He stood up and looked around: "These people are all Li Song's henchmen. We won't get any more information out of them. Old Lei, tie them up tightly and throw them by the roadside. They'll be found by passing soldiers tomorrow."

"Not kill?" Lei Bao asked.

"Killing them would be pointless and would only give them ammunition to criticize us," Lin Feng shook his head.

"Since Li Song wants to test me, I'll let him know—I, Lin Feng, am not a pushover. As for these people, having failed their mission, they'll face certain death if they go back."

Lei Bao understood, and led his men to tie the men in black up like dumplings and throw them by the roadside.

The carriage was back on the road.

This time, Zhao San, dressed as a coachman, drove the carriage, while Lei Bao and a few others escorted them on horseback. Lin Feng and Shen Qingyi returned to the carriage, which was filled with a faint smell of blood and medicine.

"Your injury..." Shen Qingyi looked at his bleeding shoulder with concern.

"It's nothing, I just moved a little too roughly and the thread came undone." Lin Feng smiled nonchalantly.

"But you, your technique for throwing the medicine packet was very accurate just now."

"I learned it from the fairy," Shen Qingyi said softly as she re-bandaged him.

"Lin Feng, now that Li Song has made his move, I'm afraid things won't be peaceful along the way."

"I know." Lin Feng held her hand.

"But once we cross Black Stone Ridge, we'll be in the territory of Yingchuan Prefecture. No matter how far Li Song's influence extends, he wouldn't dare to make a move openly in the prefectural city."

As the carriage left Black Stone Ridge, a dilapidated mountain god temple came into view.

The temple walls were crumbling and overgrown with weeds, but in the morning light, they exuded a reassuring tranquility.

"Rest here, change your dressing, and eat," Lin Feng ordered.

Silent all night.

The next day, they continued their journey.

As the sun began to set, it stained the withered grass on both sides of the official road with a dark gold hue.

Lin Feng reined in his horse and raised his hand to signal the troops behind him to stop.

Six riders lined up behind him: Lei Bao, Lao Nian, Zhao San, and three guards, all with solemn expressions.

Shen Qingyi sat on the horse behind Lei Bao, her face pale, her hands tightly gripping the reins.

Three miles ahead, a cloud of dust rose.

That wasn't the light dust kicked up by ordinary carriages and horses, but rather the earth dragons whipped up by cavalry galloping at high speed.

Dust filled the sky, swirling and rolling in the setting sun, like a ferocious beast crouching on the ground, poised to pounce.

Based on his experience, Lin Feng judged that there were at least a hundred riders.

"They came really fast." Lei Bao spat and gripped the hilt of his knife tightly.

"Is he one of Li Song's men?" Lao Nian asked in a low voice.

"Besides him, who else has the resources to mobilize a hundred private cavalrymen in Yingchuan?" Lin Feng's gaze was icy.

"It seems that he's panicked because the group from Black Stone Ridge failed."

"Master, what should we do?" Zhao San licked his chapped lips.

"The seven of us, with Miss Shen in tow, would be committing suicide if we fought head-on."

Lin Feng didn't answer, but just turned around and glanced at Shen Qingyi.

She was looking at him too. Their eyes met, and there was no fear in her eyes, only determination—a determination to "die together if we have to."

We can't die together.

Lin Feng turned around and scanned the terrain ahead.

To the left are rolling hills, sparsely covered with vegetation, offering little opportunity for concealment. To the right are dark, imposing mountains, steep and densely forested.

"Lei Bao," he said, his voice eerily calm.

"exist!"

"You take two people to protect Qingyi and go into the mountains. Lao Nian and Zhao San, you two go too, and follow Lei Bao's orders."

Everyone was stunned. Shen Qingyi suddenly looked up: "Lin Feng, you—"

"I'll stay behind and distract them."

Lin Feng interrupted her, his tone leaving no room for argument.

"The target of the hundred riders is me. If you follow me, none of you will escape. If you split up, there is still a chance of survival."

"No!" Shen Qingyi practically pounced off the horse, grabbed his arm, and burst into tears.

"We'll die together! I'm not leaving!"

"Qingyi." Lin Feng held her hand, his voice softening but still firm.

"Only if you live can I deal with them without any distractions. Go into the mountains with Lei Bao, hide, and wait for me. I promise you, I will definitely come back to find you alive."

"But……"

"No buts."

Lin Feng released his grip and said sternly to Lei Bao.

