Longzang

Chapter 173 A Promise Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold

The Shattered Realm.

A group of knights slowly passed through the small valley between two hills.

In the center of the procession, a man who looked to be in his thirties with a short beard sat upright on his horse, scanning the hills on both sides, with a faint glint of sword light in the depths of his eyes.

A young knight nearby took out a handkerchief and wiped his face, complaining, "Why is this place so damp! Brother, are we really not going to inform the Ningxi branch?"

The short-bearded man said, "Why bother notifying them? Those good-for-nothings only know how to drink and dance. What, you want to give it a try?"

The young man said lazily, "What good stuff could we possibly have here? No interest. Once we win this battle and return to the interior, we'll have all kinds of women we could ever want."

"That's pretty much it."

The short-bearded man took out a map, looked at it, and then instructed a knight: "Notify General Zhang in the rear to lead his auxiliary troops to set up camp a hundred miles to the north. It's where the two rivers meet, so it's easy to spot. That will be our main base for this operation. Tell him to build it carefully."

The knight accepted the order, left the cavalry, and galloped away.

At this moment, the vanguard of the cavalry had already left the valley when they suddenly stopped. Immediately, a rider rushed to report to the central army that someone was blocking the road and robbing them.

Both the short-bearded man and the young man were stunned, never expecting that on their second day as bandits, they would be robbed by their own kind. Had the lives of bandits in the Western Regions really come to this?

The two rode their horses to the front of the army and saw hundreds of bandits in the open space ahead. They were all baring their teeth and had fierce faces. Some of them even had several human heads hanging from their waists.

In the center of the bandits' ranks, a burly man with a face full of scars shouted, "Listen up, you over there! We are the number one bandit gang in the Western Regions, the Stormy Storm Gang! If you know what's good for you, hand over your valuables now, and I might take pity on you and spare your lives. Otherwise, I...I'll..."

As more and more knights emerged from the valley, the fat man's voice grew softer and softer.

Moreover, the opposing knights were not only numerous, but also all mounted on black horses, clad in dark green armor, each silent and exuding a murderous aura. In contrast, their own side was not only far outnumbered, but also had a disorganized formation and wore a motley collection of rather unique and distinctive armor.

The short-bearded man said to the young man, "Take fifty riders and test their mettle."

The young man, looking bored, casually selected fifty riders and charged forward.

A moment later, the young man returned carrying the fat man and threw him in front of the short-bearded man's horse. The fifty riders returned exactly as they had gone out, with only two slightly injured. Hundreds of bandits, however, lay dead on the ground, with only a few dozen managing to escape by acting quickly.

The reason this battle took so long was mainly because the bandits scattered as soon as they charged, and it took some time to catch them.

The fat man kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy. The short-bearded man asked a few simple questions and then nodded to the young man.

The young man pulled out a short knife and held it to the fat man's neck, saying, "Remember, my elder brother is Xu Xinhui, and I am Wang Ziyan. When you get there, reincarnate as soon as possible, and don't forget to come back and take revenge on us."

With that, he made a light slit and cut open the fat man's throat.

Wang Ziyan mounted his horse and said, "This is the infamous bandit from the Western Regions who's famous throughout Ningzhou? He's so weak! This guy couldn't even withstand one of my sword strikes."

"This guy has a Earth-rank Killing Dao Foundation and has cultivated to the late stage, which is actually quite good. I just asked, and there are seven or eight bandit groups like him in the Western Regions. Everyone claims to be the number one bandit, haha."

Wang Ziyan asked, "Brother, why won't those old guys up there let us take over our territory?"

The short-bearded man shook his head and said, "This realm is not easy to conquer. I heard there are several cultivators from the Primordial Palace inside."

Wang Ziyan snorted: "What's so great about Taichu Palace? They always boast that they are the top immortal sect. How is our Sword Palace inferior to them? Even if they have more people, you are the seventh in the Immortal Sword Sect, and I am also a Foundation Establishment Immortal. The two of us should have no problem taking on ten or so people from Taichu Palace."

Even if the opposing forces are all at the Immortal Foundation Establishment stage, our thousand cavalry and the Dragon Fish Army will hold their own in the drills, easily matching the level of the Great Tang Ninth Army. Those people in the realm are nothing but a rabble; if we hold off the cultivators from the Primordial Palace, our brothers can wipe out the realm. Then, only those few from the Primordial Palace will be left; what can they do then!

Xu Xinhui said, "We must not be careless. I've heard that there are several geniuses on the other side."

Wang Ziyan laughed and said, "Genius? Who wasn't a genius back then? Now we're all out here doing real work. What's the use of being a genius? Results speak for themselves!"

The short-bearded man smiled slightly but said nothing.
-
At the foot of a small mountain in the Shattered Realm, there was a mine. The mine was quite large, almost half of the hill had been dug out, and several mine tunnels were bottomless. The shacks where the miners lived occupied a large area of ​​land.

At the mine gate, the Xu family's flag fluttered in the wind.

As dawn broke and the bell rang, the miners, barely clothed, finished their breakfast and filed into the mine. Any hesitation would result in a whipping by the overseer. They would toil in the mine all day, not emerging until sunset.

The mine was surrounded by heavily armed and armored guards, and a dozen watchtowers stood high above, offering unobstructed views of the surrounding area. Each tower housed a skilled archer, whose arrows never missed within two hundred feet; for any miner attempting to escape, death was a near certainty. The mine was bustling with activity as a new batch of miners was being brought in.

