So the three of them followed the passage and went straight ahead, but after a while, they heard the sound of women crying. Ye Ziâan then lit another matchstick, and by the firelight, Yang Chuxia found that this was actually a small room like a big iron cage, filled with darkness and imprisoning dozens of young women.
Yang Chuxia looked ahead and saw that there was still a passage in front. However, she did not chase forward but went up and touched the door of the iron cage. When she touched it, the door that was supposed to be locked moved. She pushed it gently and it opened.
In the dim light of the matchstick, Yang Chuxiaâs eyes stared at the iron cage like a hawk and suddenly shouted,
"Stop crying, all of you come out!" Yang Chuxia roared, "Come out one by one. I am here to rescue you. Once you step out of this room, you will see your relatives again."
Yang Chuxiaâs voice was loud and clear; though it was childish, it carried a convincing power.
The crying crowd inside suddenly became quiet, and curiously looked outside.
"What are you all looking at? Hurry up and get out! Or should I enter and invite you out one by one? Have you all been locked up stupid? Just get out now!"
Yang Chuxia shouted again, but still, no one in the crowd moved. She snatched the newly-lit matchstick from Ye Ziâanâs hand, speechless, and walked to the door of the room, "Iâll count to three. If you donât come out, I will go in and burn whomever I catch! Did you all hear that?"
Yang Chuxiaâs words stopped the rising commotion inside the room, and after a short while, the first young woman walked out, followed by others.
Finally, they saw the cultist hiding in the corner of the room, holding onto a young womanâs throat.
"Hmph, you didnât run far."
"Let me go, or I will strangle her to death!" By this time, Ye Ziâan had already found and lit the original candlestick. In the bright light, Yang Chuxia saw the cultistâs fat face distort, and the girl whose throat was held was also in pain, the kind of pain caused by suffocation.
"You want to strangle her, go ahead and strangle her!" Yang Chuxia kicked the iron cage, "I came here to catch you, not to save people. Meeting these women was just a coincidence. Moreover, would I let you go for someone who is unrelated to me?"
As she spoke, Yang Chuxia had already reloaded the small crossbow and aimed it at the cultist.
"You..." The cultist never expected Yang Chuxia to be completely unaffected by the threat. He knew she was fierce when they met on the beach earlier, but never expected her to be so ruthless.
"Stop talking nonsense, you canât escape. Come out honestly, and you can keep your limbs and facial features. Otherwise, I will shoot your eyes out first."
As she spoke, Yang Chuxia shot an arrow, which missed the cultistâs eyes but hit his arm that was blocking the young woman in front of him.
With a sudden scream, Yang Chuxia seized the opportunity to rush into the cage and pull the young woman away.
"You, you despicable girl, you didnât keep your word..." The cultist originally listened to Yang Chuxiaâs threats and hesitated whether to come out or not, as he was outnumbered, and the others had weapons, so he knew he couldnât escape, especially since she was not intimidated by him.
But he hadnât expected her not to give him a chance to hesitate, as she fired the arrow almost immediately. The cultist hugged his arm, screaming in pain.
"Ha, this is called âusing cunning tactics in warfareâ, understand?" As she spoke, Yang Chuxia aimed another arrow at his leg and hit him, "Hmph, try to run now! Why donât you try to escape? Really stupid, and you thought I would keep my word with a thief like you?"