The sun hung high overhead; the winter light was not harsh but instead felt quite pleasant on the skin. A group of hunters from Teng Family Village made their way along the road, laughing heartily all the while.

“Yongjiang, how much silver did you get for the pelts?” Teng Yongfan inquired.

“Old Wang did a lot of business with us, and the prices were decent. All those furs combined brought in over three hundred and fifty taels of silver!” the tall, honest-looking middle-aged man replied with a smile. “Though it still doesn't compare to the ermine Qingshan caught back then.”

“I inquired at the Myriad Manifestations Tower today; they’re willing to pay four thousand taels of silver for a perfect ermine pelt,” Teng Qinghu exclaimed with a gasp of admiration.

“Ermine is rare and precious; the Clan Leader isn’t in a hurry to sell it. But that was a great merit earned by Qingshan, and the Clan Leader should certainly reward him.”

Teng Yongfan cast a knowing glance at his son, feeling pride swell as a father when his son excelled. He chuckled, “As long as it’s enough to get by, that’s fine. Aren’t we all working hard for the clan? Still, that ermine pelt is truly expensive. The money I made forging all these Bihan Blades with my master this time barely equals the price of one ermine.”

The surrounding clansmen couldn't help but laugh.

“By the way, Yongjiang, where are the steamed buns and flatbreads we brought this morning? Take them out; we need to eat a bit. We still have nearly two hours of walking to do on the way back,” Teng Yongfan reminded them.

“Here you go, two steamed buns and two flatbreads for everyone.”

He untied a cloth sack, revealing neatly wrapped buns and flatbreads inside, and began distributing them. Teng Qingshan also took his share.

He tore into the bun, chewing vigorously, then took out his bamboo canteen and drank some cold water.

This steamed bun tastes really good, Teng Qingshan thought to himself. Eating the buns and flatbreads, drinking cold water, and joking with a group of rough men, Teng Qingshan inexplicably felt a sense of warmth. I like this kind of life! he mused silently while looking at the blazing sun.

These were a group of sincere, simple men.

“Does anyone here know why Fourth Master Hong of the White Horse Gang is called Fourth?” While enjoying the food, Teng Yongfan began to speak.

“It’s his name, what else could it be?” None of the clansmen had any idea.

Teng Yongfan laughed heartily and started telling the clansmen the story of how the master expert ‘Yang Fan’ hunted down the four Hong brothers.

While Teng Qingshan and his group were making their way, about five or six li away from them.

Beside the road was a small mound covered in withered weeds. Behind the mound, a band of fierce bandits lay in ambush.

“Er Gouzi, you rushed me into setting up this ambush here. Don’t tell me your Brother Lang is deliberately playing a trick and feeding me false information?” A heavily built man, dark-skinned with eyes as large as ox eyes, a broad back, and powerful shoulders, dressed in a heavy black padded robe and wielding a thick-backed broadsword that exposed his hairy chest, stood there. This man was clearly the bandit leader.

The man with the triangular eyes whispered, “Don’t worry, Boss, it’s absolutely true. My brother works for a major salt merchant; why would he lie to me? If I wasn’t completely sure, would I have ridden out here to get you to make your move?”

“I wouldn’t expect you to dare,” the bandit leader sneered coldly. “You go scout ahead. Once the people arrive, give us a warning immediately.”

“Got it, Boss.” The lean man with the triangular eyes moved nimbly, darting out more than ten zhang away to watch the road.

“Brother, are there enough of us?” Beside the bandit leader was a handsome young man.

“Relax, Third Brother. According to Er Gouzi, the other side has thirty-one people! One of them is just a kid. So, really, only thirty of them! We have one hundred and three brothers. Damn it, if we let loose a few volleys of arrows first, they’ll probably lose more than half their numbers. The remaining eleven or twelve, we’ll swarm them, and cleaning them up will be easy, right? Hmph, if the fat sheep didn't have ten thousand taels of silver notes, I wouldn’t have bothered bringing so many brothers along,” the bandit chief said, plunging his broadsword into the dirt behind him with a sneer.

“Brother, still be careful. They are hunters, after all,” the handsome youth reminded him.

“What’s there to fear? Your brother, alone with one blade, can make them cry for their mothers and fathers!” The bandit leader spat viciously, cursing under his breath.

After a long while.

“Boss,” the triangular-eyed man who had scouted ahead darted back, his face beaming with excitement. “The fat sheep are coming! They’re about a hundred zhang away. I recognized them immediately by the animal skins they’re wearing from far off.”

The bandit leader’s eyes lit up, and the surrounding bandits all became excited, yet none made a sound. These bandits were seasoned criminals and knew well… at this moment, revealing their presence was absolutely forbidden.

“Brothers,” the bandit leader lowered his voice, his face contorted savagely. “When those hunters get close enough, wait for my signal, and then we all shoot them down hard. It’s best if we kill the majority right at the start. Once we seize the silver, we’ll go have fun at the Spring Fragrance Courtesan House!”

The groups of bandits chuckled, but a fierce gleam shone in their eyes, like hungry beasts preparing to attack.

Teng Qingshan and his group had no idea that an ambush lay ahead. Those robbers and bandits had already begun drawing their arrows, preparing to attack.

The bandits moved with extreme stealth; under normal circumstances, ordinary people shouldn't have heard a thing.

“Hm?” Teng Qingshan’s ear twitched, and he glanced toward the distant mound.

As a master of Internal Arts, having trained since childhood, Teng Qingshan’s six senses were exceptionally keen. He could detect people long before they got close. When they were in Yicheng, the triangular-eyed man had observed Teng Qingshan’s group a few times from afar, but since Yicheng was crowded, Teng Qingshan hadn’t noticed.

