So the two men, "Iron Head Jiao" and "Yangzi Crocodile", abandoned their boats, took off their outer clothes, dived into the water, and swam towards the black-sailed boat. The two boatmen on the boat were also pirates on the Yangtze River. Seeing that the two men, "Iron Head Jiao" and "Yangzi Crocodile", had abandoned their fishing boats when there was no wind or waves, they thought that there must be something fishy about the two men. When the two men swam closer, they used their bamboo poles to hit, poke, and row at both sides of the boat, trying to prevent their opponents from getting close to them.
This move was originally very effective, but both "Iron Head Dragon" and "Yangzi Crocodile" had been taught by Yuchi Lianghong, and their skills were already at the level of second-rate masters in the martial arts world. They seized the bamboo pole that was paddling in the water, and with just the strength of their hands and arms, they pulled the boatman holding the bamboo pole into the water.
Without the bamboo poles, the two boatmen were left without weapons. Before entering the water, the two Iron-Headed Dragons had hidden daggers beside them. After several rounds of fighting with their opponents in the turbulent water, they took out their daggers and killed the two men in the Yangtze River.
Without a boatman, this black-sailed boat was like an orphan with no one to rely on, drifting alone in the center of the Yangtze River.
Although Qiu Yizhi did not see the situation outside the boat with his own eyes, he was smart and witty enough to guess most of what was going on. So he shouted tentatively at the top of his voice, "Is it the 'Iron Head Dragon' or the 'Yangtze Alligator' outside?"
His voice floated in the river wind for a while, and then a reply came: "Sir, it is us. The two boatmen have been killed by us. Are you okay, sir?"
Qiu Yizhi felt relieved after hearing this, knowing that although she was still being held hostage by the woman with great martial arts skills, she was now in control of the entire ship. So Qiu Yizhi shouted again, "Good! You did a great job! Tow the ship back now!"
As soon as he heard the "Iron-Headed Dragon" outside respond, Qiu Yizi felt that the whole boat turned around and began to move slowly forward.
Just now, Wen Honghui wanted to kidnap Qiu Yizi and take him to Jiangbei, but Qiu Yizi of course could not agree; now Qiu Yizi has the upper hand and wants to tow the boat back to the shore, so Wen Honghui naturally cannot let him do as he wishes.
So Wen Honghui ordered: "Aunt, we can't let these two turtles ruin my plan, kill them quickly!"
The old woman rolled her eyes, thought for a moment, and said, "Although these two turtles are difficult to deal with, they are good swimmers. Without them, our ship may not be able to cross the Yangtze River. I see that they all obey the orders of the young master on the ship. Why not let the young master give the order and ask them to take us across the river?"
Without waiting for Wen Honghui's consent, the old woman suddenly jumped into the tent and stood beside Qiu Yizi in the blink of an eye. She put a sharp weapon on Qiu Yizi's neck and said coldly: "Sir, I see that you are also a great man, and I don't want to kill you like this. How about we do each other a favor?"
Qiu Yizi heard her words politely, but her tone was full of murderous intent. He lowered his head and saw that the weapon on his neck was pitch black. It was the Western Region sword he was used to using. He shuddered immediately, and with difficulty calmed down, and said, "Okay. I promise you!"
"Great!" the old woman said as she dragged Qiu Yizhi out of the boat like a lamb, pointing at the two looming figures in the water and said, "Then please give the order quickly, young master!"
Qiu Yizhi was about to speak when she saw Yuchi Jiming lying straight on the deck, his limbs stiff and unable to move, but his eyes were still moving. She asked with concern, "Jiming, are you okay?"
Yuchi Jiming opened his mouth and said, "Uncle, this woman is the elder of my Yuchi family. I am useless and cannot beat her. She pressed the artery on my neck, and my meridians are blocked. I can't fight for a while!"
After hearing this, Qiu Yizhi realized that although Yuchi Jiming was in a miserable state, his life was not in danger. Instead, he felt relieved and comforted him. Then he said to the woman, "Since this senior is a member of Yuchi's family, why would he go against us?"
The woman laughed grimly and gently touched Qiu Yizhi's neck with the sharp blade in her hand, letting him feel the taste of death. Then she said, "Stop talking nonsense and quickly order your two men in the river to drive the boat to the north of the river!"
Qiu Yizi was afraid that the sharp blade on his neck would cut his throat and blood vessels, so he didn't dare to lower his head too much. But out of the corner of his eye, he saw a big round, bald head sticking out from the muddy river water. He knew that this person was indeed the "Iron Head Dragon", so he bravely shouted at him: "Hey, 'Iron Head Dragon', quickly drag the boat to the south bank, and don't have any other ideas. I will die if I fall into their hands. If they kill me now, don't hesitate, sink this broken boat with your head, and let them all be buried with me!"
After hearing this, the "Iron-Headed Dragon" turned around and looked at Qiu Yizi for a long while. Then it came to its senses, said "yeah" and dived into the water again. Grabbing a piece of wood from the bottom of the boat, it swam faster to the south.
The old woman was furious when she saw this scene. She stretched out her left hand and slapped Qiu Yizi hard in the face.
The old woman was very skilled in martial arts, and she didn't care how hard she hit him in her rage. She slapped Qiu Yizi so hard that he saw stars. He immediately staggered two steps towards the side of the boat, and by chance he tripped over the dead body of Yuchi Jiming, and fell headfirst into the Yangtze River while he was unconscious.
Qiu Yizi couldn't swim. After drinking a few mouthfuls of the turbid water from the Yangtze River, he immediately sank to the bottom of the river like a weight and was about to become food for the crabs at the bottom of the river.
