Shen Feng and Li Keyi chatted through the night. Li Keyi learned from Shen Feng about the difficulties he faced on his way back and that the greatest danger he encountered came from the Thirteen Taibao of Lüliang Mountain, which made Li Keyi frown, as she hadn't been able to investigate their background.
"These Thirteen Taibao of Lüliang Mountain are too mysterious. Even I can't investigate their background," Li Keyi said helplessly.
Originally, Shen Feng could only investigate these people by starting with the grain transport ships that were hijacked. However, before Shen Feng could even start his investigation, these people had already framed and killed Yue Hengyi. Yue Hengyi would not have ended up like this originally. After all, he was a hero in everyone's eyes. Even if he made a small mistake, he would not be treated harshly. However, the unfortunate thing was that Yue Hengyi went on a killing spree in a fit of rage, which naturally left him with no room for defense.
From the title "Thirteen Taibao," one could infer their profession and number. The number was naturally thirteen, and their profession was naturally outlaws.
The title "Taibao" could indeed be used for outlaws. This was a tradition. In ancient times, how were people called when they were captured by bandits? They were mostly called generals or kings, using common official titles. This way of addressing them continued later.
However, if they were just ordinary outlaws, it would be impossible for their backgrounds to remain unknown to so many people until now. Therefore, the status of these dozen or so people in Lüliang Mountain was definitely not simple, and Shen Feng had no clue to investigate.
"We'll talk about it later. In any case, I will definitely avenge Little Yue. We are also preparing to return to Yuzhou. Take care of yourself, and we'll meet again next time." Shen Feng saw the sky brightening and knew it was time to bid farewell to Li Keyi, so he proposed to part ways.
Li Keyi looked at the sunlight in the sky and suddenly felt a sense of loss. She didn't expect time to pass so quickly. In Li Keyi's memory, she hadn't talked with Shen Feng for long, but now it was already dawn. It could only be said that good times always passed quickly, while painful times often appeared.
"Take care." Li Keyi forced a smile on her face and was about to bid farewell to Shen Feng. In fact, if Shen Feng had said a word, Li Keyi could have chased him to Yuzhou without hesitation, but Shen Feng could not bring himself to say that word.
Shen Feng immediately got into the car and drove south. Li Keyi gave a wry smile, watched Shen Feng leave, and finally could only prepare to return to Yanjing.
At the moment of parting, Xu Xing waved to the people from the Administration Bureau, and only Qi Yunfang responded to her. The others did not react at all. Qi Yunfang also waved to Xu Xing. Both sides had agreed that after returning home, they would find ways to communicate. Yuzhou also had its own intelligence organization. Although its intelligence gathering was not very strong, sending letters was no problem.
Qi Yunfang watched Xu Xing leave with Shen Feng and also felt a sense of loss. If they could have spent more time together, wouldn't it have been happier?
"Let's go. Let's bless Xu Xing and the others. We should go back too. I heard we can get commendations. I wonder what kind of rewards they will be," Xiao Sheng said in a hoarse voice.
Meanwhile, Shen Feng was heading south, directly entering the Taihang Mountains. The roads had not been maintained for more than three years, causing the asphalt to crack and be covered with weeds. Fortunately, it was winter, and the vegetation had withered, so the roads were still passable. If it were summer, the roads would probably be covered by weeds.
After returning to the country, Shen Feng and his group were completely relaxed. They were driving slowly in an off-road vehicle. They heard that Yuzhou was fine and there was no need to rush back.
The roads in the Taihang Mountains were basically built on the mountainsides, which were so-called winding mountain roads. The biggest concerns for such roads were mudslides and landslides. After a landslide, the road would be blocked, especially this year when there had been a lot of rainfall in the North China region. It was not easy to travel on the roads.
Lu Xian was driving carefully, ensuring that they would not be stopped by the road conditions.
"Crack." As the car was driving normally, the trees in front of them suddenly fell. If the car hadn't stopped, it would have been hit by the falling trees. So, Lu Xian quickly stopped the car and then used his ability. He discovered that there was a group of people in the nearby woods, and it was this group of people who were cutting down trees to block the road.
Lu Xian immediately reminded the people in the car: "Someone is blocking the road. It looks like they are going to rob us."
As the saying goes, barren mountains and treacherous waters breed wicked people. This saying is not wrong at all, especially in times of chaos. Barren mountains and treacherous waters represent a lack of resources, and people need to eat. If there is nothing to eat, they can only prey on passers-by. The Taihang Mountains are, after all, a large mountain range. With the advent of chaos, there must be people robbing and plundering in the mountains.
Shen Feng looked at Xu Xing on the side and said, "Don't you want to kill bandits? Now is your chance."
Xu Xing quickly said, "City Lord, can you lend me your sword? I see that the sword in your hand kills without drawing blood. I don't have any weapons here. You can't just watch me fight bare-handed, can you?"
