Chapter 75

75. The only good bandit is a dead bandit.

Luoyang, Henan Province.

Teahouse Qingshe.

Two women are sitting by the window, sipping tea while watching the passersby. They are Yan Shuzhu from Walong Hall and Li Xiaomin from Yitian Sect, who have finally been allowed to go out after nearly a year.

Despite the rare outing, Yan Shuzhu’s face was not bright.

Li Xiaomin, tilting her head, asked, "Yan Mei, are you worried about something?"

"Ha! I’m going crazy. It seems I’ll be forced into marriage soon."

"Oh! Marriage? With whom?"

"Someone from the Jinping Merchant Guild... It feels like they’re trying to sell me to them."

"Sell you?"

"My mother is determined to expand her connections with the merchant guilds."

"Even so..."

"Even though I keep saying no, they’re still pushing for it."

"If you hate it so much, why don’t you just...?"

Li Xiaomin subtly trailed off.

She remembered the last time Yan Shuzhu ran away, it caused a big incident.

After a moment of blankly thinking about something, Yan Shuzhu said, "But what about the Righteous Alliance? Have you heard anything about what they’re planning?"

"Nothing special. They seem to be just watching for now."

"Well, with the famous Taoist from the Yueming Sect visiting the imperial court... Even if the martial world doesn’t care about the government, openly fighting would be too risky, right?"

"True. Do you know the saying 'Three men make a tiger'?"

"Meaning if many people say the same thing, it becomes a fact?"

"Yes, because so many people are saying good things about the Yueming Sect, people are getting confused."

Yan Shuzhu lowered her voice, "But they use people as sacrifices."

"To ordinary people, that’s just a rumor. Apart from that, the Yueming Sect’s teachings are really clean. If they were invited by the imperial court, it must mean something."

"Then there won’t be a big fight for now?"

"The Righteous Alliance won’t issue a martial edict against the Yueming Sect, but the wandering knights won’t sit still. There are many people with deep grudges."

"Like the Nangong family?"

"Our Yitian Sect is also sharpening our swords. We’ve lost disciples and my father was seriously injured. There are many sects in the same situation."

"So there won’t be a big fight between the Righteous Alliance and the Yueming Sect?"

"That’s not all. There will be power struggles everywhere. Many sects are aligned with the Yueming Sect. How about Walong Hall? Are there any sects bothering you?"

"Why not? My brothers can’t even sleep properly these days."

"Is it that serious?"

"Since we were marked by Yue Xiaoxian, the evil sects keep saying we’re about to fall."

Li Xiaomin nodded in understanding.

After the Nangong family fell, people predicted that Walong Hall would follow.

Yan Shuzhu sighed deeply.

"Ha! After the bandits and now Yue Xiaoxian, I don’t understand why Walong Hall is so unlucky."

"But if you endure, good days will come. They say things will eventually turn out well."

"The problem is that I’ll be sold before the good days come."

"Try to resist the marriage."

"What does your family say? You must get many marriage proposals, right?"

"Hehe! I was freed by a single word from my grandfather."

"Grandmaster Yitian Jianzun?"

"Yes, he just said to leave me alone for now. I’m free to do as I please."

Of course, Grandmaster Yitian Jianzun had the bandits of Wufeng Mountain in mind. Li Xiaomin had her suspicions but didn’t say anything to anyone. If the family found out, there would be a big commotion.

"Wow! I’m so jealous of you."

"Jealous? Freedom comes with responsibility. My shoulders are heavy, and I can’t even sleep well."

"What kind of responsibility?"

Li Xiaomin, looking around, whispered, "Grandfather seems to like the young bandit from Wufeng Mountain."

"Ah! No way?"

Li Xiaomin nodded.

"Really? Ah!"

Realizing she had spoken too loudly, Yan Shuzhu quickly covered her mouth.

"Only you know. I don’t understand what he’s thinking."

"Why? Out of all the men, why that bandit?"

Yan Shuzhu trembled with anger.

After all, he was the bandit who almost destroyed the once-prosperous Walong Hall. Walong Hall is still struggling with the aftermath, living in debt.

"Maybe because he’s skilled in martial arts. Men only care about martial arts, you know."

"How do you know? Has Grandmaster Yitian Jianzun been to Wufeng Mountain?"

"Yes, I accompanied him once."

"But Wufeng Mountain is still intact? No way, right? He can’t be that skilled, can he?"

"Right. Grandfather fought him."

"Did they really fight?"

Yan Shuzhu couldn’t understand Li Xiaomin’s words.

The great Grandmaster Yitian Jianzun fought a mere young bandit?

Li Xiaomin covered her mouth and whispered, "I’ve never seen such a fight. He’s not human. I’ve never seen Grandfather so serious. In the end, he just laughed after the bandit fled from his sword technique."

"Fled from the sword technique? Without any injuries?"

"Yes. Grandfather was amazed and just laughed."

Yan Shuzhu finally understood why Grandmaster Yitian Jianzun was interested in the bandit.

The sword technique is a skill that only those who have reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship can use. It’s not easy to flee from a master of the sword technique.

Even the head of the Yitian Sect, Junzi Jian Li Lianyi, lost an arm to the sword technique.

"No matter what, a bandit is still a bandit..."

"From what I heard, he’s not a bad bandit. He’s known as a hero in the area."

Yan Shuzhu made a face.

From her tone, it seemed Li Xiaomin had some affection for the bandit.

"Yan Mei, don’t you know the saying 'The only good bandit is a dead bandit'? The Righteous Alliance considers bandits as enemies to be eliminated."

