Suddenly, a gust of whirlwind struck, and the whirlpool at the center of the river abruptly swelled larger.

The middle boat began to sway violently with the wind and waves.

Before the people on the flanking boats could even worry about the middle boat’s situation, a great gust rose on their own side as well — they could barely protect themselves, let alone help anyone else.

Without an order, no one dared to recklessly abandon their position.

If something suddenly went wrong and a boat was destroyed, it wouldn’t just harm the brothers aboard — it would mean the failure of this entire attack.

The first strike must hit hardest; morale surges once, wanes the second time, and is exhausted by the third — this first assault mattered more than anything.

The middle boat had already lost eleven men, and now the whirlpool’s force, for some reason, seemed to be converging entirely toward the center.

The people on both flanks grew tense — without orders, all they could do was pray.

Jiu’er, you must hold on!

Miss Jiu’er, all of you, hold on!

“Hold on! Push through!” Yu Jingfeng shouted again.

With a thunderous boom, a great wave crashed over the middle boat, and a swath of brothers fell.

They struggled to get back up, but with the boat swaying so violently, they couldn’t find their footing.

“Miss Jiu’er, give the order — let me go back,” Yu Jingfeng shouted.

Another boom sounded, and Yu Jingfeng’s own boat was struck by a great wave.

Then it hit Yue Jianfei’s boat as well.

“Hold on,” Tang Xiaohua’s low voice rang out. “The great wave is their final move — push through it and we win!”

Tang Xiaohua’s words settled quite a few hearts.

But then, as if the wave had specifically singled out the middle boat, two great waves surged toward it from both left and right at once.

At the impact just before, the brothers aboard had all snapped their eyes open.

Now, everyone’s gaze fixed on the wave rising high into the air, bearing down on the middle boat.

Just as Yu Jingfeng and Tang Xiaohua moved to rush over, a streak of white suddenly closed in fast from behind the middle boat.

In the blink of an eye, a tall figure came to stand in the empty space beside Feng Jiu’er.

“It’s Jian Yi — Jian Yi’s back!”

“Jian Yi’s back, everyone hold on!”

“Hold on!”

As the brothers’ delighted cries rang out, the two great waves crashed down.

But their boat didn’t rock nearly as much as expected.

Once the spray settled, the brothers rose to their feet one by one.

Feng Jiu’er looked at the man beside her, the corner of her mouth curving upward, her expression thoroughly pleased.

He had come back after all.

A moment ago, when things looked bad on both flanks, Feng Jiu’er had pulled Yu Jingfeng and Yang Sheng along with eleven others away — in truth, it had also been a gamble.

She’d known they were going to break the formation, and that Jian Yi would certainly be on one of the boats.

But she hadn’t known which boat, and could only wait for a chance for him to reveal himself on his own.

Thankfully, he had finally returned to her side.

“Brothers, hold on! We’ll be seeing sunlight again soon!” Long Shiyi called out, excited as well.

Great waves — nothing to fear! They would surely push through.

With Jian Yi on the middle boat, and the confidence he brought with him, things took a dramatic turn for the better.

Sure enough, before the three boats could take another wave, the vessels began to steady, and even the fog in the air slowly began to disperse.

“The formation is broken!”

At Tang Xiaohua’s announcement, every brother on the river grew excited.

The news spread quickly back through the ranks — there were still many brothers waiting to cross the river, and now that the formation had broken, everyone could get moving.

After the great waves and the fierce winds, the thick fog dispersed and the sky cleared.

Just as Yu Jingfeng had said, they were seeing sunlight again in no time.

“Brothers, the first formation is broken! Everyone sit down, steady your breath, and prepare for the next challenge!” Yu Jingfeng called out, mimicking Feng Jiu’er’s manner of speaking.

Feng Jiu’er, internally: I am absolutely nowhere near as long-winded as you!

Yu Jingfeng paid it no mind — thankfully Jian Yi had returned in time, or he might have actually broken military discipline just now.

That offense could have been serious or minor, but worst of all, it could very well have gotten his brothers hurt.

With everything back to calm, the brothers settled down one after another, cross-legged, adjusting their breathing.

Jian Yi turned his head to look at the small woman beside him but made no move to get closer.

Feng Jiu’er took a deep breath, drew her legs up, and sat down.

She patted the space beside her, gesturing for Jian Yi to sit as well.

Jian Yi’s fine eyes blinked, and he folded his long legs and settled down.

“Good that you’re back.” Feng Jiu’er curved her lips slightly. “I knew you’d come back.”

“So you deliberately sent them away?” Jian Yi’s thick brows knitted, his tone dropping low.

“Mm.” Feng Jiu’er didn’t hide it. “I knew you’d definitely show up.”

“The one who wants to harm you is right across the river. Once she’s dealt with, everything will be fine.”

“Don’t worry! All of us will face it with you.”

“And if I’d been controlled by her — what then?” Jian Yi wanted to reprimand her but found he couldn’t bring himself to.

Wasn’t she truly his wife? In his mind, there was only ever this one figure.

He couldn’t bear to leave her, couldn’t bear for her to be hurt — he couldn’t even bear to scold her.

“Knock you out and carry you away!” Feng Jiu’er’s answer came crisp and decisive.

Of course she knew that Great Hero Jian Yi wasn’t someone so easily knocked unconscious.

But if she didn’t say something like that, what if he decided to leave again?

“These past days, have you not been eating at all? You’ve gotten thinner.” Thinking of this handsome man eating steamed buns all alone — how pitiful!

Even if he’d been eating roast chicken, it would still be pitiful — he hated being alone more than anything.

“You’ve gotten thinner too.” Jian Yi, unsure how to respond, said the first thing that came to mind.

Feng Jiu’er shot him a sidelong glare and turned her gaze forward.

“Don’t ever leave again. It’s ruining my appetite, of course I’ve gotten thin.”

Her mood had genuinely been affected, though not so badly that she’d lost her appetite entirely — in fact, guessing he was nearby, she’d probably put on weight these past two days.

“When I’m not around, you lose your appetite?” Jian Yi asked, brows furrowed.

Feng Jiu’er was caught off guard by the question, glanced at him sideways, and nodded.

“Mm, otherwise why would I have gotten thinner?”

“I’m warning you, don’t leave again, or don’t ever come back at all — understood?”

Feng Jiu’er deliberately put extra weight into her words.

If he left again, she really would get angry!

Before Jian Yi could respond, Feng Jiu’er withdrew her gaze and stood up.

She turned to look at Tang Xiaohua not far off and asked softly, “Sister Hua, what’s the situation?”

“Not good.” Tang Xiaohua shook her head. “There’s a barrier set up ahead.”

“A barrier?” Feng Jiu’er’s brows knitted.

She’d read about such things in books before.

She used to think such things only existed in fantasy novels — she never imagined they were real.

Did this mean Chen Hong had turned into some kind of demon?

“Yes.” Tang Xiaohua turned to meet Feng Jiu’er’s gaze. “We’re very close now. Have the brothers slow down immediately.”

“A barrier is like a wall you can see through. The thickness of the wall depends on the internal energy of whoever set it up.”

“Our boats definitely can’t break through it by force — we’ll need another way.”

“All right.” Feng Jiu’er had no time to dwell on whether this was demonic or not, and turned her thoughts to Yu Jingfeng.

“Yu Jingfeng, raise the banner high and have all the boats begin slowing down now — halt the fleet in advance.”