I have a martial arts panel.

"Boss!"

A bandit henchman heard Zhan Sandao's cries for help and was about to rush over when he saw Tao Yungang swing his broadsword and Zhan Sandao's head fall off.

The scene caused him to scream in terror.

"The boss... the boss has been killed!"

The bandit henchmen instantly lost their will to fight and fled while shouting.

The new village had only been established for a short time, and Zhan Sandao was not only the most powerful person in the village, but also the spiritual pillar of everyone.

Now that Zhan Sandao has been killed, the members of the stronghold have suffered a mental breakdown and lost all will to live.

"The boss was killed?"

The other bandits, who were still surrounding Tao Yunquan and his companion, turned around upon hearing the exclamation and saw that Zhan Sandao was dead. They instantly lost their will to fight.

"Go, hurry up!"

The encirclement of Tao Yunquan and his companion collapsed instantly.

"Tao Yungang!"

Guan Yinggou's eyes were filled with rage.

Just when they thought they were about to get revenge for losing their arm, the battle turned around in the blink of an eye.

He was no match for Tao Yungang to begin with, and if he hadn't sided with Zhan Sandao, he wouldn't have dared to seek revenge.

At this time, Zhan Sandao was killed, and with only one arm missing, he was no match for Tao Yungang.

"escape!"

Guan Yinggou gritted his teeth, leaped onto his horse, and fled.

"Guard the eagle hook!"

Tao Yungang immediately saw through Guan Yinggou's intentions.

He also snatched a horse and galloped after them.

"Today's perilous situation is all because of you. Prepare to die!"

Tao Yungang spurred his horse and caught up, swinging his sword horizontally.

Guan Yinggou, holding the reins with one arm, was unable to dodge in time and was slashed off his horse.

Guan Yinggou was severely injured, bleeding profusely, and let out a scream.

Tao Yungang showed no mercy. He dismounted and delivered the final blow, silencing Guan Yinggou.

"Yunquan!"

At this moment, the bandits who had previously robbed the road had either escaped or died, so Tao Yungang stopped chasing them and quickly went to Tao Yunquan to check his injuries.

Tao Yunquan had one hand chopped off and multiple wounds all over his body.

His lips turned white due to excessive bleeding, and his consciousness began to waver.

"I'll go get some hemostatic medicine!"

Xu Ning also rushed over, and upon seeing Tao Yunquan's injuries, he quickly ran to the donkey cart.

The donkey cart carried medicines to deal with unexpected situations, which came in handy at this moment.

"How are things? Are the others doing alright?"

Tao Yunquan's injuries stopped, but he was completely exhausted and leaned against the donkey cart wheel.

"Except for a few of us, everyone else... is gone."

The man who had fought alongside Tao Yunquan examined the bodies of his three comrades, his voice low.

He also suffered minor injuries, but because Tao Yunquan had protected him earlier, his injuries were less severe.

"I'm so sorry, everyone!"

At this moment, Tao Yungang, who had just survived a life-or-death situation, finally showed signs of exhaustion, and a wave of guilt washed over him.

He knelt on the ground, staring at his three dead companions without saying a word, his gaze blank.

Xu Ning stood to the side and sighed as well.

Just a few days ago, everyone was drinking and chatting happily at the dinner table, but now, someone has already lost their life.

Looking at the blood and scattered weapons on the ground, Xu Ning truly felt the terror of this martial arts world for the first time.

Whether ordinary people or martial artists, everyone is like a lone boat in a storm, which could capsize at any moment.

"Uncle Gang..."

Xu Ning walked over and put her arm around Tao Yungang's shoulder.

He opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say.

"Yun Gang".

At this moment, Tao Yunquan, dragging his injured body, stood up and walked over.

He first glanced at Xu Ning, giving her a kind look.

Tao Yunquan didn't see Xu Ning suddenly appear and help Tao Yungang kill Zhan Sandao, but seeing Xu Ning's blade covered in blood and his return after escaping, he affirmed and respected this outsider's loyalty and courage.

"Yungang, I understand how you feel," Tao Yunquan said to Tao Yungang. "But since everyone is making money off you, they should have been aware of that long ago."

"You provide the money, and we provide the labor; it's only fair. Besides, the compensation you give us is quite generous, and you've been very kind to us. No one has any complaints. We didn't want to face what happened today, but there's nothing we can do. The fact is what it is, and you have to accept it."

