Chapter 31: Golden Winged Jade Waist Slave

Although it was just a minor matter of overseeing an ambush on the road, the bandit leader from the Prince Mansion also possessed the "Integrated Force" realm of the first level, the "Bone and Flesh Outer Appearance."

Even though his subordinates, terrified in that moment, blocked his space to dodge, he was startled but not disordered.

At the instant murderous intent approached, he suddenly lifted his foot and cleverly kicked up a mountain bandit in front of him, causing his body to rigidly meet the flying golden cold light.

Pu!

The next moment, the steel dart bravely pierced through the chest of the man in front, and exited from his back.

Although the mountain bandit's bones slightly hindered the steel dart, it still shaved off the left ear of the bandit leader behind him, plowing a deep blood groove on his left cheek.

The power of a single dart was even more terrifying than that of strong bows, forceful crossbows, or even firearms.

But at that moment, the bandit chief, thinking he had escaped a catastrophe, narrowed his eyes.

"Oh no!"

He saw that the trajectory of the steel dart, splashed with blood, had also stained it blood-red, revealing a transparent long rope.

One end of the rope was tied to the golden ring of the steel dart, and the other end was clearly in the hands of that formidable enemy!

Just as the bandit chief was about to swing his blade, he saw the blood-colored rope suddenly snap taut, the blood splattering away, returning it to transparency.

Bang!

Taking advantage of this transfer of force, the steel dart, which had already reached behind him, suddenly returned like a "wired" remote-controlled flying sword.

This time, he couldn't dodge it anymore.

With a "duo" sound, the cold edge entered the back of his head, and the bandit leader immediately breathed his last.

Wang Yuan again reached out and pulled, the sparkling golden steel dart returned like a butterfly through flowers, swiftly returning through the hole in that thug's chest.

In the blink of an eye, this thug had died but had not yet had the chance to fall.

By this time, the nearby mountain bandits had finally seen clearly that this was a rope dart.

Only because the attached rope was completely transparent did it make the steel dart appear suddenly and vanish mysteriously, as if the legendary flying swords that come and go at will!

This was one of "Thief Cat" Cui Tong's signature abilities.

"Golden Winged Envoy, Flower Thief Jade Waist Slave." These are the poetic names for bees and butterflies, and this ingenious rope dart technique of his was called "Golden Winged Jade Waist Slave."

Using a tendom from a rare large python as the dart rope, soaked in a medicinal solution, it was not only impervious to knives and swords but also completely transparent and nearly undetectable.

After Cui Tong became a Painting Spirit, naturally, this weapon also fell into the hands of Wild Dog Taoist.

However, despite the beautiful name "Golden Winged Jade Waist Slave," when manipulated with the "Butterfly Soldier Skill," it was merciless in killing.

The returning steel dart wound around Wang Yuan's raised elbow, instantaneously accelerating and changing direction, then carried a sharp and fierce whistling as it lunged out again.

The mountain bandits facing its edge almost doubted that what killed them was not a mere small rope dart, but a strong bow and crossbow that mowed down people like mowing grass.

"Kill! If we don't kill him we'll all..."

Just as a mountain bandit raised his arm and cried out, he was pierced through the throat and his neck bone was severed.

In the blink of an eye, these house servants from the Luoyang Prince Mansion had dwindled to only seven left.

Wang Yuan, like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, charged into their midst.

The blades came at him but he neither parried nor blocked; instead, with speed far surpassing these thugs, he first shattered their knees and knocked out their teeth.

Although the "White Tiger Military Art" inherited by Wang Yuan was first-rate in this era, the "Butterfly Soldier Skill" practiced by "Thief Cat" Cui Tong and many other official personnel could only be considered upper second-rate.

But his insight and experience in combat far surpassed that of Wang Yuan, a mountain youth.

Especially when it came to doing four things: "robbing without leaving empty-handed," "gaining fame," "manifesting in front of others," and "righteousness and generosity."

Perhaps in line with his nature, the skills that "Thief Cat" Cui Tong possessed were like directing his own limbs, delightfully smooth.

Wang Yuan also took this opportunity to rapidly digest and absorb the great thief's experience and martial skills, turning them into his own assets.

The shortcoming of only practicing martial arts without killing people was rapidly reinforced.

He also felt some regret about Wild Dog Taoist's waste of the "Human Face Painting Skill," whose most important use was not disguising as a handsome man for free pleasures in brothels.

Rather, it could accelerate learning, turning the life experience and knowledge of many industry leaders into his own, even if only the most essential part was used, it was still a huge profit.

"Run!"

Somebody wailed, disregarding the crumbling military formation, and rushed toward the nearest forest.

But Wang Yuan chased down each one, the rope dart moving like lightning, delicately taking their lives.

Acting on the principle of "a thief not leaving empty-handed," he searched these henchmen who had likely scoured countless wealth from the people, thoroughly frisking them from top to bottom.

And because of the persona of "righteousness and generosity," Wang Yuan also distributed some of the silver coins he found to the pitiful villagers.

"Great hero, we have no way to repay you for saving our lives, having escaped this calamity, we will surely set up a long life place for you, praying day and night."

"Thanks to the great hero for saving our lives."

