Chương 123: Rebellion

The night was dim, and the desolate mountains and wild forests dissolved into the evening mist, leaving only a thick, impenetrable blackness. The Black Iron Stronghold appeared as it normally did—a scene of peace and revelry. The bandits who weren't on guard duty were gathered together, gambling, drinking, and boasting, so happy they forgot the heavens and earth. Life here was dry and dull enough. If these men weren't given a little entertainment, they would have rebelled long ago.

Song Que couldn't control this, nor did he want to. As long as they completed their duties and didn't slack off during their shifts, they were free to do whatever they wanted. However, if someone observant paid attention tonight, they would notice that among the people gathered and playing, the new trusted aides of the Third Chieftain, 'Horse Face', were entirely absent. If these people weren't tired and resting early, they had found excuses to slip away beforehand.

Naturally, none of the revelers had the free time to notice.... Outside the stronghold gates. Having experienced a bloody lesson once before, the guards no longer dared to be careless or negligent. Everyone kept their eyes peeled and remained highly vigilant. Even the rustling of grass in the wind was treated with careful precaution. The new Chieftains' rules weren't just empty words. Two unlucky souls had already been beaten so severely for dozing off that they were still bedridden!

None of them wanted the 'honor' of being the third. At this moment, Scarface led four other men swaggering toward the gate.

"Who goes there?!" the sentry in the watchtower instantly spotted them and shouted a challenge.

"It's me, Scarface." Several men popped their heads over the wall. Seeing it was indeed his face, they asked curiously:"Brother Scarface, where are you planning to go so late at night?"

"Hehe, brothers. We won a bit of silver tonight, so the few of us thought we'd go down to SilverWave Lake and play on the flower boats (brothels). Please accommodate us, brothers." In the past, this was a trivial matter, and no one would have stopped them. But now, with a curfew in place at the stronghold, the men on the wall hesitated:"Brother Scarface, it's not that we want to make things difficult for you. But the curfew has been issued. If we let you out, we fear the Chieftain will punish us.

How about you endure it for a bit? You can ask for leave tomorrow and go down to the county city to play; it won't be too late."

"I can't hold it in, brothers! I don't know what's wrong today, but my 'internal fire' is exceptionally vigorous! If I don't find someone to battle for a few hundred rounds, I won't be able to stand it!" Scarface's crude words made the guards laugh heartily. Taking advantage of this, he nonchalantly took a few steps forward, his treacherous eyes darting around in observation.

The sentries at the gate were just about to tell him to go back, but the leader beside them finally raised his hand to stop them and smiled:"Scarface, don't say your brothers didn't help you! But remember to return to the stronghold before daybreak! Otherwise, if Lord Horse Face hands down a punishment, not only you but we will also be implicated." Having already resolved to force his way out if necessary, Scarface was overjoyed to hear this.

His right hand, which had slipped inside his robes to grasp his weapon, relaxed, and he looked up and laughed loudly:"So it's Brother Knife on duty! Truly righteous! We will definitely return on time." Raising his hand to stop his subordinates who still wanted to advise against it, Knife laughed:"Remember your words! If you can, bring a few women back to satisfy the brothers' cravings too."

"Haha, definitely, definitely." Grinning at the five men below, Knife waved his hand and shouted:"Open the gates!"

"Thank you, brothers!" Scarface and the other four excitedly walked up to the gates. The moment the gap was wide enough, he pulled a short saber from his robes and violently hacked apart the chains! The other four, having pre-planned this, split to the sides and held the stronghold doors wide open! The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. The sudden change occurred so quickly that no one had time to react!

"Scarface! What are you doing?!" a person on the gate wall shouted loudly.

"Kill!" But at this moment, Scarface had completely dropped his facade and had no intention of answering them. His face contorted ferociously as he roared, the jagged scar on his cheek twitching—a rather terrifying sight.

"Kill!" Echoing Scarface's shout, roars erupted in the distance simultaneously. A mob of no less than fifty disheveled, wild bandits, led by One-Eyed Dragon and Buck-Toothed Su—who had been lying in ambush in the forest for a long time—charged out upon hearing the signal, aiming to seize the open gates!

"Sound the alarm! Prepare bows and arrows!" Up above, Knife was still able to issue clear, methodical commands. Seeing this, the sentries felt somewhat reassured and followed his orders. Clang... clang... clang! As the urgent, continuous sound of the alarm bell rang out, the entire Black Iron Stronghold instantly erupted! But having experienced a bloody lesson before, the men still maintained enough composure to grab their weapons and sprint desperately toward the gates.

"Brothers, do not resist! I, Scarface, have no intention of harming you! We only need to slaughter Horse Face and his two accomplices, and the Black Iron Stronghold will belong to all of us brothers to govern together! At that time, we can go back to doing whatever we want! Wouldn't that be great?!" Seeing people rushing out one after another while his reinforcements were only halfway there, Scarface cursed them as useless trash in his heart while frantically trying to sway the crowd with his words.

