Chapter 154: 148 The Golden Stronghold

"You want to ask about the Sword Guest? You should have said so earlier; if you had, I would have told you long ago."

"That's right, there is indeed a Sword Guest on the mountain, surnamed Ai, called Ai Xin. He came from Baixiong Mountain. The son of a bitch is a madman; he cries when he wants to cry, laughs when he wants to laugh, and kills people at the drop of a hat. I have ten parts of evil, but he has ten thousand. If you can kill him? Then hurry, hurry! Kill him, and I can have one last bit of fun; even if I turn into a ghost, I won't haunt you. I'm just afraid you little thieves can't handle him."

"The Great Chieftain? I am the Great Chieftain! Even a Great Chieftain has times when he's treated like a grandson by a bastard. That bastard is an Evil Dragon crossing the river; a crow occupying a pheasant's nest, squeezing me off the mountain so I don't have to meet that son of a bitch."

"What did he come here for? It seems he's waiting for some bullshit Sword Smith, wanting the Sword Smith to save his dog life. He howls all day and all night, worse than a dog barking..."

"Waiting for whom? I don't know. Didn't you say my brain isn't good? I spent several days just memorizing the words 'Sword Smith'."

"Sword Image? Sword Intent? I don't understand your bird language. Anyway, whenever he waves his hand, gold ingots fly everywhere. Those gold ingots aren't for play; they crush people to death at the slightest provocation. But that bastard's gold ingots aren't of very good quality; they often shatter halfway through flight, crack halfway through crushing, and collapse with a clatter. His mother's gold and silver treasures are also inferior goods, just as wicked as he is."

……

Unexpectedly, after the Great Chieftain woke up, he told everything he knew, and everything he said was the truth.

Che Sha and the others carried a Spring of Honesty. After drinking this spring water, as long as one intends to tell Alie, they will suffer from endless abdominal pain. However, this spring water cannot judge right from wrong. If the person who drinks it holds a mistaken belief, as long as they speak the truth as they perceive it, nothing will happen even if it is completely contrary to the facts. Furthermore, this thing cannot force someone to speak; if the other party bites their tongue and refuses to speak, it will not trigger a reaction either. It is said that those who are well-trained can even deceive the spring water by distorting their own perceptions, and can even mislead the interrogator.

Although there are many limitations, bullying a crude man who knows nothing is certainly no problem.

While the Great Chieftain was still unconscious, Tang Zhao fed him the spring water and then woke him up.

After Peng Duanhai woke up, he was very hot-tempered. When asked about the mountain stronghold, he stared blankly and remained silent, but when asked about the Sword Guest he had mentioned earlier, it was as if someone had lit his fuse, and he suddenly became talkative.

There was a Sword Guest on the mountain; the Great Chieftain had vaguely mentioned it while cursing his Art Tool. Tang Zhao had guessed it at the time, and now that the Great Chieftain had testified in person, the fact that he was an evil person even worse than those on Jilong Mountain was truly a headache.

The group knocked the Great Chieftain unconscious again and discussed it on the side.

Wusun Tong spoke first: "I'm afraid we can't beat him."

Che Sha followed up: "Since he is a Sword Guest, I think we definitely can't beat him. Besides, there's no need to fight. Our encounter with the Great Chieftain was accidental, without a single flaw. The Sword Guest is on the mountain now and has no idea that the few of us exist. If we leave now and fly away using our Art Tools, leaving no trace, could he possibly chase us down to avenge the Great Chieftain?"

Jiang Shenyi said: "We can certainly just walk away, but what about Brother Sang? What about Wushu Bao? Our original plan was to leave clues pointing to ourselves after leveling the stronghold, taking on this grudge. If we leave silently now, and Baixiong Mountain sends a few experts down to investigate, won't it all be blamed on Wushu Bao? Even if there is no evidence, it's hard to avoid killing the wrong person rather than letting one go. Do thieves talk to you about evidence?"

Che Sha opened her mouth, paused, and then continued: "Let's arrange for an evacuation. We can only hide."

Jiang Shenyi said: "The land of Lingzhou is full of thieves; where can we hide?"

Che Sha was a bit irritable and said: "Do you really want to take action? Go head-to-head with a Sword Guest? That is a Sword Guest! The most top-tier power in the world; it's not something that mere Qi can contend with. Don't be too confident."

Jiang Shenyi raised an eyebrow and said: "Even if I am confident, I am confident with my own life. I am using real blades and real guns; why is someone who isn't even on the field so anxious?"

Seeing that the two were gradually becoming hostile, Wusun Tong suddenly said: "Big Brother, you decide."

Tang Zhao lowered his eyes in contemplation and suddenly said: "We should take action."

Wusun Tong and Che Sha looked at each other and said: "Fine."

Jiang Shenyi was startled and said: "You two..."

Che Sha said as a matter of course: "Since we have bowed to Big Brother, we naturally follow Big Brother's lead. Since Big Brother has spoken, we will of course obey."

Jiang Shenyi scoffed and said: "Alright, then we'll listen to Big Brother."

Tang Zhao extended three fingers and said: "There are three points. First, once the bow is drawn, there is no turning back. We either don't do this, but once we have started, we must see it through to the end. Giving up halfway is the most dangerous; it's dangerous for ourselves and implicates others."

This point was the same as Jiang Shenyi's reasoning. Che Sha had just been skeptical, but now she nodded repeatedly.

Tang Zhao folded down one finger and said: "Second, taking action doesn't necessarily mean going head-to-head. Let's ask more about the situation of the Sword Smith who is scheduled to arrive. By the way, let's go capture the small fry the stronghold sent to the crossroads to keep watch."

