Chapter 94: Huge Gains, Abundant Wealth
Heihe Village launched a surprise attack, catching the bandits off guard and achieving a great victory. In a single encounter, they shattered the bandits' will to fight.
When the overall situation is already settled.
However, one bandit escaped the net and was not captured by the villagers. Taking advantage of a moment in his escape, he pulled something from his waist and, trembling, prepared to light it.
Li Xian immediately shot an arrow, killing him on the spot.
Picking up the object, they saw it was a "skyrocket," used to transmit signals.
"Uncle Fu, count the number of people and tally the casualties."
Li Xian shouted.
After a moment, Uncle Fu replied:
"Grandpa, only one person in our village was injured, he fell and was injured during the charge."
"Haha, it seems these bandits aren't so formidable after all."
"If you had come sooner, we wouldn't have had to endure this bullying for so long."
The villagers' faces lit up with joy, and the anger that had been suppressed for decades was finally released. They kicked, beat, and cursed the bandit.
"Arrogance leads to defeat."
Li Xian calmly said, "It's not that the bandits are weak, but that Niu Liang is stupid and clumsy. This victory had an element of luck, so we shouldn't be blindly confident."
“You’re right, you’re right.” Uncle Fu was scolded and dared not utter a word of rebuttal.
At this moment, they already regarded Li Xian as a god.
He said it was luck, so it was luck.
"Tell everyone not to sleep tonight and to clean up the battlefield."
"I've already explained the specifics of how to do it."
“Bury the dead, strip the living of their clothes, loot their silver, and make sure they are tied up tightly. Also, bring all the horses into the village.”
Li Xian wandered across the battlefield, taking in the complete chaos. He deliberately raised his Qi when he spoke, ensuring that everyone could hear him clearly.
As for Niu Liang…
This man is extremely fierce; ordinary people probably can't restrain him, and Li Xian will have to deal with him personally.
Several blades were slashed down, and blood splattered everywhere.
Niu Liang groaned as his left leg and right hand were severed. The pain woke him up, then made him faint again.
Li Xian's decisiveness in killing not only intimidated the mountain bandits but also the villagers of Heihe Village.
Despite the blood on his hands, Li Xian remained remarkably calm. Such was the world; if he were to lose, his fate would only be worse.
Moreover, every single one of those who went up the mountain to become bandits was an utterly wicked person, without exception.
Seeing that there were many bandits in the area, Li Xian suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He thought that mountain strongholds were always located in dangerous mountains, and the number of bandits was limited.
There are nearly a hundred bandits here, so the stronghold must be empty. If we take this opportunity to sneak in, we might be able to wipe them out completely.
He immediately led over a horse, mounted it, gave Uncle Fu a few instructions, and then spurred the horse toward the mountain stronghold.
The bandit horse knew the way and drew ever closer to the mountain stronghold. Li Xian looked into the distance and saw that the bandits in the stronghold were sparse, just as he had imagined.
"They call it a knock-off, but it's really nothing more than a bunch of clay chickens and clay dogs."
"In terms of manpower, material resources, and scale, they are far inferior to the Blackwater Gang."
The Great Wu Dynasty was in a period of turmoil, with various forces vying for power and gangs, factions, sects, and schools emerging one after another.
"Shanzhai" (counterfeit) is the weakest.
Nothing else.
The word "shanzhai" (山寨, meaning "counterfeit" or "knock-off") implies a small scale. A few hundred or a thousand people is the limit, and... without any secular industry as a foundation, they can only rely on robbing the people.
The bandits under his command were highly mobile and had little loyalty. If anything went wrong, they would immediately surrender or even defect to the enemy.
This force dared to challenge the Blackwater Gang. The reason for this was the mountainous terrain.
The location of a stronghold must be easy to defend and difficult to attack, with natural barriers as a shield. The Blackwater Gang, which occupies the river for their own use, is far wealthier than Mountain Wind Stronghold, but has never had any intention of annexing Mountain Wind Stronghold.
“The core members of a bandit group are often just a few leaders.”
