After acknowledging it, he felt as though he had stepped onto a higher stage of the martial world. Coupled with the words he had just spoken, he grew even more eager to showcase his skills and make a name for himself across the land. Even if he became a bandit, he would be a bandit renowned throughout the world.
Li Daoqiang saw through Lü Lin’s true thoughts at a glance. It was the typical mindset of a young man. He was more than happy to see it.
The Black Dragon Stronghold followed a philosophy of embracing all rivers. It could accommodate any strong individual, as long as they didn’t openly defy him and remained obedient on the surface. He didn’t even care much about their loyalty. Ambition to grow stronger and improve was fine—the stronger, the better. After all, none of them would ever surpass him.
“Chief, I’d like to return to the Flying Tiger Escort Agency to handle the next matters,” Lü Tengkong said at that moment. The matter of the Flying Tiger Escort Agency joining the Black Dragon Stronghold would keep him busy for a while.
“Send someone to handle it. The matter of the Demon Zither is escalating now. Though most have dismissed their suspicions of you, there may still be strong individuals keeping an eye on you. Until the Demon Zither matter is resolved, none of you should leave the Black Dragon Stronghold alone,” Li Daoqiang said thoughtfully.
Lü Tengkong and Ximen Yiniang looked solemn, finding his words reasonable. There were likely still experts outside watching their family.
Lü Lin, young and hot-blooded, thought of how Ximen Yiniang had nearly died and fumed with indignation. “Those bastards deserve to die. One day, I’ll make them pay.”
“Lin’er, how dare you be so reckless in front of the Chief?” Lü Tengkong immediately scolded lightly.
Hearing this, Lü Lin lowered his head, putting on a look of obedient embarrassment.
“Chief, Lü Lin is young and impulsive. Please forgive him,” Lü Tengkong said to Li Daoqiang.
Lü Lin felt a bit speechless but dared not say more.
“Ha, enough. It’s not like he defied me. It’s nothing,” Li Daoqiang said with a dismissive laugh. It truly wasn’t a big deal. Lü Tengkong simply didn’t know him well enough yet and was being overly cautious.
“Thank you, Chief,” Lü Tengkong and Ximen Yiniang said together.
Lü Lin’s smile returned.
“First, settle Lü Lin in. Don’t rush the Flying Tiger Escort Agency matters—just send someone to handle them,” Li Daoqiang instructed.
“Yes, we’ll take our leave,” Lü Tengkong and his wife said, leading Lü Lin away.
Li Daoqiang watched them leave, lost in thought. With Lü Lin in hand, perhaps regarding Huang Xuemei... He pondered for a moment, then set the thought aside. He would decide when the time came.
Elsewhere.
Following his parents away, Lü Lin looked around curiously as they walked to the residence of Lü Tengkong and his wife.
From the start, Li Daoqiang had established the Black Dragon Stronghold on the principle of strength determining status and position. Lü Tengkong, with his strength at the fourth level of the Innate Realm, was directly appointed as the Second Head Commander, leading a thousand men. The First Head Commander was the Blood Saber Ancestor.
Thus, Lü Tengkong and his wife’s residence was spacious enough to comfortably house over twenty people.
Entering the house, Lü Tengkong used true qi to block sound and looked sternly at Lü Lin. “Lin’er, from now on, you must not act recklessly in front of the Chief. Understand?”
Even Ximen Yiniang, who usually doted on her son, nodded seriously at Lü Lin.
Lü Lin felt a bit frustrated and muttered, “I wasn’t being reckless.”
“Speaking without restraint in front of the Chief is recklessness,” Lü Tengkong said sternly.
“I wasn’t speaking without restraint. I was just speaking my mind. Besides, the Chief didn’t mind,” Lü Lin argued defiantly.
Lü Tengkong smiled bitterly inwardly. The Chief hadn’t shown he minded, but by the time he did, it would be too late. He never forgot that this was a den of bandits and outlaws. Li Daoqiang was a great bandit who devoured people without spitting out blood. Every move their family made had to be cautious.
But many of these things couldn’t be said outright. Lü Lin was too young, and speaking plainly would only bring trouble.
“Lin’er, listen to your father. From now on, in front of the Chief, listen more and speak less,” Ximen Yiniang said earnestly.
“Oh!” Lü Lin didn’t dare argue and reluctantly agreed aloud.
Lü Tengkong and his wife sighed inwardly. They knew their son too well—this was clearly just lip service.
“Lin’er, first familiarize yourself with the stronghold’s rules. As long as you strictly follow them, you won’t have to do many things against your will, and you won’t have to worry,” Lü Tengkong advised. This was also what comforted him most about the Black Dragon Stronghold. The rules were as the rumors said; he wouldn’t have to do many things against his conscience.
“Yes, I understand, Father,” Lü Lin nodded in agreement.
“Good. Go rest for now. Later, I’ll have someone guide you through the rules,” Lü Tengkong said, his tone softening.
Lü Lin went to rest, while Lü Tengkong and Ximen Yiniang discussed some matters regarding the Flying Tiger Escort Agency.
Then, Ximen Yiniang hesitated uncertainly. “Tengkong, I’ve heard that the Chief’s Lady Qi and Ding Dian’s wife are kind-hearted people. What if I try to make contact?”
