Volume 1, Chapter 99 – Interception

After a few rounds of coordinated volleys around the beast horde, the all-female troops had already cut down more than half the demonic beasts, and the remaining ones didn’t last through even two charges from Wang Ning and the others.

Watching the Demon-Suppressing Army’s practiced cooperation in slaughtering the beasts, You Hong became more cautious. A structured unit like this was not something a small force could field.

Could this group be escorting spirit crystals for some major power?

At that thought, You Hong couldn’t help but feel a hint of retreating intent.

Just as he hesitated, several streaks of light with their radiance suppressed to the limit skimmed over the snow.

When the light faded, it was the trusted men You Hong had sent out with letters earlier.

“Chief, this is the reply from White Tiger Stronghold.”

“Chief, this is the reply from Lord Yanshan City.”

“Chief…”

Scanning through the letters one by one, You Hong suddenly clenched his fist, his expression turning firm. A true man should cut clean when it’s time to cut.

Riches are found in danger; time waits for no one, and opportunities vanish in a blink. If he missed this one, he might regret it for life.

Looking at the Demon-Suppressing Army in the distance who had already finished clearing the battlefield, the only thing left in You Hong’s eyes was coldness.

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“Let’s go.”

With a group of his trusted men, You Hong circled around Shi Lan’s party and reached a valley along their route ahead of them.

More than a dozen people were already standing in the valley, clothes and styles all different, ages ranging from gray-haired elders to men barely past twenty.

You Hong had practically called in every favor he could, all for a single decisive strike.

“I’m grateful to everyone for giving me this face and coming to help. I, You Hong, will remember today’s kindness and pay it back someday.” Landing in front of the group, You Hong clasped his fists.

“No need to be so polite, Chief You. It’s not easy to get you to owe anyone a favor on normal days. With an opportunity like this, of course we weren’t going to miss it.” A sword-bearing man in tight blue garb waved his hand and smiled.

“Indeed. Ordinary people couldn’t get this kind of chance even if they begged for it. Since Chief You thinks highly of us, we naturally won’t refuse.” An elder with white hair and beard nodded slightly. He wore a black robe, his aura a little strange.

Behind this elder stood four sword-bearing maids, all with voluptuous figures. In the dead of winter, they wore nothing but thin gauze dresses, their faintly visible skin making a few of the younger martial artists present feel their blood stir.

The others also spoke up in turn, all outwardly polite.

After the pleasantries, a burly man with a tiger’s back and bear’s waist took a step forward and asked, “Chief You, can you tell us now who exactly you’re planning to move against?”

The big man had cropped hair, stood nearly eight feet tall, and the corded muscles on his arms were thicker than most people’s thighs, his aura fierce. Several middle-aged men with bandit-like faces stood behind him.

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The rest fell silent, waiting for You Hong’s answer. They all understood as well that whoever You Hong was targeting wouldn’t be easy to deal with—otherwise he wouldn’t have gone to all this trouble.

“This time I’ve asked you all here to share in a windfall,” You Hong said with a small smile, then explained about the group carrying a huge amount of spirit crystals.

He had never intended to keep all those spirit crystals for himself. His main goal was that third-grade spiritual material. Once he seized the crystals, he was planning to flee far away.

The group’s background was clearly not simple. You Hong wasn’t stupid enough to stay here and wait for someone to come settle accounts. Throwing the spirit crystals around also served to divert attention.

When he finished, the valley fell silent. Everyone’s first reaction was disbelief. They had never heard of You Hong doing something like robbery and murder over the years.

After all, his own line of work was transporting and guarding goods, not waylaying caravans. To ruin his long-built reputation over one pile of spirit crystals—no matter how they thought about it, it didn’t seem worth it.

Even if there were tens of thousands of spirit crystals in this batch and it sounded like a lot, once so many people here each took their share, how much would actually end up in You Hong’s hands?

Though they’d spoken politely earlier, none of them really wanted to be cannon fodder. If things went wrong, they might not even know how they’d been dragged to their deaths.

For a moment, the valley fell into an awkward quiet.

Estimating Shi Lan’s party’s travel speed on horseback in his head, You Hong frowned. He couldn’t stall any longer. If he did, there wouldn’t be time to set up a proper interception.

“We’re all smart people here, so I’ll be blunt. They’ve got a third-grade spiritual material, and I want to use it to break into the Earth Fiend Realm. I hope you’ll lend me a hand.”

At that, the valley stirred.

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A third-grade spiritual material was something only Earth Fiend Realm martial artists could truly make use of—and it was priceless. Even tens of thousands of spirit crystals couldn’t compare to its value.

“Since Chief You’s laid it out like that, of course we should do our part,” the sword-bearing man from earlier said.

A good number of people immediately followed suit and voiced their agreement. Several others’ eyes flickered, clearly harboring their own plans.

“Chief You, I’m sorry, but I won’t be stepping into this muddy water. If you need anything in the future, you can call on me then.”

A man in his fifties with graying temples clasped his fists, then left the valley with a few others, clearly wanting no part in this.

A few more people left after him, but in the end, most chose to stay.

You Hong was already satisfied with that outcome. The other side had only two Innate Realm fighters and a few dozen Body Tempering martial artists. On his side, there were nearly twenty in the Innate Realm.

Even if most of them were below the fourth stage of the Innate Realm, sheer numbers were enough to make up the difference.

Besides the Innate Realm, there were also several martial artists above the seventh stage of the Body Tempering Realm. In terms of combat strength, they utterly crushed the other side. This operation was all but sure to succeed.

He knew full well that those who stayed weren’t doing it out of pure motives, but he didn’t care. He had enough confidence in his own strength and believed he could keep everyone in line.

Time was precious, and You Hong wasted no more of it. He immediately began assigning people to set up the ambush.

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“Chief You, there’s no need to be this careful.”

Seeing how cautious You Hong was, the bare-chested big man scratched his head and said,

“From what you’ve said, there are only two Innate Realm fighters over there. We’ve got so many people here, and you’re a ninth-stage Innate Realm expert on top of that. We could just charge straight at them, kill them, grab the goods, and be done with it.”

“You brute. You think this is your White Tiger Stronghold? You think this is some ordinary roadside robbery? Try using your head,” the black-robed elder rolled his eyes and said with open disdain.

“Old bastard, you tired of living?!” the big man growled, blood-red light rippling over his bulging muscles.

“Oh? You want to make a move on me?” the black-robed elder sneered.

The four sword-bearing maids behind him stepped forward in unison, the swords in their arms drawn half from their scabbards, sharp sword intent spilling out.

“You think I’d be afraid of—”

“Enough! They’re here!”

With an impatient bark, You Hong cut them off, his eyes locked on the dark line rapidly approaching in the distance.