The First Sage of Military Strategists

Chapter 99: Fierce Battle in the Forest

Two days later.

Han Qing and his group arrived at the foot of a mountain called Cangqing Mountain in Sichuan.

After a long and tiring day of travel, the group found a hillside to rest.

"Those bandits from yesterday were blind to our abilities; they actually dared to attack us. They were courting death!"

"Indeed, there's no need for us to lift a finger; Lord Lin alone wiped them all out!"

"Lord Lin is a grandmaster of martial arts; killing some petty thieves is a piece of cake for him."

...

Several guards sat together, eating, drinking, and chatting.

Yesterday, the convoy encountered its first attack. About fifty bandits split into two groups and surrounded the convoy, trying to force Han Qing and his men to hand over the goods.

As a result, Lin Yueqiu charged in with a knife, like a tiger among sheep, and killed more than ten people in an instant, while the remaining bandits scattered and fled.

Han Qing led his men in pursuit on horseback, and killed more than ten more with his longbow. The remaining bandits ran too fast and disappeared into the dense forest.

These past few days have been spent traveling, and the group hasn't encountered anything particularly interesting. This band of bandits has become the topic of conversation during their leisure time, purely a way to pass the time.

Han Qing sat to one side, clutching a bag of water in his hand, gazing into the distance. Unlike the relaxed guards beside him, he had a solemn expression on his face.

Lin Yueqiu, who was sitting next to him, also noticed that Han Qing's expression was off and lowered her voice to ask, "Young Master, do you feel there is danger nearby?"

Han Qing nodded slightly: "We've been targeted. Three hundred miles ahead after this mountain pass is Iron Sword Manor. Its master, Pang Shanxiong, is a renowned expert in the area, having already reached the Grandmaster level. He's the one who's targeting us."

The previous group of bandits was a test; for the next two days, we were being followed and monitored in the vicinity.

Lin Yueqiu was startled. He knew nothing about this information, let alone how Han Qing made his judgment.

"Young master, are these speculations you're making, or are they supported by intelligence?"

"This is not speculation, but my judgment is beyond doubt," Han Qing said in a deep voice.

He didn't explain in detail because this was information he discovered from fragments of the memories of several bandits after he shot and killed them and absorbed their soul fragments.

Those people weren't bandits at all, but rather Pang Shanxiong's men in disguise.

As for why Pang Shanxiong targeted him, the answer should be related to the Luo family.

Although he didn't have any definite information on this, he felt in his heart that it was pretty much true. He and Pang Shanxiong didn't usually have any interaction, so why would he want to ambush and kill him?

If the assassination attempt fails, and the news reaches Qi Wufeng's ears, Iron Sword Manor will be razed to the ground.

Lin Yueqiu was slightly surprised to hear Han Qing's confident words.

These past few days, Han Qing has stayed by his side and hasn't contacted any outsiders. Where did he get the information from? He didn't know and didn't ask. He just felt that Han Qing was shrouded in a layer of mystery, making him even more unable to see through him.

Han Qing stuffed the last small piece of rice cake into his mouth, stood up, and gazed into the distance.

"The mountain pass ahead is densely forested, making it an ideal place for an ambush."

Lin Yueqiu also stood up and looked ahead. He saw that the lush branches of the trees intertwined to form a net that covered the top of the forest. The shadows under the trees were swaying, the light was sparse, and the visibility was dim. In addition, the road was rugged and not suitable for horses to run at high speed. If it were him, he would also choose this mountain pass to ambush.

"Does the young master think that Pang Shanxiong will make his move at this mountain pass?"

"Good, get ready. I want to see just how powerful this martial arts grandmaster is," Han Qing said coldly.

"Don't worry, young master. If Pang Shanxiong really blocks my way, I will certainly kill him." Lin Yueqiu narrowed his eyes, his words full of confidence.

...

Fifteen minutes later, the convoy set off again.

