Chapter 248

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Exiting the mountain stronghold, Zhang Xiaohua was carrying three people. However, since Li Yinfeng and her mother were both light, it did not take much effort. But with the addition of Zhang Xiaohu, whose weight was equivalent to the other two combined, the burden increased significantly. Zhang Xiaohua carried Li Yinfeng on his back, supported her mother with his right hand, and held Zhang Xiaohu with his left. Since Zhang Xiaohu lacked his younger brother’s strength, he could only apologize and use his arm to clamp onto Li Yinfeng’s father. After all, he was merely holding on tightly—Zhang Xiaohua was the one exerting all the effort.

Carrying four living people while executing Qinggong, Zhang Xiaohua did not find it physically strenuous, but his internal True Qi was rapidly consumed. Earlier, searching for Li Yinfeng had already depleted some of his energy, and now, bringing the three of them out had drained several times more. It became clear to him that the energy expenditure of Qinggong was closely related to weight. He estimated that he had just enough True Qi left to reach another mountain while carrying all four of them. Taking a deep breath, he silently activated his heart technique, causing his True Qi to circulate wildly within him. With a light tap of his foot, he executed the Piaomiao Step, his figure floating into the air, barely touching the treetops before swiftly dashing down the mountainside with his divine sense fully extended.

Although there were hidden sentries within the forest, it was already late at night. The entire mountain was filled only with the sound of the wind, the rustling of leaves, and the occasional cries of animals. The sentries of the stronghold never imagined that someone would pass right above their heads. If it weren’t for their leader’s repeated insistence on military discipline and stricter patrols, they would have long since returned to the stronghold instead of obediently standing watch over the dimly lit mountain path in a daze.

Thus, Zhang Xiaohua easily evaded several hidden sentries and safely arrived at the spot where he had left the red jujube horse. Just as they were about to reach the destination, he prepared to gather his energy when, to his shock, he suddenly realized that his meridians were completely empty—there was not a trace of True Qi left. Alarmed, he found himself midair and urgently called out in a low voice, “Second Brother, get down.” At the same time, he released Zhang Xiaohu, dropping him to the ground as his own body plummeted.

Fortunately, Zhang Xiaohu was also a martial artist with agile reflexes. The height was merely that of a tree, posing no real challenge to him. With a single leap, he landed steadily on the ground. Though the forest was pitch-black, he stood firm. At the same moment, there was another soft landing beside him—Zhang Xiaohua had also touched down with ease.

Zhang Xiaohu asked in a low voice: “Xiaohua, why did we stop? Are we at the spot?”

Zhang Xiaohua forced a bitter smile. “We’re almost there. I’ve completely exhausted my True Qi and can’t use Qinggong anymore. I just needed to put you all down.”

Li Yinfeng quickly got off Zhang Xiaohua’s back and asked anxiously: “Then, are you alright?”

Zhang Xiaohua replied, “I’m fine, Big Sister Li. I’ll recover in a bit. Let’s go—the red jujube horse isn’t far ahead. We should leave the mountain as soon as possible.”

Zhang Xiaohu was puzzled. “It’s pitch black out here. How do you know the red jujube horse is ahead?”

Zhang Xiaohua chuckled. “Instinct, Second Brother—a man’s sixth sense.”

With that, Li Yinfeng helped her mother, while Zhang Xiaohu supported Shopkeeper Li. Under Zhang Xiaohua’s lead, they walked for half a quarter of an hour and soon found the red jujube horse.

With five people and only two horses, Zhang Xiaohu found himself in a dilemma. Shopkeeper Li suggested: “Nephew, this old man can ride. Let me take my family on one horse, and you two share the other. What do you think?”

Zhang Xiaohua shook his head. “This place is far from Lu Town. If the three of you ride together, the horse won’t be able to handle it. It would be better if Uncle and Aunt rode one horse while Second Brother and Li Yinfeng share the other. Would that work?”

Li Yinfeng hesitated, but Shopkeeper Li, after some thought, said: “Time is of the essence, and given the situation, we have no other choice. Feng’er, do as Nephew Zhang suggests.”

It was unclear whether Li Yinfeng nodded or shook her head—visibility was poor in the night—but she remained silent, which was tacit agreement.

Shopkeeper Li then asked: “Nephew Zhang Xiaohua, will you be riding with us or with your second brother?”

Zhang Xiaohua smiled. “I won’t ride with you. I’ll use Qinggong and follow along.”

Zhang Xiaohu was bewildered. “How can that work? You’re light. You could just ride with us. Why insist on using qinggong? Besides, haven’t you run out of True Qi? How are you going to use Qinggong?”

Zhang Xiaohua replied: “Second Brother, time is tight—why are you fussing over this? If I get on the horse, it’ll slow down. And if the stronghold’s people catch up, having one more person on horseback will only make it easier for them to overtake us. Wouldn’t that make all my efforts tonight go to waste?”

“Besides, if I stay here for a while, I might even be able to stall them and give you all more time to get away.”

“Come on, drop it. Who do you think you are? You’re not some great hero. Why stay behind? Big Brother Li’s family has already been rescued—we should just leave together.”

“It’s fine, Second Brother. I have my own plan. Besides, even if they see me, they won’t suspect that I was the one who rescued them. And don’t forget—I’m a lay disciple of Dalin Temple. Would they dare lay a finger on me?”

“Well… fine. Then I won’t leave either. I’ll stay with you. If I just run off, how am I supposed to explain this to Father and Mother when we get back?”

