This woman had not been conspicuous among the group of men and horses, but once the main force left and she was the only one remaining, she jumped off her horse.
She found a high rock to sit cross-legged on, her eyes fixed in the direction the cavalry team had departed, her horse whip tapping against her palm rhythmically.
Lu Ye stole a glance at her and saw that her skin was a wheatish color. Viewed from the side, her facial features were sharp and defined. Her hair was tied up with a red cloth, and her slender figure was similar in height to a man's, giving her a heroic spirit.
The woman had a long whip wrapped around her arm, and a long saber with an exquisite leather scabbard hung at her waist. If one did not know beforehand that she was a member of the bandit cavalry team, she would have looked just like a female disciple from a martial arts school.
However, this woman paid no attention to Lu Ye and his brother, not even glancing at them, as she kept her eyes fixed on the direction the cavalry team had left.
In the black night, one could only hear the sound of hoofbeats gradually fading away.
A moment later, the sounds of weapons colliding, angry shouts, and pleas for mercy came, along with the howling of hunting dogs, as torches were knocked to the ground and extinguished one by one.
Lu Ye and Wang Hu watched with wide eyes as this cavalry team of bandits even charged down the mountain with torches, taking the opportunity to sweep through the servants who were searching for refugees along both banks of the river.
The woman chuckled and clapped in approval.
Lu Ye and Wang Hu also felt a sense of relief in their hearts. They had been chased for half the night by lackeys and had nearly lost their lives, their chests filled with pent-up anger. It was finally time for these servants to have some bad luck.
Seeing that the woman was in a good mood, Lu Ye took the opportunity to approach her.
"This female knight-errant, the Rebel Army warriors are sweeping through the enemy like a hot knife through butter. Although my brother and I cannot join the battle, we can help clean up the nearby battlefield."
He was unsure of the attitude these bandits had toward ordinary refugees, so he tried hard to make himself and Wang Hu appear valuable.
The woman turned her head to look at Lu Ye and scoffed.
"Female knight-errant? Rebel Army?"
"This is the first time I've heard someone call us that."
Lu Ye looked up, seeing the woman's face for the first time. Her eyes were like autumn water, her red lips were full, and she had a tall, shapely figure; she was quite a beauty.
However, this beauty now had her hand on the hilt of her saber. Although a smile hung on her lips, her eyes were cold and quite frightening.
Lu Ye bit the bullet and smiled.
"The government authorities are brutal, making them government bandits. King Chuang raising an army to resist the government makes you the Rebel Army."
"The Rebel Army fighting against the government is righteousness against evil!"
"You are naturally a female knight-errant; there is no mistake about that."
If possible, he would not want to get close to this woman. She was someone who mixed with the bandit army; she might even be a man-eating tigress.
However, he and Wang Hu were just two ordinary refugees. If even the government authorities, who were supposed to protect order, could kill them, could the chaotic and lawless bandits not kill them too?
Refugees and bandits, although they both shared the word "wanderer," were not the same thing.
He could only seize every possible opportunity to get on her good side, even if it might be in vain.
The woman laughed out loud.
"Interesting. We are bandits, and the government are government bandits. So it turns out it's just thieves fighting thieves. In that case, neither side should pretend to be the good guy!"
Lu Ye was speechless. He had tried to flatter her, but she had kicked back.
How was he supposed to respond to that?
The woman waved her hand.
"Fine, go see what good things those lackeys have on them," she patted the long saber at her waist, "but don't think about escaping, or else this blade of mine won't recognize any kin!"
Lu Ye acknowledged her and hastily pulled Wang Hu away.
The two of them first searched the corpse of the evil servant.
From the corpse, they found a pouch containing a few pieces of broken silver, a water skin filled with wine, and a package of dry rations containing a few meat patties that were unexpectedly still warm.
It seemed these servants were planning to act through the night; otherwise, they wouldn't have had dry rations that still retained their warmth.
Lu Ye swallowed hard and offered the meat patties and wine to the "female knight-errant."
The female knight-errant took the meat patties and wine and enjoyed them quite a bit. It turned out they had left their old camp early and had been running around all day, leaving them famished.
