Chapter 74: What the Hell Is This Place?

Xiao Qidi narrowed his eyes, "She has no relation to me; she's just an ordinary commoner."

"Really?" the lead black‑clad man stared into his eyes.

Xiao Qidi's face remained calm, "Of course it's true; you've already captured me, so why also seize an unrelated woman?"

The lead black‑clad man laughed, stood up, and said to the other black‑clad men, "Did you hear? Xuan Guo His Majesty said she's a commoner. Since she's unimportant, it's a reward for you!"

The other black‑clad men instantly had their eyes flash, like hungry wolves pouncing on prey, and lunged toward Ning Jinli.

"Stop!" Xiao Qidi hurriedly shouted to halt.

Seeing his reaction, the lead black‑clad man laughed loudly, "Looks like she's someone important. I'll give you another chance: tell me who she really is."

Xiao Qidi's eyes flashed coldly, "She is merely someone very important to me; beyond that she has no other identity."

"You captured me but didn't kill me; you must need to keep me alive. I tell you, if you harm her even a single hair, you won't be able to take me away alive."

Hearing that, the lead black‑clad man fell into thought.

He didn't want any incident to occur before handing Xiao Qidi over to the Senior Disciple.

And since this young woman seemed harmless and could be used to control Xiao Qidi, they decided not to touch her.

After completing their task and confirming she's useless, they could indulge later.

"Fine, we won't touch her, but you'd better be honest," the lead black‑clad man warned.

At that moment, two black‑clad men entered the cave from outside.

They reported to the leader, saying that from last night at midnight to now, Lin Xian Village has been completely normal, no panic, and no troops or soldiers have been dispatched to search.

It was as if they didn't know their His Majesty had disappeared.

The lead black‑clad man gave Xiao Qidi a sidelong glance and sneered, "I've long heard that Xuan Guo His Majesty is a pitiful creature who holds a throne but has no power or prestige. It seems that's true. The court may ignore you, but even the border soldiers and commoners don't seem to care about you either."

Xiao Qidi was too lazy to explain.

He knew clearly that the soldiers' and commoners' lack of reaction was, like last time, because they thought he had gone to the Fairy.

So from now on he could only think of ways to save himself.

"Tell me, who are you and why did you capture me," he said calmly, "I may only hold an empty throne, but I'm still the ruler of a nation; aren't you afraid of future court punishment?"

The lead black‑clad man said, "We are acting on orders; delivering you fulfills our task. What is there to fear?"

Xiao Qidi recalled last night's situation; both he and Ning Jinli must have been hit by a bewildering smoke that knocked them out.

These people used underworld methods, managing to slip past patrolling soldiers into the camp unnoticed; clearly their martial skill is extremely high, and from their recent behavior they also possess some organizational ability.

Even though the black‑clad men didn't reveal their identity, it was easy to guess they belong to some martial sect.

Moreover, it's not a minor sect.

Major orthodox sects and those belonging to Xuan Guo's domain probably wouldn't commit such acts, so the scope must be even narrower.

"Could you be members of the Tian Shu Sect?" Xiao Qidi probed.

It was merely his conjecture, not very certain.

Because not long ago he had encountered the Sect Leader of the Tian Shu Sect, confirming that its members had been active here recently.

Moreover, the Tian Shu Sect's base on Yuqi Mountain isn't far from Xi Tun Guan.

"How did you know that?" a black‑clad man blurted out.

The lead black‑clad man tried to stop him but couldn't, and only glared fiercely at the slip‑tongued man.

My guess was confirmed, and he continued, "I've met your Sect Leader before; she even helped me a great favor. I guess your capture of me wasn't on her orders, right? You roam the jianghu unseen, perhaps truly unafraid of court punishment, but aren't you afraid of your Sect Leader's retribution?"

As his words fell, a few black‑clad men's eyes shifted slightly.

"Shut up!" the lead black‑clad man stepped forward with a hand‑knife strike, slashing at Xiao Qidi's neck.

Xiao Qidi fainted.

The lead black‑clad man turned his head, staring at the others, "Don't let his nonsense shake you. In the future, when the Senior Disciple becomes a high official of Yu Guo, we'll still benefit, and we won't have to return to the Tian Shu Sect."

The few steadied themselves, clasped fists, and said, "Yes!"

Afterwards, they carried Xiao Qidi and Ning Jinli out of the cave and shoved the two into a carriage they had prepared in advance.

Then they all changed back into ordinary clothes, mounted horses, and hurried the carriage toward Yuqi Mountain.

