Fourteen Head of the Band

Night.

After making the rounds of the mountain stronghold, Li Mo arrived outside Little Arhat Han Kui's door.

Seeing Li Mo come to visit, Han Kui froze for a moment. He then opened the door and welcomed him with a broad smile. After entering, Li Mo sat down with him for a heart-to-heart talk.

"It's like this. The stronghold assigned Hei Wa as my apprentice and assistant. His mother is seriously ill and needs some dried dates to nourish her. I saw some at the Zhang siblings' black shop before. I wonder if Big Brother Han brought any back that day. Could you spare some for Hei Wa's mother?"

"So that's what this is about."

After learning Li Mo's purpose, Han Kui immediately sent someone to the storehouse to fetch some dried dates.

As one of the stronghold's heads of the band, doing so technically broke the rules, but if it was only some dried dates for treating an illness, no one would say much.

"Then I'll thank you on Hei Wa's behalf, Big Brother Han."

Seeing this, Han Kui held his prayer beads and said, "Amitabha."

"Saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Brother Li Mo, rest assured. Once the boss's injuries have healed, he'll certainly make you the stronghold's fourteenth head of the band. From then on, you'll receive a share of silver every month. Perhaps he'll even build you a hall of your own. When that time comes, if you need anything, just tell the people below you."

Although every head of the band in the stronghold had his own duties, they were ultimately only bandits who had claimed a mountain. Since everyone lived together each day, there were no halls with clearly divided functions.

"I'll follow the boss's arrangements."

After becoming somewhat familiar with Han Kui, Li Mo decided to ask about cultivators.

"By the way, Big Brother Han, there's something else I'd like to ask you. How do people in the martial world distinguish between levels of martial skill? And what exactly is Inner Strength? Which is stronger, those supreme experts or cultivators?"

Han Kui immediately began to laugh when he heard this.

To him, asking such a question suited Li Mo's current age far more than being able to kill the Zhang siblings alone.

"Hehe. Once you've practiced martial arts, killed someone, and become stained with Killing Intent, you can be considered to have entered the martial world. Even if you don't consider yourself one of its people, others will recognize you as such. And as someone in the martial world, many things are beyond your control."

He paused briefly.

"As for differences in martial skill, so long as the gap in strength isn't too great, you can sense some of it. For example, little brother, if this humble monk is not mistaken, the martial art you practice has surely already reached the minor-achievement stage, hasn't it?"

"That's right."

Li Mo nodded in admission, though he was somewhat puzzled. He did not seem to possess any similar sense.

Han Kui smiled. "So little brother, you're already a Second-Rate Expert in the martial world. Once your martial art reaches great attainment, you'll be a peak Second-Rate Expert. To possess such strength at your age means that once fate arrives, you'll surely soar into the heavens. Above that are First-Rate Experts who have cultivated Inner Strength. However, such experts generally head to the distant Xia Kingdom. That place is the sacred land of mortal martial arts, possessing countless Postnatal Realm and Innate Realm martial arts. Those who master them can even contend with cultivators from those immortal mountains and sacred lands. This is the only path out for us martial artists."

"This..."

Li Mo was astonished. He had never heard of this before.

Han Kui continued, "As for the so-called Inner Strength, I once heard an old monk from Chanyu Temple say that once a person's martial cultivation reaches a certain level, the body, having endured a thousand temperings, will continuously sharpen its spiritual awareness and thereby undergo some latent change. With the aid of a mental cultivation method, it can then be slowly transformed by the spiritual energy of heaven and earth during future cultivation, gradually becoming Inner Strength. This allows one to unleash methods similar to saber qi, Sword Qi, fist winds, and the like, breaking through the limits of human strength."

Li Mo could not help feeling excited.

"So martial artists really can contend with cultivators?"

"This..."

Han Kui smiled awkwardly.

"That's merely the wishful thinking of us martial artists. Cultivators are born with spiritual roots and can sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. They actively circulate energy in cultivation, condensing it into pure magical power. With it, they can cast the Five Elements spells and control artifacts to kill their enemies. Those are genuine methods of the immortals. We martial artists are ultimately merely worldly mortals. To contend with them..."

Han Kui sighed and silently shook his head.

"It's simply too difficult."

Li Mo was first shocked by the theories of Inner Strength and magical power, then he thought of the mysterious mist in the Mystic Dream. It was formless and intangible, flowing slowly, unevenly dense, and present everywhere.

Could this be the so-called spiritual energy of heaven and earth?

Seeing Li Mo's vacant expression, Han Kui assumed he was worrying about his future and offered some consolation.

"Still, little brother, you needn't belittle yourself. Although the road ahead for us martial artists is rugged, we aren't entirely without merit. I've heard that whether martial artists or cultivators, what they ultimately pursue is the so-called 'orthodoxy.' The great kingdoms of the Central Plains each possess their own orthodoxy. Once one comprehends the Dao, one can be reborn from the mortal shell."

"Orthodoxy?"

Li Mo's face revealed his confusion.

Han Kui continued, "Besides, I've heard that many cultivators also practice basic martial arts alongside their cultivation. Supposedly, once basic martial arts reach great attainment, certain special potentials within the human body will be awakened. Even cultivators benefit immensely from this."

