Ling Tuisi stroked his beard with a light chuckle, speaking amiably, "Mm, go back and tell Brother Li that as long as he's willing, opportunities like this won't be scarce in the future."
"Yes." Xu Zhi replied respectfully.
Not daring to delay, he rushed back to Black Dragon Stronghold as fast as he could.
After he left, Ling Tuisi let out a soft laugh.
"Not bad. Young people—always charging straight ahead."
The steward beside him also smiled, flattering, "All thanks to your keen insight, Master. No matter how greedy or unruly Li Daoqiang may be, in the end, he's just a blade in your hand."
Ling Tuisi's smile widened, quite pleased with himself. "A bandit is still a bandit, unfit for the big stage. No matter how wild and untamed he is, this office has plenty of ways to tame him."
He paused, then added, "But before that blade is honed and properly broken in, the pressure can't let up. Carefully pick suitable targets for him."
The steward understood. "Yes."
After a moment's thought, the steward spoke again, "Master, there are no medicinal herbs in this batch of goods. Should we bring that up?"
They naturally knew the contents of the Wang family's shipment. The most important part was the medicinal herbs. Or rather, for any faction, various herbs were among the most vital resources. Martial arts training required resources—not just renowned masters and secret manuals, but also herbs that aided cultivation. This was nearly universal. Naturally, it was also the most profitable, always in high demand. The steward couldn't help but want to claim that share.
Ling Tuisi waved dismissively. "If Li Daoqiang wants to keep herbs worth a mere ten thousand taels of silver, let him."
"Yes." The steward dared not say more.
"By the way, keep an eye on him. It's fine if he keeps them for himself, but don't let him find any other channels." Ling Tuisi seemed to think of something and spoke with unusual gravity.
"Yes." The steward understood the stakes and nodded firmly.
At Black Dragon Stronghold.
Li Daoqiang just wanted to curse.
Sure enough, middlemen made the most profit. Too greedy. He'd already willingly given up fifty percent, but Ling Tuisi wasn't satisfied—he wanted seventy percent. Damn it, choke on it.
Cursing bitterly in his mind, though it stung a bit, he knew he couldn't refuse. That was just how the market worked. Middlemen were always the greediest; there was no choice. Stolen goods had to go through them. Trying to sell them himself would bring endless trouble for a bandit, likely ending in more loss than gain and wasting a ton of time. That was why almost all bandits and outlaws had ties to local gentry. Bandits needed resources too. If they couldn't trade what they stole for what they needed, it was all for nothing.
Ling Tuisi demanded a lot, but he was the only reliable, capable channel around. Plus, Black Dragon Stronghold still needed to cooperate with him, so Li Daoqiang had to accept it.
Greed away, greed away. One day, I'll make you spit it all out.
Swearing fiercely in his heart, Li Daoqiang nodded to Xu Zhi.
"Thirty percent it is. I'll personally take the goods down the mountain tomorrow. You go ahead to the city and see Ling Tuisi first, prepare for the handoff outside the city. We can take banknotes, and don't forget the two thousand taels Ling Tuisi promised earlier. I'll wait for you outside the city." Li Daoqiang said solemnly.
Xu Zhi could sense his chief's displeasure and understood—losing seventy percent of the profit, over ten thousand taels of silver, would upset anyone. He dared not say much and quickly agreed.
After sending Xu Zhi off, Li Daoqiang sighed.
The bandit points he needed next were just too many. For starters, the seventh level of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art required eighty thousand—that was eighty thousand taels of silver. It made him feel like he was going mad with poverty. And there was more to come. He could already imagine the staggering number.
Thinking about it, he silently cursed Ling Tuisi again. So greedy.
Good thing he hadn't planned to hand over those herbs either. Though if he did, his share would be higher—herbs were one of the most tradable goods—but Ling Tuisi would still take a huge bite. Better to keep them for Black Dragon Stronghold. The men would have another place to spend their silver. Overall, even if it took longer, the profit was better. Dumping everything to Ling Tuisi would only net a few thousand taels. Using them himself would bring in plenty of silver and boost the stronghold's strength. A few thousand taels weren't enough to make him desperate for quick gains.
Right now, facing eighty thousand bandit points, a few thousand taels were nothing to Li Daoqiang. Even if he was broke, his mindset had shifted—poverty had its own tiers.
The next day.
Li Daoqiang personally led the team to the outskirts of Jingzhou City and handed the goods over to Ling Tuisi's men. After smoothly collecting the money, he quickly returned to the mountain. With his current strength, aside from that guy locked in the prison, he didn't know anyone in Jingzhou City who could beat him, but he still didn't want to take risks. As a bandit, he had to have a bandit's self-awareness. Without enough power, he had to stay low-key—even outside the city, no wandering around unnecessarily.