Che Sha gasped and said: "A brilliant plan."

A moment later, Wusun Tong also realized it and said: "Truly a brilliant plan! As expected of Big Brother!"

Jiang Shenyi naturally understood immediately, but he still glanced at Wusun Tong, thinking: They all say people from Liangzhou are straightforward, who knew that even someone as thick-browed and big-eyed as you would be so good at bootlicking?

However, the behavior of Wusun Tong and Che Sha was indeed the straightforwardness of Liangzhou—devoted to people. If they submit, they submit, and anything goes; risking their lives for someone is just a matter of a word. If they don't submit, they don't submit, and they will argue about right and wrong in their daily lives.

Tang Zhao said: "Third, I'm not sure either. Brother, you said the gold ingots would crack; is that just how his Sword Image is, or is it out of control?"

Jiang Shenyi narrowed his eyes and said: "You mean..."

Tang Zhao sighed softly: "A Sword Guest is a very dangerous profession, walking on a tightrope at every moment."

On a dirt road in front of Jilong Mountain, a tent was temporarily set up. Outside the tent, a small fry sat on a tree stump, drinking tea while watching the intersection.

Although he had been sitting there for several days, Tian Er's mood was quite peaceful. Anyway, he was just a bottom-level lackey from Jiming Mountain. On the mountain, he was just a sentry doing chores, all bitter work with no enjoyment. Waiting for people at the foot of the mountain was actually relaxed and comfortable, and it didn't delay him from collecting his pay; rounding it off, he considered it a vacation.

Ah, if only he could be on vacation forever.

"They're here, they're here!"

A young lackey wearing blue cloth clothes ran over quickly: "The Sword Smith has arrived!"

Tian Er jumped up with a start and shouted: "Is it true? Is there really a Sword Smith coming?"

You have to know that this mission was assigned haphazardly and had always been unclear; he had thought it would end up being muddled and forgotten.

The young lackey glared and said: "What kind of stupid talk is that? Isn't the Sword Smith the one you're waiting for here? The person will be here immediately; hurry up and notify people to come down to welcome them! I'm warning you, the Sword Smith has a very grand air; you'd better be careful, or you'll lose your head."

Tian Er hurriedly said: "Yes!" He turned and ran, but as he ran, he felt something was wrong: we are both bottom-level lackeys, why is that kid ordering me around?

Who was that kid again? He couldn't remember. Anyway, this mission had drawn people from various groups on the mountain; as long as they were clever and good-looking, many were people he wasn't familiar with. It wasn't strange to have a strange face.

Running all the way up the mountain, looking from afar, he saw the mountain was covered in a golden glow, as if a golden light was covering the peak. Before he could even enter the gate, the stronghold gates swung open, and a group of people ran out, saying as they ran: "Run for your lives! A monster has come!"

Tian Er's heart skipped a beat. He recognized one person as his own small squad leader and hurriedly grabbed him, shouting: "What's wrong? Is there a Fierce Beast on the mountain? Where is the Second Chieftain? I have an urgent matter to report to the Second Chieftain!"

The squad leader shouted: "What Fierce Beast? It's a hundred times fiercer than a Fierce Beast. There is no Second Chieftain anymore; the Second Chieftain is gone."

Tian Er was stunned. His mission was assigned by the Second Chieftain himself, who had specifically instructed him when he left that this mission was extremely important and must be reported to him in person. How could the Second Chieftain be gone after only a few days of going down and up the mountain? He was at a loss and said: "How is he gone? What do I do? My matter is very urgent. Who do I report to?"

The squad leader pushed him and shouted: "Report my ass! Hurry up and run for your life! Wait for the Great Chieftain and the others to return to the mountain, then see if they can come back. If they can't, our Jiming Mountain is finished."

Upon hearing this, Tian Er felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He didn't know how such a large mountain stronghold could just be gone.

Suddenly, he saw a gold ingot rolling out from the gate, shining with golden light.

Tian Er had never seen this before and instinctively lowered his head to pick it up. The squad leader grabbed him and shouted: "Don't move, do you not want your life? Run!"

The gold ingot rolled to the base of a tree and exploded with a 'pop', turning into a puddle of liquid gold that smeared onto the tree, immediately spreading and dyeing the lower half of the tree golden.

The squad leader grabbed Tian Er and pointed inside the mountain gate: "Do you want to be like them?"

He saw that the stronghold was filled with golden light everywhere. The gold, which usually made people drool with greed, was smeared on the ground, walls, and trees like dog-skin plasters, here and there. Among them were several golden human statues.

Some of those golden statues were entirely golden, already complete golden sculptures, while others were only half-smeared, the other half still being living people, their upper bodies struggling incessantly. There were even people who only had one foot made of gold, constantly trying to pull their foot out of the golden quagmire, but they could never pull it out. Those half-golden statues kept calling out, but the gold continued to erode and expand. One small lackey screamed: "Help—" but halfway through the scream, the gold covered his lips, and he instantly froze, his mouth half-open, unable to close it ever again.

Tian Er only felt a chill rush to his crown, his legs trembling, and he was at a loss. The squad leader over there ran away, wailing like a ghost; he must have been in the last batch to run out. After that, no one else could ever run out alive.

Then someone let out a loud laugh, the laughter extremely shrill, piercing the eardrums, immediately followed by a transition into wailing, the crying incomparably miserable, and finally turning into a roar:

"Where is the Sword Smith!"

Tian Er had originally wanted to turn and run, but somehow a burst of strength welled up, and he let out a miserable scream toward the sky that sounded like both crying and not crying:

"The Sword Smith is down the mountain!"