However, there were an unusually large number of people arriving today, so the mine manager frowned and repeatedly checked with the leader of the convoy that brought the people to confirm whether there had been a mistake.

The commander, however, knew nothing about the matter, only saying, "Young Master, no, this is all the men the patriarch entrusted to me. My orders were to deliver them to you, nowhere else. Now that I've brought them here, whether you accept them or not is your business, not mine!"

The mine manager said with a bitter face, "I can only hold three thousand people at most, but you sent me five thousand at once. How am I supposed to accept that? The old miners are still alive, where are we going to put all these people? Besides, too many people can easily lead to accidents. I only have a hundred guards here, how can I keep an eye on seven or eight thousand people?"

The commander thought it made sense and said, "Then I'll give you a hundred guards to watch over things for a while. You should go and talk to the head of the family to get some more guards."

The official was overjoyed and was about to express his gratitude when suddenly a warning rang out!

The officials and commanders were taken aback. They saw dozens of knights rushing towards them like the wind and fire from the end of the road in the distance. Although the number was small, their momentum was overwhelming, and they seemed to be as powerful as a thousand troops!
The knights arrived very quickly, reaching the mine in the blink of an eye.

They all wore masks and cloaks, and rode top-quality horses. The leader rode a grey, white, and red horse, which, although its coat was somewhat mixed, was exceptionally tall and magnificent. However, the cloaks of these men were all rather worn, clearly indicating that they were not doing very well.

The lead knight, spear in hand, roared, "Listen up! We are the number one bandit gang in the Western Regions, Zhan Tian Gang! We're here today only for money, not to take your lives. If you know what's good for you, put down your weapons. Otherwise, weapons have no eyes, and I'm heavy-handed. If you get hurt, you'll only have your own bad luck!"

The commander sneered, strode forward, and shouted, "Where did these petty thieves come from? You're tired of living, daring to plot against my Xu family's mine! And you call yourself the number one bandit in the Western Regions? I'll take your heads back for a reward!"

After the commander finished speaking his harsh words, he strode forward. Just as he raised his broadsword above his head, he felt a blur before his eyes, and a spear had already pierced through his chest!

"Slow as a tortoise," the knight scoffed, then used his lance to hurl the commander into the air, shouting, "Anyone who dares to resist again will be shown this!"

The commander, a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, was utterly powerless to resist and was swiftly killed by a single spear thrust. The guards immediately realized the bandits were ferocious and beyond their ability to fight back, so they all knelt down to beg for their lives.

The Zhan Tian Gang kept their word and did not take any lives. The fifty bandits dismounted and began stripping the guards naked, binding them up and loading them onto the cart.

Some of the guards sensed something was wrong, but the Fifty-First Bandit was watching from horseback, and the commander on the spear was still alive, so no one dared to resist and obediently got stripped naked and loaded onto the cart.

The bandits summoned all the miners and those working in the mines, and had them pack their things, along with all the carefully selected rare ores. And so, they set off northward in a grand procession.

The miners in the mines were all slaves, and more than a dozen would die every day, so they had to be replenished constantly. They were used to being submissive and knew that the bandits were ruthless and never hesitated to kill, so they were all very obedient.

The bandit leader also said that he would not kill them or offer them as sacrifices, but would simply let them work in a different place, and that they would be given at least a large bowl of extra rice every day in the new place.

Hearing that they could have an extra bowl of food, all the miners were overjoyed and couldn't wait to fly to the new place.

The procession of several thousand people moved slowly, taking seven or eight days to reach their destination. This was the edge of the Azure Netherworld Realm, and none of these people had ever seen what a realm looked like before. Upon seeing the bright and beautiful mountains and rivers in the distance, they were all dumbfounded.

At this moment, a group of cultivators rushed out of the realm, numbering over a hundred, each dressed in fine clothes and possessing extraordinary cultivation.

The leading cultivator rode out on horseback, exuding an extraordinary aura. He cupped his hands and said, "I am Cui Yu, the current commander of the Yong'an City Guard. Are you the leader of the Western Regions' First Righteous Army, one of the Fifty Great Bandits of Zhan Tian?"

The lead knight, spear in hand, roared, his voice echoing across the land: "Indeed! The goods have been brought, but where is the immortal silver?"

“It’s all ready!” Cui Yu waved his hand, and several knights carried out three large chests. When they were opened in front of everyone, they were immediately filled with dazzling celestial light and were filled with celestial silver!
"Hahahaha!" The leading knight laughed heartily, displaying his immense power for a long time, before saying, "I have long heard that the Azure Netherworld Realm is a place where a promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold and where integrity is paramount in business! Seeing it today, I can confirm that its reputation is well-deserved!"

Cui Yu laughed and said, "Of course, of course. This business deal was very pleasant. I hope that when you all come again next time, we can do a deal of five boxes."

The knight said in a deep voice, "Seven boxes!"

Cui Yu laughed heartily and said, "Then I, Cui, will await good news."

The two had completely different styles; the knight exuded domineering power, while Cui Yu was quite gentle and polite. However, their voices carried far, clearly indicating that both possessed extremely high levels of Daoist cultivation, with Cui Yu holding his own in the slightest.

The knight then asked, "Besides these people, what other businesses do you engage in?"

Cui Yu said, "We accept minerals, medicinal materials, food, and medicine. But our main focus is on recruiting people."

Without further ado, the knight said "good" and led the fifty thieves away like the wind.

The group of several thousand people had naturally attracted countless spies from various factions along their journey. At this moment, countless eyes were watching from the shadows, listening to the two men's conversation before quietly disappearing.

(End of this chapter)