Lin Yueqiu had already secretly warned all the guards that there might be enemies lying in ambush at the mountain pass ahead, so everyone had a solemn expression, their hands on their swords, their bows drawn, their bodies tense, ready to strike at any moment.

As Han Qing rode forward, he gazed into the distance, his eyes sweeping back and forth across the mountains and forests.

As he closed the distance to the mountain pass, he could clearly sense a faint but palpable killing intent emanating from the forest.

The keen perception of killing intent that a military strategist who cultivates his spirit is of great help to him at this moment.

Just then, a loud cry came from high in the sky.

Han Qing looked up and saw the blood-clawed golden eagle circling back and forth above the dense forest at the mountain pass. This was a warning to him and further confirmed his point of view: there were enemies in the forest.

Lin Yueqiu was well aware of this as well, and a chilling killing intent flashed in his eyes.

“Young master, if there are too many enemies, you go first, I will hold them off.”

"No rush, let me see how many people are in this forest first."

Han Qing secretly activated his magical power and merged it with his eyes. In an instant, his vision greatly improved, and everything in the mountains and forests in front of him gradually became clear.

Under the dim light, Han Qing gradually captured the enemies hidden among them.

"About two hundred people."

After repeated observations, Han Qing finally gave a vague number.

"Young master, the enemy outnumbers us ten to one. I suggest we don't get close yet. Using the Rhinoceros Black Gold Bow to shoot them from a distance is the best strategy!" Lin Yueqiu said.

“That suits me perfectly. No rush, let’s explore further,” Han Qing said.

The distance is still too far, a full eight hundred paces, which is beyond the range of the rhinoceros horn bow.

"Okay!" Lin Yueqiu nodded slightly.

...

In the dense forest.

A bald, bronze-skinned man leaned against a large rock, his gaze fixed on the mountain path in the distance, where Han Qing and his group were gradually approaching.

"Master, who are we going to ambush and kill on this trip? Do we need to mobilize all the elite troops in the manor?" asked a young man in blue robes beside him.

Three other people nearby also cast curious glances.

Besides Pang Shanxiong, Iron Sword Manor has four other guard teams, each with a captain who is one of the four strongest warriors besides Pang Shanxiong.

Besides these four, the two hundred martial artists lying in ambush in the surrounding mountains and forests were partly guards of Iron Sword Manor and partly from the Luo family; they were almost the strongest group in the manor.

Pang Shanxiong said in a deep voice, "Among the group of people ahead is a young man named Han Qing, a genius martial artist under Qi Wufeng. As long as you can kill him, Luo Heng will reward you handsomely."

The mountain roads of Sichuan are complex, and I hadn't held out much hope. But luckily, this young man was trying to leave Sichuan through the Cangqing Pass and ran into me. How could I let him go?

“Master, this matter is extremely risky. Since such a talented young man is valued by Qi Wufeng, the strength of his guards must be extremely formidable. If we don’t make a move, all will be well, but if we do, we must eliminate them all. If even one escapes, the news will leak out, and there will be big trouble in the future,” the young man in blue said with a frown.

"You don't need to remind me of that. Since I dared to make a move, I must be confident that I can take down this young man."

Previously, I had sent people to test their strength, and one of them was a martial arts grandmaster.

"Hmph, I have been practicing the Vajra Temple's Empty Fist for thirty-five years, and recently I have finally achieved perfection, greatly increasing my combat power. I was just looking for someone to test it out, so I'll use this person as my starting point!" Pang Shanxiong sneered.

"Congratulations, Master! The Empty Fist is a first-grade fist technique! It requires extremely high comprehension and innate talent. I admire you for being able to master it to perfection!"

"With the manor lord's strength greatly increased, we feel much more at ease."

Upon hearing this, the guard captains all laughed and began to flatter him.

"Besides this, I have other preparations!"

Pang Shanxiong stepped forward and snatched a powerful, black, gleaming crossbow, about the length of an adult's arm, from a guard lying prone in the grass.

