Dimensional Bandits

Fang Ming's hand holding the sword trembled slightly...

He never expected that his visit to his uncle, at his father's behest, and his only purpose in staying overnight in this place, would lead to such a brutal encounter with thieves.

This gang of thieves appeared out of nowhere; each one had a peculiar appearance, draped in animal skins, and spouting incomprehensible gibberish. They acted like savages, killing anyone they saw and stealing anything they could find... Even their servants were killed, and their protector, Uncle Yan, was no match for the bandit leader...

To be honest, that bandit leader was indeed formidable. Uncle Yan was a third-rank master certified by the imperial court, and ordinary mountain bandits would retreat in fear at the mere sight of his imposing presence. This group of barbaric bandits had already killed several of them at first, but then, the bandit Uncle Yan used some unknown means, and without anyone noticing, Uncle Yan's limbs suddenly became unresponsive, and even his Body Protecting Qi became chaotic. Taking advantage of the situation, a bandit nearby struck Uncle Yan on the head with a hammer, causing him to fall to the ground severely injured and be hacked to death.

Despite having all his servants and henchmen killed, Fang Ming, still possessing a fierce spirit, managed to wound several bandits in the chaos, relying on his sword and the Swordsmanship he had received from a renowned master. However, as the townspeople and government officials surrendered one after another, only Fang Ming remained to resist. The bandit leader, perhaps in a playful mood, did not order an attack but instead had one of his bandits duel with Fang Ming, while the crowd watched the spectacle.

Before him stood enemies taller and fiercer than himself, surrounded by bandits speaking incomprehensible languages, laughing and jeering loudly, with their leader, who possessed some mysterious abilities, flanking him. Fang Ming knew there was absolutely no chance of escape.

But the men of the Fang family only die standing up, never live on their knees. Even in a situation where death is inevitable, they will drag a thief down with them!

Thinking of this, Fang Ming gripped his longsword tightly, roared, spotted his opponent's weakness, and unleashed a Shooting Star Rush, thrusting straight at his opponent!

This was Fang Ming's most proficient move, extremely powerful, but once unleashed, there was no turning back; it was a desperate, no-retreat move. He hadn't used it before, precisely to catch a thief off guard at the last moment!

The thief hadn't expected this young Young Master to have such Ultimate Move. In his panic, he had no time to dodge and could only parry with his knife. However, Fang Ming's sword was a first-class weapon. Upon impact, the Oxtail Saber broke in two. Fang Ming's sword continued its momentum, aiming straight for the thief's heart!

Just as the sword tip was about to pierce through, Fang Ming suddenly felt his hands and feet become unresponsive. As he braked abruptly, his wrists automatically exerted force, deflecting the sword. As the thief dodged the attack, Fang Ming lost his balance and fell headfirst to the ground, landing face-first in the dirt.

It's that weird move again... Fang Ming looked at the smiling bandit leader next to him, raised his hand, gritted his teeth and was about to get up when he felt someone step on his back and a broken knife was pressed against his neck, making him unable to move.

"You shameless thieves!" Fang Ming cursed, gripping his sword and preparing to retaliate, but the bandit leader suddenly beckoned to him with his finger. Fang Ming felt his hand open uncontrollably, the sword slipped from his grasp, and then floated up on its own, slowly flying into the bandit leader's hand.

The bandit leader gripped Fang Ming's sword, examined it carefully for a moment, and then swung it at the blue stone beside him.

With a clang, a corner of the bluestone was chipped off, leaving a smooth, triangular cut. Looking at the blade, there was no damage whatsoever.

"Excellent steel!" the bandit leader exclaimed. "Even Utopiya's military factories don't have materials of this quality."

Fang Ming naturally couldn't understand what this guy was saying, so he could only continue cursing. But the bandit leader had also lost patience and ordered his men, "Kill him."

The burly thief nodded, grinned maliciously, and raised his broken knife, ready to slit Fang Ming's throat.

Knowing he was about to die, Fang Ming resignedly closed his eyes. However, the expected cold touch did not come. Instead, the pressure on his back suddenly disappeared, followed by a thud as he fell to the ground beside him. At the same time, the shouts of the bandits around him also rang out.

Fang Ming opened his eyes and saw a headless corpse lying beside him. It was the bandit he had just fought. The surrounding bandits became agitated, and the bandit leader in the middle was no longer calm. He stood up and looked at them in surprise.

Could it be that a master has intervened to help?

Is he a disciple of the Sword Saint? Or a master from the Heaven's Gate?

