Battle Through the Heavens: Even without the Burning Flame Technique, I, Xiao Yan, still became an e

Chapter 172: Where did you come from?

"Where have I come from? Is this Black Seal City?"

Xiao Yan frowned as he looked at the stone fortress in front of him. If it were to be called a city, it seemed rather small.

Clearly, several dry skeletons still hung in front of the stone fortress gate, swaying constantly in the strong wind.

From time to time, loud shouts and the smell of cheap beer could be heard from inside.

Xiao Yan walked into the stone fortress in a few steps. Inside, there were several tables set up, and many burly men were drinking around the tables.

"Clatter".

A crisp sound of porcelain shattering rang out, followed by a chorus of scolding.

"Damn it, you can't even pour a proper drink, what good are you?"

The girl being scolded was about ten years old and dressed in coarse cloth.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

After saying that, a burly man raised his hand, about to slap the little girl.

Although Xiao Yan knew very well that no one could be easily trusted in a place like the Black Corner Region.

But seeing a burly man slapping a little girl, Xiao Yan still couldn't stand by and do nothing.

With a slight wave of his hand, he sent the burly man who had been hitting him flying, an action that drew the attention of all the burly men present.

They instinctively grabbed the weapons on the table and stared at Xiao Yan like a pack of wolves.

"Oh, another easy target has come knocking. How many times this month is this? Looks like that old Sun's map has tricked another naive fool."

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These burly men were all wearing black undershirts, and their cultivation levels were all above the five-star Dou Zhe level. There were about twenty people in total across the several tables.

Seeing the way these people were acting, Xiao Yan realized that there was something wrong with the map he had bought.

He was still too young and foolish; he actually spent 10,000 yuan on a deadly item that led him directly into a den of thieves.

"It seems that things from the Black Corner Region are not something you can just trust. If I run into that old man again, I'll kill him to prevent him from continuing to harm people."

However, it didn't really matter to Xiao Yan. He had already become a bandit; how much ability could he possibly have?

These people were only at the Dou Zhe level, and they practiced Yellow-rank techniques, so they could only bully the little girl who was pouring wine.

"I'm going to ask you a few questions. Whoever answers first will have their life spared."

Xiao Yan spoke indifferently, showing no panic despite being surrounded by more than twenty bandits.

"Hahaha, still being stubborn even when you're about to die. But a tender-skinned fellow like you is truly a young man. Tell the kitchen that we have fresh two-legged sheep today."

These bandits not only live on the edge of death year after year, and are all extremely vicious, but they also often turn good-quality living people into food reserves.

The skeletons hanging at the entrance are probably those of travelers who strayed into this place.

Xiao Yan didn't even bother to lift a finger; with a thought, all twenty-odd bandits around him burst into flames and instantly turned to ashes.

Only the young girl who had poured the wine remained, terrified, kneeling on the ground and repeatedly kowtowing to Xiao Yan: "Great..."

"Sir, please don't kill me! Please don't kill me!"

Xiao Yan walked up to the little girl. She had no cultivation at all, and had not even reached the first stage of Dou Zhi Li. She was just an ordinary person.

She was probably kidnapped by this group of bandits. It's fortunate that she's so young, otherwise she wouldn't be doing more than just serving drinks and doing odd jobs.

Even so, she still had many bruises on her body, clearly indicating that she had been beaten and scolded a lot here.

Xiao Yan took out a medicine bottle and tossed it to the little girl: "Eat this."

The little girl didn't even dare to ask what it was; in this situation, she would have to eat it even if it was poison.

She took out the pill from the jade bottle and swallowed it in one gulp. However, the terrible pain she had imagined did not occur. Instead, a refreshing flow spread throughout her body, relieving her pain considerably.

"Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir!"

The little girl made a move to kowtow again, but Xiao Yan stopped her: "Alright, alright, I have a few questions for you. Where is this place, and who are you?"

"My lord, this is Windstone Fortress. My name is Ling'er, and I was captured by them."

Ling'er dared not answer unimportant questions. When she first arrived, she was often beaten for talking too much, and now she has developed the habit of not daring to speak unless asked.

Are there other people here who were arrested like you?

Xiao Yan continued to ask, "A little girl doesn't know much. If there were an adult involved, it might be better."

"Yes, yes, there are many older sisters locked up below the chief's room. They are only released when they are sent to serve the chief."

Ling'er kept her head down the whole time, not daring to look at Xiao Yan.

"Boss, number one—"

Xiao Yan unleashed his soul power, instantly covering a radius of a thousand meters around him.

The bandits in Windstone Fortress are quite large, with over two hundred still resting, which is almost comparable to a large mercenary group.

Among them, the three strongest are a three-star Dou Shi, a six-star Dou Shi, and the strongest is even a one-star Grand Dou Shi.

A band of this size would be difficult for an ordinary person to handle, but unfortunately, the old man's map brought a plague to this place.

"Lead the way and take me to the leader," Xiao Yan said indifferently.

"Yes, sir!"

The little girl led the way with her head down, passing through the entire Windstone Fortress, and led Xiao Yan to the foot of a three-story stone building at the end.

"M-Sir, this is the place."

She pointed to the stairs next to her; going up from there led to the head of the household's room.

Xiao Yan took two steps in the direction the little girl pointed, but just then, Ling'er suddenly called out, "Master, don't go any further!"

Xiao Yan seemed not to hear, and suddenly his footing gave way, and he fell into a trap.

At that moment, everyone in Windstone Fortress emerged.

"Haha, Ling'er, you did a great job! I'll reward you with a piece of meat later." A gaunt man praised the little girl highly. He was the third-in-command of Fengshi Fortress and was mainly in charge of the fortress's meals.

The three leaders of Fengshi Fortress surrounded the cave entrance. This was a carefully designed trap, meant to lure those who overestimated their strength into falling into it.

"Hehe, there's a level three sand viper being raised down here. Even the boss would have a hard time dealing with it. This kid has probably already become that snake's meal."

However, before these people could be smug for long, a loud noise suddenly came from the ground, and then half of the charred snake carcass was thrown down from below.

Xiao Yan flapped his pair of Dou Qi wings and slowly flew up.

"Did you really think I was completely unsuspecting?" He had never fully trusted the little girl.

It wasn't that Xiao Yan thought this little girl was also a bandit, but rather that some people, after experiencing hardship and torment...

To avoid further harm, they would become accomplices to the murderers; such things are commonplace in the Black Corner Region.

He did this simply to use a scheme to lure everyone over at once.

Xiao Yan didn't even bother to question these bandits further, knowing that all he would get in return would be a string of lies.

The crimson flames illuminated the entire Windstone Keep, making it appear as red as the setting sun.

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