Black Wind Blood Refinement
Black Wind Ridge, deep in a mountain valley.
The terrain was treacherous, accessible only by a steep and rugged narrow path, flanked by sheer cliffs. Within the mountain hollow, nestled against the natural rock face, were dozens of makeshift shacks and a relatively tall wooden house—the bandit leader's residence. The air reeked of cheap alcohol, sweat, blood, and a nauseatingly violent atmosphere.
At this moment, at the narrow pass, two bandits with their hats askew were dozing off against the rocks, looking utterly bored.
One of them hunched his neck as the mountain wind blew.
He muttered, "Damn it, this godforsaken place, the wind's like a knife! Meanwhile, the bosses are inside drinking and playing with women..."
Before the words were even finished!
"Whoosh—!" A sharp whistling sound that seemed to tear through the air!
A simple yet perfectly straight hardwood arrow, with a sharpened tip, pierced the throat of the speaking bandit with incredible speed and precision, like a kiss from the underworld! He didn't even have time to utter a sound before his eyes were filled with ashes and he collapsed limply to the ground!
The other bandit was instantly awakened, terrified, and opened his mouth to scream!
The second arrow had already silently pierced his wide-open mouth!
A cloud of blood and the arrowhead protruding from the back of his head pinned him firmly to the rocky cliff behind him! His corpse continued to twitch!
Two figures trembled as they climbed down from the shadows of the cliff above the sentry post.
It was the two old yamen runners sent by Master Zhou to "guide the way." Their faces were ashen, their hands gripping the rough hunting bows trembled like leaves, and their eyes were filled with boundless fear and awe as they looked at the figure standing like a rock in the wind and snow at the pass.
Ling Zhan didn't even glance at the dead sentry post, his voice cold and hard: "Stay put."
She didn't even draw the machete from her back; she just moved her wrist, her knuckles making a slight popping sound.
With a blur, she shot into the narrow pass like a black lightning bolt! Her speed was so great that the old constable hiding behind the rock only saw a blur before he disappeared into the snowstorm!
"Enemy attack—!!!"
Finally, a sharp-eyed bandit spotted the unusual activity at the checkpoint and the ghostly figure rushing in, and sounded a shrill alarm!
The entire valley erupted in chaos!
In the shacks and wooden houses, the disheveled and sleepy bandits, like wasps whose swarm had been disturbed, rushed out in a chaotic frenzy, grabbing whatever weapons were at hand—machetes, axes, rusty spears, and even stones—and howling!
The bandit leader, Guo Shanfeng, appeared at the door of the wooden house. His muscular upper body was bare, with a hideous scar on his chest. He carried a heavy nine-ringed ghost head knife in his hand, and his eyes were as fierce as a wild beast!
He was stunned when he saw a lone woman daring to break into the village, and then burst into a deafening laugh!
Ha ha ha ha--!
Passing Wind: "Where did this crazy woman come from! Looking for death, she's come to my den?! Men! Seize her! Chop her up and feed her to the dogs!"
Dozens of menacing-looking bandits surged forward like a tide—
Wielding a variety of weapons and accompanied by deafening battle cries, they surged towards the lone Ling Zhan!
That scene was enough to terrify any warrior!
The two old yamen runners hid behind the rocks at the mouth of the valley, only daring to show one eye.
Seeing this, I was so terrified I almost collapsed! It's over! This is practically suicide!
Ling Zhan stopped!
The terrifying killing intent belonging to the Asura Star Goddess of War erupted like a tangible cold wave!
In an instant, it enveloped the entire mountain valley! The bandits at the forefront felt a chilling, bone-deep fear grip their hearts—
His movements involuntarily froze!
In that instant of hesitation!
Ling Zhan's figure had already crashed into the crowd!
She stopped dodging!
Her fighting instinct is the most precise killing program!
A punch! Like a heavy cannon strike!
He punched the leading thug right in the face!
His entire face collapsed instantly, with his nasal bone, teeth, and bone fragments embedded deep inside his skull! Red and white splattered out!
A palm strike! Like a mountain-splitting axe!
He channeled terrifying power into his palm and slammed it down on the shoulder and neck of the other bandit who was holding a knife!
Crack! The collarbone and half of the shoulder blade shattered instantly! The entire arm went limp and hung down!
Elbow! Like a battering sledgehammer!
He turned around and delivered a fierce elbow strike, slamming it into the chest of the bandit who had ambushed him from the side!