"Take her away! Now! Once you're in the mountains, erase all traces, head deeper in, and find a safe place to hide. If I don't arrive within three days, you may head north on your own; don't wait for me!"

With tears welling in his eyes, Lei Bao clasped his hands in a fist salute and said, "Take care, Master!"

Having said that, he and another guard each took a turn on Shen Qingyi's reins, and without another word, turned the horse around and charged towards the woods on the right. Lao Nian and Zhao San gritted their teeth and followed.

"Lin Feng—!" Shen Qingyi's cries echoed through the mountains and forests, gradually fading into the distance.

Lin Feng did not turn around.

He took a deep breath, spurred his horse, and the warhorse neighed loudly, charging straight ahead like an arrow released from a bow, heading straight into the billowing dust!

It's not about fleeing, it's about engaging!

So what if there are a hundred riders?

Back then, Lin Feng, with only three hundred exhausted soldiers, fought against a thousand elite Di cavalry outside Shuofeng City and still managed to carve out a bloody path.

Today, they are nothing more than a hundred private cavalrymen; what is there to fear!

The horses' hooves thundered as they rapidly approached.

Amidst the dust ahead, the knight's black robes and gleaming blade could already be seen.

The leader was none other than Han Zhong, the top general under Li Song, known as "Broken Mountain Blade"! He had served in the border army but was dismissed for indiscriminate killing and falsely claiming credit. He later joined Li Song and became his most ruthless henchman.

Han Zhong also saw Lin Feng.

Riding alone against a hundred riders, his courage caused a flicker of surprise in his eyes, which quickly turned into a sinister grin.

"Lin Feng! Prepare to die!" He brandished his sword and shouted fiercely, and a hundred riders surged forward like a tidal wave!

Instead of retreating, Lin Feng advanced. Just as the two were about to collide, he suddenly pulled on the reins, and his warhorse reared up, its front hooves stomping down heavily!

At the same time, he raised his left hand, and three hidden arrows shot out, aiming straight for the faces of the three knights charging at the front!

"Pfft pfft pfft!"

The three men fell from their horses with a thud! The ranks were slightly thrown into disarray.

Taking advantage of the situation, Lin Feng turned his horse around and charged diagonally into the hills on the left!

Instead of venturing into the mountains and forests, he chose to take advantage of the seemingly impenetrable hills to outmaneuver the cavalry!

"Chase!" Han Chong roared, and the hundred riders split into three groups, two of which flanked Lin Feng from the left and right, while one group chased straight after him.

The hilly terrain limited the speed of the horses.

Lin Feng lay prone on horseback, listening intently to every direction and observing all around. He deliberately chose to travel on rugged and difficult terrain, sometimes making sharp turns and sometimes stopping abruptly, using ditches and slopes to repeatedly shake off his pursuers.

His long sword flashed back and forth, each strike bringing down a man from his horse.

But the pursuers were too numerous, like a persistent festering sore; one wave was shaken off, only to be replaced by another. The warhorses were already foaming at the mouth, clearly unable to hold on for much longer.

Lin Feng's gaze swept across the area ahead—a steep mountain wall with no way forward.

A dead end? No, it's a way out.

He suddenly abandoned his horse, leaped up, grabbed the vines hanging from the mountain wall, and climbed upwards like a monkey, using both his hands and feet!

The pursuers below caught up and rained down arrows, but he blocked them all with rocks and vines.

"Dismount! Go up the mountain!" Han Chong shouted, leading the way to dismount and give chase.

Lin Feng climbed to the mountainside and looked back. The pursuers had already abandoned their horses and started climbing, but they were much slower than him.

Without further hesitation, he continued upwards, deliberately choosing the most dangerous sections.

The wound on his shoulder reopened during the climb, and blood streamed down his arm, but he was completely unaware.

As the sun set, he climbed to the top of a cliff. Below, clouds and mist swirled, obscuring the bottom. His pursuers had reached the foot of the cliff, their torches twinkling like stars as they surrounded him.

"Lin Feng! You have nowhere to escape!" Han Zhong's voice echoed below the cliff.

"Surrender and we'll leave you with a whole corpse!"

Lin Feng stood on the edge of the cliff, the mountain wind making his robes flutter.

He looked down at the bottomless ravine, then back at the approaching firelight, a cold smile playing on his lips.

You want me dead? Not so easy.

He took a few steps back, took a deep breath, and then lunged forward, leaping off the cliff!

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