Chapter 24: Breakout and Bath

Compared to Ma Ming, Li Lan was more ruthless and absolute; the five thousand Embroidered Uniform Guard were more than ten times the number of the Everjoy Gate brothers that night.

"Kill—ahhh!" The roar of the Embroidered Uniform Guard covered all directions; they charged at the target like madmen.

"Damn, what do we do, break out?" Chen Yi He grabbed a long sword and with one stroke cut the throats of seven or eight Embroidered Uniform Guard, "Such beautiful flowers, to be ruined by people like you!"

Long Wang split thirteen or fourteen Embroidered Uniform Guard with one slash, fresh blood splattering all over his face, "I'll cover our breakout, you drive the carriage!"

"I... I can't ride a horse!" Chen Yi He had only ridden bicycles, electric scooters, and tricycles; he had never tried this horse at all!!!

"What's there to fear? Just whip the horse—whoever you hit, they're unlucky!" Long Wang's Slaying Dragon Sword Technique had been unleashed; the Embroidered Uniform Guard before him were like scarecrows, letting him hack mercilessly! The blood of the Embroidered Uniform Guard nourished the trampled white flower patch—perhaps it's poetic justice?

Chen Yi He ran toward the carriage; some Embroidered Uniform Guard noticed and charged at the carriage, trying to overturn it. Chen Yi He was still far away, so he threw his long sword like a dart, piercing the line of Embroidered Uniform Guard from front to back like skewered meat—thus saving the carriage.

In that short dash to the carriage, Chen Yi He had already snapped the necks of over thirty Embroidered Uniform Guard, even smashing one's head to pulp with a palm strike!

But the Embroidered Uniform Guard surging forward kept increasing, endless like a mountain flood.

Long Wang was the pillar in the midst of that flood!!!

Li Lan made his move, stepping onto the horse's back, his whip already drawn; this time he wasn't whipping the horse, but Long Wang!

The whip thrust straight at the Yellow Dragon!!!

Caught off guard, Long Wang—"crack!"—the whip struck his chest, splitting his upper garment in two; a thin, long bloodstain appeared on his solid chest……

"What a tough body!" Li Lan remarked, nobody could stay standing after taking one of his whips! But despite his admiration, his hands, feet, and whip didn't stop, already pressing close to Long Wang's body.

As the whip danced, looking at the layered peaks, Long Wang could not shield Chen Yi He for a moment; he had to focus entirely on resisting Li Lan.

After several exchanges with no clear winner, all the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had rushed in were mercilessly killed, and none dared to step forward rashly anymore.

Chen Yi He struggled through great hardship to finally get onto the carriage, but the carriage was already surrounded by Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"I've never tried a four-wheeled thing; a horse has four legs, it's basically a big cart. Want to drift?" Chen Yi He firmly held the reins with one hand, gave a hard turn, and whipped the horse with the other.

"Hiss!" The horse couldn't take such a whipping; it reared up on its front legs and let out a long skyward cry. When the cry stopped, it slammed its front hooves down, and with the reins adjusted, the carriage actually began to drift in place!

The carriage was loaded with gemstones worth a hundred thousand taels; its heavy planks knocked down every nearby Embroidered Uniform Guard one by one.

Over half of them had their bones broken by the impact, and even more ruthlessly, the carriage trampled over their bodies as it sped away.

"Run!" Chen Yi He shouted at Long Wang.

The mad horse, the mad carriage, amidst the Embroidered Uniform Guard crowd, were like entering an uninhabited land, unstoppable for a moment!!!

Li Lan panicked; he had set up this big scheme, with reasons for arrest and killing all ready—if they escaped, his plan would fail! He wanted to rush over and whip the carriage to overturn it, but now, locked in combat with Long Wang, he could not let up even a moment, nor could he leave! "Don't let the carriage get away—stop it!"

Long Wang was no different; he wanted to jump onto the carriage and flee, yet Li Lan clung to him tightly, making escape impossible.

Both sides wanted a quick, decisive battle.

Li Lan's whip struck straight at the red heart! The red heart was Long Wang's head. He thought Long Wang would surely block with his sword; at that moment he could flip the whip's direction and strike Long Wang's lower body, catching him off guard. Even if one got away, he could still capture another—it wouldn't be too great a loss!

Who would have thought reality wouldn't match Li Lan's expectation—Long Wang actually took the whip on the side, turned his head, and grabbed it with his hand!

His left hand firmly gripped the whip!

The Embroidered Uniform Guard, seeing the stalemate, all rushed forward! They wanted to capture Long Wang!

"Force me to get serious! All of you, die!" Long Wang roared, throwing his Azure Dragon Sword upward, tip pointing down; the sword seemed endowed with life, a azure dragon roared forth, its mouth opening, horns atop its head as it darted through the crowd, its body swaying!

