Chapter 46: The Hunt
In the twilight of winter, the woods were especially bleak and dim.
The horses disliked entering the woods, repeatedly tossing their heads and pawing the ground stubbornly. Xiao Yi strongly controlled the reins, his gaze sharp as he searched for tracks in the woods.
After pursuing the heavy, messy footprints of Cao Dang and the others for a while, shouts could be faintly heard ahead.
“Fan Si, shoot the horse!”
“Yes!”
“Hit? Capture him!”
“Don’t let Zhang Mantun escape.”
“Lame Donkey, you escort Shi Deyu back. The rest of you, follow me!”
Xiao Yi followed the sound. Not far away, the coarse shouts and weak struggles gradually became clearer.
They split into two teams; some were going back.
“Damn it, hurry up! You ran so damn fast just now, what are you pretending to be a delicate woman for? Want grandpa to give you a good time?”
Through the sparse tree trunks, the soldier nicknamed “Lame Donkey” could be seen dragging Shi Deyu, spewing vulgarities.
“Not to mention, you’re even more tender than ordinary women. You’re truly a young master from the Shi Residence.”
Xiao Yi spurred his horse forward and asked, “Where is the Captain?”
“Greetings, Deputy Commander.” Lame Donkey turned back and pointed towards the depths of the woods, “They are…”
“Pfft.”
A flash of saber light.
A gurgling sound came from Lame Donkey’s throat as he fell heavily to the ground, blood gushing from his neck, staining the snow-dusted fallen leaves red.
Blood dripped onto Shi Deyu’s face, terrifying him into collapsing to the ground. He looked up at Xiao Yi, his eyes filled with bewilderment and fear.
“Brother Xiao Yi…”
The once high and mighty eldest young master of the Shi family crawled beneath Xiao Yi’s horse, as pathetic as a wild dog.
“Please… don’t kill me… I treated you well in the past…”
Xiao Yi looked down at him from his horse, then rode away directly, only leaving a sentence in a dispassionate voice.
“There are horses outside the woods. Find your own way to live.”
Shi Deyu was stunned and quickly crawled a few steps. He looked back uneasily, saying, “Brother Xiao Yi, you’ve repaid the Shi family’s kindness… from now on…”
Xiao Yi couldn’t be bothered to listen further. He had already urged his horse deeper into the woods, continuing to pursue Cao Dang’s tracks.
Following the increasingly clear and fierce sounds of fighting, one could vaguely see the snow trampled into mud, broken branches and fallen leaves scattered everywhere, and a few small trees broken by the fierce battle.
Further ahead was what appeared to be a devastated open space.
Xiao Yi tied his war horse to a tree trunk and crept forward, hearing Cao Dang’s shouts.
“Short Tiger, cut off his retreat!”
“Good!”
“Fan Si, hold your bow and cover the formation. And you, follow me to surround him.”
Looking through the branches, Cao Dang, Lu You, Fan Si, and Short Tiger could be seen in a semicircle, attacking Zhang Mantun, who was leaning against a thick tree trunk.
Zhang Mantun fought like a mad tiger, wielding a saber snatched from Wu Jiu, swinging it with powerful force, forcing Cao Dang and the other two to keep their distance. Unfortunately, he had been severely injured and was losing strength, his movements becoming increasingly slow, sustained only by a fierce spirit.
“Damn it, the brute… we’ll wear him down!”
Xiao Yi, lacking confidence in his mounted archery, dismounted, drew his bow, and aimed at the neck beneath Cao Dang’s helmet.
He took a deep breath of the cold air, suppressed the rapid pounding of his heart caused by his strenuous movements, blocked out the curses in his ears, and locked onto Cao Dang’s back.
Cao Dang kept shouting and moving.
Xiao Yi felt the rhythm of Cao Dang’s body swaying, his arm as steady as a rock, and his fingers suddenly released.
“Whoosh.”
The arrow left the string, swift as lightning.
But in that instant, Cao Dang seemed to hear the wind, or perhaps it was the astonishing intuition honed by countless life-or-death struggles that made him sense the danger, and he suddenly rolled on the spot.
The arrow missed.
Zhang Mantun, however, seized this opportunity, stepped forward, and swung his saber.
As Cao Dang was about to get up, he was struck on the shoulder blade by the saber. Blood instantly soaked his armor, and he staggered, letting out a muffled groan.
Lu You and Short Tiger quickly joined forces to block Zhang Mantun.
“Ugh… an ambush?!”
Xiao Yi dropped his bow, drew his saber, and rushed forward, shouting, “Captain? Where are you? I just killed an archer.”
As he spoke, he had already run more than ten paces.
Cao Dang turned his head and stared at Xiao Yi. His pupils contracted, suspicion flickering in his eyes, followed by realization.
Xiao Yi kept running forward.
“It’s you? Don’t come closer!”
“Don’t come closer!”
“Fan Si, shoot him!”
“Hoo—”
Cao Dang roared sternly, and at the same time, Xiao Yi swung his saber towards Cao Dang’s face.
