Chapter Fifty-Five: Escape

This time, Ye Pei was running at her absolute best, and only now did Zi Qingrong truly realize that the lightness skill in this world could reach such an astounding level.

In Zi Qingrong’s mind, people who practiced lightness skills could at most move faster and jump higher, allowing them to scale walls and leap across rooftops. But at this moment, she felt as if Ye Pei, carrying her, was practically flying. With each leap, Ye Pei soared more than thirty zhang through the air—even with someone on her back. Zi Qingrong could hardly imagine how quick Ye Pei would be if she were running alone.

With Ye Pei exerting her full strength, the two of them arrived at the western city gate in less than the time it took to finish a cup of tea, and Chen Mo arrived almost simultaneously on horseback.

Chen Mo was startled by Ye Pei’s speed, but upon hearing the thunderous hoofbeats approaching from not far away, he said little more and ran toward the city’s edge, shouting, "Brother Ye, follow me!"

Ye Pei had no choice but to trust him and followed without hesitation.

"You don’t need to hold back your speed. I can keep up with your pace for a short while," Ye Pei said, not even out of breath.

Chen Mo didn’t reply, only nudged his horse forward.

"Brother Ye, I am from the Sacred Sacrifice Domain. I only came here to help my elder brother with something and stayed for a few days. Now I’ll take you to our domain. Our leader will guarantee your safety. Once we enter the mountains ahead, given the darkness, they won’t dare pursue us further."

After so long, Zi Qingrong finally dared to speak. "Yezi, what happened? Did the mission fail?"

Ye Pei replied, "The mission succeeded, but their reinforcements arrived. I had no choice but to— Stop!"

Interrupted by Chen Mo’s horse, Ye Pei finally heard the approaching sound of many horses ahead. She was moving so fast she hadn’t felt the earth tremble. Ye Pei judged that these riders had wrapped their horses’ hooves in cloth; otherwise, the noise would have been much louder.

"Who are these people now?" Ye Pei’s hand went to her waist as she eyed Chen Mo suspiciously. After opening some distance, she put Zi Qingrong down and drew her spear, shielding her behind.

"If we can’t win, I’ll risk everything to seize a horse and send you away. Don’t look back—I’ll hold them off."

Zi Qingrong’s eyes reddened. "But what will happen to you once I leave?"

Ye Pei smiled. "I have my ways to escape. Don’t worry about me."

As they spoke, the troop arrived. Zi Qingrong glanced carefully, then cried out with joy, "Uncle Yankong!"

Indeed, it was the Zi family’s main force, led by Zi Yankong, who had met Ye Pei once before.

"Miss!" Zi Yankong hadn’t expected to meet his young lady before even entering the city. "Quick, come home with me!"

"Yezi, come on, let’s all go together!" Zi Qingrong said happily.

"No!" Ye Pei and Zi Yankong responded in unison.

"The pursuers are right behind us. If a conflict happens here, who knows if you’ll get away safely? Your family has little to gain from sheltering me. They only want to kill me; with you here, they likely won’t get involved. This isn’t the territory of the Four Families—they dare not make a big move. Chasing me alone is already their limit."

Zi Qingrong’s face flushed, and she said anxiously, "Then I won’t go home either!"

"No!" Once again, Ye Pei and Zi Yankong spoke together.

"Miss, for your safety, you must go back." Zi Yankong turned to Ye Pei. "Young Master Ye, your integrity is admirable. Take this horse—fortune favors the righteous, you’ll surely escape."

He handed Ye Pei a horse, then pulled Zi Qingrong along to leave, but Zi Qingrong suddenly broke free, throwing herself into Ye Pei’s arms.

"Come home with me… The Zi tribe is strong; they won’t dare touch you."

Ye Pei was caught off guard, gently stroking her hair with a smile. "It’s alright. Don’t you know how skilled I am? They can’t harm me."

"Then why are you running?" Zi Qingrong’s tears threatened to fall again.

Ye Pei’s hand paused, then he firmly pushed her away, brushing the tears from her eyes. "You know, when girls are too clever… perhaps their hearts are often troubled."

This scene broke the hearts of several young men from the Zi tribe who admired Zi Qingrong. As they saw it, "From the moment Miss threw herself into that boy’s arms, my heart died…"

Ye Pei nodded to Zi Yankong, then mounted the horse, called to Chen Mo, and the two headed for the mountains in the west.

The pursuers didn’t chase into the mountains, but things didn’t go entirely as Chen Mo expected.

In truth, though the bandit domain had cities, they lacked main gates and central roads—more like large villages. Ye Pei had run straight over rooftops, while the pursuers wound their way through alleys. Though they weren’t far behind, by the time they emerged, Ye Pei and Chen Mo were gone, and even the Zi family’s force was nearly out of sight.

