My Years in the Jianghu with the Prince: A Time of Unethical Conduct

Chapter 153, Recollection Part 20 - The Cliff Fall Adventure 1

The rain of arrows missed its mark, all striking the ground.

The assassins who witnessed Xie Yan jumping off the cliff looked at each other in shock, as if none of them had expected that this person would give up so decisively.

A moment later, they finally realized what was happening and rushed forward to check on the situation.

But the cliff was too high, and looking down, all you could see was a vast expanse of white mist.

"What should we do? Should we go down and search?"

Someone asked hesitantly.

"What are you searching for? Can't you see how high this valley is? This person fell down, how could he possibly survive?"

"That's not necessarily true. There might be trees or grass at the bottom of the cliff. If Xie Yan is lucky, she might even be able to hang on it."

"Yeah, yeah, what if there happens to be a river down there?"

"...Aren't you all overthinking this? Whether there are trees or a river, falling from such a height will leave you badly injured, if not dead! Besides, he's already seriously injured. I don't believe he's that lucky!"

Immediately, the crowd began to discuss and argue.

Finally, the leader of the assassins spoke up, "Alright, stop arguing. This place is full of towering mountains, and even if we wanted to go down to explore, we would have no way to go."

As he spoke, he picked up the fragments of Xie Yan's longsword. "Let's go back and report."

After saying that, he waved his hand and led everyone away.

The mountain wind kept whistling past my ears.

The feeling of weightlessness from falling made Xie Yan instinctively hold her breath—

"Screw your resignation."

The next second, he opened his eyes and suddenly pulled a dagger from his lower back!

During his fall, he swayed in mid-air, risking the reopening of the wound on his waist and abdomen to change his position.

As Xie Yan changed his posture, in the blink of an eye, he was even closer to the mountain wall.

In a flash, Xie Yan relentlessly plunged the dagger in her hand into the mountain wall, attempting to slow her descent by using the friction between the two.

However, the force of the rapid descent and the weight he brought with him made his arms go numb, and the wounds on his body kept tearing open as he exerted force.

But Xie Yan didn't have a free hand to cover her injured area.

He held a dagger in one hand and reached out the other towards the cliff face, trying desperately to grab onto something.

But the stones embedded in the rock were sharp and hard, and when Xie Yan grabbed them, she could only leave long bloody marks.

Although the speed of the fall has slowed down, it still cannot be stopped.

The dagger, which was not originally intended for this purpose, finally succumbed to the intense friction and broke apart with a crisp sound!

Fortunately, before it broke, Xie Yan had already grabbed a vine that had grown out of a crevice in the mountain wall with her other hand.

The vines grew in the cracks, becoming exceptionally sturdy and thick. Even under such a strong pull, they were only pulled a little away from the mountainside.

Xie Yan's hands gripped the vines tightly, and were scraped raw and bloody as she fell.

Until he finally stopped.

He took a breath, looked up at the sky that was shrouded in mist and could not be seen clearly, and laughed weakly.

"It seems I still have a slight edge."

Although she was still suspended in mid-air, Xie Yan had a chance to catch her breath.

He took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

On this cliff, even breathing requires a great deal of effort.

Xie Yan felt that she had already slid down quite a distance.

But when he looked down, he could only see a vast expanse of white mist, unable to discern any of the overall view of the cliff.

However, what was different was that amidst the howling mountain winds, there was a faint sound of rushing water.

"...It really is the law that every fall off a cliff will eventually lead to a river."

Xie Yan sighed softly, but her grip on the vines did not loosen at all.

Because no one can say for sure how deep the river is, how fast the current is, or whether there are reefs or undercurrents in it.

Furthermore, given his current physical condition, it's uncertain whether he'll have any chance to save himself if he falls.

Xie Yan composed herself.

He gripped the vine tightly with one hand and pressed several acupoints on his body with the other, finally managing to stop the surge of blood.

It seems impossible to climb up; the only option is to go down and see if there is any other way to survive besides the river.

So Xie Yan adjusted her posture and slowly slid down the vine.

And with each step he slid down, the sound of the flowing water became clearer.

But compared to the river below the cliff, what Xie Yan saw first was a platform protruding from the mountainside.

The platform is small, but it is quite rare to find such a place in this cliffside setting.

Half an hour later, Xie Yan used up her last bit of strength and finally jumped onto the platform.

Behind that platform, nestled between the mountain walls, lies a cave.

The entrance to the cave is hidden by weeds and vines on the mountain wall, and it would not be discovered unless you looked carefully.

"……Wow."

Xie Yan sighed in unsurprising agreement.

But instead of going in, he leaned against the platform to rest.

It wasn't until he came to his senses that he belatedly felt the intense pain emanating from all parts of his body.

He took a deep breath, took out some medicine from his pocket, and, enduring the pain, tore open his clothes and sprinkled the powder all over his wound.

As the powder gradually dissolved, the tearing sensation at the wound lessened considerably.

After a short while, Xie Yan opened her eyes again and carefully examined the area around the cave.

He leaned against the platform, reached out and scratched, and surprisingly scraped off some black stains.

Twisting them between her fingertips, Xie Yan recognized them as long-dried bloodstains.

There were many stains like these, large and small, distributed on the platform and at the entrance of the cave.

It's as if someone who was injured once stayed here.

Xie Yan lowered her head and pondered for a moment, then reached out and pulled aside some vines to look inside.

A chilling wind blew through the cave, and a cold aura emanated from its depths.

All I could see was pitch black; I couldn't make out what was inside at all.

Xie Yan frowned slightly, reached into her bosom, and took out a tinderbox.

He lit a tinderbox and waved it around inside the cave, finally getting a clear view of the cave's interior.

Whether the cave was naturally formed or dug by humans is unknown. It is not very big inside, and can only barely accommodate one person.

Looking further inside, one can vaguely see another passage extending into the cave, pitch black inside, its destination unclear.

Scattered in front of the passage are some partially weathered bones and some tattered clothes.

Xie Yan stood on the platform, facing the wind blowing from the cliff and the cave entrance, and felt a chill seep into her heart.