Li Qing was lost in thought, trapped in the mire. He hadn't yet been swallowed by the mud, his head and hands still exposed.
Li Qing struggled desperately, but the more he thrashed, the deeper he sank. The muddy water was about to engulf his head. Seeing this, Zhou Fugui lunged forward, sliding across the muddy ground before his hand shot out and firmly grasped Li Qing's hands. However, the soft mire of the swamp caused Li Qing to drag Zhou Fugui down with him.
Xu Mancang, Suo Dacheng, Pan Jiugui, and the others nearby turned ashen with fear, all wanting to rush forward to help.
Zhou Fugui, seeing the situation was dire, realized that if everyone rushed forward, they would all be swallowed by this swamp.
So, Zhou Fugui turned and shouted, "Don't come any closer! Throw a rope over here!" He then yelled to Li Qing, "Stop struggling, the more you move, the faster you'll sink."
By this time, Li Qing's mouth was submerged in muddy water, rendering him unable to speak. Upon hearing Zhou Fugui's words, he nodded vigorously.
After a moment, Xu Mancang threw another rope, lying on the muddy ground, and looped it around Zhou Fugui's feet.
"Everyone, pull together," Suo Dacheng shouted.
Thus, with everyone exerting their combined strength, Zhou Fugui and Li Qing were pulled out of the mire inch by inch.
With a "splish," Zhou Fugui and Li Qing were finally pulled free from the swamp. Then, a flash of white light appeared, and everyone saw two stark white bone clusters attached to Li Qing's legs, pulled out of the mud together...
"Ah!" Li Qing cried out in terror, kicking desperately to dislodge the bones from his legs.
"What are you screaming about? Are they that scary? They're just two skeletons!" Zhou Fugui was also quite disgusted, but not as terrified as Li Qing. He got up, panting, peeled the two bone clusters off Li Qing's legs, and casually tossed them back into the swamp.
"What were you thinking?" Zhou Fugui grabbed Li Qing, dragging him back while scolding, "Getting distracted here is a death sentence."
Li Qing, still shaken, pointed at the swamp with trembling fingers.
"Oh my, mother!"
Zhou Fugui and the others turned to look. The swamp was filled with corpses and bones, a dense, horrifying sight that sent shivers down their spines.
Some of the bodies had not even decayed, staring at Zhou Fugui and his men in the mire as if they were alive, only with ghastly pale skin revealing their dead state.
Even the brave Xu Mancang cried out in fear and sat down on the ground. Zhou Fugui and the other Yan army soldiers also felt their hair stand on end, thoroughly terrified.
"We cannot stay here. We must leave quickly!"
Zhou Fugui then pulled Li Qing to his feet and shouted the order.
The group, leading their horses and supporting each other, continued their arduous journey.
"It seems this is an ancient battlefield," Zhou Fugui said, supporting Li Qing as he walked and glancing around.
Vast swamps, white bones – perhaps only a battlefield could present such a scene. Zhou Fugui couldn't understand why many of the bodies hadn't turned to bone yet.
"Mm, the intensity of that battle is evident. Ugh..." Li Qing, before finishing his sentence, began to retch violently, vomiting so hard that he nearly brought up his gall.
"Sigh, I told you not to come. But you insisted," Zhou Fugui muttered to himself, patting Li Qing's back with a sigh, thinking what a weak scholar he was, inexperienced.
"Do you think I'm scared? Ugh..." Li Qing, after another bout of vomiting, said resentfully, "I... "
"What is it?" Zhou Fugui asked, hearing his words.
"They look like they're alive... men, women, old and young... all of them," Li Qing replied, glancing fearfully around. "When I walked here, they came towards me."
"Alive?" Zhou Fugui also looked at the seemingly endless swamp, thinking that Li Qing wasn't lying, or perhaps he was experiencing an illusion.
"Youming Valley, Youming Valley, it truly is a bit eerie," Zhou Fugui said, "Everyone, let's leave this place quickly. Who knows what will happen if we delay."
Youming Valley was truly a death trap, Zhou Fugui thought to himself.
When Yelihu had mentioned Youming Valley, Zhou Fugui had been skeptical, but now he had no choice but to believe. Perhaps without the protection of his divine teacher, Zhou Fugui and the two hundred Yan soldiers would have all perished in Youming Valley.
Thinking of this, Zhou Fugui suddenly remembered something and asked Li Qing, "Acid Scholar, did the Han Dynasty's Marquis of Champion have any descendants?"
He asked this, believing that the "demon arises from the heart," hoping to help Li Qing escape his illusions.
Indeed, Li Qing looked at Zhou Fugui with great surprise and asked, "Why are you asking about him? He... I understand, he really is your teacher? What exactly did you experience in your dream?"
"Dreams are like life, and life is like a dream. Who can truly distinguish between the two?" Zhou Fugui replied enigmatically, then said to Li Qing, "Did the Marquis of Champion have any descendants? If you know, tell me quickly. Stop rambling."
"I'm rambling? You're the one rambling," Li Qing grumbled inwardly, then replied, "His cavalry was valiant, his bravery unmatched, conquering armies, but alas, he had no heir."
"No heir?" Zhou Fugui was instantly disappointed.
It seemed that the woman in yellow was also an immortal or a spirit? Zhou Fugui mused inwardly.
"However..." Li Qing continued.
