Acquiring Treasure Armor, Black Tiger Gang Annihilated! (Seeking Follow-up Reads!)

Su Mu channeled Force into his arms, exerting his strength after twisting Zhao Xuan's neck to completely snap off the head. He then tore a curtain from the room and used it to wrap the head, hanging it from his waist.

Next, he reached out and took the treasure armor from Zhao Xuan's corpse.

"It can withstand the full force of Tiger Subduing Fist... a good item."

The armor was as thin as cicada wings, semi-transparent in the moonlight, feeling soft and delicate to the touch with a faint coolness. Su Mu casually tucked it into his clothes before his hands quickly moved over the headless corpse.

Soon, he found a stack of silver notes. Su Mu stuffed them into his pocket without counting. Hearing approaching footsteps outside the courtyard, he picked up Zhao Xuan's body and threw it towards the entrance to the inner courtyard.

BOOM!

The corpse landed heavily at the courtyard entrance.

Seizing this opportunity, Su Mu rummaged through the drawers and cabinets in the room. When a hidden drawer was pulled open, the scent of medicine wafted out.

"White Jade Savage Bone Paste... a full five boxes."

Su Mu's eyes gleamed. It seemed Zhao Xuan and Wu Heng weren't as close as rumored. Su Mu wouldn't be polite now. He tore off another piece of curtain, twisted it into a bundle, and packed the medicinal paste along with other small porcelain bottles, taking everything.

Just then, the Black Tiger Gang members outside finally appeared, and an unusual commotion erupted at the courtyard entrance.

"This, this body's build, and the clothes... is this the Gang Leader's body?"

"The Gang Leader... is dead?"

Someone quickly recognized Zhao Xuan's corpse. The arriving Black Tiger Gang members froze in place, stunned. For a moment, the unguarded courtyard gate seemed like a forbidden zone, and everyone's expression changed drastically, daring not to cross it.

Inside the room, Su Mu soon found a martial arts manual from a hidden compartment. He stuffed it all into the curtain bundle. After calmly and thoroughly checking the room, Su Mu slung the bundle over his shoulder and tightened it.

He leaped out, right before their eyes, onto the high wall about ten feet up. With a few more leaps, his figure, like a dragonfly skimming water, disappeared into the night.

After Su Mu left, the Black Tiger Gang members outside rushed into Zhao Xuan's inner courtyard. Soon, the sounds of fighting erupted. Wu Heng and Zhao Xuan were dead, and the Black Tiger Gang was leaderless.

Greed stirred their hearts. The Black Tiger Gang members immediately began fighting over the treasures in the house, their battle dyeing the courtyard red with blood.

Of course, Su Mu, who had already left, knew nothing of this, and even if he did, he wouldn't care.

"Close the doors and windows, prevent theft and burglary."

On the quiet streets late at night, the night watchman, carrying a lantern, beat his wooden clapper and gong, signaling the second watch.

Just then, the night watchman suddenly turned his head to look at the nearby street and rubbed his eyes. He thought he had seen something flash by.

"I must have been mistaken, or perhaps it was a wild cat?"

The night watchman continued on his way, repeating the slogan for the second watch: "Close the doors and windows, prevent theft and burglary."

On the dark street, a figure leaped onto the second floor of an inn without alerting anyone and entered a room facing the street through the window. When the figure emerged again, there was another round bundle hanging from his waist, one on each side.

He left the town and headed east.

On the mountainside of White Egret Mountain, Su Mu suddenly saw a large fire in the eastern part of the city.

"Is that direction Zhao Xuan's residence?"

Su Mu was puzzled. He didn't know that the Black Tiger Gang members in Zhao Xuan's residence had already gone mad with fighting, and the fire was the result of their conflict.

After a few glances, Su Mu looked away. Everything was irrelevant to him now.

Su Mu climbed to the summit of White Egret Mountain, took down the two bundles from his waist, and placed the heads of the armored strongman and Zhao Xuan before Zhou Shan's grave.

A sliver of early morning sun dispelled the mountain's cold wind, illuminating the land. Su Mu shouldered his bag and looked towards the rising sun. A few egrets cried out in the woods, and then several egrets took flight from White Egret Mountain, migrating south.

Autumn had begun, and winter was not far off.

Egrets leave the green mountains, never to see Qingshui Town again.

There are no eternal banquets in the world. Last night, Su Mu brought the heads of his enemies; today, after offering a final cup of wine, he rose to leave.

"Uncle Zhou, travel well."

The young man's steps as he descended the mountain changed from heavy to light and steady. His life's path was like the rising sun; everything was just beginning, and his story was still unfolding.

