An Eight-year-old Princess novel Chapter 205

Horrified and surprised, Yun Shang quickly thought it over. Since both men had met her before, they would recognize her. Moreover, she had overheard their conversation. If she were caught, they would definitely kill her. In the likelihood of a confrontation, she didn't have much confidence to compete against two martial arts masters.

After weighing her options, Yun Shang decided to flee. The Princess darted several silver needles toward her attacker before turning and running in the opposite direction at full speed. The forest was large and covered in poisonous miasma. Not only did the miasma lower visibility, it was now getting very dark. Yun Shang thought she could use these to her advantage and evade her attackers.

As she fled, Yun Shang focused on the sound of footsteps. Her attackers seemed to be closing in on her. Yun Shang gritted her teeth. Her lack of inner power had now become a lethal disadvantage. It would not be long before the two men caught up with her.

Yun Shang had only two options. Either she stayed and fought, or given her poor abilities, she could run till the attackers caught up with her. Regardless of which option she chose, the result would be death. Yun Shang decided to risk her life on a plan. As she ran, Yun Shang reached into her sleeve for a fire starter*. As she passed by a mountain of dead leaves, she grabbed a handful. She quickly lit the leaves and threw them over a pile of withered leaves on the ground.

(*TN: As the story goes, in Ancient China, there used to be a kind of fire starter called Huo Zhe Zi. It's said to be made of flammable substances such as saltpeter, sulfur, rosin, camphor, and various spices. Normally, the fire starter is placed in a bamboo tube. When the tube is opened, the substances will start to burn.)

The burning embers spread quickly and before long, all the leaves had caught fire. As Yun Shang passed by more piles of dead leaves, she continued to set them on fire. As more and more piles of leaves started to burn, the fire grew into a fierce, roaring blaze. It wasn't long before Yun Shang's cheeks burned with the heat from the fires. As the forest was full of withered leaves and dying trees, the fire would soon turn into an inferno, and engulf everything in the forest.

Although Yun Shang felt relieved because her plan was coming along well, she frowned as her attackers seemed to be gaining on her. Yun Shang abruptly turned in another direction. If she remembered correctly, she would be heading toward the pond she had seen when chasing the elk.

"Damn it! Send a signal to gather our people! Our soldiers and weapons are hidden in this mountain. We must stop the fire from burning everything!" Yun Shang smiled when she heard the roar from behind her. It seemed that her plan had taken effect. She even wished that the fire would burn the forest to ashes, along with the soldiers hiding inside it.

However, she heard the voice again. And this time, she shuddered in fear. The voice said, "Ning Ye! Follow her and catch her! You will bring her back to me, dead or alive!" Yun Shang flushed with anxiety at his words. Her triumphant mood was swept away. As she continued to run at full speed, she grit her teeth and reached for the bell. She pulled it from her belt and shook it furiously.

After sending out the signal, she jumped up on a tree, and hid in its thick canopy.

Then she held her breath as she watched the two men pass by. Since she could see them now, she identified them to be Ning Ye and Xia Houjing. As the sound of footsteps faded, Yun Shang finally breathed a sigh of relief. Quickly she jumped onto a nearby tree and prepared to run away.

However, the two men suddenly stopped and turned. Xia Houjing snapped, "Wait! The footsteps have disappeared. The woman must be hiding somewhere. Light a fire! And check each tree around here! I don't think she has fled!" His voice sounded cruel and dangerous.

Paralyzed with fear, Yun Shang remained silent. She held her breath as she waited for them to complete their search. She knew that both men were better than her in martial arts. If she dared to move, they would hear her.

Not long after, she spotted a light coming from the distance. She presumed that they had already lit a torch and were looking for her. Yun Shang silently craned her neck. When she looked back, she saw that the forest was ablaze. Since the forest was full of dead trees and leaves, the fire would spread quickly. She estimated that the fire would reach her in less than a quarter of an hour.

Yun Shang gnashed her teeth. Was she really doomed? Was she going to die here?

The faint light of the fire drew nearer. In the flickering light, Yun Shang saw the men searching every tree thoroughly. They even went so far as to circle the tree to ensure they didn't miss any hiding spots.

Finally, they reached the tree she was hiding in. Yun Shang pressed herself against the tree trunk and stood still. She also held her breath so they wouldn't hear her. When the men were about five feet from her, she took out a handful of silver needles from her sleeve and launched the needles at them.

However, Xia Houjing and Ning Ye had been hit once before. They already knew Yun Shang would attack them with the needles. Prepared for her offense, they swiftly evaded the silver needles. They also took the chance to surround Yun Shang.

