Lin Fan didn’t stay in Tianshan City for long—just long enough to have a heart-to-heart chat with Wang Xiaoliu over one night.
The next day,
Lin Fan carried Wang Xiaoming into the void, later abandoning him far away from Tianshan City.
“Uncle Lin, you’ve got to keep an eye on me!” Wang Xiaoming shouted desperately.
“Don’t worry.”
At the moment Lin Fan left, a mysterious smile appeared on his face.
A calamity has left the city—how many so-called “fated prodigies” would sprout in resistance to Wang Xiaoming’s arrogant personality?
To Lin Fan, all of this was worth looking forward to.
Still, to prevent Wang Xiaoming from going too far, Lin Fan specially instructed Heaven’s Will to keep watch.
If he dares forcefully seize a girl, then he shall surely be struck by lightning.
There is a deity above every man’s head—and Lin Fan was precisely the god above Wang Xiaoming.
Since Wang Xiaoming calls him “Uncle,” Lin Fan naturally wouldn’t allow him to stray down the wrong path. Being a bit arrogant in youth was fine; after all, Lin Fan himself had been just as arrogant in his time.
Unknown how much time had passed,
To Lin Fan, it might have only been the blink of an eye.
A massive city came into Lin Fan’s sight.
“Didn’t expect the Xuanhuang Realm to have developed such a grand metropolis. It seems after solving the beast menace, cities no longer suffer beast invasions, thus enabling steady development.”
Lin Fan descended from the void and entered the city.
Along the streets were countless vendors shouting their wares, and numerous martial cultivators walking the roads.
Lin Fan extended his perception slightly, discovering various types of martial artists among them, each with impressive cultivation levels.
Clearly, the past few years of peace, free from external invasions, had allowed steady growth.
A tavern!
Lin Fan sat there like an ordinary person, ordering some dishes and wine, quietly listening to the stories being told around him.
Such a relaxed moment had been a long time coming.
Five years ago, the Xuanhuang Realm had been far from peaceful—beasts roamed freely. A city might be safe today, but tomorrow it might be destroyed by monstrous creatures.
“What I’m about to tell you today is the tale of the Fourteen Desert Kings.”
At this moment, an old man, supported by a young girl, slowly walked in from outside. He then approached a prepared seat, placed down his tools, shook his body, and loudly proclaimed with a passionate voice.
“Good! The story of the Fourteen Desert Kings is excellent!”
“Old Man Xu, hurry up and tell us! If it’s good, there will be a reward!”
The Fourteen Desert Kings?
Upon hearing this, Lin Fan felt a bit stunned—it sounded so familiar.
Lin Fan was pretty confident that these Fourteen Desert Kings must be his old gang.
Thinking back to the Fourteen Desert Bandits, Lin Fan even felt a bit nostalgic. Once notorious evildoers, they had been subdued by him and had since devoted themselves wholeheartedly to the path of robbery.
Five years had passed—how were they doing now?
Judging by the change in their title, it was obvious they had made progress.
“These Fourteen Desert Kings number exactly fourteen, each possessing formidable cultivation skills. They are the top ‘Kings of the Dao’ in the entire Xuanhuang Realm. And note—their ‘Dao’ is not the ‘Dao’ of thieves. Though they are bandits, they possess righteousness and can be considered heroic figures.” Old Man Xu spoke fluently, like a master storyteller recounting treasures.
“You old man must be wrong. They’re clearly just robbers—how can they be called heroes and heroes?” A young man from the neighboring table questioned doubtfully.
Judging by his appearance, he seemed like a newcomer to the martial world.
“Young man, don’t rush. Allow me to explain carefully.” Old Man Xu raised his withered hand and continued.
“If they were just bandits, they wouldn’t truly deserve to be called heroes. I, Old Man Xu, once had the honor of meeting the leader of the Fourteen Desert Kings, the Great Chief Sha. We conversed through the night. After drinking, he spoke his heart: although the Desert Bandits practiced the art of robbery, they were no ordinary thieves. They pursued the ‘Dao of Robbery.'”
“Old Man Xu, keep dreaming! You actually met the Great Chief Sha for a whole night? Haha!”
Someone disbelievingly remarked.
Old Man Xu coughed dryly twice, unfazed. “The Fourteen Desert Kings act strangely—they rob but never kill. Every time they rob, they not only refrain from killing but also charge a fixed amount and even escort the victims to their destination. Tell me, isn’t that strange?”
“Strange indeed!”
For the taverngoers, their daily leisure time was often spent enjoying such tales.
Seeing the atmosphere warming up, Old Man Xu continued, “In my opinion, although the deeds of the Fourteen Desert Kings are hard to describe as noble, upon deeper reflection, aren’t they actually doing good deeds?”
“Nowadays, the world is peaceful, free from beast invasions, but bandits still run rampant. Merchants transporting goods face long journeys, often intercepted by bandits. Losing money is minor—but losing one’s life is a major tragedy.”
“Yet the Fourteen Desert Kings, while robbing, only take a fixed amount, never kill, and even escort the merchants to their destinations. From my observation, many merchants in this city don’t hire guards anymore—they deliberately enter the territory of the Fourteen Desert Kings.”
“And when the Fourteen Desert Kings aren’t around, these merchants would set up camp and wait for them to arrive. Tell me, when bandits reach such a level, can’t they be considered heroic figures?”
Old Man Xu concluded.
After hearing these words, Lin Fan nearly spat out his mouthful of wine.
Sha Dulong and the others were just too damn clever—they had even managed robbery in such a unique way.
Making people willingly wait in place to be robbed—this truly took skill.
Back then, Lin Fan had merely been joking with them about the “Dao of Robbery”—it was completely nonsense meant to fool them.
But judging from the current situation, it seemed Sha Dulong and the others had actually touched the real “Dao of Robbery.”
Talents—true talents indeed.
Lin Fan finished his cup in one gulp, sighing involuntarily. It seemed that those he had trained would all become talents.
“Hmph, just a bunch of bandits—how could you actually call them heroes? These Fourteen Desert Bandits won’t exist past today.” At this moment, a group of disciples wearing sect uniforms entered one after another.
“Boy, bring us some wine.”
…
“Why do you say that?” Old Man Xu asked curiously.
The leading disciple, with an air of arrogance, replied, “Today I’m in a good mood, so I’ll explain.”
“We are disciples of the Jiuling Sect. Today, this Wulun City will become a vassal city of Jiuling Sect. Therefore, all surrounding bandits will be eradicated. The so-called Fourteen Desert Kings will become history.”
As he mentioned his sect, the disciple’s expression turned even more proud. He raised his wine cup and drank it all at once.
“Are they disciples of the Jiuling Sect?”
“The Jiuling Sect is a newly risen sect in recent years. I heard that when it was founded, numerous sects came to congratulate them, creating a grand spectacle.”
“The Jiuling Sect’s sect leader is said to be a young woman known as the Jiuling Empress. Her martial cultivation is formidable, her martial arts ruthless—how many people have died by her hands?”
“Wulun City becoming a vassal of Jiuling Sect—that’s indeed big news. If Jiuling Sect takes action, those Fourteen Desert Kings will be in grave danger.”
“Yes… yes…”
Lin Fan furrowed his brows, then without lingering further, turned and left.
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