Chapter 103: Who Is the Winner?

Firelight, blade light, shouts of battle, cries of agony…

Around the Changfeng Inn, everything had become a chaotic battlefield.

At this point, the merchants and martial artists blocked here could only choose to fight to the death.

They grouped with acquaintances, backs against cliffs or hidden in forests, swinging swords, spears, staves, and clubs to resist the bandits’ charges.

To be honest, both sides were evenly matched in strength.

Most of the merchants and these martial artists knew only basic fistwork, slightly stronger than ordinary folk, and when desperate, slashed wildly without technique.

The White Tiger Hill bandits weren’t much better—those who had trained for years, strong and robust, with clear bright force, could already serve as squad leaders.

Those who entered dark force could become the four pillars and eight beams.

The rest relied purely on ferocious courage to fight.

Yet the bandits had better coordination, and under Bai Yanhu’s training, they understood some teamwork.

When one charged forward, another would fire hidden arrows from behind.

For a time, every group at the inn could only defend passively.

“Move!”

Beneath a large tree, Wu Mao, the escort guard, shoved Yue Bala aside—just as an arrow whistled past, embedding itself squarely in the tree trunk where his head had been.

Seeing this, a bandit thought he saw an opening and lunged forward with a long spear aimed at Wu Mao.

Wu Mao came from the Xin Yi Liu He School; though he hadn’t entered dark force, years of escorting had given him rich experience—he wouldn’t fall for such a trick.

He sidestepped, letting the spear slide past his armpit, then clamped his arm shut, exhaled sharply, and snatched the spear away.

The ambush bandit was yanked off balance, still stunned, when Sha Li Fei slashed his neck clean off with a single cut.

With the spear in hand, Wu Mao’s combat power surged.

He practiced the Liu He Great Spear Technique.

This spear style was widely known, yet its origins were extraordinary—it was said to be a fusion of the finest spear techniques from six schools: Chu Ba Wang, Zhao Changsheng, Luo Family Spear, Yang Family Spear, Gao Family Spear…

Though somewhat exaggerated, its survival to this day, becoming a mandatory spear art for countless sects, proved its exceptional nature.

This spear emphasized the three internal harmonies—essence, qi, spirit—and the three external harmonies—waist, hands, eyes—with blocking, snatching, and thrusting as its core, highly practical.

With spear in hand, Wu Mao executed three quick stepping thrusts, impaling two bandits before retreating and sweeping the spear sideways to block two incoming blades.

“Die!”

Sha Li Fei seized the moment perfectly, slashing the attacker’s arm.

The two worked in tandem—one attacking, the other finishing—showing remarkable synergy.

Of course, the most formidable among them was still Zhou Ban Zhu.

He had long entered dark force, wielding two short knives and specializing in delicate techniques—handling these bandits was effortless.

Yet now he dared not move.

Opposite him stood a bandit, bare-chested and belly-exposed, beard unkempt, hair wild, no different from a beggar.

He carried a heavy cleaver and looked at Zhou Ban Zhu with mocking amusement: “Old man, still fighting at your age? Afraid you’ll strain your back.”

The speaker was Bao Tie, the “Top Pillar” of White Tiger Hill.

“Top Pillar” meant the operational leader of the bandit stronghold—must be fierce, must fear neither life nor death.

He was, in effect, the second strongest in White Tiger Hill.

Though both were dark force experts, youth overcomes age, and Bao Tie was a battle-hardened outlaw—Zhou Ban Zhu knew that if he moved, he’d likely die within a few strikes.

And Bao Tie didn’t move either.

He was willing to fight to the death—but didn’t want to. He glanced around, then shouted: “Fall back!”

Instantly, the bandits retreated, drawing bows and nocking arrows.

Not just here—even those attacking other groups halted, regrouping, forming an archery formation with bows ready.

Bai Yanhu stepped out from the firelight, face dark.

He’d learned his sorcerer had been killed in the chaos, but now wasn’t the time to dwell on it. He looked at the wary crowd and spoke in a hoarse voice: “Men die for wealth, birds die for food.”

“You’re all seasoned travelers. I’ve urgent business today—I’ll spare you, if you do one thing.”

“Among you, some are carrying covert escorts. Don’t shield them—hand them over, and I’ll leave immediately!”

This was his true goal: first, strike hard to terrify these martial artists, so they’d stay out of his way.

True enough, from one of the cart driver groups, someone shouted: “White Boss, we don’t mean to oppose you—we truly don’t know who the covert escorts are!”

“Yeah, I’m no fool—I won’t die for someone else.”

“Who the hell’s the escort? Hand over the goods now, don’t treat us like fools!”

Growing discontent rippled through the crowd.

Bai Yanhu was right—they were all struggling to survive. Whether Lu Kang died or the escort was stolen, it had nothing to do with them!

Wu Mao glanced behind him, then stepped forward reluctantly, bowing: “White Boss, I’ll hand over the goods. Swear you’ll keep your word and spare these innocent comrades.”