"Is this kid really so hard to catch?!" a burly man roared.

Beside him, a young man shook his head. "I said hiring these martial world types wouldn’t work. I bet Yun Jian startled the target—otherwise, how could Ye Pei have escaped?"

If Ye Pei had been there, he’d have been shocked—not for any other reason, but this youth looked exactly like Feng Xiaoyang. And had Yang Qin not left, he would have met this cousin, Feng Xiaoyang’s twin brother, Feng Tangyang.

"Young master, please calm down!" Feng Tangyang’s voice was emotionless, but his lengthy speech sent those nearby into a panic.

Everyone in the Feng family knew: the two young masters looked identical, but their temperaments were worlds apart. Second Young Master Feng Xiaoyang was calm and composed, while First Young Master Feng Tangyang was volatile and taciturn. When he spoke at length, it meant he was angry, and the number of words was proportional to his fury.

Leaving that aside, Ye Pei and Chen Mo entered the mountains. Though Ye Pei usually had a good sense of direction, in the pitch-black wilderness, he soon inevitably lost his way.

Fortunately, Chen Mo was familiar with these mountains, and as they walked, the pair chatted idly.

"Brother Ye, these mountains mark the boundary between the Bandit Domain and the Sacred Sacrifice Domain. I’ve crossed them many times—know them well."

"Mm." For some reason, Ye Pei felt gloomy; it was the first time since arriving in Yanland that he’d felt this way.

Only Chen Mo kept chattering, always picking the most awkward topics.

"Brother Ye, I didn’t expect your lady to be the Zi family’s eldest daughter. Are you married? No, impossible—you’re from the Wang bloodline, only just arrived. How could you be wed?"

"So how did you win over such a gifted woman? Don’t tell me you’ve been here before?"

"Wait, seeing how desperately she wanted to go with you, you two…"

As Chen Mo’s imagination ran wild, Ye Pei swung his left hand, knocking Chen Mo off his horse with a black staff.

"Your name doesn’t suit you at all."

Indeed, after that blow, Chen Mo became much quieter.

Later, Ye Pei asked, "Chen Mo, how was the Sacred Sacrifice Domain established? Is it connected to Sacred Sacrifice Mountain?"

Chen Mo replied, "I won’t hide it, Brother Ye—the founding of the Sacred Sacrifice Domain is indeed tied to Sacred Sacrifice Mountain."

"Seven years ago, the Flow Domain only had the Bandit and Hunter Domains, at war with each other. My leader, Huang Jifeng, had just been exiled from the Wan tribe—his arrogance got him in trouble with both the Bandit and Hunter Domain bigwigs. They hired many to hunt him down."

"Luckily, Flow Domain lacks unity, so those bigwigs couldn’t command everyone in their domains, or my leader would have been doomed."

"Even so, he was nearly cornered, but then an eight-year-old child intervened. The child was not only highly skilled but accompanied by a fierce, striped tiger, slaughtering all those who pursued my leader."

Hearing this, Ye Pei thought, "Could it be Ni Manxiu? He was eight years old seven years ago."

Sure enough, Chen Mo continued, "That child was the current Grand Priest Ni Manxiu. Even at eight, he understood the principles of heaven and earth, revealed many secrets of this world to my leader, who thereafter revered him, practiced martial arts by his methods, and soon founded the Sacred Sacrifice Domain."

"Though many in Yanland resent Grand Priest Ni’s actions since his succession, the Sacred Sacrifice Domain stands firmly behind him. But whether anyone supports him or not matters little to Grand Priest Ni himself."

"I see…" Ye Pei pondered silently. "Ni Manxiu never told me any secrets of heaven and earth, but I still want to know…"

At dawn, Chen Mo led Ye Pei out of the mountains. Riding swiftly for several hours, they arrived at a mountain wreathed in cooking smoke.

"Brother Ye, this is our Sacred Sacrifice Mountain, built almost identically to the Ni Priest Clan’s sacred mountain. Let me take you to meet our leader."

Ye Pei gazed at the mountain, smiling. "If your leader Huang Jifeng resides where Ni Manxiu did, I think I know where he lives."

During his month at Sacred Sacrifice Mountain, Ye Pei had explored nearly every corner, becoming familiar with its layout. The mountain held a special meaning for him; it was here he thoroughly mastered the cultivation of inner force, and as for Ni Manxiu, Ye Pei truly regarded him as a friend.

Seeing this scene, both strange and familiar, Ye Pei walked with a special feeling, easily finding the courtyard where Ni Manxiu once lived.