Using their own bodies as stepping stones?

Everyone exchanged glances, each of them thinking the same thing — without question, this was an extraordinarily risky plan.

Ziqing nodded seriously. “It’s the only way. And whoever crosses must step lightly — no jumping allowed.”

As she spoke, she walked to the edge of the marsh, gauging the distance visually before continuing. “From here to the opposite bank is about ten-odd paces. Three of our bodies, laid end to end, should be enough to span it.”

Everyone present was clever enough that no further explanation was needed — they all understood at once.

Three people would spread their arms and legs wide, lying flat across the marshland to maximize their surface area, while the remaining two walked across their bodies to the other side. The moment those two reached solid ground, they would need to move quickly, linking hands one after another with the three still in the marsh, and pull them ashore.

This was the simplest solution, and also the only one — and, at the same time, an extremely dangerous one.

There was no question that whoever lay flat in the marsh would be putting themselves at real risk.

Ziqing remembered that, back when their group of five had crossed the marsh, they’d drawn lots to determine who would lie down — and none of those who’d drawn that fate had survived.

Even with a larger surface area, sinking was inevitable, only slower. And what if, during the crossing, someone deliberately dragged their feet, or deliberately stepped too hard?

Once someone lay flat in the marsh, unless another person pulled them out, they would never be able to rise on their own — because only by maintaining that flat, prone position could the rate of sinking be slowed; the moment they moved, they would inevitably sink faster!

Now, with five people present, only three needed to lie down — so… who exactly should it be?

Without question, if Xinyun weren’t here, this wouldn’t even be a difficult question at all. Even between Jun Beiyue and Xuanyuan Lige, men who had been rivals for decades, in this moment, they could trust one another completely!

Even setting all that aside — even if the two of them still hadn’t fully let go of their past grievances and rivalries — surely, given their character, each could trust the other to honor his word.

But Xinyun was not someone who could be trusted at all!

Once Ziqing finished speaking, Xinyun said nothing, only lowering her head. Clearly, she had no intention of lying down.

A complicated look flickered through Ziqing’s eyes as she said, “Alright then — how about this. The irritating scholar, myself, and Miss Xinyun — the three of us will lie down, and let Beiyue and A’Li cross first. After all, they’re faster, and stronger too, so we can trust they’ll be able to pull the three of us out.”

Letting someone as unknown, as untrustworthy as Xinyun cross first was a risk they simply couldn’t afford to take — especially not Ziqing, who had already lived through one experience of mutual betrayal and slaughter, and was even less inclined to let her guard down now.

Ziqing’s reasoning was more than sound enough — but some people, when they intended to refuse, wouldn’t care what reasoning you gave them at all. The moment Ziqing finished speaking, Xinyun immediately refused. “I don’t want to! I’m scared!”

Even as she refused, she stepped backward as well, and despite not being particularly young, she put on the exact air of a spoiled young girl throwing a tantrum, leaving Ziqing frowning deeply.

Baili Weisheng and Xuanyuan Lige watched this with visible irritation as well.

Even setting aside their existing wariness toward her, under perfectly ordinary circumstances, Xinyun ought to have been the very first to lie down — of everyone in the group, she was, after all, the weakest in physical strength!

And considering that the opposite bank offered nothing at all to brace against, whoever crossed first would need to pull all three people out of the marsh while simultaneously ensuring they themselves weren’t dragged back in — this required no ordinary amount of strength, and not just strength alone, but a fair degree of technique as well.

Seeing everyone looking at her this way, Xinyun sneered coldly inside, and made her refusal absolute. “I simply won’t do it. I’d rather not go at all — I’ll stay here forever, I won’t cross with you!”

But at these words, Jun Beiyue, who had never once addressed Xinyun directly before, finally lost his patience, saying coldly, “Don’t worry. This king will most certainly not let you stay here.”

What… what exactly did that mean?

Xinyun’s heart skipped a beat — this was, she realized, the very first time Jun Beiyue had ever spoken to her directly.

No one quite understood what Jun Beiyue meant by this, until he pointed toward the cliff’s edge nearby, his expression utterly blank, and said coldly, “Will you jump down yourself, or shall this king send you off personally?”

At these words, Xinyun’s heart very nearly stopped. Throughout this entire journey, she had watched Jun Beiyue treat Han Ziqing with such tender care, practically ready to carry her the whole way — she had never once imagined that Jun Beiyue would turn out to be, of the three men present, the most ruthless of them all!

If Baili Weisheng and Xuanyuan Lige were sharp with their words, then Jun Beiyue’s ruthlessness ran far deeper, straight to the very core of his heart!

Seeing this, Baili Weisheng off to the side laughed heartily, whistling with an air of complete relaxation — clearly, the matter had, in effect, already been resolved. Xuanyuan Lige, meanwhile, simply crouched down to examine the mud in the marsh, staying well out of Jun Beiyue’s business.

Watching Jun Beiyue’s cold, frigid expression, Ziqing felt a strange mixture of familiarity and unfamiliarity — it had been so very long since this man had last shown such ruthlessness.

This was, quite clearly, a moment where things were about to be laid bare completely!

And, of course, given the circumstances they now found themselves in, laying things bare completely was, in fact, entirely necessary. Having lost all their martial arts the moment they’d entered this mountain, this situation was absolutely critical for them!

None of them had any idea what might still lie ahead, and none of them knew what this woman of unknown origins might do somewhere along the way!

They had, between them, faced the treachery of this world, the wickedness of human hearts, more than once already — how could they possibly allow a woman of unknown origin the opportunity to threaten them, in a situation this perilous?

Ziqing walked over, smiling with an air of complete harmlessness. “Or perhaps I should send you down myself?”

Xinyun was genuinely terrified now, hastily retreating further away from the cliff’s edge. She knew full well that, with everyone here having lost their martial arts, she stood no chance against them at all.

Xinyun didn’t even dare meet Jun Beiyue’s icy gaze, turning instead in desperation to Ziqing, pleading, “I’ll lie down, I’ll lie down right now — please, don’t push me off! I’m begging you! I’ll do whatever you say!”

As she spoke, terrified Ziqing might not agree even now, despite every ounce of reluctance within her, she had no choice but to walk, under everyone’s watchful eyes, obediently toward the marsh, carefully lowering herself first to her knees, then to lie prone!

There was no denying it — Xinyun was, by now, filled with bitter regret. If she’d simply cooperated obediently from the start, without all her scheming and pretense, perhaps she wouldn’t be suffering like this now.

Whatever these people thought of her, surely they would have put her first, given that she was a woman, after all!

And now, she had no choice but to obediently lie down first, and the moment her knees sank into the marshy mud, her whole body began sinking downward, her face draining of color in terror. Quickly leaning forward, she pressed the side of her face flat against the mud, and as her surface area increased, the pressure bearing down on her knees lessened somewhat, no longer quite as terrifying as it had been at first.

And yet, even so, she could still feel every part of her body continuing to sink, and she wanted desperately to scream at the people on the shore, “Hurry up, all of you!”

But she didn’t dare so much as draw a deep breath — after all, breathing itself generated force, and any force generated would only accelerate the sinking further.

And meanwhile, Ziqing and the others on shore remained utterly unhurried.