Chapter 45: Erlong Mountain! Black Dragon Stronghold!

"Is that Erlong Mountain?"

Qin Shuo reined in his horse and gazed into the distance.

Only to see that at the end of the horizon, two vast mountain ranges lay coiled upon the earth like giant dragons, majestic and imposing.

"Not bad, that is Erlong Mountain."

A somewhat portly middle-aged man rode up beside Qin Shuo and his two companions, sighing:

"Back then, we were ambushed by bandits in the Yingchou Gorge of Erlong Mountain.

If it weren't for Zhan San'ye covering our retreat, letting us abandon the goods, we brothers might not have made it out of Yingchou Gorge alive."

The middle-aged man was none other than Wang Fugui, the steward in charge of this medicinal herb procurement.

"Wang Guanshi, how many bandits ambushed you last time?" Qin Shuo asked.

"About fifty or sixty, but only the three leaders were formidable; the rest were ordinary men." Wang Fugui replied truthfully.

Qin Shuo heard this and looked up at the sky.

At this time, it was still early; there were at least two hours until sunset.

If they rode at full speed, they had a chance to pass through Erlong Mountain's territory before dark and reach the next resting point.

But before departure, Senior Brother Zhan Bai had repeatedly warned: upon entering Erlong Mountain's territory, one must remain vigilant to avoid bandit ambushes.

So Qin Shuo decided to scout ahead before entering the mountain.

"Qin junior brother, I'll go with you."

Upon learning Qin Shuo intended to scout the path, Song Yan also volunteered to accompany him.

But Qin Shuo firmly refused: "No need. You and Senior Brother Lin stay here to protect Wang Guanshi and the others; I'll go alone and return quickly."

With his strength, if he encountered danger, he could simply use the Burning Blood Secret Technique to escape at extreme speed.

If he brought Song Yan, given her strength, should they truly fall into a bandit's trap, she would only become a burden.

Senior Brother Lin Feng evidently understood this as well, and immediately advised:

"Song junior sister, let Qin junior brother go alone; with his strength, even if he encounters an ambush, he can easily escape."

"But..."

Song Yan still wanted to insist, but Qin Shuo and Lin Feng both disagreed, so she had to relent.

Having persuaded Song Yan, Qin Shuo then said to Wang Fugui: "Wang Guanshi, have your brothers rest here for now; I'll go scout ahead. If there's no danger, we'll proceed into the mountain."

"Good! That would be best!"

Wang Fugui nodded heavily, fully endorsing Qin Shuo's decision to scout.

Back then, they had entered this place unaware of its danger, only to walk straight into an ambush by Erlong Mountain's bandits, nearly losing their lives.

Now returning to this place, he harbored a shadow in his heart toward Erlong Mountain.

Qin Shuo's willingness to risk scouting the path was naturally most welcome to him.

"Qin junior brother, go quickly and return quickly; if you encounter danger, signal with a whistling arrow!" Senior Brother Lin Feng cautioned.

"I understand!"

Qin Shuo nodded, kicked his horse's belly, and charged toward Erlong Mountain ahead.

"Lin Senior Brother, letting Qin junior brother go alone like this—is it really alright?"

Watching Qin Shuo's receding figure as he rode away, Song Yan furrowed her elegant brows slightly, somewhat worried.

"Song junior sister, rest assured; with Qin junior brother's current strength, unless he encounters a Tongmai Realm expert, he is perfectly safe in self-defense." Lin Feng comforted.

Qin Shuo rode without pause, soon charging into Erlong Mountain.

The mountain roads were winding but still relatively flat.

Now deep in autumn, the mountain winds were strong.

Yet on the road, there were ruts left by passing carts, clearly indicating a convoy had just passed through not long ago.

He galloped for about two or three li through the mountains, confirmed no ambushes, and prepared to turn back.

Suddenly, a mountain wind blew, carrying a strong stench of blood.

Qin Shuo's heart tightened; his gaze locked onto the mountain hollow ahead where the bend was, for the bloody smell came from there.

He took down his bow and arrow, rode forward on horseback.

Soon, the scene in the mountain hollow came into view.

A cart lay overturned on the road, its carriage bristling with arrow feathers.

Both draft horses pulling the cart had been shot dead, and corpses lay piled on both sides of the carriage, all male.

Qin Shuo approached and saw that many of the dead were dressed as martial artists, likely the guards escorting the cart.

Crimson blood stained the ground, everywhere emitting a nauseating stench of blood.

This insignificant mountain hollow now resembled a hellish battlefield, bloody and horrifying.

"Eh? There's still someone there!"

After examining each corpse on the road, Qin Shuo keenly noticed another corpse in the mountain gully to the left.

It was a burly man, lying face-up at the moment, eyes wide open as he lay on the ground.

His face was etched with terror and disbelief, as if he had encountered something inconceivable.

