Chapter 123: Against the Odds

Li Banfeng went to the Song family's main warehouse. Ma Wu couldn't stop him. Ma Wu wanted to go with him, but Li Banfeng found him bothersome.

With no other option, Ma Wu returned to the wooden house and began packing his belongings.

Every time he hunted with Li Banfeng and they succeeded, he would immediately sell the goods. Was there anything valuable left in the house?

Whenever Ma Wu visited a new place, he would record his observations along the way. He had filled over seventy pages and drawn more than a dozen maps; these were priceless treasures.

He gathered his notes and maps from under the bed, took two pieces of clothing, and went upstairs.

He intended to help Li Banfeng pack, but when he looked out the second-story window, he saw a group of people, armed with weapons, entering from both ends of the alley.

Song Jiasen had arrived!

How did he get here so quickly?

According to Ma Wu's estimation, Song Jiasen should have been waiting at home for Tang Tianjin to return, which would take at least one or two hours. Why was he here so soon?

Someone must have been staking out the area and saw him return home!

Ma Wu grabbed some sticky mud, preparing to set traps, but then he reconsidered: setting traps would be useless.

How large should the traps be?

If Song Jiasen set the house on fire, traps of any size would be ineffective.

He also needed to secure an escape route.

If Song Jiasen surrounded the house, where would be a suitable escape route?

Nowhere seemed suitable.

Song Jiasen arrived with over fifty thugs and surrounded the wooden house. Seeing the curtains drawn, Song Jiasen asked one of his thugs, "Did you see him go back in with your own eyes?"

The thug nodded and said, "I saw him myself."

"Ma Junyang, get your ass out here!" Song Jiasen yelled repeatedly, but there was no response from inside the house.

"You're not coming out, huh? Break down the door!"

The situation was more optimistic than Ma Wu had imagined. Song Jiasen didn't burn the house; he directly ordered his men to ram the door.

Two thugs approached the door, but their feet became stuck to the ground. They couldn't move.

There was sticky mud at the entrance.

Song Jiasen was furious but didn't dare to step forward rashly. "Damn it, playing such dirty tricks on me! Ma Laowu, are you coming out or not?"

The shouts grew louder, and more spectators gathered nearby.

Were these onlookers not afraid of trouble?

However, today's situation was unique.

In Lanyang Village, brawls occurred daily, and killings were not uncommon.

But it was rare for the Song family to take direct action. In most cases, they served as arbitrators, maintaining a dignified image.

Today, the Song family had suddenly turned against the disgraced young master of the Ma family, and many people wanted to know why.

In fact, some had already guessed the reason:

"Ma Wu must have been selling goods behind the Song family's back, otherwise, Old Master Song wouldn't have acted personally."

"Selling goods behind the Song family's back? Is he really asking for death?"

"It's hard to say who's risking their life. Even though he's fallen on hard times, he's still a young master. Boss Song is just bluffing; would he really dare to kill him?"

As the crowd discussed, they suddenly heard Song Jiasen shout, "Ma Laowu, in front of everyone in Lanyang Village today, don't say I'm wronging you. You've been selling goods outside behind my back, haven't you?"

There was no response from inside the house.

Why didn't Ma Wu respond?

Because he wasn't in the wooden house at all.

At that moment, Ma Wu was hiding in Landlord Wei's house.

After Landlord Wei died, his house had remained empty. Li Banfeng's guess was correct; his death simply meant one less person to collect money, and no one else cared.

From the second floor of Landlord Wei's small building, Ma Wu could see the situation at the wooden house and faintly hear some sounds.

As soon as Song Jiasen retreated, Ma Wu could leave unhurriedly.

Song Jiasen waited for a moment, then roared, "Ma Laowu, are you refusing to admit it? I've brought witnesses; let's see if you'll confess now!"

Two thugs dragged a person forward. Seeing this person, Ma Wu clenched his fists.

It was his friend!

It was Xiaochuanzi!

Had Chuanzi betrayed Ma Wu?

No!

Ma Wu knew this for sure; Chuanzi wasn't that kind of person.

Song Jiasen had received intelligence from Yang Yanzheng, caught wind of the situation, and arrested Xiaochuan.

Chuanzi was tough and never admitted to the selling of goods from beginning to end.

Xiaochuanzi had suffered, beaten black and blue, and was dragged before the crowd.

Song Jiasen pointed a knife at Xiaochuanzi's eyes and asked, "Did Ma Laowu send you to Lushui City to sell goods? Tell me the truth."

Xiaochuanzi lowered his head and remained silent.

Song Jiasen smiled. "Alright, you're brave. Take one of his legs off."