"This is the Divine Arm Crossbow that I stole from the Yuelu Academy's treasury. It was produced by the Mo Family's Heavenly Craft Workshop. It is powerful and penetrating. Within 350 paces, even a martial artist at the third level of the Body Dao Realm will be pierced. A martial artist only needs to undergo one transformation in the Body Dao Realm to use it."

The other four also focused their attention on the crossbow, their eyes burning with desire.

A single Divine Arm Crossbow may not be very useful, but when twenty Divine Arm Crossbows fire simultaneously, their destructive power becomes extraordinary.

At this moment, they had a full thirty Divine Arm Crossbows.

The four of them had followed Pang Shanxiong for seven or eight years and had never known that Iron Sword Manor possessed such a powerful weapon. They became even more fearful of Pang Shanxiong.

"Huh? Why isn't it moving?"

Suddenly, Pang Shanxiong frowned and stared at the mountain path ahead. Han Qing and his group suddenly chose to stop.

The distance between the two was a full five hundred paces, far from the range of the crossbow.

"Could it be that we've been discovered?" someone nearby asked.

"So what if they've discovered us? If they want to get through this mountain pass, they'll have to pass in front of us, unless they're willing to take a detour," Pang Shanxiong sneered.

As he spoke, he kept his eyes on Han Qing and the others, thinking to himself that if they really chose to take a detour, he would immediately order an attack to give chase. Whether they could catch up was another matter, but he couldn't accept the idea of ​​going on a wasted trip and returning empty-handed.

At the same moment, Han Qing opened a wooden box on the carriage, took out ten rhinoceros horn black gold bows, kept one for himself, and distributed the other nine to Liu Xiaofeng, Lin Yueqiu, and seven other guards.

These twenty guards were all at the third level of martial arts, skilled in archery and horsemanship, and were no less capable than the guards of the Qi family.

Han Qing's gaze sharpened, and he spurred his horse to the front of the group. He took the lead, drew his bow, and aimed at several dark figures swaying in the dense forest five hundred paces away.

"middle!"

Whoosh whoosh!
The bowstring trembled, and five arrows were fired simultaneously. With the enhancement of the Great Perfection Heavenly Wolf Seven Star Arrow, the five arrows swept across the sky, drawing five different arcs, and simultaneously struck five dark figures in the dense forest.

Ah!
Screams erupted as those hit by arrows sprang to their feet, only to immediately collapse back to the ground.

"Young master, your archery skills are truly divine!" Lin Yueqiu exclaimed in surprise, unable to help but sigh.

Liu Xiaofeng, standing beside him, also had a look of admiration in his eyes.

He had studied archery since childhood and considered himself to be very skilled, but compared to Han Qing at this moment, he was far inferior.

Five people were killed in the dense forest, causing a commotion.

Pang Shanxiong's face twitched, and his eyes were filled with horror.

"Five hundred paces, five arrows fired simultaneously, all hitting their mark? What astonishing archery skills! No wonder Qi Wufeng values ​​him as a genius martial artist. No wonder that old thief Luo Heng offered a huge reward to take his life!"

Just then, five more arrows flew in from the front, moving at great speed. They transformed into five black shadows in the air and accurately pierced through the five martial artists in the forest.

"Master, what should we do?" asked one of the people beside him, looking anxious.

"What should we do? Follow me and fight our way out! This man is an excellent archer, but his close-combat skills may not be that strong. If we stay in the dense forest, everyone will be sitting ducks, and he will wipe us all out sooner or later!" Pang Shanxiong cursed through gritted teeth.

"Then let's fight our way out!"

"Follow me!"

Pang Shanxiong charged out of the dense forest with a knife in hand. He was incredibly fast, faster than any ordinary horse, like a nimble cheetah, sprinting forward at breakneck speed.

Behind Pang Shanxiong, the four guards of the manor, leading more than two hundred men, were also running forward at high speed, but at a slower pace, and were left far behind by Pang Shanxiong.