Lu Ye and Wang Hu watched from the side, swallowing their saliva, their stomachs growling like thunder.
The "female knight-errant" waved her hand.
"Go on, whatever food you find next is yours..."
"Don't think about running away. No matter how fast you run, can you be faster than a horse?"
Lu Ye and Wang Hu acknowledged her and left in a hurry. They didn't dare go too far for fear of causing the "female knight-errant" to misunderstand. They only walked about twenty paces before arriving at the place where the bandit cavalry team had taken action.
They saw more than twenty corpses lying on the road one after another. These deceased individuals were all wearing small caps and arrow-sleeved robes, and they were all strong men with bulging muscles. It seemed they were of the same type as the arrogant servant they had killed earlier.
However, they were dressed differently, so they likely didn't come from the same influential family; they were a mixed formation.
At this moment, their corpses were scattered along the Official Road.
Most of them had been struck from behind, clearly having tried to turn and run when they encountered the bandits, only to lose their heads. Others had been unlucky enough to be sliced from top to bottom in one blow.
The ground on this stretch of the Official Road had been softened by Fresh Blood, making it somewhat slippery underfoot.
Lu Ye and Wang Hu were overjoyed at the sight; this carnage could not scare the two of them, who were accustomed to death.
They hurriedly searched the corpses one by one, and indeed, the harvest was bountiful.
The bandit cavalry team had been too busy charging and killing to bother with these corpses.
Lu Ye and Wang Hu found quite a few meat patties, steamed buns, and even rice balls and dried meat on the twenty-plus corpses.
They also collected quite a few swords, spears, and clubs, though some of the swords were shattered. Wang Hu clicked his tongue and whispered to Lu Ye.
"Eldest brother, these swords are all good weapons made of refined iron. To shatter them, there must have been at least a Bronze Skin Warrior stationed among the bandits."
Lu Ye nodded silently. Those sent out as scouts must be elite, so it was no surprise that a Martial Arts Master was stationed among them.
"Never mind that, let's fill our stomachs first!"
"Pick the good stuff to eat. These bandits are fickle; who knows if this might be our last meal?"
Wang Hu grinned and laughed.
"Eldest brother, being a well-fed ghost isn't bad either!"
The two of them held the meat patties and rice balls, eating greedily, though they didn't dare eat too much or drink the wine, just enough to replenish their strength.
After eating until they were eighty percent full, they wrapped the swords, food, and gold and silver into several bundles with their clothes and carried them back up the mountain.
The "female knight-errant" paid them no mind, only staring intently at the foot of the mountain, her ears twitching.
By now, the night was pitch black. From here, the torches of the bandit cavalry team looked as small as a cluster of fireflies, galloping back and forth at the foot of the mountain to sweep the area.
Suddenly, they saw a few of those fireflies go out, and at the same time, the faint sound of metal colliding and angry shouts drifted up.
A moment later.
That cluster of fireflies began running toward the mountain.
The female knight-errant stood up with a serious expression, and Lu Ye and Wang Hu felt their hearts tighten as well.
They didn't know how much time had passed when the sound of hoofbeats rang out.
They saw the long-bearded, black-faced bandit leader leading the team back. Everyone was filled with killing intent, their faces and bodies splattered with Fresh Blood.
Almost everyone was wounded, and some were leading two empty horses; the saddles were still there, but their masters were gone.
The "female knight-errant" jumped off the rock to meet them.
"Uncle Seventeen, did you encounter a tough opponent?"
That "Uncle Seventeen" nodded at the "female knight-errant" and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Those influential families really are willing to spend money. There was actually a Steel Bone Martial Master stationed among the patrol team, and he killed two of our brothers."
"I have already cut off his head to avenge our brothers."
Lu Ye and Wang Hu were shocked to hear this.
This fierce "Uncle Seventeen" was actually able to kill a Steel Bone Martial Master; what was his Martial Dao Cultivation?
"Uncle Seventeen" suddenly turned his head and glared viciously at Lu Ye and Wang Hu, saying in a sinister tone.
"We just lost two brothers, and I'm afraid they'll be lonely on the road to the underworld."
"Why don't I send you two down to keep them company? It would be fine if you just served them by holding their horses and stirrups, how about that..."
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