Round Them All Up

Hearing his daughter's words, Xu Zhong nodded approvingly.

They did not dare act rashly, because they knew there had to be many people lying in ambush inside the stronghold. Those fools atop the walls were surely bait.

Just as Xu Zhong was deep in thought, a villager ran over carrying a sealed wooden barrel.

"City Lord, are you troubled over how to force those bandits to reveal themselves?"

"Mm." Xu Zhong nodded. "Do you have a way?"

Upon hearing that, the villager grinned from ear to ear and cheerfully explained to Xu Zhong while lifting the barrel.

"Hehe, this is a stinkwater explosive barrel that several of our villages use when we fight. We happened to bring eighty of them. If we throw them all into the stronghold, we'll definitely blow those bandits into showing themselves!"

"Good. Go prepare them at once. If this works, you'll have rendered great merit!"

Xu Jiaojiao and Xu Zhong both showed a hint of surprise. Neither had expected these villagers to be so clever.

Soon, eighty soldiers with the strength of oxen stepped forward, each carrying a sealed wooden barrel.

The sight gave Long Xiao a bad feeling.

Xu Zhong waved his hand. "Throw them!"

The eighty soldiers swung their barrels and hurled them into the stronghold with all the strength they could muster.

Qian Daoliu, Chen Xin, and Gu Rong all disdained such an attack, but with the Sect Master present, they had to perform well.

Whoosh!

The sound of rushing wind rang out.

"Damn it, Chen Xin! You actually stole a march on us!"

Naturally, Chen Xin was the first to move. He leaped into the air, utterly dismissive of the barrels.

Might Shaking the Four Quarters!

A longsword stood before him as the imposing aura of the Eighth Layer of the Tiangang Realm erupted from Chen Xin.

Qian Daoliu followed close behind, wielding his golden longsword as countless sword qi danced through the air!

"Get the hell out of my way! Don't steal my credit!"

Gu Rong's furious roar suddenly sounded behind Chen Xin and Qian Daoliu, making both their hearts jolt.

Buddhas competed for a stick of incense; men competed for a breath of pride.

He, Gu Rong, had to earn merit!

Bone-Transformed Divine Dragon!!!

Roar!

A massive bone dragon appeared, its furious roar soaring into the heavens.

Crack! Crack!

A series of shattering sounds rang out as every wooden barrel burst apart!

Chen Xin and Qian Daoliu both froze. This bastard Gu Rong had unleashed his ultimate move right from the start?

"What... what is this? It stinks!"

Qian Daoliu sensed that something was wrong.

As the barrels exploded, piles of filth scattered through the sky and showered the three of them without warning.

"Another rain of shit?!" On the wall, Long Xiao's eyes went wide.

He hurriedly held Bo Saixi in front of him like an inflatable doll to shield himself. It was disgusting.

Bo Saixi frowned slightly and swiftly summoned a barrier of seawater.

Bibi Dong was not idle either, weaving a huge net to block the filthy rain falling from the sky.

"Gu Rong! Screw you!"

Drenched in the rain of shit, Qian Daoliu glared furiously at Gu Rong, looking like he wanted to skin him alive and swallow him whole.

Every time he ended up eating shit, it was because of him.

Gu Rong also realized that he seemed to have made another mistake. Ignoring the grime on his body, he gave an awkward laugh. "Ahem, I didn't know these people were so vicious that they would throw shit barrels. Besides, if it weren't for me, then you two would have been the ones to screw up."

"You three, just wait!" Long Xiao's face darkened.

Bo Saixi and Bibi Dong watched from the side with undisguised schadenfreude. Those three were truly more trouble than they were worth.

Meanwhile, Xu Zhong, Xu Jiaojiao, and the others were already stunned senseless, swallowing hard.

The pressure those five people had just given off was anything but ordinary.

Xu Zhong said tremblingly, "Five high-level Tiangang Realm experts... how, how could this be..."

"Father, why don't we retreat?"

Xu Jiaojiao was frightened too.

But the moment her words fell, Long Xiao's furious voice rang out.

"You dared to use shit to attack my Divine Sect? Gu Rong, Qian Daoliu, Chen Xin, bring those leaders to me! Keep an eye on everyone else. Not one of them is allowed to escape!"

"Yes, Sect Master!"

"You have a chance to make up for your mistake, so what are you standing around for?"

After saying that, Gu Rong immediately charged into the ranks of Azure City's army.

Inside a great hall.

"Mmph... mmph..."

Xu Zhong, Xu Jiaojiao, and the other higher-ups had been captured and seated on benches in the hall. They were tightly bound, with Gu Rong's socks stuffed into their mouths.

Long Xiao, Bibi Dong, Bo Saixi, and Gu Rong were all inside the hall, looking at them with unreadable expressions.

Qian Daoliu and Chen Xin were outside guarding the army.

"Take the socks out." Long Xiao gestured to Gu Rong.

Gu Rong did as instructed and pulled the socks from their mouths.

The group immediately felt sick and wanted to vomit.

"City Lord, what did you mean by bringing so many people to attack my Divine Sect?" Long Xiao asked with a sinister grin.

"Pah! What kind of trash are you bandits? My father is the City Lord! No matter how you torture him, he will never yield to you!" Xu Jiaojiao cursed the instant her mouth was freed.

"Oh? Is that so?"

Gu Rong was already in a foul mood, and things had not been going well for him lately. Hearing the girl's words, he walked straight up to Xu Zhong and sliced his shoulder.

Such an injury was nothing to a Tiangang Realm expert, but it still hurt like hell!

"Ah... ah!!"

Xu Zhong cried out in pain, terrifying the bound town chiefs and village chiefs.

"Father, endure it! You won't yield to the cruel oppression of these bandits, right?"

Xu Jiaojiao continued encouraging Xu Zhong.

"Ah... it hurts, it hurts..."

Gu Rong cut him again.

Long Xiao stifled a laugh. This father and daughter really did have some backbone.

"You evil bandits, treacherous scoundrels, traitors! Use whatever methods you have! My father is not afraid!"

"Shut up!"

The moment Xu Jiaojiao finished speaking, Xu Zhong roared furiously.

"I... Father, I..."

Xu Jiaojiao wanted to say more, but she discovered that her father's eyes had turned bloodshot, with veins bulging across his forehead!

"Father..."

Seeing him like this, Xu Jiaojiao was terrified.

"Hmph. These lords are not bandits at all. We were the ones at fault. Have you ever seen bandits this powerful, this young, this handsome, and this beautiful?"

When Xu Zhong heard Long Xiao call himself the Sect Master of the Divine Sect, he knew they had attacked the wrong people. Though the stronghold was covered in shit, hardly anyone lived there.

That meant this stronghold had most likely already been wiped out by these people.

They had been wronged to death!

"The City Lord is a smart man. His daughter is a little muddleheaded." Long Xiao smiled calmly.

Xu Jiaojiao lowered her head, not daring to argue. It seemed her father had taken those cuts for nothing because of her.

The other town chiefs and village chiefs also came to their senses. What bandits could be so powerful, so young, so handsome, and so beautiful?

"Sect Master, please spare us. We failed to recognize your greatness and mistook you all for the bandits of this stronghold, so..."

Long Xiao interrupted them.

"Enough, enough. I know all that. I'm only angry that you used shit to blow up my Divine Sect. Look at this place—I can't even establish a sect here now."