Chapter 190: Bandits

Li Huowang couldn't be bothered with pleasantries as he watched the other person scream and roll, clutching their ears. He immediately raised his longsword, prepared to decapitate the man.

"Senior Brother Li, look at this!" A sudden voice halted Li Huowang.

Sun Baolu approached, holding something in his hand. Li Huowang looked over, surprised to see it was an old, polished tobacco pipe. Both the pipe and the pattern on its accompanying cloth tobacco pouch looked incredibly familiar.

"Senior Brother Li, this is Master Lu's tobacco pouch! There's absolutely no mistake. He even lent it to me a few times when we were traveling together."

Li Huowang reached out and took it. After a careful examination, his expression turned solemn. It seemed highly probable that Master Lu had been captured by these bandits.

Li Huowang dangled the tobacco pipe in front of the bandit on the ground, his voice turning cold as he demanded, "Where did this come from? Did you recently rob a theatrical troupe?"

"If you've got the guts, kill me! I, Liu Waizui, am a true hero! Don't even think about making me betray my brothers!" the bandit retorted defiantly to Li Huowang, his face full of insolence.

Seeing his defiance, a wave of heat rushed to Li Huowang's head. He smiled as he unfastened the sheepskin pouch from his lower garment. A clatter of metal rang out as a row of various, impeccably clean torture instruments was revealed.

"You want me to kill you? That'd be too easy for you!"

For a short while, Liu Waizui's fingers were ground down inch by inch. His screams echoed far into the rocky mountains. Everyone else turned away, unable to bear watching further.

Once his left hand had been ground down to nothing but the wrist, he, with a face full of snot and tears, finally confessed completely. "I'll tell you! I'll tell you! A few days ago, the Big Boss's elderly mother had her seventieth birthday! He specifically captured a theatrical troupe! They're still up on the mountain!"

Li Huowang casually tossed the bloody torture tool in his hand before him, making Liu Waizui flinch violently backward. "Get up. If you don't want to suffer more, take me to your stronghold."

Liu Waizui dared not utter another word. He scrambled up like a stray dog and meekly led the way.

Meanwhile, Sun Baolu, who was wiping blood from his sword on a nearby corpse, said with a trace of hesitation, "Senior Brother Li, perhaps we should just forget it. It's better to avoid trouble. Master Lu isn't related to us..."

When Li Huowang's stern gaze swept over him, he quickly averted his eyes.

"I am Li Huowang, not Dan Yangzi. If I didn't know, that would be one thing. But since I do know Master Lu has been captured, I must find a way to rescue him! Furthermore, these scumbags attacked without provocation. I still need to settle accounts with them!"

Other matters aside, if even a gang of common bandits could bully him at will, his life would be too humiliating. There are indeed things in this world one cannot afford to provoke, but equally, there are things one can.

The carriage turned, following Liu Waizui towards the bandit stronghold.

"May your journey be smooth, Master. We'll meet again."

A voice came from behind. Li Huowang turned to see the old man who had been traveling with them; he had already climbed over the obstructing rocks. Li Huowang casually cupped his hands in acknowledgment, then continued to follow. He quickly put the old man out of his mind, his full attention now on the challenges ahead.

Through Liu Waizui's confession, Li Huowang quickly understood the structure of this bandit group. Their leader's nickname was "Big Golden Dragon," and this region of Barbarian Mountain was his territory. They were not transient bandits, but an established lair with a well-defined hierarchy, often described as "Four Beams and Eight Pillars."

"What are the Four Beams and Eight Pillars?" Li Huowang asked as they walked.

From Liu Waizui, Li Huowang heard a long list of titles. But in essence, they represented the various roles within the bandit stronghold: the "Blade Head" for raiding, the "Supply Master" for managing provisions, the "Water Scent" for managing overt and covert sentries within the stronghold, the "Strategist" for planning, the "Hostage Handler" for kidnapping wealthy victims and bringing them to the mountain, the "Silver Tongue" for intimidating hostages' families into paying ransom, the "Scout" for disguising as commoners to gather intelligence, and finally, the "Wordsmith," who wrote ransom notes and handled other textual matters.

The hierarchy began with the First Boss, Second Boss, and Third Boss, followed by the "Four Beams and Eight Pillars," and then the common henchmen who handled miscellaneous tasks. The entire bandit stronghold resembled a pyramid, with clear and obvious ranks.

"They're just bandits, yet they're as organized as a military camp. How many people are on your mountain?"

"I haven't counted, but there should be a few hundred people." Liu Waizui completely broke down, answering every question like a cornered dog.

"How capable is your Big Boss? Does he possess any supernatural abilities?"

"Supernatural abilities? Of course not. Our Big Boss is just big and uses a hammer."

"A few hundred people? No supernatural abilities? Just ordinary bandits..." Li Huowang silently assessed the strength of both sides.

They had come on horseback, but Li Huowang had walked, arriving near the bandit lair only as dusk approached. Soon, Li Huowang and his companions ascended the mountain. He spotted firelight on the mountainside, which should be their destination.

"Chirp, chirp, chirp." Suddenly, crisp bird calls emanated from a nearby hillside.

Li Huowang kicked Liu Waizui in the backside. "Tell them I'm here to 'call the mountain.' It's best if we can sit down and talk peacefully; otherwise, we'll settle this by force. You've already witnessed my methods. Think about how many of you will die if we truly resort to force."

Liu Waizui, clutching his injured hand, nodded dejectedly, then placed his tongue against his lower jaw and whistled. The same bird calls as before emanated from his mouth. Soon, identical bird calls responded. The path ahead was completely unobstructed; no one tried to stop them.

Before long, a cave entrance appeared on the mountainside. Several fierce-looking bandits, holding torches, stood at the entrance, glaring at Li Huowang.

"Kid, you've got guts. You killed our brothers and still dare to 'call the mountain'!"

Li Huowang, however, couldn't be bothered to waste words on these common mountain bandits and simply walked straight inside. Soon, inside the so-called "Assembly Hall," Li Huowang saw three boorish men drinking and eating meat, laughing and cursing with foul language. Their voices gradually faded, and they all simultaneously scrutinized Li Huowang.

"Are you an 'outwardly sharp' or an 'inwardly fierce' type?" A bald man was the first to ask.

Li Huowang, however, couldn't be bothered to exchange secret codes with them. "Since I've made it here, I presume you all understand. Hand over that theatrical troupe, and the matter of you robbing me earlier will be considered settled."

"Hahahaha!!" The three men burst into roaring laughter.

"Clang!" The sword blade was drawn, and a dense murderous aura instantly spread throughout the entire Assembly Hall.