangguan Ru stopped and demanded to know the next step. Lian Qing had no idea, so Ku Mie said quietly, "Most