Fang Ming immediately envisioned a powerful scene in his mind: a majestic White-bearded Old Man coming to the rescue, or a beautiful scene: a fairy in white gracefully making her appearance.

He turned his head with anticipation, only to be completely stunned by the sight before him.

Not far away stood a man who was completely naked except for a pair of shorts, holding a human head in his hand.

Even more surprisingly, the man had a scarf wrapped around his face, covering the lower half of his face...

Is this... a helpful expert, or a monster...?

The bandit leader frowned, looking at the man who had suddenly appeared before him.

Just now, this man appeared without warning and instantly killed my blessed subordinate... You must know that after being blessed, not only is one's strength greatly increased, but one's body is also covered with invisible armor, which can even withstand the shooting of muskets!

But against this man, the invisible armor was utterly useless... and his speed was so fast that it was impossible to react. If that attack had been aimed at him, wouldn't he have been...?

Luo Jun tossed the severed head in his hand and turned to look around.

There shouldn't be anyone I know...

This time, he removed the Midnight Mask beforehand, since that mask was too famous. Even if no one saw it, people would still associate it with the night. He had just shown off his skills in [Utopia] and then came to [Martial World], making it easy for others to track his movements.

So he simply put away his mask. There were no cameras in this world, so even if he showed his face, as long as no one he knew knew, people wouldn't be able to connect him to Luo Jun just by talking about it. But just to be on the safe side, he still took out an ordinary scarf from his Hundred Treasure Box to cover his face.

Luo Jun's gaze finally settled on the bandit leader's face. He frowned slightly, then spoke a name in the Xiluo Common Language:

"Douglas?"

Upon hearing this, the bandit leader's eyes widened immediately. "You know me? You're from over there too?"

Luo Jun snorted coldly. Although he had already returned his Translation Treasure Tool, he already had some basic knowledge of the Xi Luo Language. In addition, he had listened to it a lot in [Utopia] these past few days. With his current Mental Power, his learning progressed by leaps and bounds. Although he hadn't completely mastered it, he could already complete simple conversations.

"I've seen your wanted poster." Luo Jun's cold gaze fixed on Douglas: "The leader of the Fanged Hounds!"

That's right, this Douglas, along with the other bandits, are the Fanged Hounds that the City Defense Army mentioned before, causing trouble in the south of Paramis City!

According to Officer Raymond, the bandits were utterly defeated at the South City Fortress and fled into the depths of the desert. Unexpectedly, these deserters discovered the Gate of Myriad Realms in the desert and managed to sneak into the [Martial World]!

So it seems they were the ones who skinned the bears, killed the wild animals along the way, and even discovered the town at the foot of the mountain, where they carried out acts of arson, murder, and looting!

Although most of the Fanged Hounds perished Paramis City, leaving only about two hundred survivors who lost their equipment while passing through the Gate of Myriad Realms, their ferocity as bandits far surpassed that of ordinary civilians. Furthermore, the Fanged Hounds ' leader had received a blessing in an High Antiquity ruin, granting them a protective shield similar to internal energy, greatly enhancing their strength and defense, even though they hadn't cultivated Douglas energy. This made them a match for the soldiers and yamen runners in the [Martial World] town who possessed some martial arts skills; the entire town couldn't withstand their attack.

Seeing this scene, Luo Jun sighed. Although it was unintentional, the fact that these bandits had escaped to this place was also related to his Gate of Myriad Realms.

Of course, Luo Jun did not regret it. It concerned his Master's life and death. If he had to choose again, he would still decisively open the Gate of Myriad Realms. However, looking at the dilapidated town and the dead and wounded people, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty... But at the same time, he also felt a surge of hatred for these bandits!

"A robber is a robber; he can't change his vile nature no matter where he goes." Luo Jun looked coldly at Douglas, the Killing Intent in his eyes sending a chill down the spine of this arrogant bandit leader.

After shivering, Douglas raised his hands without hesitation and used all his control over Luo Jun!

Activating this ability feels wonderful, like playing a musical instrument. Douglas instinctively knows how to manipulate it to elicit a certain reaction from his opponent, just like a skilled musician who knows which string to pluck and what sound to produce.

But at this moment, when he tried to control Luo Jun, he felt as if he were not plucking delicate strings, but rather the towering pillars supporting the dome of the palace!

What kind of monster is this? I can't control it at all...

The thought had barely formed in his mind when he felt a blur before his eyes. The naked, masked man vanished from his sight in a flash. Then, he felt a dizzying sensation, followed by a thud as if his head had hit something. Looking closely, he saw a headless corpse before him, and behind it stood the masked man...

