Chapter 208 - 106: Fight Your Way Back

He rubbed his numb right arm, his icy gaze sweeping over his cheering subordinates and frightening them into immediate silence.

The nearby bearded man and several other chieftains at the Hidden Strength level saw it all clearly, their expressions complicated.

The last exchange had appeared to be a draw. Li Qianxiong had retreated a few steps while Yang Jing was seemingly sent flying. But anyone with a discerning eye could tell that Yang Jing had deliberately used the force of the impact to disengage. Not only was he completely unharmed, but he had also successfully broken through their encirclement. He had clearly seized the initiative and gained the upper hand!

"Boss..."

The burly, bearded man opened his mouth to say something but was coldly cut off by Li Qianxiong. "After him! Go! Even if you have to leave no stone unturned, you will find that brat and the Liu he took!"

How could he tolerate such humiliation?

A hostage had been rescued right under his nose, on his own turf. The kid had taken his palm strike head-on and used his own power to escape the stronghold. If word of this got out, how could he, Li Qianxiong, ever show his face in Yuhe County again?

...

「Outside the stockade, deep within the forest.」

Li Tieyun was telling his three subordinates in a low voice, "Let’s retreat. The Flying Horse Thieves’ lair is heavily guarded. Just the known Hidden Strength masters alone number five or six. Charging in would be suicide."

He gazed at the nearby stockade, which was enclosed by a wooden palisade, his brows tightly furrowed.

This time, he had received a deposit of five thousand taels of silver from Hall Master Liu Zhiyi of the Liu Family Medical Hall. After seeing the ransom attempt at Black Wind Valley fail, he had tailed the Flying Horse Thieves all the way here. He had originally wanted to find an opportunity to fish in troubled waters and rescue Liu Maolin, but after witnessing the Flying Horse Thieves’ forces firsthand, he realized just how difficult this job was.

"We’ll go back and tell Hall Master Liu about this lair of the Flying Horse Thieves in the Yunshan Mountains. That will count as us having done our best," Li Tieyun sighed, his tone filled with helplessness. "It’s just... I’m afraid things look bleak for the Liu Family. Even if we tell Hall Master Liu the location, he has no way of dealing with the Flying Horse Thieves."

One hundred thousand taels of silver had emptied the Liu Family’s coffers. Their ruin was imminent.

As for reporting to the authorities? Li Tieyun sneered. In this day and age, the authorities in many places could barely secure their own county seats. Yuhe County was a bit better, but all their energy was focused on defending against foreign armies and internal rebels. What energy would they have to manage bandits in this lawless region?

Perhaps the reason the Flying Horse Thieves had been able to run rampant for so long was that they had official backing.

Getting the authorities to exterminate the Flying Horse Thieves was nearly impossible.

Shaking his head, he was about to turn and lead his men away when the lean man behind him suddenly whispered, "Gang Leader, listen!"

Li Tieyun paused, concentrating his hearing.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted from within the Flying Horse Thieves’ stockade, faintly mixed with the clash of weapons and screams, shattering the previous silence.

"What’s going on?" another subordinate asked, alarmed and uncertain. "Could the Flying Horse Thieves be fighting amongst themselves?"

Li Tieyun raised a hand to silence them, then stealthily moved behind a large tree and peered through a gap in the wooden palisade.

He saw that the inside of the stockade had descended into chaos. The bandits who had been surrounding the silver carts were now fleeing in all directions, while a young man, carrying someone on his back, was rampaging through the camp.

The young man’s Body Technique was astonishingly fast, like a phantom. Any bandit who stood in his way was either sent flying by his punch or kicked to the ground. In just a few moments, he had broken through two human walls, leaving more than ten bodies on the ground.

Li Tieyun and his three subordinates stared, dumbfounded.

"G-Gang Leader, who is that?" the stocky man stammered, swallowing hard, his voice trembling. "He dared to charge into the Flying Horse Thieves’ lair alone? And he’s so ruthless?"

Li Tieyun didn’t answer, his eyes glued to the young man’s figure.

He could see clearly that there seemed to be another person slumped on the man’s back.

"Could he also be here to rescue someone from the Flying Horse Thieves?" Li Tieyun said suddenly, his eyes lighting up. "Hold on, let’s not retreat yet. Let’s watch a bit longer. Maybe... we can take advantage of this."

He had always valued his reputation in the Jianghu above all else. Taking a deposit but failing to complete the job—if word got out, the River Gang would lose all face.

Now that an expert had suddenly appeared and stirred things up, this might truly be the chance to rescue Liu Maolin.

With the Flying Horse Thieves drawn away by this expert, the stockade would surely be left unguarded. If Liu Maolin was still alive, there might be a chance to rescue him from within.

Just then, the situation inside the stockade grew even more intense.

The young expert fought his way to the edge of the palisade, with Li Qianxiong, the leader of the Flying Horse Thieves, and his men in hot pursuit. The two of them exchanged a blow right at the palisade—a head-on collision. The muffled thud of their fist and palm meeting could be heard even from a great distance.

Then, a shocking scene unfolded.

Using the force from the collision, the young expert leaped into the air. Like a great bird, he soared over the nearly twenty-foot-high palisade and landed steadily in the forest outside.

"What an incredible Body Technique!" Li Tieyun couldn’t help but murmur in praise, his eyes filled with amazement.

He had seen that exchange of fist and palm clearly.

’Li Qianxiong’s Mountain-Splitting Palm is incredibly fierce, yet that man managed to take it head-on and even use the recoil to escape. His level of strength... he’s likely a cut above me! What’s even more remarkable is that he looks to be just over twenty. To possess such a high level of Cultivation at that age... only the word "genius" can describe him.’

"He has someone on his back!" the lean man whispered. "It looks like... he really did rescue someone and break out!"

Li Tieyun nodded, feeling a mix of admiration and shame.

The four of them had hesitated for ages, not daring to make a move. Yet this young man had charged into the lair single-handedly and actually managed to save someone.

Such courage and strength were truly admirable.

"Who could that young man be?" the stocky man asked curiously. "Since when did Yuhe County have a character like that?"

Li Tieyun shook his head, unable to figure it out either.

Although he found the young man’s strength and Body Technique to be superb, he didn’t connect him with Liu Maolin. After all, the Flying Horse Thieves were holding quite a few hostages.