Upon seeing the enemy appear, Han Qing glanced around. The twenty guards beside him showed no sign of panic. He couldn't help but admire the well-trained, highly skilled, and exceptionally adept combat abilities of the guards sent by Liu Yue.

"middle!"

Han Qing's mind raced, and his hands moved without stopping as he drew his bow and shot arrows in quick succession, firing no less than fifty arrows in a very short time.

In an instant, arrows rained down, and behind Pang Shanxiong, a group of guards who were at the forefront fell to the ground, all struck by arrows.

Liu Xiaofeng, along with eight other guards wielding rhinoceros horn bows, were also using their range advantage to continuously shoot down Pang Shanxiong's men.

Although these people were not as skilled as Han Qing in archery, they were still well-trained and could hit three to five out of ten arrows.

In no time, no fewer than sixty people fell to the ground, wounded by arrows. The rest of the people were terrified and dared not charge forward any further.

At this moment, Pang Shanxiong took the lead and charged to within two hundred paces of Han Qing and the others.

"Well done!"

Lin Yueqiu laughed loudly, drew his sword and leaped into the air. He landed and charged forward, running wildly towards Pang Shanxiong at top speed.

The two martial arts grandmasters suddenly collided, their longswords covered with a thick layer of force, accompanied by howling wind and waves, as they collided in mid-air.

Ding! Ding! Ding! ...

The two then began fighting fiercely on the mountain path, battling it out with both their agility and swordsmanship.

In an instant, swords flashed and the fighting was extremely fierce, and no one dared to approach.

Just as Han Qing was about to offer his assistance, the situation suddenly changed again.

Not far away, Pang Shanxiong's men finally rushed to within 350 paces of Han Qing and his group. A dozen warriors holding crossbows raised their crossbows horizontally, and with a crisp sound, the gears inside the crossbows turned. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, one crossbow bolt after another flew out, spanning 350 paces, and arrived in front of the group in an instant.

Han Qing drew his sword and swung it repeatedly, slashing down several arrows that flew towards him.

He frowned, feeling the arrow's immense force. The moment it collided with the blade, a powerful force surged from the blade, causing his arm to go numb.

Immediately afterwards, one of his guards was accidentally shot by a crossbow bolt. The bolt pierced through his protective energy, but fortunately, he had a layer of soft armor underneath his clothes, which absorbed some of the force. Although blood was still splattering from his chest, he did not die immediately, but was shot off his horse and fell to the ground.

"Hmm? So it's the Divine Arm Crossbow!"

Han Qing's eyes narrowed, and he immediately recognized the origin of the powerful crossbow in the enemy's hand.

He read many books in the Qi residence, greatly broadening his horizons. He recognized most rare and precious items, including this divine crossbow. "The one wielding the crossbow must be killed first!"

A thought flashed through Han Qing's mind, and he immediately took action.

He completely ignored the other enemies and focused only on the crossbowman shooting arrows.

Whoosh whoosh!
Within a few breaths, all of the dozen or so crossbowmen were hit by arrows and fell to the ground.

At this moment, Pang Shanxiong's four guards finally charged to within a hundred paces of Han Qing.

The four men's eyes flashed with murderous intent as they drew their swords and lunged at Han Qing.

Just as Liu Xiaofeng was about to lend a hand, Han Qing had already used the Ceasefire Sutra, sending his spiritual energy out of his body and splitting into four streams, which fiercely stabbed towards the heads of the four men.

"what!"

The four of them let out a scream in succession and instantly fell into an illusion.

Immediately afterwards, numerous invisible Yin soldiers appeared beside Han Qing, splitting into four groups and attacking the four people respectively.

The Yin soldiers in the Soul Gathering Realm cannot kill the physical body, but they can invade the human body, create a stronger illusion, and interfere with and suppress the five senses.

Unable to escape the illusion, the four collapsed to the ground and fell into a coma.

Liu Xiaofeng drew his sword and stepped forward, about to kill the four men, but Han Qing stopped him.

