Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 423 Captured alive
Xue Sui's eyes darkened slightly, as if he had realized something.

"Chief Dorje is a cautious man; his patrol shouldn't have taken this long, right?"

Hachi nodded and said, "I sent men to search the vicinity of Old Bear Gully three times, but we couldn't even find a single hair on my father's head. It's really very strange..."

Xue Sui frowned slightly, his expression grave as he pointed to the cave entrance hidden by withered branches and leaves. "Xiao Yan led his men in just now. I wonder what secrets are hidden in this cave? Could it be related to the disappearance of Chief Duoji?"

Hachi looked at the disguise at the cave entrance and spat.

"This cave is very deep, like a spider web inside, with many branching paths. When I was a child, I went in there to play and almost got lost and couldn't get out. Later, my father gave me a good scolding, and I never dared to come back again..."

Qin Feng said, "Xiao Yan chose this route to escape, so he must have a way out."

Xue Sui nodded, "Even a cunning rabbit has three burrows, let alone the treacherous Xiao Yan? Qin Feng, you take some men and guard the cave entrance, don't let him escape, I'll go in and take a look."

Hachi said, "I will lead the way for you, young lady."

Xue Sui shook his head: "You stay here to provide backup; there's no need to take any risks."

Hachi grinned, "I also want to find my father. More people means more help, and it's safer than the girl going in alone."

Xue Sui said no more, only nodded emphatically: "Good! Be careful in everything."

After saying that, she bent down first and crawled into the hole.

Hachi followed without hesitation.

The torchlight stretched across the cave entrance, casting a dim glow over the surroundings.

The cave was deeper than expected, and the air was damp and cold.

Fortunately, Hachi was familiar with this terrain and reminded them from time to time to watch out for the slippery ground and the stalactites overhead, so the group made it through relatively smoothly.

The further they walked, the clearer the sound of their heartbeats and the dripping water from the rock face became, but they still couldn't find Xiao Yan...

Xue Sui walked ahead with his sword in hand, when suddenly he stumbled and kicked something soft.

She looked down and saw a corpse—

He was dressed in the clothing of a foreign tribe from Yunling, with a dagger stuck in his chest.

The blood that had spilled on the ground had already turned black.

"Do you know him?" Xiao Yan's voice came from the darkness of the cave, echoing hollowly and sounding particularly sinister.

"This old bastard took bribes from Li Zhao and wanted to exchange my head for wealth and glory. I had no choice but to send him on his way ahead of time."

Before he finished speaking, Hachi had already turned the corpse over.

"Father..."

Hachi roared, making Xue Sui's heart tremble.

The corpse turned out to be Hachi's father, Dorje, the chieftain?

Xue Sui squatted down with a solemn expression and patted Hachi's shoulder, but it was too late to stop him.

Hachi raised his scimitar and charged out with bloodshot eyes.

"Xiao Yan, you scoundrel, I'll kill you..."

"Watch out!" Xue Sui grabbed him and pressed him down.

Whoosh! A stray arrow grazed past Hachi's head.

Hachi narrowly avoided the attack, looked at his broken hair, and then at Xue Sui's calm profile, and suddenly felt a little ashamed.

"Thank you for saving me, young lady. It was my recklessness that nearly caused me to be struck by that scoundrel's arrow... But if I don't kill this villain today, I swear I'm not a man..."

"Calm down. He's trying to provoke you," Xue Sui calmly reminded him.

Xiao Yan's loud laughter echoed from the darkness.

The torchlight suddenly illuminated the stone cave ahead.

The entire space suddenly brightened up.

Xiao Yan stood on a stone platform at the bottom of the cave, holding a torch in his hand, with several sealed wooden boxes at his feet.

"The gunpowder hidden in this cave is enough to blow up the entire cave. Once it's ignited, even a god couldn't save it. Little girl, do you want to kneel down and beg for mercy, or do you want to go to hell with these barbarians from Yunling?" He looked at Xue Sui, his smile utterly repulsive.

"You scoundrel, stop your arrogance!" Hachi was furious.

"Then why don't you light it?" Xue Sui stepped forward without changing his expression. "Are you afraid to light it because you can't bear to part with this worthless life?"

Her tone was full of contempt, which made Xiao Yan's face turn ashen.

