The light of the sword is like the moon reflecting on Kyushu

The snowflakes started as small as grains of rice, but gradually grew larger at a visible speed, and in an instant they became a heavy snowfall!

The bloodstains on the shore were quickly covered by the snow. If it weren't for the dozens of corpses lying there, it would have seemed as if no fierce battle had just taken place!

Just now, Feng Jiuxiao and the others deliberately lured most of the Tibetan soldiers to the lakeside to kill them, so that their corpses wouldn't affect everyone's appetite if they lay on the shore!
Moreover, throwing them into the lake was a way of avenging the salt slaves and serfs whose bodies were drowned there!
This is called acting on behalf of Heaven!

Pang Shiwu and Feng Jiuxiao had already agreed that after killing these Tibetan soldiers, they would bring Yuan Zishan, Chili, and the others over to cook over a fire here. After all, there was plenty of food and clean water here, and more importantly, there were plenty of tents available! In particular, these tents were all "military tents," made of materials far superior to those used by martial arts masters in the Central Plains! Their warmth retention was also far superior!
Of course, Pang Shiwu's interest in the Tibetan tents wasn't because he disliked the tents prepared for them by Daoist Yichen, but because there were a total of seventeen people in their group. The food and lodging for so many people was no small matter, and it would be a considerable trouble for Daoist Yichen! Pang Shiwu understood Feng Jiuxiao's mentality all too well, and he would never cause trouble for Daoist Yichen!

Therefore, annihilating the Tibetan soldiers and capturing their tents was a matter of utmost importance.

Having decided to stay at the Tibetan temporary camp, they naturally couldn't let the area around the camp become a mess! Corpses everywhere and blood everywhere would ruin their mood and appetite! So they deliberately lured the enemy to the lakeside to kill them!

If Xiong Mengyan, Wang Sheng, and Duanmu Yan hadn't suddenly joined the annihilation operation and casually killed some of the Tibetan soldiers, almost the entire Tibetan garrison would have been sunk to the bottom of the lake!
The grilled fish was cooked, emitting its distinctive charred aroma. Chili peppers, seemingly drawn by the distance, pulled Yuan Zishan over. Chang Zijin, Big Wolf, Zeng Yong, and the others followed.
Zeng Yong frowned as he looked at the corpses lying haphazardly on the ground and asked, "Where are the cooks from the military camp?"

Feng Jiuxiao spread his hands, "They're all wearing armor and carrying curved swords, how can anyone tell which one is the cook!"

Zeng Yong said, "Since the cook is gone, I'll reluctantly show everyone my special skill!"

Feng Jiuxiao was taken aback. "You can cook?"

Zeng Yong raised an eyebrow and said proudly, "Not only can I do it, I'm an expert!"

Feng Jiuxiao clasped his hands together and chuckled, "Oh dear, then I'll have to trouble Chef Zeng!"

Chiji Ling had just sent people to move all the tables, chairs, and kitchen utensils to this open space, so Zeng Yong rolled up his sleeves and started working!
He skillfully picked up the cleaver, sharpened it on the whetstone a couple of times, wiped it with a clean cloth, and then took a yak hind leg from the wooden bucket beside him and began to butcher it. He said to Erni, "Erni, start a fire! The ingredients are too limited; let's just make a simple stew!"

Erni has been cooking since she was a child; it's all basic stuff for her! Chili and Chang Zijin exchanged a glance, knowing they couldn't just stand there dumbly, so they rolled up their sleeves to help out. They might not know how to do other things, but washing vegetables or peeling raw garlic was no problem for them.

Pang Shiwu kicked all the corpses on the shore into the lake one by one, and in an instant the entire open space on the shore was completely cleaned up! Without the corpses, the bloodstains were covered by the white snow, and even the ice on the lake surface that the corpses had smashed began to refreeze. Almost all the traces of the killing were erased, as if it had never happened.

Smoke rose against the backdrop of swirling snowflakes, and the fire in the stove was finally lit. The flickering flames illuminated Erni's face, making it as red as an apple. She could feel countless eyes scrutinizing her, and her cheeks burned even hotter. Now she was certain that the entire martial world would know of her existence, Erni! She would be the future Lady of Tianying Fortress in Huizhou! She rinsed the iron pot with snow water, then tried to lift the iron bucket to pour water into it, but the bucket was too heavy, and she couldn't lift it! Chang Zijin smiled and said, "I'll do it!" She supported the bottom with her left hand and held the rim of the bucket with her right, pouring half a bucket of water into the pot. "Is this enough?"

Zeng Yong said, "That's enough, blanch the meat first."