“Clang.”
Metal clashed.
The ring-pommel saber and the large saber collided, sparks flying.
Xiao Yi’s arm went numb from the impact, and he was inwardly surprised that Cao Dang’s strength was still so great despite his injury.
Simultaneously, Zhang Mantun swept his saber, forcing Lu You back, and his saber directly slashed at Cao Dang.
But Cao Dang reacted extremely quickly. He feinted a saber strike, making a move as if to fully slash at Xiao Yi, and then suddenly rolled on the spot. He agilely rolled into a nearby thicket full of thorns, his figure instantly swallowed by dead branches and fallen leaves, leaving only splashing blood and shaking branches.
“Damn dog, don’t run!”
Zhang Mantun immediately gave chase.
Xiao Yi had intended to pursue but heard the wind of a saber strike near his ear and quickly dodged.
It was Short Tiger, his saber technique fierce.
The two crossed paths, and in an instant, the saber in Xiao Yi’s hand drew an exquisite arc.
It wasn’t a block, but a precise cut against the edge of Short Tiger’s incoming saber, the tip then flicking upwards.
“Pfft!”
A soft sound.
Short Tiger’s forward momentum came to an abrupt halt. A bloodline appeared on his throat, and the saber in his hand clattered to the ground.
He futilely clutched his throat, swayed, and fell.
Just as Xiao Yi was about to deliver a finishing blow, he suddenly heard the “creak” of a bowstring from not far away and quickly turned his head.
Three steps away, Lu You stood with his saber, as if preparing to pounce; more than ten steps away, Fan Si held a bow and arrow, the string drawn taut, the arrowhead pointed at him.
“Whoosh.”
“Pfft.”
The arrow shot out and embedded itself several inches deep into the tree trunk, only the fletching trembling slightly.
Xiao Yi dodged at the last moment and took cover behind a tree trunk. He broke out in a cold sweat from the narrow escape.
He then shouted loudly.
“Lu You! Make your move!”
Fan Si, who had just picked up another arrow, was startled by the words and turned the arrowhead towards Lu You.
In that instant, Xiao Yi sprinted out like a leopard, breaking through the bushes, and headed straight for Fan Si.
“Whoosh.”
The arrow, hastily turned, missed Xiao Yi.
At more than ten paces, Fan Si didn’t have time to nock another arrow.
“Swish—”
The saber struck down, hitting the bow’s limb and snapping the string with a “buzz.”
Fan Si stumbled back two steps and fell to the ground, his face filled with terror and bewilderment.
The saber in Xiao Yi’s hand stopped two inches above his head, but he didn’t strike down.
“Captain Xiao!”
From behind, Lu You suddenly knelt to the ground with a “thud” and shouted, “Spare me, Captain! I surrender… I will obey your orders. Please, Captain, for the sake of our past relationship, spare my life.”
Xiao Yi replied without turning his head, “Drop your saber.”
“Alright, alright!” Lu You threw the saber in his hand to the ground, his voice trembling, saying, “My brother… my brother gave you a crossbow bolt.”
“I know.”
Xiao Yi continued to look at Fan Si and asked, “Are you afraid of death?”
Lu You replied, “I… I’m not afraid of death. I just think that following Captain Xiao has a future, and I want to serve Captain Xiao.”
“Is that so? How so?”
“General Nie and Imperial Uncle Li admire Captain Xiao so much, yet you… you’ve acted this way. You must have your reasons. Although I don’t have much knowledge, my mind isn’t dull, and I know that following the Captain will surely lead to a bright future.”
“You are indeed not dull-witted. Then, what about you?”
Xiao Yi slowly lowered his saber, the sharp blade pressing against Fan Si’s forehead.
Fan Si involuntarily hunched his back, his throat audibly bobbing.
“I…”
Clearly, due to nervousness, his mouth was very dry.
Xiao Yi asked, “Do you want to die?”
Fan Si tried to shrink his neck and said, “I don’t.”
Xiao Yi raised his saber.
Fan Si quickly knelt and said, “This humble one also wishes to surrender to the Captain. Please take me with you to achieve great things.”
Xiao Yi asked, “And how do you know I have a great future?”
“I just feel that Captain Xiao’s actions are different from everyone else’s. Cao Dang and Wu Jiu suppressed me… I’ve long wanted to find another way out, truly.”
“Get up.”
Xiao Yi lowered his saber and extended his hand.
Fan Si was startled, took his hand, and stood up.
“Short Tiger is not quite dead yet. Go and kill him.”
“This… alright.”
Fan Si cautiously went over, picked up Lu You’s saber, took a few deep breaths, and brought it down.
Blood splashed and fell.
Xiao Yi didn’t even look and said, “Let’s go. Let’s kill Cao Dang together and achieve great things.”
“Yes.”
The rustling sound of trampled leaves sounded again, the smell of blood spread through the woods, and the last ray of dusk faded, plunging the cold woods into darkness.
