Meng Qianzi froze, not daring to immediately turn around.

She looked down at her right leg.

This right leg seemed to have detached from her body, quietly developing a mind of its own. As if being addressed by that question made it suddenly aware of its bitterness and grievances, it began to rebel against her, refusing to cooperate. Meng Qianzi felt a dull pain in her wound, like countless spider threads of fine pain spreading along the texture of her skin. The entire leg felt weak, unsteady, and unable to support the right side of her body.

Of course, it might just be that after the intense fighting, the effect of the medication had worn off.

Shen Gun also found it strange: “Yes, Miss Meng, weren’t you in a wheelchair just a few days ago?”

Meng Qianzi responded with a vague sound of acknowledgment and turned to look.

It was Jiang Lian. He was being supported by Tao Tian, also somewhat unsteady on his feet. One hand was touching his throat, and his left shoulder down to his collar was covered in blood.

Meng Qianzi’s heart tightened: “You’re injured?”

Jiang Lian smiled and said, “I’m still alive, which isn’t bad.”

Meng Qianzi nodded, paused, and as if forgetting she had already nodded, nodded once more. She reached out to steady herself on a nearby rock, suddenly wanting to sit down.

She looked around: “Just these two?”

Wasn’t there an archer as well?

Shen Gun gave her a definite answer: “Just these two. There was also a mantis-person who took Wei Biao away yesterday but didn’t come back.”

Meng Qianzi made a sound of understanding. It seemed that after disposing of Wei Biao, the mantis-person had wandered around and returned to the cave at midnight, where she had encountered it.

Various scents still drifted to her nostrils, with the bloodiest and most intense coming from this valley. Further out, the scents became fainter and clearer. She leaned her back against the rock, slowly sliding down to sit, then pointed not far away: “What happened to Meiying? Did she faint from fear?”

Only then did Shen Gun remember Kuang Meiying lying there: “No, no, she joined the fight.”

As he spoke, he quickly ran over and carried the still unconscious Kuang Meiying on his back.

Meng Qianzi first briefly explained the current casualties to everyone. When they heard that the driver had escaped and Wei Biao had been rescued, they all let out long sighs of relief, feeling that despite suffering these past two days, having their lives still intact wasn’t bad.

The matter wasn’t over. Meng Qianzi sent out their GPS coordinates and called Xian Qionghua again. Fortunately, she had already arranged for mountain dwellers to rescue Wei Biao. After rescuing him, those people would head this way, which shouldn’t take too long.

Tao Tian didn’t actually know Meng Qianzi. Meng Qianzi’s photo wouldn’t be circulated among mountain dwellers. But seeing her carrying a mountain dweller’s basket and Shen Gun being very polite to her, calling her “Miss Meng,” she had begun to wonder. Then, hearing her call “Seventh Mother” on the phone, everything became clear, making her extremely nervous and instantly at a loss.

Fear what might come, and it will. After finishing her call, Meng Qianzi first looked up at her: “Do you know who I am?”

Tao Tian quickly nodded.

“Just now,” Meng Qianzi gestured to the man whose throat had been cut, “I saw you trying to pull him. What were you doing?”

Tao Tian was confused and looked at Jiang Lian: “Well, Jiang Lian was badly hurt and couldn’t beat him. That man was grabbing his wound and choking his neck. I wanted to help…”

Meng Qianzi said, “I only heard that your crying was very loud. Trying to pull him apart—given the size difference between you two, even three of you couldn’t have pulled him away.”

Was she… scolding her?

Shen Gun pretended not to hear, and Jiang Lian didn’t dare speak.

“The way you were helping, if it had gone on any longer, Jiang Lian would have been choked to death. You should have picked up a rock to hit his temple, or gouged his eyes, or kicked his… that place…”

Shen Gun felt a chill down his spine, and Jiang Lian instinctively tightened his groin.

“Trying to pull him away isn’t like a tug of war. Think about it—by rescuing him like that, wouldn’t you have gotten him killed? If Jiang Lian died, that man would have turned on you next. Would you have survived?”