The martial arts heroes watching from afar were still in a state of shock!
How long has it been? Enough for an incense stick to burn? Nearly six hundred Tibetan soldiers were wiped out just like that?
What truly shocked people wasn't how high Feng Jiuxiao and the others' martial arts skills were, because they had already witnessed Feng Jiuxiao's extraordinary abilities! What astonished them was the remarkably seamless teamwork among them!
They didn't seem to have any tactics, and even if they did, it boiled down to one word—kill! Simple and brutal!
At first, it was all punches and kicks! And then it was still punches and kicks! It wasn't until Xiong Mengyan's zither music started that they started using weapons!
At first, no one understood it.

Many people know that Pang Shiwu's combat strength is far above the peak of the Ninth Realm, and can be described as unprecedented! But why did he only make his opponent stagger with one punch? The Tibetan soldier who was hit was not dead, but could still fight again!
But they soon realized it!

Pang Shiwu's every move and every technique had already been meant to kill his opponent!
However, the force was controlled to the absolute minimum, ensuring that the person being hit would not die on the spot!
This is a blatant case of pretending to be weak to take advantage of others! This is an open and brazen deception!

They made these Tibetan soldiers believe they were the bravest soldiers in the world, constantly encouraging them to charge into battle and die!

Pang Shiwu and Feng Jiuxiao really went all out to annihilate these Tibetan soldiers! They're quite the actors!
What surprised everyone was that the four of them cooperated extremely well, and none of them attacked the same soldier repeatedly!
This detail was only discovered by some seasoned veterans and senior martial arts masters later on!

For example, if Pang Shiwu had punched a Tibetan soldier, the White Lotus Venerable would never kick him again! And if the White Lotus Venerable had kicked a Tibetan soldier, Pang Shiwu would never punch him again!
Linghu Jing of the Huashan Sect was also quite remarkable. Among the swarming Tibetan soldiers, he could instantly distinguish who had been favored by Pang Shiwu and Bai Lian and who had not! It was as if each favored Tibetan soldier bore some kind of mark! Yet, the assembled heroes found no mark or label whatsoever!
They naturally had no idea that every Tibetan soldier did indeed bear a mark! It could also be called a "death tag"!
Distinguishing whether a soldier has been marked with a "death tag" is simple! Just look at the markings on their armor!
With each punch Pang Shiwu threw, a fist imprint would be left on the armor of the Tibetan soldiers, while Bai Lian would leave a footprint, and Linghu Jing would leave a palm print! The common feature of the three imprints was that the collapsed imprints had fine cracks!

The three were so close together, they were clearly visible!
But how could the crowd watching from afar possibly see those hair-thin cracks? It would be strange if they weren't astonished!
Master Yichen and a group of martial arts heroes from the Central Plains stood quietly in the wind and snow, watching the battle unfold as Feng Jiuxiao and his companions annihilated all the hundreds of Tibetan soldiers from beginning to end.

A handsome young Taoist priest behind him whispered, "Master, why does Pang Shiwu look unhappy when he looks at other sects?"

Yichen glanced at him and said softly, "You figured it out?"

The handsome disciple exclaimed, "Ah? It really is?"

Master Yichen observed his surroundings discreetly and whispered, "You only arrived here today, so it's normal that you don't know some things. The reason why Pang Shiwu dislikes them is actually quite simple: when Feng Jiuxiao was in a life-or-death confrontation with the Demon Lord, almost all the sects were busy seizing the Azure Dragon's Relic Treasure, but no one went to lend Feng Jiuxiao a hand!"

The handsome disciple's eyes flickered, and he frowned: "I see!"

When Feng Jiuxiao faced a life-or-death situation, these people actually chose to stand by and watch! Not only did they turn a blind eye, but they were also busy grabbing the "spoils of war," which was simply too selfish! Who would be so "generous" as to forgive these "cold-blooded" or "heartless" people? Especially since these people were members of the Mountain Alliance! Not holding them accountable afterward was already more than merciful!

Repay evil with kindness? That refined disciple asked himself honestly, he couldn't do it! If one repays evil with kindness, how will one repay kindness?

The handsome disciple pointed to the wisp of smoke and exclaimed, "Master, they've actually started cooking!"

Master Yichen chuckled lightly: "What? Are you hungry?"

The handsome disciple chuckled dryly: "Hehe, a little! We've been traveling a long way and haven't eaten well, and now that we're here, you're telling everyone to fast. I'm really starving!"

Master Yichen sighed, "It's all because those Tibetan soldiers are too greedy, setting the price of grain far too high! Ten times more expensive than normal! I'm out of money, otherwise I wouldn't have made you fast! Don't worry, Young Master Feng will definitely invite us over for drinks!"

"Master, why were they so polite to us? Did you go up to help them back then?"

Master Yichen sighed, "I did want to go up, but I was stunned by the Demon Lord's earth-shattering roar! He was almost at the Celestial Realm, so stunning me was too easy for him! Perhaps being stunned was a blessing in disguise! Thinking about it now, I can't help but feel scared!"

