Having the surface of the river suddenly set on fire was something that no one could ever imagine!
The purpose of water was so it could put out the fire. So how was it possible for the existence of a fire that burns on top of the water? It had to be dark magic! Whoever was standing in their path right now was definitely not human, but a monster!
The water bandits that were originally just here to watch the fun instantly panicked. They picked up the boat anchors, trying to leave this sea of fire!
However, the boats were all filled with heavy merchandise and other necessities, weighing the boats down to the point that their movements were impaired, and causing many of the boats to crash into each other. In just a short amount of time, the whole scene became extremely chaotic, with sounds of yelling and crying filling the sky!
After the boats ran into each other, somebody thought to jump into the water from the deck. After all, they were water bandits and all knew how to swim. But the scariest part was: not only did the substance on the river surface stick to the boat, but it also clung onto people! Water could not put it out nor could they remove it from their skin!
All the people in the water finally realized their situation and began screaming in pain and fright!
Seeing all the skilled swimmers being devoured by the river one by one, the people who remained on the boats only became more frightened.
In a desperate and hopeless tone, they began to shout.
“This fire will eat humans!”
“Don’t go in the water! It’s a ghost fire*!”
*鬼火 Ghost Fire–fire belonging to the dead. It cannot be put out.
With the additional panic affecting everyone’s judgments, the whole field became even more chaotic!
Many people tried to row the boats out with all their might to leave the sea of fire. But because of the narrow waterway, with all of the boats heading in the same direction, the results could easily be predicted.
Lian Ke was finally pulled back to reality after another boat crashed into his from behind. He yelled loudly for his subordinates to calm down, but no one listened to him. It was too late to stop them either way. All of the boats had already squeezed together, causing even more people to fall in the water.
This type of scenario… was that of hell!
…It was not surprising that all of them were panicking like this. After all, who in the world would still be able to remain calm while in the middle of a sea of fire?
No, there was indeed one person.
Xie Lin Lang stood in the middle of the sea of fire, looking up at Qin Jue.
The small raft she was standing on was also being engulfed in flames, yet she stood there, perfectly calm. She raised the bamboo pole in her hand, and with a push of her hand, she sailed her way towards Qin Jue…
Suddenly becoming surrounded by a massive fire, rather than feeling frightened, Qin Jue was in a state of shock!
Just what kind of phenomenal skills did Xie Lin Lang have that would allow her to set water on fire, lighting the whole ten miles of the black river?
He didn’t know… But the one thing he knew was that this exceptional person who can shake the world with one simple movement, who can completely annihilate an army, crossed a sea of fire to come here… just to find him!
––At that moment, all went silent in his world, except the sound of his rapidly beating heart…!
(This translation was brought to you by LeafInBloom on Patreon and Sleepy Translations.)
Arriving at the front of Qin Jue’s boat, her white clothes had been singed with holes by the sparks. She lifted her head to look at him.
When she finally made eye contact with Qin Jue, she asked with a helpless tone.
“Just how many times do I have to steal you away until you obediently stay by my side, and not run away anymore?”
Her question was asked in such seriousness, that even though she spoke it lightly and calmly, it pounded so heavily on his heart that he thought it would stop! This just caused Qin Jue’s panic to increase even more!
Qin Jue looked at her, unconsciously thinking of reasons to justify his actions. He wanted to tell her that, in reality, he was hesitant when it was time for him to switch with the substitute. The reason that he sided with the bandits was only so he could get rid of them once and for all… But as soon as the words came to his lips, they all dissipated under the conniving expression she sent him. Suddenly, he squeezed his hand over his heart as a wave of suffocation rushed over him. He pursed his lips and dove straight from the boat’s deck!
Without time to think, Xie Lin Lang immediately reached her hand out to catch him.
Amidst the ten miles of red and raging waves of fire, Xie Lin Lang’s hands grabbed onto Qin Jue’s, successfully pulling him into her arms!
The additional weight of Qin Jue landed caused the ignited boat under their feet to sway heavily!
At that moment, bits and pieces of sparks of fire flew in the air and rose into the sky. They were like fireflies dancing along the skylines, twinkling and glistening gracefully.
With Qin Jue in her arms, Xie Lin Lang took a step backward.
