A Favor Taken Along the Way

The escort guards had traveled far and wide year-round and naturally possessed a fair amount of martial skill. They were certainly not frightened by a few words from bandits. The middle-aged man at their head brandished an iron staff, while the others drew their own weapons, preparing to face a bloody battle.

Third Master Zhu was also a decisive man. Seeing the other side's attitude, he knew a fight between them was unavoidable and no longer wasted words. With a grand wave of his hand, he ordered his underlings to attack at once.

As soon as the two sides clashed, the long staff in the middle-aged man's hands moved with the agility of a python. He struck left and right, knocking down the two bandits at the very front in a single exchange.

This middle-aged man was actually a martial artist too!

These men clearly weren't ordinary merchants. Qin Shuang thought this to himself as he stepped out from the shadows. Lightly tapping the ground with his left foot, he shot forward like a streak of cold light and charged into the crowd battling on both sides within a few breaths.

Qin Shuang channeled his Heavenly Frost Qi into both fists. The concentrated frost energy clung to them, turning both fists ice-blue. With a Face of Wind and Frost, he struck a bandit in the chest, instantly freezing him into a man of ice.

However, the force of Qin Shuang's punch did not abate. The ice man was directly smashed to pieces.

"Gulp." Qin Shuang was startled by his own attack and swallowed hard.

But that was all. Qin Shuang had spent two years in the Dragon Guard, so it was only natural that his hands had been stained with several lives. His movements did not stop for an instant. Deliberately controlling his strength, he faced the bandits closing in and unleashed another Numerous Frost Scars. His extremely cold frost punches attacked the enemies in a violent storm. Everyone struck was covered in wounds and frozen into chunks.

Fists flashed through the air, frost qi biting cold. The wounds of the bandits struck by the Heavenly Frost Fist shattered into ice blocks with a series of "clatter, clatter" sounds, a sight that made the onlookers' hearts tremble with fear.

In the blink of an eye, beneath the Heavenly Frost Fist, no one remained alive, and no corpse remained whole!

However, because their blood and qi had been frozen, the scene was not especially bloody.

With a "clang," Third Master Zhu dropped the saber in his hands and said in a trembling voice, "Young... hero, great... great hero, spare... spare my life!"

Qin Shuang's figure flashed, bringing him to Third Master Zhu's side. He gently placed his right hand on the man's shoulder, frightening him so badly that his legs went weak and he dropped straight to his knees.

"I'll take this man with me. You should report this to the authorities. After all, so many people were killed; there has to be an explanation." Qin Shuang spoke to the middle-aged man who was clearly the leader.

"Thank you, young hero. I am Cheng Feng of the Changfeng Escort Agency of Chenliu, Yanzhou. I, Cheng, will always remember your aid today. May I ask your name, young hero? If you ever have the opportunity to visit Chenliu, you must come to the Changfeng Escort Agency for a visit and allow me to act as your host!" The middle-aged man clasped his fists and saluted Qin Shuang, his attitude sincere.

Cheng Feng's martial arts were not particularly formidable, but after escorting caravans for many years, he still had a good eye. The young man before him was young, yet his abilities were far beyond his own. His future achievements would certainly be extraordinary. If he could take this opportunity to form a favorable connection, it would benefit both him and the escort agency.

"My name is Qin Shuang. There's no need to be so polite!" Since the other party was courteous, Qin Shuang naturally would not put on airs. He returned the salute and said, "I'll be on my way. Until we meet again!"

"Until we meet again!"

After bidding farewell to Cheng Feng, Qin Shuang used his lightness skill to leave with Third Master Zhu and arrived at a forest.

"Third Master Zhu?" Qin Shuang said mockingly.

"Don't dare, don't dare! Great hero, my name is Zhu Tieshou. You can just call me Tieshou. Whatever orders you have, Great Hero, just tell me. Tieshou will get it done even if it costs me this worthless life!" Zhu Tieshou collapsed to the ground, completely unable to stand. He could only kowtow incessantly.

"You think you're worthy of being called Tieshou!" When Qin Shuang heard that this Third Master Zhu had shamelessly borrowed the name of the famed Great Constable of the West from Chaoge City, then saw his cowardly appearance, he could not help kicking him.

"Ah, I'm sorry! Great hero, spare me! I'm not worthy, I'm not worthy! Great hero, spare me!" Although Zhu Tieshou was utterly baffled and had no idea how his name had angered the fiend before him, he did not dare think about it and kept begging for mercy.

"Shut up. Now I'll ask one question, and you answer one question. If you conceal even the slightest thing, I'll send you to meet your brothers immediately," Qin Shuang said coldly.

"Ask whatever you want, Great Hero. I'll tell you everything I know. I absolutely wouldn't dare hide anything!" Zhu Tieshou raised his right hand and swore solemnly.

"Tell me about your stronghold."

"Yes, yes. Our stronghold... Our stronghold is called Black Cloud Stronghold, and it's right here on Mount Dawen. There are four chiefs in the stronghold. I'm ranked third. The other three are the chief, Black-Haired Tiger Xie Baoqing; the second chief, White-Eyed Tiger Xue Wujing; and the fourth chief, Flowery-Pelted Tiger Liang Shancat. The stronghold originally had one hundred and eighty-seven bandits. Forty-two came down the mountain with me this time, and they... they were all killed by Great Hero." By the end, Zhu Tieshou's teeth were chattering.

"Who is backing your stronghold?"

"Backing us? Ah... ah... ah!" Zhu Tieshou merely hesitated for a moment before Qin Shuang twisted his left arm until it snapped.

"Great hero, spare me! Great hero, spare me!" Zhu Tieshou's pain brought tears streaming down his face.

"I'll say it one more time. I ask, you answer. Don't waste words. This time it's your hand. Next time it'll be your neck!"

"Yes... yes..." Zhu Tieshou endured the pain and nodded repeatedly.

"Do you remember the question I just asked?"

"Yes... ah... no... ah, I remember. Our backer... I don't know who our backer is. Great hero, I really don't know. Great hero, spare me. I really... ah, I don't know who it is, but it must be someone from the authorities!"

"Why do you say it's someone from the authorities?"

"Because of Second Brother Xue. Ah, I mean Xue Wujing. He used to be a Strategist in the authorities. Once, at a feast celebrating a successful raid, I heard the chief address him that way. His tone was extremely respectful. They all thought I was drunk, but I was pretending at the time."

"Continue."

"We were originally just a small stronghold of fifty people, but as soon as Xue Wujing arrived, he directly became the second chief. After that, the chief could always obtain all kinds of information from below the mountain, allowing us to profit from every raid. In just half a year, we grew to nearly two hundred people. If our stronghold really has someone backing it in secret, then only the chief and Xue Wujing can answer that question!" Zhu Tieshou said solemnly.

"Are Xie Baoqing and Xue Wujing in the stronghold right now?"

"When I brought my brothers down the mountain, they were both still there!"

"Take me to your stronghold!"

"Now?"

Qin Shuang shot him a cold glance without saying anything. His icy gaze made Zhu Tieshou's back run cold. He immediately pointed out the direction and began leading the way.

The sun slowly rose above the horizon. Strands of morning light pierced through the thin mist, and golden radiance spilled over Black Cloud Stronghold.

Inside the main hall, Xie Baoqing sat upright at the head of the long table, feeling inexplicably uneasy. He looked at Xue Wujing, seated below him, and said respectfully, "Strategist, Zhu Laosan still hasn't sent anyone back with word. Could something have happened?"