This news was extraordinarily important to Li Mo, and delight immediately appeared in his eyes.

It seemed that no matter what, there would certainly be no harm in first cultivating the Three-Way Swordplay to great attainment.

"Then, Big Brother Han, do you know how to test whether one possesses Root Bone, or how to join an immortal mountain or sacred land?"

"This humble monk entered the monastic life as a child and doesn't know. However, I seem to recall Wang Ying mentioning it. You can ask her. After all, she was once the top courtesan of the Misty Rain House in Prefecture City. She has seen the wider world and knows many things we don't."

The matter had come back around to Wang Ying.

When Li Mo was preparing to leave, Han Kui handed him a bag of dried dates.

After thanking him, Li Mo delivered them to Hei Wa's house that very night. Hei Wa immediately knelt and kowtowed in gratitude.

"Get up, quickly."

After comforting Hei Wa for a while, Li Mo returned to his own wooden hut. Just as he was about to enter and rest, he suddenly noticed what seemed to be a man standing outside Jade Fox Wang Ying's door in the distance.

It was too dark for him to see who the man was.

When Jade Fox Wang Ying opened her door, he heard her say in a seductive voice, "Your injury hasn't healed yet, and you're still acting so restless. Aren't you afraid you'll lose an arm forever?"

"Hmph. If he can't cure it, then he's a freeloader. He dares toy with the two of us brothers? I'll chop him up tomorrow!"

After making his threat, he impatiently added, "Let me in quickly. I've missed you to death these past few days."

"Hehe, Li Mo is someone I brought here. How dare you?"

Amid Jade Fox Wang Ying's coquettish laughter, the two flirted with each other and entered the room.

Li Mo's expression darkened. He had naturally already guessed who that man was. After taking a deep look at the wooden hut where Jade Fox Wang Ying stayed, he returned to his own room.

The next day.

Li Mo went to Greenface Tiger Gao Zhen's cave for a follow-up examination.

Seeing that Gao Zhen could already raise his arm, he nodded, a satisfied look appearing on his face.

"Congratulations, boss. The poison in this arm has basically been drawn out. From here, a little recuperation will be enough for it to recover completely."

"Haha! Good!"

Gao Zhen grinned from ear to ear, repeatedly praising Doctor Li and exclaiming over how his medicine cured illness on contact.

After this incident, Li Mo quickly built up considerable prestige within the stronghold. Every afternoon, after returning from gathering herbs, patients would come to his door seeking treatment. Relying on his own experience, Li Mo did his best to cure everyone who came to him, steadily building his connections and reputation.

Half a month later.

Hei Wa's mother's health had improved somewhat. After Li Mo administered a powerful dose of medicine, her complexion rapidly recovered.

Seeing this, Hei Wa was filled with boundless gratitude toward Li Mo and followed him with utter devotion. The uncles connected to Hei Wa also clearly changed their attitude toward Li Mo, respectfully greeting him whenever they met.

As the number of patients Li Mo cured increased, so did his prestige in the stronghold. Combined with his good relations with many heads of the band, he gradually became someone no one in the stronghold was willing to offend.

As a result.

His becoming the Pingshan Society's fourteenth head of the band followed as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

One day.

The Pingshan Society held a Hundred Chicken Banquet. Not only did all the heads of the band attend, but even the friendly gangs from the two neighboring mountains sent people to celebrate.

The Pingshan Society was bustling with excitement.

That was until a group of people arrived outside the stronghold. The laughter and merriment instantly vanished, and the people of the Pingshan Society wore cold expressions.

"The Lishan Gang's Ghost of No Form, Zhao Liyin."

The leader wore a bronze mask and looked rather mysterious. Only after Han Kui explained did Li Mo learn that during the previous clash between the Pingshan Society and the Lishan Gang, it was this Ghost of No Form, Zhao Liyin, who had launched a sneak attack and injured Greenface Tiger Gao Zhen.

"I hear that the Pingshan Society has gained a Doctor Li who cured Chief Gao's injuries and was appointed the fourteenth head of the band. I have come under the orders of the Lishan Gang's boss, Suppressing River Dragon Ke Chen'e, to present this tiger-hide cloak as a congratulatory gift. In addition, the gang leader asked me to tell the doctor that the Lishan Gang has always respected capable people. If you are ever slighted in the future, Doctor, you may visit the Lishan Gang at any time!"

Greenface Tiger Gao Zhen forcibly suppressed his anger. He could not make a move at a time like this; it was a rule of the underworld.

Bloodface Lion Gao Po merely snorted and waved his hand, signaling the brothers holding blades to disperse. He then sent someone to accept the congratulatory gift.

Seeing this, Li Mo smiled and replied, "Thank you for Gang Leader Ke's goodwill."

One bear-hide cloak, one tiger-hide cloak, a small dish of silver fragments, and several strings of copper coins—Li Mo had made a small fortune. Unfortunately, he was no longer the Traveling Doctor who looked forward to earning thirty taels of silver every day. This amount of money could no longer bring him any happiness.

