Chapter 148: A Plea for Help

As soon as Zhou Yi and Dong Nuo stepped out of the house, Baozi hurried forward. "Are you alright? Were you hurt?" Just as Zhou Yi was about to reply that he was fine, he noticed that Baozi's eyes were fixed entirely on Dong Nuo.

He sighed inwardly, lamenting his poor choice of companions. "We're fine, neither of us is hurt. Let's get out of here right now!" With that, Zhou Yi grabbed Dong Nuo's hand and sprinted all the way until the three of them finally stopped just past the Shanhai Pass.

It was then that Zhou Yi noticed the strange look Baozi was giving him. Looking down, he realized he was still holding Dong Nuo's hand. In the heat of the moment, he hadn't paid attention, but now that they had stopped, it felt rather awkward.

"Brother Yi, tell me the truth, have you ever held her hand before?" Although Baozi tried to look fierce, his voice lacked any real conviction.

"Is that any way to talk to your Brother Yi? I'll thrash you!" Zhou Yi raised his foot and kicked Baozi in the rear, though he immediately regretted it. He needed to save face for Baozi in front of Dong Nuo and couldn't roughhouse like they used to.

"You two stop bickering. I can't go with you!" Dong Nuo gave Baozi a faint smile, then said with a serious expression.

Baozi had assumed that once Dong Nuo escaped, she would accompany the two of them to rescue the children, but her words felt like a bucket of cold water poured straight over him.

"Why can't you come with us? We're going together to save those children!" Baozi asked anxiously.

"I am the Saintess of the Miao Territory. This is the destiny I have born to shoulder since birth. I cannot leave!" Dong Nuo shook her head again. The teachings instilled in her since childhood were deeply rooted in her bones, something that could not be changed overnight.

"Come with me, I swear I will treat you well!" Though Baozi did not spell it out, Dong Nuo had long been well aware of his feelings.

"I know your intentions. If we are fated, we will meet again!" With that, Dong Nuo turned around and started to head back.

"You have your reasons, don't you?" Baozi frowned. Hearing this, Dong Nuo's footsteps paused for a fraction of a second, but she did not stop, continuing onward.

"I, Baozi, will only ever love you in this lifetime! I will come to the Sawa Miao Village to find you! You must wait for me!" Baozi shouted at Dong Nuo's retreating figure.

Hearing his cry, Dong Nuo turned back, offered Baozi a gentle smile, and said, "There is an array over there. The focal point of the array is in the woods behind the tents! Help me rescue those children!"

Finished speaking, Dong Nuo used her movement technique and hurried toward Qinhuangdao. Not far away, she met the Miao tribesmen who had come in pursuit. Seeing the Miao people take Dong Nuo away, Baozi felt as though his soul had been carried off with her.

"Alright, don't be sad. We'll go find her!" Zhou Yi patted Baozi's shoulder. He needed Baozi to pull himself together, because so many children were still waiting for the two of them to save them.

Baozi nodded. "Brother Yi, I'm alright. Once we finish dealing with this matter, I'll go to the Miao Village to find her!"

***

It was already midnight by the time the two returned to the Potter's Field, and half a month had passed since Zhou Danjiang's disappearance. Dong Nuo had said that the Miao tribesmen and the children were all trapped inside an array, and its core was right here in this forest.

The two searched through the night without finding anything. After dawn, they could no longer search openly, because this place was far too close to the Potter's Field. Any mistake and exposure would land them right in the middle of a Miao hunting party.

Having killed countless Miao tribesmen back and forth, they knew the old crone would certainly not let them off lightly if she laid eyes on them again. Caution was paramount.

Just as they were failing to find the array's core, Jie Chen and Mu Chen returned! With the addition of the two of them, their chances of finding the children increased significantly.

"This array is even more powerful than the Hidden Mountain Array I set up. I have no certainty of breaking it, but I'll give it a try!" Mu Chen stood outside the woods, studying it for a moment, his heart filled with uncertainty.

