The Journey of Ten Thousand Li

The next day, before dawn had fully broken.

Uncle Zong, Tong San, Qing Shi, Kong Youyue, and the others saw Dongbo Xueying off.

"Uncle Zong, I'll leave the castle in your hands," Dongbo Xueying said.

"Don't worry, Xueying," Zong Ling replied. Six years had passed, and he hadn't spent them idly. He had finally reached the Meteor Rank!

"Brother, be careful," Qing Shi said quickly. He barely remembered their parents; his brother had looked after him all these years, and he was deeply attached to him.

"Brother Xueying, I'll wait for you to come back," Kong Youyue called.

"Haha..."

Dongbo Xueying laughed from atop the Snow-Treading Colt. "Hyah!"

Whoosh!

The Snow-Treading Colt immediately broke into a gallop, its speed quickly surging as it vanished at the far end of the mountain road.

He first went to Yi Water City to inform Lord Si An. Lord Si An immediately sent word to the Dragon Mountain Tower in Qinghe Prefecture, while Dongbo Xueying set off without delay for the prefectural city.

Qinghe Prefecture covered an area of over ten thousand li.

The straight-line distance from Snow Eagle Castle to the prefectural city was roughly six thousand li, but in places the main road had to skirt around mountains, winding this way and that... The actual route was probably over ten thousand li!

"Hyah! Hyah!"

Dressed in black and carrying a weapon case on his back, Dongbo Xueying rode the Snow-Treading Colt.

The Snow-Treading Colt raced like a phantom.

The Snow-Treading magical beast colt was a third-rank magical beast, among the finest of its kind. Beyond that were other types of magical beasts. Colts were naturally gifted runners, though, and a third-rank magical beast colt... could match some fourth-rank magical beasts in sheer speed. Given Dongbo Xueying's current Title-level strength, riding a Snow-Treading Horse was far too "low-key." If he revealed his true strength, major powers would probably offer him fifth-rank magical beast mounts—or even flying magical beasts!

"Rumble—"

As the Snow-Treading Colt raced on, the ground trembled faintly, and a blur shot past.

It could cover nine hundred li in an hour. If it charged in armor, even Heaven-Rank Knights wouldn't dare stand in its way. But it cost as much as two thousand gold coins! Twenty Snow-Treading Horses could buy a territory comparable to Snow Eagle Territory. Ordinary families couldn't afford one, so Dongbo Xueying had only been able to buy five after selling materials such as Shadow Leopard pelts over the years.

"Stop! Stop! That's Cold Qiong Mountain up ahead!" A group of merchants had gathered before a great canyon. Seeing a knight galloping toward them in the distance, they immediately shouted warnings.

"Friend, stop! Let's cross Cold Qiong Mountain together!"

"Cold Qiong Mountain is dangerous!"

Many of the merchants and their guards called out to him.

Whoosh.

The Snow-Treading Colt didn't slow down at all. It flashed past like a blur.

"Crazy." The merchants and their guards stared in shock.

"Has that knight lost his mind? Does he think he can charge through just because he's riding a Snow-Treading Colt?"

"Who tries to force their way through a place like Cold Qiong Mountain?"

"Cold Qiong Mountain?" Dongbo Xueying, astride his horse, had keen senses and naturally heard the merchants calling out. "Cold Qiong Mountain lies along the only route to Qinghe Prefecture's city. It connects to a spur of the Destruction Mountain Range. I've heard quite a few bandits are holed up there, often robbing travelers. Their name carries more weight than the Curved Blade Alliance in Yi Water City."

Caravans usually joined forces, waiting until they had enough people before crossing Cold Qiong Mountain together!

But what did that matter to Dongbo Xueying?

The only people in all of Qinghe Prefecture who posed a threat were those few with Title-level strength. And even they were only threats; the winner would be decided in a fight! As for a bunch of bandits? They were nothing but rabble!

"Whoosh."

The Snow-Treading Colt raced like the wind, its hooves making the ground tremble faintly. The noise could be heard from far away.

"What's this black-clad man's deal? He dares charge into the Cold Qiong Mountain gorge all alone?"

"Is he trying to get himself killed?"

"Boss, should we make a move?"

"Make a move, my ass. Let's not take a risk with someone this tough. Leave him to the Eight Eagles of Cold Qiong." Seeing a lone rider galloping from afar, many bandits chose to back off. Bandits had to weigh the risks against the rewards, too.

After galloping for dozens of li, he reached the middle of Cold Qiong Mountain's Great Canyon.

A large group of bandits in blue armor stood on the mountainside. There were only a little over a hundred of them, but they were well-equipped. Almost every ordinary bandit carried a massive crossbow on his back—the Star-Breaking Crossbow! The eight bandit chiefs at their head were imposing figures, the most notorious men on Cold Qiong Mountain: the Eight Eagles of Cold Qiong.

Three were Meteor-Rank Knights, two were Heaven-Rank Mages, and the other three were Heaven-Rank Knights. Each had considerable skill, or they wouldn't have earned a place among the Eight Eagles.

"Haha, we've had a good haul today. This caravan had plenty of valuables." The bandits were in high spirits. More than ten captives sat nearby. Everyone else in the caravan was dead; only these few remained. They included old men, middle-aged men, and a young boy and girl who huddled together, their eyes filled with fear and despair as they dreaded what lay ahead.

"Come on, let's head back and rest. We'll find out who they are—maybe we can get an even bigger ransom." These ruthless bandits were wanted men, and they stopped at nothing.

"Chiefs, look! A black-clad knight is coming!"

"He's riding a Snow-Treading Horse. There's only one of him!"

Some of the bandits hurriedly reported.

The eight chiefs looked down from afar. Sure enough, a lone rider was galloping toward them through the gorge.

"He dares come through alone?"

"Does he think nothing of Cold Qiong Mountain? Big Brother, should we attack?" The other seven Eagles turned to their eldest brother.

The chief of the Eight Eagles of Cold Qiong looked down at the road, frowning. "There are only a handful of Title-level experts in Qinghe Prefecture. They're all famous, and I know roughly what they look like. Besides, none of them would be so shabby as to ride a single Snow-Treading Horse. This young man in black... looks very young, and the weapon case on his back should hold a spear. Who is he? I've never heard of him. Could he be the Silver Moon Knight?"

"Brothers, fire a volley and test him," the chief ordered. "If he's too tough to deal with, we'll leave. If he's weak, we'll swallow him whole!"

"Yes!"

At once, every bandit—including the chief—brought out a crossbow or a bow.

The ordinary bandits could unleash tremendous power with their Star-Breaking Crossbows, which could pierce a Meteor-Rank Knight's protective Battle Qi! The chief and the other two Meteor-Rank Knights were better suited to bows. Their arrows were powerful enough to threaten a Silver Moon Knight's life. Those arrows would be enough to gauge the strength of the young man in black below.

But they had no idea what kind of being their arrows were about to provoke.

"Fire!" the chief ordered.

Swish, swish, swish...

A dense rain of arrows shot down from high on the mountain, sweeping toward Dongbo Xueying as he rode along the road.