After the Hundred Chicken Banquet ended, Li Mo immediately announced that he would use the money to build a medical hall for the stronghold, thereby repaying the stronghold and winning people's loyalty.

He had already prepared for the worst.

If Jade Fox Wang Ying continued refusing to yield, he would use force!

When Greenface Tiger Gao Zhen heard this, he immediately went along with it and declared that it would henceforth be the stronghold's Doctor's Hall. He not only set aside a plot of medicinal farmland for Li Mo, but also assigned several clever children as Li Mo's apprentices. Hei Wa was naturally one of them.

With this arrangement, Li Mo no longer needed to handle everything personally and could free up time to continue practicing martial arts.

As the saying went, many hands made light work. The Doctor's Hall was soon completed.

During this period, Li Mo also accumulated enough everyday herbs, adapted to life in the stronghold, and learned the underworld slang and how to ride a horse.

In addition, through repeatedly asking others about martial arts, he gained a concrete understanding of the basic strength of the Pingshan Society's two bosses and its other thirteen heads of the band.

Aside from the two bosses, only two of the thirteen heads of the band were clearly stronger than Li Mo, seven were on par with him, and four were weaker.

According to Jade Fox Wang Ying.

Among the many gangs of the Eighteen Mountains, the Pingshan Society was considered one of the foremost major gangs. Only two mountain strongholds nearby could match it, one of them being its sworn enemy, the Lishan Gang.

Besides that.

Li Mo also found a daily leisure activity in the stronghold: horseback riding.

He had no idea where the Pingshan Society had obtained the two horses, but since this place was deep in the mountains and unsuitable for galloping, the horses usually only moved around near the stronghold. Whenever Li Mo had nothing to do, he rode out to clear his mind, which also served to hone his skills.

One day.

As usual, Li Mo rode toward the cliffs to clear his mind, but suddenly noticed several raggedly dressed people emerging from the mountains. They looked exceedingly strange. After freezing for a moment, he withdrew without making a sound.

Only a short while later.

Dozens of people charged out of the stronghold and surrounded the raggedly dressed strangers.

"Spare us, great sir! Spare us..."

The group begged for mercy incessantly. Seeing this, Wu She, who led the team, immediately ordered his men to bring them back to the stronghold.

"Doctor Li, thank you."

The two often interacted, so Li Mo smiled and nodded in acknowledgment before riding away.

That night.

The Gao Brothers of the Pingshan Society gathered together and invited the fourteen heads of the band to the Assembly Hall for a meeting.

"Haha, Heaven is truly helping us!"

Bloodface Lion Gao Po laughed heartily.

"Those refugees who arrived during the day turned out to be the merchant caravan from Songjiang Town that the Lishan Gang looted. Because of that incident, we fell out with the three escort agencies in Songjiang Town. They all cut off their tribute and stopped using our waterways. But now, the people from that merchant caravan have actually escaped from the Lishan Gang!"

He raised his cup toward the others.

The merchants who had escaped wore timid, obsequious expressions.

"Next, all we need to do is safely send these merchants out, then destroy the Lishan Gang. We'll have the support of these God-of-Wealth patrons, and then won't those escort agencies come crawling back to offer tribute? Hahahaha!"

The others also revealed delighted expressions.

The previous clash between the two gangs had mostly been a test.

After all, the Pingshan Society knew that even if it defeated the Lishan Gang, the three escort agencies probably would not cooperate with it again. In their eyes, the Pingshan Society was a minor gang that could not hold the field. Thus, the clash had only been to vent their anger.

But the situation was different now.

The merchant caravans escorted by those agencies paid at least seven or eight hundred taels of silver in tribute every year. That was no small sum.

As long as they completely defeated the Lishan Gang, they could reclaim those big fish. With profit before their eyes, everyone in the Pingshan Society naturally rubbed their fists and clenched their palms, brimming with enthusiasm.

Otherwise, next year they would have nothing but vegetable broth to drink.

"Let's do it!"

"Kill them all..."

The people of the Pingshan Society were bristling with Killing Intent.

Li Mo sat among the crowd, silently picking up vegetables and eating meat. To entertain the merchants today, the stronghold's food had clearly improved by a great deal. He wanted to eat a few more bites, since he would need to hurry and practice martial arts afterward.

His temperament of not competing for fame or profit also allowed him to thrive in the stronghold.

Many heads of the band had already taken the initiative to befriend him.

Next.

After a round of discussion, everyone decided to send several heads of the band the next day to personally escort the merchants back to Songjiang Town, purchase some supplies along the way, and then launch an all-out attack on the Lishan Gang.

For this purpose, the Pingshan Society even brought out its reserves, planning to spend five hundred taels of silver to purchase a batch of medicinal herbs and other supplies from outside the mountains.

It was an extremely lucrative assignment. The thirteen heads of the band fought over it desperately. In such a foul, crude, and violent environment, the merchants seemed to be receiving courteous treatment, but in truth they were trembling with fear and treading on thin ice.

Li Mo calmly watched everything unfold.

His heart warned him every moment that he absolutely could not mistake these people for good people merely because he had formed friendships with them. He was only a passerby here, enduring humiliation and biding his time for the sake of a lofty goal.