While pondering, Charles Reed suddenly frowned, squatted down, and looked at Henry Sullivan's forehead, a look of surprise appearing in his eyes. He noticed that there was only a slight trace of blood on Henry Sullivan's forehead. Reaching out, he quietly checked Henry Sullivan's pulse, then suddenly shouted, "He's still alive!"

Edward Carter had been so grief-stricken that his mind was blank. Hearing Charles Reed's shout, his heart pounded wildly and he hurriedly asked, "What did you say?"

Charles Reed said, "He still has a pulse!" He reached out again and felt Henry Sullivan's chest, immediately saying, "His heart is still beating."

Edward Carter was overjoyed and quickly placed his finger under Henry Sullivan's nose, but felt no breath. He pressed his ear to Henry Sullivan's chest and finally discovered that Henry Sullivan did indeed still have a heartbeat, though it was extremely slow—if one wasn't paying close attention, it would be indistinguishable from death. Edward Carter sprang up, picked up Henry Sullivan, and said, "Chief Reed, I need to take him to a doctor. I'll leave things here to you." Charles Reed said, "But you're seriously injured as well. What if you run into that Maitreya Buddha's men again?"

Edward Carter said angrily, "Those cowardly rats—do they even dare show themselves to me?"

Charles Reed was still uneasy and said, "I'll escort you out of the mountains. We'll talk again once we meet up with your men."

Suddenly, Edward Carter remembered something and asked, "Where are Philip Carter and the others?" Looking at the corpses scattered on the ground, it was hard to tell who was who. Edward Carter thought to himself that these brothers had probably died at Feilong'ao, and his heart was filled with sorrow. But saving Henry Sullivan's life was the most urgent matter now. With this in mind, Edward Carter decided to leave the valley first. However, after taking just a few steps while carrying Henry Sullivan, he felt the world spinning and could barely stand. Charles Reed quickly took Henry Sullivan from him and supported Edward Carter as they staggered out of the valley. After walking several miles, someone shouted, "It's Lord Carter!" A man rushed out—it was Edward Carter's subordinate, Attorney Clark.

Attorney Clark was shocked to see Edward Carter so badly injured and immediately set off a signal flare to summon reinforcements. At this moment, several more imperial guards appeared. Charles Reed briefly explained the situation. Seeing that Edward Carter was too badly hurt to walk, the group quickly arranged for someone to carry Edward Carter, while another took Henry Sullivan from Charles Reed.

Seeing the signal flare, Charles Reed remembered the fireball he had seen earlier and asked, "Did any of you see a fireball streak across the sky just now?"

Attorney Clark nodded and said, "Yes, but we don't know what strange thing it was. None of us dared to leave our posts, so no one went to check it out."

Edward Carter asked in surprise, "What fireball?"

Charles Reed recounted what he had seen. Edward Carter was also puzzled. Seeing that Charles Reed wanted to investigate, he said, "Chief Reed, go take a look. Leave things here to Attorney Clark and the others. Attorney Clark, send a few brothers to Feilong'ao to check on Philip Carter, James Bolton, and Samuel Thompson. If they're alive, that's best. If they're dead, at least give them a proper burial. John Smith, go notify the local authorities and have them deal with the bodies here..." More imperial guards arrived one after another. They had been stationed to block the main road, but none had seen any sign of the Maitreya Buddha or the Heavenly King Duowen. Everyone had seen the fireball and agreed it was a strange sight, but no one could say what it really was.

Edward Carter then ordered several subordinates to search for good doctors in the areas around Baibiling, such as Xiaoyi, Jiexiu, and Lingshi. Once everything was arranged, Charles Reed saw that Edward Carter was now protected by guards and decided to head west into the mountains to investigate. He took his leave. Just before leaving, Charles Reed suddenly remembered something and said, "Lord Carter, when that Maitreya Buddha ordered his two men to attack you, do you know what language he was speaking?"

Edward Carter thought for a moment and said, "I've never heard the language that fiend spoke. Could it be a dialect from some remote area? If we could figure out which dialect it is, it might help us catch the Maitreya Buddha."

Charles Reed had the same thought and shook his head, "It didn't sound like a dialect. I've studied dialects from all over the country, but I've never heard anything like that..." Seeing that Edward Carter was distracted, Charles Reed said, "Alright, I'll continue investigating. Lord Carter, saving Henry Sullivan is the priority." Seeing Edward Carter cover his mouth and cough softly, his hands stained with blood, Charles Reed said, "Lord Carter, take care of yourself as well. Thank you for your help this time—the court really needs people like you."

Edward Carter nodded and sighed, "It's my duty. I never thought I'd drag Henry Sullivan into this. I just hope Henry Sullivan can pull through." He bid farewell to Charles Reed and left Baibiling, where more imperial guards arrived to assist. Attorney Clark somehow found a carriage. Worried about Henry Sullivan, Edward Carter personally carried Henry Sullivan into the carriage. Fearing that the jolting might worsen Henry Sullivan's injuries, he held onto Henry Sullivan the entire way and refused to let go.

Attorney Clark and the others were all secretly puzzled, thinking that Henry Sullivan was just an ordinary commoner—why did Lord Carter care for him so much? But seeing Edward Carter's grave expression, no one dared to ask. They traveled through the night, and by dawn had reached Xiaoyi. Some imperial guards had already arrived ahead of them and brought the best doctors in town.

Xiaoyi was a small county. When the magistrate heard that the Commander of the Palace Guards had arrived, he hurried over to pay his respects. Edward Carter had no mind for socializing; he only watched the doctors, hoping to hear the words "he can be saved." But all the doctors shook their heads and said the same four words: "This man is dead!"