“Does Young Master wish to go together with this subordinate?”
That word “wish” nearly spilled from her lips, but in a flash of lightning, a pair of pitch-black, cold eyes flashed before her vision, and her heart felt as if something had bitten into it—a raw, throbbing pain, as if blood was dripping from it.
She should go, shouldn’t she? After searching for so many years, across ten thousand li of rivers and mountains, through red cliffs and vast deserts, traversing countless mountains and waters, struggling desperately to survive—wasn’t it all just to see him once? If she missed this opportunity, it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack in the future.
But, but he was still in the desert with unknown fate, still surrounded by enemies on all sides, still enduring wind and sun in the desert sandstorms. He might truly end up buried in the yellow hills. How could she just walk away like this? How could she abandon him without care? How could she be so selfish as to leave? Ask your heart—can you do it? Can you leave? Can you let go?
“Young Master?”
Qing Xia bit her lips tightly, her face pale as if she had gone through a great battle, beads of sweat on her forehead, her eyes so weary yet so determined. She clenched her fists tightly and slowly, almost word by word, said: “I cannot go. I have more important matters to attend to.”
The man frowned, saying in disbelief: “Young Master?”
“There are priorities and urgencies. Right now, this matter is more important to me.” Qing Xia’s face was pale as she said solemnly: “Tell Valley Master Zhu that I’m very grateful to him. If possible, please help me continue watching. As soon as matters here are concluded, I’ll rush over immediately. If, if you can’t keep watch, then, then don’t force it.”
The man nodded upon hearing this and said: “Young Master can rest assured. This subordinate will definitely convey your message. Young Master, please take care of yourself.”
“Mm.”
The horse quickly galloped away into the distance. The sky grew even darker, strong winds howled, and stars were sparse. Qing Xia sat straight-backed on her warhorse, breathing deeply, her face pale as paper.
Qin Zhiyan, if you’re truly at Huanchao Yi, you must know that I’ve been there five times. You must know that I stood on the city tower for more than twenty days just waiting for you. You must see the portraits of you I posted throughout the city. You must know how much I miss you.
But why, even so, do you still not appear? What unspeakable difficulty makes you so resolutely leave me?
Qin Zhiyan, you haven’t died. I know, I’ve always known. I know you must be quietly hiding from me in some corner. I won’t guess at the reasons, nor do I want to guess, because someday I will find you and make you tell me face to face why this is so.
Between us, there must be a resolution, there must be!
And now, I truly have more important things to do.
“My lord!” Strong winds swept across the plain as Song Yang rode forward, saying: “My lord, it’s time to depart.”
Qing Xia turned around, her expression resolute, her face slightly raised. The long wind caught her cloak like a great bird soaring and roaring. Qing Xia suddenly raised her horsewhip and struck it hard against her horse’s flank, taking the lead as she shouted: “Go!”
“My lord!” Huang Biao caught up and asked: “Which direction?”
“Northwest!” Qing Xia gripped her whip and raised it sharply, pointing toward the northwest: “Into the desert!”
With a sharp whooshing sound, strong winds howled across the sky, stirring up sand and dust everywhere. All grasses bent low, the four directions were pitch black, and a sharp dagger cut through the tranquility of the northern lands, ruthlessly piercing into the heart of the great desert.
Time flew by swiftly, and in the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed. The scorching sun blazed overhead in the boundless sea of sand. The vicious sun hung in the sky, continuously radiating torrential heat like colorless flames. The wind alternated between strong and weak, stirring up fine yellow sand that struck travelers’ faces. The world was a murky yellow expanse—looking in all directions, there was nothing but sand, seemingly merged with the sky itself. A caravan of two to three hundred women and children slowly moved across the desert, everyone listless and silent, as if conserving their strength to face the death desert that lay not far ahead.
This was already close to the depths of the great desert. Beyond the Dragon Tooth Desert ahead lay the Mongolian grasslands. Once they reached there, these people would be saved—but no one knew how many would remain after crossing the Dragon Tooth Desert.
A foul wind suddenly arose, mixed with barbarian howls. The hundred-person group was immediately alarmed, and the camels spun in circles, looking around in panic like their masters. From the rolling quicksand, a group of figures approached swift as lightning, about sixty to seventy people, their horse hooves flying fast, kicking up great clouds of yellow dust.
“It’s sand bandits! Sand bandits are coming! Run quickly, draw your blades!”
A man in his fifties who appeared to be the leader suddenly shouted loudly. The old, weak, women and children behind were thrown into panic, their faces deathly pale, and some of the timid ones even began to cry. At this moment, a young woman in bright red riding attire suddenly pushed through the crowd. Her eyes were bright, her face white as snow, with brown eyes and a high nose, cherry-red lips—she had somewhat the appearance of a Western Region girl, with a slender waist and full bust, radiating athletic elasticity and vitality.
