Noon.
A party of more than ten raced over towering mountains and precipitous ridges, heading deeper into the range. Having come here yesterday, Ye Jingtang served as their guide, leading the way.
Thirty-odd li of mountain trails was not far for highly skilled martial artists, but climbing over mountains along the way was tiring all the same. Without knowing the terrain, missing a step or slipping was perfectly normal.
Seeing Dongfang Liren struggle to keep up with his footsteps, Ye Jingtang had wanted to fulfill his duties as her personal guard and carry Silly on his back.
But with her subordinates watching, how could Dongfang Liren bring herself to climb onto a man's back? She merely took Perfected Person Xuanji's wrist discreetly, asking her master to look after her lest a careless misstep send her tumbling in front of everyone.
After racing through the wilderness for a while, they arrived near Crouching Dragon Cave. The huge Medicine Furnace still stood alone in the woods, while Guan Yujia's corpse had already been carried away by the soldiers, since he was a famous figure in Wu Prefecture's martial world.
Another four or five li into the mountains, numerous arrows and discarded suits of armor and weapons appeared in the wilderness. The temporary camp for the two thousand soldiers was nearby, holding over a hundred wounded men. Prince Wu's surrendered guards and captured followers were also being detained here for the time being.
Ye Jingtang entered the camp to inquire and learned that Prince Wu had been wounded by a stray arrow while fleeing with his Loyalist guards and had escaped to Yellowstone Ridge.
Over a thousand soldiers had surrounded Yellowstone Ridge. But as it was another hideout Prince Wu had prepared, defensive works had been built there beforehand: one man could hold