The forest was steeped in silence. Looking up, sunlight filtered through the leafy canopy, glittering in the air like countless stars. It was somewhat dazzling, yet crystalline and beautiful, carrying an unfathomable tranquility.
A wild rabbit hiding beneath the bushes timidly surveyed its surroundings. It remained alert for possible danger while also admiring the scenery around it.
On the official road where the rabbit grazed, a carriage slowly emerged from the road ahead.
"Miss, Wutan City is up ahead. In just half an hour, we'll be able to enter Wutan City!"
The middle-aged man driving the carriage turned his head as he spoke to the passenger inside. Yet his eyes darted toward the bushes on either side like those of a rat crossing the street, watchful and wary.
Seemingly sensing the middle-aged man's nervousness, a pleasant voice, as sweet as a songbird's, came from within the carriage.
"Uncle, what's wrong?"
The passenger in the carriage seemed quite young, her voice filled with the childish innocence unique to children.
"Miss, this place is called Luofeng Slope. It is the only route into Wutan City. Under normal circumstances, there would be no problem. But I heard that bandits have been appearing here lately. It's broad daylight now. I just hope we won't be so unlucky as to run into them here!"
The middle-aged driver prayed inwardly. His uneasy gaze, like that of the alert rabbit, constantly scanned the bushes on both sides.
However, just as his words fell, the rabbit grazing ahead was startled and immediately darted back into the bushes.
"Hmm?"
The middle-aged man frowned slightly. Then, eight young men sprang out from the surrounding bushes.
Four stood in front and four behind, blocking the carriage's path forward as well as its way back.
"I built this road, I planted these trees. If you want to pass through here, leave behind your toll money!"
The leading youth hurled his spear into the ground and fixed the driver with a sharp gaze. "Cut the nonsense. Ten Gold Coins per head!"
"Ten?"
The driver's expression darkened. Ten Gold Coins were enough for a family of four to live worry-free for an entire year. Forget whether he could afford it—even if he had the money, he would never be willing to hand it over.
Ten Gold Coins were his hard-earned income for an entire year!
"Damn it, we really ran into these cursed bastards!"
The driver looked grave as he quietly said to the carriage, "Miss, sit tight. We'll charge straight through in one go! Once we enter Wutan City, we'll be safe."
The driver snapped the reins in his hand, and the whip cracked fiercely against the horse's rump. Startled, the horse bolted forward, its hooves flying as it charged madly ahead and kicked up a cloud of dust.
Faced with such a swift charge, the bandits blocking the road all dodged aside. Only the scar-faced man holding a spear did not move at all. Instead, a mocking curve formed at the corner of his lips.
Seeing this, the driver clearly had experience dealing with bandits blocking the road. From somewhere, he produced a silver needle and viciously stabbed it into the horse's rump.
Neigh!
With its rump pierced, the horse's eyes widened in pain. No longer caring whether there were obstacles ahead, it became even faster and charged forward in a wild frenzy.
"Trying to run?"
Scarred Bandit, the middle-aged leader, curled his lips slightly. Watching the frightened carriage, he showed no fear at all. When the carriage reached him, he shifted his body slightly and narrowly avoided the charging horse.
Then Scarred Bandit swung the silver spear in both hands. The galloping horse's front legs were struck, and it stumbled before crashing to the ground. The entire carriage behind it overturned as well.
"Ugh!"
The driver shuddered slightly, staring at the scene before him in shock. His foolproof method had actually failed today. Looking at the horse again, its front legs had been severed by Scarred Bandit's silver spear, and it lay on the ground, twitching without end.
"I'll say it one more time. Hand over ten Gold Coins. We want money, not lives." Scarred Bandit stared sharply at the driver.
After only a single glance, beads of sweat appeared on the driver's forehead, and his palms turned cold. That gaze was filled with murderous intent.
The driver struggled for a while, glanced over the other seven bandits, and finally, helplessly pulled a money pouch wrapped in many layers of cloth from his robes. He took out ten Gold Coins and tremblingly handed them over to Scarred Bandit.
At that moment, a little girl stepped out of the overturned carriage.
She wore a purple dress, her temperament cool and serene, like a green lotus blooming in the mortal world. Her pale blue eyes held the innocence unique to a young girl. Her slender waist was as delicate as a willow branch, seemingly thin enough to be encircled in one hand. Her long black hair was casually tied with a light-purple ribbon and fell smoothly along her lovely curves to her waist. Two tiny green bells hung from her fair wrists, making her look like someone painted into a picture.
"Oh? There's even a little girl?"
"What a pretty little girl. She'll definitely grow into a great beauty. Boss, why not take her back and make her your stronghold wife?"
"Yeah, Boss. Don't you like little girls?"
"Exactly, Boss. Judging by how this little girl is dressed, she obviously comes from a wealthy family. After you've had your fun, even if you don't make her your stronghold wife, we can still extort a good sum from her!"
The other bandits surrounded the little girl, their eyes gleaming as they revealed lecherous smiles. It seemed that not only their boss, but they themselves had also abused quite a few little girls before.
"Haha, she really is a beauty."
Scarred Bandit's eyes gleamed as he rested his hand against his chin and grinned lecherously. "Mm, take her back. Once I've enjoyed her, I'll let you all have your turn."
"Great!"
At those words, the other seven bandits instantly became excited. A rat-faced youth stepped out from among them and slowly walked toward the little girl.
"Let go of that girl. I'll handle this!"
At that moment, a clear voice rang out from the bushes beside the official road.
The eight bandits on the road turned toward the sound. They saw that, at some point, a boy of six or seven had appeared atop a large tree by the roadside. He wore water-blue clothes, and clever light shone in his eyes. Yet the childishness on his face made his words seem entirely unthreatening.
"Where did this little brat come from? Let me go catch him!" one of the bandits said as he stepped forward, only to be stopped by Scarred Bandit.
"Since you're one of us, little brat, don't worry. As long as you join us, once we're done, we'll let you have a taste too!" Scarred Bandit said with a laugh.
Hearing this, the little girl in the purple dress looked at the boy in surprise. A trace of coldness flickered in her eyes.
"Uh!"
Hun Han jumped down from the tree trunk. From a height of more than seven meters, he landed steadily with a light leap. Smiling, he corrected himself, "Well... that was a slip of the tongue. What I meant was, let her go. I'm here!"
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