Chapter 879: Anyone Who Defies the Order and Trespasses, Kill Without Mercy!

"With that many people chasing you down, you actually managed to survive. Your life really is hard enough..."

As Yun Ji sped through the earth, she kept muttering along the way.

Niu Youdao could barely make out what she was saying. Every now and then, he gave a weak chuckle or two in response, merely to prove he was still alive and keep her from worrying.

He endured like that, holding on and holding on, until in the end even he did not know how long he had lasted.

After his protective spiritual power had been completely broken earlier, the lake water had soaked him from head to toe. Now his drenched clothes were actually making him feel a bone-piercing chill.

Just as he felt himself reaching the point where he could no longer hold on, light suddenly appeared before his eyes and roused a little of his consciousness.

He abruptly realized they had entered an underground cavern.

In the glow of a Moon Butterfly, Shang Shuqing sat on a rock with the swaddled infant in her arms.

The sound of earth breaking open startled Shang Shuqing badly.

She might have been ugly, but she was still a woman. Being alone in this dark underground place had frightened her badly. The slightest abnormal sound was enough to make her heart jump.

She snapped her head up.

Seeing Yun Ji return, she quickly stood with the infant still in her arms. Then she saw Yun Ji pull an utterly bedraggled figure out through the broken earth.

Whatever had once bound the man's hair was gone.

His hair hung loose and disordered. His clothes were torn to rags. Although the bleeding from his wounds had already been stopped, enormous patches of shocking bloodstains remained. Beneath the tangled hair, his face was pale and bloodless, and the deep eyes that had once seemed able to see through everything had gone dull and dim.

His entire body plainly looked as though it had been soaked in water.

Yet he still gave Shang Shuqing a faint smile.

"Commandery Princess."

His voice was extremely weak.

"Master Dao!" Shang Shuqing cried out.

"Amid all the misfortune, at least we were lucky enough that I reached him in time and brought him back," Yun Ji said with a sigh as she approached. "But he's badly hurt."

She beckoned with one hand.

The three little snakes on the ground shot back into her sleeve.

"Master Dao, are you all right?" Shang Shuqing's voice trembled.

The moment she asked, she realized how foolish the question was.

How could he possibly be all right in this state?

Niu Youdao slowly approached.

He looked at her, then at the little fellow sleeping soundly in the swaddling clothes.

Seeing both of them safe finally put his heart at ease.

At least this danger had not been faced in vain.

He truly could not hold on much longer.

He slowly sat down on the rock where Shang Shuqing had been sitting and said weakly, "I'm fine. I won't die. Sorry to have frightened the Commandery Princess."

His tone and appearance made him seem like an old man at the end of his years, already standing at death's door.

Shang Shuqing bit her lip and could not find words.

She had never seen Niu Youdao in such a miserable state.

In her mind, he had always been the sort of man who held wisdom in his grasp and seemed to have everything under control.

Niu Youdao had no energy left to talk much.

He felt as though even his mind was about to stop turning.

He weakly called, "Yun Ji, I'm a little cold. Help me out. Dry my clothes."

Yun Ji froze.

Earlier, they had been too busy escaping for their lives. Along the way, she had only helped him control his injuries and truly had not paid attention to whether his soaked clothing was making him miserable.

She glanced at his drenched body, immediately stepped over, and pressed a hand against him.

Using spiritual power, she drove a cloud of vapor from his clothes.

The mist dispersed.

Yun Ji withdrew her hand, and Niu Youdao's clothes were dry.

Then something neither woman expected happened.

Before their very eyes, Niu Youdao's body tilted sideways and simply collapsed toward the ground.

He truly could not hold on any longer.

Just as his head was about to strike the floor, Yun Ji reacted quickly and caught him.

"Master Dao!"

Shang Shuqing screamed in fright.

The sight of him suddenly toppling over nearly scared the soul out of her body. She almost dropped the infant in her arms.

Especially terrifying was the long wound across Niu Youdao's back, the flesh split open in a ghastly line.

Yun Ji caught him and checked.

Niu Youdao had already lost consciousness completely.

"Master Dao... what happened to him?"

Yun Ji ignored Shang Shuqing's question at first.

She immediately circulated spiritual power and examined Niu Youdao's injuries.

