Just then, cheers and the sound of horses arose from afar, with firelight soaring into the sky. The city's army was finally rushing towards them.
Seeing his own people arrive, the Top Daoist was overjoyed, his voice rising a few octaves. "Liu Ruomei, be sensible. You should leave quickly. Once my men arrive, you won't be able to run even if you wanted to."
Liu Ruomei smiled faintly. "We'll have to see if you can hold on until they get here."
With that, she waved her hand and led her group to surround him.
The Top Daoist's gaze darted around, searching for the weakest point to break through.
After looking around, he fixed his eyes on Shen Ziyan. Shen Ziyan was young and short, a full head shorter than Huang Ying.
With this thought, he first raised his hand towards Liu Ruomei, who was facing him, pretending to throw a hidden weapon. In reality, he had nothing in his hand.
This was due to his carelessness. He had rushed out in a hurry, unprepared, not only empty-handed but also without any hidden weapons.
Seeing him raise his hand, Liu Ruomei didn't dare to be careless and instinctively took a step back.
Seizing the moment when everyone's attention was drawn, the Top Daoist lunged towards Shen Ziyan. Su Dan Novel Network.
Seeing the Top Daoist lunging at her, Shen Ziyan felt a pang of nervousness.
Despite her nervousness, she gritted her teeth and swiftly slashed her curved saber towards the Top Daoist.
The Top Daoist smiled slightly, this was what he had been waiting for. He dodged to the side and reached out to snatch Shen Ziyan's weapon.
Seeing her attack evaded, Shen Ziyan immediately retracted her wrist and rapidly sidestepped.
The Top Daoist had assumed that dealing with such a young girl would be a sure thing. However, before his hand could even touch her wrist, he saw a flash of light before his eyes, and then the other party was at least three feet away from him.
At this distance, she was out of his reach. To attack again, he would need to take at least a big step forward.
As he prepared to take a step forward, Huang Ying, standing nearby, flicked her hand, and her long sword slashed towards him.
Seeing someone initiating an attack, the Top Daoist instantly changed his mind and turned to attack Huang Ying.
Huang Ying, however, did not engage him. She struck and retreated, just like before.
Both of them possessed excellent light body techniques. The Top Daoist, having been on the receiving end of two attacks without even touching his opponents, became somewhat annoyed.
But he soon realized this was just the beginning. Liu Ce and Liu Tie, who were also nearby, followed suit. They would strike once and then retreat, never engaging him in a prolonged fight.
In the blink of an eye, several people had taken turns.
For them, it was merely a warm-up. But for the Top Daoist, it was becoming unbearable.
After all, he was already injured. Facing the continuous assaults from the strongest fighters, even without substantial contact, his stamina was being significantly depleted.
Seeing the Top Daoist's breathing becoming labored, Liu Ruomei inwardly rejoiced. This time, she took the initiative.
After one move, Liu Ruomei retreated again, followed closely by Liu Tie and Liu Ce.
By this time, the clamor from the distance was clearly audible. The imperial army was less than half a mile away.
If they couldn't capture the Top Daoist quickly, it would likely become very troublesome.
Huang Ying's eyes darted, an idea forming. As Liu Tie retreated after a missed strike, she charged forward again.
Huang Ying feigned an attack with her sword in her right hand.
The Top Daoist, wanting only to stall for time until his reinforcements arrived, adopted a defensive stance.
He dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the strike.
At that moment, Huang Ying extended her left hand and shouted.
Then, a cloud of white smoke instantly erupted.
Seeing this, the Top Daoist grumbled inwardly and retreated two more large steps.
This retreat, however, was unfortunate. It placed him directly with his back to Liu Ruomei, within her attacking range.
Liu Ruomei, following the same tactic, shouted and a puff of white smoke flew out.
It must be said that Huang Ying and Liu Ruomei's choices were very clever. Against an opponent with superior martial arts, if their hidden weapons were caught or even used against them, it would be difficult to evade.
However, when scattering smoke bombs, it was incredibly difficult for the opponent to even dodge, let alone counter-attack.
Moreover, with Huang Ying taking the lead, followed closely by Liu Ruomei, and then Shen Ziyan also throwing a handful of smoke.
This combination proved too much for the Top Daoist.
He was already exhausted and could no longer maintain the swift movements required to evade all the smoke.
He accidentally inhaled a large mouthful of the smoke. The Top Daoist immediately felt his mind becoming muddled.
The Top Daoist swayed. Everyone watched this with delight and eagerly pressed their attacks. After three more exchanges, the Top Daoist staggered, swayed, and looked up at Liu Ruomei again. He squeezed out through his teeth, "Ganging up on one person, that's not honorable."
With that, he thumped to the ground.
Liu Ruomei waved her hand, and Liu Tie and Liu Ce stepped forward.
In a flash, the two men bound the Top Daoist's hands and feet.
Liu Ruomei instructed everyone to retreat to the dark roadside. She herself deliberately made a show of moving towards the main road.
The imperial soldiers were now close. Seeing Liu Ruomei's figure, they immediately shouted and gave chase.
They were completely unaware that the Top Daoist was lying right beside them.
Only after these soldiers had moved further away did Chen Xiaobei quickly call out to everyone to carry the Top Daoist and make their escape.
Chen Xiaobei dared not delay and led everyone all the way to Centipede Ridge.
What surprised him even more was that upon their arrival at Centipede Ridge, Liu Ruomei was already waiting for them at the foot of the ridge.
Seeing Liu Ruomei return, Liu Che and Liu Tie were exceptionally delighted.
They stepped forward together and cupped their fists to Liu Ruomei. "Miss, you've returned early."
Liu Ruomei smiled faintly, glanced at them, and nodded. Then she looked at Chen Xiaobei. "A bunch of useless wine-bags couldn't catch me. I shook them off within five miles."
Her words were met with hearty laughter from everyone.
Back at Centipede Ridge, Chen Xiaobei briefly recounted the process of capturing the Top Daoist. Crown Prince Xiao Jingyun listened with amazement.
In his opinion, the Top Daoist's martial arts prowess was second to none; no one dared to claim they were the best in the world. Yet, such a god-like figure was chased around like a rabbit by Chen Xiaobei and the other village defenders.
Especially Shen Ziyan and the others, who cleverly captured the Top Daoist with smoke bombs. Their side suffered no casualties, which was the greatest victory.
Liu Ruomei cupped her fists and said, "Your Highness, would you like him woken up so you can interrogate him properly?"
Xiao Jingyun repeatedly waved his hands. "No rush, no rush. It's getting late. Everyone should get some rest. We'll deal with the interrogation tomorrow."
Centipede Ridge soon fell into silence. Meanwhile, on Green Ox Mountain, Cui Fugui and Liu Kai found themselves unable to sleep.
Relying on the letter left by Cui Fugui, Liu Kai had successfully recognized Cui Fugui as his father, and they were now living together.