The troops received the order, unfastened their cloaks, and turned them inside out. The standard black cloaks of the Black Armored Army instantly turned white.
With hoods pulled over their heads, the nearly forty-strong team vanished on the snowy mountain.
The group climbed the ridge, clinging to the ground. They had merely intended to avoid powerful enemies and attend to their own affairs. Little did they know, upon reaching the ridge, the scene in the mountain hollow ignited their rage.
"Princess Consort, it's Li Yang!"
Li Su's hands dug fiercely into the ice and snow, her voice hoarse as if it would tear apart.
Lu Qingwan pressed her down, "I see it. Inform the other brothers, we act together."
Having spoken, Lu Qingwan produced two silver spheres, struck them together, and then threw them towards the ridge.
In an instant, white smoke billowed from the ridge, obstructing the archers' vision and stimulating their senses, causing them to weep uncontrollably.
"Enemy attack, prepare defense, enemy attack..."
Amidst urgent and sharp shouts, Lu Qingwan and the secret guards rushed forward.
A swift and decisive reaping ensued. By the time the smoke dissipated, few archers remained on the ridge, leaving behind only a pile of strangely shaped corpses.
In the extreme cold, the bodies didn't bleed much before freezing on the ridge after they fell.
Lu Qingwan dared not imagine how Feng Xiwu and his fifty thousand Black Armored Army, along with the eighty thousand Northern Army cavalry he was willing to be trapped to protect, had survived.
Sliding down the ridge, she encountered a Black Armored Army soldier.
The man seemed to recognize Lu Qingwan but couldn't believe she would appear there. He rubbed his eyes exaggeratedly before saying disbelievingly, "Pr-Princess Consort, am I seeing things correctly?"
"You're not mistaken, it's me."
Lu Qingwan grabbed the young soldier's hand to take his pulse, asking, "Why are there only a few of you? Where are the others? The Prince, the strategist, and those soldiers..."
"The strategist, along with the brothers from the Four Camps of Fenglin Huoshan and the Northern Army cavalry, have descended the mountain. The Prince is buried under the snow mountain. Captain Shen is leading the brothers of the Sky Camp in a search..."
Lu Qingwan's pupils contracted, "The Prince is buried under the snow mountain? When did this happen?"
"It's been about three days."
The reply came from Li Yang, who limped, his leg injured. "When we were first sealed in the mountains, we weren't all together; we stumbled upon each other while finding our way out. I met Shen Qingzhou yesterday. I heard that Cheng Jiuxiao's men have been leading the Marquis's remains in circles in the mountains. The Prince, in order to retrieve the Marquis's remains, was lured to a mountain hollow. The enemy deliberately triggered an avalanche. Both the Prince and the Marquis's remains were buried. Shen Qingzhou and the brothers of the Sky Camp are digging."
Li Yang's expression was somewhat vacant. "It's been three days. If they don't find him soon, the Prince might..."
Before he could finish, a hawk's cry was heard, and then the figure of a white eagle appeared.
Lu Qingwan exclaimed excitedly, "It's Xia Qiong! Da Bai found the Prince and sent it to report!"
"Quick, follow it!"
Everyone swallowed their various concerns, making finding Feng Xiwu their top priority.
However, Li Yang had too many wounded. Lu Qingwan gritted her teeth and made a bold decision.
She said to those beside her, "Take the injured brothers with you, find a safe place. I will distribute food and provide treatment."
Hearing that Lu Qingwan intended to bring the wounded, Li Su and Li Yang were not surprised. They were, however, astonished by what followed. "Princess Consort, we only brought our own rations. I fear they won't be enough for so many injured."
"Less talk. Once we find the Prince, I'll make arrangements."
Lu Qingwan said this, then went to an injured soldier and said, "Let's go!"
The injured soldier was so startled he wanted to run. "Princess Consort, no! I am merely a foot soldier, how can I possibly trouble the Princess Consort to support me..."
In his struggling, his already scabbed wound began to bleed again. Lu Qingwan said coldly, "Be quiet. If you want me to worry less, cooperate."
The young soldier was frightened into silence. Afterward, the other Black Armored Army soldiers also cooperated immensely.
Leading a group of wounded soldiers, they surprisingly found Shen Qingzhou and his group in the hollow next to theirs without much delay.
To Lu Qingwan's surprise, Shen Qingzhou and his Sky Camp soldiers, who had been trapped in the snow mountain for nearly a month, did not appear too disheveled.
Seeing Lu Qingwan, Shen Qingzhou, though surprised, was not astonished. He even had the mood to greet Lu Qingwan in such a place. Lu Qingwan frowned, "What time is it? Still practicing such empty courtesies?"
Lu Qingwan walked straight over, plopped down on the snow, and said, "Let the brothers rest for a while, replenish their energy, and then dig in the direction indicated by Da Bai."
After speaking, Lu Qingwan, under everyone's gaze, took out a pile of dry rations and water and called to Li Su, "Distribute them to everyone. Eat them quickly, or they'll freeze and be inedible."
"Princess Consort?"
Li Su looked at the dry rations and water in surprise. "Where did so much food come from?"
"Eat your share, why are you asking so many questions!"
Lu Qingwan casually produced several large bottles of glucose. "This stuff tastes really bad, but it can replenish energy. Drink as much as you can."
Saying this, she sat in place and produced another pile of medicines and bandages. "Those with injuries, speak up. I will treat your wounds."
The soldiers of the Sky Camp and the secret guards looked at Lu Qingwan with changed eyes.
Anyone with a brain knew that Lu Qingwan's small bundle on her back couldn't possibly hold so many things.
Lu Qingwan, holding bandages and medicine, raised an eyebrow at the crowd. "What, are you afraid this monster will suck your blood?"
"If the Princess Consort is a monster, this subordinate is willing to serve as your food."
Li Yang stepped forward voluntarily. "This subordinate is incompetent and failed to find the Prince, yet I've burdened the Princess Consort to treat my injuries. Princess Consort, please bear with me. Afterward, I will go to the dark hall to receive my punishment."
Lu Qingwan, without changing her expression, began to treat Li Yang's injuries.
Gradually, the injured among the secret guards brought by Li Yang, as well as those from Lu Qingwan's own secret guards, also came forward.
After treating a few people, Lu Qingwan would take out some dry rations with a strange taste and texture, and unpleasant medicinal water for the Sky Camp soldiers to drink.
Gradually, everyone realized that the items Lu Qingwan had produced must have been obtained in exchange for saving lives.
When Lu Qingwan finished treating the last soldier's wound and produced another batch of dry rations and wine, Shen Qingzhou suddenly knelt on one knee and said, "Please, Princess Consort, grant us medicine."
Before Lu Qingwan could react, the Black Armored Army soldiers behind Shen Qingzhou and Li Yang, and the other secret guards, said in unison, "Please, Princess Consort, grant us medicine."
As they were on the snow mountain, their voices were not loud.
Lu Qingwan was taken aback. "The injuries have all been treated, what other medicine do you need?"
Seeing this, Duan Yue reminded her, "Princess Consort, they mean, you give them a pill similar to the kind used to control the dead soldiers of noble families. To ensure these people do not leak your secrets and thus harm you."