Chapter 177: She is as cute as ever

Although Lin Xiaodou was exceptionally skilled at fighting, she was facing a group of vicious and ruthless thugs.

Xiao Jingyao was still worried that something might happen to her.

"Here is what we'll do: you all head back first, and this little Tibetan mastiff will come with us to lead the way to Comrade Lin Xiaodou."

The others nodded, "Alright!"

With professional armed police officers going to rescue her, they felt much more at ease.

Liu Yan'er squatted down to stroke the little Tibetan mastiff's head, instructing it to be a good dog.

"Woof!" The little Tibetan mastiff responded obediently.

It was also worried about its master and was eager to find her immediately.

Guided by the little Tibetan mastiff, the armed police team quickly reached the cliff where the thugs had previously sought shelter from the rain.

A number of corpses lay scattered there. After an inspection, Xiao Jingyao found that most of them had been killed instantly with a single strike from a dagger.

"You two stay behind to deal with the bodies, the rest of us move on!"

Having given his orders, Xiao Jingyao led the remaining men further forward.

After walking for a long time, the group arrived at the place where the pack of wolves had attacked the thugs.

The corpses of both the thugs and the wolves were scattered all over the ground. Covered in blood, the scene was utterly gruesome.

The thugs' bodies were covered in bite marks, while most of the wolves had their skulls smashed open with their brains splattered everywhere.

Some of the armed police officers couldn't help but twitch the corners of their mouths at the sight.

Someone muttered, "Whose strength is this monstrous? To be able to smash a wolf's skull to pieces like that—simply incredible."

A girl's smiling face suddenly flashed through Xiao Jingyao's mind.

His usual icy, stern expression cracked, and the corners of his lips curved upward. "She is indeed formidable."

Ever since the enemy spy incident at the pig farm was resolved, he and Lin Xiaodou hadn't seen much of each other.

Part of the reason was that there were simply too many loose ends regarding the spies to deal with.

The other part was that he felt somewhat guilty toward her, especially given how embarrassing his mother's behavior had been at the time.

By the time he had finished handling all his affairs and figured out what he truly wanted,

he went to the pig farm to look for Lin Xiaodou, only to be told that she had already left for the vast grasslands.

Without a moment's hesitation, Xiao Jingyao applied to his superiors for a transfer to the border defense forces.

However, due to various complicated procedures, he didn't arrive until half a month ago.

Counting it up, they hadn't seen each other in three months.

He had originally planned to look for her once he was settled in here.

Never had he expected that a forest wildfire would bring about an early reunion.

Yet, Lin Xiaodou had not been found yet, and her current situation remained unknown.

***

Thinking of this, Xiao Jingyao felt an even greater sense of urgency.

He quickly left three men behind to clean up the messy aftermath and led the rest onward.

Closely following the little Tibetan mastiff, the group eventually reached an extremely precipitous cliff.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

The little Tibetan mastiff let out a series of urgent and sharp barks toward the perilous river below.

The men couldn't help but look down, but merely a single glance filled them with dread.

The towering cliff, piercing the clouds, stood like a massive natural barrier blocking their vision and path.

Below the cliff lay a bottomless, pitch-black river.

The river water churned and roared, generating a formidable impact that evoked a sense of endless danger and terror.

Seeing the little Tibetan mastiff bark so urgently, someone couldn't help but speak up:

"Captain Xiao, your friend didn't jump into that river, did she?"

"Probably. I'll go down and take a look; you guys check the surrounding area again."

Xiao Jingyao took off his military-green padded coat and prepared to jump down, but was stopped by a simple-looking, honest young soldier:

"Captain Xiao, you don't need to jump. I know this river; it's called Black Sand River.

I grew up around here. Its current flows toward another mountain, and there's a small trail nearby that leads to the opposite bank. They might be over there."

Another tall soldier tapped him on the head. "Why didn't you say so earlier? Captain Xiao was about to jump!"

The honest young soldier rubbed the back of his head. "I stopped him in time, didn't I..."

Xiao Jingyao said, "Alright, stop arguing. Lead the way, let's get across quickly and take a look."

Soon, the honest young soldier led the van, and the group hurried along the winding trail.

Along the way, they traversed a dense forest littered with dead branches, fallen leaves, tangled vines, and weeds.

Next, they pushed through a chaotic patch of shrubs, taking nearly an hour to emerge.

The group marched hastily, not daring to delay for even a moment.

When they finally reached the opposite bank and crossed a marshy wetland, a few people accidentally misstepped and sank in.

The others rushed to rescue them, only for more to fall in one after another.

Xiao Jingyao's gaze tightened as he shouted loudly, "Don't go down there! Use thick tree trunks to pull them up!"

With that, he dashed to the side, snapped off a thick tree trunk, and swiftly pulled one of the men to safety.

The others quickly followed suit.

After more than an hour of heart-pounding rescue efforts, all the soldiers who had fallen into the swamp were pulled out.

Though everyone was unharmed, most had exhausted their energy during the ordeal and could no longer continue the march.

Xiao Jingyao had no choice but to leave two men behind to take care of them, while he took a small group and set off once more.

***

By now, the sky was completely bright.

Perhaps today was simply not their lucky day.

While crossing a small stream, Xiao Jingyao slipped and fell into the water.

As it happened, the current was somewhat swift and rushing rapidly.

The others couldn't grab him in time.

They could only watch helplessly as Xiao Jingyao was swept away by the river.

......

Meanwhile.

Downstream along the riverbank.

Lin Xiaodou and Zhou Qinglang were munching on wild berries to quench their thirst.

Not far away, a dirt-covered figure and a little gray wolf were also holding wild berries and chewing on them.

The wild berries had naturally been tossed to them by Lin Xiaodou.

The two creatures didn't dare approach her, so they followed at a distance. When given food, they would accept it—a clear improvement from before.

Zhou Qinglang glanced in their direction and smiled, "They seem to really like you."

The grimy figure was wrapped in blackened animal skins, looking just like a wild man who had walked straight out of a primeval forest.

His dry, unkempt hair was like a tangled mess, hanging down past his shoulders and back, completely obscuring his face.

Only through the gaps between the strands could one catch a glimpse of his crystal-clear, water-like eyes.

Though the little gray wolf was skin and bones, it possessed a pair of round, expressive eyes.

Both man and wolf kept their eyes fixed firmly on Lin Xiaodou, their gazes filled with a starlight-like yearning.

It was obvious that they desperately wished to draw close to Lin Xiaodou.

Lin Xiaodou had sensed their cautiousness from the very beginning and had keenly perceived their intentions.

Precisely because of this, she had readily agreed to let them tag along.

Hearing Zhou Qinglang's remark, Lin Xiaodou blinked playfully. "Because I've always been very popular."

"Heh..."

Zhou Qinglang's lips curved, releasing a low, captivating chuckle.

This girl was as adorable as ever.