Chapter 581: [Nanyang Water Stronghold] (Part 1)

Wen Boyuan looked left and right, waited a while with no movement, then he finally relaxed a little and shouted loudly, "Hu Xiaotian, I see you! I see you!" His voice echoed on the water, but no one answered him, and the surrounding cries grew fewer and fewer, showing that the surviving warriors were dwindling.

At that moment, someone far off shouted, "A boat is coming! A boat is coming!" With the appearance of hope, some warriors who were about to give up struggling rallied their last hope, and cries for help rose and fell across the water.

Wen Boyuan was overjoyed, thinking heaven had not left him without a way; he never expected a boat to arrive so quickly. Just as he was eagerly looking forward to it, he suddenly felt his ankle tighten, a great force dragging him under. Though he possessed martial skills, he had no room to use them in the water, was pulled beneath the surface, and gulped several mouthfuls of river water. Instinctively he swung his blade wildly, but hit nothing; in his panic his wrist was seized again. Wen Boyuan knew the attacker in the water must be Hu Xiaotian without doubt, and he struggled desperately—death can unleash a person's potential—his wrist gripping the blade slipped free of the opponent's grasp once more.

The one ambushing Wen Boyuan underwater was indeed Hu Xiaotian, who had held his breath for a long time, waiting for Wen Boyuan to lower his guard before launching this attack. Hu Xiaotian also anticipated that Wen Boyuan would make a death struggle, but Wen Boyuan's resistance was far tougher than he had expected.

Hu Xiaotian grabbed Wen Boyuan's wrist with one hand and reached for his neck with the other; in the struggle he seized a rope around Wen Boyuan's neck, gave it no further thought, and pulled hard, keeping Wen Boyuan from lifting his head above water.

Wen Boyuan choked on more river water, his struggling strength visibly weakening. He brandished his Tiger Soul blade and thrust wildly, but his wrist was seized again by Hu Xiaotian, who wrapped his legs around Wen Boyuan's right leg, pressing close to his body. Under Hu Xiaotian's pull, Wen Boyuan kept sinking, his neck constricting tighter and tighter. He felt his inner strength draining rapidly, to the point he could no longer grip his Tiger Soul blade, which slipped from his hand and sank slowly.

Hu Xiaotian clung to him like a millennium-old vine; Wen Boyuan's eyes widened underwater, filled with panic and terror, he strained a few times, but the intervals grew longer and his strength waned. Just then, a pale green figure silently approached from below, brandishing a long saber that plunged fiercely into Wen Boyuan's chest. Hu Xiaotian had not expected such a sudden change underwater; startled, he hastily released Wen Boyuan's body—only to see the blade pier straight through Wen Boyuan's torso. Had his reaction been a beat slower, he likely would have suffered the same fate, being skewered like candied haws on that blade. A black mist of blood spread ahead; Wen Boyuan's limbs flung wide, forming a large character underwater. In the blood mist, his pallid face gradually lost its vitality, and his body slowly sank beneath the water.

Hu Xiaotian's heart pounded with alarm, fearing the assassin would strike again; he desperately swam away.

The green-clad assassin watched Hu Xiaotian's retreating direction underwater but did not pursue; instead, he turned and swam the opposite way.

When Hu Xiaotian surfaced again, he was sure the underwater assassin had not caught up, and he finally relaxed a little. Not far off, a huge warship appeared on the river, its large red flag bearing a prominent 'Yong' character—it was the Da Yong navy, which had rushed to the scene upon hearing the news, lowering five small boats to rescue the surviving warriors on the river.

A small boat spotted Hu Xiaotian and quickly rowed over; the Da Yong soldiers aboard pulled him aboard. Taken to the warship, he discovered upon reaching the deck that many others had already been rescued before him. His first sight was of Zhan Peng, who, upon seeing Hu Xiaotian, was overjoyed, hurried over, helped him sit, and Hu Xiaotian sent a mental transmission: "Where is Her Highness the Princess?"

Zhan Peng lowered his voice: "Taking advantage of the chaos on board, Elder Brother Zhou brought her away first; if all goes well, they should be swimming back to Dakang by now."

Hearing that Long Xi Yue was safe and sound, Hu Xiaotian's heart eased at once, filled with an indescribable joy. Though today's ordeal had been perilous, the outcome was most satisfactory: not only had he slain Wen Boyuan as he wished, but he had also rescued Long Xi Yue. Yet where had that underwater assassin come from? In fact, even if he had not intervened, he could have drowned Wen Boyuan himself—who was this person, and which side did he represent? For a moment Hu Xiaotian fell into deep thought.

Soon after, more people were brought aboard one after another; Xiong Tianba and his son were also unharmed, and everyone's reunion was pure joy. What Hu Xiaotian did not expect was that Minister of Rites Wu Jing Shan had also managed to escape; upon seeing Hu Xiaotian, Wu Jing Shan burst into tears, having thought death certain yet finding himself miraculously spared.

