The bottom of the cliff was a dense mass of rubble, shrouded in darkness.
The moment Ye Tinglan landed, a powerful aura swept outwards.
Unexpectedly, he had descended himself, and Qi Xuan hurried forward.
"Your Highness."
Those ink-black eyes looked over, so dark there was not a trace of light.
"Have you found her?"
Qi Xuan shook his head.
"The situation at the cliff's base is complex. Your subordinate searched along the southeast direction just now, but still haven't found any trace of the Princess Consort."
By the time he arrived, Feng Yinwan had already fallen.
The situation was unclear, and this section of the cliff connected to a mountain stream, with overgrown weeds all around. Searching would not be an easy task.
Even more terrifying was that in the short time he had been here, he hadn't detected any signs of life. Apart from the wind, there was not the slightest other movement at the bottom of the cliff!
Ye Tinglan's gaze swept the surroundings sharply, a strong sense of unease stirring within him.
Although Qi Xuan hadn't explicitly said it, he could sense the gravity of the situation.
Earlier, as he had descended with his lightness skill, he had noticed many broken branches on the cliff face, indicating the tremendous force of the fall.
If the person had intended to take her with them to their death, how could she have escaped in mid-air?
And after escaping, how could she have survived...
The unease churned wildly in his chest. Ye Tinglan closed his eyes, forcing himself to regain composure.
"Send for more people to search thoroughly. I want her found alive, or even if she's dead... I want her body!"
As the last few words left his lips, his voice trembled slightly.
Qi Xuan dared not disobey, and immediately cupped his hands. "Yes!"
By the time the Cold Armored Iron Cavalry reached the bottom of the cliff, Feng Wuxi had also emerged from the distant mountain stream.
The black-clad men were captured and made to kneel in a circle on the ground. Ye Tinglan glanced at them, his voice as cold as ice.
"What exactly happened tonight?"
He had been gone for only a few hours, yet such a major incident had occurred at the manor.
With the Cold Armored Iron Cavalry guarding, it was impossible for assassins to infiltrate so silently. And that woman was not incompetent; with poison and silver needles in hand, how could she have been easily taken hostage?
Something was wrong.
The chill on Feng Wuxi's face was no less than his.
"The night before you arrived in Jinzhou, Ye Tingyan led people to attack the manor. These are his subordinates."
Ye Tingyan had escaped himself that night, and many of his subordinates were killed. The remaining survivors were locked up in the manor's dark prison.
"Feng Yinwan's identity was exposed that night. This commotion tonight has been planned for a long time. Their target was her and the child she carries!"
In an instant, those ink-black eyes exuded chilling coldness.
Ye Tinglan had already known about the attack on the manor after his arrival, but he hadn't expected Feng Wuxi to have kept survivors.
And those people, like Ye Tingyan, were all crazed mad dogs.
"Your Highness, we found her!"
Qi Xuan's voice suddenly called out from a distance. Ye Tinglan's brow furrowed, and he immediately darted towards the sound.
The first thing they discovered was the body of a black-clad man.
Several vital pressure points on his body were sealed with silver needles, hindering his internal energy and preventing him from using his lightness skill.
Falling from a cliff over a hundred zhang high, his face was already so mangled that it was unrecognizable.
Even so, the tattoo of the Second Prince's manor on his body was undeniable.
Feng Wuxi had not lied. These were indeed Ye Tingyan's men, and the needles piercing them were undoubtedly Feng Yinwan's unique silver needles!
In an instant, his heart felt as if it were being clutched by an invisible hand.
The fingers holding the silver needle turned white with the force.
"Where is she?"
The person who had forced her to jump was dead. Then she...
Qi Xuan opened his mouth, about to say that their men were already searching along the blood trail, when from beneath a pile of rubble, a guard's voice rang out.
"Your Highness!"
The dense forest above blocked the light, making the darkness below impossible to see. The figure in black descended in an instant.
The moment he landed, the thick, almost nauseating smell of rust filled his nostrils.
As the guard handed over a torch, the surroundings were illuminated.
Blood.
The ground was dark, covered in bloodstains.
A crimson dress was caught between the rock wall, almost completely stained with blood.
Tonight, Feng Yinwan had been wearing this very dress!
It felt like a heavy blow, striking him head-on. Ye Tinglan's vision swam, and he felt somewhat unable to cope.
The scene was all too clear.
The guards nearby were awaiting orders. Seeing the usually stern god of slaughter on the battlefield now with vacant eyes and a wavering stance, they all froze.
The Prince had always been cold and indifferent towards women. The Princess Consort... was she this important to him?
The torch trembled. Qi Xuan and Feng Wuxi descended one after another.
Upon seeing the scene, both their expressions changed.
This body had fallen onto the rubble, and its condition was clearly much worse than that of the black-clad man.
If not for the crimson dress she wore, they would have hardly dared to recognize her...
"Your Highness!"
He spoke urgently, only to be met by those ink-black eyes, now bloodshot.
Ye Tinglan's tightly clenched fists suddenly loosened. He bent down and scooped her up directly.
Gasps of shock erupted around them. The only words that reached his ears were four chilling ones.
"Find a military doctor."