"However what? Are you going to speak with dramatic pauses like that young fellow Yelihu?" Zhou Fugui glared at Li Qing impatiently and said.
"You're not much older than him," Li Qing retorted, bickering with Zhou Fugui, which made him forget the terrifying scene they had just experienced. "Having no heir doesn't mean having no successor. Huo Qubing did have a son, named Huo Shan. His mother is not recorded in official history, but unofficial accounts say she was Princess Cuiyu of the Xiongnu. After Huo Qubing's death, Huo Shan inherited the title of Marquis of Champion and served as Palace Attendant, but unfortunately, he died young at the age of ten, and the line of the Marquis of Champion thus ended."
"So he still had no heir?" Zhou Fugui asked regretfully.
So, his son was also half Han and half Xiongnu. No wonder he sensed his impure bloodline but didn't care, Zhou Fugui thought to himself.
"I wasn't finished..." Li Qing continued, "After Huo Shan died young, the Han Emperor, taking pity, ordered Huo Guang, Huo Qubing's paternal half-brother, to adopt a son for Huo Qubing to continue his lineage."
"Oh, so the Marquis of Champion still had someone to inherit his lineage, and a paternal half-brother, so there's still a blood connection," Zhou Fugui said, greatly relieved.
"Huo Guang?" Zhou Fugui exclaimed in astonishment when he came to his senses, looking at Li Qing.
Huo Guang had supported and deposed the King of Changyi, Liu He, and then enthroned Emperor Xuan of Han. He held great power and acted as regent. Later, the Huo clan plotted a rebellion and poisoned Empress Xu Pingjun and her son. When this was discovered, the entire clan was sentenced to death. Zhou Fugui was certainly aware of this.
"Yes, Huo Guang usurped power and his clan was annihilated," Li Qing nodded.
"Damn it, in the end, the Marquis of Champion still ended up without heirs!" Zhou Fugui glared at Li Qing and said angrily.
"Can you let me finish speaking?" Li Qing retorted, also glaring at Zhou Fugui. "The Huo clan had many branches. How could they be so easily wiped out? I seem to recall that Huo Qubing's surviving descendants escaped calamity?"
"Scholar, you're amazing, remembering so clearly," Zhou Fugui said joyfully.
"What do you intend to do?" Li Qing asked, surprised.
"Nothing," Zhou Fugui said, shaking his head.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The snowy celestial mountains and mystical realms stretch long,
Unfettered by mist, vastness is embraced.
Jagged peaks shrouded in eternal snow,
Cascading jade flows past ancient, bustling towns.
The weather grew colder. Winter had finally arrived. Mountains, roads, trees – the entire world was crystal clear. Zhou Fugui and the other Yan soldiers arrived before a snow-capped mountain.
The majestic snow mountain was grand and spectacular. Zhou Fugui gazed upon the towering white peaks and ice formations that stood between heaven and earth, dazzling in the sunlight. The glaciers were varied and magnificent, their crystalline ice caps reflecting a faint golden hue under the sun, exuding a sense of power, grandeur, and cold, sacred beauty.
Such towering and magnificent, scenic snow mountains were not a good omen for Zhou Fugui and his men.
When it rains, it pours; when the boat is delayed, it encounters a headwind! Zhou Fugui wondered if the world's grasslands were connected to the snow mountains.
Moreover, ever since Zhou Fugui was exiled to Xuelin City, he seemed to have formed an inseparable bond with snow.
"Receive my order: rest here, burn plenty of hot water, and prepare water skins," Zhou Fugui commanded loudly, having no inclination to admire the snowy landscape.
The key to traveling in the snow was to overcome the extreme cold. Therefore, Zhou Fugui intended to make items for protection against the cold, such as water skins. Water skins sewn from animal hides were one such item. Pouring boiling water into them would provide warmth, though they would be useless once frozen solid.
At this moment, Zhou Fugui no longer feared that an open fire would attract wolves or other wild beasts. On this barren snow mountain, as far as the eye could see, there was only white snow and a few bare trees. Where were the wild beasts? Even if a few hidden beasts were attracted, Zhou Fugui and his men were hungrier, more ferocious, and greedier than any beast at this moment.
Zhou Fugui and his nearly two hundred Yan soldiers had run out of rations and were now relying on killing horses for sustenance.
If they couldn't cross the snow mountain and find a place to rest, eat, and drink, they would freeze to death, or starve to death in this Youming Valley.
However, whether Zhou Fugui and the Yan soldiers had already left the valley was unknown.
What happened to Chi You? Was it still alive? Zhou Fugui stared blankly at the snow mountain, suddenly thinking of Chi You, the little white bear he had raised with his own hands.
If Chi You were alive now, it would be an incredibly massive beast, Zhou Fugui mused inwardly.
Zhou Fugui regretted abandoning Chi You immensely, but he had no choice.
Zhou Fugui scooped up a handful of snow from the ground and rubbed it vigorously on his face. The biting cold instantly invigorated him, and he stopped thinking about the white bear Chi You.
"Yelihu, take a few quick-witted brothers to scout ahead. Remember, do not advance rashly. It is better to be slow than to lose anyone," Zhou Fugui continued to order. "The rest will find shelter from the wind and snow and rest well today. We will cross this snow mountain tomorrow morning."
Yelihu loudly acknowledged the order and left with a few scouts.