Perched on his horse, Feng Yuncheng wore a cold sneer. "Don’t worry, we at the Wind Evil Stronghold are all about rules. As long as the full ransom is paid, down to the last cent, your goods will be returned to you untouched."
"Cut the crap! We’re paying on delivery, so where are our goods?" Yu Fujiu stared daggers at him, sneering coldly and refusing to back down an inch.
Feng Yuncheng didn’t answer directly, his mocking gaze sweeping over the four of them.
"You’re Yu Fujiu of the Yu family. This one is Xie Yong from the Jian’an Prefecture’s Golden Tiger Caravan. And you two must be the ones from Black Stone City?"
His gaze landed brazenly on Su Yu and Lin Wanzhu, his tone laced with contempt and ridicule. "Back in Black Stone City, the Black Lotus Sect’s army is about to trample everything to dust. Shouldn’t you be at home waiting to collect corpses instead of coming all the way to Linyuan City to join the commotion?"
"Feng Yuncheng, quit your fucking games! Where are our goods?" Yu Fujiu’s face was ashen as he demanded harshly, "If we don’t see our cargo, your Wind Evil Stronghold won’t get a single cent of our ransom!"
Feng Yuncheng disdainfully picked his ear with his pinky finger, then casually spat a glob of thick phlegm onto the ground before speaking in a leisurely drawl:
"What’s the rush? We only got to know each other through this little conflict, after all. Harmony brings wealth. Let’s get this deal done happily today, make some friends, and maybe we’ll have a chance to work together again in the future."
"Bullshit! You robbed my goods, and now you want to rip me off again in the future?" Xie Yong grew even more furious, spurring his horse forward.
He noticed that the top leader, Feng Han, wasn’t present. His confidence immediately swelled, and his attitude hardened.
Feng Yuncheng didn’t even get angry at the curse, merely looking more contemptuous. "It seems having two more in the Muscle Forging Realm has given you a bit of courage, has it?"
A flicker of mockery crossed Feng Yuncheng’s eyes. He suddenly cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled towards the empty canyon behind Xie Yong, "Haha, Big Brother, come on out!"
"What? Feng Han is here?!"
The sudden shout startled Xie Yong. The hair on his body stood on end, and he yanked his reins in terror, whipping his head around to look behind him, ready to flee at a moment’s notice.
However, the canyon remained deathly silent.
After several long breaths, no ambush party emerged from behind them.
Only then did Xie Yong realize he’d been tricked. To be scared into nearly fleeing in panic by a single shout, and in front of everyone... His bronze-tanned face instantly flushed a deep, purplish red. He roared:
"Feng Yuncheng! Are you going to make this fucking trade or not? If you don’t bring out the goods, I’ll chop you to pieces right now!"
"Alright, Third Brother. Stop wasting your breath on this lot. Collect the money."
Just then, the second-in-command, Feng Da Kui, who had been silent all this time, spurred his horse forward, his great axe resting on his shoulder.
"Hehehe, since Second Brother has spoken, I’ll stop teasing them." Feng Yuncheng’s smile vanished, and he pointed sinisterly behind him.
"Your goods are in a hollow in the dense forest, three li behind us. Not a single piece is missing. As soon as you obediently hand over the ransom, I’ll fire a signal arrow for my men to withdraw. After that, you can go get the carriages yourselves."
"Fuck! You didn’t even bring the goods to the exchange point? Who knows what dirty tricks you Wind Evil Stronghold bastards are playing? What if it’s just an empty setup?" Xie Yong was growing frantic. The Wind Evil Stronghold wasn’t following the usual script at all.
As Xie Yong argued fiercely with them up ahead,
a subtle, cyan glint flashed in the eyes of Su Yu, who was positioned at the rear.
’Eagle’s Eye!’
Su Yu’s consciousness instantly connected with the Cyan-Scaled Eagle high in the sky. His vision shot upward, piercing through the clouds to look down upon the earth.
The eagle’s vision zoomed in, focusing with incredible speed.
In the direction Feng Yuncheng had pointed, about three li away in a hidden pine forest, a dozen or so carriages covered with heavy tarps were indeed parked. Through the gaps, Su Yu’s vision clearly saw wooden crates marked with the crests of their respective families.
Surrounding the carriages, dozens of bandits were rubbing their hands together for warmth while shiftily rummaging through some of the sacks. Some were furtively pulling out stalks of Treasure Medicine and greedily stuffing them into their pants and robes.
The fact that these bandits were taking the opportunity to line their own pockets ironically proved that the goods were genuine.
’Confirmation complete. Feng Han isn’t here, and the goods are safe.’
Su Yu quickly severed the mental link, his consciousness returning to his body.
’In that case, there’s no need for any more pointless talk. Time to act on the plan!’
He shot a meaningful glance at his senior sister beside him, and the two of them immediately spurred their horses forward.
At that moment, Xie Yong noticed Su Yu’s movement, and his heart skipped a beat. Before they arrived, Su Yu had informed them that he had a way to scout things out.
’If he’s moving forward, that means it’s time to strike!’
A flurry of thoughts flashed through Xie Yong’s mind, but in the end, he resolved to take the gamble!
’After all, tens of thousands in silver were on the line!’
Meanwhile, Feng Yuncheng was still droning on with his taunts. "Xie Yong, hurry it up and hand over the ransom. The Wind Evil Stronghold always keeps its word."
"Fine! Here’s the ransom, take it!"
