Chương 104: Exterminating the Black Iron Stronghold

Night, a dark and windy night perfect for killing. On the rugged mountain path of Eagle's Sorrow Ravine, several figures dressed in black, wearing ghost masks, moved silently through the darkness. It was none other than Song Que's trio! Grandee Song led the way. Relying on his memory from observing through his soul fragment numerous times, he easily bypassed several hidden sentry posts.

With his Domain expanded to its maximum range of over ten meters, he had absolutely no fear of triggering traps or being attacked by venomous creatures. Carefully and quietly crawling atop a cliff, Song Que signaled for the two to stop and pointed in low voice toward several brightly lit buildings ahead:"The majority of the bandits are gathered there. The two buildings in the middle belong to their Second Chieftain, Wen Jian, and Third Chieftain, Hu Ban.

Xu Shicai doesn't mingle with the crowd; he built his own house further up the mountainside." Looking down at the noisy, chaotic crowd of bandits drinking and gambling in small groups, Nie Feng rejoiced:"Heaven is helping us, Young Master! The three of us can just bypass the main gate along the cliff face, find Xu Shicai, and join forces to kill him! Afterward, we can come back and clean up this motley crew!"

"Hehe, that's exactly what I was thinking!" Grandee Song smiled lecherously, nodding his head in satisfaction. Ganging up on someone is his favorite thing to do! Don't talk to Grandee Song about being a gentleman or not! If you can gang up on someone and choose not to, you're an idiot! Ignoring the bandits singing and dancing below, the three blended into the night, bypassed the stronghold without alerting anyone, and headed toward Old Xu's house.

With the little sparrow still lurking nearby, Song Que knew Xu Shicai's exact location! He directed Old Nie and Xiong Ba to split up, surrounding the room from three sides. Temporarily storing his saber in his Storage Space, he drew the Peacock Plume and gripped it tightly in his hand. He took a deep breath.

"Who's there?!" Crash! The sharp inhalation alerted the person inside the room, but that was all the time he had! Song Que raised his foot, kicked down the wall, and charged in like lightning, aiming straight for Xu Shicai! He channeled his power into his hand and squeezed! Poof...

"Ahhhhh...!"

"The Peacock Plume! You are...!" Feeling a stinging pain spread across his body, Old Xu inwardly cried out that this was bad! Seeing the ghost-masked man holding the cylindrical object, he was terrified and blurted out. But how could Song Que give him time to catch his breath?! The Black Iron Saber appeared in his hand at an unknown moment, slashing down fiercely with the force of a thunderbolt, relentless in its determination to cleave the man in two!

"Die!" Xu Shicai had also experienced countless life-and-death battles. He quickly maintained his composure, roared, and raised his fist to meet the blade! Clang...! Fist and blade collided, producing an ear-piercing, metallic shriek! Song Que's full-force slash was actually blocked by bare hands! But Old Xu didn't have it easy either. His fist was cleaved open by the blade, leaving a wound deep enough to expose the bone! Bright red blood constantly seeped from the stark white bone—a terrifying sight!

He himself was forced back three steps by the terrifying force before coming to a halt.

"Don't let him grab his weapons!" Seeing Xu Shicai lunging toward a pair of massive hammers by the bed, Song Que shouted loudly. Xiong Ba and Nie Feng, who had already rushed in, didn't hesitate! Sabers and fists, charged with full power, rained down upon Old Xu like a torrential storm! They only aimed to delay him, not necessarily to injure him! Their objective was clear: grind him down until the poison took effect and killed him! Clang... Clang!

Two metallic clashes rang out, and Xu Shicai, who had charged forward, was knocked back once again! Although he didn't suffer any new injuries, being stalled at this moment was fatal enough for him! With his 'Super God' state activated, Grandee Song's slashes were as fast as lightning! No flashy techniques were needed; every slash was vast and savage, like the charge of a giant elephant, raining down frantically upon Xu Shicai!

Covered in poisoned needles and enduring the siege of three people, Old Xu's internal blood and Qi churned violently! Feeling the poison rapidly spreading and his strength waning by the second, he was terrified and wanted to turn and flee! This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. But his bulky physique destined him to have no affinity with agility! Grandee Song ensured he could only obediently lie on the ground and take a beating like a good boy!

At this time, shouts gradually echoed from the distance. The Second Chieftain, Wen Jian, was leading a massive swarm of bandits toward them! Seeing Xu Shicai's body covered in saber wounds, from which dark blue-black blood was beginning to seep, Song Que roared:"You two, hold them off and buy me some time!" Xiong Ba and Nie Feng didn't hesitate, charging forward to meet the swarm of bandits! In Song Que's mind, the Tesseract burned fiercely, and the force in his hands increased continuously—more, and more!

After consecutively delivering over a hundred more slashes, Xu Shicai finally couldn't hold back a moment of exhaustion. Seizing the opportunity, Grandee Song delivered a deep slash, cleaving his forehead open straight into his skull! Red and white matter splattered everywhere as his eyes rolled back, and he fell, unwilling to accept his fate! Song Que wasn't having an easy time either. A thick layer of steam rose from his head, and his heart pounded agonizingly as if trying to burst from his chest!

He couldn't help but lean on his saber, clutching his left chest and panting heavily. A moment later, feeling the trembling subside slightly, Grandee Song immediately hefted his saber and charged toward the ongoing battle, not sparing a single glance at Old Xu from beginning to end. The two who had been fighting desperately suddenly found themselves bolstered by Grandee Song's reinforcement, like tigers sprouting wings! Very quickly, the three of them beat the bandits into total disarray!

