After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

A cluster of torches was lit in the field and stuck diagonally into the tree trunks. The firelight illuminated the surrounding leaves, and a night breeze blew, causing a few golden leaves to fall from the branches and land on Yu Xiaoyong's shoulder.

As Yu Xiaoyong got into the conversation, a leaf slid off his shoulder and fell to the ground, tumbling a few times in the wind.

Perhaps because Yu Xiaoyong spoke so earnestly, Xing Kaiyang listened intently as well, and thus failed to notice that the dozen or so figures slumped on the ground, though seemingly exhausted, occasionally glanced at him with a glint of shrewdness in their eyes.

Xu Tianji's palms were ice-cold, but Xing Kaiyang clenched them tightly, his anger growing stronger.

"Alright, you all stay here. I'll go report to the Right Protector. When you board the ship, take Ning Baixuan with you. There's a doctor on board. Don't worry, I'll remember this grudge against the government soldiers and I'll definitely avenge you later!"

"Sixth Brother Xing!"

Yu Xiaoyong shouted.

"Are we just going to bring Ning Baixuan onto the ship like this? Should we ask the Right Protector to come here and verify his identity first?"

Xing Kaiyang paused, glancing at the travel-worn Yu Xiaoyong.

"You're very observant. Which jar is it?"

"Nangenshan Altar," Yu Xiaoyong said excitedly.

"Oh, Feng Yu's jar..." Xing Kaiyang hummed in agreement.

He thought to himself that this kid was quite talented. He was right. He didn't know this Ning Baixuan, so he should let his master take a look first.

Not everyone here can be brought on board; a few must stay behind to cover the rear. As for which ones to leave… he frowned, feeling somewhat troubled, and decided to let his master decide.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Suddenly, the ground trembled, several pebbles bounced up, and a deep, thunderous sound came from above the trees.

Yu Xiaoyong and the others were startled and looked up at the top of their heads.

Birds in the forest chirped and flapped their wings.

Xing Kaiyang was also startled, but he didn't turn his head. Seeing their expressions, he secretly felt smug, thinking that these brothers had no idea about the Right Protector and King Wu's brilliant plan.

"Stop looking, it's not an earthquake. The dam upstream that was storing water has burst, and the water has been released. You'll see soon enough."

He said it casually.

After saying this, he glanced worriedly at Xu Laosan, whose face was pale, and then hurriedly left.

Yu Xiaoyong silently scanned his surroundings. Four or five men with weapons stood guard around the area. Based on his previous experience entering the forest, there were quite a few hidden sentries, but they were actually quite limited. After going three or four miles into the forest, there were probably only six or seven hidden sentries questioning people.

It's unclear whether the Heavenly Principles Sect has run out of tricks, or whether they've redeployed a large number of their personnel elsewhere, or whether their personnel are still inside, guarding the people they've captured.

The sound of rushing water came from above.

Yu Xiaoyong looked up again, but all he saw was darkness, and he frowned slightly.

"Dam? Releasing water?" he murmured a few syllables.

Just then, footsteps sounded ahead; it must be the Right Protector arriving.

"Pang Ting".

Yu Xiaoyong shouted loudly:

"I'm really holding it in, I'm going to relieve myself too. You can tell the Right Protector later."

A stoic-looking man nearby grunted in agreement, took a few steps forward, a knife tucked into his waistband, and Yu Xiaoyong hurriedly ran into the woods.

A man in black wearing a Kitchen God mask strolled into the room.

Two people followed behind him.

The Kitchen God glanced at the dozen or so people sitting, standing, or leaning against the tree trunk.

It was these dozen or so people who, having found the incision along the way, brought over two stretchers and Ning Baixuan.

He squinted slightly; it was hard to see clearly in the dark, and his face seemed somewhat unfamiliar.

His gaze shifted downwards, taking in the two people on the stretcher.

On the left is his third disciple, Xu Tianji, whose thigh is bleeding profusely from some unknown injury.

On the right is Shen Shou, the leader of the Nan Dui Ze Altar. His legs are bound with wooden sticks, but even so, you can see that his legs are deformed. It is likely that the bone is broken and the bone setter did not set it properly. He will be lame for the rest of his life.