Tao Tian’s eyes reddened, and she nodded repeatedly.

Seeing her this way, Meng Qianzi felt sorry for her: After all, before tonight, hadn’t she ever even killed a chicken?

Her tone softened: “You were lucky this time. Good luck doesn’t come twice. Next time you encounter a situation like this, I hope you’ll know what to do.”

She handed Tao Tian the satellite phone, then tossed her the gun: “Backup should arrive within two or three hours. You’re responsible for perimeter security. Keep in contact with them and, if necessary, guide them in.”

Tao Tian acknowledged and ran to higher ground with the phone. Watching her figure, Meng Qianzi felt her judgment was correct—she probably wasn’t injured.

Sometimes, outcomes truly couldn’t be predicted by strength alone: The first to escape was the ordinary driver; the one without much damage was Tao Tian; and of the two with the strongest fighting abilities, Jiang Lian had nearly lost his life, while Wei Biao… had almost become a mummified corpse wedged in a mountain crevice until the end of time.

She unzipped her bag, not looking up, and said: “Come here, let me look at your wound.”

It should have been meant for her, and Jiang Lian honestly moved closer.

Meng Qianzi took out scissors and snipped open Jiang Lian’s messy, dog-chewed-like bandages, then continued cutting open his outer clothing.

Jiang Lian first glanced at Shen Gun, not far away.

After rushing through the night, going two days without food, and experiencing fear and terror, Shen Gun was also extremely tired. Leaning against the unconscious Kuang Meiying, his eyes were closed, and he had already begun to doze, his head bobbing up and down.

Jiang Lian lowered his head to look at Meng Qianzi, who was carefully using the scissors, and said softly: “It wasn’t easy. Our Qianzi finally remembers me after cutting down enemies, arranging rescues, and disciplining subordinates.”

Meng Qianzi stopped what she was doing, turning her face slightly to look at him, and said: “What nonsense are you talking now?”

The two looked at each other, one looking down, one glancing up from the corner of her eyes. As they gazed at each other, Meng Qianzi’s eyes began to sting, and she turned her head away.

At that moment, Jiang Lian moved closer, one arm encircling her waist, his forehead against her temple, his nose and lips pressing into her cheek.

Meng Qianzi was startled but didn’t dare push him away, afraid that her hands might be too rough and aggravate his wounds. But seeing how his freshly exposed wound was affected by this movement, pulling at the blood and flesh, her scalp tingled. She couldn’t help saying: “Can’t you sit properly for bandaging? Don’t you want your arm anymore?”

Jiang Lian said softly: “Just for a moment.”

He wasn’t being lustful; he just wanted to be close to her. Having someone in his arms, feeling warmth, receiving a tangible response—the feeling was too good.

Meng Qianzi didn’t speak again. Their meeting had been chaotic, with many people and many matters to attend to. The complex emotions she’d been carrying had nowhere to settle, and she, too, needed this “moment” to let them disperse.

She freed one arm to hold Jiang Lian’s back, but her gaze couldn’t leave his wound.

That area was truly concerning—the bleeding and pus were bad enough, but Meng Qianzi calculated the time in her mind, worried that his wound might already be infected or the muscle necrotic. Looking more carefully, she found something strange and asked with a tremor: “Did you stuff something in there?”

It had almost grown together with the flesh and blood-pus.

Jiang Lian made a sound of affirmation: “Just go ahead and handle it.”

This wasn’t easy to handle. Meng Qianzi sighed, using one hand to rummage through her bag for an injection, first applying local anesthesia for him.

Jiang Lian had initially thought he would inevitably suffer more pain, but felt only a pin-prick of sharp pain in his shoulder, followed by the area gradually becoming numb. He immediately guessed what had happened, sighed with relief, and murmured: “Technology changes lives.”

Meng Qianzi felt his breath and the warm air of his words on her temple and cheek. Hearing his sigh, she found it somewhat amusing: “What technology changes lives? Hua Tuo used an anesthetic powder more than a thousand years ago. Just stay like this, and don’t look back.”

