Chapter 277 - 126: Lord Saint Monarch, Your Most Loyal Subordinate Has Found You

Chapter 277: Chapter 126: Lord Saint Monarch, Your Most Loyal Subordinate Has Found You

But Zhang Da Yong’s words were like an awl, drilling from his ears into his mind.

Like the roll of distant thunder.

Or the whisper of a demon.

They echoed endlessly in his head.

Drowning out the cacophony of his auditory hallucinations.

The voices of his parents and Zhao Ci alike seemed to be suppressed.

Yang Mo grew increasingly agitated.

’What an asshole!’

’How could he say something like that?’

’Can you really make light of the life and death of the weak just because it affects the mission’s difficulty?’

He was utterly repulsed by the statement and desperately wanted to snap back at Zhang Da Yong.

But for some unknown reason, as if by some strange compulsion, his tongue refused to obey his mind, and he made no move to speak.

Zhang Da Yong’s words kept echoing in his mind.

His head grew heavy, and he slowly drifted off to sleep.

Zhang Da Yong watched him, a thoughtful expression on his face.

...

After resting in shifts for about four hours,

the three of them set off again.

They continued to weave through the dense forest, following the footprints onward.

They encountered many insect nests and fierce beasts along the way, but after a few standoffs, each crisis was resolved without any real danger.

After all, this wasn’t far from Lingge. While Water Demons could use the cover of the waterways to conduct their unsavory business, other demons wouldn’t dare come here looking for a death sentence.

As for the forest’s wild beasts, no matter how ferocious, they were far from embarking on the path of cultivation. When they met human Cultivators, they were the ones who should be afraid.

And as for the venomous insects, they could only flee from the poisonous smoke Yang Mo produced.

For three days,

they roughed it in the wild.

Their rations had run out, but fortunately, Yang Mo was an expert at identifying poisons and was able to find plenty of non-toxic wild fruits, insects, and small animals.

The only problem was that the forest wood was too damp, so their roasted meat often ended up just being smoked.

While it filled their bellies, it was ultimately an unpleasant experience.

But none of the three were the fussy type, and they hadn’t uttered a single complaint along the way. They just spoke less and less to each other. Aside from discussing tracking and how to ward off poisons and beasts, they exchanged no other words.

「On the third day, at 5:00 PM.」

They were on the mountain’s shaded side, so even though the sun had yet to dip below the horizon, dusk had already fallen in the mountains.

They still hadn’t found the people.

But the footprints were growing fresher.

Xiao Shenke said in a low voice, "These footprints were likely left about a day ago. We’re getting close. We’ll press on a little farther, and if we still haven’t found them, we’ll rest again."

"Mm!"

Yang Mo gave a sullen nod, feeling the irritation that had been building all day ease slightly.

He took a few deep breaths and followed the others forward.

Unexpectedly, they didn’t find any trace of the people, but they did run into a complication.

Xiao Shenke said grimly, "The tracks have split. The group divided in two, and the smaller party that left never returned."

"Idiots!"

Yang Mo couldn’t help but curse aloud. But he immediately felt bad about it, suppressed his frustration, and said, "Let’s find the main group first. Then we can decide whether to turn back and search for the others."

"Mm!"

Xiao Shenke couldn’t help but frown as well. The tracks were a day old, which meant the two groups had been separated for a full day.

And they were heading in completely opposite directions!

Rescuing both parties would likely require a great deal more effort.

Granted, the forest was a complex environment, and sometimes you had to take desperate measures.

But this situation was still infuriating.

The three of them took a collective deep breath, composed themselves, and pressed on.

After walking for another half-mile or so,

a faint smell of smoke from damp wood suddenly drifted through the air.

Yang Mo’s spirits lifted instantly. "We’ve found them!"

"Mm!"

"Pick up the pace!"

"Right!"

The three of them quickened their pace, following the footprints downhill until they finally found a mountain stream.

They could also hear the babbling of the water.

Xiao Shenke let out a sigh of relief. "They’re not completely stupid, at least. They managed to find a good spot."

"Mm."

Yang Mo grunted in acknowledgment and continued onward without another word.

Finally,

by the mountain creek, they saw several people roasting fish.

The wood was damp, so the "roasted" fish was really more smoked than anything else.

The people were listless, their faces a sickly bluish-black—clear signs of poisoning. Their eyes were filled with despair.

When they saw the three approaching, hope instantly flared in their eyes.

Once they confirmed the newcomers were there to rescue them, they were overcome with elation. They called out to their companions, gathering everyone together and thanking the three rescuers profusely.

For a moment, the ravine was filled with the sounds of crying and laughter.

They gathered everyone for a headcount.

There were nineteen in total.

Eighteen of them were Child Scholars who had been traveling by boat to the county-level examinations, and the last was the Boatwoman.

A few people had already died from the poison. The rest showed symptoms of varying severity, with the Boatwoman being the most critical case.

But fortunately,

Yang Mo could treat it.

He mixed an antidote for them to take. Even if it couldn’t purge the poison completely, it would restore some of their ability to move.

"We finally did it!"

A smile spread across Xiao Shenke’s face, and he felt a great sense of accomplishment. Though a few people had already died from the poison, it was no fault of theirs.

Rescuing them alive was certainly more difficult.

But having them alive was better than anything.

For many families, they had saved a son, a husband, or a father.

Besides, there had been twenty-one Child Scholars on the boat in total. Finding eighteen of them, dead or alive, meant the mission was a success.

In the ravine,

firelight mingled with billowing smoke.

Xiao Shenke stuffed a few bites of smoked fish into his mouth and looked at Yang Mo with a smile. "Brother Mo! This is all thanks to you. If you hadn’t been here to cure their poison, I’m not sure we could have gotten them back."

To be honest, he had been quite frustrated these past few days.

The apprentice he, an old Sentinel, had trained was long accustomed to silence.