The young woman rode a date-red warhorse. With a swish, she drew the curved blade from her waist and shouted: “Why are you crying? How pathetic!”
As soon as she finished speaking, the group of sand bandits had already rushed close. The leader wore a silver fox vest over his shoulders, a long blade at his waist, a full beard, and a long scar extending from the corner of his eye to his mouth—clearly not a good person at first glance. He looked at this group of old, weak, women and children, suddenly gave an evil laugh, and said to his subordinates: “Kill the old ones, capture the young ones.”
“We are people of Chief Mai Alun’s tribe. Who are you?” the red-clothed girl suddenly stepped forward and asked in a clear voice.
“Mai Alun?” The bearded man snorted coldly, gave a sinister smile, and said: “We’re sand bandits. We don’t know any Mai Alun. Brothers, attack!”
At his command, sixty to seventy wolf-like sand bandits suddenly charged forward with howls. The red-clothed girl gripped her curved blade and rushed to the front. Though she had some martial arts skills, how could she match these fierce, battle-hardened bandits? In just two moves, her dagger was knocked away and she was pulled down from her horse. A bandit brought his stinking mouth close, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth as he smiled: “Third Chief, she’s a delicate little beauty!”
Lewd laughter immediately erupted. The bearded man looked carefully twice, nodded and said: “Capture her and take her back. Tonight we’ll let the brothers have a good feast!”
“Excellent!”
Harsh laughter suddenly rang out. The bandit holding the girl laughed wantonly, reached out his large hand to grab at the girl’s full breast, and laughed: “Working with the Third Chief is so satisfying!”
“Just kill me!” The girl flew into a rage, angrily shouting: “The eyes of Xunda Tianshen are watching from the sky. The god will punish you on my behalf!”
“Tianshen?” Everyone repeated in a mocking tone. The leading man laughed: “The god died long ago. Rather than praying to Xunda Tianshen for protection, you’d better beg us to treat you well later!”
“Evil demons!” the girl shouted angrily, her small face flushed red, her whole body trembling—whether from anger or genuine fear was unclear.
The bearded man frowned and said: “Kill all the troublesome ones.”
His subordinates acknowledged with a sound. Blade raised and fell, a scream suddenly rang out. The red-clothed girl suddenly cried out to the leading old man: “Uncle Tadiluo!”
The shrill scream echoed in the air. The old man’s eyes rolled back, blood sprayed from his neck, and he collapsed to the ground. The girl’s eyes filled with blood. Before she could turn around to curse, more screams came from behind her. The elderly and children had no ability to resist against the sharp blades and fell one by one in pools of blood.
“You demons! Xunda Tianshen will punish you! He will definitely punish you!”
As soon as she finished speaking, a deafening tremor suddenly came from the far east. Yellow sand rolled forward like a massive surging tide, and even the earth seemed to tremble simultaneously. Thunderous sounds shook the sky, great clouds of yellow mist rose up, and in the hazy vision, countless black-clothed figures seemed to be charging fiercely forward, rapidly approaching.
“Xunda Tianshen has manifested!” A tear-streaked woman suddenly hugged the child in her arms and wept with joy. The red-clothed girl was pressed to the ground by bandits, her tender white cheeks somewhat bruised from being stepped on by hard boot soles. The girl gritted her teeth, looked ahead, and her eyes showed the joy of finding salvation in desperate circumstances. The bandits were also filled with doubt and uncertainty, temporarily stopping their slaughter to watch the approaching riders, not knowing if they were friend or foe.
The thick smell of blood hit them head-on, and all the women and bandits simultaneously shivered. Everyone looked at the approaching force in amazement, rubbing their eyes in disbelief, as if suspecting they were hallucinating.
These people’s attire clearly marked them as Han Chinese—each in black clothing and black armor. Even in such hot weather, they didn’t remove their armor. Their faces were resolute, as if carved from the same mold. The force stretched magnificently—the front riders had already reached them, while the rear ranks extended several hundred paces back, even disappearing into the yellow sand without visible end. A rough estimate suggested nearly ten thousand men. Moreover, these people were serious and unsmiling, their gazes cold as they looked at the opposing group. An invisible pressure immediately descended—not bloodthirsty fierceness, but genuine imposing authority. Such a large force suddenly appearing in the great desert naturally amazed everyone, even the red-clothed girl who had been desperately waiting for salvation was somewhat stunned.
“My lord,” a man in black armor and black robes with a silver eagle embroidered on his sleeve said respectfully to someone beside him, seeming to inquire, his manner extremely deferential.
The young person beside him appeared to be their leader. This person was not tall, with refined eyebrows and phoenix eyes that held a sharp gleam when he glanced around. His face was pale and he seemed delicate, yet he emanated a cold, icy aura that permeated outward.