"Liu Xiaofeng, don't touch these four. You can kill the rest however you want."

The other small fry were of average strength and their martial arts were mediocre. Even if he killed them, he wouldn't gain any profound martial arts skills, so he didn't care much.

These four people are different. Although they were taken down by Han Qing's magic in one move, judging from their physique and speed, Han Qing believed that they were all fourth-level martial artists. Even if he wanted to kill them, he would have to do it himself.

Upon hearing Han Qing's words, Liu Xiaofeng abruptly changed direction and pounced on a group of small fry not far away.

He charged into the fray, displaying his formidable combat prowess to the fullest. He transformed into a nimble cat, or a whirlwind, swiftly reaping the lives of these people.

Liu Xiaofeng's fighting style is decisive and efficient. He usually strikes the vital points with one move and takes the life of the opponent. He rarely makes a second move.

Qi Yan repeatedly mentioned that he was a true combat genius, possessing a combat instinct that ordinary people did not have, which enabled him to unleash his full combat power when facing any enemy or in any complex environment.

Han Qing glanced around and, seeing how quickly Liu Xiaofeng was killing, turned his attention to Pang Shanxiong standing to the side.

His gaze was fiery, and the way he looked at Pang Shanxiong was like that of a thirsty man seeing a fragrant young woman, or a traveler in the desert seeing an oasis.

"If I kill him, I might be able to obtain two extremely powerful martial arts techniques."

At this moment, the difference in swordsmanship between Lin Yueqiu and Pang Shanxiong had become clear.

Pang Shanxiong's swordsmanship became increasingly chaotic. Suddenly, Lin Yueqiu seized the opportunity and slashed out with his sword. The blade struck Pang Shanxiong's shoulder, breaking through his protective energy and armor, leaving a deep wound from which blood splattered.

Pang Shanxiong grunted and took a few steps back. He glanced around and found that his own warriors had been slaughtered and were fleeing in terror. The captains of the four guard teams of the manor were also unconscious, tied up and thrown into the carriage.

"A Spirit Refiner!" Pang Shanxiong was shocked. Only a Spirit Refiner could make a martial artist suddenly faint.

"A bunch of trash! So what if he's a Refiner of the Divine Realm? This young man is so young, even if he is a Refiner of the Divine Realm, his cultivation level is just average. This person is the biggest problem. As long as we kill him, the others are nothing to fear!" Many thoughts flashed through Pang Shanxiong's mind.

He had considered leaving immediately, but with so many people dead and the manor suffering heavy losses, he was truly unwilling to give up until he caught Han Qing.

Secondly, with these four guards captured alive, a little interrogation would reveal that the one who did it was Pang Shanxiong. Even if he escapes now, Iron Sword Manor will still be razed to the ground by Qi Wufeng.

Therefore, he is now in a predicament with no way out but to kill or even capture Han Qing alive and then seek Luo Heng's protection.

While he was pondering, Lin Yueqiu had already swung his knife and pounced on him again.

"Hmph! You are indeed skilled with a sword, but my greatest strength lies in my fist techniques!"

Pang Shanxiong let out a cold laugh and suddenly punched forward with both fists. Although it looked slow, when Lin Yueqiu's knife struck his fists, he was instantly knocked away.

"Ok?"

Lin Yueqiu frowned, and Pang Shanxiong pressed closer, and the two exchanged a punch.

Lin Yueqiu was blasted back again, and even the force of his punch was dissipated.

Pang Shanxiong pressed forward relentlessly, his fists flashing with light, and he temporarily suppressed Lin Yueqiu.

Lin Yueqiu retreated more than ten steps, a glint of light flashing in his eyes: "What amazing fist technique! This is the Void Fist of the Great Vajra Temple, a top-ranking fist technique in the world. Judging from your stance, you have probably already mastered it to perfection."

Pang Shanxiong sneered: "You do have good taste. It's an honor for you to die by my Empty Fist."