A large hole pierced his chest, blood gushing from it, staining the surrounding ground red, as if his chest had been punched through by a bare arm.

"What tremendous strength!"

Gazing at the man who died with eyes unclosed, Qin Shuo couldn't help but frown.

To punch through an opponent's chest with one fist, the killer's strength is not to be underestimated.

He dipped his finger in the blood on the ground; the blood had not yet clotted, indicating he had died not long ago.

Afterwards, he also found some scattered bloodstains in the mountain gully, all leading deeper into the gully, likely left by the bandits as they retreated.

Qin Shuo did not hesitate, following the guidance of the bloodstains all the way.

This mountain gully was very long, extending all the way deep into Erlong Mountain.

The sides of the gully were overgrown with dense weeds and thickets, extremely suitable for concealment.

After walking about two kilometers, the gully finally came to an end.

But by now, Qin Shuo no longer needed to rely on the bloodstains for guidance.

Because upon exiting the gully, a clear path appeared before his eyes, leading straight into the deep mountains.

"This should be the path the bandits often take down the mountain." Qin Shuo guessed.

Due to the dense forest and damp ground in the mountains, he found many disordered footprints on the path.

Following the footprints deeper, he crossed a mountain stream several meters wide, then passed through a dense thicket.

Finally, a crude mountain stronghold came into view.

It was a stockade enclosed by wooden stakes, containing seven or eight wooden huts.

At the main gate of the stronghold hung a wooden plaque, with three large characters written crookedly in charcoal.

——Black Dragon Stronghold

From afar, Qin Shuo heard the shrill cries and wails of women from within the stronghold, mixed with the excited shouts of men, utterly chaotic.

Perhaps because they had just returned from a raid, and it was daytime, so no one was guarding the mountain gate.

Qin Shuo cautiously approached and climbed up the tree nearest to the stronghold.

When he saw the scene inside the stronghold clearly, he felt a surge of qi and blood rushing straight to his crown.

"These beasts!"

Qin Shuo's eyes turned blood-red, and the anger in his heart surged up instantly.

Inside the stronghold.

Dozens of burly men formed a circle, wearing lewd smiles, their eyes fixed unblinkingly on the crowd's center, where a naked little girl was bound to a wooden stake.

"Let me go! Please let me go!"

The little girl struggled violently, her voice trembling with sobs, shrill and desperate.

Her hands and feet were tied to two wooden stakes, her body spread-eagled, her tender form fully exposed to the dozens of bandits.

These bandits, who had long roamed the mountains, had never seen such a fair and delicate body in their daily lives.

At this moment, they all resembled evil wolves, green light flashing in their eyes, constantly scanning back and forth over the girl's clean body.

"My father is Zhao Yusheng of the prefectural city, I am the eldest daughter of the Zhao family. If you let me go, my father will give you much money. Please let me go!" the little girl pleaded in terror.

But her cries did not elicit pity from the bandits; instead, they excited this gang of lustful demons even more.

"So it's the eldest daughter of the Zhao family of the prefectural city! No wonder her skin is so tender and smooth!"

"I've never played with a rich girl in my life; today I finally get to taste freshness!"

"I don't know how this rich girl tastes, whether it's the same as those country women from the mountains and wilds!"

"Hahahaha!"

A gang of bandits laughed wildly, their eyes full of lewd light.

Their attention was entirely focused on the little girl, who resembled a lamb awaiting slaughter, and they failed to notice that someone had already nocked an arrow on the bow in the tree outside the stronghold, aiming at them.

"These beasts, today not one of you shall escape!"

Qin Shuo's eyes boiled with killing intent; he had never felt such a strong urge to kill as now.

That little girl was twelve or thirteen years old, her face still childlike, clearly just a child.

But these inhuman wretches actually wanted to commit atrocities against her—they deserved death!

Just as Qin Shuo prepared to act, two stout middle-aged men walked out from a nearby wooden hut.

The two men were nearly identical in height, build, and appearance, as if carved from the same mold.

"Yuan Family Three Brothers!"

Seeing them, Qin Shuo immediately confirmed that this Black Dragon Stronghold was likely the bandits who had attacked his senior brother Zhan Bai and others earlier.

The two stepped forward from the crowd, their eyes falling on the twelve- or thirteen-year-old girl, likewise flashing with lewd light.

One of them strode forward, ignoring the girl's cries and pleas, used his rough hand to lift her chin, revealing yellow teeth, licked his lips, and said:

"My elder brother said, today this beauty shall be shared among the brothers! Everyone line up, one by one..."

Speaking, he released the girl's chin, reached to untie his belt, intending to disgrace the Zhao family maiden before everyone.

"Beast, die!"

Qin Shuo roared in fury, his iron-fetal bow instantly drawn to a full moon, the specially made iron-skin heavy arrow whistling out, accompanied by the sound of wind and thunder.