Displeased that her attack didn't work, she grit her teeth. Then Yun Shang grabbed her dagger and prepared to stab them when they came closer to her. As she waited, Yun Shang thought about how she had tried to avoid being recognized by running away. Her plan had failed as the men had caught her. Again when she tried to hurt them with her needles, the men had evaded and her plan had failed. At certain risk of being exposed, she had no choice but to kill them.

However, before they could reach her, Yun Shang saw a figure flash by. She felt herself being lifted by the waist. In the next instant, she was being carried away from her attackers.

Before she could understand what was happening, Yun Shang tried stabbing the figure with the dagger in her hand. She stopped her attack when she heard a familiar voice say, "It's me."

The scent of ambergris surrounded Yun Shang. She was stunned as she recognized the smell and the voice. Her uncle, Prince Jing, was back.

Prince Jing placed Yun Shang on the tree before turning and throwing a dagger. The dagger met its mark as the torch held in Ning Ye's hand fell to the ground. Ning Ye stamped out the fire in a hurry. Again, darkness engulfed the forest.

At the chance, Prince Jing jumped toward the men. A fierce fight ensued. In the darkness, Yun Shang could only see three entangled figures, nothing else. They fought so savagely that the still air around the men stirred to life.

Yun Shang's heart jolted at the scene. At that moment, she hated her weak body. She hated the fact that she didn't possess any inner power, and wasn't good at martial arts. She hated herself for being unable to win against a martial arts master in a fight. What good would it do when she could only prevail in a fight with a common man? Her enemies were not common men! In the past, she hadn't thought her weakness would be such a big liability. She thought she could protect herself with other strategies. She was also protected by her people. Yun Shang had been confident that she could survive any danger. But today, the situation in which Yun Shang found herself taught her that she had been wrong. She was rueful.

Suddenly, she was being targeted. Yun Shang snapped back from her thoughts as someone approached her. She realized that one of the two men had disengaged from Prince Jing and was trying to sneak up on her. Not only could she not protect herself, she had now become Prince Jing's weakness. Holding her dagger tightly, Yun Shang decided to approach the attacker.

It was pitch dark in the forest. In the tenebrosity, Yun Shang could only see a shadow heading her way. Her eyes narrowed when the figure changed tactics and began moving away. She changed direction quickly to follow the figure. However, the shadow suddenly came toward her. She felt the air stir as a mighty punch headed for her face. She bent to dodge. Simultaneously she approached her target. Still wielding her weapon, she stabbed the figure with her dagger.

Her greatest skill in martial arts was close combat. Although Yun Shang had no advantage over strength or internal force, if she could get close enough, she still stood a chance to win.

Since she was closer to her attacker, she could see that it was Ning Ye. Ning Ye and Xia Houjing had chased Yun Shang through the forest. As Yun Shang had chosen to run when she was first discovered, Ning Ye had thought she wouldn't fight back. Her only offense had been to dart silver needles at the men, twice. Ning Ye presumed she lacked the skills to fight. He became more convinced of his presumption when Yun Shang didn't dodge when he pounced on her. He was not expecting her to be armed. Suddenly, he saw the dagger in her hand.

Alarmed, Ning Ye tried to evade, but it was too late for him to change position. And even if he could evade, he would be in a passive position. That would leave him at a greater disadvantage. Determined, he braced himself to be stabbed by the dagger. But before Yun Shang could withdraw the dagger, Ning Ye gathered his internal force, and directed it to his hand before clapping her.

Yun Shang had little experience with real combat strategy and didn't expect that Ning Ye would allow himself to be injured by her dagger. Astonished, she lowered her guard for an instant. She hadn't thought that he would take this opportunity to attack her. Surprised and defenseless, she was hit.

As Ning Ye's hand touched Yun Shang, his whole internal force transferred to her. Yun Shang almost screamed as she felt her entire shoulder blade being injured to the point of almost shattering.

After the attack, they both stepped back. Since Ning Ye and Yun Shang had underestimated each other and had been injured in the process, they became much more cautious.

Yun Shang waited for the opportunity to attack him again, but this time, Ning Ye kept his distance. Suddenly, a firework burst in the sky. As the light chased away the darkness, Yun Shang turned her head away from her attacker. Although they were fighting, Ning Ye still didn't know her identity. She was afraid that Ning Ye would be able to see her face. Ning Ye took the chance and attacked her again.

Yun Shang dodged, but was still hit.

Suddenly, Xia Houjing stopped attacking Prince Jing. He grit his teeth before shouting, "Stop! There's an emergency! We need to return to the camp!" Ning Ye gave his opponent one last look before following Xia Houjing back into the dense forest.

When she could finally relax, Yun Shang registered the taste of blood in her mouth. She closed her eyes to resist the impulse to cough. Instead, she breathed deeply and swallowed the blood.