Blood Saber Stronghold

Eighty miles outside Linyang City, on a shaded path.

Su Mo, carrying his long sword on his back, unfolded his movement technique and rushed towards the Youfeng Mountain Range.

The Youfeng Mountain Range was over a hundred miles from Linyang City. At Su Mo's speed, he could reach it in about half an hour.

"Hm? What a strong smell of blood!"

Su Mo, rushing along, frowned. He keenly sensed a strong scent of blood wafting through the nearby air.

What's going on?

Where is this strong smell of blood coming from?

Su Mo stopped, pondered for a moment, and then followed the scent of blood, wanting to see what was happening.

A moment later.

A village appeared in Su Mo's sight. It wasn't large, with about a hundred households.

But at this moment, the entire village was in ruins. A large number of houses had collapsed, and bodies were scattered everywhere throughout the village.

The scarlet blood had stained the earth, flowing like a river, resembling a hellish scene.

The strong smell of blood was emanating from this village.

"This is...?"

Su Mo was greatly shocked. Even though he had seen great storms, he was utterly stunned by the scene before him.

"Who is so cruel? To have massacred an entire village!"

Su Mo's anger surged, and his eyes flashed with cold light.

Taking a deep breath, Su Mo leaped forward and entered the village.

The entire village was silent. The scattered bodies, the dismembered limbs, and the scarlet blood were nauseating.

Among the bodies, there were many elderly, weak, women, and children.

All of this made Su Mo incredibly angry, his expression as gloomy as dark water.

Who could be so inhuman? To commit such a heinous act that angers both gods and men?

Ah! Ah!

Suddenly, a faint groan reached Su Mo's ears.

Su Mo's expression shifted, and he quickly ran towards the source of the sound. Before long, he saw a white-haired old man in a collapsed ruin.

The old man was covered in blood, half his body pinned beneath the rubble. He was severely injured but still alive.

"Elder, how are you?"

Su Mo hurried forward, moved the rubble, and helped the old man up.

The old man's abdomen and chest were cut open by sharp blades, with multiple fatal wounds. He was clearly beyond saving.

"What a sin! Heaven is unjust! Wuwu...!" The old man looked dazed and began to wail loudly.

"Elder, what exactly happened?" Su Mo asked.

After a moment, the old man stopped crying, his eyes gradually clearing.

"Young man, save my granddaughter! Please, save my granddaughter!"

The old man looked at Su Mo, suddenly grabbed his hand tightly, and pleaded with a face full of desperation.

"Elder, don't worry! Tell me what happened?" Su Mo asked.

"It was the Blood Saber Stronghold! Those beasts from the Blood Saber Stronghold raided our village and killed many villagers."

The old man's face was filled with grief and indignation, his eyes revealing immense hatred.

"The Blood Saber Stronghold?"

Su Mo's eyes narrowed. He had heard of this Blood Saber Stronghold.

It was said to be a bandit group several hundred miles from Linyang City. They were numerous, cruel, and often engaged in arson, murder, and looting.

However, although the Blood Saber Stronghold committed all sorts of evil deeds, they were also self-aware. They never provoked any slightly stronger forces, only attacking the weak.

Therefore, the Blood Saber Stronghold had been rampant for many years without being eradicated.

"How many people were there? What was their strength?"

Su Mo's eyes were filled with coldness, and immense killing intent erupted in his heart.

"There weren't many of them, just a small team, around twenty people. However, they were basically all experts at the Qi Refining Realm Third Layer and above, very powerful."

The old man was losing too much blood, and his voice grew weaker. "Our village only had five Qi Refining Realm experts. We were no match for them at all; they killed us all very quickly!"

"Young man, save my granddaughter. They abducted her. If you can save her, I will be your ox or horse in the next life."

The old man pleaded with Su Mo, regardless of Su Mo's strength or ability to defeat the bandits.

However, he could also tell that Su Mo's clothes were relatively fine, indicating he was likely the descendant of a prominent family, and would surely be able to save his granddaughter.

"Elder, don't worry! I will definitely rescue your granddaughter."

Su Mo nodded heavily.

At this moment, his heart was quite complex. This was the essence of this world: the weak could only be slaughtered, while the strong could do as they pleased.

"Good! Good! Thank you, little brother...!"

A trace of a smile finally appeared on the old man's face. Then, he tilted his head and died.

"Blood Saber Stronghold?"

Su Mo stood up, his fists clenched, his brows filled with killing intent. "You scum shouldn't even be alive in this world."

Immediately, Su Mo flashed away, following the horse tracks outside the village.

This village had just been plundered, so the people from Blood Saber Stronghold shouldn't have gone far.

Su Mo intended to kill all these beasts.

Giddy up! Giddy up! Giddy up!

A group of mountain bandits from Blood Saber Stronghold were urging their mounts along a mountain path.

These bandits were not traveling very fast, as they had twenty to thirty women with them.

"Brothers, let's rest here for a moment and continue after we eat."

The tall bandit captain ordered his subordinates.

Soon, the bandits stopped, rested, lit bonfires, and began roasting game.

"Heh heh! I didn't expect to have such a big haul this time!"

One bandit laughed heartily. They had plundered Gu Family Village and obtained a lot of wealth, and they had also captured so many women.

"Haha! It wasn't a wasted trip!"

Another bandit with a scar on his face laughed heartily. His gaze fell upon a young girl in green clothing, and he said with a smile, "This girl is a real gem! I've never seen such good merchandise in my life!"

Among these women, there was a young girl in green clothing, about fourteen or fifteen years old. The girl was exceptionally beautiful, standing out among the other women like a crane in a flock of chickens, attracting much attention.

Although the girl was dressed plainly, it couldn't conceal her temperament, which was like a blooming green lotus.

"Ma Lao San, I plan to present this girl to the Stronghold Master when we get back!"

The bandit captain's gaze was cold and indifferent.

"Heh heh, understood, understood."

The scarred bandit chuckled, then walked into the nearby bushes and began to relieve himself.

Swish!

Suddenly, a cold sword light appeared from the side, striking directly at the scarred bandit's neck.

"Ah!"

The scarred bandit only had time to let out a scream before his neck was pierced by the sword light, and his body fell limply.