FID – Chapter 726

Chapter 726: Ready to Fight for Their Lives? 

Hearing Qian Wanjin’s alarmed shout, everyone in the cabin rushed to the window, anxiously looking at the government ships pursuing them from behind.

What they saw made their hearts freeze.

The soldiers on the other side had drawn their bows and were preparing to shoot—and those weren’t ordinary arrows. They were flaming arrows!

A chill ran through the group.

Having failed to capture them after such a long chase, the soldiers had clearly run out of patience and were now ready to kill.

The vast expanse of the Grand Canal stretched endlessly in all directions. If the flaming arrows hit and set their boat on fire, they’d have no choice but to jump into the water.

That would mean certain death!

Even with Wei Lan’s martial prowess on their side, there was no way he could block arrows from multiple ships at once, let alone protect everyone on board.

In that instant, despair clouded each person’s heart.

Pursuers behind them, no escape ahead—they couldn’t even run anymore. How could they possibly rescue Liu Zhixia, who was trapped in prison?

Were they truly about to die here? Was this the end for the Liu family?

“Release the arrows!”

At the command, flaming arrows rained down on them, hurtling toward their ship with deadly intent.

In the cabin, the Liu family huddled tightly together, their eyes coldly fixed in the direction of the approaching attack.

If they were going to die, they would die together—but they would never surrender to those beasts!

Wei Lan and Liu Zhiqiu immediately turned and positioned themselves to guard the windows and the cabin door, trying to prevent any flaming arrows from penetrating and injuring the people inside.

They would hold out for as long as they could.

Just as everyone braced themselves for a desperate, all-or-nothing fight, a ship suddenly sped toward them from behind.

At the same time, several figures leapt off that ship, landing swiftly on their deck and skillfully knocking the incoming flaming arrows out of the air!

The Liu family was utterly stunned. They had no idea where these unexpected rescuers had come from or why they were helping.

Dressed entirely in black, the strangers even had their faces covered.

But in a life-and-death situation like this, there was no time to ask questions. Survival was the only priority.

With reinforcements arriving, a renewed sense of hope surged in everyone’s hearts. Maybe they could still escape this desperate situation. Maybe they still had a chance.

“The court is capturing fugitives! Outsiders, do not interfere, or you will face punishment as well! Stand down immediately!” someone from the pursuing ships shouted as soon as they noticed what was happening.

On the deck of the approaching ship, a cloaked man dressed in black stood with his hands behind his back, silently observing the four government ships speeding toward them.

After a brief moment, he raised his hand and gave a small wave.

At that signal, another group of black-clad figures appeared behind him, each armed with flaming arrows.

In one synchronized motion, they released their arrows, which streaked through the air toward the government ships—mirroring the exact attack the soldiers had launched just moments ago.

Not a single word was spoken.

Yet the murderous intent emanating from them was enough to send chills down anyone’s spine.

When the flaming arrows struck the government ships, flames erupted instantly, spreading rapidly and throwing the soldiers into chaos.

As the fire raged out of control, the soldiers panicked, abandoning their posts and jumping into the water to save themselves. Those who attempted to resist were swiftly taken down by the black-clad figures in a matter of seconds.

The soldiers who had fallen into the water were not spared either.

Amid the surging waves, blood floated and dispersed, staining the water briefly before fading away.

In the blink of an eye, the desperate situation that had driven the Liu family to the brink of death had completely reversed—and in such a strange, abrupt way that it left everyone momentarily stunned and unable to react.

Wei Lan lifted his head, his sharp, wary gaze fixed on the man standing at the bow of the taller ship beside them. He scrutinized the figure, trying to gauge his intentions.

The man, however, paid no attention to Wei Lan’s stare, treating it as if it didn’t exist. With a light leap, he landed gracefully on their deck and walked into the cabin, his eyes falling on the huddled family inside.

Behind the mask that concealed his face, his brow furrowed slightly.

“Get on the ship,” he said flatly, his voice calm and emotionless.

It was Grandpa Liu who recovered first. He gently patted his still-frightened wife to comfort her, then looked around at the rest of the family, silently reassuring them before standing up and addressing the man.

“Thank you, kind Sir, for saving us. However, we are fugitives, as you’ve seen, being hunted by government soldiers. We don’t want to drag you into this. You should leave quickly. We’ll handle the rest ourselves.”

The man’s earlier words had clearly been an invitation for them to board his ship. But if they accepted, they feared it would implicate their rescuers as well.

They didn’t want to bring trouble to innocent people.

The figures were all dressed in black, their faces covered with black cloth. Even though they had saved the Liu family once, the government soldiers wouldn’t be able to recognize them.

They still had a chance to leave now, without being implicated in anything.

Even if the soldiers came after them, they wouldn’t have any clues to follow.

The man turned and walked out. “Take them over there.”

“…” The Liu family members all silently thought that this person must not understand their language.

At the same time, seeing him so forcefully ordering them to board, their gratitude was mixed with growing wariness.

Who were these people? After saving them, why did they insist on having them board their ship? What were their intentions?

Analyzing the situation, it was clear these people weren’t allies of the government soldiers. They had helped them before, but that didn’t mean they were necessarily good people.

Without fully understanding their motives, they couldn’t afford to follow them.

Liu Zhiqiu and Wei Lan stood in front of the elder members of the Liu family, frowning as they watched the black-clad figures approach.

“We don’t want to go. Please don’t force us,” Liu Zhiqiu said.

But the black-clad figures didn’t listen. They quickly closed in on them.

At this point, it was too late to think about fighting back.

On one hand, the skills of these individuals were on par with theirs, and in fact, they seemed to be slightly better than Wei Lan.

On the other hand, given the close distance, if a fight broke out, they would inevitably end up injuring the elder members they were trying to protect.

In the end, the group was hauled onto the ship by the black-clad figures.

“Hey! You’re completely out of line! We told you we weren’t coming, and yet you insist on dragging us over here. What’s your game? Don’t think that just because you helped us once, you can use that favor to manipulate us! If you harm even a single hair on my family, I’ll fight you to the death!” Once they were on the ship and had a moment of freedom, Liu Zhiqiu immediately pointed at the cloaked man and shouted angrily.

The man silently looked at him, then suddenly flicked his finger lightly. Liu Zhiqiu felt something whiz past his head, leaving a cold trail behind it.

“…”

On the deck behind him, a small iron pellet was completely embedded in the wooden planks.

“Brother Zhiqiu!” Seeing this, Liu Muqiu turned pale and immediately ran over to hug him, stepping in front of him with her back arched protectively. She glared angrily at the man standing nearby, her body bristling like a porcupine. “What exactly do you want?”

“Do you want to die?” the man asked, looking at Liu Zhiqiu.

“…You just touched my hair, so I’ll let it go this time.”

The Liu family: “…”

“Waa… waa…” Suddenly, the sound of a baby crying echoed from the ship.

The little bean, who had been quiet and well-behaved before, now started to wail loudly.

His crying made the hearts of the Liu family tighten.

Especially Fu Yuzheng, who hurriedly picked up the baby, took a step back, and warily stared at the cloaked man, afraid that if he became upset, he might throw the baby into the river.

She had a vague feeling that this person was moody and unpredictable. Just from the way he responded to Liu Zhiqiu’s comment, his immediate violent action showed how dangerous he could be.