"....."

Tears streamed down their faces, and the family, overwhelmed with emotions of both sorrow and joy, knelt on the ground, expressing their endless gratitude.

Having killed a dozen and saved another dozen, the account of "Yin Morality" increased from 332 points to 583 points.

The ordinary people, whether killed or saved, were worth about 10 points of "Yin Morality" each, their advantage lying solely in steady accumulation.

To strike it rich, however, one had still to deal with those sinister magicians and their weird troubles.

"Hurry along. Once you're north of the mountain, it's best to leave the eight counties surrounding Beimang Mountain as quickly as possible. This area might be swarming with the henchmen of the Luoyang Royal Mansion.

Once they find you, you might not be so lucky again."

Of course, Wang Yuan intentionally scared them away from Beimang Mountain, but not because of the Luoyang Royal Mansion.

In reality, he was worried about any mishaps that might occur during the Yili King's bicentennial ceremony twenty-eight days later would render today's rescue pointless.

He couldn't escape, but these innocent commoners could.

Soon, the villagers, now two fewer, wiped their tears and hurriedly set off in their donkey carts.

On the ground, apart from those house servants of the Luoyang Royal Mansion, lay the Liu family father and son, dead as silently as weeds.

Their relatives simply had no strength to take them along.

Wang Yuan sprinkled the Corpse Transformation Powder secretly made by the Wild Dog Taoist on the pile of servant corpses, allowing them to dissolve into blood and nourish the vegetation of Beimang Mountain.

The corpses of the father and son were then buried by Wang Yuan in a spot nearby within Beimang Mountain.

Gazing at the fresh grave for a long time, he finally deeply sighed:

"There's the Owl God Tomb that devours men in the mountain, but the outside world consumes people just the same!"

After viewing the memories of those twenty-four Painting Spirits.

Wang Yuan realized that although he had never been to Luoyang City in his life, he now had a considerable understanding of the local customs and conditions throughout the Great Yan Jiuzhou.

He was no longer completely ignorant about the current situation of the Great Yan Court.

The deepest impression was that this world seemed to have entered the Little Ice Age, with long winters at the beginning and end of each year and droughts and floods in summer taking turns to wreak havoc.

Even a Spirit Monster like the White Mountain Lord had to leave his home and travel thousands of miles to Beimang Mountain for sustenance, let alone those farmers who had always been at the very bottom of this world?

The foundation of the court's rule was visibly crumbling.

The essence of the dynasty's cycle is essentially a contradiction between population and resources.

Although this world manifests Daoist skills and is home to various demons, immortals, and spirits, that chaotic and bloody force from the grassroots clearly cannot solve the issues of productivity.

Therefore, the duration of dynasties in this world's history isn't longer than in previous worlds.

Instead, because even the court couldn't monopolize Daoist skills, Jiuzhou was filled with "armories," amplifying the impact of every peasant uprising and shaking the nation's foundation.

Calculating the time, the Great Yan Dynasty, established for two hundred and forty-seven cold and hot seasons, didn't seem too far from the end of its cycle.

"Perhaps it's only at times like these that Master Ge and Wang Yunhu dare to target the Owl God Tomb?

No matter whether the Yili King has transformed into a man-eating "Weird," that remains the royal mausoleum of the Ancestor, representing the court's dignity.

But as the chaos becomes more apparent, there's less need to worry about the king's law, just focus on dealing with the "Weird."

If successful, they could simply flee far away afterward; only the stakeholders like the Luoyang Royal Mansion and the frazzled court would lack the resources to relentlessly pursue them."

In fact.

Every time there's turmoil during a dynasty change, Beimang Mountain Tomb sees its peak of grave robbing, sometimes even organized on a large scale by official Middle Lang Generals and Mountain Chasing Daoists.

Wang Yunhu and Master Ge are merely taking the initiative, being bolder than others.

Despite the thousands of large tombs on Beimang Mountain, in reality, it's standard for nine out of ten tombs to be empty.

Some have even been leveled multiple times, making room for new occupants.

After all, although Beimang Mountain is vast, there are only so many prime locations, and they have all been filled over thousands of years.

At least Wang Yuan was sure that the Luoyang Royal Mausoleum on Bird Beak Slope was not the first occupant of that land.

"In the twilight of the dynasty, with demons dancing wildly, there's really no clean land where one can stay unharmed.

Forget it, in my situation, it's better to survive the grand ceremony first, then worry about this troubled world."

Simply walking on the road could lead to an encounter with mountain bandits robbing travelers.

Experience had already proven that with Wang Yuan's own "-5" "Qi Fortune," if there was a possibility for things to go wrong with him, no matter how small that chance, it would happen!

Even disguised with a different appearance, his essence was still the same unlucky fellow, who didn't need to look for trouble for trouble would find him.

Wang Yuan knew well that he had absolutely no qualifications to care about the welfare of the people of the world; he must remain cautious and careful in the future, for any slight misstep could possibly lead to irreversible doom.

Regaining his composure, he returned to the small path at the slanting wind pass, ready to head south of Beimang Mountain to meet up with his contact.

Suddenly.

"Haha, Brother Cui, you made me wait a good while, you're quite late."