"This is... my body... where's my head?"

This was Douglas's final thought...

Seeing Douglas dead, his bandits panicked. In their eyes, their boss possessed magical power, like a god... But now that this god had fallen, they had no courage to fight against Luo Jun, the "god-slayer." After only a moment's hesitation, they dropped their weapons and fled.

Luo Jun naturally had no intention of letting them go either. He took out the Ashen Urn of the Tomb King, released the Undead Warrior inside, and began to hunt down these guys.

Without Douglas's power, these bandits weren't even at the Body Refinement Realm; they were just strong ordinary people without any suitable weapons. How could they possibly withstand these Undead Warrior? They were captured and killed in no time.

Luo Jun looked at the shimmering Cinerary Urn of ashes and thought that although it was covered with those strange crystals, it didn't seem to affect its use... On the contrary, those Undead Warrior seemed to be much more agile than before, and their movements were smoother... Could they have been enhanced in some way?

Seeing that the robbers had all been killed, the townspeople who had escaped death breathed a sigh of relief... but they were not happy at all. Their houses had been destroyed, their families had been killed, and even if they survived, they could never return to their former happy lives.

The disheveled Old Man who had been trampled under Douglas's feet got up and approached Luo Jun, bowing respectfully. "Hero... I am the local magistrate, representing all the surviving townspeople, and I sincerely thank you for your righteous act. However, our town was ravaged by bandits, resulting in heavy casualties, and I'm afraid we cannot offer much reward... If you don't mind, hero, you can stay in town for a few more days, and we will treat you well..."

"No need to be so polite..." Luo Jun waved his hand. "It was just a small favor. As a local official, you should focus on leading the people to rebuild their homes... By the way, is there an oil mill in town? Or any other flammable or fire-starting materials?"

"Yes! Yes!" The magistrate immediately arranged for people to retrieve them, while Luo Jun controlled the Undead Warrior to drag back the bandits' corpses, pile them on an open ground, pour oil on them, and set them on fire.

Although these bandits are dead, the characteristics of the [Utopia] world can still be seen from their appearance. If the Yuan Cultivation Society saw them, it would inevitably arouse suspicion. After burning them, there are no physical objects, and it would be difficult to accurately describe them based solely on the oral descriptions of the surviving townspeople.

As for the Undead Warrior, the townspeople didn't react much.

This place is close to the Southern Borderlands, where there is a Southern Borderlands that specializes in practicing the art of controlling corpses and ghosts. Although Cultivators can control zombies in battle are rare, everyone has heard of them and regards Luo Jun as a master who is proficient in ghost control.

After disposing of the robbers' bodies, Luo Jun asked for a set of coarse cloth clothes to wear and prepared to leave. Just as he was about to leave, someone called out to him.

"My benefactor, please wait!"

Luo Jun turned around and saw that it was the boy who had fought the bandits earlier.

While they were cleaning up the robbers' bodies, the young man thanked Luo Jun and offered him gold and silver, which Luo Jun refused. He remembered that the boy's name was Fang Ming, and judging from his clothes and mannerisms, he was not from an ordinary family.

"I wonder which direction my benefactor is heading?"

Luo Jun paused slightly, then pondered for a moment before saying, "I'm just wandering the martial world, I don't have any specific purpose..."

"Then I have a favor to ask..." Fang Ming said through gritted teeth, "I come from the Hedong Fang Family. This time, I am on my father's orders to visit a friend in Yunzhou City. However, when I was staying here, I encountered some villains..."

"All my servants who accompanied me perished here, especially one of my skilled guards. His hometown was in Yunzhou, and he came here on a whim to visit relatives. I never expected that he would die here with me... I wanted to transport his body to Yunzhou so that his family could rest in peace, but it's really inconvenient for me to do it alone, and I'm also worried about encountering villains along the way... So..."

"So you want to hire me to escort you to Yunzhou City?" Luo Jun understood Fang Ming's meaning.

"I wouldn't dare say I'm hiring you..." Fang Ming explained, "I'm just asking for your help, my benefactor. Of course, as a token of my gratitude, I'll definitely give you a generous gift afterwards!"

"Only that guard?" Luo Jun looked at Fang Ming. "Where are the other servants?"

"The others..." Fang Ming explained, "The journey back is too long for the others, so they can only be buried here..."

Luo Jun glanced at Fang Ming, thinking that it was only about a hundred miles from here to Yunzhou City, so it wouldn't take much time, and nodded in agreement.

(End of this chapter)