In front of the village, the sound of weapons clashing was constant as Hei Lian and Hu Lao Er fought fiercely outside Li Family Village.
Hei Lian’s eyes were wide with anger as he swung his large blade wildly, attacking with a ferocity that aimed to break through Hu Lao Er’s defenses.
But Hu Lao Er, as the second-in-command of Black Water Village, was not to be underestimated.
His movements were agile, and his blade was like a deadly snake, deftly countering each of Hei Lian’s fierce strikes.
The two exchanged blows, their weapons clashing with a metallic ring, occasionally sparking with each contact.
With a roar of rage, Hei Lian exerted all his strength and swung his blade at Hu Lao Er with full force, causing the wind to howl.
Hu Lao Er sidestepped and countered with a quick strike, his blade aiming straight at Hei Lian’s chest.
Hei Lian hurriedly defended himself, and sparks flew from the collision of their weapons.
At that moment, Hu Lao Er seized a gap in Hei Lian’s defense and struck his shoulder with a swift cut, causing blood to spurt out.
“Ugh!”
Hei Lian cried out in pain as blood flowed from his shoulder wound, but he stubbornly refused to retreat.
“It seems you all will not shed tears until you see the coffin. Brothers, attack!”
With Hu Lao Er’s command, the bandits from Black Water Village surged toward Li Family Village like a tide.
The shouts and battle cries shook the heavens as they wielded various weapons, violently assaulting the village gate.
Some bandits set up long ladders to try to scale the village walls, while others shot arrows from the rear. Li Family Village was thrown into chaos.
The defenders inside the village fought desperately, arrows flying like locusts towards the enemy, but the bandits continued their relentless assault.
The villagers of Li Family Village also picked up their weapons and joined the fight.
However, the attack from Black Water Village was too fierce, and Li Family Village soon found itself struggling in a tough battle.
In the midst of the fierce fighting, Hei Lian, heavily wounded, staggered toward Li Family Village.
The villagers, risking their lives, fought off Black Water Village’s bandits to clear a path for Hei Lian’s escape.
“Open the gate, open the gate!”
Seeing Hei Lian approaching, the third-in-command immediately ordered the gate to be opened.
The gate slowly creaked open, and Hei Lian rushed inside, followed by two Black Water Village bandits who were quickly dealt with by the defenders.
Just as the battle reached its peak, a commanding voice rang out.
“Stop it all!”
At the sound of this command, the fighters from Li Family Village ceased their actions first, and Hu Lao Er also ordered his bandits to halt.
Li Xiao Yang, panting and clearly having rushed here at full speed, climbed the village wall and addressed Black Water Village:
“Tell Hu Lao Da that we, Li Family Village, will pack up and move to Black Water Village tomorrow!”
“What?”
“The leader must not!”
Upon hearing this, the people of Li Family Village erupted in chaos. To ally with Black Water Village? The bandits from Black Water Village were notorious for their cruelty!
Li Xiao Yang glanced back, and everyone fell silent.
Hu Lao Er nodded in satisfaction: “Exactly, those who know how to adapt to circumstances are wise. Li Da Dong Jia will ultimately understand this is a wise choice.”
Hu Lao Er then turned and left, taking his bandits with him.
Inside the great hall of Li Family Village, the atmosphere was grim.
The third-in-command asked first: “Boss, if we go to Black Water Village, won’t we become real bandits?”
Lao Fang also nodded in agreement, while Ye Chen stood by quietly observing.
Li Xiao Yang, with a solemn expression, stood up decisively and said: “Order the brothers to pack up in the afternoon and leave tonight!”
“Leave? Where to?” Hei Lian asked with confusion.
Li Xiao Yang hesitated for a moment before making a decision: “We will join the Yunzhou Army!”
Ye Chen raised his eyebrows; it seemed things were developing in an interesting direction.
The third-in-command slowly nodded: “The Yunzhou Army has just eliminated Black Wind Village. Even if Black Water Village is dealt with, joining them now would be akin to seeking death.”
“But the Yunzhou Army is different. With our addition, their power against bandits will increase, which is a good choice.”
Seeing everyone agree, Hei Lian also nodded, though he was still somewhat hesitant: “But we are bandits too; will the Yunzhou Army accept us?”
At this point, Lao Fang stepped forward: “I believe they will. We have not committed robbery or heinous acts. Joining the Yunzhou Army should be fine!”
Finally, Li Xiao Yang slammed the table and said: “It’s settled then. Quickly notify everyone; we leave tonight!”
“Yes!” With that, everyone in the hall went out to inform the villagers, leaving Ye Chen alone, feeling somewhat bewildered.
Li Xiao Yang then looked at Ye Chen and said: “Ye Chen, you are from the Yunzhou Army. We need your help to join the Yunzhou Army tonight.”
Ye Chen agreed readily: “No problem!”
With that, Ye Chen left the hall, but just after exiting, he was ambushed.
Although the hall outside was empty, Hei Lian had stealthily hidden in the shadows. When Ye Chen came out, Hei Lian struck him and knocked him unconscious.
After incapacitating Ye Chen, Hei Lian quickly dragged him away.
Had Ye Chen been attacked again? No, certainly not!
When Hei Lian fought Hu Lao Er earlier, Ye Chen had noticed something odd. Hei Lian’s blade moves were large and powerful; how could he possibly avoid Hu Lao Er’s attacks?
Later, Hei Lian’s smooth return to Li Family Village confirmed Ye Chen’s suspicion.
Such intense combat would be impossible for Hei Lian to survive unscathed.
When Li Xiao Yang mentioned joining the Yunzhou Army, Hei Lian’s astonishment was genuine, and far greater than anyone else’s. Ye Chen had then confirmed that Hei Lian had ulterior motives.
Indeed, after leaving the hall, Ye Chen didn’t hear Hei Lian’s footsteps fading away, so he concluded that Hei Lian was still hiding nearby.
Ye Chen pretended to be unconscious for a while and noticed that Hei Lian had wrapped him in a sack. After a long journey, he now found himself in an unknown location.
Soon after, Hei Lian set him down and opened the sack. Ye Chen saw his surroundings clearly.
It was still a bandit’s great hall, but everyone present was fierce-looking. Ye Chen even recognized a familiar face—Hu Lao Er.
At this moment, Hei Lian stood in the center of the hall and spoke to the bandit leader, Hu Lao Da: “Hu Lao Da, Li Xiao Yang is preparing to leave Yunzhou Mountain tonight to join the Yunzhou Army. I figured this kid would be useful, so I brought him here.”
Ye Chen, seeing his surroundings, pretended to be terrified and said to Hei Lian: “You… you’re a traitor!”
“Hahaha, if one doesn’t care for oneself, heaven and earth will bring disaster!”
Hei Lian laughed arrogantly: “Li Xiao Yang, after becoming a bandit, hasn’t engaged in robbery but instead farms in the mountains. I’ve long wanted to quit!”
“If it weren’t for you, kid, mentioning Yunzhou Army and Black Wind Village, Li Family Village would have fallen to Black Water Village tomorrow!”
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