After checking him over, she sighed.

"His injuries are too severe. His internal organs have all suffered heavy trauma, and he's lost too much blood."

"He took a spirit pill beforehand, so he won't die, but I'm afraid he'll need quite some time to recover."

"We don't have the conditions to treat him properly here. We'll deal with his injuries carefully after we get back."

"Commandery Princess, this place is not suitable for a long stay. His Highness is still waiting for word from us. Let's go."

...

At the Yan-Zhao front, the armies were still locked in attack and defense.

Shang Chaozong sat rigidly on horseback, his jaw tight as he watched the fighting.

Behind him, also mounted, Guan Fangyi was filled with anxiety.

Long Xiu and the others had also sensed that something was wrong.

The battle had reached a stalemate, yet Yan did not appear to have any intention of launching an all-out assault.

More importantly, Niu Youdao had disappeared.

They had already sent people back to check, and Niu Youdao was not in the rear camp.

While everyone stood there with their own thoughts, Old Six Xu hurried over from the rear.

He flashed down in front of Shang Chaozong and cupped his hands.

"Your Highness, the Commandery Princess and the young prince have returned."

Returned?

The hostages had returned?

Those who knew nothing of the plan looked at one another, wondering whether they had misheard.

Shang Chaozong immediately asked, "Where is Master Dao?"

This side knew Niu Youdao's plan.

He had been taking an enormous risk to cover the others' retreat.

Shang Shuqing returning did not mean Niu Youdao had returned as well.

Old Six Xu replied, "He's back too, but he's badly injured."

The others had their own reactions.

Guan Fangyi, however, did not even care about the horse beneath her.

She shot straight up from the saddle and flew urgently toward the rear camp.

Shang Chaozong immediately shouted, "Sound the gong! Withdraw the troops!"

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The urgent ringing of the withdrawal gong sounded.

The Yan soldiers pressing the attack immediately began pulling back.

...

Inside a tent, the unconscious Niu Youdao was being held upright.

At a time like this, no one cared about propriety between men and women.

Yun Ji tore away his outer clothing and prepared to treat his injuries.

"Master Dao!"

Guan Fangyi blew into the tent like a gust of wind.

She ignored Shang Shuqing standing to the side with the infant in her arms.

Her mind was not on Shang Shuqing at all.

She hurried straight to the bed.

The first thing that entered her eyes was the shocking condition of Niu Youdao's body.

Three arrow wounds marked his front.

A long, flesh-splitting gash ran across his back.

Then she saw him lying there unconscious, almost like a dead man.

Tears nearly burst from Guan Fangyi's eyes.

Shang Shuqing, watching from the side, began crying openly.

While Yun Ji treated the wounds, Guan Fangyi quickly circulated spiritual power and examined Niu Youdao's condition herself.

Her gaze suddenly fixed on his chest.

There was a vicious scar there, plainly left behind by some previous severe injury.

She had never seen that scar before.

Niu Youdao liked soaking in baths.

Back when they lived in the wilderness, Guan Fangyi had often wandered nearby while he bathed.

His chest had once been smooth and unscarred.

That hideous mark had not existed then.

She had never seen it before.

Now that she had, Guan Fangyi thought for only a moment before guessing when it must have been left.

The Tiandu Secret Realm.

Niu Youdao had suffered a grave injury inside the Tiandu Secret Realm!

Yet he had never said a word to her about it.

And precisely because he had never mentioned it, that only made it more obvious how serious the injury must have been.

Whenever this bastard suffered, he always bore it alone.

He never complained to anyone.

At that thought, and seeing him now lying there as though dead, Guan Fangyi could no longer hold back.

Her tears fell on the spot.

A military physician from Nanzhou brought out needle and thread to stitch Niu Youdao's wounds.

This technique had been taught by Yuan Gang.

Long ago, Yuan Gang had popularized the method throughout Nanzhou.

Because of that, Guan Fangyi could easily imagine why the old scar on Niu Youdao's chest was so ugly.

Back then, he must not even have had the conditions to have the wound stitched properly.

Before long, hoofbeats sounded outside.

Rapid footsteps followed.

The tent flap was suddenly thrown open.

Shang Chaozong rushed inside.

