Chapter 81: Is Highway Robbery Faster for Making Money?

On a high ground two kilometers southwest of Zhou Family Fort, several burly men were holding telescopes, staring fixedly at the direction of the Zhai gate, their eyes revealing greed.

Behind them, over twenty men held long bows, carrying bulging arrow quivers on their backs, their cold, gleaming long knives at their waists swaying slightly with their breathing.

Further away, a group of Horned Horse Beasts were quietly lowering their heads to graze on the withered yellow wild grass, their hooves pawing the ground restlessly.

These Horned Horse Beasts were sturdy and agile, serving as the capable partners for the horse bandits when they went out to plunder in their daily lives.

"Good heavens! Look at this fat sheep! They actually purchased so many supplies! Is that... wine in that box?" A man with a thick beard licked his dry, cracked lips, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

In this era of scarce resources, wine was an extremely precious thing, rarely seen in daily life.

"It really is wine! To think there are still people who can afford to drink wine these days!" A suppressed exclamation erupted among the crowd.

"Boss, let's make a move! Kill them, and everything belongs to us!" Someone gripped their bowstring impatiently.

"You're courting death!" The bald, scarred man slammed his fist into a tree trunk, wood chips flying everywhere, "Open your dog eyes and look, who are they?"

"Li Laosan? Wait... it's people from Li Family Fort!" The crowd looked closely, their faces turning deathly pale, and they all swallowed a mouthful of saliva in unison.

Although they lived by plundering, they also understood the principle that the weak are prey to the strong.

Li Meng of Li Family Fort was a Refining Flesh Realm expert who could draw a five-hundred-jin Strong Bow; once provoked, the entire gang would have no place to stand in this region.

Change territory? Every horse bandit gang had its own sphere of influence, and rashly intruding would only trigger a bloody battle.

"Keep watching the other group," a one-eyed man said sinisterly, "We saw it clearly; those fifteen people carried four pieces of prey inside, and only two of them know how to use bows and arrows. With our manpower, cleaning them up will be as easy as a reverse palm."

The bald man nodded, his scar gleaming hideously under the setting sun: "Wait until they leave the Zhai, at least one or two li away before making a move. Don't be too flashy, so as not to attract trouble."

"Understood! Boss! It's not our first time doing this business!" The group burst into laughter, their greedy gazes like hungry wolves, "Four Spirit-horned Deer, we can at least sell them for three or four thousand, right?"

"Hunting is so dangerous; nothing makes money as fast as highway robbery!"

"Exactly! It's both easy and highly profitable!"

At the same time, inside Zhou Family Fort, under a black-bottomed, gold-lettered sign, the characters for "Zhou Family Fort Weaponry" were vigorous and powerful.

The small print below the sign clearly stated the business: "Buying and selling all kinds of weapons, high-price recycling of Fierce Beast materials; intermediate materials at a thirty percent premium, advanced materials negotiable."

Lu Yu looked at this simple and unadorned sign, thinking to himself that the shop name was as straightforward as the Fort Master's style.

Stepping into the shop, the nearly one-hundred-square-meter space was spacious and bright, with a dazzling array of knives, spears, swords, and halberds.

Martial Artists moved through the space, either selecting weapons or haggling with the shopkeeper, making it exceptionally lively.

What surprised Lu Yu was that there were no armed guards in the shop—but after a second thought, he understood: anyone who dared to stir up trouble on this "Tai Sui's head" must be tired of living.

"Are you all here to sell Fierce Beast materials?" A woman wearing form-fitting leather clothing with a graceful figure walked over, her smile sweet.

"That's right," Lu Guohao nodded in response.

The woman led the group through the bustling shop and turned into a spacious backyard.

The courtyard was already crowded with people, and the sounds of haggling and shouting to weigh goods rose one after another.

Several burly men with thick waists and broad shoulders walked over, the leader having a face full of flesh, his voice like muffled thunder: "Are you all selling these Horned Horse Deer?"

"Yes, brother, I wonder what the market rate is now?" Lu Guohao said with an apologetic smile.

"Horned Horse Deer, Low-level Fierce Beast, the meat quality is average. Three yuan per jin."

"Ah? Wasn't it three point five a while ago?" Li Yang was so anxious his eyes widened.

The burly man rolled his eyes: "That was a while ago! The market has changed. Are you selling or not? If not, get going, don't delay things!"

The group looked at each other, nodding helplessly—in the entire Zhou Family Fort, this was the only place that bought Fierce Beast materials; they couldn't exactly run to other Zhais ten miles away.

"Sell! Sell! Three yuan it is!" Lu Guohao forced a smile.

"Wouldn't it have been better to be this quick earlier! You lot, come with me to weigh them!" The burly man waved his hand, and several workers carried the prey away.

"What a bully," Qin Hai muttered in a low voice, watching their backs.

Lu Yu could only shake his head helplessly.

Just then, a commotion suddenly came from the entrance.

Four burly men carried in a giant pig the size of a small truck.

This Tiezong Pig was pitch-black like ink, its bristles standing up like steel needles, and two tusks as long as an adult's arm gleaming with a cold light.

There were two bowl-sized bullet holes on its forehead that were deep enough to see bone, and dried black blood had congealed around the wounds; it was clearly killed by firearms.

"Everyone be careful! If you chip the tusks, you won't be able to pay for it even if you sell yourselves!" A young man holding a shotgun had a cigarette in his mouth, his arms bulging with muscle, his presence imposing.

Every step he took, the ground trembled slightly.

"Young Master Zhao is here!"

"Young Master Zhao is mighty! To actually hunt such a large Tiezong Pig!"

"Please, come in! The price will definitely be favorable!" Several shopkeepers nodded and bowed, welcoming him with fawning faces.

"Who is that?" someone asked in a low voice.

"You don't even know him? Have you heard of Hailong Martial Arts Hall?"

"Of course I have! The Hall Master is a Rujin Realm expert who can shatter giant rocks with one punch!"

"This is the martial arts hall's second disciple, Zhao Chuan! He broke through to the Refining Flesh Realm when he was just over twenty! We hide and run when we see an Intermediate Fierce Beast, but he charges right at it carrying a gun!"

Exclamations rose one after another in the crowd. Qin Hai, however, sneered disdainfully: "What's there to show off about, hunting an Intermediate Fierce Beast with a gun?"

Lu Yu, however, had burning eyes, observing Zhao Chuan with great interest.

A Martial Artist's explosive power combined with the lethality of firearms was indeed an excellent combination.

Unfortunately, for them, this path was impassable—firearms were not only expensive but also supplied only to core members within the Zhai; outsiders like them didn't even have the qualifications to touch one.

This was also one of the means by which Zhou Family Fort maintained its ruling position.

Just as he was thinking this, Lu Guohao walked over with the group, everyone wearing an undisguised smile on their faces. "Xiao Yu,"

He leaned close to Lu Yu and lowered his voice, "The four Spirit-horned Deer totaled one thousand and twenty jin. At three yuan per jin, that's three thousand and sixty yuan in total. This one thousand five hundred and thirty yuan is your share."

As he spoke, he pulled a stack of banknotes from his bosom.

The others gathered around with a tacit understanding, forming a human wall to block the prying eyes of bystanders.

It was indeed crowded and chaotic here, but the outside was even more of a mixed bag.

Lu Yu looked at the colorful banknotes in his hand, his fingertips burning slightly.