Huang Yulang walked out of the Striped Tiger’s cave, got his bearings, and sprinted off.
Not far from Meishan, a small town appeared ahead.
He found a tavern and had a hearty meal, leaving with a look of satisfaction on his face.
He had been roasting his own meat for the past few months and had long since grown tired of it.
Naturally, it couldn’t compare to a tavern’s delicious dishes.
“What a beautiful tiger pelt!
Little brother, is that tiger pelt on you for sale?” A pot-bellied middle-aged man blocked his path, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the massive tiger pelt wrapped around him.
“Not for sale.” Huang Yulang wasn’t short on money and rejected him outright.
The pelt had good defensive properties, resistant to ordinary blades.
More importantly, it looked imposing to wear.
‘Only an idiot would sell it.’
“Hey, little brother, can’t we discuss it?
Everything has a price, doesn’t it?
How about ten taels of silver?” Huang Yulang rolled his eyes, not bothering to answer him.
“Twenty taels, fifty taels…” Seeing that Huang Yulang remained unmoved, the pot-bellied man gritted his teeth.
“One hundred taels!
Little brother, I can’t go any higher!
You’d be making a huge profit at one hundred taels!” The man followed relentlessly, clearly unwilling to give up on the beautiful tiger pelt.
Just as Huang Yulang was about to hurry away, he suddenly spotted an old man dressed as a hunter huddled around a corner.
He was holding a wine flask, his vacant eyes staring in the direction of Meishan.
‘Is that him?’ It was the old hunter Huang Yulang had saved.
Judging by his appearance, the old hunter was clearly devastated by his last experience.
“Sigh!” Huang Yulang sighed.
‘Life is unpredictable.
Who would have thought a Demon Transformation tiger would appear?
He’s lucky to have survived.’
Huang Yulang quickly walked over to the old hunter.
The pot-bellied man was still following relentlessly.
Huang Yulang casually pulled out a one-hundred-tael silver note and stuffed it into the old hunter’s hand.
“Old sir, the dead cannot be brought back.
Please accept my condolences.” The pot-bellied man’s eyes widened when he saw Huang Yulang give the old man a one-hundred-tael silver note.
The old hunter was dazed and looked at Huang Yulang in a stupor.
Just as he was about to shake his head and refuse, Huang Yulang smiled and said,
“Take it.
This silver is enough for you to live out your days.
By the way, I’ve already killed that big tiger, so you can consider this revenge.
See?
This pelt was skinned from that very tiger.
Beautiful, isn’t it?”
The old hunter was stunned for a moment.
Only then did he clearly see the Striped Tiger pelt on Huang Yulang and remember the young man who had led the great tiger away.
Tears streamed down his old face, and he excitedly grabbed Huang Yulang’s hand.
“R-Really…” Huang Yulang smiled, patted the old hunter’s grimy hand, and nodded seriously.
“Thank you, Young Hero!
For your great kindness, this old man has no way to repay you.
Let me kowtow to you a few times…” As he spoke, the old hunter was about to kowtow, but Huang Yulang quickly stopped him.
“Don’t do that, old sir.
Since heaven didn’t let you die in a tiger’s maw, you must live a good life.
Take care, old sir.
We’ll meet again.”
Huang Yulang quickly strode out of the small town and soon vanished from the old hunter’s blurry vision.
The pot-bellied man on the side watched Huang Yulang run off into the distance and sighed.
He glanced at the tear-streaked old hunter, gave a kind smile, and turned to leave.
Huang Yulang traveled north along the Huai River.
He had no interest in hunting beasts even when passing through forests, as ordinary animals seemed useless to him now.
Unless there were huge numbers of them, it was just too time-consuming.
Huang Yulang headed straight for the capital of Yun Country.
He had long known from his father that the true culprit behind the River Bandits targeting the Huang Mansion’s fleet was the current Imperial Uncle.
The Yu family was one of the most prominent and powerful families in Yun Country, with businesses in all sectors throughout the northern part of the country.
This Imperial Uncle, relying on the favor of the Noble Consort Yu, had been expanding his influence wantonly.
He wanted Huang Yulang’s father to hand over the waterways of Huaiyin so he could expand southward.
Wary of the other party’s power, his father had handed over a portion of the waterways.
But the man’s greed was insatiable, like a snake trying to swallow an elephant, which led to the River Bandits plundering the Huang Mansion’s fleet.
The Huaiyin waterway system was complex, and the River Bandits were elusive.
It would be difficult for him to find their lair on his own, but the Imperial Uncle should know its location.
At night, the prosperous districts of Yun Country were brightly lit.
A figure in black, however, lurked silently in the shadows before arriving outside a vast manor.
Finding a secluded spot, the black-clad person vaulted the wall and entered.
This person in black was, of course, Huang Yulang, who had traveled all this way.
Using the cover of night, Huang Yulang stealthily slipped into the rear courtyard of the Imperial Uncle’s mansion.
From a distance, he could hear the sound of women’s laughter and chatter coming from a pavilion.
Huang Yulang did not act rashly.
He waited until late at night when the banquet ended, and a handsome young nobleman emerged from the pavilion, surrounded by a crowd of people.
This young man was the Imperial Uncle.
After the others dispersed, he entered the pavilion, but now two men with swords stood guard at the entrance like door gods.
Huang Yulang hesitated but decided against a forceful approach.
After all, the Imperial Uncle’s mansion was large, with even more guards and servants.
Causing a major disturbance would be troublesome.
Huang Yulang slipped away quietly.
He knocked out a servant in secret, rolled around in the mud to cover himself, and then ran in a sorry state toward the pavilion.
“Who’s there?” Before Huang Yulang could get close, the two guards became alert.
