A Little Momentum
After resting for another day, the four "allied forces" arrived in Tanggu County, where Fire Saber Stronghold was located.
This time, there was no need to search for Rogue Cultivator. Kang Dabao pulled Pei Yi along, and the two entered the county town, where they found a cultivation Lineage surnamed Kuai in Tanggu County.
The Kuai Household also has a connection with the Chongming Sect, because Pei Yi's master, Kang Dabao's Uncle Martial Uncle Li, is from the Kuai Household.
The Kuai Household had also declined by this time, with only five Qi Refinement cultivators remaining in the entire family. The patriarch was a distant cousin of Martial Uncle Li, whose only name was Wu.
Upon hearing that the Chongming Sect had suddenly come to visit, Kuai Wu was initially surprised, but still went out with a belly full of confusion and welcomed Kang Dabao and the other man into the guest hall to sit down.
"I never expected that Sect Leader Kang would grace us with his presence today. It is truly an honor for the Kuai Household." The century-old prestige of the Chongming Sect was not completely destroyed by Kang Dabao in just over a decade.
Both being at the fifth level of Qi Refining and heads of their respective families, Kuai Wu's politeness towards Kang Dabao carried a hint of respect, a legacy left to Kang Dabao by Master Zhang a hundred years ago.
Of course, beyond this slight respect, don't even think about asking for more; this is all there is.
"Fellow Daoist Kuai, you are too kind. I have come here to..." Hearing Kuai Wu's good attitude, Kang Dabao got straight to the point and briefly explained his purpose.
Upon hearing this, Kuai Wu was shocked and somewhat incredulous. He immediately turned to Pei Yi and asked, "Brother Pei, is it true that the main force of the Fire Saber Stronghold has been completely wiped out at Heng Mountain?"
When Martial Uncle Li separated from Kang Dabao, he took Pei Yi back to his mother's house for a short time. Therefore, Kuai Wu and Pei Yi had a past relationship and their relationship was quite good back then.
"Fellow Daoist Kuai, what makes you say such a thing!" Pei Yi replied sternly at first, then secretly glanced at Kang Dabao, whose expression remained unchanged, and said, "Would my sect leader lie to you?"
"Yes, yes, yes, it was I who misspoke, please forgive me, Sect Leader Kang!" Kuai Wu hurriedly apologized and bowed, knowing that Pei Yi was helping him. Kang Dabao smiled and gestured that he didn't need to do that, and then asked again about the location of the Fire Saber Stronghold's lair.
"This," Kuai Wu fell silent for a moment.
"Fellow Daoist Kuai, is there something you're having trouble saying? Feel free to speak up. Our two families have been friends for many years, it's no trouble at all." Seeing Kuai Wu's hesitant expression, Kang Dabao's smile didn't diminish in the slightest.
Helping outsiders bully locals is still somewhat taboo in the relatively closed-off Tanggu County. After all, the Kuai Household still needs to make a living here, so it's not surprising that they have some concerns.
"I do know the location of the Fire Saber Stronghold's lair," Kuai Wu said, his expression conflicted. "However, I have a request, and I dare to ask, please forgive me, Sect Leader Kang."
"Fellow Daoist, please speak."
"Could we include the Kuai Household in this attack on the bandits' lair?" Kuai Wu asked cautiously, his face filled with hope.
"Oh," Kang Dabao tapped his knuckles. If the Kuai Household were to get involved in this deal of splitting the profits, it would surely displease the Lu and Xue families.
Especially Xue Hu, he only lost a mid-grade Law Artifact, but his face has been dark for over ten days. He acts like everyone owes him a couple of strings of cash, showing no class whatsoever.
If Chongming Sect is willing to share a portion of his profits, then neither family will have any objections.
However, the relationship between the Kuai Household and the Chongming Sect was not that close. His family was not the maternal family of Kang Dabao's master. Besides, the Sect Leader Kang Da, was not a generous person and was not very willing to do this.
"The Kuai Household doesn't seek any reward; they only ask that after capturing the bandit's lair, they hand over Dantong Cliff of Fire Saber Stronghold to the Kuai Household." The head of the Kuai Household saw Kang Dabao's dilemma and stated both the Kuai Household's conditions and the location of the Fire Saber Stronghold's lair, thus demonstrating their sincerity.