"Your fist technique is indeed powerful, but your strength is too weak. Trying to kill me is just wishful thinking!" Lin Yueqiu shook his head.

Despite his current disadvantage, Pang Shanxiong cannot kill him. If the fight continues, he is confident that he can exhaust Pang Shanxiong's strength and then turn the tables on him.

However, at this moment, Han Qing made his move. A surge of magical energy shot forward, piercing straight into Pang Shanxiong's brain. The latter was immediately filled with illusions. However, his internal energy was so strong that the magical energy was instantly burned away when it entered his brain. Therefore, he did not faint, but his fist technique was eventually somewhat scattered, unlike the sharp and domineering one before.

Lin Yueqiu seized the opportunity and launched a counterattack. With a flick of his toe, he knocked a steel knife off the ground and grabbed it in his hand, the force of which immediately spread and covered the blade.

"die!"

Lin Yueqiu gave a low shout, and with a series of swift, flashing blades, Pang Shanxiong was momentarily stunned and it was too late to defend himself.

In an instant, the protective force surrounding him was shattered, and he suffered more than ten knife wounds, bleeding profusely.

At this moment, Han Qing launched a fatal attack. Under the control of his divine soul, the Star Shuttle flashed and pierced through Pang Shanxiong's head from behind, then shuttled back and forth inside his body, piercing through many internal organs.

Pang Shanxiong was seriously injured. His vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground, dying instantly.

A soul light spot immediately appeared inside the Seven Killings Stele. Then, a white stream of energy, invisible to the naked eye, drifted out from Pang Shanxiong's body. This was the soul energy that drifted out after a person died. Under Han Qing's guidance, it merged with wisps of evil energy and transformed into a Yin soldier in the spirit temple.

The stronger a martial artist was in life, the stronger their soul energy, and the stronger the Yin soldiers they condense will be.

However, the soul energy dissipates in an instant, so when the enemy dies, Han Qing must immediately activate the secret technique to capture the soul and infuse it with evil spirits. If he hesitates even slightly, the soul energy of the deceased will dissipate completely.

With Pang Shanxiong's death, Han Qing's side had completely taken control of the situation.

The remaining guards of the manor scattered and fled. Liu Xiaofeng led his men in a chase, killing more than thirty people before the battle finally came to an end.

Han Qing did not pursue them, but quickly led his men to clear the battlefield, eventually finding twenty-one Divine Arm Crossbows.

He picked one up and examined it closely. He saw that the Divine Arm Crossbow had an ingenious structure with many small mechanisms nested together, and he wondered how complicated the craftsmanship was.

"The Mo Family's Tiangong Workshop is most skilled in ingenious crafts, and the Divine Arm Crossbow is one of its classic works. Without the right channels, no amount of gold or silver could buy it. I don't know if the Luo family gave it to him or if Pang Shanxiong got his hands on it himself. If it's the latter, then Pang Shanxiong is no ordinary person," Han Qing said.

Lin Yueqiu leaned closer: "Pang Shanxiong actually knows the Kongming Fist, the first-grade fist technique of the Great Vajra Temple. If he hadn't received any guidance and had relied on his own hard work, he would have been a martial arts prodigy. It's just a pity that his strength is too weak, so he can't show the power of this fist technique. With you and me joining forces to attack him, he can't escape death!"

"This person is too confident. He thinks he is a martial arts master and that he can easily win with his first-class fist technique. Little does he know that there are always stronger people among the strong," Han Qing said.

"Logically speaking, Pang Shanxiong, as the master of Iron Sword Manor, shouldn't be so ignorant of this. I guess there must be another reason. He must be worried that if the news is exposed, Qi Wufeng will retaliate against Iron Sword Manor. So even though he knows that his life is in danger, he can only grit his teeth and keep fighting," Lin Yueqiu analyzed.

