Teng Qinghu, usually sharp-tongued, blushed slightly today, offering only a contented smile.

Up ahead lay the main gate of Great Li Village. Teng Qingshan, whose mood had been excellent, suddenly noticed the ground was covered in dense hoof prints: "So many hoof prints? Only bandits and outlaws would have this many horses. Did Great Li Village suffer a raid?" Teng Qingshan peered closely at the village.

He saw no bloodstains.

"Probably just passing through," Teng Qingshan mused to himself.

Just then, the Li clan elder, leading a good number of his kinsmen, came forward to welcome them at the gate. Every face in this group was grim, and the Li elder managed only a strained smile.

The people from Teng Family Village immediately sensed the atmosphere was wrong!

Normally, during a wedding procession, there should have been gongs and drums, and the bustling women of the village should have been out watching the spectacle. But the entrance to Great Li Village was desolate, with only this small group coming out to greet them. There was no sound of instruments.

"Elder Li, what's going on?" Teng Yunlong dismounted, frowning as he inquired.

The welcoming party was silent, without the customary joyous noise, and their faces were unwelcoming. Teng Yunlong was naturally displeased. However, Teng Yunlong also perceived that… there must be some underlying reason. Otherwise, he, Teng Yunlong, would have already erupted in anger.

"In-laws!" A figure suddenly burst from behind the crowd, rushing to Teng Yunlong's side, immediately falling to his knees, crying out mournfully, "My Luoxiang… she’s been abducted by the White Horse Gang!!! You, you must save my daughter, save her!"

Teng Qinghu, whose face had held doubt moments before, went instantly pale.

"Elder Li, what exactly happened!" Teng Yunlong’s face darkened, and he commanded.

The Li clan elder replied with a bitter smile, "Elder Teng, my Li Family Village has failed you! I never imagined… that today would be the day the White Horse Gang chose to crush the Iron Mountain Gang. When the White Horse Gang passed by us, their young master and his group captured several young women from our clan, including that child, Luoxiang. Even our clan's Master Craftsman was killed; we were utterly helpless! We could only watch as the White Horse Gang took our village girls away."

Teng Yunlong’s face was set like stone.

"Those bastards!" Teng Qinghu roared from his horse and immediately leaped down.

"What are you doing!" Teng Yunlong reached out and grabbed Teng Qinghu, glaring fiercely at his grandson.

Teng Qinghu trembled with rage. The first girl he had ever loved in his life had just been snatched away by the White Horse Gang bandits. How could Teng Qinghu not be furious?

"Elder Li," Teng Yunlong patted the Li elder’s shoulder and sighed, "We in the Teng Family Village are not unreasonable people; this is not your fault! Alas… facing something like this, there is nothing to do but endure. The sixth day of the third month… was meant to be a fine day. But who knew the White Horse Gang would choose this very day to eliminate the Iron Mountain Gang! If we had known, we wouldn’t have chosen this date."

Everyone understood.

The White Horse Gang chose this auspicious day for their major battle. And because of Teng Qinghu choosing this day for his wedding, Li Luoxiang was taken. It was fate, indeed! A cruel fate!

"Elder Li," Teng Qinghu stared hard at the elder, "How long ago did the White Horse Gang leave?"

"Nearly half an hour ago," the Elder Li stated.

"Qinghu, come back with me," Teng Yunlong commanded. Teng Qinghu stood rooted to the spot, his fists clenched tightly, grinding his teeth.

"In-law, only you can save my Luoxiang," the old man, Li Laosan, cried, tears streaming down his face, clutching the ground, frantic and banging his head repeatedly. The Li clan elder’s face darkened. He shouted, "Drag Old Third back; he's gone mad now." The clan members seized Li Laosan and pulled him back toward the village.

"Save my Luoxiang, I beg you," Li Laosan begged, his face covered in dust, continuing to strike his head until it bled.

Teng Qinghu watched, helpless, as Li Laosan, who was about to become his 'father-in-law,' was dragged away by his own kin.

"Qinghu, come back!" Teng Yunlong roared.

Teng Qinghu shot one last resentful look in the direction of the hoof prints, finally gritting his teeth, turning, leaping onto his horse, and moving back toward the Teng Family Village with the rest of the clan.

…

On the return journey, Teng Yunlong finally spoke in a gentler tone: "Qinghu, you are not a child anymore; you understand what is important! What do bandits and outlaws do? They plunder! The White Horse Gang is based in our Yicheng; they are actually relatively decent. The protection money they demand is manageable. They only occasionally take a woman or two. Life in the villages now is much better than when I was your age."

"You should know, your Second Aunt was abducted by bandits. Go ask your father and his generation; how many girls were taken? After all, bandits and outlaws need to have children too! They need women!" Teng Yunlong sighed, "Taking women from various villages annually is established practice."

Teng Qinghu remained silent.

Teng Qingshan, walking nearby and listening, felt a heavy weight in his heart. Survival, truly, was a difficult thing.

"Over the years, the reputation of our Teng Family Village has grown. Those bandit gangs usually target weaker villages when they abduct women. They fear that someone from the Teng Family Village might go mad and fight them," Teng Yunlong commented ruefully. "The life we had twenty years ago was much like what Great Li Village is experiencing now! It was incredibly hard."