She took out packaged alcohol wipes, tore open the bag, cleaned one hand, then bit the handle of her dagger. After cleaning the blade, she first scraped away the hindering dried pus and rotten flesh, then steeled herself, grabbed the tattered cloth, and pulled it out with one motion.

Despite the local anesthesia, Jiang Lian’s body still shuddered involuntarily. The arm around her waist instinctively tightened, then quickly loosened as he leaned back against the rock, exhaling painfully.

The most difficult part was over. Considering the severity of his wound, Meng Qianzi laid out the entire first aid kit, planning to use everything—the mountain dweller’s basket was designed with mountain emergencies in mind, and someone of Meng Qianzi’s status had even better provisions. Although they were all small disposable containers, there was everything from saline solution to hydrogen peroxide to iodine complexes.

Particularly valuable was the tetanus shot, which was the “human” type—currently, tetanus shots are divided into “horse” and “human” types, distinguished by whether they’re extracted from horse or human serum. The former is more common and available in most hospitals, but requires a skin test before administration and may cause allergic reactions. The latter is much safer but less available due to limited quantity and higher price, and not all hospitals carry it, often being out of stock.

Although Meng Qianzi’s first aid skills were average, her procedures were correct, and her medical supplies were excellent. Plus, rescue was expected, and at worst, the accompanying doctor could improve the treatment later. So her mind gradually settled, and she suddenly remembered what Shen Gun had said earlier.

While cleaning the wound, she asked Jiang Lian: “Meiying, in her condition, actually joined the fight?”

Jiang Lian smiled bitterly: “I don’t know either. I only just now reunited with them—we haven’t even had a chance to talk.”

Jiang Lian briefly explained to Meng Qianzi what had happened before: how he had been treated as dead, how he had survived against the odds, how he had met Tao Tian, and how they had shot and wounded the stone-thrower before escaping.

However, the idea of “counter-hunting” that began and ended verbally proved to be just wishful thinking. His archery skills were only average, he was injured, dragging along Tao Tian, the darkness made aiming difficult, and they faced multiple opponents who were in hot pursuit…

Under these circumstances, preserving their own lives was already a special blessing from heaven.

Jiang Lian only remembered that at the time, unable to determine how many opponents there were and with no cover in the open wilderness, they could only flee desperately toward the mountains. Sometimes, after finally resting in a secluded spot, they would hear rustling sounds from the distance before long and have to gather their strength to flee again at the right moment.

In short, they had wandered through the mountains that entire night, unwittingly losing their direction and fleeing deeper and deeper. He had silently lamented this situation, knowing that after an accident, staying near the scene would make rescue easier. But things being as they were, they could only take one step at a time.

After daybreak, by chance, Jiang Lian caught a distant glimpse of the two people hunting him: one was the strange mantis-person, and the other was a burly man carrying a wooden club, even larger than Wei Biao. Seeing them, Jiang Lian’s heart sank, realizing the huge disparity in strength between them. Moreover, these two had learned from the stone-thrower’s being shot down and never stood still in open areas. When they occasionally passed through, they would inevitably quicken their pace, leaving Jiang Lian no opportunity to ambush them even if he wanted to.

After an exhausting day like this, when night fell, the club-carrying man left, giving Jiang Lian hope that the pursuers might be tired and showing signs of giving up the chase.

Hearing this, Meng Qianzi shook her head: “Wei Biao told me that the stone-thrower was constantly in a state of anger. Now I understand—you killed one and injured another. They wouldn’t rest until they caught you.”

On second thought, this was a good thing. It was precisely because the enemy was determined to catch Jiang Lian that they repeatedly delayed their journey, buying her time. Otherwise, if they had set out the night they captured Shen Gun and Kuang Meiying, after two days, the effectiveness of the Mountain Wind Guide would have been greatly reduced, making it much harder to find them.

Jiang Lian nodded: “They didn’t give up. Only one left, but the mantis-person remained. As you know, the mountains in the northwest are bare, without many places to hide. As long as it was at a high point, it could see everything. We could only huddle, not daring to run or make any big movements.”

