The scout froze. How was he supposed to know who Hongjun was? He assumed Zhang Fan was introducing himself and kept his blade pointed at him.
Zhang Fan sneered. "Well, well. Were you born a traitor? You're a human, yet you dare point a blade at me?"
Zhang Fan was just about to kill this human who bore some resemblance to Zhang Hongjun when the urgent pounding of hooves came from afar.
The scout hurriedly sheathed his blade, grabbed Zhang Fan, and led his horse into the woods.
Zhang Fan paused, baffled by what he was doing. The scout quietly hid the horse, then pulled Zhang Fan down into a crouch.
"Don't make a sound," he whispered. "Or we're dead."
Zhang Fan was curious. A moment ago, the man had wanted to kill him, but now he seemed intent on saving him. What was going on in his head?
As they spoke, a squad of fully armed cavalry in black armor, riding black horses, galloped past them. Only after they had gone did the scout let out a long breath.
"Now I'm done for. They've gotten ahead of me. This military intelligence..."
Zhang Fan smiled faintly and stood up. "You pulled me down just to hide from them?"
"Isn't that obvious?" the scout snapped. "They're from the Evil Fiend Kingdom. They kill without blinking and devour people, bones and all."
Zhang Fan chuckled inwardly. That description suited him better. Suddenly, something whistled through the air. Zhang Fan raised a hand and caught an incoming arrow, its tip barely an inch from the scout's face.
"Run!" the scout cried in alarm.
Smiling, Zhang Fan walked toward the black-armored cavalry. The scout wanted to stop him, but delivering the military intelligence mattered more than saving this man.
The scout could no longer