“No, Second Brother. Forget about whether Sister Li can ride a horse—let’s say she could. The road from here to Lu Town isn’t exactly safe, and it’s already late at night. Can you really feel at ease letting them travel alone?”

“This…” Zhang Xiaohu hesitated.

“Second Brother, get on the horse. Trust me. Worst case, I’ll just rest here in the forest for a while. Once the stronghold quiets down, I’ll return tomorrow. If you keep hesitating, they’ll really catch up to us.”

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaohu gritted his teeth and said: “Xiaohua, I know my martial arts aren’t good enough to help you, but you must be careful. Once we’ve left, recover your strength quickly and use Qinggong to catch up with us.”

“Got it, Second Brother. Don’t worry. When has your little brother ever suffered a loss? Even those little bald donkeys from Dalin Temple weren’t spared from being tripped up by me.”

“Haha, alright. I’ll take them and go. Hurry and catch up soon.”

With that, Zhang Xiaohu no longer hesitated. He flipped onto the horse, and Zhang Xiaohua helped Li Yinfeng onto the saddle behind him. Then, he assisted Shopkeeper Li and his wife onto the other horse. Li Yinfeng’s mother, who had remained silent the whole time, finally spoke in a low voice: “Xiaohua, you’re a good child. Hurry back—we’ll be waiting for you in Lu Town.”

“I know, Auntie. I’ll be back by tomorrow. It won’t take long.”

With that, he gave the red jujube horse a gentle slap on its rear. The two horses took off lightly down the mountain. After galloping a short distance, they came to a natural stop, and the riders all turned back to look. The night was thick, concealing all figures from view. A moment later, the sound of hooves echoed in the night—clip-clop, clip-clop—growing fainter and fainter, until it disappeared entirely.

Zhang Xiaohua stood at the edge of the forest atop the mountain. Without waiting for them to go far, he retrieved two Yuan Stones from his robe, one in each hand, and began absorbing them with all his might. Instantly, a steady and robust stream of Yuan Qi surged through the meridians in his hands and into his middle dantian, making him feel utterly comfortable all over.

After the time it took for an incense stick to burn, he stopped absorbing, circulating his energy internally. Sensing that his cultivation had advanced a little, he used his divine sense to inspect the two Yuan Stones. Strangely, they didn’t seem to have lost much energy at all. Zhang Xiaohua couldn’t help but think to himself—his cultivation was truly too weak. According to what was recorded in the Heart Sutra, these Yuan Stones should be discarded after just a few uses. Yet, he had already absorbed from them twice, and they still retained most of their energy.

Carefully storing the Yuan Stones back against his body, Zhang Xiaohua stretched his muscles and bones before glancing toward the distant mountain stronghold, where firelight flickered in the night. His pupils shrank slightly, a glint of killing intent flashing within them. The reason he insisted on staying behind wasn’t just to delay the pursuing bandits and lead them in another direction. More importantly, it was because of that bandit named Brother Xu, who had touched upon his reverse scale. When he rescued Li Yinfeng he had already made it clear that he was a lay disciple of Dalin Temple, yet these bandits still dared to scheme against him. They had snatched Li Yinfeng back to the stronghold, plundered the entire Li family’s fortune, and even set fire to their home. It was clear that they did not regard him as a threat, that they had no respect for a disciple of Dalin Temple, and that they saw him as nothing more than an easy target—a young outsider. But what angered him the most was that they had plans to search Guo Village, Bali Valley, and Guanyin Temple for women. The thought of the neighboring villages that had suffered at the hands of West Cui Mountain’s bandits filled Zhang Xiaohua with rage. He could not allow such a tragedy to befall his own Guo Village. He would not let these bandits disrupt the peace of his family’s life.

For his parents.

For his eldest brother and sister-in-law.

He had to stay behind.

He had to take the lives of those reckless fools who had dared to act so brazenly!

Even the stronghold’s chieftain and the envoy—Zhang Xiaohua had no intention of letting them go!

If not for his limited martial strength, he would have annihilated the entire West Cui Mountain stronghold!

Such thoughts and words, of course, were not something he could share with his second brother. He knew that Zhang Xiaohu would never allow him to take such a risk alone. Perhaps his second brother would insist on staying behind, or perhaps he would try to take him away. But neither of those were the choices Zhang Xiaohua wanted. He preferred to eliminate any threat to his family before it could even take shape.

With that resolve, Zhang Xiaohua reached into his robe and drew out his small sword. The familiar sensation, as if it were an extension of his own arm, filled him with an unrestrained sense of heroism. He murmured inwardly: “Little Sword, Little Sword, did you not taste enough fresh blood last time? Today, you shall reap a great harvest.”

With a light tap of his toes, his figure soared onto the treetops. His divine sense stretched forward like probing tendrils, sweeping through the area. Without lingering in the forest, he darted swiftly toward West Cui Mountain’s stronghold.

The sentries hidden among the trees were even more careless than before—most of them had nearly fallen asleep. Arriving beneath the stronghold’s walls once more, Zhang Xiaohua noticed that the number of patrols had also dwindled. Only a few guards wandered about listlessly, their movements sluggish. Seizing the perfect moment, he flipped onto the wall in one fluid motion. This time, he did not immediately slip down. Instead, he lifted his head and took a careful look around. Then, suddenly, he smacked his forehead and chuckled to himself. “Habitual thinking can really kill a person!”