During the chaos, Wen Jian was also cleaved in two by a single slash!

"Surrender, and you won't be killed!" As the voice rang out, the bandits who were still bitterly holding on or looking for a way to escape instantly squatted down and clutched their heads! Their movements were so practiced and synchronized, as if they had rehearsed it, making Grandee Song widen his eyes in disbelief!

"Horse Face, it's your turn. Gather the captives, we're heading back into the stronghold."

"Understood, Lord Impermanence!"

'Impermanence', 'Ox Head', and 'Horse Face' were the codenames for Song Que, Xiong Ba, and Nie Feng tonight! He wanted to conduct this operation in secret, so he absolutely couldn't reveal their identities! Escorting the surrendered bandits back into the stronghold, they spent some effort rounding up the rest of the people, casually dispatching the Third Chieftain, Hu Ban, with a single slash to send him on his way! Today's operation could be considered a complete success!

The stronghold gates remained closed as before; it seemed no one had taken the opportunity to slip away. Despite this, Song Que still mobilized 'Lightning' to fly around and check for any fish that might have slipped through the net. Leaving Old Nie to handle the aftermath, Song Que and Xiong Ba stood coldly in the distance as a deterrent. Not a single person dared jump out to resist; anyone who did had already been put down!

After a long while of busywork, Nie Feng finally returned to report:"Lord Impermanence, there are 52 bandits remaining. Including 143 non-combatant personnel, all have agreed to submit!"

"Very good." Song Que nodded in satisfaction. Looking at the crowd of bandits filled with apprehension and unease, he slowly spoke:"This world operates on the law of the jungle! Our three brothers were stronger than Xu Shicai's trio, so they are the ones who died today! You all gathered here likely for the sake of survival, forced by life to take this path."

"Since that's the case, wouldn't following the strong make your lives much more comfortable in the future? Our brothers can guarantee that you will eat and drink your fill every day! Our demands are very simple: just obey orders!"

"If any brother is dissatisfied, you may leave now. I will not force you." These bandits were all shrewd characters; naturally, they wouldn't believe his 'ghostly words'! They all stood obediently in place, heads bowed, staring at their feet. After a long while, seeing no one move, Song Que finally nodded:"Since that is the case, from today onward, we will be your new Chieftains! I am Impermanence, and these two are Ox Head and Horse Face. I hope we can cooperate pleasantly in the future, brothers!"

"Greetings, Chieftains!" These opportunistic fencesitters were very adaptable! Only then did they raise their heads, cup their hands, and shout loudly. Instructing Nie Feng to continue handling the subsequent matters and leaving Xiong Ba behind as a precaution, Song Que returned alone to Xu Shicai's house. He searched Old Xu's corpse thoroughly. Finding nothing useful, Grandee Song ignored it, tossed it aside, and entered the house to investigate.

Five thousand taels in banknotes, a pair of iron sledgehammers, two secret manuals, and a large pile of miscellaneous items—that was all he found. Storing the banknotes in his Storage Space and tossing the hammers aside, Song Que began flipping through the secret manuals. Thousand Hammer, Hundred Refined Body! Tie Family Hammer Technique! One hard-body cultivation method and one hammer technique manual—these must be the martial arts Old Xu utilized.

The power of the Thousand Hammer, Hundred Refined Body could not be underestimated! Xu Shicai had taken an unknown number of slashes from Grandee Song without suffering a fatal wound! He knew very well the power of his strikes after entering the 'Super God' state! This alone proved the terrifying effectiveness of this cultivation method! On the other hand, the hammer technique was quite a niche weapon, and he felt little interest in it.

He held the Thousand Hammer, Hundred Refined Body manual, engrossed in studying it. It wasn't until Old Nie returned that Song Que finally put it down, satisfied.

"Young Master, everything has been stabilized. The remaining people have all agreed to follow your orders. The total loot is 6, 240 taels of silver, 300 taels of gold, and over 200 weapons! Additionally, there are medicinal herbs, jade stones, and various antiques valued at nearly 5, 000 taels! I have them gathered in one place under Xiong Ba's watch." This single trip yielded an income of 20, 000 taels of silver! Grandee Song was shocked by the wealth of these bandits!

It seemed that if they could control and continue operating this Black Iron Stronghold, the monthly profits brought to him would not be small! Extremely admiring his own decision-making, Song Que smiled and asked Nie Feng:"Old Nie, I plan to leave you here to control the Black Iron Stronghold. What do you think?" After all, aside from himself, there was no other candidate. Nie Feng had already prepared for this question beforehand and agreed without hesitation.

"Rest assured, Young Master. I will definitely keep a close eye on this place for you!"

"Haha, no need to feel too much pressure. I will frequently come over to assist you." Song Que smiled in satisfaction.

"However, you must also be careful, Old Nie. Stabilize this group of bandits for a while first, then slowly investigate who among them were trusted aides of Xu Shicai's trio, as well as those who have committed heinous crimes."

"We will not need those people in the future." If they were not needed, there was no necessity for their existence! Although Song Que didn't say it explicitly, both men understood the underlying meaning. Nie Feng wasn't the 'Holy Mother' type either and had no objections.

"Rest assured, Young Master, I know what to do."