The Power of the Pupil

More than two thousand soldiers and two Great Captains headed for Eagle's Sigh Mountain Range to search for Jiang Ping An's trail.

This caused a huge stir in Flat Water County.

"The general's son was killed by that kid!"

"Which kid?"

"The one who killed Middle Captain Cui Xiao!"

"This... that's impossible, isn't it? Xu Hao was nearly as strong as a Great Captain. How did that kid kill him?"

"Come to think of it, do you know that kid's name?"

"His name is... Little Hero."

Once word spread through Flat Water County, the people on Great Xia's side of the border soon received the news as well.

Inside the General's Mansion of Continuous Mountain County, which faced Flat Water County across the border.

Meng Kuo, the general of Continuous Mountain County, was reviewing memorials when he heard the report from his subordinate. A flicker of surprise and shock appeared on his face.

"Is this true? A fourteen-year-old boy killed Xu Tao's son?"

Meng Kuo knew how strong Xu Tao's son was. He was nearly at the level of a Great Captain; in a tiny place like this, he could be considered a genius.

Yet such a person had actually died at the hands of a fourteen-year-old boy.

Where had this genius of a boy come from?

"Yes, General. It has been confirmed that Xu Hao is indeed dead. Xu Tao is now furious and has sent two thousand soldiers to encircle and suppress him."

The subordinate was utterly certain.

"Who is this boy, to be so formidable? Why did he clash with the soldiers of Flat Water County?" Meng Kuo asked in confusion.

"Reporting to the General, we still do not know exactly what happened. It is said that the boy was previously just an ordinary farmer from Flat Water County."

"A farmer?" Meng Kuo was even more surprised.

If that was true, then this boy must have obtained some heaven-defying opportunity.

"General, they are now short two thousand soldiers. This is the perfect time to attack!" the subordinate said excitedly.

"No."

Meng Kuo refused outright. "Even if we charge over now, it will be useless. At most, we can kill a few enemies; it will not change the overall situation. Send someone to save that boy!"

The subordinate froze. "Save that boy?"

"Yes, save him! Whether we can take Flat Water County will depend on this!"

A sharp gleam burst from Meng Kuo's deep eyes. Like a fierce tiger, he seemed poised to descend from the mountain.

The subordinate asked in confusion, "No matter how powerful that boy is, he is at most at the level of a Great Captain. He cannot affect the battle, can he?"

He felt it would be more worthwhile to send troops to kill the enemy. With any luck, they might even kill a Great Captain.

Meng Kuo shook his head. "What I want is not the boy's fighting strength, but... the people's hearts."

The subordinate's body jolted, and he immediately understood. "This subordinate will send someone to rescue him at once!"

Meng Kuo turned back to look at the map behind him. "Spirit Terrace Kingdom truly is a pack of idiots. A genius like this appeared, yet they did not nurture him."

A day passed.

Great King Mountain, the bandits' den, inside the prison.

Yuan Bin looked at Jiang Ping An, whose body was still trembling, and frowned deeply.

"He never begged for mercy?"

"Reporting to the Great Captain, no," the guard answered humbly.

"Great Captain, could this kid have already broken down and lost the ability to speak?" another guard asked cautiously.

Yuan Bin shook his head. "If he had broken down, he would have died directly."

"This boy possesses great perseverance. Although his talent is poor, if he continues down this path, he may achieve something."

Back when he had been in the sect, few below the Foundation Establishment Realm could endure for an entire day. This boy was only at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, yet he had lasted until now. He undoubtedly possessed tremendous perseverance.

"However, judging by how he is trembling now, he will not last much longer."

"The soldiers from Flat Water County have arrived. Since this kid refuses to talk, hand him over to those soldiers and exchange him for some benefits."

"Watch him carefully. I will go negotiate with those soldiers."

Yuan Bin stroked his goatee and slowly departed.

Since this kid would not talk, then torture him to death.

"Damn it, this kid made This Old Man go a whole day and night without sleep. I really want to kill him!"

A guard carrying a Wolf Tooth Club strode furiously toward Jiang Ping An.

