She's skilled in medicine, martial arts, and even understands animal language—the abandoned dau

Chu Zhiyi turned to look at Shen Man: "Man'er, stay close to me and don't leave my side."

Shen Man nodded slightly: "Your Highness, please rest assured, I will be careful."

Just then, shouts of battle suddenly rang out from outside. Chu Zhiyi knew that the assassins had attacked again. He drew his sword and rushed out, with Shen Man close behind.

As soon as Chu Zhiyi and Shen Man stepped out, they saw a group of men in black surging in from all directions like ghosts, completely surrounding the small village.

Zhi Mo led his soldiers in a desperate resistance, but unfortunately, each of those people was a master, and the soldiers had no chance to fight back. They were quickly forced back.

Seeing that the enemy outnumbered him, Chu Zhiyi knew that he had no chance of winning by fighting head-on, so he took out a jade flute from his waist and began to play it quickly.

However, after the music ended, the men in black did not fall.

"Your Highness, bring on any other tricks you have up your sleeve. If you run out, don't blame us for being impolite!" The leader of the men in black said smugly to Chu Zhiyi.

As he spoke, he even pulled a small cotton ball out of his ear, showing that they were already on guard against Chu Zhiyi's Soul-Capturing Flute.

"Who are you?"

"Hahaha, so you're here to send His Highness the Crown Prince on his way? Is His Highness still waiting for reinforcements?" The leader in black clapped his hands twice, and then two men in black brought Fu Kai up.

"General Fu!" Chu Zhiyi was shocked to see Fu Kai bound hand and foot, covered in wounds, and barely breathing. His eyes widened in horror.

Shen Man stood behind Chu Zhiyi, having overheard the man in black's words. Seeing Fu Kai being captured, she felt anxious, knowing that if they didn't find a way to save themselves, they would all die here tonight.

So, disregarding the fact that it was already night and whether there were any animals nearby, she took out the bone flute from around her neck and began to play it.

The group of men in black paused slightly upon hearing the sound of the bone flute, then burst into laughter: "Who's playing that awful thing? It sounds awful. Are you trying to scare us away with this sound?"

"Yeah, this is the worst-sounding instrument I've ever heard. I don't even know what it is!"

Shen Man ignored their mockery and continued to play the bone flute with focused concentration. The sound of the flute seemed particularly eerie and lingering in the night.

As the flute music began, there seemed to be a faint rustling sound in the woods behind the village. At first, it was just a soft rustling sound, as if something was slowly approaching, but it was covered up by the laughter of the men in black, and they did not notice it.

Chu Zhiyi also keenly noticed this unusual situation and sensed that the reinforcements were approaching. He calmly gripped his sword and kept his eyes fixed on the two men in black who were binding Fu Kai, waiting for the right opportunity to rescue him.

Gradually, the rustling sound became clearer and clearer, as if a thousand troops were rushing in. The men in black finally noticed, their laughter stopped abruptly, and a hint of panic appeared on their faces.

"What's going on? There seems to be something strange around here!" the leader shouted, trying to calm his men, but his voice betrayed his nervousness.

Suddenly, a sharp scream shattered the silence of the night sky. Everyone looked up in alarm and saw a group of dark figures rushing past overhead like a black cloud.

Before they could react, the dark figures turned back at incredible speed and swooped down towards them. The leader of the men in black then realized they were a swarm of bats!

These bats are enormous, with wingspans of at least two feet. Their bodies are an eerie deep black, and their eyes gleam with a ghostly red light in the darkness. Their sharp claws, like gleaming daggers, exude a chilling aura in the moonlight.

"Bats, kill all these men in black!" Shen Man's voice was cold and loud, especially eerie in the darkness.

As soon as she finished speaking, a bat swooped down on the leader of the men in black, spreading its huge wings to reveal sharp teeth and emitting a chilling hiss.

The man in black frantically brandished his long knife, trying to drive them away.

But the bat was extremely agile, easily dodging the longsword's attack. It pounced on the man in black's shoulder, gripping his clothes tightly with its claws, and biting at his neck with its sharp teeth.

The leader in black screamed in terror and struggled desperately to shake the bat off.

The other men in black also found themselves in trouble. Several bats entangled one of them, slapping his face with their wings, making it almost impossible for him to open his eyes, while scratching bloody marks on his arms with their claws.

The man in black cried out in pain, and the torch in his hand fell to the ground, the light becoming even dimmer in the chaos.

Another man in black was cornered under a large tree by a swarm of bats. He cowered in fear, using the knife in his hand to protect his head.

The bats kept ramming into his knife, making a loud banging sound, as if they were about to devour him at any moment.

The men in black were thrown into chaos. They had to fend off the bats' attacks while also guarding against Chu Zhiyi and his group's counterattack.

Chu Zhiyi seized the opportunity and shouted, "Kill!" He then led Zhi Mo and the remaining soldiers to charge forward.

Shen Man also put away her bone flute and joined the battle. She was agile and used both fists and feet. She cooperated with Chu Zhiyi and for a time they made the men in black retreat.

Even Xueying wasn't idle; it raised its paw and scratched at the black-clad man closest to it.

Seeing that the situation was not good, the leader in black tried to escape with Fu Kai, but Chu Zhiyi was not about to give up. He fought his way through and chased after the leader in black.

"Put down General Fu!" Chu Zhiyi roared.

After a fierce chase and struggle, Chu Zhiyi finally managed to rescue Fu Kai from the men in black.

The men in black suffered heavy casualties from the bats' attack and the counterattack from Chu Zhiyi and the others. The rest, seeing the situation was not good, scattered and fled.

Chu Zhiyi carried the injured Fu Kai back to Shen Man's side, and asked with concern, "General Fu, how are you?"

Fu Kai weakly opened his eyes and said, "Your Highness, I am incompetent. I was discovered by them not far from where I walked. I have frightened you."

Shen Man quickly took out the last of her wound medicine from her bosom and bandaged Fu Kai's wound, saying, "General Fu, don't speak yet, conserve your strength and rest well."

Although this was the second time Chu Zhiyi had seen Shen Man use the bone flute, he still found it quite amazing.

"Man'er, your bone flute is much better than my jade flute. I owe you so much tonight!"

Actually, unless absolutely necessary, Shen Man didn't want to use the bone flute in front of so many people, because if someone with ulterior motives found out its uses, it would inevitably bring danger to herself and the animals.

Thinking of this, she sighed slightly and said, "This bone flute is not as magical as Your Highness said. Its power is also very limited. It was only by chance that it was able to summon bats today."

While the two were talking, they didn't notice that a pair of eyes were constantly peering at Shen Man from behind them.