"That’s not true. They coexist with the Yueming Sect, a public enemy. Bandits aren’t public enemies. I heard the Heaven-Shattering Demon Lord even meets with the leader of the Righteous Alliance."

"Yan Mei, the Heaven-Shattering Demon Lord and the bandit are on different levels. How can a bandit be compared to the leader of the bandits? Are you already taking his side? It’s been less than a year since you were released from the ransom."

"Who said I’m taking his side? I’m just saying. I told you, my shoulders are heavy. My marriage is on hold because of Grandfather’s whims."

As the topic returned to the marriage, Yan Shuzhu sighed.

"Ha! Yan Mei, I might become independent."

"Independent?"

"In a big city, it’s easy to find a job. I can work as a bodyguard for a merchant guild. Eventually, I’ll become a wandering knight in the martial world..."

"Why don’t you talk to your mother? Ask to help with Walong Hall like your brothers."

"It won’t work. Walong Hall is fine with just my brothers. They only want me to get married."

"Wow! At times like this, I really envy men, don’t you?"

"Exactly. If I disappear, they’ll think I’ve moved to another city."

"Where will you go?"

"I’m thinking of Kaifeng. I heard there are many places hiring there."

"Let me know when you’re settled. Got it? We have to keep the loyalty of the Five Heroes of Luoyang."

"Sure. You should think carefully too. Don’t just follow what the adults want."

Li Xiaomin nodded with a bittersweet smile.

Honestly, she didn’t know what she felt. Was she following Grandfather’s wishes, or did she really have feelings for the bandit?

***

Bofeng County.

Wufeng Mountain.

On the highest peak of Wufeng Mountain, a young man sits with his chin in his hand.

He looks troubled.

He can freely use the technique of drawing objects from the air, but he’s not making progress with the sword technique.

He thought mastering the air-drawing technique would quickly lead to the sword technique, but it didn’t.

"This isn’t right. This won’t work."

Lian Ji shook his head.

No matter how he thought about it, the air-drawing technique alone wouldn’t lead to the sword technique.

The master of the Shen Yang Pavilion clearly didn’t know much about the sword technique.

Usually, one would feel a sense of intuition while practicing, but even now, after mastering the air-drawing technique, he couldn’t use the sword technique.

Lian Ji practiced sword techniques until sunset and then trudged down the mountain.

Entering the Shanghua Pavilion without thinking, Lian Ji paused.

The Wufeng Ten Heroes were all gathered, which was unusual.

Noticing his presence, the Wufeng Ten Heroes looked at him, and Lian Ji scratched his head, feeling awkward.

"What’s going on?"

Han Caiyan quickly explained, "Big Brother and Second Brother are thinking about leaving the mountain. That’s why we’re gathered here."

"Eh? The brothers are leaving the mountain?"

If it were Xiaobai and Caiyan, it wouldn’t be surprising. They often talked about wanting to leave the mountain.

But Feng Yanchao, the leader, and Zhuo Gao Ming, the deputy leader, were unexpected. They were the pillars of Wufeng Mountain, and it was thought they would be the last to leave.

Zhuo Gao Ming spoke for Feng Yanchao.

"Big Brother has been having restless dreams. He keeps seeing his family, so I suggested he leave the mountain."

"Ah! Then he should go."

"Right? I made a good point, didn’t I? Look, Brother, even Lian Junior agrees."

Feng Yanchao, looking uncomfortable, said, "Who said what? I just feel embarrassed leaving before the juniors."

"It’s not like you’re never coming back. You’re just visiting your hometown for a while. What’s the big deal?"

"Man, you left home to become a bandit. You can’t predict what will happen."

"Wow! If the wife holds on, he might not come back. Is that true?"

"..."

Feng Yanchao didn’t answer.

The room fell silent for a moment.

After a while, Feng Yanchao spoke.

"Let’s be honest. In the past, if there was no way to feed my family, I would have come back. But if my wife and children still think of me as a husband and father... I want to live for them."

"..."

The Wufeng Ten Heroes looked moved.

Feng Yanchao, looking embarrassed, continued, "But I doubt that will happen. I left alone ten years ago. My wife might have remarried, and the children might hate me. It’s certain."

Zhuo Gao Ming comforted him, "No matter what, I’ll stay by your side."

"Who’s protecting who? Take care of yourself, man."

Han Xiaobai, watching the two with a smile, asked curiously, "But with Big Brother and Second Brother’s skills, they could be leaders of a security company, right?"

Ma Xingdao, the third, chuckled and replied, "And more. They could even be the head of a security company. But I recommend joining a merchant guild."

"Why? What if they get into a conflict with bandits while protecting a merchant?"

"Do you think merchant guilds only deal with merchants? If you think about your family, managing brothels, gambling dens, inns, and taverns under the merchant guild would be more convenient. A security company would require a lot of travel."

"Ah! I see."

Feng Yanchao exaggeratedly shouted, "Wow! You’re doing everything yourself. Anyway, since it’s come to this, don’t badmouth us behind our backs when we leave the mountain."

"Understood."

"Have a good trip, or have a good time."

"Brothers, I’ll be waiting for good news."

The Wufeng Ten Heroes each said a few words of encouragement to Feng Yanchao and Zhuo Gao Ming.

The next day, Feng Yanchao and Zhuo Gao Ming left the mountain, dressed neatly.

Their departure seemed to have a ripple effect on the Wufeng Ten Heroes.

A few days later, Han Caiyan, Li Tieshan, and Han Xiaobai also left the mountain.

By the end of summer, only Ma Xingdao, Xu Rendal, and Lian Ji remained in the mountain stronghold.