"Are you crazy? If you dare kill him, the Great Captain will chop you to pieces!" the person beside him hurriedly stopped him.

"I'm not an idiot. I'm just saying."

The guard holding the Wolf Tooth Club thought for a moment. "Say, if we interrogate the location where he hid his resources from him, will the Great Captain reward us?"

"Forget it. Even the Blood-colored Eyeball does not have that ability. What makes you think you are qualified?" the other guard rolled his eyes at him.

"Just give it a try. What if it works?"

The bandit holding the Wolf Tooth Club kicked Jiang Ping An in the stomach.

"This Old Man is giving you one chance now. Tell me where the resources are, and This Old Man will give you a quick death. Otherwise, you will continue suffering!"

"Death?"

Jiang Ping An slowly raised his head. His voice was weak yet unyielding. "My mother told me over and over... to let me... live well..."

"Live? Hahaha, live my ass! If someone like you can still survive, This Old Man will go die right now, hahaha!"

The bandit holding the Wolf Tooth Club burst into laughter. Even the Great Captain had said that Jiang Ping An could not hold on much longer.

Suddenly, the bandit's laughter came to an abrupt halt.

A pair of terrifying blood-red eyes stared at him without blinking. A dreadful chill spread through his entire body, and unprecedented fear flooded his heart.

He wanted to run, but for some reason, he could not move his body!

It was as though something had locked him down completely!

A cold glint flashed through Jiang Ping An's eyes. The bandit holding the Wolf Tooth Club suddenly had his head spun around, then collapsed to the ground, bleeding from all seven orifices.

"Come..."

Seeing this bizarre scene, the guard at the door was terrified. Just as he was about to cry out in horror, his neck also twisted around, and he fell to the ground.

Jiang Ping An turned his head toward the chains binding him.

Crack! Crack!

The chains shattered one after another in a bizarre manner, and his body came down from the iron stake.

Ever since he had endured that indescribable pain again and again, Jiang Ping An had discovered that he possessed the ability to control objects.

He could sense that this power originated from his right eye.

This power might not be able to deal with that goateed cultivator, but against these bandits, it was more than enough.

With a thought, he took three Spirit Stones from the Bronze Basin.

As he restored his spiritual energy and healed the wounds on his body, he walked outside.

When he passed the Black Array Flag, Jiang Ping An casually picked it up and tossed it into the Treasure Accumulation Basin.

Many people were imprisoned in the dungeon, most of them women. Their clothes were disheveled, and their eyes were vacant.

"Someone escaped!"

A guard spotted Jiang Ping An and suddenly shouted.

The instant he finished shouting, his jaw and the top of his head switched places. He died a gruesome death.

However, his shout still alerted the bandits in the stronghold.

A group of bandits heard the commotion and surrounded him.

Jiang Ping An's gaze was indifferent. He casually glanced at them, and more than a dozen bandits suddenly bent backward. With a crack, the waists of all of them broke, blood gushing from their mouths and noses. The scene was extremely bizarre.

The people in the dungeon heard the disturbance and looked up.

When they saw the bandits broken in half at the waist, color of hope returned to their numb, despairing faces.

"Child, run! Let the Soldiers come save us!" a woman shouted.

Although they did not know what was happening, they saw hope of escape.

"Soldiers?"

Jiang Ping An's eyes flickered. He said nothing and walked into the Great King Mountain stronghold, sweeping through the bandits inside.

Aside from that goateed cultivator, the other bandits were all ordinary people, unable to withstand even a single blow.

He did not know why that goateed man had come here to become a bandit. With his abilities, he could clearly have lived a far more comfortable life in the city.

After killing the bandits, Jiang Ping An returned to the prison.

"Child! Why did you come back? Hurry and run!" a woman cried anxiously.

She had been hoping the boy would escape and report to the authorities to save them.

She did not know why he had run back.

"I killed them all. You can leave now."

Jiang Ping An said calmly.

"Killed them all?"

The people imprisoned in the cells wore blank expressions.