Seeing this, the "Yangtze Alligator" who was pushing the boat behind the sloop took a deep breath and rushed down with all his strength towards the direction where Qiu Yi was sinking.
This "Yangtze Alligator" lived up to his nickname. Although he looked big and strong, he was very agile in the water. After a short while, he lifted Qiu Yizi out of the water and carried her on his back. His spine kept shaking, causing Qiu Yizi to spit out the water he had drunk.
Qiu Yizhi had escaped death, and after a few chills in the cold water, her mind became much clearer. She lay on the back of the "Yangtze Alligator" and looked at Yuchi Jiming lying on the black-sailed boat. She then looked up at the Yanziji Wharf which was getting closer and closer, and decisively ordered: "Swim faster and get the boat ashore. There are people over there to meet you!"
At this time, Wen Honghui from the Tianzun Sect also came out from the boat awning. Seeing that Qiu Yizi had actually escaped from the boat, he was so angry that his eyes almost spit fire.
The woman in black hurriedly said, "It's all my fault that I got so angry that I knocked the little thief off the boat. The young master nodded, and I used my hidden weapon to beat the little thief into a hornet's nest!"
The assassin Wen Honghui has regained his sanity and thought: Several people on my boat are not good at swimming. If I kill Qiu Yizi now, there is no guarantee that his two subordinates will not capsize the whole boat in anger, and I will be buried at the bottom of the river.
So he thought for a while and said, "It's not a rush. Let's go back. We have people to pick us up. Are you still afraid of him?" What he said was exactly the same as Qiu Yizi.
The Yangtze Alligator was carrying Qiu Yizhi, a landlubber, and could no longer push the boat. Therefore, even though the Iron-Headed Dragon was very strong and skilled in the water, it took a lot of effort to get the large black-sailed boat to the Yanziji Pier. The Iron-Headed Dragon was so tired that he had to roll and crawl to the shore, but he was no longer able to stand up. He had to kneel on a large stone with his hands, panting.
Qiu Yizi lay on the back of the "Yangtze Alligator" and followed closely onto the Yanziji Wharf. Before he could say anything, he saw a group of people and horses galloping on the street in front of the wharf. Looking closely, he saw that the leader was his most trusted general Zhao Chengxiao, and behind him were a dozen of his own cavalry guards.
Qiu Yizhi felt more relieved. As soon as he relaxed a little, he couldn't help feeling a little dizzy. He shook his head vigorously, and when he calmed down, he saw Zhao Chengxiao was already beside him. He forced a smile and said, "It's rare for me to become a drowned chicken. I'm sorry to make Brother Zhao laugh at me."
Zhao Chengxiao, however, looked serious and replied, "I'm glad you're okay. I'm here to take you back on Mr. Lin's orders!"
After saying that, Zhao Chengxiao, without waiting for Qiu Yizi's consent, ordered his two brothers to help the exhausted Qiu Yizi up and retreat towards Jinling City.
At this moment, Qiu Yizi suddenly remembered that Yuchi Jiming and Wen Lingjiao were still on the ship of Tianzun Sect Leader Wen Honghui, and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Yuchi Jiming and Miss Wen haven't been rescued yet!"
Zhao Chengxiao was also shocked, thinking: Wen Lingjiao is fine, but with Yuchi Jiming's martial arts, how could he fall into someone else's hands so easily? However, now is not the time to delve into the details of what happened, Zhao Chengxiao hurriedly asked: "Where is she? I'll send someone to rescue her!"
Qiu Yizi turned halfway to look at the black-sailed boat and saw that Wen Honghui had already got off the boat. There were more than a hundred people gathered around him. The tallest and largest person among them, who looked like a black tower, was recognized by Qiu Yizi. It was the "Bronze-eyed Arhat" who had been a grudge against him a month ago. As expected, he had joined the Tianzun Sect, and the mystery of the "big man" he mentioned in the Garden Tower at that time was naturally solved.
Qiu Yizhi saw from afar that these people were of different ages, dressed differently, and had strange looks. They were all martial artists. Most of them held swords, sticks, and other weapons in their hands. Even if they were ordinary mediocre martial artists, they could fight ten of them at once.
Looking at these hundreds of heroes who suddenly appeared, Qiu Yizhi finally remembered what Wen Honghui had said on the boat just now, "We have someone to pick us up." But with this group of people guarding them, even if Yuchi Jiming or even Yuchi Lianghong were by their side, they might not be able to escape unscathed, let alone rescue two women from the crowd.
Qiu Yizhi hesitated for a moment, but Wen Honghui waved his hand and ordered, "Catch that little thief over there. Whoever catches him will be the first meritorious service of the day, and I will reward him handsomely!" As he spoke, he took out a piece of gold as big as a steamed bun from the awning and held it in his hand, "Whoever catches that little thief will be rewarded ten pieces of gold like this!"
Most of these martial arts heroes were greedy for money, and when they saw Wen Honghui clearly marked the price, they were immediately aroused to murder him. Seven or eight martial arts masters with extraordinary martial arts skills had already leaped towards Qiu Yizi.
Qiu Yizi was only ten steps away from Wen Honghui's black-sailed boat. He heard his words clearly. Seeing several martial arts masters rushing towards him like tigers pouncing on their prey, he subconsciously wanted to draw out the Western Region sword to defend himself. However, when he touched his waist, he only touched an empty scabbard. Then he remembered that the sword that saved his life several times had fallen into the hands of others. Now he was truly unarmed! (To be continued)