“Yu Hai” is a rare large lake in the Gobi Desert, vast and misty, covered with lush green grass and diverse trees. It serves as the core of the southern route of the Hanhai and is an exceptionally prosperous area.
As soon as entering “Yu Hai,” moisture filled the air, giving Meng Qi and others—who had spent several days in the dry Gobi—a feeling of their skin being moisturized. Although it was still relatively dry compared to the heartland of Zhongyuan, it was much better compared to the endless sandy path they had traveled.
“Tsk, every time I come to Yu Hai, I feel like never leaving,” Zhong Yasha pointed at the stone city beside the lake. Inside, houses were neatly arranged, densely populated, bustling and noisy. There were people dressed in Zhongyuan styles, sand travelers, Western beauties wearing colorful hats and dresses, and seductive Hu women. The strong worldly atmosphere instantly brought every traveler from the desolate and monotonous Gobi back to the “human world.” No wonder Zhong Yasha said that once you come here, you don’t want to leave.
Meng Qi had also journeyed through the vast Hanhai for many days, encountering nothing but endless desolate wilderness or brutal and rough horse bandits. Now, standing outside Yu Hai City and gazing at the bustling secular world within, he felt an irresistible urge to indulge. If the previous journey had been akin to hell, then this place was truly the pure land of Buddha!
His mind became calm, and he gained new insights into the states of “Duan Qingjing” (Cleansing Tranquility) and “Luo Hongchen” (Falling into the Red Dust). No wonder disciples of major sects emphasized traveling outside. Without experiencing worldly affairs, without broad knowledge, and without tempering one’s mind, one might manage well during the Qi-Opening Stage, but later on, during the Outer View Stage, there would be significant shortcomings in understanding the world, comprehending human ways, and mastering principles of cultivation.
Zhong Yasha “knew” that Meng Qi and the others were newcomers who had left their tribe to seek a “career” in the Hanhai. He dismounted from his horse and waved his whip, saying, “Bai Bazheng has always admired the appearance and demeanor of the people from Zhongyuan. The architecture of Yu Hai largely imitates that region and is known as ‘Little Jiangdong.'”
Bai Bazheng is the ruler of Yuhai, a master with nine opened orifices, well-connected and maintaining good relations with several horse bandit leaders. Otherwise, with his strength alone, he wouldn’t be able to hold onto Yuhai’s prosperous territory. Not to mention the four or five Outer View Stage horse bandit leaders who each dominate their own regions—even someone at the Yuan Mengzhi level would be enough to give him a tough time. Moreover, there are several semi-Outer View aspirants within the Hanhai forces seeking to establish themselves, ambitious individuals who rival Zeluo Ju and others.
Meng Qi agreed with this point. The buildings inside the city were not the usual yellowish mudstone style but featured white walls and black tiles, with numerous buildings standing tall, almost identical to Jiangdong.
However, Shaolin was located north of the Yangtze River. After Xuan Bei led the two out of the temple, they had traveled westward all along. Therefore, Meng Qi had never been to Jiangdong and made this judgment solely based on what he had heard.
Of course, in Meng Qi’s opinion, Yu Hai’s prosperity was no less than the major cities along the way, though its city scale was much smaller.
Yuan Mengzhi and others had already entered the city with Zhen Hui, and the remaining horse bandits followed gradually. However, their group was too large, and entering the city all at once would be too conspicuous, not to mention losing their “external support” and backup. Therefore, they only selected a dozen or so experts, while the rest set up camp in various parts of the oasis.
Zhong Yasha, however, had no such concerns. Previously, after being ambushed and defeated by Wang Hong, along with several other leaders, only about ten people remained. Thus, he decided to bring all his brothers into the city to let them enjoy the prosperity of Yu Hai, indulge in the company of women, and relieve their anxiety after the defeat, reviving their spirits.
Holding the reins, they stepped through the city gate, where the worldly atmosphere grew even denser. The scent of fragrant clothes, sweat, animal odor, and the body fragrance of young girls seeped into their nostrils one by one.
Meng Qi followed Zhong Yasha, quietly experiencing this worldly atmosphere like a poor young man entering a big city for the first time, appearing stunned and amazed.
“Hey, isn’t this the great leader Zhong?” A mocking voice brought Meng Qi back to his senses. He saw a tall and powerful man surrounded by a dozen people, wearing a horse-chopping saber at his waist, his chest bare, revealing thick black hair.
