Teng Qingshan sprinted down the mountain. “Qinghu, don't blame me,” Teng Qingshan murmured to himself.

Amidst the army of the White Horse Gang, Teng Qingshan could cut back and forth through the ranks. But...

if he charged the White Horse Gang’s army alone, they could easily guess his identity. Moreover, in the midst of so many soldiers, Teng Qingshan couldn't possibly protect Li Luoxiang; she would still likely die.

Teng Qingshan was acutely aware of this. Furthermore, the White Horse Gang members would certainly guess: Li Luoxiang, just an ordinary girl.

Who powerful could she possibly draw out to fight desperately for her? It couldn't be Great Li Village; that would only point to the legendary foremost master of the Teng Family Village—'Teng Qingshan.' Added to this, with so many eyes focused solely on him amidst the throng, many bandits had visited the Teng Family Village and had seen Teng Qingshan.

His slightly altered appearance could easily be recognized. And then...

Disaster would befall the Teng Family Village! To risk the entire Teng Family Village for a woman he had never even met?

Teng Qingshan would never do that! Even if he tried, he wouldn't be confident in saving her.

In fact, the most crucial point was... he didn't even know Li Luoxiang; if he went, he wouldn't know which of the many captured women she was!

Objectively speaking, the suffering endured by the other dead women was equally tragic. Must every unfortunate soul compel Teng Qingshan to rescue them?

In this world, countless women suffered and were abducted by bandits and brigands. Teng Qingshan did not suffer from the delusion that he needed to save everyone suffering in the world.

After all, this situation was dictated by the era, something beyond human power to change. “In this age of chaos, I can only strive to protect my own kin!” Teng Qingshan thought silently.

* The bandits of the Iron Mountain Gang and the White Horse Gang fought savagely against each other. Every man in the White Horse Gang had white strips tied around his arm, while every man in the Iron Mountain Gang wore red strips!

In the melee, amidst thousands of troops, it was impossible to distinguish friend from foe otherwise; one could only look at the cloth strips. In the eyes of the Iron Mountain Gang members, anyone wearing a white strip was to be killed.

Those wearing no strips were also to be killed! Just kill, kill, kill!!!

“Whoosh!” Teng Qingshan darted into the Iron Mountain Gang’s stockade, untied the red strip from the arm of a fallen Iron Mountain Gang bandit, and tied it around his own. Teng Qingshan looked up at the chaotic battle raging ahead: “When tens of thousands fight in utter confusion, who would ever know if I quietly killed Fourth Master Hong and that young master in this chaos?” The killing intent he had suppressed for so long finally surged forth!

“He’s a traitor.” A sharp shout echoed from behind. An Iron Mountain Gang bandit wielding a saber had seen Teng Qingshan disguising himself as one of their own.

Teng Qingshan glanced back, his eyes turning cold. His figure flickered.

“Thwack!” Teng Qingshan’s right hand moved like lightning, slicing across the bandit's throat. More than half of the man's throat was severed.

“Hhngh~~” Blood gushed out, and the bandit collapsed with wide eyes. Teng Qingshan took the saber from the fallen man.

After all, experts wielding long spears were rare in Yicheng. He couldn't expose his true identity.

Therefore, Teng Qingshan had not brought the Samsara Spear. Holding this saber, Teng Qingshan advanced rapidly, closing in on the area where the fighting was most intense.

…… On a Snow-Treading Steed, a silver-haired elder fully clad in armor watched the distance, a slight smile gracing his face: “Even though those three Wang brothers were extremely cautious, they still fell for my trap, haha…” “Master,” beside him, a tall, armored man riding a Red Fire Horse chuckled, “In Yicheng, you’ve managed things for decades. The Iron Mountain Gang’s reckless expansion—we planted some spies within their ranks… Hmph, no matter how careful they were, they still couldn't avoid being tricked.” With inside help reinforcing the outside attack, breaching the stockade gate became much easier.

“Zhenjie!” the silver-haired elder called out. “Father,” the sturdy man also on a Snow-Treading Steed responded.

“Those three Wang brothers roam the world, ruthless in their methods. You have too little experience fighting masters.

Today, you will command the rear guard to prevent anyone from fleeing without fighting. Wang He, you will take command of the White Horse Battalion in your junior brother’s stead, and when the time comes, you will assist me in wiping out the three Wang brothers,” Fourth Master Hong instructed calmly.

“Yes, Master,” the man on the Red Fire Horse replied promptly. “Father, you be careful too,” Hong Zhenjie expressed some concern.

