“Stop them no matter what!” Cai Deng descended like a phantom from the rooftops. For these past two days he'd been pacing outside Wu's manor, his mind consumed by visions of that elusive beauty fleeing through the night. When at last Yun Er emerged - her form clad in battle-armor accentuating every curve, her silhouette a blade slashing through the darkness as she led their escape party - Cai Deng's pulse quickened to near cardiac arrest.

The cruel twist was another goddess among the five fugitives. This second beauty shared uncanny similarities with Yun Er: both possessed statuesque figures and hourglass waists that defied mortal proportions. Yet while Yun Er radiated liquid grace like a moonbeam through willow branches, this new vision exuded crystalline sweetness - an untouched purity wrapped in celestial elegance.

Cai Deng marveled at his own keen eye for such distinctions. Though he'd heard whispers about the third girl - the young apprentice to that miraculous physician - the notion of bedding children held no appeal. What mattered were these two goddesses, ripe with sensuality and perfection. If he could not claim them, he might as well let his soul rot in hell.

He barked orders at his approaching retainers, but Yun Er's strange luminous energy had already carved a path through the human wall. Her martial arts strikes shattered defenses like glass while lethal arrows rained down on the flanking guards. The once-proud retainers scattered like autumn leaves, their panic manifesting in frantic dodges as they feared becoming cannon fodder for their master's twisted desires.

Cai Deng crouched behind a crumbling wall, his mind racing. "To the city gate! Raise the alarm - if those wretches escape beyond the gates I'll report you to the military tribunal!"

A searing white beam screeched past him, singeing hair and filling the air with acrid smoke. Cai Deng screamed as the energy bolt tore through his flank, then erupted in terror when it shattered stone to carve a path right through his chest. He fled like a cornered rat, only to find another lethal arc waiting - this time scorching his posterior so badly he urinated himself in sheer fright.

"Protect me! Someone save me!" His cries were met with cringing silence as retainers calculated risks against rewards. "And capture those two women for our master! If I don't get them, my soul will rot in purgatory!"

The guards, well-versed in their master's depravity, feigned obedience while hedging bets. Those who did lunge forward were swiftly dispatched by arrows and martial strikes.

I growled as another missed shot left me frustrated when Cai Deng's shrill voice pierced the chaos again. Turning to fire a finishing volley at this troublemaker, I found Linglong's bow already drawn. Her usually serene expression had hardened into something feral.

The arrow struck true - not with conventional precision but a mystical trajectory curving downward to impale his nether regions. Cai Deng crumpled in agony as the shaft embedded through his urethra and into testicles, instantly rendering him an eunuch. The medics would puzzle over the arrow's impossible angle for years, never guessing their patient had been mentally preparing himself with vivid fantasies about groping those very same women.

I gave Linglong a thumbs-up while she turned away in embarrassment. Unbeknownst to her, this single act of violence would haunt her for decades as "The Lady Who Made Doubles City's First Eunuch" became an infamous moniker whispered behind closed doors.

With the guards disarmed and Cai Deng incapacitated, I pivoted toward Zhou Ni who suddenly froze mid-stride. Her mind was a war zone, memories colliding like storm clouds - the drought-stricken village with its poisoned fish pond, her father's tragic drowning when thieves turned to murder...

A whispering arrow nearly took her temple before I yanked her back.

"Zhou Ni! What are you thinking? Watch for ambushes!"

Her mind remained trapped in another dimension. "I... can't help but remember him - the man who fell from the sky into that very pond!" Her voice trembled as conflicting emotions warred within. She'd loved this mystery man, yet now his face was a smudge of memory.

Our collision sent us both sprawling with a crash.

"Owww! My chest!" Zhou Ni cried out, her pain sharp where my elbow had crushed against her breast.

"You're being careless," I snapped, adrenaline making me harsher than intended as more retainers closed in. "You'll get us all killed!"

Linglong intercepted the pursuers with a trio of arrows. She grabbed my arm with urgent force. "Sir and Madam! This is not the time for... whatever that was! Zhou Ni, give me your quiver now!"

I helped Zhou Ni up gently. "Are you hurt? Let Yun carry you - her anti-gravity shoes will make it faster."

"No!" she protested weakly, still flustered by my concern.

Yun pulled her away with a firm hand. "Later! We'll talk about this once we're out of the city."

"Who's talking to whom?" Zhou Ni mumbled inaudibly while absently massaging her tender breast - the pain strangely awakening memories of that unknown man who now seemed suspiciously familiar.

Yun knew the back alleys like a second skin. As she led our escape toward the gates, torchlight revealed an ambush waiting with gleaming pikes and bowstrings drawn taut as death's noose.

The first arrow found its mark against Yun Yao's armor just as I vaulted to her side. "Thank you, Da Li," she gasped after I shielded her with my body.

"Haha! You fought bravely back there!" Da Li beamed proudly before Linglong interrupted our moment with grim news about the gate guards' preparedness.

As we regrouped behind cover, Zhou Ni leaned against a wall watching us exchange protectiveness. Her heart twisted - was this man truly just a rescuer from the Federation? The thought of him claiming another woman ignited jealous sparks she quickly smothered in guilt.

Our progress halted when I noticed Linglong's hesitation.

"Give me your shoes," I demanded, an idea striking. "We need aerial cover."

She understood immediately - a last-ditch effort to break through the siege lines before reinforcements arrived. But she was wrong about one thing: even as we argued, chaos erupted behind us.

Two rival factions of retainers collided with ferocious intensity. From atop his pig mount Pigsy bellowed curses at Wu Rong who retaliated by spitting phlegm directly into Cai Hua's face. The feud had escalated to absurdity - now both sides were battling not for our capture but each other, their enmity rooted in political corruption rather than true loyalty.

"Chase them!" barked the injured Cai Hua once he learned of his son's fate. "Those who sever my family line will answer with their lives!"

Meanwhile Pigsy and Wu Rong had abandoned decorum entirely, wrestling on the ground like drunken wrestlers while retainers watched helplessly. It was a farce that would become legend - how two bureaucrats turned into brawlers over matters of power and personal vendetta.

As I watched this ridiculous spectacle unfold, something shifted in my perspective. This Wu Rong - despite our adversarial positions - had risked everything to come after us. Perhaps there were still decent men left in the world... if only we could escape with our lives intact.