Feeling Qin Jue’s tense body, she asked, “Are you afraid?”
He shook his head.
“Then, are you going to leave again?”
Qin Jue paused for a moment, then smiled brightly.
He was already extremely handsome by nature. It was as if the shadow looming over him was also burned away by the fire, scattering along with the dust, and leaving only the purest and brightest core that was inside him all this time.
He watched her as he shook his head.
“I won’t leave again.”
Besides… he no longer wanted to leave.
Xie Lin Lang smiled softly upon hearing his answer.
Just when she was about to sail the raft away with her bamboo pole, a furious voice spoken through gritted teeth echoed through the air.
“XIE. LIN. LANG…!”
After finally realizing that he was no longer able to control the situation, Lian Ke became completely insane! How could he stay calm when who knows what type of black magic Xie Lin Lang used, causing all of the power he accumulated all these years to burn down to ashes within an instant! This hatred between them went even deeper than the incident from years before!
He charged to the boat prow and bore his eyes at her as if he was going to devour her bones and meat raw!
But he didn’t dare go into the water, so instead, he aimed his bow at them and screamed crazily.
“GO DIE! YOU GO DIE!”
The moment he lifted the bow, Xie Lin Lang already lifted the bamboo pole and using a strong push, deflected the pole off the side of Lian Ke’s boat.
Relying on the powerful recoil force, her raft sped back through the water’s surface like an arrow fired from a bow!
Lian Ke reached for another arrow after missing his first one, only to see that Xie Lin Lang’s boat had already traveled too far away. Seeing her fast boat almost making its way out of the sea of fire, Lian Ke almost wanted to gouge his eyes out!
He screamed at the top of his lungs, “Xie Lin Lang! You’re going to regret leaving me alive today! I will come back and kill you, and tear your corpse into a million pieces!”
Xie Lin Lang laughed as if hearing a joke.
“Regret? Will you regret letting an ant off easy? Afraid that the ant will come back and kill you?
I’m letting you off because I feel like it. But I can easily kill you off any time I want. If you manage to survive this time, it won’t because you are lucky, rather, it’ll be because I gave you mercy.
Even the mercy given by the strong will be powerful. Like the mercy I am giving you right now. You have no choice but to accept it!”
“YOU-”
Lian Ke’s eyes were blood-shot from anger and he suddenly coughed out blood!
Seeing how easily he was to suffer after being provoked, Xie Lin Lang shook her head in shame. With another push of the bamboo pole in her hand, the raft had completely left the area of fire.
Petroleum oil was naturally very light. It floated on the surface of the water as well as attached itself to objects.
Due to the narrowness of the waterway and the whole waterway being packed with twenty to thirty boats, it was natural that the oil was induced to follow and burn the area around them. With those boats blocking the oil, it became much easier for her to escape.
At this moment, Dong Qi and all of his people waiting in the shadows were completely dumbfounded. Everything had happened too fast: when they were still recovering from the shock of the river being set on fire, Xie Lin Lang had already returned to safety with the Crown Prince.
Could she have made this whole process seem any easier? Any more relaxing? Was this still the work of a human? Being able to set fire ablaze for ten miles on end with such ease… wasn’t that what gods do?!
After Xie Lin Lang had broken away from the sea of fire, the flames on her boat began to slowly die out. Dong Qi’s subordinate finally tugged at his sleeves, pulling him out of his astonishment.
“Um…DaRen…His Highness was snatched away by Xie GongZi. Should we go after them?”
Coming back to reality, Dong Qi couldn’t help but flick the subordinate harshly on his head.
“You want to go after them or something?! Do you think you are any better than those one thousand-something water bandits?!”
If Xie Lin Lang could easily snatch the Crown Prince away among a thousand water bandits, what were they going to do with the numbers they had? Hand themselves out on a silver platter?!
After being hit by Dong Qi, the subordinate asked sulkily, “Th-then what about Red Sand Valley? Should we report to them?”
Dong Qi shot a glare at him, saying, “Of course we’re reporting to them! Well? Hurry up!”
“Yes…I’ll go right away…”
Having said that, he walked away sullenly, leaving Dong Qi standing there at the shore, watching what’s left of the packed merchant boats and the roaring fire.