Huang Yulang clutched his face, pretending to be badly injured, and quickly said,
“This is bad!
This is bad!
Quick, inform the Imperial Uncle!
The Left Prime Minister has raided our brothel!” The two guards were surprised to hear this, but seeing the servant’s miserable state, it was clear he had been beaten and had run back to deliver the news.
One of the guards hesitated for a moment, whispered something in his partner’s ear, then turned, pushed open the door, and went inside to report.
The other guard frowned and said,
“What exactly happened?
Why would the Left Prime Minister move against the Imperial Uncle’s establishment?
Doesn’t he know it’s one of our Imperial Uncle’s properties?” Huang Yulang, his face smeared with mud, wore a look of utter distress.
“How would I know?
Lord Left Prime Minister led the raid himself!
How could a lowly person like me dare to stop him?
Luckily, I’m quick-witted.
I saw things were going south and ran back during the chaos.” The guard’s expression flickered, but he nodded and didn’t pay much more attention to Huang Yulang.
A moment later, the other guard came out, looked at Huang Yulang, and said,
“Come in!” The two masters turned and entered the room together.
“Alrighty.” Huang Yulang answered and hurried to follow.
The room in the pavilion was large and brightly lit.
All the furnishings were genuine antiques.
The handsome Imperial Uncle sat in the main seat, attended to by two scantily clad, voluptuous women.
The blush from their heavily made-up, pretty faces had not yet faded, and they looked at the three approaching men with great displeasure.
“What is going on?” The Imperial Uncle frowned, holding a cup of fragrant tea as he looked at the disheveled Huang Yulang.
The two guards were just about to turn when Huang Yulang suddenly struck.
He grabbed their necks, applied a little pressure, and with a CRACK, the two masters collapsed limply to the ground, their wide eyes filled with confusion and disbelief.
“AH!” The two women shrieked at the sudden turn of events.
With a casual flick of his wrists, Huang Yulang sent the two corpses flying like cannonballs, striking the women on the head.
With two thuds, they all fell to the ground, silent.
It all happened too fast, in a flash of lightning.
The seated Imperial Uncle had no time to react.
CLANG!
The teacup fell to the floor, and his face turned pale with horror.
“You…” Huang Yulang took a step forward, his hand shooting out to grip the man’s neck.
He gave a sinister laugh.
“If you don’t want to die, don’t scream.” Although Huang Yulang wouldn’t kill the innocent, he was ruthless toward his enemies.
An overwhelming killing intent radiated from him, instantly draining the color from the Imperial Uncle’s face.
“I… I won’t… scream.
What do you want, Your Excellency?
Just say the word.” Huang Yulang snorted coldly.
“Where is the lair of those River Bandits you recruited?” The Imperial Uncle’s pupils contracted slightly.
He wanted to deny it, but Huang Yulang’s grip tightened, and he was instantly unable to speak, his face flushing a deep red.
“The truth, or you die now!” Huang Yulang’s killing intent was chilling.
The Imperial Uncle was terrified.
Huang Yulang loosened his grip slightly, allowing the man to break into a fit of violent coughing.
“I… I wouldn’t dare lie!
It’s on Gourd Island.” Huang Yulang frowned.
He didn’t recall seeing a Gourd Island on any map of Yun Country.
“Please, brave warrior, spare me!
Gourd Island is in Reed Lake, on the northern border of Yun Country!
Everything I’ve said is true!
Please, brave warrior, spare my life!”
Hearing “Reed Lake,” Huang Yulang finally understood.
Reed Lake was thousands of square li in area and filled with dense reeds.
The waters of the two rivers in Huaiyin flowed out from Reed Lake.
‘No wonder Dad’s men have spent the last six months searching nearly the entire waterway system around the two Huaiyin rivers without finding a trace of them.
So this is where they were hiding.’
Hiding a few hundred men in Reed Lake, which spanned thousands of li, was truly like finding a needle in a haystack.
“Very good.
Then I’ll have to trouble the Imperial Uncle to take a little trip with me.
If I can’t find these River Bandits… Hmph!”
“No, you…” Before the man could refuse, Huang Yulang chopped him on the neck, and the guy instantly passed out.
Huang Yulang slung the unconscious Imperial Uncle over his shoulder, rushed out of the mansion, and scaled the capital city’s walls that same night, disappearing into the vast darkness.
When the Imperial Uncle woke up, he found himself on a small boat, his hands and feet bound with rope.
He began to struggle in terror.
“You… who the hell are you?
Why did you kidnap me?
Do you have any idea of the consequences of kidnapping me, the Imperial Uncle?” ‘Even now, this Imperial Uncle is trying to threaten me with his background,’ Huang Yulang thought.
His face half-covered, he gently rowed the small boat and sneered,
“Listen here, Imperial Uncle.
Since I dared to kidnap you, I’m obviously not afraid of your background.
You’d better quiet down and save yourself some pain.
Once I find those River Bandits, I might even give you a quick death.”
The man’s face grew even paler.
He stared daggers at Huang Yulang but wisely stopped asking questions.
In his heart, however, he was cursing furiously.
‘Once we get to Gourd Island, I’ll make this damn bastard wish he was dead!’
Huang Yulang rowed with incredible speed, reaching the border’s Reed Lake in less than a day.
The vast Reed Lake stretched beyond the horizon, filled with dense clusters of reeds.
A complex network of man-made channels crisscrossed through it.
“Imperial Uncle, show me the way.” The Imperial Uncle took a deep breath, shook his head, and said,
“I’ve never been here myself.
But… you can light three bonfires.
When the people inside see the thick smoke, they will naturally come out to meet us.” The man was sensible enough to offer the method.
Huang Yulang nodded in satisfaction.
‘At this point, the guy wouldn’t dare lie.’