Bandits and Soldiers Gather

Jiang Ping An lifted the Treasure Accumulation Basin, which was covered in cracks, and peered inside.

There was only the money and Spirit Stones he had placed within.

"Where are the horses? Why did they suddenly disappear? Does the Treasure Accumulation Basin like eating horses?"

As that thought crossed his mind, the Treasure Accumulation Basin flashed with green light again, and several slain horses appeared before him.

Jiang Ping An froze for a moment, his little heart pounding wildly.

"Could the Treasure Accumulation Basin also store things?"

"Put the things away!"

As his voice rang out, the several horses were taken back inside.

"It really can store things!"

He tried it with other items. Not only horses, but Spirit Stones, money, and branches could all be stored inside!

He also experimented with mice and insects, but it did not work. However, if he crushed the mice and insects to death, he could store them away.

In other words, the Treasure Accumulation Basin could store most things, except living animals!

After learning of this powerful function of the Treasure Accumulation Basin, Jiang Ping An was overjoyed.

He would never again have to worry about his things being stolen, nor would he need to carry heavy bundles on his back. He could just put everything in the Treasure Accumulation Basin and take it with him. What a fine treasure.

"Hee-hee~"

Jiang Ping An was in a cheerful mood.

He touched the jade pendant at his waist. It was carved with patterns he could not understand, and green light flickered over its surface.

The reason he had been able to kill those people this time was all thanks to this Protective Amulet.

Without the Protective Amulet's protection, even if he could have killed those soldiers, he would definitely have been injured.

The Protective Barrier had been struck several times, consuming much of the energy within the jade pendant.

He had to replenish it as soon as possible. This was something that could save his life.

Humming a mountain song, Jiang Ping An skipped back to the village.

Over the next few days, soldiers came to the village once to investigate the missing soldiers.

Just as Jiang Ping An had guessed, because he had wiped them all out, they found no trace of him.

Who would have imagined that a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old child possessed the ability to kill ten soldiers?

When the soldiers arrived, Jiang Ping An told them what had happened to the village and asked them to wipe out the bandits to avenge the villagers.

But the soldiers ignored him and turned around to leave.

Although the soldiers had not traced anything back to him, Jiang Ping An did not lower his guard. He remained extremely careful in his daily life.

Because he still had another group of enemies—the bandits.

He had accidentally let one of them escape before. He did not know when they would come for revenge.

Four days later, relying on the Spirit Stones he had copied over those days, Jiang Ping An successfully advanced from the Qi Refining Second Layer to the Qi Refining Third Layer.

His next breakthrough would require at least eighty Spirit Stones. His demand for Spirit Stones was growing greater and greater.

During those four days, aside from cultivating, he practiced with his blade, familiarizing himself with how to swing it and how to fight.

He had not forgotten the Protective Amulet either. Every day, he poured spiritual energy into the jade pendant to increase the energy stored within it.

And so another two days passed, but trouble still came.

A large group of bandits surrounded the village from all directions.

"Second Boss, this is the place. Look, smoke is still coming from the chimney. Brother Leopard and Brother Saber died here."

A shifty-eyed bandit bent at the waist and stood respectfully beside a terrifyingly brawny man over two meters tall.

The muscular man held a Wolf Tooth Club thicker than a human leg, his expression vicious.

"Those who dare kill the bandits of Great King Mountain are courting death! People inside, get the hell out here and die!"

Jiang Ping An, who had been cultivating in his room, slowly opened his eyes.

He had discovered the group long before they entered the village.

After breaking through to the Qi Refining Third Layer, his five senses had strengthened, allowing him to hear and see things far away.

He patted the Spirit Stone powder from his body, then rose without haste and walked outside.

When they saw that handsome young face, both the muscular man and the bandits were stunned.

"Are you fucking playing me? This brat killed Little Leopard?"

The two-meter-tall brute grabbed the shifty-eyed bandit by the collar and cursed furiously.

The shifty-eyed bandit was scared out of his wits. "Second Boss, it really was him! I saw him holding a blade, and he was even searching Brother Leopard and the others for things!"

"Fuck you!"

The brute known as the Second Boss flung the man away, then raised his head to look at the youth again.

"Where are your elders? Tell them to get the hell out here!"

He did not believe that this young man had taken care of five of their best fighters.

"There's only me in my family." Jiang Ping An's eyes were calm and indifferent.

The brute frowned tightly. "Then who killed our men?"

"I don't know. When I came back, your people were already dead at my doorstep," Jiang Ping An lied.

"Damn it! We came all this way for nothing. Kill this brat, then go loot other villages."

The brute was deeply disappointed. After swearing, he turned to leave, intending to have his subordinates deal with the youth.

Jiang Ping An narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists, preparing to strike.

"Clip-clop, clip-clop~"

At that moment, urgent hoofbeats came from the distance.

"Soldiers! Second Boss! Soldiers are coming!" a bandit cried out in terror.

"Run! Run!"

One bandit prepared to flee, but an arrow tore through the air and instantly pierced through his head.

In only a short while, a large force of soldiers surrounded the area.

The bandits' faces changed drastically. They gripped their weapons tightly.

"Don't panic!"

The Second Boss was the steadiest among them. His expression remained calm as he took the initiative to approach the soldiers. "Who's in charge?"

"I am!"

A brawny soldier riding a Fire Red War Horse and clad in Metal Armor rode forward.

"So it's Middle Captain Cui Xiao. Long time no see." The Second Boss greeted him first, clearly knowing him.

"You utterly heartless bandits actually dare show yourselves openly! Men, prepare to kill the bandits!" Cui Xiao shouted.

"Captain Cui, don't be in such a hurry."

The Second Boss smiled and took a backpack from his back, respectfully handing it over. "Today's haul is in here: three hundred taels of broken silver, some copper coins, and all kinds of jewelry."

A trace of satisfaction appeared in Cui Xiao's eyes. He accepted the backpack and placed it on the horse's back.

"Get lost. Don't let me see you next time."

"Thank you for your mercy, Captain Cui. Let's go!" The Second Boss gave his men the order.

Though it pained him to give up the silver they had robbed, it was still better than losing their lives.

"These bandits are the murderers who slaughtered our village! You're just letting them go?"

A voice that was still somewhat childish rang out.

Everyone turned to look at Jiang Ping An in unison.

"Idiot."

The Second Boss shot Jiang Ping An a disdainful glance, then led his men away. The soldiers did not stop them.

Jiang Ping An clenched his fists, staring straight at the large group of soldiers before him. Overcome with emotion, he roared:

"You are soldiers, responsible for protecting the people! They are bandits, the bandits who slaughtered our village! Why won't you kill them?"

The people paid the soldiers, and the soldiers protected the people. It was only natural. Yet these men had not done so. Instead, they had taken the bandits' money and let them go!

Cui Xiao's expression was indifferent. He did not pay Jiang Ping An any attention and instead said to his men:

"Hurry and harvest the grain in the rice paddies. Everyone in this village is dead. Later, go to the county and put these fields under my name."

He had come today because he had heard that everyone here was dead, and the farmland had reached harvest season. These fertile fields could not go to waste—they were all money.

"Oh, right. This brat's family also has farmland. Deal with him. If even one plot among all these fields isn't mine, it'll make me very uncomfortable."

Cui Xiao spoke the most chilling words in the calmest tone.

"Hahaha~ I always believed that only a few soldiers had driven my parents to death. I always believed that bad people were only a minority. Hahaha~"

Jiang Ping An laughed. Tears streamed down his face as he laughed, and the sense of justice his father had built within him came crashing down.