Carrying over six thousand five hundred taels in banknotes back to the stronghold, Li Daoqiang didn't hoard them. He immediately spent all six thousand five hundred bandit points, plus what was left from yesterday's breakthrough. With over eight thousand points spent, the seventh level of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Art advanced significantly, and his strength grew.
After handling the most important task, Li Daoqiang turned his attention to developing the stronghold.
Wang Lin had already been scouting the situation at other strongholds. He'd need to wait a bit. Not just to understand their general state, but mainly because Black Dragon Stronghold needed time to develop in all areas—housing, food, the scale of construction, and so on. Otherwise, absorbing other strongholds and increasing numbers would just create chaos.
The only thing he didn't have to worry about was the stronghold's excellent location. After all, it had originally been Ling Tuisi's black glove; there was some foresight involved. Black Dragon Stronghold was easy to defend and hard to attack, surrounded by towering mountains and dense forests for cover, hard to find, yet not far from Jingzhou City. It had plenty of space—if planned well, it could house ten to twenty thousand people without issue. For early development, Li Daoqiang was satisfied; it saved a lot of effort.
After a quiet moment of thought, he emerged from seclusion and gave orders.
Black Dragon Stronghold had to speed up its major construction. Everyone had to get moving.
The bustling scene lasted a full month.
A month later.
At the foot of a mountain in Floating Cloud Range.
Two groups were making a trade.
"Seven thousand three hundred taels, all here. Time to release the people?" the leader of one group said coldly.
On the other side, Li Si stood at the front. Though outnumbered, he showed no weakness, smiling, "Relax, once we've checked everything, not a single person will be missing. Don't you trust Black Dragon Stronghold's reputation?"
His tone carried a hint of pride.
The opposing group's faces darkened. They did trust that aspect of Black Dragon Stronghold's reputation—over the past month, five or six families had been robbed, and the stronghold hadn't taken the money and killed the hostages. Good信誉. But trusting a bunch of bandits who robbed them? They weren't that foolish, and they certainly weren't happy. Rage and frustration simmered inside; they wished they could kill these blind outlaws. But circumstances forced them to endure.
Soon, Li Si and his men confirmed the silver was fine and swaggered off into the woods.
Seeing this, the other group's faces twisted with resentment.
"Hmph, utterly reckless. Despicable. Brother, are we just letting this slide?" one man couldn't help but ask, looking at their leader.
The leader narrowed his eyes and sneered, "Don't worry, this won't end here. Black Dragon Stronghold is lawless and arrogant. In just over a month, they've robbed everyone. They've pissed off countless people. I've heard that many are already starting to coordinate. Soon, Black Dragon Stronghold is doomed."
The others' eyes lit up.
"Great. Those lowlifes deserve to die early. I'll personally charge up there."
"Right. That Li Daoqiang—he needs to be chopped into pieces."
The leader raised a hand to calm their fervor, saying seriously, "The Yan family is definitely joining this. We need to rally more people. A bandit group as arrogant as Black Dragon Stronghold has no place in Jingzhou. Second Brother, after we return, I'll handle the fallout from this. You start contacting people immediately."
"Yes."
A man beside him replied.
Soon, the group led another ragged bunch back into Jingzhou City. This eye-catching scene spread quickly.
At a tavern, already buzzing with noise, the sight of the Yan family's group stirred even more chatter.
"Black Dragon Stronghold again. So bold! They even robbed the Yan family."
"No kidding. In just over a month, they've hit several big families in Jingzhou City."
"Not just that. I heard Black Dragon Stronghold has swallowed up six or seven strongholds in Floating Cloud Range. The chief, Li Daoqiang, is a master at the Innate Realm. Black Dragon Stronghold is now the top stronghold in Floating Cloud Range."
"Another Innate master in Jingzhou territory. Too bad he's a bandit."
"So what if he's an Innate master? Black Dragon Stronghold has robbed so many powerful factions. Do you think this ends quietly?"
"Good point. They rob everyone. Which family in Jingzhou isn't worried? I say Black Dragon Stronghold won't last long. Too bad—even an Innate master can't be this reckless."
"If they weren't this reckless, would Black Dragon Stronghold have become so famous in just over a month? The whole of Jingzhou probably knows about them."
"Heh, I actually hope they get bolder and last longer."
"Same here, same here."
Because of the major heists Black Dragon Stronghold had pulled off in the past month, the Yan family's robbery sparked an unusually heated discussion.
Meanwhile, at the prefectural office, Ling Tuisi smiled and said, "It's time. Go inform Li Daoqiang."
"Yes, Your Honor."