Behind him came Luo Da'an, quickly pushing Meng Shanming's wheelchair.

Long Xiu and the others followed behind them.

"Elder Brother. Uncle Meng."

Shang Shuqing called to them through tears.

Seeing that she was unharmed, neither man spared much attention for her at first.

Both immediately hurried to the bedside.

When Shang Chaozong saw Niu Youdao's injuries and his deathlike unconscious state, his cheeks twitched violently.

Meng Shanming's jaw tightened as well.

"How are Master Dao's injuries?" Shang Chaozong asked Yun Ji.

Yun Ji sighed.

"He truly picked his life back up from the ground."

"For now, his life is not in danger, but the injuries are very serious."

"His internal organs all suffered heavy trauma, and he lost too much blood."

"I'm afraid he won't recover in the short term."

Standing nearby, Long Xiu turned to glance once more at Shang Shuqing, who had returned safely.

Then he bent down and placed a hand on Niu Youdao, circulating spiritual power to inspect him.

He verified the injuries for himself.

They were indeed severe, just as Yun Ji had said.

There was no trickery.

Suddenly, Long Xiu brought two fingers together and pressed them against Niu Youdao's head, pouring spiritual power into him.

"Sect Leader Long, he needs rest right now!" Guan Fangyi snapped angrily.

Long Xiu ignored her completely.

He used spiritual power to forcibly awaken Niu Youdao.

Niu Youdao, still being held upright while the physician stitched his wounds, slowly opened his eyes.

He saw the crowd gathered before him.

His dim, lifeless gaze finally settled on Long Xiu's face nearby.

"Master Dao!"

Seeing him awake, Shang Chaozong and the others called out.

Long Xiu ignored everyone else and asked directly, "Niu Youdao, what happened? What exactly was going on?"

Niu Youdao gave a faint smile and answered weakly, "Sect Leader Long, I truly have no strength left. Allow me to report everything later. Will that do?"

Long Xiu still wanted to ask more.

Gong Lince spoke from the side.

"Brother Long, this is not the time for him to talk. Let him recover a little first. You can ask for the details afterward."

Long Xiu looked around.

Seeing pair after pair of angry eyes fixed on him, he understood that continuing would likely provoke public fury.

And Niu Youdao's injuries truly were too serious for much conversation.

The two fingers pressing against Niu Youdao's head withdrew.

Without saying anything else, Long Xiu turned, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked out.

Niu Youdao's dim gaze lifted weakly from time to time.

Seeing that the people of the three great sects had all left, he moved his eyes toward Guan Fangyi.

His voice was barely audible.

"The three great sects may move against me. We have no choice but to guard against them..."

He did not even finish the sentence.

His eyes closed again.

He lost consciousness once more.

The moment Guan Fangyi heard that warning, she knew Niu Youdao would not have said it without reason.

She immediately became vigilant.

Turning around, she quickly summoned Old Six Xu and the others and ordered them to keep strict guard outside the tent.

No one was to enter without permission.

Shang Chaozong and Meng Shanming exchanged a look.

They did not even have time to attend to Shang Shuqing, who still held the infant.

Both quickly left the tent.

Not far away outside, the Sect Leaders of the three great sects were standing together, speaking quietly among themselves.

"Men!" Shang Chaozong strode over to the generals nearby and issued an order on the spot.

"Move an elite unit here. Guard this tent with the strictest protection. Establish heavy defensive positions."

"Without this Prince's permission, no one is allowed to trespass. Not even a fly is to be let inside!"

Hearing that, Long Xiu cast a cold look over.

"Your Highness, does 'no one' include us?"

Shang Chaozong did not answer him.

He stared only at the general receiving the order and added viciously, "No matter who it is, anyone who defies the order and trespasses is to be killed without mercy!"

"Yes!"

The general cupped his hands and accepted the military order with a ringing reply.

Long Xiu finally turned fully toward him.

His voice was cold.

"Your Highness, did you not hear what I asked?"

Meng Shanming suddenly seemed to shed the weakness of old age.

White-haired and gray-templed, he swept his hawklike gaze left and right, fierce as a wolf among the flock.

Then he roared, "His Highness has issued a military order! If someone defies it, do we allow it? Brothers, can we agree to that?"

[End of Chapter 879]