He frowned, feeling a little strange. According to all the arrangements, there shouldn't be any problems.

Although Xu Tianji is young, he is quite reliable. With the three altar masters, a bunch of experts from their altars, and more than a dozen horses, how could such a mistake have occurred?

Both of them were seriously injured, Peng Liangang was also injured and his whereabouts were unknown, and Feng Yu was also dead.

The two eyes peeking out from under the Kitchen God's mask seemed to be flickering with two eerie candlelight.

He didn't go to visit Xu Tianji. Instead, his gaze swept across the room and landed on Ning Baixuan, who was lying in the shadows of a tree. Just like before, Ning Baixuan was dressed in white, bound with ropes, and his face was covered in blood. However, there was no torch where he lay, and most of his body was in darkness. He slowly walked over.

Xing Kaiyang frowned and asked, "Where's Yu Xiaoyong?" Pang Ting answered truthfully, "Yu Xiaoyong went to relieve himself."

Xing Kaiyang curled his lip, feeling disdain. He had initially thought this kid was quite good, both clever and meticulous. He thought he could talk to his master about promoting him after he had made a contribution this time, but he never expected him to be so useless.

The Kitchen God, unaware of his disciple's thoughts, walked slowly and steadily to the shade of the tree.

He frowned as he stared at Ning Baixuan, whose face was mostly hidden in darkness below.

He squatted down.

His body was only a foot away from Ning Baixuan.

He reached out, about to pry Ning Baixuan's face open for a closer look.

Several torches in the field flickered strangely.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

A sharp, explosive shout of battle suddenly rang out! It was deafening!

The Kitchen God's pupils shrank involuntarily.

"Clang!"

The sounds of several weapons being drawn rang out simultaneously!

These sounds came out extremely suddenly and hastily. When he arrived at the scene, only a slight suspicion had quietly arisen in his mind and had not yet grown, when the other party pressed down on him with thunderous force!

He neither got up nor turned around.

Just by listening to their voices and breathing, it was clear that the dozen or so people in the room were spies who had infiltrated the area. The only question was whether they were members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard or the Brave Guard Battalion.

Before he could think it through, "Bang!" A white shadow flashed before his eyes.

The Kitchen God's body moved faster than his hands; he raised his wrist and collided with a fist as thick as an iron whip.

He felt pain in his wrist for the first time in a long time and exclaimed, "Wow, that was a lot of force!"

Ning Baixuan, who was lying on the ground looking like he was on the verge of death, suddenly opened his eyes as the battle cries began, his eyes flashing with a sharp light, and the ropes binding him loosened as if they were nothing.

Even while lying on the ground, Ning Baixuan clenched his fist and suddenly threw out this move.

After taking a punch from the person on the ground, the Kitchen God suddenly leaped up and took a step back.

"Hiss hiss hiss!"

Several sharp blades slashed at the spot where he had just crouched down, the wind roaring.

The Kitchen God narrowed his eyes and saw three men with gritted teeth coming at him.

He was caught off guard and had no chance to retaliate.

A gust of wind rises from my back.

As if it had eyes, it leaped backward and dodged the two knives that came slashing at him from behind!

"Grass!"

Seeing that he had dodged all the meticulously planned ambushes, someone cursed angrily.

"Master!"

"Master!"

Two screams came from his two disciples.

"Clang! Clang!"

The sounds of weapons clashing continued, and without turning around, he knew that the others in the arena were attacking his two disciples.

Six people, including the fake Ning Baixuan, were tasked with surrounding and killing him.

"Lord Qin."

The Kitchen God looked at the "fake Ning Baixuan" who had stood up, his tone somewhat surprised.

Unexpectedly, this "Ning Baixuan" was actually a woman disguised as a man! Even when facing the infamous female Yama of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and being surrounded and killed by six people, with her life hanging by a thread, the Kitchen God couldn't help but chuckle.

Qin Yuanyao took off the handkerchief from her head and threw it on the ground, then picked up a knife.

Bang bang bang!

She moved with incredible speed, taking three steps in quick succession!

Three deep footprints of soap shoes were left on the ground.

"hiss!"

She suddenly swung her knife, fiercely slashing at the Kitchen God!

"Go!" Pang Ting shouted, his face flushed, and the five of them rushed forward!