"Why are you still scared, Master?"

"If I hadn't fainted, I would have rushed forward!"

"Then... if you rushed in, would you... die?"

Master Yichen did not hesitate: "No!" The handsome disciple was somewhat surprised by his master's resoluteness: "Master, how can you be so sure?" He suspected that his master was saying this for the sake of "human relationships".

Master Yichen knew what his disciple was thinking and smiled calmly: "Actually, I have also thought about this question seriously."

He looked around and, seeing that no one was paying attention to them, felt relieved: "When I woke up, I learned that the Demon Lord was dead! I also learned that Feng Jiuxiao was disappointed by everyone's selfishness and, in a fit of anger, announced the cancellation of the Mountain Alliance! Afterwards, through various inquiries, I basically understood the whole story, reviewed it many times, and finally came to a conclusion!"

"What conclusion?"

"If I really charge up there, I'll most likely survive!"

"Oh? Why?"

"At that time, the Demon Lord and Feng Jiuxiao had been locked in a stalemate for a long time, and both of them had reached their limits! Any slight disturbance from the outside world would be a fatal threat to them!"

The handsome disciple's eyes flickered: "So, that means the Demon Lord and Feng Jiuxiao are practically on their last legs. At this point, anyone who goes up, even a child, could take their lives, right, Master?"

"Yes! It's a pity I was stunned at the time! Otherwise, I might have created a legend! A novice killing the Demon Lord, wouldn't that count as creating a legend?"

"Forget it! Of course it does!"

"It's a pity I fainted, and it's even more of a pity that these martial arts masters also missed the chance to go down in history, and even ruined their chance with Feng Jiuxiao! I even suspect that they once believed that Feng Jiuxiao was going to die at the hands of the Demon Lord!"

The handsome disciple frowned: "If that's really the case, then they'll probably never get Feng Jiuxiao's forgiveness in this lifetime!"

"Yes, the only way to change the sect's image in Feng Jiuxiao's mind is through the next generation of disciples!"

"Master, I simply cannot believe that the Demon Lord would ever run away!"

"Hehe, what's the big deal? Actually, this isn't the first time he's tried to run away! Back in the day, Zhang Tianshi also forced him to jump off a cliff to escape once!"

"Oh? So, does that mean Feng Jiuxiao is the number one expert today?"

"How is that possible? If he's the best in the world, where does Zhang Tianshi rank?"

"Oh, I completely forgot about Master Zhang! Isn't Feng Jiuxiao the second best in the world?"

"If no new figures emerge, then it should be true!"

"New talents are emerging? There are quite a few rising stars in the martial arts world these days, but I've heard they're all only at the peak of the ninth realm, far inferior to Feng Jiuxiao!"

"Yes, but some people are very arrogant, thinking they are geniuses who can kill across borders, and they may not take Feng Jiuxiao seriously!"

Just then, the handsome disciple suddenly smelled the aroma of stewed meat wafting through the air! He couldn't help but swallow hard!
The disciples sent out by the Fierce Tiger Gang have all returned. They scouted the area and found that there were no more fishing boats available, nor any residents, so the problem of food and water remained unresolved.

Gang leader Zhang Xiaolin looked gloomy.

Second-in-command Li Wenzheng sat leisurely to the side, waiting for him to speak. The two had just agreed that once the disciples returned, Zhang Xiaolin would publicly announce that Li Wenzheng was going to start his own sect!
Li Wen was waiting for Zhang Xiaolin to speak!
Li Wenzheng laughed and said, "Has the gang leader forgotten our earlier agreement?"

Zhang Xiaolin looked puzzled: "What agreement?"

Li Wenzheng's expression changed!
He suddenly stood up. "Zhang Xiaolin! You're playing me?"

Zhang Xiaolin sneered, "Li Wenzheng! What do you mean by this?"

The tension was palpable, and the atmosphere instantly became even more suffocating!
Li Wenzheng coldly replied, "A-Gui!"

A burly man said in a deep voice, "Your subordinate is here!"

Zhang Xiaolin stared coldly at A Gui, "You've switched sides to the second-in-command?"

Ah Gui looked puzzled: "Chief, what do you mean by that?"

Zhang Xiaolin sneered, "I have a question for you!"

Ah Gui said, "Chief, please ask!"

Zhang Xiaolin said, "Between me and the second-in-command, we have to choose a leader. Who would you choose?"

Ah Gui suddenly laughed, "Boss, it's best not to make jokes like that!"

Zhang Xiaolin's heart sank, and his face grew increasingly grim: "I'm asking you a question!"

Ah Gui's smile gradually turned cold, as if he had become a different person!

"Then let me make this clear! I choose the second-in-command!" (End of Chapter)