In times of chaos and famine, I traded one pound of rice for two royal flushes.

"You...you won?"

Wang Tiezhu threw away the stone in his hand and muttered to himself in disbelief.

"We...won?"

"We won!!!"

Zhao Wu was the first to react. He threw down his axe and raised his arms, shouting!

"We won! We drove away those beasts from Black Wind Stronghold!"

"Awooo—!!!"

After a brief silence, the entire valley erupted in a thunderous cheer.

People hugged each other, laughing and crying.

The ecstasy of surviving the ordeal and the thrill of successful revenge intertwined, driving everyone into a frenzy.

They turned all their attention to the man who had brought them all this.

Li Bo took the lead and knelt down tremblingly.

"Thump! Thump!"

In the valley, everyone, regardless of age or gender, knelt down.

They bowed deeply in the direction of Qin Shaolang.

Their posture was incredibly devout, as if they were worshipping their own god.

Su Jin stood behind Qin Shaolang, watching his back, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

Fear, shock, curiosity, and a hint of...thrill that she couldn't quite explain.

This man, in one night, transformed a motley crew into an army that struck fear into the hearts of bandits.

It transformed a desolate valley into an impregnable fortress.

It also completely won over the hearts of everyone here.

However, Qin Shaolang did not look at those who were kneeling before him.

His gaze passed over the still-burning tomb and looked in the direction the bandits had fled, into that deep darkness.

There was no trace of joy of victory on his face.

Instead, the atmosphere was heavy and somber.

"Is that all?" Su Tang asked her sister in a low voice, her big eyes still showing signs of shock.

Su Jin was about to nod.

Qin Shaolang suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but clearly reaching the sisters' ears.

"This is just the beginning."

"This is just the beginning."

Qin Shaolang's voice was like a bucket of ice water poured over the boiling ecstasy.

The cheers in the valley abruptly ceased.

Everyone was stunned.

They stared at the man standing on the high place, illuminated by the firelight, their smiles freezing, replaced by deep confusion and bewilderment.

We won.

They repelled the vicious Black Wind Stronghold bandits.

They killed dozens of enemies, while suffering almost no casualties on their own.

Isn't this a victory?

Why is there not a trace of joy on the gentleman's face?

"gentlemen……"

Zhao Wu mustered his courage, stepped forward, and cautiously asked, "You mean...?"

"What I mean is very simple."

Qin Shaolang's gaze swept across the bewildered faces.

"One-Eyed Wolf is the second-in-command of Black Wind Stronghold."

"We killed him, and we killed nearly a hundred of his brothers, in the most humiliating way."

"Do you think the leader of Black Wind Stronghold, that guy called 'Black Yama,' will just let this go?"

The cold words, like sharp knives, pierced through everyone's lingering illusions.

Yes.

They killed the second-in-command.

This was tantamount to slapping Black Wind Stronghold in the face in public.

Given the brutal nature of those bandits, how could they possibly let it go?

The fear that had just dissipated, like a persistent ailment, once again crept into everyone's hearts.

"Then... what do we do?"

Wang Tiezhu's voice trembled, "They...they will definitely send more people! Then, we..."

He dared not say any more.

This time, relying on their advantageous location and the gentleman's brilliant strategy, they caught their opponent off guard.

But what about next time?

Black Wind Stronghold has mobilized its entire force, hundreds of vicious bandits. With so few men and such limited skills, how could they possibly hold them off?

Despair weighed even heavier on everyone's hearts than before.

This time, they had no way to escape.

The entrance to the valley has been completely blocked by that giant rock tomb.

They were trapped like turtles in a jar.

"Sir, we...we'll reinforce the valley entrance again! They can't get in!" a man shouted, clinging to his last hope.

Qin Shaolang shook his head.

"Can you block it for a while, or forever?"

"How much food do we have? How much water do we have?"

"If they keep us here, we'll all starve to death in less than ten days."

Qin Shaolang's voice was calm and cruel, shattering the last vestige of hope.

Suppressed sobs rose again from the crowd.

They had just escaped one nightmare, only to fall into another, deeper, and more desperate abyss.

"Don't cry."

Qin Shao-Lang's voice suddenly rose, tinged with impatience.

"Can crying kill the people of Black Wind Stronghold?"

The crying stopped abruptly.

Everyone instinctively looked at him.

He was their only pillar of support.

"If you want to live, hold back your tears."

Qin Shaolang looked around at everyone and said, word by word.

"Waiting to die has never been my choice."

"Instead of sitting here waiting for them to come and kill us, we might as well..."

He paused, and a chilling smile curved his lips.

"Let's storm the mountain."

……

Dead silence.

The entire valley fell into a deathly silence once again.

If Qin Shaolang's use of the word "hit" had shocked everyone before, then...

So at this moment, his statement "to charge up the mountain" was utter madness.

Everyone thought they had misheard.

Who are they?

A group of refugees who had just had a few days of good food.

They didn't even have a decent weapon.

With their abilities, how could they possibly attack a mountain stronghold that had been entrenched by hundreds of ruthless bandits for many years?

Isn't that just going to your death?

No, that's more absurd than sending someone to their death.

"Sir...you...you're not joking, are you?"

Zhao Wu's lips were trembling.

He wondered if this omnipotent man had lost his mind due to the stimulation of the battle just now.

"Do I look like I'm joking?"

Qin Shaolang countered with a question.

His expression was extremely serious.

His seriousness was so profound that it sent a chill down everyone's spine.

"Sir, you mustn't!"

Uncle Li was the first to react. He scrambled to Qin Shaolang's feet, tears streaming down his face.

"Black Wind Stronghold is located on Green Tooth Mountain. The mountain is high and the roads are treacherous, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack! With our small force, we won't even be able to reach the mountain gate before their sentries discover us and we'll be riddled with arrows!"

"Yes, sir! Think it over!"

"If we stay here, we might live a few more days. Then we can storm the mountain... that would be..."

Opposition voices rose and fell.

This time, it was a deep-seated fear of death.

"My father said, 'Warfare is based on deception. Attack where they are unprepared, and strike when they least expect it.'"

The cool, clear female voice rang out once again.

Su Jin stepped out from the crowd and stood next to Qin Shaolang.

She looked at the terrified people, then at Qin Shaolang, and said softly, "Black Wind Stronghold just suffered a great defeat, the second leader died tragically, and those who escaped back were just some stragglers who were scared out of their wits."

"They never imagined that we, the 'lambs' in their eyes, would dare to attack their stronghold tonight."

"This is our only chance."