Several guards held Xiaochuanzi down. Two men lifted one of his legs, one tied a rope tightly around his thigh, and another raised an axe, ready to chop.

"Stop!" Ma Wu emerged. He couldn't stand by and watch Xiaochuanzi die.

He stood before Song Jiasen and demanded, "Old Master Song, what are you trying to do?"

Song Jiasen smiled. "Ma Laowu, don't you know what I want? When you came to Lanyang Village, I never troubled you. But you've been selling goods behind my back, breaking my rules!"

Ma Wu said expressionlessly, "You need proof to make such claims. Who saw me selling goods behind your back?"

Song Jiasen grabbed Xiaochuanzi's hair and sneered, "The witness is right here. How dare you argue?"

Xiaochuanzi cried out, "Fifth Master didn't tell me to sell any goods! Don't you dare frame him!"

"Brave boy, quite stubborn!" Song Jiasen raised his knife, intending to gouge out Xiaochuanzi's eyes.

Ma Wu roared, "Song, how dare you! Don't you see whose family he belongs to?"

Song Jiasen paused, then turned with a laugh. "Him? He's just a worker for the Ma family. What is he?"

"You know he's from the Ma family, and you still dare to touch him?"

Song Jiasen chuckled, "Is there only one Ma family in Puluo Prefecture? Are Ma family members untouchable? Is my Song family so easy to bully?"

Ma Wu also laughed. "I know the Lu family is behind you, but let me tell you, a worker from the Ma family is still a person, and the Lu family's lapdog is still just a dog.

Song Jiasen, do you truly see yourself as a lion? In my eyes, you're nothing but a dog!"

Could Xiaochuanzi's status be compared to Song Jiasen's?

No, Ma Wu knew this very well.

Even if Song Jiasen were to kill Xiaochuanzi on the spot, he could settle the matter by paying a sum of money to the Ma family afterwards.

If anyone else compared Xiaochuanzi to Song Jiasen, Song Jiasen would laugh.

But coming from Ma Wu, Song Jiasen didn't laugh.

The aura of a noble family's young master prevented him from laughing.

Song Jiasen's eyes turned bloodshot. "Ma Junyang, are you insulting me?

I'm telling you right now, let alone him, I could kill you instantly. Do you believe that?"

Ma Wu stared directly into Song Jiasen's eyes. "Come on, I'm standing right here. Kill me!"

Song Jiasen twirled the dagger in his hand. "Don't think you can be so arrogant just because you're a young master of the Ma family. Let me tell you, this is Lanyang Village, not your Ma family mansion!"

Ma Wu scoffed. "I haven't been a young master of the Ma family for a long time. I was kicked out of my home.

I've slept in shacks, picked food from trash heaps; I'm not much better than a beggar. If you want to kill me, just do it. No need for more empty words."

Did Song Jiasen truly dare to kill Ma Wu?

He didn't dare.

Not to mention killing Ma Wu in front of so many people, even if he were to secretly kill him, he feared the Ma family wouldn't spare him.

But he wanted to teach Ma Wu a lesson, to beat him severely. He wanted this young master to know the rules of Lanyang Village and who its true master was!

Song Jiasen was also aware of Ma Wu's previous robbery. It wasn't Ma Wu's first beating. He estimated that even if he beat Ma Wu half to death, the Ma family wouldn't pursue the matter.

Ma Wu was prepared for a beating. As long as he could save Chuanzi, another beating wouldn't matter, as long as he stayed alive!

Just as Song Jiasen was about to order his men to attack, he heard one of his subordinates report, "Master, the main warehouse is on fire."

A vein throbbed on Song Jiasen's temple.

He had no idea what was happening.

Ma Wu also heard this.

He suspected Li Banfeng was responsible but couldn't understand why.

Li Banfeng had said he would go to the Song family's main warehouse to retrieve some things. Would he really set it on fire?

Regardless of his internal turmoil, Ma Wu showed no emotion on his face.

The fire at the warehouse presented an opportunity for Ma Wu to assert his power.

He continued to stare directly at Song Jiasen and shouted sternly, "If you have the guts, come and kill me. Let's see who's tougher!"

Song Jiasen didn't respond.

What did Ma Wu mean by that?

Did he send someone to burn down the warehouse?

Wasn't he disowned...?

Something was amiss!

The Ma family might have forgiven Ma Wu, or even been secretly assisting him.

The Ma family burning the warehouse was a warning to him.

If he continued to stubbornly confront Ma Wu, he worried the situation would spiral out of control.

But should he stop now?

Many people were watching, and Song Jiasen had come to establish his authority. If he backed down now, his standing would be compromised in the future.

Having monopolized Lanyang Village for twenty years, Song Jiasen was ultimately experienced. In this emergency, he devised a countermeasure.