With that, Mu Chen drew a talisman from his bosom, stepped in a lotus pattern, and silently recited an incantation. A moment later, the talisman burst into spontaneous combustion, and by the time it burned to ashes, Mu Chen had vanished.

As soon as Mu Chen entered the array, he swiftly hid behind a tree. This was the base camp of the Miao people; since he had forced his way in, the one who set the array would naturally notice.

Sure enough, before long, a group of Miao tribesmen headed in Mu Chen's direction. Though they failed to spot Mu Chen's whereabouts, the person who laid the array now knew the exact spot where Mu Chen had broken through to enter.

From inside the array, one could see the outside world, but those outside could see nothing within. At this moment, Zhou Yi and the other two were still standing outside the woods, and if the Miao warriors came out, they would surely be spotted.

They quickly retreated from the edge of the array. "Hide quickly, the Miao men are coming!"

"How do we break this array?" Zhou Yi asked after taking cover.

"I don't know what this array is called. Looking at it from here, it's just a forest, but inside is a world of its own. Those Miao people have already set up several tents in there at some unknown time, and there are at least over a hundred Miao warriors inside!"

"Then why couldn't Brother Yi and I get in when we wandered around the woods all night?" Baozi asked, turning his head.

"This array is laid out according to the Five Elements. The Five Elements within the array are complete, forming a world unto itself. Even if you burned this forest down, it would be useless!" Mu Chen shook his head and said.

Zhou Yi had anticipated such an outcome, but he hadn't expected it to be this tricky. Hearing Mu Chen's words, he felt a knot of frustration in his chest. The Miao people were hiding like tortoises inside a shell; as long as they refused to come out, the few of them were completely helpless.

Furthermore, he had already expected that the Miao people inside were not few in number. Mu Chen's estimate of a hundred was an understatement—there were already a hundred Miao warriors in the Zhuolu area alone, and adding those who had been abducting children everywhere, the total must be over two hundred!

A frontal assault was definitely out of the question, and winning by strategy was easier said than done. Small tricks like the ones they had used before would undoubtedly prove ineffective. He frowned and racked his brains for a long time without coming up with any solution.

***

While everyone else remained silent, Jie Chen spoke up. "Did you say burning the forest down would be useless?"

"As long as the array's core isn't destroyed and the balance of the Five Elements isn't broken, burning the forest won't cause any harm to the Miao people inside!" Mu Chen nodded and said.

"Then let's burn the forest down, even if these trees and the animals in the woods will suffer for it!" Jie Chen said once more. Burning the forest would harm countless innocents; it was a last resort and would damage their karmic virtue.

"If burning the forest is useless, why bother burning it?" Baozi curled his lip and muttered.

"Master Jie Chen intends to disrupt the balance of the Five Elements. Once a fire starts, the fire element flourishes while metal wanes. When the Five Elements lose their balance, the array will also become ineffective! But is there any certainty in this?" Zhou Yi could not help feeling anxious, because once the fire raged through the forest, the lives of the infants trapped inside would be left without any guarantee.

"There is no harm in trying," Mu Chen said.

"Even so, we still won't be able to save that many infants. How many children can the four of us possibly carry out?" Zhou Yi couldn't help pouring cold water on the idea again.

"We can ask the local people for help. Children have been stolen everywhere, and public indignation has reached the heavens and earth. Surely the villagers will lend a hand!" They genuinely needed manpower now, and Jie Chen naturally thought of the nearby residents, only to see the expressions of the other three turn rather grim.

"Don't count on the villagers. They won't be of any help. These Miao people have been staying here for months without the villagers making a peep—how can you expect anything from them?" Baozi shook his head.

"Regardless of whether it works or not, let's try it first! Tell the villagers that for every child rescued, we will give two large silver dollars. Money makes the mare go, and I refuse to believe they won't be tempted!"