"Where is His Highness?" I asked.
"Taking shelter at the end of Black Wind Cliff."
The end of the cliff? Isn't that where the wind is strongest? I ran in the direction the soldier pointed, and as I reached the edge of the cliff, I braked hard. The ice underfoot was slippery, and I almost failed to stop, nearly falling straight down.
I managed to halt precariously at the edge, and looking down, I felt dizzy. The distance from this cliff to the sea surface below was at least three to four hundred meters. It was almost sheer, and below that were hundreds, even thousands, of sharp reefs exposed from the seabed. If one jumped, death would be swift and brutal!
The entire sea surface was dark, stretching to the horizon. The unpredictable sea winds whipped up colossal waves, as high as a tsunami. In such conditions, even Zheng Baobao's large ships would be instantly swallowed. Everyone knew this, so no one ever considered maritime rescue; it was a path to certain death.
Not far to my left, below the cliff, there was a small platform, about a hundred square meters. It looked like a sharp bird's beak that had been pried open a little. The platform was surrounded by stone walls, forming a giant bird's nest in the center. Little Yama King and Xie Bi'an, among others, were all inside.
I walked to the left and jumped onto the small platform. They seemed slightly surprised by my arrival, but I didn't see any joy on their faces, perhaps thinking my presence wouldn't be of much help.
I greeted the various commanders one by one, and finally knelt before Little Yama King, who was slumped against the wall, covered in blood and dirt. "Shuyao, I'm late. You must have been frightened."
"Talking is useless. Make the rebels frightened too!" Little Yama King frowned.
"...Uh, I'm afraid that might be difficult."
"Then why are you here?" Little Yama King sat up and asked me.
"To save you."
"How? Carry me out on your back?" Qin Shuyao sneered.
At this point, Xie Bi'an approached and whispered, "Your Highness, Wu Chengfeng has learned the Gale Force Art. He really can carry you out of the earth formation!"
This Gale Force Art was taught to me by Xie Bi'an. As my master, she naturally understood its use. She had indeed carried me before, from Lu Shun to Shengjing. Carrying someone wouldn't affect the speed of the Gale Force Art, which remained near supersonic. Rushing through the enemy camp below the slope would only take about five seconds, likely too short for the enemy to interrupt the casting.
"I will not abandon my soldiers and escape alone!" Little Yama King, surprisingly resolute, said seriously.
"If the green hills remain, there will be wood to burn. Your Highness, you and Chengfeng should leave first!" Ma Jiaojiao came over to persuade her.
"Exactly. Your Highness, only by escaping can you possibly lead troops back to rescue us!" Wu Zhao also said.
In reality, it was all talk. Everyone knew this was deep in rebel territory, with no reinforcements nearby. They were an isolated force.
Little Yama King shook her head and slumped back down. "My mind is made up. We either all go, or we all stay and fight to the death!"
"At worst, we'll charge down together!" Fan Wujiu said fiercely. "That way, His Highness will have no regrets!"
"We can't even charge. The ground is too slippery," Xie Bi'an shook her head. "The horses' hooves skid. It was only by great effort that we managed to climb here and hold our ground. This is also why the rebels haven't managed to capture this place yet."
Xie Bi'an was telling me this, and I had noticed the problem when I came up. There was almost no soil on Black Wind Cliff; it was entirely an icy terrain. That's why the Xuanjia soldiers had used ice blocks to construct defensive walls. They couldn't even find stones.
Given such a steep slope, the rebel cavalry couldn't be effectively utilized. They could only use infantry to attack from below. However, the width of Black Wind Cliff was limited. The area where the ice walls were constructed, as I observed, was only about two hundred meters wide. The rebels couldn't deploy their full force, while the Xuanjia soldiers, even fighting on foot, were elite experts. Thus, the rebels gained no advantage and could only choose to lay siege to the Xuanjia soldiers and Little Yama King. Since there was no source of food at the summit, and escape from the cliff was impossible, they could wait until the Xuanjia soldiers weakened from hunger, reducing their combat effectiveness.
"Think of a way quickly! Chengfeng!" Wu Zhao nudged me. "Aren't you Zhuge Liang reborn?"