While comforting Wu Jing Shan, Hu Xiaotian whispered, "Sir Wu, there's no need to grieve; everything is the doing of that traitor Wen Boyuan, who deliberately plotted to kill the Princess."

Upon being reminded, Wu Jing Shan suddenly recalled the Princess's fate, his face paling as he stammered, "Where is Her Highness the Princess? Where is Her Highness the Princess?"

Hu Xiaotian put on a mournful, indignant expression: "Her Highness the Princess has had no word so far; I'd say eight or nine times out of ten she has met with mishap."

Hearing this, Wu Jing Shan beat his chest and stamped his feet, crying, "What can be done? Your Highness, if the Princess comes to harm, what face have I to see the Emperor? I can only atone with death." He made a motion to run to the ship's rail, feigning a leap into the river.

Hu Xiaotian grabbed him, sighed, and said, "Sir Wu, the matter is not yet settled; perhaps the Princess is blessed with good fortune, and even a dire escape cannot be ruled out—let us wait a bit longer before deciding."

Wu Jing Shan wore a dejected look: "Then we'll wait a little longer." In truth, he did not truly wish to die.

The Da Yong navy continued its search on the Yongjiang's surface, rescuing dozens of warriors and hauling up hundreds of corpses. Although Hu Xiaotian had personally experienced this disaster, seeing so many bodies neatly lined on the deck still shocked him, filling him with unbearable sorrow.

What puzzled Hu Xiaotian was that, though more than an hour had passed since the incident, the Dakang side had sent no rescue vessels at all—had they not received the news, or had they received it yet chosen to remain idle?

Hu Xiaotian whispered to Wu Jing Shan, "Sir Wu, we cannot keep waiting; we must find their leader and explain the situation to him in person."

Wu Jing Shan nodded, his emotions gradually calming, and lowered his voice: "I don't know why our navy has still not received any word."

Hu Xiaotian gazed across the river at Dakang and murmured, "Perhaps they are turning a blind eye."

Beside them, Xiong Anmin said, "Gentlemen, we are currently within Da Yong's waters; even if they noticed, they would not dare to come over rashly."

Xiong Tianba could not help but ask, "The ship was fine—how could it suddenly sink? Could someone have tampered with it?" Even someone as slow-witted as him could think of that, and naturally others would as well.

Hu Xiaotian sighed, "It's all my fault; I shouldn't have left the Princess's side. Had I been aboard with her, perhaps this wouldn't have happened. Even if it did, I could have protected the Princess!" He put on a show of remorse, sighing long and short, blaming himself incessantly.

Wu Jing Shan said, "Lord Hu, there's no need for self-reproach; many points are doubtful. Wen Boyuan acted furtively from the moment he boarded, and his choice not to share a boat with the Princess surely hides something."

Xiong Tianba said, "Sir Wu is right; he must have tampered with the ship."

Xiong Anmin, worried his son would talk too much and invite trouble, glared at him and snapped, "No nonsense!" Deep down he regretted it; had he known, he and his son would not have followed Hu Xiaotian onto this pirate ship, and now they're in trouble.

If the Princess were dead, none of them would likely escape blame; though they had nothing to do with it, they would now be dragged in as well.

Xiong Tianba suddenly exclaimed with delight, "Master! My master—"

Hu Xiaotian started at the words, looked up, and saw Zhou Mo also aboard, accompanied by a small soldier who was soaked through, slight of build, with large, spirited eyes, though he looked worried. Seeing Hu Xiaotian, his gaze brightened and a knowing smile touched his lips; Hu Xiaotian instantly recognized him as the disguised Princess Anping, Long Xi Yue. His feelings mixed joy and worry: joy that Long Xi Yue was safe, worry because he had thought Zhou Mo could bring her safely back to Dakang to settle her, yet they had instead turned up aboard the Da Yong warship.

Zhou Mo heard Xiong Tianba's shout, turned toward the sound, and seeing everyone unharmed, his face lit with joy. Long Xi Yue saw Hu Xiaotian rushing toward her without regard for anything, took a few steps, then remembered her altered appearance and feared being recognized; she suppressed her excitement and longing, stopped, and stared fixedly at the distant Hu Xiaotian, her nose tingling and her eyes reddening.

Hu Xiaotian's inner turmoil was equally great, but his self-control far surpassed Long Xi Yue's; pretending not to have seen her, he called out loudly, "Elder Brother Zhou!"

Zhou Mo nodded, quickly came to Hu Xiaotian's side, and Long Xi Yue followed behind him until she stood beside Hu Xiaotian, sitting silently beside him. Though they exchanged no words, her heart, like a small boat tossed in wind and rain, had found a safe harbor, feeling utterly secure and warm.

Hu Xiaotian turned his head to glance at her and sent a mental transmission: "Girl, sit steady; we'll talk later." After all, Wu Jing Shan and the Xiong father and son were still present, and Long Xi Yue's identity must remain hidden from them.

Long Xi Yue bit her cherry lip, turned her head away, and pretended to gaze into the distance.

Hu Xiaotian asked, "Elder Brother Zhou, how did you come here?" (To be continued~^~)