Chapter 33: Old Fox
“Attack the mountain!”
Zhang Long took the lead with his saber in hand, like a fierce tiger descending the mountain, a flood dragon emerging from the sea.
Whoosh!
A signal arrow pierced the air, exploding in the sky.
Simultaneously.
Several arrows shot towards Zhang Long and the others. These were the scouts responsible for perimeter security.
Clang!
Saber light flashed as Zhang Long casually deflected the arrows.
At the third level of Body Refinement, ordinary arrows were difficult to get close to him, and even if they did, it was difficult to cause him significant harm.
Once Skin Tempering was achieved, the skin became as tough as cowhide, difficult to injure with ordinary swords. Upon completion of Flesh Tempering, muscle strength surged, and defense greatly increased.
Even if an arrow managed to pierce the skin, it would be stuck in the muscle.
Zhou Chen didn’t try to stand out. He had discovered the hidden scouts long ago, but he didn’t take action to shoot them.
Instead, he waited until they were exposed before raising his hand and firing two arrows, silencing the exposed scouts with a single shot to the throat.
“Good archery!”
Zhang Long praised him and continued forward with his men.
They encountered many ambushes along the way.
But with Zhang Long, a third-level Body Refinement martial artist, leading the charge, and Zhou Chen, a ‘second-level Body Refinement’ divine archer, providing support, they easily pushed forward.
This was the power of martial artists.
Even if ordinary people occupied a favorable position for defense, they simply couldn’t withstand martial artists.
Half an hour later.
Zhou Chen followed Zhang Long and his group to the front of the Crouching Dragon Mountain’s stockade gate. Archers lined the gate, heads crowded together, ready for battle.
This was the most crucial checkpoint of Crouching Dragon Mountain.
Once this stockade gate was breached, Crouching Dragon Mountain would fall.
“Captain Zhang, I wonder how Crouching Dragon Mountain has offended you, troubling you to mobilize such a force. If there were any offenses, please forgive me, Captain. I will certainly offer a generous gift as an apology in the future!”
Tie Xiong held a ten-foot-long, ferocious wolf fang mace, his entire body like an iron tower as he looked at Zhang Long, cupping his hands and speaking.
“Cut the crap! Hand over the County Magistrate’s daughter immediately, or I’ll turn your Crouching Dragon Mountain to ashes in an instant!”
Zhang Long pointed his saber, his voice stern and imposing.
“The County Magistrate’s daughter? What County Magistrate’s daughter?”
Tie Xiong was stunned, filled with confusion and bewilderment, crying out in injustice:
“Captain, are you mistaken? I don’t have any County Magistrate’s daughter here. Even if you gave me the guts, I wouldn’t dare lay a finger on the County Magistrate’s daughter!”
Although he wanted to lure Chen Fan over, he couldn’t show it. Moreover, he had to pretend that this was their own doing, with no one behind the scenes.
Since there was no one behind the scenes, they, as bandits, naturally wouldn’t dare to openly oppose the government. They had to deny it.
Unless it couldn’t be hidden any longer.
And Crouching Dragon Mountain had over a hundred people. These people all knew that they had captured Chen Feng, and most of them had already taken turns with her.
No matter how he argued, as long as Zhang Long wasn’t an idiot, he would inevitably discover the truth.
Things went exactly as he expected.
When Zhang Long saw the bandits’ expressions change, filled with fear and anxiety, when he mentioned the County Magistrate’s daughter, he knew that Chen Feng must be here.
It was these people who did it.
As Zhang Long felt relieved, his eyes became even colder. He shouted:
“Stop bullshitting! I’ll count to three. Hand over the person immediately, or I’ll attack!”
“Captain, this is really a misunderstanding. We really don’t have…”
“Three!”
“Two!”
“Zhang Long!”
Tie Xiong roared, the humility on his face replaced by violence. He dropped the act.
“Zhang Long, don’t blame me for not warning you. If you dare take another step forward, I’ll throw down your County Magistrate’s daughter’s head!”
“You can try!”
A cruel and ruthless smirk appeared on Tie Xiong’s lips.
Zhang Long was in a difficult position. He didn’t doubt the other party’s methods.
Since they dared to kidnap the County Magistrate’s daughter, killing someone was even less of a problem.
If he caused the County Magistrate’s daughter to be killed because of his actions, he would be in big trouble!
“Tie Xiong, if you dare harm the County Magistrate’s daughter, you’ll be dead for sure!”
Zhang Long began arguing with Tie Xiong, and the two sides reached a stalemate.
But Crouching Dragon Mountain had supplies, while Zhang Long and his group had come in a hurry, unable to hold out for too long.
Zhang Long had already secretly sent someone to inform Chen Fan.
This matter definitely needed Chen Fan to decide.
Tie Xiong had his men bring over a grand teacher’s chair and sat there, eating and drinking leisurely.
He wasn’t worried at all.
He knew that Zhang Long must have sent someone to inform County Magistrate Chen Fan and was calling for reinforcements.
But this was exactly the result he wanted!