Running an escort agency, one of the most important skills was making friends. Though they had only been at the Black Dragon Stronghold for two or three days, Ximen Yiniang was already thinking about building connections. It was one of her strengths, especially since she had heard those two were kind-hearted, which piqued her interest.
Lü Tengkong thought for a moment. “I’ve heard of Ding Dian’s reputation. It’s worth trying to befriend him, and his wife should be similar. Lady Qi is also worth approaching. But we’re newcomers, and the Demon Zither matter is still stirring up trouble. Let’s not rush—wait a while longer.”
Ximen Yiniang nodded in agreement. That was also why she had hesitated.
“For now, let’s keep a low profile. The Chief is a man of rules and won’t easily harm us,” Lü Tengkong said with a soft sigh.
Ximen Yiniang slowly nodded.
...
Two days later.
Li Daoqiang, keeping a close eye on the martial world’s movements, felt the time was right to visit the Six-Finger Manor. Immediately, he set out with the Blood Saber Ancestor and Lü Lin toward the manor. The Black Dragon Stronghold was left under Ding Dian’s command.
Leaving the stronghold, Li Daoqiang directly flew out of the Floating Cloud Mountains with the two, then used light-footed techniques to travel.
“Chief, aren’t we taking horses? Just traveling with light-footed techniques?” Lü Lin asked in confusion.
The Blood Saber Ancestor glanced at Li Daoqiang first, then chuckled. “Heh, kid, we’re not escorting goods now. Escorting requires staying alert, conserving strength, and reducing fatigue, so horses are needed. But now, our light-footed techniques are much faster than ordinary horses. Fatigue is a minor issue. With the Chief here, who would dare provoke us?”
Lü Lin understood and nodded, looking enlightened. Then, he gazed ahead with anticipation. This trip to the Six-Finger Manor would witness a martial world storm, and for him, it was an exciting prospect.
“Hey, kid, don’t get too excited. Don’t mess up the Chief’s big plans,” the Blood Saber Ancestor said, seeing through his thoughts and offering what seemed like well-meaning advice.
Lü Lin shot him a wary glance and said firmly, “Rest assured, senior. I won’t mess up the Chief’s plans.” Lü Tengkong had warned him to stay away from the Blood Saber Ancestor, and he remembered that well.
“Heh heh,” the Blood Saber Ancestor sensed the wariness and gave him a knowing smirk. Then, he privately wondered why the Chief had brought such a greenhorn along. Was it just to show Lü Tengkong he was valued? Probably not.
Li Daoqiang listened to their exchange without irritation. Occasional chatter during the journey helped ease the monotony.
As they traveled, he stayed in contact with the Black Dragon Stronghold’s intelligence network. He kept a constant watch on the martial world’s developments.
But the stronghold’s intelligence network was still too weak. Beyond Jingzhou, it could only gather general news.
A day later, still on the road, a piece of news suddenly came in that surprised even him. It wasn’t about the Demon Zither or even the Song Kingdom. It was about the Ming Kingdom.
After a brief thought, he passed the news to the Blood Saber Ancestor.
The Blood Saber Ancestor took it and was greatly shocked. He looked at Li Daoqiang in disbelief. “Chief, is this true?”
“What do you think?” Li Daoqiang said calmly.
The Blood Saber Ancestor dared not ask further, but inwardly, he was still stunned. “That Yuan Kingdom princess is so formidable! She captured so many from the Six Great Sects of Ming. Truly unbelievable.”
Lü Lin, who had been burning with curiosity, couldn’t hold back anymore. “Senior, what’s going on?”
The Blood Saber Ancestor handed him the news. Lü Lin’s eyes widened as he read it.
“What a wicked Yuan Kingdom witch! Taking advantage of the Six Great Sects’ return from attacking the Ming Cult, she captured them all at once. If not for the Ming Cult leader Zhang Wuji rescuing them, who knows how many schemes that witch would have pulled off?” Lü Lin couldn’t help but rage.
Though not from Ming, he was Han Chinese and naturally hated the Yuan Kingdom.
“Heh, this time, the Six Great Sects of Ming escaped, but they suffered a huge loss. And to be saved by the very Ming Cult leader they wanted to destroy— This time, they’ve lost a lot of face,” the Blood Saber Ancestor said with a grin, clearly enjoying the spectacle.
Lü Lin shot him an unhappy look but dared not say much.
Li Daoqiang said nothing, but he was genuinely surprised. In this world, Zhao Min had actually pulled off such a feat! Boldness, strength, intelligence, and backing—none could be lacking. She was truly remarkable.
Originally, he had thought it impossible and hadn’t paid attention. Now, though he didn’t know the specifics, he could guess that Zhang Wuji had gotten lucky in rescuing the captured members of the Six Great Sects.
This had happened a few days ago. The news of the Six Great Sects’ members disappearing for a time had also exploded.
Frowning, he wondered: the Black Dragon Stronghold’s weak intelligence network hadn’t caught wind of the Six Great Sects’ disappearance beforehand. Would the major powers have known? And how would this affect the Demon Zither matter?
Uncertain, he set aside the Ming Kingdom events and focused entirely on the Demon Zither matter. Raising an eyebrow, his tone grew more serious.
“Speed up the pace to the Six-Finger Manor.”
“Yes.”
The two, still startled, immediately responded.
(Thanks for the support.)
...