With a dull cracking sound, the bandit's sternum shattered, and fragments of his internal organs spurted from his mouth as he flew several meters backward!
Knee! Like a venomous dragon emerging from its cave!
With immense force, his knee struck the groin of the charging bandit!
A sickening cracking sound, accompanied by inhuman screams, echoed through the mountain valley! The bandit curled up like a shrimp, instantly losing his fighting ability!
Her movements were unbelievably fast! Her strength was so great that she could shatter gold and jade!
Each attack was accompanied by the cracking sound of bones breaking and tendons snapping, and the horrific sight of flesh and blood flying everywhere!
She was like a rapidly spinning death top, leaving severed limbs flying everywhere she went, accompanied by endless screams and wails!
When an ordinary wood-chopping knife struck her, it only produced a metallic clang, at most tearing her coarse cloth clothes and leaving shallow white marks!
The physical enhancement of the Asura Star Warriors, transferred to the original body Ling Zhan through mental power, is now fully revealed!
The rusty spear thrust at her, but she grabbed the shaft with her backhand and snapped it as easily as breaking a withered branch. The broken spear then pierced the spearman's eye socket!
"A monster! She's a monster!"
Finally, one of the bandits was terrified by the extremely bloody and cruel killing and let out a desperate cry, turning around and trying to run away!
Ling Zhan flicked his toe, and a fist-sized piece of gravel shot out from the ground like a cannonball!
"puff!"
It embedded itself precisely in the back of the head! The fleeing bandit collapsed to the ground, twitched twice, and then went still!
In less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea!
The narrow mountain hollow was filled with wounded soldiers in various immobile positions, writhing and groaning in agony! Severed limbs, broken bones, fragments of internal organs, and thick blood mixed with mud turned the ground into a scene of carnage!
The intense smell of blood was almost tangible, suffocating!
Actually, Ling Zhan didn't kill anyone; it wasn't her job.
Of the bandits still standing, only Guo Shanfeng at the door of the cabin and his three trusted thugs tightly guarding him remained! The sinister smiles on their faces had vanished, replaced by boundless fear and unbelievable horror! As if they had seen a demon crawling out of hell!
Ling Zhan's icy gaze locked onto Guo Shanfeng: "Bandit leader?"
The veins on Guo Shanfeng's hand, gripping the nine-ringed ghost-head saber, bulged. He felt a chill run down his spine from that gaze, but he forced a roar: "It's me! Guo Shanfeng! Who the hell are you?!"
Ling Zhan's voice was flat, yet carried an overwhelming will to crush everything: "This place is under my control. You are insects."
The mountain wind was completely enraged by the extreme contempt in that look and those words, and fear turned into a final madness!
"Damn it! Attack her together! Kill her!"
He roared, and his nine-ringed ghost-head saber, accompanied by a piercing whistling sound, came crashing down! The attack was powerful and heavy, its angle darting in! Simultaneously, three ruthless bandits pounced from his left, right, and rear, brandishing their knives and axes, sealing off all of Ling Zhan's escape routes! This coordinated attack was clearly the work of a highly trained individual!
Ling Zhan's eyes narrowed slightly as he drew the wood-chopping knife from his back for the first time!
That was just an ordinary, thick-backed wood-chopping knife!
But in her hands, it seemed to transform into a divine weapon!
A flash of light! Like a startled swan, like a bolt of lightning!
No parrying! No blocking! Only the most direct and deadly counterattack!
She slid to the side at an incredible angle, dodging the exquisite slash that came down on her head!
The machete followed the trajectory of his sliding steps, drawing a cold arc from bottom to top!
"Rip—!" Like tearing silk!
Guo Shanfeng felt a chill on his wrist! Looking down, he saw that his right hand, which was holding the knife, along with the heavy nine-ringed ghost-headed sword, had been severed cleanly at the wrist! The severed hand and the sword clattered to the ground! Blood gushed out from the severed wrist like a fountain!
Excruciating pain and fear overwhelmed him instantly! He let out a piercing scream!
Ling Zhan's movements didn't falter! He swung the woodcutter's knife back in a swift motion! The blade flashed like lightning!
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!" Three muffled thuds sounded almost simultaneously!
The three thugs who pounced from the left, right, and back felt a chill on their throats, followed by a gush of warm liquid! They clutched their necks, their eyes wide with disbelief, and collapsed with gasps, blood gushing from between their fingers!
