“Watch out, the arrows are poisoned!”

One of the brothers, brows furrowed tightly, yanked a poisoned arrow out of his arm.

Hearing this, Feng Jiu’er glanced back, then leapt lightly over the others to reach the injured man’s side. With a flick of her jade fingers, she pressed down on several acupoints around the arrow wound, then pulled out a medicinal pill and pushed it into his mouth. Flipping open her needle case, she held several silver needles and, in the blink of an eye, drove them into his arm.

“Miss Jiu’er, don’t worry about me,” the man said through gritted teeth, his voice low.

“If we go, we go together; if we run, we run together. No more arguing—after a quarter hour, pull out the needles, and you’ll be able to keep your arm.”

The moment Feng Jiu’er finished speaking, another brother was struck not far away, and without a second thought she rushed over to treat him as well.

The poisoned arrows kept coming in an unending stream, too numerous to count. Exactly who had known in advance which path they would take and had set up this barrage of arrows remained unclear for the moment.

Seeing the blackened wound of an injured brother, Feng Jiang could bear it no longer and wheeled his horse around to ride back.

“Take care of Jiu’er.” Leaving only those words behind, he rode off.

It wasn’t that Feng Jiu’er wasn’t worried about Feng Jiang, but she had no time to spare for worry right now.

Glancing toward the approaching group, she felt somewhat relieved—the one coming was her eldest imperial brother; at the very least, he wouldn’t do anything to harm her third imperial brother. But then why would her eldest brother be the one shooting poisoned arrows at them? Feng Jiu’er truly couldn’t make sense of it.

Could it be that the one who had poisoned her second imperial brother and framed her ninth imperial uncle was him? Though she hadn’t spent much time around her eldest brother, he had always struck her as an honest, straightforward man who acted without much talk—Feng Jiu’er couldn’t picture him doing something like this.

With the situation so dire, there was no time for Feng Jiu’er to dwell on it further. All she could do now was try her best to save these brothers who had risked their lives for her sake.

Feng Jiang’s appearance blocked the approaching group.

“Why are you shooting poisoned arrows at them?” Feng Jiang demanded, glaring furiously at Feng Jin.

Feng Jin met Feng Jiang’s gaze, his brows furrowing as though he had suddenly realized something.

“You’ve been with Jiu’er all along?” Feng Jin’s voice carried anger. “Do you even know—” He let out a heavy breath and didn’t finish the sentence.

“Go back.” He glared at Feng Jiang and gave the order in a stern voice.

But Feng Jiang didn’t back down, and continued to block Feng Jin’s path.

“Why poisoned arrows? Jiu’er is still in there—can you really bear to let her be killed?”

“I know nothing about any poisoned arrows. Our second brother still hasn’t woken up, and Father has ordered me to bring the people of Beimu Kingdom back to face punishment,” Feng Jin said in a low voice.

“But Jiu’er is among the people of Beimu Kingdom—and you used poisoned arrows anyway?” Feng Jiang’s anger grew.

Feng Jin glanced toward the battle ahead, his brow knitting tightly.

“Damn it.” He clenched his fist, ignoring Feng Jiang, and spurred his horse forward. “I know nothing about poisoned arrows—our men only just arrived here.”

“Jiu’er is my imperial sister—how could I possibly shoot poisoned arrows at her?”

Before he had even finished speaking, Feng Jin had already galloped off.

“Make sure the princess is protected at all costs!”

“Yes!”

Hearing Feng Jin’s command, the soldiers gripped their horses and charged forward. Feng Jiang froze for only a moment before turning to follow.

As Feng Jin’s group drew closer, the poisoned arrows raining down weakened considerably, and eventually stopped altogether.

When Mu Mu and Long Yi rode back, they found their own troops surrounded on all sides.

“Long Yi, go meet up with Tuoba Keyan and be ready to leave at any moment,” Mu Mu said, looking at Long Yi.

“But what about His Highness—” Long Yi glanced at the battlefield, his brow furrowing.

“Hurry. Whether the brothers can make it out alive depends entirely on you now.”

With that, Mu Mu spurred his horse back toward the fight.

The Twelve Flying Dragon Riders had always answered only to Zhan Qingcheng, but Mu Mu couldn’t abandon Zhan Qingcheng and Feng Jiu’er—so he had no choice but to send Long Yi ahead alone.

Seated on his horse, Long Yi hesitated for a moment, then tightened his reins and galloped off in another direction.

“Jiu’er, come back with your eldest imperial brother,” Feng Jin said, seated on his horse, looking at the girl among the crowd.

Having just finished tending to the last injured brother, Feng Jiu’er stepped forward to walk out.

Zhan Qingcheng rode his horse past Feng Jiu’er and, with one sweep of his broad palm, scooped her up securely into his arms. The horse continued forward, coming to a stop before the brothers, facing their opponent’s leader, Feng Jin.

“Jiu’er, come back with your eldest imperial brother. Don’t make Father angry.”

Feng Jin’s voice rang out again.

“Eldest imperial brother came all this way just to bring me back?” Feng Jiu’er asked softly, looking at Feng Jin.

“Father has given an order—aside from you, the people of Beimu Kingdom are to be brought back for punishment as well.” Feng Jin held his spear, glancing at Zhan Qingcheng, his brow furrowing.

Sensing the man behind her grow tense, Feng Jiu’er gently took hold of Zhan Qingcheng’s wrist.

“Is this about second imperial brother being poisoned?” she asked, looking at Feng Jin.

“Exactly,” Feng Jin said gravely, nodding. “Second brother still hasn’t woken up, even now.”

“Jiu’er, why would you defy Father’s orders to leave with these criminals?”

“They’re all my friends. There’s no way they would have poisoned second imperial brother,” Feng Jiu’er said with a sigh, shaking her head.

“Father and eldest imperial brother, without distinguishing right from wrong, shot poisoned arrows at us. If we really went back with you now, would we even make it out alive afterward?”

“The poisoned arrows weren’t my doing,” Feng Jin said firmly. “As long as—” “The arrows were mine.”

Suddenly, a tall, slender woman dressed in black descended in front of Feng Jin. Hanying’s movements were astonishingly fast—her appearance startled even Feng Jiu’er.

“How dare the people of Beimu Kingdom poison an imperial prince within our Feng Clan palace, and you still waste so many words with them?”

“Strike down anyone who resists. Kill without mercy!”

Hanying gave a cold snort and waved her hand sharply.

“Yes!” the guards answered in unison, raising their spears and closing in.

“The princess is still in the group—” None of Feng Jiang’s words could be heard.

The human-skin mask still covered his face, and the Feng Clan’s soldiers would certainly not listen to a stranger. Even if Feng Jiang revealed his true identity, no one here would heed him.

Everyone present was a trusted confidant of Feng Qiongcang, and far more of them would obey Hanying than would obey Feng Jin.

A furious roar rang out, and the battle erupted in an instant.

“Brothers, fight our way out! We of Beimu Kingdom have no need to waste words with these Feng Clan people!”

Qiao Mu, gripping her silver spear, charged forward first against the enemy. She seemed to have forgotten that her own leader was, in fact, of Feng Clan blood.

“Kill!”

The brothers’ resounding battle cry rang out, as sharp as the weapons in their hands.

After so much waiting, so much hoping, the inevitable battle had finally arrived.

Everyone present, even facing an enemy that outnumbered their own brothers several times over, showed not a trace of fear on their faces.

Feng Jiang wanted to stop it, but there was nothing he could do. Sitting on his horse, watching the two sides clash, his expression grew darker and darker.