Saying this, he unslung his three-stringed qin, snapped off its neck, and spilled a heap of pearl-sized beads onto the ground—glowing brilliantly in the firelight.

“Eastern pearls!”

Someone in the crowd gasped.

These premium pearls from beyond the pass were each worth a fortune; after decades of hard travel, they might never earn enough silver to buy one.

Wealth stirred hearts—many eyes turned red.

Sha Li Fei swallowed hard, cursing inwardly: You bastard Wu, hiding something this good? We could’ve split it and never bothered with the Jianghu …

Bai Yanhu gave a slight nod. One bandit stepped forward, carefully picking up the pearls and stuffing them into a leather sack.

The martial artists watched, envious but dared not move, turning instead to their own groups, eyes filled with suspicion.

“Wu, what’s your meaning?!”

Finally, a covert escort guard couldn’t hold back—he stepped out, shouting: “You don’t want your Liu He Escort Bureau’s reputation?!”

The escort lives, the guard lives; the escort dies, the guard dies.

This was the iron rule of the escort trade—break it, and you not only ruin your own name, but face hostility from all fellow escorts.

Because such behavior destroyed everyone’s livelihood.

“Friends,”

Wu Mao didn’t rush—he shook his head: “Can’t you see? This escort is rigged. From the moment we left Chang’an, we were betrayed!”

At this, many escort guards fell silent.

They were old hands—they’d sensed something off, they just didn’t know who.

Lu Kang?

This was his entire fortune—if lost, the Lu family was finished…

A traitor in the escort bureau?

Everyone here was elite from their own bureaus—no outsiders…

After much thought, the most likely culprit was Provincial Administration Commissioner Li Siyuan—he was the biggest beneficiary—but such accusations couldn’t be spoken aloud…

At that moment, Bai Yanhu’s eyes flickered with impatience. He growled: “I’ll tell you straight—Lu Kang is dead. Killed by our White Tiger Hill’s ‘Inserting Stake.’ We’ve got the covert escort list!”

He pulled out a cloth scroll, casually reading off several names. Those who heard them turned pale.

Lu Kang is dead!

Was the traitor really the Provincial Administration Commissioner?

The escort guards were shaken, but the leak gave them a face-saving excuse. They exchanged glances, resigned, and began handing over their covert escorts.

This escort was indeed immensely valuable.

Even split into dozens of shares, the amount was staggering.

Each time someone produced a covert escort, the martial artists swallowed hard, eyes slowly bloodshot.

Bai Yanhu sneered, uninterested, and turned to look behind Sha Li Fei’s group: “What’s in the coffin?”

Wu Mao’s gaze darkened: “White Boss, I’ve handed over my goods. The coffin holds the remains of a martial elder, being returned home by a friend…”

“Enough talk!”

Bai Yanhu snorted: “Open it. If it’s a corpse, I’ll leave.”

Sha Li Fei snapped: “Even the dead won’t be spared? How low can you sink?!”

“Hahaha!”

The bandits burst into laughter.

One bandit, slightly stammering, grinned: “W-we rob money, then… then kill—what’s the difference from robbing dead men?”

As he stepped forward—shhh!

An arrow shot from the darkness, thudding into his thigh.

“Aaah—!”

The stammering bandit clutched his leg, screaming on the ground.

“Who?!”

“Someone shot from the dark—find him!”

The bandits erupted in chaos.

The archer was, of course, Li Yan.

He’d returned after killing You Lao Si, assessed the situation, rejoined his group—adding only one more blade to their defense.

But hidden in darkness, his threat was greater.

Indeed, Bai Yanhu’s pupils contracted. He waved for his men to hold still, eyes blazing with malice, fixed on the distant dark forest.

He knew the hidden man had killed many of his best archers—and also murdered You Laosi.

!.

In the past, he would never have let this slide, but now time was short, and the opponent was a sorcerer skilled in concealment; further Jiuchan would only ruin the bigger plan.

Thinking of this, Bai Yanhu coldly said: “Enough. I’ll let you go. Boys, take the red goods—we’re leaving!”

“Leave?!”

“You cowardly white thief, you think you can run?!”

“Motherfucker!”

From afar, several furious voices suddenly rang out.

At the same time, a swarm of bandits surged from all directions.

Seeing this, Bai Yanhu’s face darkened instantly.

The newcomers were the remaining bandits from Niubeiliang.

Their leader, another brutal man covered in scars, grabbed someone and kicked him to the ground.

It was the young man who had killed Lu Kang!

The man stomped on the youth’s head, eyes bloodshot: “Bai, you bastard—you heard the news and tried to keep it all for yourself? You even slipped us knockout powder!”

“Fuck your balls! Luckily I kept my wits about me—and just happened to catch your White Tiger Camp’s ‘insertion pillar.’ What do you have to say now, you dog?”

Behind him, the bandits were disheveled, eyes bloodshot, clearly furious.

“Say?”