"Grandfather…" Teng Qinghu opened his mouth slightly.

Teng Qingshan felt a profound sadness.

He understood that in this world, bandits and outlaws could not be eradicated. Even if he, Teng Qingshan, wiped out the White Horse Gang, another faction would likely immediately rise to dominate Yicheng. Perhaps that new faction would be even more rapacious than the White Horse Gang.

"If our Teng Family Village is to avoid such humiliation, relying solely on my personal strength is absolutely insufficient," Teng Qingshan knew this clearly. "There is only one path… to join the Guiyuan Sect, and to attain a high position there! Then, a mere instruction to the White Horse Gang would likely ensure they wouldn't dare trouble our Teng Family Village again."

Teng Qingshan’s desire to join the Guiyuan Sect grew stronger.

After all, in Jiangning Prefecture, the Guiyuan Sect was heaven itself! For the Guiyuan Sect to destroy the White Horse Gang would be as simple as crushing an ant.

…

The group of Teng clan members moved onward, the atmosphere thick with tension.

"Qinghu," Teng Qingshan suddenly spoke up.

Many people turned to look at him. Teng Qingshan said, "Qinghu, come with me!"

Teng Qinghu whipped his head around to face Teng Qingshan, his eyes shining brightly.

"Qingshan, what are you doing?" Teng Yunlong exclaimed in shock. "Have you gone foolish too?" In Teng Yunlong’s estimation, Teng Qingshan had been exceptionally sharp since childhood, and he never caused worry, always acting with prudence! Furthermore, Teng Qingshan's unparalleled martial prowess had made the clan members regard him as their spiritual leader.

For example, years ago when the Iron Mountain Gang attacked the Teng Family Village, it was Teng Qingshan who stepped forward to speak.

"Grandfather, please don't worry, I won't stir up trouble," Teng Qingshan said confidently.

Seeing Teng Qingshan's expression, Teng Yunlong was slightly reassured. He said, "Although Qinghu is older than you, he acts more rashly. Experiencing this incident will be beneficial for him later. A person cannot always act impulsively, driven only by temporary emotion. Don't make us worry."

"I understand," Teng Qingshan replied. "Grandfather, rest assured, there will be no issues."

Teng Qinghu had already dismounted and was now following closely beside Teng Qingshan: "Qingshan!"

"Grandfather, you take the clan members back first! Qinghu and I will return to the clan shortly," Teng Qingshan instructed.

"Qingshan, I won't stop what you intend to do, but I must say this: whatever decision you make, remember that you have over two thousand members of the Teng Clan standing behind you!" Teng Yunlong said.

"Mmm," Teng Qingshan nodded solemnly.

"Qinghu, let's go." Teng Qingshan, with the Reincarnation Spear strapped to his back, led Teng Qinghu, speeding off toward the direction of the Iron Mountain Gang.

**

The White Horse Gang's stronghold was situated on White Horse Lake in Yicheng. White Horse Lake spanned several dozen li, making it a relatively famous large lake throughout Jiangning Prefecture, with a small island at its center. The White Horse Gang had established their headquarters on this island. Being in the middle of the lake naturally made it easy to defend and hard to attack.

This was also one reason the White Horse Gang had endured for so many years.

The Iron Mountain Gang's stronghold lay to the southeast of the Great Yan Mountains.

If one traveled from White Horse Lake to the Iron Mountain Gang, they would have to circle the entire Great Yan Mountain range. Although Yicheng spanned only about two hundred li from north to south, the route was not direct; it required bypassing the entire mountain range… thus, the distance from White Horse Lake to the Iron Mountain Gang was a full three hundred li.

The White Horse Gang forces had departed in the morning. Their long, winding column of men would likely not reach the Iron Mountain Gang until dusk.

"These White Horse Gang men must not have paused for rest at noon, eating only dry rations on horseback," Teng Qingshan judged based on the tracks he observed on the road. Simultaneously, he and Teng Qinghu were sprinting along the path using only their legs. If Teng Qingshan were alone, his speed would far exceed that of a warhorse, but Teng Qinghu was slower.

Though Teng Qinghu could lift two thousand jin, his internal organs were not strong enough; at best, he could match a modern marathon runner.

The distance from Great Li Village to the Iron Mountain Gang stronghold was over a hundred li.

It would take Teng Qinghu over two hours of hard running to cover that distance, even exhausting himself.

"Qingshan, do you think Luoxiang will be alright?" Teng Qinghu gasped, some worry in his voice.

"Hard to say," Teng Qingshan couldn't guarantee anything, because even armies typically maintained camp followers or prostitutes; these bandit forces were certainly more disorderly. Abducting women to vent their urges was an extremely common occurrence. One could not expect horse thieves and bandits to possess more discipline than an army.

After traveling for two hours, the sun was nearing setting.

"Look, the horse bandits are ahead," Teng Qingshan pointed forward. In the distance, across the vast, open wasteland, sat a dense concentration of resting bandits. Some of them were already mounting up, preparing to move out again.

"They are about to depart?" Teng Qinghu remarked.

"This location is only half an hour’s ride from the Iron Mountain Gang's stronghold," Teng Qingshan frowned. "I estimate the White Horse Gang stopped here to rest and eat after riding straight through. Once they are fed and rested, they will move out in one decisive push to eliminate the Iron Mountain Gang."