Although the route passed through remote border wilderness, because they were returning with two captives, their speed was much slower.

It took two days before they entered the Yuqi Mountain area.

Along the way, whenever they sensed Xiao Qidi or Ning Jinli showing signs of waking, they forced a dose of bewildering drug into their mouths to ensure absolute safety.

When still a considerable distance from the Tian Shu Sect's main peak, they lifted Xiao Qidi and Ning Jinli out of the carriage.

There is, however, a road to the main peak that can accommodate a carriage.

Yet that road is guarded by Tian Shu Sect disciples; if they returned so openly, the Sect Leader would surely notice.

Therefore, they would wait until nightfall, take a very remote hidden path, and meet the senior brother on the backside of the main peak.

The sky grew dim.

The layered peaks of Yuqi Mountain rose with layers of mist.

Though the sun hadn't fully set, the backside of the main peak had already sunk into a hazy darkness.

The few took turns carrying Xiao Qidi while bearing Ning Jinli, moving through a rugged, narrow mountain path that was barely a road.

The mountain path was extremely steep; even with their high martial skill, walking unarmed was arduous and required utmost caution, lest a slip into a cliff fissure spell disaster.

They strained their nerves, trudging for a good while, and all were exhausted, panting heavily.

"This kid's body is just too tall and heavy," someone complained, "Should we wake him and let him walk himself? The road ahead is even narrower; carrying him might be impossible."

The leader thought briefly, "Hmm, tie his hands a bit tighter, and make sure he doesn't run away."

Then, the few added another loop of coarse rope around Xiao Qidi's two arms before finally waking him.

Xiao Qidi slowly opened his eyes, "I haven't had enough sleep yet."

The leader warned sternly, "Take a good look at the surroundings; I tell you, without our guidance even an Immortal would get lost here and eventually die trapped. If you don't want to live, or don't care about that woman, then go ahead and run wildly."

Xiao Qidi looked around and couldn't help but furrow his brow.

He could tell that the other party wasn't exaggerating.

The terrain here was far more treacherous than the natural barriers of Lin Xian Village.

"Hmm, I understand, let's go," Xiao Qidi glanced at the still-unconscious Ning Jingli and, with effort, rose to his feet.

Of the eight Tian Shu Sect experts, two went ahead to blaze the trail.

Xiao Qidi and the person carrying Ning Jingli walked in the middle, while the others lagged behind, watching the surroundings and keeping an eye on Xiao Qidi.

The deeper the party went into the mountains, the steeper and narrower the path became, and in many places one side dropped into a bottomless cliff.

Ordinary people could not traverse it at all; even these martial experts had to cling to the opposite cliff to avoid slipping.

After walking like this for half an hour, a bright moon rose in the sky, illuminating the mountain mist as if it were a slowly drifting gray‑white veil.

"How much farther do we have to go?" Xiao Qidi asked casually.

The leader pointed ahead from a distance and said, "Beyond the Zhuiyingjian ahead, we'll reach it."

Xiao Qidi suddenly stopped, feigning extreme weakness, and said, "I can't go on, let me rest a moment."

The leader's face turned cold and said, "Stop pretending."

Xiao Qidi leaned his shoulder against the left mountain wall and said, "Who gave you the drug that ruined my strength? I truly have no energy, do as you wish."

As soon as his shoulder touched the wall, a cascade of soil and stones fell, scattering into the abyss on the right.

This frightened the Tian Shu Sect members considerably.

Xiao Qidi said calmly, "How about this: give me some antidote to restore a portion of my strength, and I won't delay your business."

"Don't even think about it!" the leader said, wiping sweat from his forehead.

Xiao Qidi chuckled lightly, "Even a fool can see how dangerous this place is; I couldn't possibly run away. Moreover, if I fell into the abyss from exhaustion, you'd have wasted your effort."

The leader was left speechless.

His words did have merit.

He hesitated, then fished a small pill from his chest, split it in two with his fingertips, and forced half into Xiao Qidi's mouth.

Xiao Qidi instantly felt his body lighten considerably.

Although far from fully recovered, he now had enough vigor to handle these people.

The group continued forward.

Before long, they finally arrived at the Zhuiyingjian the leader had mentioned.

It was a naturally formed stone bridge.

It was called a bridge, yet its narrowest point was less than a step wide, and below lay a gorge deeper than any they had passed before.

Dense, cold fog billowed from the fissure, chilling to the bone.

The leader drew the Hook Claw from his waist and flung it forcefully toward the opposite side of the stone bridge.