Zhong Yasha gritted his teeth and replied, “Who else but the great leader Wang’s kindness.”
Meng Qi secretly chuckled and coldly asked, “Leader, is he Wang Hong?”
“Yes.” Zhong Yasha stared fiercely at Wang Hong while answering casually. If not for the restrictions of Yu Hai’s rules, he would have attacked him right then.
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Meng Qi dart forward. His left hand extended the sword like a snake emerging from its cave, an odd and extremely swift angle aiming at Wang Hong’s throat.
Wang Hong had not expected the sudden attack and nearly failed to react. Fortunately, he was also a six-orifice expert, accustomed to the bloodshed of blade’s edge, highly sensitive to killing intent, and strong in detecting movements. Thus, he barely managed to dodge Meng Qi’s sword by tilting his head and drew his horse-chopping saber.
Even so, his neck was still grazed by the sword, a red mark appeared, and blood seeped out.
Not only Wang Hong but even Zhong Yasha was startled. He knew that young horse bandits like Meng Qi were eager to make a name for themselves and wouldn’t care much about rules, but his boldness was just too much! The opponent was a six-orifice expert, and this was Yu Hai!
From this incident, Meng Qi’s image was firmly established in Zhong Yasha’s and others’ minds: don’t provoke him easily, as he would do anything!
“Brother Meng, hold on!” Zhong Yasha immediately shouted. Although killing Wang Hong had always been his long-cherished wish, it was not worth offending the powerful ruler of Yu Hai, Bai Bazheng.
Meng Qi stopped at once after sheathing his sword. Opposite him, Wang Hong and his men quickly drew various weapons, seemingly ready to rush forward at any moment, ready to clash.
Wang Hong also didn’t want to offend the ruler of Yu Hai and barely suppressed his inner anger, looking at Zhong Yasha: “Leader Zhong, what do you mean by this?”
Zhong Yasha looked at his expression, secretly feeling delighted, and smiled, saying, “My brother Meng here just joined us and is not very familiar with the rules. Please forgive him, Leader Wang.”
Just joined us? Wang Hong and others seemed to have guessed Meng Qi’s “identity,” and their hearts were filled with vigilance. They must be extremely cautious tonight when resting, as such a rule-breaking and fearless fellow might sneak in to assassinate them in the middle of the night.
This minor conflict and the sound of swords being drawn attracted the attention of people on a nearby winehouse floor, where Yuan Mengzhi, with green eyes and a light yellow beard, turned his head to look down at the street below.
“Brother, what’s going on?” A young man with a white cloth wrapped around his head and deep facial features tightly gripped his single saber, asking in confusion.
Yuan Mengzhi, unconcerned, smiled and said, “A newly joined youngster caused a conflict. Truly ignorant of the rules.”
He always gave off an air of self-assuredness, as if nothing was a big deal.
“Just like you used to be, brother,” the young man relaxed his eyebrows and chuckled.
Yuan Mengzhi himself had once been the kind of horse bandit Meng Qi was pretending to be—driven by wealth, women, and power, he left his tribe to become a horse bandit, without scruples, only wanting to rise to fame and quickly become a horse bandit leader. His first battle was right here in Yu Hai, where he ambushed and killed a six-orifice horse bandit leader in broad daylight and then left without a care, completely disregarding the possibility of being hunted down by Yu Hai’s ruler. Of course, the hunt did happen, but Yuan Mengzhi counter-killed them all one by one.
Thus, Yuan Mengzhi rose rapidly, becoming a notorious horse bandit in the Hanhai region, amassing hundreds of followers.
However, the current Yuan Mengzhi, although even more self-assured, had lost that initial boldness, as Zeluo Ju had already “taught” him the rules.
Yuan Mengzhi looked at Meng Qi’s back below, his eyes filled with his younger self. Without looking carefully, he turned back and smiled, “Duo Mo, you were like that too.”
Duo Mo was his seven-orifice expert subordinate. This time, delivering the hostage to Xie Ling, it was impossible to bring such a large group. Therefore, he left his deputy and several six- and seven-orifice experts in Che Li to manage the big picture, only bringing Duo Mo and a dozen or so ordinary Qi-Opening experts along, which also reflected his confidence in his strength.