“People die for wealth, birds die for food. The Luo family must have given him unimaginable benefits. However, it’s easy to figure this out.” Han Qing’s gaze swept over the carriage next to him, where the four people were still unconscious. “Wake them up and interrogate them carefully, and we’ll know the answer.”

"Young Master, leave this to me. Once they wake up, I'll ask them all the questions, and I can pry open even the toughest mouths!" Lin Yueqiu said in a deep voice.

"Let's wait until they wake up before we talk about it!" Han Qing nodded slightly.

He wasn't in a hurry to leave. After a battle, the guards were exhausted, and two of them were injured, both shot through the chest by crossbow bolts. They needed time to rest and heal, so it wasn't advisable for them to travel hastily.

While Lin Yueqiu was inspecting the four prisoners, Han Qing came to an open space to the side, closed his eyes slightly, and the Seven Killings Stele appeared in his mind.

"The biggest gain from this battle was Pang Shanxiong's spiritual light."

In addition, Han Qing also killed about twenty of Pang Shanxiong's subordinates, and all of their soul points were collected into the Seven Kill Stele.

However, these people were all of average strength. Although there were many of them, their actual value combined was not as great as Pang Shanxiong's.

Han Qing then chose to absorb Pang Shanxiong's soul light point. He wanted to try to find the answers: What was Pang Shanxiong's background? Why was he able to learn such a high-grade martial art as the Empty Fist? And was it the Luo family behind it, or was it Pang Shanxiong's own idea?
As the light of his soul dissipated, numerous images appeared in Han Qing's mind, accompanied by various murmurs.

"Master Luo, these are twenty young girls, all handpicked by me from among the refugees. They are no more than sixteen years old, very young!"

...

"My lord, please let us out! Please, my lord!"

In the dimly lit dungeon, the sound of a young girl crying echoed.

...

"Hahaha! We're rich! A divine crossbow! Yuelu Academy is indeed incredibly wealthy; even things stolen casually from their treasury are treasures..."

...

"Lord Luo promised a great reward if I kill Han Qing. Now I have mastered the Empty Fist technique to perfection..."

...

In a moment, the image vanished, the murmurs in his ears disappeared, and a sense of enlightenment arose in Han Qing's heart. He knew the answers to many questions.

First, why does Pang Shanxiong possess the Divine Arm Crossbow? And why does he know the Empty Fist?

The reason is that this person once served as a guard at Yuelu Academy for a period of time. During the great chaos that year, Yuelu Academy was engulfed in flames, and Pang Shanxiong stole a large number of treasures from a certain treasury, including the Divine Arm Crossbow.

As for the Kongming Fist, it is suspected that an ancestor of the Pang family obtained it by chance and passed it down from generation to generation.

This person was indeed a martial arts prodigy. Without a master's guidance, he mastered this boxing style through 35 years of hard work on his own.

Lin Yueqiu was right. He had great comprehension, but his foundation was not solid and his power integration path was terrible. As a result, even though they were both Grandmasters, his power strength was far inferior to Lin Yueqiu's. Therefore, even with the Perfect Emptiness Fist, he could not win quickly and was eventually killed.

No matter how superb your boxing skills are, if your physique isn't strong enough and your strength isn't powerful enough, your combat effectiveness won't be very high.

Secondly, Luo Heng was indeed the mastermind behind it all. He didn't know exactly what benefits Luo Heng had given him that made Pang Shanxiong risk being discovered by Qi Wufeng and insist on attacking him. It must have been extremely generous.

Thirdly, Pang Shanxiong was also collecting young boys and girls for the Luo family, and many people were being held in a dungeon at Iron Sword Manor.

He had also asked Qi Yan why the Luo family bought and sold large numbers of boys and girls.

Qi Yan gave two answers. The first was that the Luo family had always been responsible for collecting beautiful women from the common people for the emperor. Those who were selected would enter the palace and become concubines, while those who were not selected would be trained as dancers or concubines and sold to high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital.