But this was the desolate wilderness!

The surroundings were eerily quiet, and over a hundred people were hidden behind the distant mound, preparing to strike. Even with perfect concealment, Teng Qingshan still sensed something was amiss.

“Father,” Teng Qingshan suddenly spoke.

“What is it?” Teng Yongfan asked, puzzled.

“Everyone, stop.” Teng Qingshan frowned. The clansmen immediately looked at him. Teng Qingshan lowered his voice, “Did you all see? That mound ahead, I have a feeling… there are people hiding behind that mound. And quite a number of them!”

The surrounding clansmen’s faces paled instantly.

Teng Qingshan glanced at the mound, his mind racing.

In his past life, even professional special agents couldn't get close to Teng Qingshan without him noticing. While these bandits were seasoned criminals, they hadn't undergone the rigorous professional training of agents or assassins; their stealth skills were far inferior. Furthermore, with over a hundred people together, it was nearly impossible for them not to make some noise.

“Brother Fan, what do we do?” Many clansmen looked toward Teng Yongfan.

Teng Yongfan stared at the mound and whispered, “There’s no other way. We must retreat! So, here’s what we’ll do: we’ll take a detour, going through the fields nearby. We’ll keep a wide berth from that mound. If we are their targets, they won’t be able to resist rushing out. We’ll maintain distance to prevent a surprise attack.”

“Good, let’s do that.”

The clansmen had no better alternative and could only agree.

Teng Qingshan and his group stepped off the road and entered the fields, maintaining a distance of about thirty to forty zhang from the mound. At this range, even if arrows reached them, their power would be significantly weakened.

“Damn it!” The bandit chief’s expression shifted when he saw this movement. “Those hunters discovered us.”

“Boss, what should we do?” the triangular-eyed man asked anxiously.

“What else can we do?” The bandit leader’s face was savage, a trace of madness flashing in his eyes. “I have over a hundred men; am I afraid of this small group? Brothers, listen up! When they get closer, follow me and charge! The archers, as soon as you’re in range, shoot them hard and kill them all!”

Every bandit was radiating killing intent; every one of them had taken lives before.

Teng Qingshan intentionally walked on the far left, as the mound was to the left.

“Those robbers and bandits probably aren’t here to rob us,” Teng Qinghu whispered.

“Stop wasting breath, and whether they are after us or not, be ready,” Teng Yongfan said gravely. All the clansmen tensed their spirits, clutching long spears or drawing longbows. This wasn't the first time they faced such a situation; living in this world required ruthlessness if one wanted to thrive.

They held their breath.

“Kill!” A violent roar erupted from behind the mound. A dark, powerfully built man wielding a thick-backed broadsword was the first to charge forward. Behind him followed a large group of men, surging down from the mound like a pack of charging wolves.

“Attack!” Teng Yongfan bellowed.

“Whoosh!” “Whoosh!” “Whoosh!”……

The Teng Family Village side loosed their arrows first, but the distance was considerable, and there were only twelve archers among the Teng Family members. The first volley only managed to graze the arm of one bandit.

“Brother Fan, there are too many of them! What do we do?” many clansmen urged anxiously.

“Brother Fan, you take the silver notes and hurry back! We’ll hold them off here,” some clansmen, facing death, became desperate.

The bandit chief, holding his great broadsword, smiled smugly when he saw the hunters beginning to panic. Shooting from this far? A bunch of fools. Hmph, though their arm strength isn't small, to shoot this far. At that moment, the bandit chief was astonished to see a young hunter among the opponents wielding an iron-tipped spear and charging toward them at incredible speed.

The speed was astonishing!

“Seeking death,” the bandit chief sneered. “Archers, shoot!”

The distance was now within effective range. Among the hundred-plus robbers and bandits, there were more than forty carrying bows. Since Teng Qingshan charged them first, naturally, quite a few arrows were aimed at him.

“Little fellow, you have courage, but you are very foolish,” the bandit chief scoffed.

“Whoosh whoosh!”

As Teng Qingshan sprinted forward at high speed, the iron-tipped spear in his hand suddenly whipped around, resembling a spinning flywheel. Every arrow that came close was batted away. After the wave of arrows passed, Teng Qingshan remained completely unharmed. His gaze was locked firmly on the leading bandit chief.

The bandit chief froze.

So many arrows, and not a single one hit him?

Meanwhile, the bandits were furiously charging toward the Teng Clan hunters. Several bandits drew their arrows again.

“Little fellow, die,” some of the chaotic bandits rushing forward lunged at Teng Qingshan, their faces vicious. The other bandits charged toward the rest of the Teng Clan members, clearly considering the thirty adults to be the greatest threat.

Facing the bandits’ cleaving swords, Teng Qingshan’s speed did not diminish in the slightest.

“Thrust!” “Thrust!” “Thrust!”

The spear in his hand shot out like a viper striking from its hole, merely flickering three times in rapid succession, leaving behind blurry afterimages.

“Hhng~~” Three bandits who reached Teng Qingshan stared wide-eyed, clutching their throats, emitting choked sounds. They desperately tried to draw breath, but blood poured out of the large holes in their throats.

The three bandits crashed down heavily.

“Thrust!” “Thrust!” “Thrust!” “Thrust!”……

Spear shadows danced, red tassels flew, and a few drops of blood sprayed into the sky.

In the blink of an eye, Teng Qingshan covered five zhang, while thirteen bandits lay dead, all with pierced throats; not a single one was spared.

“What?” The bandit chief’s face changed dramatically. He had misjudged. This young man was the most terrifying of all the hunters.