Wherever the blade passed, only corpses remained.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard were torn apart. Li Lan threw away his whip, being flung fifteen or sixteen meters away!!!

Long Wang tossed aside his whip and strode toward the frantic carriage, catching up in seven or eight steps.

"You take control quickly, I can't hold it!" Chen Yi He saw Long Wang board the carriage, as if seeing a savior……

Li Lan watched the receding carriage, one hand over his chest, the other wiping blood from his mouth, "The Slaying Dragon Sword Technique is indeed not to be underestimated; among the Crown Prince's rivals, each is stronger than the last……"

……

"Ugh, ugh, oh……" Chen Yi He clung to the carriage's side, vomiting repeatedly onto the ground……

"Hahaha, you're not that bad, are you?" The horse returned to Long Wang's control; under his soothing, it finally stopped being restless.

"This is absolutely the most jolting carriage I've ever ridden…… go slower, slower, I'll vomit again." Chen Yi He watched the moving ground, another wave of nausea rose, and he vomited again with a splashing sound.

Chen Yi He finally stopped vomiting. They had also reached a safe place; behind them there were no pursuers, nor any white flower patch.

Long Wang leisurely drove the carriage, laughing at Chen Yi He's embarrassment, "Hahaha, Yi He, it really takes your recklessness; otherwise, even if we could flee on foot, the carriage wouldn't get away."

"I never expected the court to get serious—Ma Ming wasn't up to it, so they directly swapped in Li Lan and even killed Ma Ming." Chen Yi He rinsed his mouth and said.

"To find an excuse to kill us, they spare no means; otherwise, if word got out that the court slaughtered innocents, it would smear the Great Zhou Dynasty……"

"This Li Lan is truly two‑faced; with beautiful women he sweet‑talks, but with us two men he goes for real knives and guns…… No wonder he looks neither male nor female." Chen Yi He cursed.

"Not only because the Young Palace Master is a beauty—more so for the prestige of the Five Absolutes Palace; we're just a Dragon Tiger Gate, and even the Everjoy Gate dares to bully us, let alone the mighty court—how could they possibly regard us?" Long Wang said somewhat tragically.

"What a pity for that patch of white flowers." The white flowers trampled by the Embroidered Uniform Guard made Chen Yi He feel regretful.

"No need to pity them; our lives are saved. Once we reach Southern Frontier City, there will still be much for us to face."

The sun had already sunk to the mountain waist, the lake surface rippled, faint sunlight glittered on the tiny waves, autumn deepened. The heat of the "autumn tiger" had not yet faded.

Why not wash the grime off in the clear lake water, change into a clean, beautiful outfit unstained by blood, and enjoy the last coolness of summer?

Autumn in the Southern Frontier arrives earlier than in Bei Du; the ground is covered with thick layers of fallen leaves. The carriage stopped by the bank, and the two youngsters wanted to enjoy the water's delight……

"Whoosh!" Long Wang wore only underpants, his upper body bare, he sprinted from the lakeshore afar, leapt high upon reaching the bank, his slender body like a long fish, tracing a graceful arc on the lake surface before diving in—just a few splashes…… In a few strokes he mastered butterfly, backstroke, and freestyle.

"Even the world's top divers are no better than this?" Chen Yi He recalled the Olympics, when he loved watching women's diving…… a graceful pre‑dive pose, minimal splash on entry, high scores…… Long Wang fits the bill perfectly.

Chen Yi He wasn't good at water; he stripped naked and dog‑paddled in. His breath‑holding was poor; to swim one body length he needed three or four gulps of air……

"Where are your underpants?"

"What underpants do you wear for a bath? I was even planning to pee in the lake!"

Long Wang's face was covered in black lines……

Chen Yi He dog‑paddled bit by bit, ugly and slow……

"Yi He, your swimming posture is way too ugly!" Long Wang mocked.

"I don't know if I can copy his swimming posture…… if I could, I wouldn't need to learn—how convenient! Let's give it a try!" Chen Yi He thought, and his body really began to imitate Long Wang's swimming style.

The Dragon King did the backstroke, he also did the backstroke.

The Dragon King did the butterfly stroke, he also did the butterfly stroke.

The Dragon King did the breaststroke, he also did the breaststroke.

"This golden finger is also too useful, huh? Even swimming can be learned!?" Chen Yi He said delightedly.

The Dragon King couldn't believe it; Chen Yi He, who just knew only the dog paddle, caught up with him in the blink of an eye, and his performance was not lacking at all!

"Hahaha! Want to compare diving?" Chen Yi He provoked.

"Come on, come on, I still don't believe it, give it a try, come!" The Dragon King said, then dove headfirst into the water. Like a swimming fish, he moved in the deep water.

Chen Yi He was delighted that he would have to learn another swimming item...