"In this chaotic world, good people don't live long... what is in your own hands is truly yours!"

A look of determination flashed in the young man's eyes, and his resolve to become stronger grew even more unshakeable.

At the foot of the mountain, Su Mu met Uncle Li and Brother Xiaohu.

"Xiaomu, you should go back and get some rest." A look of relief flashed in Uncle Li's eyes. He hadn't misjudged the person, and neither had Zhou Shan.

Su Mu acknowledged him and then asked to take his leave.

"Alright, all the masters are at the shop. You can go see them before you leave."

Li Tie patted Su Mu's shoulder and walked a few steps away, leaving some time for Xiaohu and Su Mu. Finally, Li Xiaohu hugged Su Mu. "Su Mu, I'll come find you in the city!"

"Okay, I'll wait for you."

The young man solemnly agreed and descended the mountain. The Li father and son headed up the mountain.

"Dad, what are those two dark things in front of Uncle Zhou's grave?"

As they approached, they looked closely and saw two bloody human heads. Li Xiaohu's face turned pale, and he began to tremble. But Li Tie's expression changed drastically.

He recognized one of the heads as belonging to the leader of the bandits who had attacked the town that day and led the assault on the blacksmith shop, killing Master Zhou and others.

The other head, although its face was disfigured, must have been extraordinary to be placed alongside the bandit leader. Li Tie's mind inexplicably conjured the image of the Black Tiger Gang Leader Zhao Xuan, and the head before him seemed to blur and overlap with the figure in his memory.

"The other head belongs to Zhao Xuan?!"

Gulp.

Li Tie swallowed hard and suddenly turned to look down the mountain path. The young figure had long since disappeared.

"Uncle Li... I, I feel a bit stifled. I'm just going out for some air and will be back soon."

The boy's words from a few days ago echoed in Li Tie's ears at that moment.

Memories flashed back. The night Wu Heng forcibly took the thirty-forged long saber, a mysterious expert had broken into Wu Heng's residence and killed him.

The memories continued to rewind.

Li Tie remembered that when Wu Heng first came to the shop to cause trouble, it was also Su Mu who had helped Zhou Shan up. Everything connected in Li Tie's mind.

"So it was Xiao Mu... but Xiao Mu is only fourteen!"

As Li Tie marveled at the prodigy in his mind, Su Mu had already returned to the shop on the other side. After bidding farewell to the masters, he quickly left town. He was going to continue searching for Pharmacist Lin's whereabouts.

On White Egret Mountain, Li Xiaohu saw his father staring blankly at the two heads. He swallowed hard and, bracing himself, looked again. This time, he couldn't help but let out a gasp.

Li Xiaohu recognized one of the heads and said with a trembling voice.

"Dad, Dad... this head, isn't it the one from that day..."

Li Tie interrupted Li Xiaohu's words. "Let's go, back to the shop. We need to get back to the shop quickly!"

The two were still a step too late. They learned from the masters that Su Mu had already left. Li Tie pondered for a moment and then publicly announced his decision to disband the shop.

Ignoring the persuasion of many masters, Li Tie insisted on taking out his savings and giving each master a considerable sum of money.

"Masters, this era is not peaceful. I plan to take Xiaohu back to my hometown. I hope you all take care!"

"Shop owner, take care!"

Watching the masters of the blacksmith shop leave one by one, Li Xiaohu felt an indescribable sense of loss and confusion.

"Dad, why are you disbanding the shop? You clearly didn't want to. This shop is the result of your hard work for over twenty years."

Li Tie looked at Xiaohu and said earnestly.

"Xiaohu, you'll understand later... In the future, our shop will produce a truly remarkable person. Xiaohu, let's go."

The disbandment of the Li Family Blacksmith Shop did not cause much of a stir in Qingshui Town, as an even more sensational event had occurred.

Zhao Xuan, the leader of the Black Tiger Gang, who had terrorized Qingshui Town for nearly twenty years, had his head cut off during the night. With the Black Tiger Gang leaderless, the remaining hall masters fought amongst themselves, leading to casualties and infighting over treasures. The once-great Black Tiger Gang collapsed overnight.

The tiger roar heard on the night Zhao Xuan died spread throughout Qingshui Town. Legends of the ancient Mountain Lord appearing once again began to circulate in the area.

For the next several days, Su Mu searched the Qingshui Town area alone. He inquired from several medicine merchants and learned of Pharmacist Lin's whereabouts from a month prior, but his current location remained unknown.

"I should head back to Qingyun City first."