Looking at his three trusted confidants who had died instantly, and then at his own severed wrist that was gushing blood, Guo Shanfeng was overwhelmed by fear and his will was completely destroyed!
He knelt down with a thud, tears streaming down his face!
"Spare me...spare me! Heroine, spare me! I surrender! I surrender! All the money and women stolen from the village are yours! Spare my life! Please!" He kowtowed desperately, his forehead hitting the blood-soaked ground with a loud thud.
Ling Zhan, carrying a blood-dripping woodcutter's knife, walked up to him.
The cold tip of the knife pressed against his blood-stained forehead, Ling Zhan's voice was flat: "Where are the kidnapped people?"
As if grasping at a straw, Guo Shanfeng pointed incoherently to a cave behind the wooden house that was sealed off by thick wooden planks.
"They're...they're inside! They're all alive! They're all alive! Please, heroine, spare us!"
Ling Zhan severed his leg with a single blow, then sheathed his machete, not even glancing at Guo Shanfeng who lay limp on the ground, and headed straight for the cave.
Only then did the two old yamen runners dare to crawl in, trembling.
Seeing the corpses scattered all over the ground and Guo Shanfeng kneeling and begging for mercy, I was so frightened that my legs went weak and I almost collapsed.
Ling Zhan swung his knife, and several flashes of cold light appeared, snapping the thick wooden strips sealing the door in two.
The cave was dark and damp, filled with the smells of excrement and fear. A dozen or so women, dressed in rags, pale and emaciated, with terrified and numb eyes, huddled in a corner. When they saw the cave door open, the blinding light, and the blood-soaked figure holding a knife, they let out suppressed screams and desperately shrank back!
Ling Zhan stood at the cave entrance, not going in, his voice deliberately softened: "The bandit leader has been executed. You are free."
The cave remained deathly silent for a moment.
Then, she burst into a heart-wrenching cry, the result of suppressed emotions reaching their peak!
The ecstasy of surviving the ordeal and the long-suppressed fear and despair were completely released at this moment!
Ling Zhan's gaze swept over the group of pitiful women.
Most of them were ordinary village women, their expressions blank and numb. Only one figure huddled at the very back caught her attention. Although the woman was also disheveled and dressed in tattered clothes, the exposed half of her wrist was slender and fair, and the fabric under her tattered clothes was faintly visible as fine silk. Although her eyes were filled with fear, a trace of reserve remained, unlike that of the other village women.
Ling Zhan walked up to her and squatted down.
The woman forced herself to remain calm, her voice hoarse but clear: "Reporting to my benefactor... I am Su Wan, my father... my father and brother used to run a Suzhou embroidery business in Jiangnan... I learned needlework from a young age... and have some knowledge of embroidery..." Mentioning her father and brother, a deep pain flashed in her eyes, and her voice became even lower, "...now... I have nowhere to go."
Ling Zhan's gaze lingered on her slender fingers, which were covered with tiny scars.
Ling Zhan: "Down the mountain, there are more than twenty people, mostly children, who lack clothes and clothing. Would you like to come with me? I can teach you needlework and mending clothes. You'll have shelter and food to eat." Her words were direct, without pity, only demand and exchange.
Su Wan suddenly looked up!
It's not charity, it's taking her in! It's giving her a "useful" identity, a place to stay!
This is more real than any empty comfort!
She struggled to her feet, bowed deeply to Ling Zhan, tears streaming down her face, her voice choked with sobs yet resolute.
"I, Su Wan, kowtow to thank my benefactor for saving my life! I am willing to stay by your side and do my best to teach you needlework and mending clothes! I am willing to serve you like a dog or a horse to repay your kindness!" She has no home to return to, and her reputation is ruined! Ling Zhan is now her only lifeline and fig leaf!
Ling Zhan nodded and said to the other women still crying in the cave, "The government will provide compensation and resettlement. Live on."
Ling Zhan knew that for these ordinary village women who had also lost their reputation, even if they went down the mountain, they would mostly face the scorn of their clansmen, abandonment by their husbands, or even being drowned. The government's compensation money might be a sliver of hope for them to struggle for survival in this cannibalistic world.
Ling Zhan led Su Wan out of the cave.
The two shaken old constables gave the same explanation.
It was emphasized that a portion of the compensation for stolen goods should be allocated to the abducted women so they could settle down and make a living.
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