"The rest of them aren't that skilled in martial arts."
"Even so, we must still be extremely careful."
Outside the village entrance.
Li Xian lay prone in the grass, his ear pressed to the ground, listening to the sounds coming from the village.
The guards in the mountains are few and far between, with many weaknesses, but the real obstacle is the terrain of the mountains.
After observing for half an hour, and clearly seeing the entrances and exits,
Li Xian roused himself, grabbed a handful of snow, and stuffed it into his mouth. The snowflakes melted into icy water, stimulating his mouth and invigorating him.
Because Niu Liang was reckless, he took most of the bandits with him, leaving the stronghold undefended. Although there were sentry posts everywhere, half of them were empty.
I sneaked into the mountains and passed by a few houses.
Inside, the snoring was deafening, rising and falling in waves.
"In terms of sleeping conditions alone, these mountain bandits are not much different from the village servants."
Further in, there are buildings such as the Hall of Brotherhood, the Shepherd's Hall, and the Black Prison.
Because it was located on a mountain, transporting timber and firewood was extremely difficult. As a result, the buildings were low and lacked any aesthetic appeal.
...
Shanfeng Village.
Each of the five heads of the household has their own independent residence, and is served by beautiful maids. The third head of the household resides in the south-facing courtyard.
"Cough cough."
Help me up.
Seeing that it was getting late, Peng Fox became increasingly restless and called out to the maid beside him.
The maid dared not disobey and helped him up.
"Give me paper and a pen!"
Peng Fox finished speaking in one breath, then coughed a few times.
Soon, the maid laid out the paper and handed over the brush. Peng Fox hesitated for a moment, then dipped the brush in ink and began to write.
He had assumed that since his fourth brother had taken action, even though he was reckless by nature, his strength, manpower, and equipment were all there, and that revenge and victory were a matter of course.
Once all those heads have been removed, the matter will be considered closed.
There's no need to let my older brother know, lest I be seen as "incompetent."
But it was already dark. His fourth brother had not returned, and he became uneasy, disregarding everything else. He immediately wrote down everything that had happened on a piece of paper.
They stuffed it into a bamboo tube and sent it by carrier pigeon.
"I hope my fifth brother can arrive soon. Otherwise... the village is now empty, and I am also..." Peng Fox muttered to himself, looking at the carrier pigeon.
Just then...
Li Xian suddenly appeared, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Peng Fox was startled. "You...you have some nerve, coming here already?" His voice trembled.
He knew the other party was bold, but he didn't know they were this bold.
"Fourth brother... is dead?" Peng Fox was exhaling more than inhaling.
"He's not dead, but he'll be soon." Li Xian asked, "What did you just release?"
"Cough cough, it's a pigeon." Peng Fox reached inside his clothes, grasped the small knife hidden close to his skin, and suddenly turned around to stab. Li Xian snatched the blade and stabbed back.
The blade pierced the heart meridian.
Peng Fox fell to the ground, knowing he was doomed. Blood flowed from his wounds, his eyes widened, and he pointed at Li Xian, "Fifth...Fifth Brother, he...he will avenge me!"
Having said that, he breathed his last and died.
"We're too late."
Li Xian gazed in the direction where the carrier pigeon had disappeared.
"Fifth brother?"
"Is that... the Fifth Leader who showed some unusual behavior?"
Li Xian narrowed his eyes slightly.
...
...
The next day, at Chen Shi (7-9 AM).
Li Xian was practicing boxing in the courtyard, his fists swirling with impressive power. When he first reached the peak of the Four Directions Fist style, his punches and retractions exuded the aura of a grandmaster, drawing everyone's attention.
Now, with his skills gradually improving, he is not far from reaching the pinnacle. Li Xianjian can now "control his movements freely," and his punches are powerful yet restrained.
[Proficiency +1]
After finishing a set of four-sided boxing, his body rippled slightly. He was still in high spirits and wanted to practice again, but the guests were already outside the door.
Left with no other choice, Li Xian called out, "Come in."
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com