Cold and hungry, Jiang Lian and Tao Tian endured another night, finally lasting until the mantis-person left. They were overjoyed but feared it might be a trap, so they hid for a while longer before emerging. Still anxious, they followed the direction the mantis-person had gone for a while, and during this journey, they discovered Kuang Meiying’s hair ornament.

Meng Qianzi’s heart skipped a beat: “Was it… bait?”

Wei Biao and Kuang Meiying had been captured long ago, and according to the narrative, the direction Wei Biao and his group fled was opposite to Jiang Lian’s. How could Kuang Meiying’s hair ornament possibly appear there?

Jiang Lian made a sound of agreement: “I suspected it was bait, too, but it at least suggested one thing: Meiying was in their hands.”

“So you followed?”

Jiang Lian asked her in return: “If it were you, what would you have done?”

Indeed, by that time, the two were already lost and couldn’t return to the accident site. Wandering made no sense; the only option was to focus on the lead regarding Kuang Meiying.

Meng Qianzi sighed: “This mantis-person is quite clever. It knew you were nearby. Rather than expending effort to find you, it laid bait to lure you in…”

No wonder Wei Biao said that after the mantis-person returned to the cave, the stone-thrower gave in and immediately drove everyone forward. After dealing with Wei Biao halfway, the mantis-person didn’t continue either, apparently responsible for the rear guard and waiting for Jiang Lian.

She murmured, “You were quite lucky, actually following them without being discovered.”

Jiang Lian smiled self-deprecatingly.

It wasn’t as easy as it sounded. He had stumbled along, trying his best to find clues, but still couldn’t keep up. Fortunately, in the distance, he suddenly heard Kuang Meiying’s cries and Shen Gun’s roars.

That moment was when Wei Biao was being taken away by the mantis-person, and Kuang Meiying and Shen Gun were desperately trying to stop it.

Jiang Lian couldn’t see what was happening, but based on the sounds, he and Tao Tian had secretly circled to get ahead of them, preparing to ambush at a suitable location.

He pointed around: “It was right here. We were waiting in ambush—with my accuracy, I could only risk shooting when they came close. But as they gradually approached, I realized one was missing, and I immediately felt something was wrong…”

Meng Qianzi recalled the arrow she had seen fly off course moments ago: “They were prepared and counter-ambushed you?”

Jiang Lian smiled bitterly in tacit acknowledgment.

Meng Qianzi was about to say something when Shen Gun’s stomach growled loudly nearby.

Comically, Shen Gun hadn’t been awakened by their talking or by the cold, but by hunger.

These stomach growls reminded Meng Qianzi. She quickly emptied the energy bars from her bag, unwrapped one to hand to Jiang Lian, and tossed another to Shen Gun, asking him: “How were you captured?”

Shen Gun’s answer made her both amused and exasperated: “I was captured very quickly.”

What else could have happened? He couldn’t fight, couldn’t run fast, so of course he was captured quickly. Specifically, he was knocked unconscious with a club, and when he woke up, Wei Biao and Kuang Meiying were already beside him.

Well, his escape experience was indeed uneventful. Meng Qianzi instinctively bent her fingers to count: “The archer, the stone-thrower, the mantis-person, and the club-wielder—are these four all of them?”

Shen Gun bit into the energy bar with a loud crunch: “Should be just these four. I only saw three; I never saw the archer.”

Jiang Lian was about to nod when he suddenly thought of something and blurted out: “No, at least five.”

His heart was pounding: “At that time, I had already killed the archer and shot down the stone-thrower. The stone-thrower whistled for help, and I remember three directions responded. Two plus three makes at least five.”

Five?

Meng Qianzi’s heart tightened, and she unconsciously sat up straight.

Shen Gun also stopped chewing, paused for two seconds, then suddenly realized and hurriedly looked around, his voice changing pitch: “Five? Then where is the last one? We’ve never seen him show his face…”

As he said this, his face suddenly paled: “Tao… Tao Tian is alone with the gun on perimeter guard. Could she be in… in danger?”