Tao Yunquan's words brought a glimmer of light to Tao Yungang's eyes, but sadness and remorse still lingered in his heart.

In the medicinal herb business, some brothers have been escorting trucks for over a decade, and some have even been injured and forced to quit.

But this is the first time that three people have died at once like today.

"I see."

Tao Yungang forced himself to stay alert.

He stood up and looked at Xu Ning.

"Xu Ning, thank you so much this time!"

Tao Yungang grasped Xu Ning's hand: "If you hadn't risked your life to launch a surprise attack on Zhan Sandao from behind, we might all be dead here."

As soon as Tao Yungang finished speaking, Tao Yunquan and the other person exchanged a glance, both of them seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

They all knew that Xu Ning had not cultivated internal energy, but had only mastered the Gale Blade Technique.

Despite their strength, they risked their lives to launch a surprise attack on Zhan Sandao, a righteous act that deeply moved them.

"You flatter me, Uncle Gang."

Xu Ning wasn't too emotionally affected by Tao Yungang's words: "Just as Uncle Yunquan said, I took your money, so I should do things for you. Besides, you and Guo Ye have always helped me in the past, so what I'm doing is just a small way of repaying you."

"Xu Ning...you child..."

Upon hearing Xu Ning's words, Tao Yungang was speechless for a moment.

After a long while, he finally composed himself and asked, "Where is Guo Ye?"

"We seized the horse that was chasing the bandits, and I let him escape back to the village first."

Xu Ning responded.

Tao Yungang's lips trembled slightly. He patted Xu Ning's shoulder heavily, and his tone finally showed some relief: "It is the greatest honor of Guo Ye's life to have a brother like you."

"Alright, let's get ready to go." Then, Tao Yun paused, composed himself, and said, "We can't stay here any longer. Let's clean up the battlefield and take the brothers... home."

Afterwards, the group roughly cleaned up the area where the battle had just taken place.

Since there were only four people left, they couldn't drive four donkey carts, so they untied the ropes from two of the donkey carts and tied them to the other two donkey carts, so that two donkeys pulled one cart.

In addition, the bandits left two horses at the scene, which were also taken away.

And so, the group continued their journey back.

……

More than two hours have passed, and they still haven't arrived at Taojiazhuang.

As they marched, shouts could be heard in the distance.

"Uncle!"

It was Guo Ye's voice.

From afar, Xu Ning and his group saw Guo Ye approaching on horseback with a dozen or so men behind him.

Besides Guo Ye, the leader was Tao Yunmeng, Xu Ning's former coach.

"It must be the reinforcements brought by Guo Ye."

Xu Ning understood immediately.

This is the advantage of a large estate: if one person encounters trouble outside, the entire estate can provide support and assistance.

The two groups of people met.

"Uncle, Xu Ning, you're still alive!"

Seeing Tao Yungang and Xu Ning both unharmed, Guo Ye finally felt relieved of the heavy burden on his shoulders.

"Brother Yun Gang, you're back."

The speaker was Tao Yunmeng.

Guo Ye had fled back to the village and immediately reported the situation.

The village quickly gathered people, led by Tao Yunmeng, to carry out the rescue. Although a long time had passed and the situation was unknown, everyone was determined to go to the rescue for a glimmer of hope.

"I'm back."

Tao Yun nodded, then turned his head: "But..."

Everyone followed his gaze to the corpse of his companion from Taojiazhuang on the carriage, and fell silent.

Everyone consciously dispersed on both sides of the carriage and followed behind.

The long line returned to Taojiazhuang as the sun set.

……

"Xu Ning, I will visit you another day to express my gratitude."

Upon arriving at Taojiazhuang, Tao Yun stopped Xu Ning before he returned home, saying, "I need to settle these brothers in first."

"Uncle Gang, don't worry about me, take care of yourself."

Xu Ning comforted her.

Tao Yungang fell silent; next, he had to deal with the funeral arrangements for his brothers.

Guo Ye didn't talk to Xu Ning much. After exchanging a glance, he left with Tao Yungang.

"Only by having strength can one gain a foothold in this world and protect one's family."

On the way home, Xu Ning's thoughts kept flowing.

He has made his decision: after a short period of recuperation, he will enter the inner circle of Yunze Mountain to seek more resources to improve his martial arts level.

Soon, we arrived at our doorstep.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, Xu Ning, who had been feeling rather heavy-hearted, finally felt a sense of warmth.

"I'm back!"