Bai Yanhu sneered: “What’s there to say? The goods are right here. You fools—if you’ve got the guts, come take them!”

With that, he roared: “Boys, break out!”

In an instant, the two gangs of bandits clashed together.

This sudden turn stunned the Jianghu travelers.

They hadn’t expected the bandits to turn on each other so directly.

Some entertained private thoughts, but seeing the two gangs locked in bloody combat, they shook their heads slightly and decided it was better to avoid trouble.

Others, however, quietly followed.

In the chaos, Bai Yanhu had already gone blood-mad.

He was already a peak Dark Force expert, clad in chainmail, immune to ordinary blades, his two spiked maces whirling like wind.

Plop!

With Dark Force surging, the charging bandits’ heads burst open like watermelons; then came a roar as he clashed with several bandit captains.

Faced with this chaos, Li Yan’s covert threats were useless—he stepped out from the dense forest and said sternly: “Don’t run. Stay where you are. Something big is coming.”

“What big thing?” Sha Lifei blinked.

Boom-boom-boom!

No sooner had he spoken than the ground began to tremble.

Everyone looked up instantly, eyes filled with horror.

It was a large cavalry force approaching—the thunder of hooves.

“Kill!”

The pounding of hooves merged with deafening battle cries.

A line of fire surged from around the Niubeiliang valley’s bend—it was Imperial Garrison troops.

Their combat strength, of course, far surpassed that of bandits.

Though not as seasoned as frontier veterans, they were well-trained: three riders per unit, one holding torches, the other two drawing bows and loosing fire arrows.

Ahead of their arrows were bamboo barrels packed with explosives.

Instantly, a rain of fire arrows fell like a waterfall.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Flames erupted with thunderous explosions.

This was not new gunpowder, and few were actually wounded—but in the darkness, the sudden blasts were terrifying enough.

The bandits fell into utter chaos. Without Niubeiliang’s natural defenses, how could they stand against Imperial troops? They abandoned all thought of the red goods and scattered, scrambling up the slopes.

As the saying goes: when an army breaks, it collapses like a mountain.

The bandits fled in panic; the Garrison cavalry pressed their advantage, thrusting lances left and right, leaving behind a field of corpses.

The Jianghu travelers watched, numb.

The night’s endless upheavals had overwhelmed them.

With Imperial troops arriving, lives became as worthless as grass.

Fortunately, the Garrison cavalry did not slaughter indiscriminately—they sent one rider galloping forward, spear raised, bellowing: “Niubeiliang bandits blocked the trade route and murdered Imperial officials! Their crimes are unforgivable!”

“To prevent bandits from hiding or escaping, no one is to move. Wait until dawn for individual verification. Anyone who leaves this place will be killed!”

With that, he spurred his horse away, continuing to hunt the bandits.

“Li Shaoxia, we…”

Yue Bala looked at Li Yan, shaken—tonight’s events had nearly scared him into wetting his pants.

Li Yan shook his head: “Relax. Wait.”

“They got what they wanted—killed bandits, earned merit. They’re in good spirits. They won’t bother us.”

Yue Bala looked confused; beside him, the escort Wu Mao gave a bitter smile.

He opened his mouth to speak, but found it pointless to say anything…

…………

At dawn, smoke mixed with bloodstained air drifted in the cold wind.

Plosch!

A bandit’s head was chopped off; soldiers laughed and tossed it onto a cart.

Inside the cart’s basket, heads piled like mountains.

The Great Xuan Dynasty counted merit by heads: though half the bandits still escaped into the mountains, these four to five hundred heads were already a significant achievement.

“Madam Lu, please accept our condolences.”

On the Niubeiliang road, the Garrison Battalion Commander bowed solemnly: “Rest assured—we will leave not a single bandit alive in the mountains. We will kill them all to honor Lord Lu’s spirit.”

“Also, from here on, I will assign troops to escort you all the way. No bandit will dare disturb Lord Lu’s journey.”

Beside him, Feng Ping flushed red with rage but dared not speak.

Madam Lu, tear-streaked, nodded: “This old woman thanks the General.”

At this moment, her heart burned with hatred—but she dared not let them see it. Supported by others, she climbed shakily into the carriage.

Watching the departing caravan, the Garrison Battalion Commander’s eyes flickered with mockery. He turned: “Let them pass!”

At his order, the Niubeiliang checkpoint reopened.

Merchants and Jianghu figures trapped here for days finally exhaled, lining up to pass through Niubeiliang.

The funeral procession naturally joined the line.

Wang Daoxuan had recovered somewhat, smiling bitterly: “This journey has been anything but peaceful.”

Sha Lifei shook his head: “Don’t worry. Once we pass the forward camp, the road ahead is clear all the way to Fengyang.”

Li Yan glanced back at Niubeiliang, a flicker of doubt in his eyes, then turned: “Let’s go.”

Whoosh!

Wang Daoxuan hurled a handful of spirit money into the air.

“The dead return home—may their journey be safe!”

“Nothing… dare disturb them!”

(End of Chapter)