“Tie Xiong, if you release the County Magistrate’s daughter, I can let you leave safely!”
“I don’t believe you, unless the County Magistrate promises it himself!”……
Zhou Chen stood quietly to the side. He didn’t have the intention of seeking merit and was too lazy to think about how to save the person.
Standing out in a forest attracts the wind.
He just had to do his duty.
After all, in everyone’s eyes, he was just a second-level Body Refinement martial artist who had just completed Skin Tempering.
However, he didn’t waste any time. His soul was in the Wind and Moon Mirror, engaging in dual cultivation with Ji Feng Xia, not missing any opportunity to earn Romance Points.
……
Qing He City.
County Yamen.
“Bastards!”
“Courting death!”
Chen Fan was furious upon receiving the news.
After his anger subsided, Chen Fan wasn’t blinded by rage. Crouching Dragon Mountain had never provoked the government before. Why would they dare touch his daughter this time? Could there be someone behind the scenes?
County Magistrate’s Assistant Chen Dao pondered: “County Magistrate, there must be something fishy about this. I think it’s better to spend some money and ask the Salt Gang and the Fishermen’s Gang to help rescue her.”
His implication was to tell Chen Fan not to go personally.
Chen Fan had already completed Bone Tempering and had stepped into the fifth level of Body Refinement. On the surface, only the heads of the three great families and the two branch masters of the Salt Gang and the Fishermen’s Gang in Qing He City possessed this level of cultivation.
“Although Crouching Dragon Mountain only has one path, with a sheer cliff at the back, third or fourth-level Body Refinement martial artists can still climb it.”
Chen Fan pondered: “Zhang Long and the others will attract their attention from the front. You go to the Salt Gang and the Fishermen’s Gang and ask them to send people to infiltrate from the back mountain and rescue Feng’er!”
“If you can rescue Feng’er, there will be a generous reward!”
“Yes, sir!”
Chen Dao hurriedly left and went to the Qing He City branches of the Salt Gang and the Fishermen’s Gang.
Upon receiving the news, the two branch masters pondered for a moment and agreed, each dispatching a third-level Body Refinement expert.
The two third-level Body Refinement experts quietly left the city and rushed to Crouching Dragon Mountain at their fastest speed.
When they arrived at Crouching Dragon Mountain, they stealthily headed towards the back mountain.
“Chen Fan didn’t come!”
On a mountain peak at the back of Crouching Dragon Mountain, a woman in white looked down at the two martial artists climbing the cliff, her brow raised:
“That old fox Chen Fan!”
She knew this operation had failed.
If she killed these two third-level Body Refinement martial artists, Chen Fan would be even more cautious and even less likely to come.
But if she didn’t kill them…
These bandits of Crouching Dragon Mountain wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Forget it, it’s better not to alert him.”
The woman in white sighed inwardly, abandoning this operation.
As for sneaking into the County Yamen and killing Chen Fan, with her strength, she could do it. But killing the County Magistrate at the County Yamen would be like slapping the Great Qian government in the face.
Although the Great Qian had been established for eight hundred years, it was already in decline, and local sects and gangs were flourishing, each ruling their own territory.
But order hadn’t completely collapsed, and it still dominated the Great Qian’s land.
If she dared to kill the County Magistrate at the County Yamen, the Great Qian would definitely send experts to investigate thoroughly.
Once the court took it seriously, not to mention her, even the forces behind her wouldn’t dare to confront it head-on.
They could easily eliminate her, making an example of her.
But killing Chen Fan at Crouching Dragon Mountain would cause less commotion.
It would be the County Magistrate’s fault for failing to suppress the bandits, his incompetence leading to his death at the hands of bandits.
Afterward, the court would send people to eliminate Crouching Dragon Mountain, demonstrating the court’s authority, and the matter would be over.
Looking at the two third-level Body Refinement martial artists climbing up, the woman in white still didn’t move. The two martial artists seemed to not see her, passing by her directly.
The woman in white turned around, her beautiful eyes glimmering, as if a light had flashed. A distracted scout not far away immediately snapped back to attention, instinctively taking out a signal arrow and firing it.
The signal arrow bloomed in the sky, and blood also bloomed on the necks of the two scouts.
“Exposed!”
The two martial artists looked at the fallen scouts, their faces grim.
They had already moved quickly, but they didn’t expect to still be discovered by the scouts.
However, there was still a hint of doubt in their hearts. Logically, the two scouts shouldn’t have discovered them. But now they had no time to think about it.
“Rescue the County Magistrate’s daughter as fast as possible!”
The two of them charged towards the bandit’s lair with their swords drawn.
The woman in white looked at their retreating figures, not making a move.
She didn’t want any complications.
The reason she controlled the scout to fire the signal arrow was simply to warn Tie Xiong and Lü Xiao.
Whether they could escape or not depended on their fate.
Even if they couldn’t escape, it didn’t matter.
Not to mention that Tie Xiong and Lü Xiao didn’t know her identity or true appearance, she also had a backup plan.