It seemed he still held some prestige from the old days, or perhaps his words hit the exact right 'G-spot' of the bandits. Many people involuntarily hesitated, unsure of what to do. With an 'engine attached to their butts', One-Eyed Dragon and his men wouldn't miss this opportunity. They charged forward desperately, their mouths roaring ceaselessly to shake the enemy's morale. The grand undertaking is almost complete!

Before Scarface could even look up at the sky and laugh triumphantly, a cold, bone-chilling shout that sent his soul fleeing in terror rang out:"Shoot!" At an unknown time, over ten archers had ambushed both sides above the stronghold gates. Rising from their hiding spots, they drew their bows, aimed their pre-nocked arrows at the wild mob attempting to storm the stronghold, and fired! Swish... Swish... Thwack...

"Ah...!" The bandits numbered just over fifty. After the first volley, nearly ten unlucky souls collapsed.

"An ambush! Careful!" One-Eyed Dragon and Buck-Toothed Su were horrified! But having reached this point, how could there be any turning back?! The two were truly desperate men; their eyes turned resolute as they roared:"Charge! Quickly!" Saying that, they brandished their sabers and swords to protect their bodies and deflect the hidden arrows. The distance was too close! The archers only had time to fire one more volley before the bandits reached the base of the gates.

The wild mob was now on guard, so the second volley yielded minuscule results; only two unlucky ghosts were hit by stray arrows. The situation was now incredibly critical! Anxious to charge up the gate wall and deal with the archers, One-Eyed Dragon leaped up. Before his feet even touched the ground, his hair stood on end, and he stared in terror at an overwhelmingly fierce fist shadow flying straight at him! Clang... Crack! Boom!!! Years of life-and-death experience saved his life!

In his moment of peril, One-Eyed Dragon instinctively raised his saber to block! The fist shadow, its momentum undiminished, shattered his saber and viciously carved a deep, sunken fist imprint into his chest! The saber absorbed more than half the force, saving his life, but One-Eyed Dragon was still sent flying backward like a torn sack, blood spraying wildly from his mouth!

"Retreat! Retreat!" Buck-Toothed Su's courage completely shattered as he screamed frantically and backed away. Unfortunately, their position was extremely precarious. They were right below the stronghold gates, in the blind spot of the archers above. But the slow-footed ones who turned to flee upon hearing the command didn't make it far before they were "warmly greeted" by the brothers above and turned into pincushions!

Seeing this, the remaining bandits turned green in the face, unable to advance and unable to retreat, not knowing what to do. They instinctively cowered under the stronghold gates and looked toward Old Su. Buck-Toothed Su:... Motherf cker! * Brother Scarface, what do we do now?! It's urgent! Old Su instinctively looked toward Scarface. Scarface no longer had the mental capacity to worry about how the plan had been exposed. Driven to a dead end, he threw caution to the wind and shouted:"Brothers!

They are the ones who killed our Chieftain and stole our Black Iron Stronghold! Think about how free and happy our lives used to be!"

"Listen to me! If we brothers join forces to kill Horse Face, then set an ambush to wipe out his two accomplices, this Black Iron Stronghold will belong to all of us! Whatever we seize, we divide equally! We won't have to take orders from anyone ever again!"

"Hehe! Scarface, who here doesn't know what kind of character you are? When the time comes, do you really think you'll remember to 'divide equally'? Furthermore, today you brought wolves into the house, leading enemies here to massacre your brothers in the stronghold!"

"Even if we agreed, would these people agree to give up their benefits to share equally with everyone?!" Without Nie Feng even needing to step forward to stabilize morale, Knife, standing to the side, already sneered and questioned him.

"Everyone, don't listen to Knife! He's just a fence-sitter! I swear I will divide the benefits equally with my brothers! Boss Su beside me will have no objections either! Right, Boss Su?!" As long as I survive this, whatever you say goes! Buck-Toothed Su nodded like a chicken pecking at grain:"Yes, yes! We put righteousness first! Rest assured, brothers!" Not giving others a chance to question him, Scarface immediately shouted to incite the crowd:"Brothers! Horse Face is alone!

As long as we are united, I don't care if he's a Second-Tier or First-Tier expert; he will die! And we already have a plan to deal with his two accomplices!"

"Brothers, what are you waiting for?! Once we finish this, I promise we'll immediately raid the surrounding towns, snatch a bunch of women, and reward everyone! Money, women, and a life without restraints! Charge!!!" Truthfully, this guy had a knack for inciting people! But it was completely f*cking useless! Because at this moment, the sound of horse hooves rang out from outside the stronghold, accompanied by a humorous, mocking voice:"Oh, really? Charge!!!"

Swallowing hard, trembling as he turned to look at the three black-clad figures leisurely riding their horses toward them from a distance, the two in front left an unforgettable impression on them—the demonic killers, Impermanence and Ox Head! Scarface's heart sank to the bottom of the abyss. It's over!