The four helpers invited by Niu Qingyang all appeared to be quite old. Even the youngest looked to be over fifty.
Three of them came from nearby county towns and had reputations and prestige not far below Niu Qingyang's. Only one had an extraordinary background. He was seated at the head of the table, appeared to be over sixty, had graying hair and beard, and possessed a short, stocky build. He was nearly two heads shorter than Niu Qingyang.
He was Bai Wuji, the renowned Sect Master of the Golden Sword Sect in Yulong Commandery City.
In Yulong City, the Golden Sword Sect was unquestionably a prestigious major sect. Its Sect Master, Bai Wuji, was not yet sixty and was said to have opened fifty-seven great acupoints. He was only fifteen major acupoints away from breaking through to the Hongmeng Realm. If he could enter the Hongmeng Realm within his lifetime, he would become the number one martial artist in Jingzhou.
Seeing Niu Qingyang return after seeing off the guests, Bai Wuji asked, “What did the people from the government come here for?”
Niu Qingyang had known this illustrious Sect Master Bai since their younger days, and they shared a close relationship. Now that he had managed to invite Bai Wuji to assist them, he was extremely confident in their operation to suppress the bandits.
Niu Qingyang picked up his tea and took a sip before saying, “The County Magistrate heard that we were going into the mountains to kill the bandits, so he specifically sent people over to commend us. He said that once the matter was accomplished, he would certainly request commendations for us from the Imperial Court.”
One man seated on the right sneered, “That sounds nice. Why haven’t we seen him send a single soldier to help?”
He was the Gang Leader of the Red Fire Gang from neighboring Wenquan County, Meng Chenggang. He was over fifty, had a robust build, and possessed a fiery temper. He was straightforward in both speech and action.
Niu Qingyang sighed and said, “The government these days is difficult to describe. If the Imperial Court truly wanted to intervene, how could Zhao Fenghu have developed such momentum? The Pacifying Martial Bureau in the Capital City could have casually sent a few masters to annihilate them long ago.”
Meng Chenggang said, “I heard that everyone from the Pacifying Martial Bureau went to pursue the world's number one martial artist, Liu Fengliu. That is why they have been unable to spare the effort to deal with a Brutal Bandit like Zhao Fenghu, who is ravaging an entire region.”
Bai Wuji shook his head and said, “That is merely an explanation deliberately released by the Imperial Court. Its purpose is to make the common people who suffered from the bandits direct all their hatred toward Liu Fengliu. The more people who hate Liu Fengliu, the harder it will be for him to hide and evade capture.”
Meng Chenggang slammed the table and cursed angrily, “Damn it, so that is what the Imperial Court is plotting! Liu Fengliu only killed a few corrupt officials, yet they refuse to let the matter go. Zhao Fenghu has not only killed officials, but also murdered many innocent common people. Who has committed the greater crime? Is the Imperial Court blind?”
Bai Wuji said, “How much trouble could Zhao Fenghu cause? As Brother Niu said, a few masters from the Pacifying Martial Bureau could easily suppress him. Liu Fengliu is different. The officials in the Imperial Court are all afraid that he will run to the Capital City and use martial force to violate the law.”
Niu Qingyang waved his hand and said, “Let’s not talk about this. Even if the Imperial Court behaves disgracefully, we still cannot afford to offend it. After all, everyone has families and livelihoods, unlike Zhao Fenghu and his kind, who are rootless drifters. So, as far as the government is concerned, we still have to deal with them properly. It would be unwise to completely break relations.”
The others nodded one after another, expressing their agreement.
Niu Qingyang asked, “Zhao Fenghu originally committed his crimes in Ningzhou, so why did he suddenly flee to our Jingzhou? Two prefectures and several thousand miles lie between the two places.”
Meng Chenggang said, “Who can see through the thoughts of people like him? Perhaps he decided that our Jingzhou had favorable feng shui. Ha ha!”
Niu Qingyang laughed and said, “According to Brother Meng, then our Qingshui County must have the best feng shui in all of Jingzhou.”
Meng Chenggang roared with laughter and cursed, “Damn it, we would rather do without this kind of favorable feng shui!”
Niu Qingyang said, “We haven’t heard any news these past few days of those Brutal Bandits coming down the mountain to plunder. I wonder what kind of trick they are up to in the mountains.”
Bai Wuji rose and said, “Whatever trick they are up to, we’ll know once we go into the mountains and take a look. There is no time to lose. Let’s set out now.”
He was not the oldest among the five, but his cultivation was the deepest, and his status was also the highest. The others all followed his lead. This operation would likewise be led and coordinated by him.