“Thankfully, I met you, brother. Otherwise, I wouldn’t know where I would have died,” Duo Mo sincerely said. Those who disregarded rules always had a hard time surviving unless they had strong strength and backing.
He paused and then asked, “Brother, are we leaving Yu Hai tomorrow?”
“No, stay a few more days,” Yuan Mengzhi calmly said. “After Yu Hai is Tanshan, where the terrain is complex and makes it easy for people to escape. Anyway, whoever is coming will eventually come. We’ll wait here in Yu Hai for five days. If the time passes and nothing happens, we’ll kill them and leave, returning to Che Li to hide.”
The reason the “Guan Yue—Yu Hai—Tanshan” route was inconvenient for Meng Qi and others to escape was because the terrain was simple, with vast Gobi and no hiding places. Even if they escaped temporarily due to negligence, they could still be tracked down and pursued at leisure. But once reaching Tanshan, with its increased number of canyons and other landforms, not only was there a danger of ambush for themselves, but tracking people also became quite difficult. Not to mention there was a dangerous place near Tanshan where he himself dared not rashly enter.
Even with his self-confidence, Yuan Mengzhi understood that his strength was somewhat inferior to Anguo Xie’s. Whoever could kill Anguo Xie, no matter how coincidental or unexpected, could not be underestimated. He had to prepare himself for the possibility of not being able to kill or capture the opponent in one go.
Moreover, the Qi-Opening Stage was different from the Outer View Stage. It belonged to the realm of human ability, and ordinary ambushes and assassinations, as long as they were unexpected, could have a good effect. For example, if giant stones fell from both sides while crossing a canyon, that would be a dangerous situation.
Yuan Mengzhi had always been autocratic, and Duo Mo dared not voice any objections. He smiled and said, “Brother, shouldn’t we create an opportunity for the other side to rescue the hostage?”
Yuan Mengzhi thought for a moment and then said slowly, “Since we have arrived at Yu Hai, I should visit Lord Bai Bazheng. Perhaps I can ask him to invite nearby brothers for a gathering, a time for everyone to enjoy themselves.”
The more chaotic the scene, the greater the opportunity for the other side to act. Also, those who had been following their group along the way should be made aware that he was not unaware of them. It would be best if they kept their distance. After drinking with him in Yu Hai, they should just leave!
“Understood, brother. I’ll go handle it right away,” Duo Mo quickly agreed.
Yuan Mengzhi nodded and suddenly remembered something, “That little monk is still the same?”
“Yes, he eats, drinks, and sleeps well, not showing any fear. I’m worried that ‘he’ might be a decoy…” Duo Mo frowned slightly, “Only occasionally, when he’s spacing out, does he talk about wanting to find his master and senior apprentice brother, and then I feel like he’s more like a hostage.”
Yuan Mengzhi pondered for a moment and said, “No problem. We’ve received news from Bomi; the fighting is still ongoing, and they have fully entered the Hanhai.”
…
Because of their large numbers, Zhong Yasha rented an entire courtyard and let his men go out and enjoy themselves with the money earned from their blades.
Meng Qi stayed quietly in his room, digesting the worldly insights he had gained earlier.
Knock knock knock, Gu Changqing knocked on the door.
“Come in. Why do you look so flustered?” Meng Qi teased with a smile.
Gu Changqing helplessly said, “It’s those two female horse bandits again. They’re too bold and clingy. I can’t really handle it.”
Although women were not numerous among the horse bandits, they were not entirely absent. Once they went out to rob, they might not survive the day. In such a state, the stronger ones still had aspirations, but those with lesser strength often lived day by day, drinking and indulging in pleasures without restraint, being very open about relationships. Thinking that they might die at any moment, they didn’t want to deprive themselves.
Among Zhong Yasha’s group, there were three female horse bandits. Gong Shayue was his exclusive captive, untouchable by anyone else, while the other two were quite open, often easing their stress through relationships. Since “girls love handsome guys,” compared to the rough horse bandits, the fair-skinned Meng Qi and Gu Changqing were naturally very popular.
“You’re just not strong-willed enough. If you want it, just say so,” Meng Qi teased.
Gu Changqing looked outside and assumed a stance of vowing to protect his chastity, “Here they come, here they come. I’ll hide for now. You just take care of yourself.”
“Don’t worry, the wise have their own ways,” Meng Qi said casually.
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