Xu Xing's previous weapon had fallen into a cave in Siberia, and Xu Xing had not had a chance to retrieve it. To get a weapon, she could only wait until she returned to Yuzhou. Yuzhou had iron ore, and suitable weapons could be forged again. However, in this era, everyone's weapons were guns. When ordinary people used cold weapons, they were usually for self-defense. Therefore, it was not difficult for Shen Feng to obtain a sharp and sturdy sword.
Shen Feng knew, of course, that for Xu Xing, a fifth-order ability user, she was incredibly powerful even with bare hands. But she was only borrowing a sword, so it was better to grant her wish. He handed the sword over, and Xu Xing quickly took it.
"Listen up, everyone in the car. This mountain is mine, and these trees were planted by me. If you want to pass, leave your toll. If you say no, we'll kill you and won't bury you. If you know what's good for you, get out of the car. We don't rob women, only money." On the side of the slope was a forest, and from it suddenly rushed out many people. These people were wearing simple clothes with many patches. In their hands, some held guns, while others held hoes and sickles.
Xu Xing got out of the car, holding the sword she borrowed from Shen Feng. After sizing up these people, she found that they were very different from the bandits she had seen in Yuzhou. The bandits she saw in Yuzhou were all strong and robust people, but the people who appeared here were gaunt and emaciated. There were even women and children among them, which was completely different from a bandit organization.
The leader of the group said directly, "Leave the grain on the car, and we'll let you pass. Otherwise, we won't be polite. We will really kill people."
Xu Xing felt that these people didn't look like bandits, but rather like farmers, especially since they were moving with their families. This was not the behavior of bandits.
Then, Xu Xing could only sigh helplessly, then drew her sword. A cold light flashed in the air, a black light. It actually cut down a fifty-centimeter-thick tree beside her in an instant. The tree swayed for a moment and then fell into the forest. The cut was extremely smooth. Xu Xing's sword stroke was as fast and neat as cutting tofu. It took only a blink of an eye to cut down the tree. This was something ordinary people could not achieve.
The felled tree crushed many small trees in the forest. The crashing sound of the large tree falling caused a loud "rumble." Dust flew up in the forest, and many leaves were blown away. The bandits were all stunned by this scene. They obviously could not imagine that a weak woman could do something like this, cutting down a tree with a casual swing. Was this a dream?
Xu Xing slowly sheathed her black long sword and said indifferently, "If you don't want to die, then get lost. Otherwise, my sword will not just cut trees. As long as I want to, I can kill you at any time."
Everyone was stunned after seeing Xu Xing's skill. It was clear that they were now afraid of Xu Xing's abilities. Not to mention anything else, just that one swing of cutting down the tree, they hadn't even seen it clearly. In this situation, if they still wanted to rob them, they should first consider whether their bodies could withstand it.
Xu Xing continued, "I see you have guns in your hands, but I warn you, if you dare to shoot, none of you will survive."
Everyone hesitated. This time, they had kicked a steel plate. It seemed unreasonable not to let them pass now.
At this moment, Shen Feng, who was in the back, lowered the car window and asked Xu Xing, "Are you done? Don't dawdle."
Xu Xing quickly replied, "I'm asking them to leave. I don't think they are real bandits, and they only want grain, not to kill people, so I plan to let them go."
Upon hearing this, Shen Feng immediately understood. Even at this moment, Xu Xing still couldn't be ruthless. He shrugged and said nothing.
However, at this moment, Shen Feng's face was recognized. After a discussion, a group of people actually rushed over. Xu Xing thought they were going to use force, so she immediately drew her sword, ready to fight at any time.
As a result, after rushing over, the group knelt down by Shen Feng's car, shouting "Fengshen" and starting to cry.
Xu Xing was completely bewildered at this moment. Were these people trying to beg because they couldn't rob them?
Then, everyone explained the truth: "We originally lived in a mountain village nearby, but a crazy woman came to the village that day. A bachelor hooligan wanted to snatch her as his wife. Who knew she was an ability user and started a massacre? We were all driven out."
Shen Feng heard this and shrugged, saying, "Who can you blame for this? If you hadn't provoked this crazy woman, nothing would have happened. This is your own doing. I can't help you with anything. Find another place to live."
When Shen Feng heard the villagers' story, he immediately understood. These people were originally just farmers, but they were driven out. But in the end, it was their own fault.
The villagers quickly explained: "But the instigator was the village hooligan. We were just implicated. Moreover, we couldn't bring out the grain from the village. If Lord Fengshen doesn't help us, we can only continue to block the road and rob. It's winter now, and we can't farm. If this continues, we will only starve to death."
"Lord Fengshen, save us." The crowd continued to cry. Now, both adults and children had knelt down.
Shen Feng thought about it. In fact, these villagers were also very innocent. They thought it was just a crazy woman, but in the end, after being provoked by a hooligan, she turned out to be an ability user. It was already a mercy that they were still alive. But in the end, they were also implicated by the local ruffians.