"Fifth Young Master, I respect you as a man. Although you've fallen on hard times, I, Song, will not bully you.

Lanyang Village is my territory, and by breaking my rules, you've essentially slapped my face. I can't just let this go.

Since I set the rules, we'll stick to them. Tomorrow at noon, twelve o'clock, we'll have a wilderness duel, a public showdown to determine who's superior.

If I win, I'll trouble you to seek your fortune elsewhere and never step foot in Lanyang Village again.

If you win, I, Song, will move my entire family out of here within three days. How does that sound?"

Ma Wu didn't want to agree. He knew he was no match for Song Jiasen, and he wasn't someone who would act tough just for reputation.

However, Xiaochuanzi was in Song Jiasen's hands. Refusing would be admitting defeat, and all the momentum he had just built would be for nothing. Xiaochuanzi might die, and he himself couldn't escape a severe beating.

He decided to agree first, to save Xiaochuanzi.

"Old Master Song, you're a third-level martial cultivator, and I've just reached the first level. Dueling you would basically be suicide."

"What, are you scared? Don't worry, you won't die in a public duel; you can just surrender." Song Jiasen looked at Ma Wu with a mocking expression.

Ma Wu sneered, "Surrender? Is it that easy? I want to find someone to duel in my place. That's within the rules, isn't it?"

This was indeed within the rules. Song Jiasen had proposed a public duel, which meant a daytime combat, and Ma Wu was allowed to find a substitute.

Song Jiasen could also find a substitute, but what level of combatant could he find?

At most, a fourth-level fighter.

What level of combatant could Ma Wu find?

That was hard to say.

If Ma Wu spent a large sum, or if the Ma family secretly intervened, finding a fifth or sixth-level combatant would be no problem.

Song Jiasen was conflicted internally, but his expression remained calm. "Fifth Young Master, this is a matter between you and me. There's no need to involve others. And I won't bully the weak. I'll have my son duel you, first level against first level. That's fair, isn't it?"

Song Jiasen had two sons, Song Zhigang and Song Zhiyi, both of whom were first-level cultivators.

"Zhiyi, do you dare to fight Young Master Fifth?" Song Jiasen assigned the task to Song Zhiyi because his elder son, Song Zhigang, had been injured due to overly zealous cultivation.

Song Zhiyi had never participated in a duel before. He had begun his apprenticeship at six and usually stayed in town to study, rarely returning home. He knew little about family affairs.

Yet, he showed no fear, looking at Ma Wu with disdain. "What's there to be afraid of?"

With the conversation at this point, Ma Wu had no reason to refuse. "Alright, it's settled then. Now release Chuanzi."

Song Jiasen threw Chuanzi in front of Ma Wu and then led his men away.

His departure seemed calm, but Song Jiasen's heart was ablaze with anxiety.

The main warehouse was still burning!

What the hell was Luo Sancai doing?!

How many people did the Ma family send to burn down the main warehouse?

Actually, it was just one person, and not sent by the Ma family.

Li Banfeng was hiding near the main warehouse. After seeing Song Jiasen and his men leave, he entered his portable residence, threw the keys into the warehouse, and slipped in.

He had originally intended to find valuable items, but the warehouse was vast, and there weren't many treasures. Time was also pressing, so Li Banfeng simply picked a few things that caught his eye, then set a fire, and seized the cash box amidst the chaos.

The cash box didn't contain much money, only about 300,000. After hearing the story, Li Banfeng gave all 300,000 to Xiaochuan. "You're a brave man. Take this money for your injuries."

Xiaochuan shook his head and said, "I don't need money. These are just minor superficial wounds. A little medicine will do; it's nothing serious."

Li Banfeng was quite surprised. "Truly nothing serious?"

Xiaochuan nodded and said, "It's really nothing."

Li Banfeng looked impressed. "Since it's nothing serious, go back to work then."

Xiaochuan and Ma Wu looked at Li Banfeng together, thinking that no sane person would utter such cruel words.

Li Banfeng righteously declared, "You said you're fine, so why aren't you going to work?"

Ma Wu couldn't understand Li Banfeng's reasoning. He turned to Xiaochuan and said, "Chuanzi, don't do road construction anymore. Follow me from now on. We can't stay in Lanyang Village, and I'm not planning to have a wilderness duel with the Song family. We're leaving tonight."

Li Banfeng looked at Ma Wu. "Leave? Why? This place is great!

It's just a duel, right? What's so hard about that? You should practice your eloquence first!"

Ma Wu asked in surprise, "Why should I practice eloquence?"

Li Banfeng said seriously, "A duel? Isn't it just a battle of wits?"