Xiao Jingyun called Chen Xiaobei over and expressed his intention to descend the mountain.
"Your Highness, descending the mountain is possible, but I haven't traveled this path before. We can only grope our way along. I can't say how long it will take to get down."
Xiao Jingyun was quite nonchalant about this. He smiled and said, "It doesn't matter. As long as we can get down, an extra day or two makes no difference."
With Xiao Jingyun's assurance, Chen Xiaobei felt relieved.
At this moment, Liu Rumei spoke, "Your Highness, what about the people we left guarding the bridgehead?"
Xiao Jingyun didn't answer directly but turned to look at Chen Xiaobei.
Chen Xiaobei pondered for a moment and said, "Your Highness, it's best to have them hold on for two days, and then they can follow our tracks and catch up."
Chen Xiaobei's estimation of two days was conservative. He himself had taken three days to climb out of the great canyon.
Therefore, even if the Lotus Cult leader on the other side followed their tracks, she would still be in the canyon and wouldn't take any further action within two days.
Thus, Ma Biao and the others would be relatively safe.
After discussions were settled, Chen Xiaobei led the group down the mountain. Chen Dayong and Chen Daqiang, the brothers, walked at the forefront. After all, they were native mountain folk and had more experience with life in the mountains.
To Chen Xiaobei's surprise, the path here was much easier to travel than the one he had taken to ascend the mountain. There were few forks, and one could see a winding path stretching forward at a glance.
They walked until dark without encountering any forks.
That night, they found a small grove to stop and rest. Everyone was chatting and laughing, but Chen Xiaobei felt that something was amiss.
They had descended quickly today. From Dragon Eyes to dark, they had traveled at least thirty li. Normally, they should have already left the deep mountains by now, yet there were almost no signs of human activity around.
This was strange.
As he was thinking, someone suddenly exclaimed, "Oh no, it's raining."
Everyone immediately scrambled to get busy. Fortunately, Liu Rumei had done thorough preparations and brought oilcloth. She tied the large oilcloth between several trees, and they huddled together, avoiding the rain. However, this meant they couldn't light a bonfire and had to eat cold food.
An hour or so passed, but the rain showed no signs of stopping. Instead, it grew heavier.
Chen Xiaobei recalled Cui Yong's words, who said that it didn't rain on Qing Niu Mountain after autumn. They had experienced two heavy downpours in these few days.
He would have to find Cui Yong and have a good chat with him when they returned.
So many people squeezed together naturally meant poor rest. By the time dawn broke, the rain finally stopped. They quickly separated, rested briefly, and continued on their way.
After walking for another ten li or so, Chen Dayong, who was scouting ahead, ran back.
"Xiaobei Village Chief, there's a river ahead that we can't cross."
Led by Chen Dayong, they soon arrived at the riverbank.
The river wasn't very wide, perhaps three to four zhang across, but the current was swift. It was understandable, as it had rained all night, and the river was now in flood.
They searched upstream and downstream for a stretch but found no traces of human activity.
This meant that even if the river wasn't in flood, there was no bridge.
Looking at the rushing water, Chen Xiaobei felt a sense of awe. He said to Xiao Jingyun, "Your Highness, the current is too strong. We should wait for the water to recede before crossing."
Xiao Jingyun, while not blindly obedient to Chen Xiaobei, certainly trusted him.
Since Chen Xiaobei suggested waiting, he naturally agreed.
Before Xiao Jingyun could speak, Huang Ying suddenly spoke up.
Huang Ying had been almost invisible throughout the journey.
She hardly spoke more than a few words all day.
For a time, Liu Rumei suspected that Huang Ying and Shen Ziyan were just along for the ride.
Huang Ying smiled at Chen Xiaobei and said, "Brother Xiaobei, isn't it just crossing a river? What are we waiting for?"
"Get me some logs, and Ziyan sister and I will handle it."
Chen Xiaobei shook his head repeatedly upon hearing this. "No way, Huang Ying sister. The current is too strong. You can't be reckless."
Ziyan next to her also laughed, "It's fine, it's fine. Listen to Huang Ying. Just get us some logs."
"Then tell me first, how do you two plan to cross the river?" Chen Xiaobei was curious, and it was good to understand the situation to judge whether it was possible to cross.
Huang Ying looked unconcerned. "Just throw the logs into the river. I guarantee we'll reach the other side."
"It's that simple."
This was as good as saying nothing.
But seeing Huang Ying's confident declaration, it didn't seem like a joke. Chen Xiaobei had to summon people to cut several logs from the nearby forest.
At the same time, as arranged by Shen Ziyan, Chen Xiaobei found two thin ropes and had Shen Ziyan and Huang Ying tie them around their waists.
As per Huang Ying's instructions, the logs were only as thick as a person's arm, each about three feet long.
Huang Ying picked up the logs, weighed them, smiled, and looked at Shen Ziyan behind her.
"Sister, keep up."
Shen Ziyan smiled and nodded.
"Don't worry, I never fall behind."
Huang Ying smiled slightly, went to the riverbank, and threw a log into the water.
Immediately after, Huang Ying leaped into the air. Just as her name suggested, she was as agile as a lark.
Huang Ying flew towards the log. Just as she touched it, she lightly tapped it with her toe and then leaped into the air again.
Almost simultaneously, Huang Ying flicked her hand, throwing the second log into the water about ten feet ahead.
Huang Ying traced a graceful arc through the air and landed on the second log.
The moment Huang Ying left the first log, Ziyan also moved. Ziyan's movements were almost identical to Huang Ying's. She also leaped towards the first log.
As Huang Ying landed on the second log, Ziyan landed perfectly on the first. And so on. As Huang Ying landed on the third log, Ziyan landed on the second.
In the blink of an eye, the two had crossed the river, several zhang wide, and stood on the opposite bank.
Watching their spectacular performance, the onlookers were silent for a moment.
Xiao Jingyun was the first to recover and began to applaud and cheer.
"Good."
Then the crowd also came to their senses and cheered loudly.
Liu Rumei watched, dumbfounded.
She considered herself skilled in Qinggong, but compared to these two young women, Liu Rumei had no confidence in winning.
More importantly, Liu Rumei lacked the boldness and courage.
She believed that if given a few logs, she wouldn't dare step into this rushing river.
Even more dumbfounded was Chen Xiaobei. He had never imagined that Huang Ying and Shen Ziyan possessed such peerless martial arts.
On the opposite bank, Huang Ying and Shen Ziyan appeared very calm. They waved to the crowd and then unfastened the ropes, tying them to nearby stones.