He intended to snag the far side so the others could hold the rope and cross safely.

But the distance was too great, only dim moonlight illuminated, further obscured by the thick fog; after several attempts he failed to catch any fixed point.

"How about I give it a try?" Xiao Qidi suggested.

"Can you do it?" the leader asked, suspicion on his face.

Xiao Qidi replied, "What's the harm in trying? Perhaps my arm is a bit longer, allowing me to fling farther and snag it."

The leader released his hands and handed the Hook Claw to him.

Xiao Qidi took the Hook Claw, stepped half a pace forward, steadied himself on a small platform at the bridgehead, and slowly swung the Hook Claw upward.

As the Hook Claw swung faster, he suddenly turned and flung it toward the Tian Shu Sect members.

Swoosh!

A sound rang through the void.

The experts hadn't expected Xiao Qidi to act that way, and before they could react, their lower legs were already entangled.

Xiao Qidi yanked forcefully with both arms, and the several people fell almost simultaneously.

In a flash, he took a swift step, scooped Ning Jingli into his arms with one hand, and with the other hand grasped the rope's end, hurling it toward the gorge.

The whole sequence was as fast as lightning.

Those whose legs were bound lost their balance and were pulled down one after another.

In the blink of an eye, the eight of them dropped into the fog‑shrouded gorge like dumplings falling into a pot.

Cold sweat beaded on Xiao Qidi's face.

That extremely risky move instantly drained the strength he had been quietly gathering.

He could barely stay upright and fell to his knees with a thud.

Just as he was about to set Ning Jingli down on the ground to catch his breath.

Swish!

A Hook Claw shot up from below, tearing through the fog and coiling around his neck like a snake.

Immediately, a massive downward force pulled him down as well.

He no longer had the strength to struggle, not even enough time to release Ning Jingli.

He fell into the abyss, still clutching her.

The howling, icy gale cut his face like a knife.

He had no idea what lay at the bottom of the abyss.

But he guessed that this time there was no escape; he would surely be shattered to pieces.

"I'm sorry, Miss Ning... I dragged you into this," Xiao Qidi said, clenching his teeth.

Xiao Qidi gritted his teeth, apologized to the unconscious Ning Jingli in his arms, and then resolutely shifted his body downward.

Even if it meant shattering his body to pieces, he still wanted to give her a buffer, to secure a sliver of chance for her to survive at the end.

Bang!

After a deafening blast.

Xiao Qidi instantly lost consciousness…

…

He didn't know how long had passed.

Ning Jinli groggily opened her eyes.

As her awareness gradually cleared, the pain coursing through her body and the bone‑chilling cold made her shiver.

She lay on her back, and before her was an endless white, like clouds she could reach out and touch.

It seemed to be daylight, yet the thick white mist made the surroundings look gloomy.

She turned her head and realized she was lying on a riverbank, with most of her body still soaking in the icy water.

"What… what kind of place is this? I wasn't in Lin Xian Village… in Xiao Qidi's camp tent, was I? How did I end up here?" she gritted through the whole‑body pain and damp cold, struggling to climb ashore.

"Xiao Qidi… Xiao Qidi…"

Ning Jinli called out weakly as she climbed.

Suddenly, she saw a silhouette drifting on the water's surface by the bank, most of the body face‑down submerged, but it was clear he was male.

Without time to think, she struggled to rise, stepped into waist‑deep water at the bank, and with all her strength grabbed his clothing and turned him over.

Splash—

A face, whitened by the icy river water, came into view.

The man stared with his eyes wide, a terrified, death‑defying expression.

Ning Jinli jumped in fright, but also breathed a sigh of relief.

At least it wasn't Xiao Qidi.

"Xiao Qidi! Where are you?" Ning Jinli anxiously looked around, her shout echoing through the mountain gorge.

At that moment, she suddenly felt her calf wrapped by something soft, tightening gradually.

A water snake?!

Her complexion changed dramatically as she flailed on the water, rolling and crawling toward the shore.

Once ashore, she looked back and saw a hemp rope about two fingers thick coiled around her ankle.

The rope, carried by the slowly moving river, tightened further, as if something beyond the water's surface was pulling.

She clenched her teeth, gripped the rope, and strained to pull toward the bank.

As the rope was hauled up inch by inch, a tall figure emerged from the river's bend.

This time Ning Jinli saw clearly.

It was Xiao Qidi!

Ning Jinli summoned all her strength to keep pulling, finally dragging him to the bank.

But he was already cold all over, his face pallid, and he no longer breathed…