Chapter 71: Water Bandits

Chapter 71: River Bandits

"River bandits," Li Huowang stated, revealing the identity of the men on those small sampans.

It was entirely a trap, a scheme to lure everyone into a snare before robbing them all at once.

"Heh, the local customs here are truly simple and honest," Li Huowang murmured to himself as he watched them.

He also noticed that the bandits were not merely able-bodied men; there were old men, women, and half-grown children among them, suggesting this was a long-standing family enterprise.

"Whoosh—" an arrow shot over, thudding into the gunwale and sending the dozens of people on board into an even greater panic.

"Old and young alike, just toss over your bundles, luggage, and any gold or silver jewelry on your persons. We righteous heroes of Hengshan Lake, who rob the rich to help the poor, swear we won't harm a single hair on your heads."

"But if we find you've hidden even a single copper coin, hmph... then you'll have to choose between being diced like rolling noodles or sliced thin for wontons."

Hearing the boat captain's threats, the panicked crowd began to stir with renewed unrest.

Many started throwing their luggage and bundles into the water.

If they had encountered highwaymen on the road, they might still have a chance to flee, but here in the middle of the lake, they could only accept their fate.

Even if they jumped into the water, they would ultimately be no match for these seasoned swimmers.

Watching the small sampans circling the lake, Li Huowang stepped forward and addressed the captain of the lead boat: "Friend, just obediently guide the boats to shore, and I'll pretend none of this ever happened."

Frowning slightly, the captain re-evaluated Li Huowang for a moment, then asked with a hint of disdain, "Brother, care to drop a name?"

"Speak plainly and take us ashore," Li Huowang said, his tone growing irritable.

"Hey! Take a look at this, brothers! He's a clueless fledgling! Probably hasn't even grown his downy feathers yet! Hahaha!"

"Hahaha!!" The river bandits erupted into a chorus of roaring laughter.

"Young man, you think you're so great just because you're a Daoist? I've already chopped up seven or eight Daoists just like you!"

"Let me tell you, this lake is the Yuan family's territory. Dragons must coil at my command, and tigers must cower at my feet! Even if the Jade Emperor himself showed up, he'd damn well have to pay the toll!"

The captain's threats instantly drew cheers from the bandits, accompanied by a continuous cacophony of clapping and whistling.

Many of them had already begun dividing up their anticipated spoils.

"Pa! I want to snatch that white-haired girl for a wife! She's a real beauty!"

"No, playing around is fine, but you can't take a cripple like her as a wife! I don't want my first grandson looking like some freak."

"Then you play with her first, Pa, and when you're tired of her, pass her to me."

"Haha, good son, you're damn filial!"

"Ring, ring, ring, ring—" The piercing sound of the bell instantly sent ripples cascading across the water's surface.

With murderous intent flashing in his eyes, Li Huowang pulled a packet of soil from his bag and poured it into his mouth. "Chan Weng You!!"

The newly formed Master You immediately swam forward, lunging at the bandits on the sampans.

Faced with this mysterious entity, the panicked bandits instinctively retaliated with bows, arrows, and blades, but it was obvious that this was of no use.

Any flesh pierced by Master You would instantly stiffen and plunge into the water.

Before long, a dozen corpses were already floating on the surface.

The bandits clearly hadn't expected to provoke such a formidable figure, and for a moment, they wailed and cried as they jumped into the water to flee for their lives.

"Senior Brother Li! The boat is leaking! Water ghosts are chiseling at the bottom of our hull!!"

As Li Huowang moved his fingers, Master You swiftly dove underwater, and soon after, several half-naked corpses of the bandits slowly drifted up from the depths.

Seizing this brief opportunity, the remaining bandits in the vicinity had fled completely, leaving only the masterless sampans and corpses drifting with the waves.

Though the men had all fled, the matter was far from over.

"Hurry and bail out the water! Stuff the holes with your clothes!" Li Huowang quickly urged the others to save themselves.

They were right in the center of the vast lake; if the boat truly sank, even a hundred Master Yous couldn't save his life.

After a frantic scramble, the holes were finally plugged.

But before Li Huowang could catch his breath, Bai Lingmiao tugged at his sleeve and pointed toward the distant reed marshes.

Under the red glow of the setting sun, small sampans emerged once more from the marshes, the men aboard with bloodshot eyes, staring unblinkingly at the dozens of corpses on the water.

An old man with a white beard and a hunched back was supported by the boat captain, standing at the very front. His trembling, aged voice carried far across the water.

"Exalted one, these are dozens of lives from our Yuan family!! If you had announced your name just now, how would we roughnecks dare to stop you? Or are you simply in a foul mood today and craving the sight of blood?"

Li Huowang couldn't be bothered to listen to his nonsense. He turned to the others behind him, asking who was a good swimmer, to go retrieve the bamboo poles used for punting in the distance.

The boat had to keep moving; staying stranded in the water was out of the question, especially as the sky gradually darkened.

The old man's voice took on a tone of intense grief and indignation. "Since things have come to this, words are useless. Our lives may be cheap, but no matter who it is, if they slaughter so many of our Yuan family and think they can just leave, I'm afraid it won't be that easy!!"

The old man's somewhat abnormal words in the distance caught Li Huowang's attention, but because they were too far and the sky was growing darker, he couldn't see clearly.

"Whoever has good eyesight, help me see what tricks they're pulling."

Li Huowang still dared not let his guard down; in this wretched place, caution was paramount.

At this moment, the one-armed man nearby squinted hard as he gazed into the distance. After blinking and staring for a good while, he finally spoke: "They seem to... all be kowtowing. Looks like they're worshipping something, and of high rank at that, using pigs, sheep, and oxen as sacrifices. Oh my god! That old man just threw two infants who haven't even finished their first month into the water!"

Hearing this, Li Huowang's heart instantly tightened, and he quickly shook the Daoist bell in his hand once more.

No matter what they were doing, this abnormal behavior was definitely wrong; now was not the time to save three months of his lifespan.

The rapidly formed Master You flew toward them at breakneck speed, but just halfway there, it swiftly turned back.

The instant it rushed back, the entire large boat beneath Li Huowang shuddered violently, and the creaking sound of wood gradually bearing immense pressure echoed from underwater.

"There's something underwater!"

"Boom!!" A deafening roar shook the heavens.

The entire large boat was violently hurled into the air by a colossal force, only to be slammed ruthlessly back onto the lake's surface.

An already dilapidated boat could never withstand such torment; it immediately shattered into pieces and broke apart.

Li Huowang tumbled into the lake, and the icy water instantly sent a shiver through him, forcing his eyes wide open.

There, in the pitch-black, chaotic mud at the bottom of the lake, he faintly saw something with a blurred outline crawling and writhing.

"Swish!" Seven bizarre, eerie, gleaming eyeballs that constantly shifted and morphed snapped open, staring straight at Li Huowang.

(End of Chapter)