"Then there's no problem. However, if the Kuai Household gains anything on the battlefield, they cannot take it with them; it must be deposited into the public funds of the three families." After hearing this, Kang Dabao stroked his chin and thought for a while before agreeing.
"Thank you very much Sect Leader Kang!" Kuai Wu and thanked Kang Dabao and the other man profusely.
Two days later, the five families, totaling twenty cultivators, arrived at the Dantong Cliff in Fire Saber Stronghold, led by Kuai Wu.
Kuai Wu wielded a large black iron shield, followed by two slightly more experienced members of the Kuai Lineage, who were prepared to die as the vanguard for the "allied forces."
Joining halfway through the journey, one must first demonstrate their abilities.
Otherwise, your Kuai Household can take over this sacred land on their own merits. Even beggars have to take turns and divide up their territory; cultivators who want to cultivate should pay even more attention to these things.
If your Kuai Household hadn't fallen into such dire straits that you couldn't even secure a place near a sacred site, how could you possibly be crammed into the county town alongside the Tanggu County?
The Fire Saber Stronghold is not to be trifled with. This group of nearly twenty Evil Cultivator is not weak in Tanggu County, enough to make some local small Lineage tremble with fear. The Kuai Household is simply not someone they can afford to offend.
But now, someone is using a knife to shave all the pig hair off for you, so you don't even need to use chopsticks. The fatty meat is practically right in front of your mouth, how could Kuai Wu bear not to take a bite?
"Boom!" The guards of Fire Saber Stronghold were the most skilled fighters among the three, and this time, the "Allied Forces'" surprise attack was discovered for the first time since the start of this expedition.
A string of low-to- First Tier first-tier talismans hurled at him, leaving deep, charred marks on Kuai Wu Iron Shield and causing him to cough up a mouthful of hot blood.
The two Kuai Household behind him were young and not very powerful, clearly inexperienced in battle. The color drained from their faces, leaving them pale and hesitant to move forward.
Upon seeing this, the cultivators from the Xue and Lu families behind them were at a loss and also stopped moving, causing the entire team's offensive to stall.
"Not good!" Before Kuai Wu could even curse the two clansmen behind him, he saw the Spiritual Qi energy around the bandit's lair start to surge and boil, indicating that the enemy's mountain-guarding formation was about to be activated.
Before Kang Dabao could speak, Jiang Qing moved with lightning speed, passing Kuai Wu and the others. The Seven Luminaries Heart-Slaying Sword transformed into a red light, piercing through several henchmen who were setting up and operating the formation, slowing down the gathering speed of Spiritual Qi by more than half.
"Kill! These Evil Cultivator deserve to be killed!" Xue Hu was not to be outdone. He threw out the White Bone Sarira and followed closely behind Jiang Qing. He was now most concerned about the Evil Cultivator's Storage Bag. There weren't many henchmen left in Fire Saber Stronghold, and he was afraid that they would be taken care of by Jiang Qing alone, just like the Jia Mountain Bandits.
Before the grand formation could be activated, and with no decent leader in the Fire Saber Stronghold, they were quickly routed and forced to retreat in all directions.
Kuai Wu's role as vanguard proved fruitless. By the time he and two clansmen, whose clothes were still perfectly clean, reached the Fire Saber Stronghold, Jiang Qing was already waiting outside the warehouse with his Fire Saber Stronghold drawn.
Kuai Wu wasn't embarrassed at all. He looked around and found Kang Dabao's location, then followed closely behind, walking at the back in a very proper manner.
The Lu Household head diligently searched for the treasure vault key and obediently handed it over to Kang Dabao. He was also someone who disliked risking his life; in several battles, it was only in situations like this that he had any real presence.
Xue Hu, holding White Bone Sarira stained with blood, also rushed to the door to wait, but paused, not daring to overstep the threshold.
With the magical Law Artifact given to him by Kang Dabao, Ye Pinglin was finally no longer injured. However, he stood behind Kang Dabao, carrying a head missing half of its head, without any joy or sorrow.
After observing the actions of the various clan leaders, Sect Leader Kang Da nodded in satisfaction. The third spoils-sharing meeting, presided over by the Chongming Sect, was about to begin.
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