Starting from his vigorous old age, he began to conquer Liaozhai.

[Readers who read the previous chapter before 2 AM, please reread it, as it has been significantly revised since 2 AM.]

Cao Xiong arrived at the gate of the village, used the Leaf-Picking Step to gain leverage twice, and was already on the top of the village wall.

Cao Xiong looked around and saw two bandits resting not far away.

He took out two arrows and fired them in quick succession, killing the two bandits.

Then he flipped over the wall and jumped down, opening the gate of Liwang Village.

"kill!"

Led by Qiu Ming, Wang Er, and other junior officers, fifty soldiers, along with some military households left behind by Cao Xiong, stormed into Li Wang Village.

Many bandits, still asleep, had their throats slit by government soldiers before they even woke up.

"The imperial troops are coming!"

Soon after, bandits from all over the village rushed over and engaged in a fierce battle with the government troops.

Cao Xiong walked straight to the deepest part of the mountain stronghold, and his gaze fell on a rather luxurious courtyard.

Two bandits were standing guard at the entrance of the courtyard. They looked tense, perhaps because they had heard the shouts of battle coming from outside the stronghold.

When they saw Cao Xiong, they charged at him, brandishing their machetes.

Cao Xiong didn't stop. His Evil-Sniffing Blade swept across the ground, leaving only two withered corpses behind.

Cao Xiong walked to the front of the courtyard and kicked the gate open.

Just then, a burly bandit with a full beard came out of the room after getting dressed.

He was still muttering curses under his breath, "Who had the guts to do that...?"

Before the bandit could finish speaking, his gaze met Cao Xiong's.

"People from the imperial court?"

The bandits stared at Cao Xiong in his full armor with disbelief in their eyes, then their faces darkened and their menacing expressions became clear.

"Those people from the imperial court must also die!"

The bandit's voice was rough, his eyes were bloodshot, and he charged at Cao Xiong with his axe raised.

Cao Xiong was certain that this person must be the leader of the mountain stronghold!

He still had some questions that needed to be answered by this person, so he didn't go all out. He easily dodged the bandit's attack and then placed his hand on the bandit's shoulder, intending to capture him.

"Get out of here!"

The bandit leader channeled his inner strength and forcefully shook Cao Xiong's arm away.

Cao Xiong took two or three steps back before stopping.

He was surprised. This bandit leader was only at the mid-stage of the Skin Tempering realm, but his internal strength was three times more profound than that of the late-stage Skin Tempering realm.

Looking at the bandit leader, he was extremely agitated, with a ferocious expression on his face.

Like a raging bull, it slashed at Cao Xiong once more.

Cao Xiong dodged with a leap, and the axe fell to the ground, kicking up dust and creating a shallow crater.

Cao Xiong no longer held back, using the Leaf-Picking Step to get close to the bandit leader, his palm passing under him and striking the bandit leader's chin.

"Ah~"

The bandit leader was sent flying by a single blow, his jaw dislocated, his mouth unable to close, and blood continuously flowing from his mouth.

The bandit quickly put his jaw back in place, realizing he was no match for Cao Xiong.

He quickly got up, threw the axe on the spot, and rushed towards the courtyard gate, trying to escape.

Cao Xiong took down the iron bow and shot two arrows in succession.

The bandit leader, who was only a step away from the gate, had both legs pierced by arrows and knelt straight down on the ground.

"Ah~"

The bandit leader was sweating profusely from the pain, his voice trembling as he spoke, his hands raised above his head.

"Sir, spare my life! I surrender!"

Cao Xiong slowly approached the bandit. "I'll spare your life, but answer a few questions for me."

The bandit leader nodded repeatedly, turned around while kneeling, and faced Cao Xiong with a fawning expression.

"Please ask, sir, I will answer to the best of my knowledge."

At this moment, Cao Xiong was getting closer and closer to the bandit leader.

The bandit leader kept his head down, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes.

His mind raced. Having roamed the martial world for over a decade, Wang Dali naturally didn't believe the words of the imperial court.

This person won't let him go. If he falls into this person's hands, Wang Dali will only die.

Seeing that the two were only two or three steps apart, Wang Dali endured the pain, lunged forward, pulled out a dagger from his pocket, and stabbed Cao Xiong in the abdomen.

"Go to hell!"

Cao Xiong remained expressionless, reached out and knocked the dagger away, then grabbed Wang Dali by the neck, and a slap was heard.

Wang Dali's neck was crushed, and his eyes were filled with madness.

"Stubborn and unyielding, they deserve to die!"

[Killed a mid-stage Skin Tempering Realm martial artist, 0.1 fragments]

After killing Wang Dali, Cao Xiong went into the room in the courtyard.

"This bandit leader is unusually strong; perhaps he's hiding some secret."

The room was pitch black, so Cao Xiong lit the kerosene lamp on the table.

At the far right of the room, there was a large wooden chair covered with a complete tiger skin.

A table was placed in front of the chair, with unprocessed meat on it.

After glancing around and finding nothing unusual in the outer room, Cao Xiong took the kerosene lamp and went into the inner bedroom.

Cao Xiong began to ransack the room, which contained mostly porcelain vases and calligraphy and paintings.

"I didn't expect this bandit leader to be so good at dabbling in culture."

Cao Xiong sighed.

These things naturally didn't catch Cao Xiong's eye. Finally, Cao Xiong found a hidden compartment in the wall.

Inside was a wooden box. When the box was opened, there were only two things inside: a martial arts manual with the title "Mountain-Opening Strength" on the cover, and two red pills that smelled of blood.

Cao Xiong put the box in his pocket and left the courtyard.

The battle outside was nearing its end, and in the stronghold's "Hall of Righteousness" were squatting seven or eight bandits with their heads in their hands and a group of disheveled women.

"Commander, a few were spared."

Upon seeing Cao Xiong, Qiu Ming quickly walked two steps from the lobby to the door.

"good!"

Cao Xiong strode over and sat down in the seat in the center of the hall.

"look up!"

Upon hearing Cao Xiong's voice, the bandits quickly raised their heads.

"I've heard that many bandits have recently come down from the mountains to rob people. What's the reason? Whoever can answer this question can live."

Cao Xiong leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the armrest, waiting for the bandits' response.

"Does nobody know?"

Cao Xiong's eyes snapped open, staring menacingly at the bandits.

Qiu Ming walked straight up to a bandit, drew his willow-leaf knife, and held it to the man's neck. "Do you know that?"

The bandit looked flustered and shook his head.

"Sizzle~"

Qiu Ming plunged his knife into the bandit's chest.

The other bandits couldn't help but tremble at the sight.

Qiu Ming walked up to another bandit.

Before Qiu Ming could speak, the bandit hurriedly stood up. "Sir, sir, I know a little."

"Once, when someone came to visit the chief, I was on guard outside and I vaguely heard them say that the chief should capture more people to celebrate for some ancestor."

"Arresting people to celebrate?"

Cao Xiong stroked his chin thoughtfully. Could this matter be related to monsters?

To find out the truth, he needed to consult with the leaders of other mountain strongholds. He refused to believe that all bandit leaders were so tough.

"Report!"

Just then, a soldier suddenly rushed into the hall.

"A monster has appeared outside."