Secondly, the Yin-Yang Sect and the Luo family have secret connections, and practitioners of the Yin-Yang Dao can collect Yin and Yang energies to rapidly strengthen their spiritual power.

The Luo family's gathering of young men and women might be a covert way for them to secretly cultivate Yin-Yang Dao secret techniques.

Of course, all of this is just Qi Yan's conjecture. The only way to know the real answer is probably when the Luo family is destroyed.

"There's a treasury in Iron Sword Manor, filled with treasures, much of which Pang Shanxiong stole from Yuelu Academy during the chaos. Since it's on my way, I can't let it go; keeping it would probably only benefit the Luo family," Han Qing pondered.

"My lord, spare our lives! We are willing to surrender!"

Just then, a man's voice begging for mercy came from not far away.

The four guard captains woke up and then saw Pang Shanxiong's corpse not far away. They were all terrified.

In their eyes, Pang Shanxiong was a grandmaster of martial arts, possessing the Kongming Fist technique and unfathomable strength. The fact that he was killed showed just how terrifying the group in front of them was, and that resistance would only lead to certain death.

"Want to live?" Lin Yueqiu asked in a deep voice.

“Sir, who would choose to die if they could live?” one of them said.

"Yes, yes, please spare us, sir. We will sincerely follow you from now on," the other person hurriedly said.

Han Qing also came over and found that these four people had no backbone. Lin Yueqiu did not threaten or coerce them; they had already given in directly.

This is normal. There are only a few truly courageous people in the world. Those who are willing to sacrifice their lives for righteousness are recorded in history books, which shows how rare they are.

“Young Master, you can ask them. I thought I would have to use some tricks to get them to talk, but it seems that was unnecessary,” Lin Yueqiu said slowly.

"Separate the four of them, and you and I will interrogate two of them separately. If their answers differ, then one of them is lying, and I will certainly not let him go."

"If you are truly cooperating and haven't done anything heinous, I might consider letting you go," Han Qing said in a deep voice.

This move sent chills down the spines of all four. They had considered fabricating lies, but they never expected to be interrogated separately. In an instant, those thoughts vanished.

Their gazes towards Han Qing held even more fear. They recalled that just moments before, when they lunged at Han Qing, their vision suddenly went black and they fainted, demonstrating that Han Qing was indeed a high-level Spirit Refiner.

At such a young age, with such a mindset and such strength, how could one not be intimidated?
"Young master, that's a good idea. Let's try them separately!"

So the four of them were divided into two teams, and Han Qing took two of them aside.

"Gentlemen, let me repeat myself: if you cooperate properly, I may spare your lives; but if you try to deceive me, I'll show you my ruthless methods!" Han Qing said coldly.

"Don't worry, young master, we two will definitely cooperate!" one of them said.

“Yes, yes, we’ll definitely tell the truth!” another person said.

"Okay, what's Pang Shanxiong's background, and what's his connection with Yuelu Academy?" Han Qing asked.

“Pang Shanxiong is the master of Iron Sword Manor, and the four of us are all captains of the Iron Sword Manor guard team,” one of them said first.

"Pang Shanxiong went to the capital to study in his early years. For some reason, he joined the Yuelu Academy and became one of its guards. Later, the Yuelu Academy was in chaos. Pang Shanxiong did not die and returned to Shu with a batch of treasures!" Another person pondered and continued the conversation.

"Iron Sword Manor has always been the property of the Pang family. The old manor lord, Pang Xiu, died seventeen years ago, and the manor fell into the hands of Pang Shanxiong. To this day, they make a living by forging weapons. However, Pang Shanxiong is despicable and secretly engages in robbery and plunder!"

"This time, it was Pang Shanxiong who forced us to come and ambush you. I said long ago that those who do many evil deeds will surely perish. Pang Shanxiong's actions have finally brought him retribution!"

The two of them spoke one after the other, supplementing each other's points. Han Qing listened attentively, comparing the information with the information in his mind, and was basically certain that the two of them were not lying.

(End of this chapter)