The five Sect Masters each brought forty or fifty elite disciples, for a total of more than two hundred people. In a mighty procession, they charged toward Guidang Mountain.
For this operation, Niu Qingyang also brought Wang Yuanjia along. In truth, with Wang Yuanjia’s cultivation of having Open Three Great Apertures, he still fell considerably short of these elite disciples. Niu Qingyang brought him because he intended to train this most favored and most talented disciple.
He had no intention of carefully sheltering this disciple, whose bone structure and aptitude were rarely seen in a century, and raising him in a greenhouse. He knew all too well that even the finest jade could not become a useful vessel without being polished.
Still, some preferential treatment was unavoidable. He instructed Wang Yuanjia to stay by his side and not stray once they entered the mountains, lest he encounter an accident.
The more than two hundred people traveled extremely quickly and reached the foot of Guidang Mountain in less than half an hour.
When they passed Baitou Village, Wang Yuanjia looked over from a distance. The village was completely silent, clearly devoid of inhabitants.
He thought, “If my guess is correct, they must have hidden themselves in Liuyun Mountain. I wonder whether they cursed me for not returning to fetch them that day. Whatever. Once I exterminate the Brutal Bandits, I’ll go before them and take credit. Even if they had some grievances before, they will certainly be deeply grateful by then.”
After entering the mountains, Bai Wuji divided the more than two hundred people into twelve teams. Each team consisted of around twenty people, and the teams were separated by roughly ten meters as they advanced side by side. With this arrangement, if one team encountered danger, the others could quickly provide support.
Everyone was fully focused, as if facing a powerful enemy, and cautiously observed their surroundings.
Bai Wuji was also on high alert. If the rumors concerning the Brutal Bandits’ martial cultivation were true, his cultivation was above theirs. Even so, if he were surrounded and attacked by many people, he feared he would not survive.
They searched for half a day without finding anything. Bai Wuji said to Niu Qingyang, “Brother Niu, this mountain is so large, while the other side has only a hundred or so people. Searching like this is no different from looking for a needle in a haystack. If they are hiding well, let alone ten days or half a month, I’m afraid we won’t find a trace of them even after one or two months.”
Niu Qingyang furrowed his brows and was just about to speak when someone in the distance suddenly let out a cry of alarm.
Bai Wuji leaped into the air and covered the several dozen meters in the blink of an eye. He looked around but saw no enemies and asked, “What happened?”
“There’s a corpse here.” That disciple pointed at the ground.
Bai Wuji had remained fully vigilant all along, and only then noticed a corpse lying on the ground. He crouched down to examine it carefully.
At that moment, the other four Sect Masters also arrived. Niu Qingyang asked, “Is it one of Zhao Fenghu’s men?” As he spoke, he crouched down as well.
There were several bloody holes in the corpse. The wounds had been inflicted by a sword.
A disciple leaned closer for a look and exclaimed, “Judging from the scar on his forehead, I’ve heard people mention this man before. He was one of Zhao Fenghu’s men. His name seems to have been Wei Daxiong. He was cruel and murderous. His cultivation was not particularly high, but neither was it low. He had opened no more than ten great acupoints.”
Meng Chenggang said, “Who killed him? Zhao Fenghu is notorious, and now that everyone knows he is in the mountains, who would dare enter them?”
Another Sect Master pondered and said, “Could it be disciples who descended the mountain to travel from one of the holy lands of the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Peaks and Twelve Grotto Heavens?”
Everyone in the Jianghu knew that the Martial Arts Holy Lands of the Three Mountains and Five Sacred Peaks and Twelve Grotto Heavens sent disciples down the mountain to travel every year.
Niu Qingyang shook his head and said, “It is said that disciples from those holy lands may only descend the mountain to travel after breaking through to the Hongmeng Realm. But look at these sword wounds. Several of them are not fatal, clearly showing that the attacker’s technique was clumsy. Otherwise, a single sword thrust would have been enough to kill the enemy. Why stab him so many times?”
Everyone gathered around to look, and it was indeed as he had said.
Bai Wuji said, “Since the technique was clumsy, the attacker’s martial cultivation must not have been very high either. This bandit had opened fewer than ten great acupoints, yet killing him was already so difficult. Where did the courage to enter Guidang Mountain come from? Could it be that they did not know Zhao Fenghu had entered the mountains?”
Everyone racked their brains but could not understand it. They had no choice but to leave the matter as a mystery in their hearts. After making a brief adjustment, they continued searching the mountain.
By the time the sky darkened, they had found no trace of any living person, but they discovered six more corpses belonging to bandits.