"Ignorant woman!" Xiao Yan roared in fury, his eyes flashing with malice. "Don't think I wouldn't dare... Guards, send them on their way at once..."

He roared his commands, and a group of soldiers emerged from the dark caverns on either side, wielding sharp blades as they approached them.

Xue Sui smiled coldly, then suddenly raised his hand—

"Ding!"

No one saw how she drew the dagger from her boot. By the time the sound of it cutting through the air rang out, the dagger had already pierced Xiao Yan's wrist with pinpoint accuracy, flying out and crashing into the stone platform...

The torch fell to the ground with a thud, scattering sparks everywhere.

Xiao Yan stared blankly at his bleeding wrist, feeling no pain, only a chill running through his body.

"She's not afraid of death?! She really isn't afraid of death?! What are you all standing there for? Quickly put out the torches..."

Xue Sui didn't speak, but watched as he turned his head in a panic, revealing a tattoo on his neck—exactly the same one she had seen on her fourth master's belongings in the old mausoleum.

"My third master told me that you made a promise to my fourth master that if you betrayed her, you would be childless and die a horrible death... Today, I'm here to collect the debt on her behalf..."

"Shut up!" Xiao Yan still felt ashamed and angry when he mentioned the past. "Those demons in the Old Mausoleum Swamp should have been wiped out long ago. I was soft-hearted back then and didn't want her to die because of her infatuation... But she didn't know what was good for her and secretly informed that blind old woman Jing Shan, ruining my plans. She deserved to die."

At this point, Xiao Yan gritted his teeth, his voice trembling, "If it weren't for her, how could you, a little brat, be so presumptuous here today? I would have razed the Old Mausoleum to the ground long ago, and scattered all your ashes to feed the dogs..."

Xue Sui's eyes suddenly turned cold.

"He's a heartless man! He's spent his whole life coveting things that don't belong to him. He deserves to have his family destroyed and be condemned by everyone."

"You remnants of the Old Mausoleum deserve to be exterminated and die without a burial place..."

"Exterminate the clan? Who are you talking to about clan? Your father, Xiao Song, betrayed the Xiao family for his own selfish desires. Every bit of wealth and glory he stole was earned by stepping on the blood of his clansmen. Xiao Yan, the countless bones of the Xiao clan are waiting for you to claim their lives. Today, it's time to pay the price."

Xue Sui raised his waist knife and charged forward.

Seeing this, Hachi drew his sword and joined the battle, and the soldiers of the stronghold also surrounded him, engaging in a fierce battle with Xiao Yan's desperate warriors.

The glint of blades flashed in the dim light, deafeningly loud, and the stench of blood filled the air...

Hachi was afraid that she, a young girl, would suffer, so he always tried to protect her.

"Girl, let me help you."

"No need." Xue Sui's gaze was fixed on Xiao Yan. "Young Chieftain, take good care of your men. Today I will personally finish him off."

Swords gleamed, and a chilling aura of killing intent filled the air.

Seeing Xiao Yan's men rushing towards them like hungry wolves, using their numerical advantage to force her and Hachi and the others into a corner of the cave wall.

Xue Sui suddenly changed direction, weaving through the crowd like a ghost, his blade pointing directly at Xiao Yan standing at the back of the formation.

It exploded like a splatter of blood...

With a flick of his wrist, Xue Sui plunged his waist knife into Xiao Yan's abdomen.

"Since my master couldn't take your dog's life back then, I will."

Xiao Yan stared wide-eyed, looked down, and looked on in disbelief.

Xue Sui staggered back a few steps, his heavy body swaying, and looked at his personal guards, their eyes red and screaming...

"Those who surrender will not be killed! The Crown Prince's personal guards are already waiting outside the cave. Those who resist will only face death... You still have the best years of your lives. It's not worth dying for him. Lay down your weapons, and we will forgive and forget..."

Hachi also shouted, "Surrender! Wouldn't it be better to stay alive and go home to see your parents? Why risk your life for this scoundrel?"

The remaining guards looked at each other, watching Xiao Yan fall into the hands of a woman, severely injured, his arrogance completely shattered. In the end, unable to resist the will to survive, they dropped their weapons one after another.

"We are willing to surrender."

　See you tomorrow, sisters!
　　(End of this chapter)