Chapter 38 - Sparing None
Chapter 38 - Sparing None
“Who? Who did that?” The third boss roared out. Although he was injured, he still possessed his skills. Who could possibly be capable of killing under the gazes of so many bandits?
Thud! Another bandit had his throat slit, collapsing on the ground. He was the one who had answered the third boss first and had suggested cutting Li Qingshan to pieces.
A terrifying demon seemed to be hidden within the dark mountains and forest, and the frightening shade immediately engulfed all of the mountain bandits. None of them saw the attacker or knew how their companions had died. None of them knew whether they would be the next one to die. The fear of the unknown was the most terrifying.
In the chaos, the third and fourth bandit collapsed on the ground as if the scythe of the god of death had claimed their lives.
In the cold, night wind, a fine hunting blade slid through the tall, dried grass like a venomous snake. The blade was smeared with deeply-coloured juices from the grasses, so it was not reflective.
It was a moonless night.
Li Qingshan stood in the dark forest on a hill and watched over everything. Only he could see Xiao An wielding the hunting blade as he moved in between the mountain bandits. Fury filled his face.
The words of the mountains had completely infuriated him. His heart that had grown numb and withered away for so long experienced intense emotion once again. He wanted to kill all of these people.
Li Qingshan saw Xiao An attempt to approach the third boss several times, but he was forced back every time. The vitality of third-rate masters was extremely vigorous, enough to suppress ghosts. Xiao An could only try to approach him because Li Qingshan’s aura as a living person had nurtured him daily.
“Argh!” “Argh!” Along with two cries, another two bandits were killed. The third boss was not useless. He called out, “Everyone get over here! Gather together!” All of the bandits packed around him; the third boss wanted to guarantee his own safety first.
With the vitality and living auras of so many people gathered together, they seemed to become a huge fire that Xiao An was afraid to approach.
Li Qingshan took a sip of the spiritual alcohol in his gourd. The Ox Demon’s Fist of Great Strength was not about speed, nor did he have any so-called movement techniques. He had purely relied on his ox-like endurance and the replenishment from the spiritual alcohol to catch up.
He replenished his energy and lifted up the Stone Splitter bow. Now, it’s my turn!
A thrum pierced through the pitch-black night. From the sound alone, it was possible to tell that the string of an extremely heavy bow had been released. It was swift and crisp, containing a sharp force capable of cutting through air.
The feather arrow shot over from the distant darkness with a sharp whistle. It struck a bandit in the chest before piercing another bandit behind him. It was two birds with one stone!
By the time the bandits heard the release of the bow, they had already been struck. The bandits had experienced something like this many times in the past, but none of them actually managed to react in time. The third boss knew that the arrow was faster than sound, so the archer must be an adept at archery. In all of Qingyang, there was probably only a single person who could shoot such arrows.
No, it can’t be that person, or I would be dead already! The third boss glanced at his wounded right shoulder and remembered the kid who had forced him into such a state. Originally, he thought he had simply been too rash and careless, which was why he had fallen for the sneak attack. However, he never imagined that the kid’s archery would be so terrifying.
In reality, Li Qingshan’s archery was still not particularly accurate, especially when abruptly using a heavy bow like the Stone Splitter bow from so far away. The bandits were gathered together, so there was no need for him to put any effort into aiming. He only had to shoot at the centre and his arrow would land.
“Third boss, it’s the kid from before. He has chased us all the way here.”
“H- he wants to kill us all!”
“The arrow is from that direction. Let’s all get him!”
“No, we can’t. Once we separate…”
As they argued, a second arrow pierced the chest of another bandit. The faces of all the bandits became twisted from fear. They were as frantic as sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
The third boss ordered, “This is all because of that kid. Let’s charge over and kill him!” Along with the other bandits, he charged towards the hill as they let loose battle cries.
Li Qingshan remained where he was, unfazed, continuing to fire arrow after arrow.
He fired an arrow from the taut bowstring. It whistled through the darkness, piercing through three dead leaves as it spun and plunged into a bandit before passing through a layer of flesh. Finally, the arrow embedded itself into bone. Only then would it stop spinning.
The tremendous force of the arrows did not even give the bandits the time to cry out. A bandit on the side stopped and looked over in horror. Before his fear could even subside, he felt a piercing pain from his head then nothing else.
The interval between the arrows was actually so brief. The bandits’ charge fell apart as they looked for cover in a hurry. However, before they could even catch their breaths, the mysterious, bloody wounds began appearing on their necks once more. It was even more accurate and terrifying than the arrows.
Someone died at every moment. Their morale that had erupted due to fear collapsed once more. By the time they had returned to their senses, they discovered that the third boss had already mounted his pony and was riding towards the Black Wind stronghold hastily. All of them scattered immediately upon that realisation.
Li Qingshan carried the Stone Splitter bow on his back as he felt his arms ache. The force of a three stone bow truly was extraordinary. However, after shooting over a dozen arrows in succession, he felt like he could not last much longer. Taking in a deep breath, he took another sip of the alcohol.
“Xiao An, we’re chasing them!”
The villagers were still uneasy and in fear back at the Crouching Ox village. Li Long had ordered people to collect the corpses and lay them to rest.
“A’Long, why has this happened?” An old, dignified voice rang out from the darkness.
Li Long shuddered. “Master, why have you come?” He was the master of the Iron Fist school renowned in Qingyang city, the Iron Lion Liu Hong.
“I was afraid you couldn’t repel these mountain bandits, so I came to have a look.” Liu Hong emerged from the darkness. His eyes shone brightly as he naturally gave off a dignified aura. He wore a set of large, luxurious robes. He was awe-inspiring like a mighty lion. He looked at the corpses of the bandits. “You’ve fallen out with the Black Wind stronghold… Hmm? It’s not you. What great force. Tell me, what happened?”
Li Long could only tell him everything in full detail. When Liu Hong heard about the third boss’s words and actions, he snorted coldly. “To think that you would look down on me and the Iron Fist school so much. If I were present, I would’ve personally taken his life. I would like to see whether that bear would be bold enough to turn against me.”
When he heard about Li Qingshan’s actions, he praised, “How daring and skillful. How old is the Li Qingshan you speak of?”
“Around fifteen.” Li Long himself was rather surprised as well. Only when he mentioned it himself did he remember that Li Qingshan was only a teenager.
“What? Only fifteen!” Liu Hong was shocked. He was an experienced member of the jianghu. Let alone fifteen or sixteen year old third-rate masters, he had even seen first-rate masters at such an age. However, there would always be the shadows of large clans or sects behind these talented youths. At the very least, they would have a master of great martial prowess.
Without the guidance of a good master, it was impossible to achieve anything significant no matter how talented they were. “You’ve made the right decision in reconciling with him. This Li Qingshan might be a disciple under some eccentric of the jianghu. Let’s go. We’ll go take a look.”