With a pained and reluctant expression, Xie Yong took a brocade box from his robes and tossed it toward him.
Feng Yuncheng sneered and reached out to catch it.
In the next instant, everything changed!
"Now!"
Xie Yong bellowed, launching himself like a ferocious tiger and crossing dozens of feet in an instant to close the distance.
The Great Tendons in his right arm tightened like steel cables as a violent, tiger-like Gang Force erupted from his body, locking onto Feng Yuncheng’s chest!
"You dare!"
Feng Yuncheng’s face went pale with shock, his pupils instantly shrinking to the size of pinpricks.
He never imagined they would dare to attack so brazenly without even seeing the goods!
In his haste, he could only awkwardly cross his arms in front of his chest in a desperate attempt to block.
But Xie Yong’s attack was long-planned. He had the absolute advantage of a surprise attack, and he struck with pent-up hatred, holding nothing back!
BANG!
Feng Yuncheng’s hastily raised arms took the full force of the punch.
He immediately spat out a mouthful of blood and was sent flying backward off his horse. The horse itself wasn’t so lucky.
The savage Gang Force washed over it. With a shrill neigh, the horse lost its footing and was thrown violently to the ground.
The situation had changed in a flash, and the other Muscle Forging Realm experts reacted quickly.
In the next moment, Su Yu and Lin Wanzhu both struck, aiming for Feng Da Kui.
Unexpectedly, Feng Da Kui was incredibly agile, his speed completely belying his large frame.
The Great Tendons in his legs coiled and sprang. His massive body leaped lightly from the saddle in a single bound, explosively retreating dozens of feet in the blink of an eye!
BOOM! BOOM!
Su Yu and Lin Wanzhu’s surprise attacks both missed their mark.
Su Yu’s brow furrowed. ’This man’s reactions are too sharp. He dodged my and Senior Sister’s surprise attacks so easily.’
He glanced to the side. Fortunately, Yu Fujiu had already joined forces with Xie Yong, catching up to Feng Yuncheng and beginning their assault.
Feng Yuncheng was already injured from the sneak attack. Now, being besieged by two experts of the same realm, he surely wouldn’t last long.
"Senior Sister, don’t hold back! I’ll take him head-on and break his defense. You circle around, provide support, and look for an opening to strike. We need to kill him as fast as possible!" Su Yu’s eyes hardened. Without another word, his Qi and Blood instantly surged to its peak.
"Understood!"
The two moved in perfect concert. One overt, one covert, two streams of killing intent converged on Feng Da Kui, who had just regained his footing!
Seeing Su Yu and his partner closing in, the fat on Feng Da Kui’s fierce face trembled as he broke into a savage grin.
"Brat, you think the two of you are enough to hold me down? You’re really courting death!"
As he spoke, he raised his great axe. Starting from the "great dragon" of his spine, the muscles of his arms, chest, and back swelled and tightened in an instant, like an inflating rubber ball!
The Great Tendons on his arms, in particular, bulged violently, looking like ferocious, coiling dragons. A brutal Tiger Tendon Power awakened with a roar from within him!
"GET LOST!!!"
Feng Da Kui swung his arms in a great arc. Empowered by the terrifying force of his Tiger Tendon, the great axe descended on the charging Su Yu with the weight of a falling mountain, accompanied by a vicious gust of wind!
WHOOSH—
The heavy axe cleaved the air, its edge wreathed in a turbulent tide of tangible Gang Force. The dull roar of its passage was like the wailing of ghosts and howling of wolves, enough to make one’s scalp tingle.
It had to be said that experts of the Tiger Tendon Realm were truly extraordinary, their every move backed by terrifying power and explosiveness.
This was the true strength of the Tiger Tendon: it possessed the freakish elasticity of the Ape Tendon, yet was as thick and strong as a tiger’s, granting it horrific power!
Just like the true king of beasts, its explosive speed and power were astonishingly great—an all-encompassing, crushing force!
Faced with such a terrifying blow, Su Yu’s brow furrowed slightly.
This was his first time facing an expert of the Tiger Tendon Realm, and this single strike allowed him to fully experience its tyrannical power.
In that instant, he understood that he couldn’t hold anything back, or he would never be able to withstand his opponent’s attack!
’Mountain-Crushing Collapse!’
Su Yu immediately unleashed the most tyrannical punch of the Demon Ape Shakes Mountain Fist!
All the Great Tendons in his body tightened in an instant. In the transition from relaxed to explosive, the Qi and Blood in his body roared like a river bursting its banks as it surged into his right arm.
The moment he threw the punch, a terrifying vision bloomed!
The ultimate sharpness of the White Ape’s Apex fused with the murderous intent from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood contained within the Demon Ape’s Evil Qi! Two completely different auras merged, forming a tyrannical, magma-red Gang Force that enveloped Su Yu’s fist!
It all happened in a flash!
In the next instant, Su Yu’s fist met the great axe in a fierce mid-air collision!
BOOM!
The two streams of Gang Force collided and annihilated each other, then scattered, transforming into a raging Gang Wind that sent dust and debris flying everywhere.
The exchange was an even match, but Su Yu had been clever. He had struck the flat of the axe blade, and the violent force had instantly knocked it off course.
The great axe scraped past Su Yu’s fist and slammed viciously into the ground beside him.
BOOM!
The ground trembled. The hard, frozen earth instantly shattered, sending rubble flying and kicking up a plume of dust and smoke.
The blow blasted a five-foot-wide crater in the ground!