“Relax! I have spent decades diligently studying the Cold Moon Saber Art at White Horse Lake; my saber skills have advanced another level.

As long as I don't get reckless, the Wang brothers cannot defeat me. Wang He, your White Horse Battalion must advance regardless of casualties first, and we will destroy the Wang brothers.

Once they fall, the Iron Mountain Gang will collapse!” * Teng Qingshan hid in a pavilion within the stockade, looking toward the distance. “If I disguise myself as an Iron Mountain Gang member and charge into the White Horse Gang's formation, I’ll just face endless slaughter.

It’s troublesome.” The saber in Teng Qingshan’s right hand was slick with blood. Along the way, he had already killed dozens of White Horse Gang members before hiding in this pavilion.

Teng Qingshan would only deliver a strike if a White Horse Gang member occasionally rushed in. “The most important thing now is to find Fourth Master Hong and his son.

But I haven't seen either of them!” Teng Qingshan frowned slightly. Fourth Master Hong, the Great Boss of the White Horse Gang in Yicheng, was a legendary figure.

Very few people had ever seen him. And his son, ‘Hong Zhenjie’—many only knew that the White Horse Gang had a Young Master who commanded the elite 'White Horse Battalion,' but few knew the Young Master’s name, let alone his appearance.

When the White Horse Gang collected the annual fees, it was usually the subordinates who appeared. Occasionally, the Second or Third Master would show up.

After all, within the White Horse Gang, the highest status belonged to the Great Boss, followed by the Young Master, then the Second and Third Masters. “If I focus on the three Wang brothers, Fourth Master Hong will surely show himself eventually!

Fourth Master Hong must be quite old, so his saber skills must be formidable! These two points will help me identify him.

As for the Young Master, claiming to be the second strongest expert in the White Horse Gang means his saber skills must also be impressive.” Teng Qingshan watched the three Wang brothers intently. …… “Hah!

Old Man Hong! You only know how to scheme and use tricks.

If you have the guts, fight us three brothers a few rounds?” A bald, stout man looked like a demon god, wildly swinging a pair of Red Copper Hammers. The White Horse Gang bandits before him were either having their heads smashed in or their bodies pulverized.

The three Wang brothers: The eldest, Wang Tieshan, wielded a broad saber, unstoppable by anyone. The second, Wang Tiefeng, used a pair of Red Copper Hammers, each blow deadly.

The third, Wang Tiehai, commanded an iron long spear, moving like a coiling dragon. These three brothers led the elite troops of the Iron Mountain Gang, charging forward relentlessly, overwhelming everything in their path like a broken drought.

A large number of White Horse Gang bandits were slain, and the morale of the Iron Mountain Gang soared. “Hah, Third Brother, stop shouting.

That Old Man Hong has hidden by White Horse Lake for decades; he lost his nerve long ago,” the bald man with the broad saber laughed, swinging his weapon down. A White Horse Gang brigand charging ahead was instantly split in half, man and horse together.

The White Horse Gang bandits were terrified to the core. These three Wang brothers were all stout, all bald, and their appearances were strikingly similar.

“You three brats of the Wang family! Are you looking for this old man?” A clear, resonant voice echoed across the battlefield, heard by almost everyone present.

A silver-haired elder, clad entirely in armor and wearing a helmet, holding a long saber that reflected a cold gleam, flew in from above, stepping on the heads of numerous bandits. Instantly, the White Horse Gang bandits erupted in cheers.

“What powerful internal energy.” The complexions of the three Wang brothers shifted slightly. …… Inside the pavilion.

Teng Qingshan’s eyes suddenly lit up as he stared at the elder using the movement technique: “Fourth Master Hong!” …… Fourth Master Hong held a long saber, his figure shimmering like an illusion. He tapped the heads of more than a dozen men in quick succession before flying over a hundred zhang.

“Hah! Die!” a wildly arrogant laugh rang out.

In an instant, the Cold Moon Saber in Fourth Master Hong’s hand transformed into more than ten saber shadows, simultaneously engulfing the three Wang brothers. The brothers were alarmed and each used their weapons to block the saber shadows.

The eldest, ‘Wang Tieshan,’ was the strongest, and the second, ‘Wang Tiefeng,’ whose twin Red Copper Hammers provided a wide defensive range, escaped injury. Only the third, ‘Wang Tiehai,’ suffered a large saber wound across his chest and abdomen.

In just one exchange, Fourth Master Hong had wounded one of them. “Not one of you three will leave here alive.” Fourth Master Hong landed, saber in hand, his eyes brimming with unbridled arrogance.

* “A master!” Teng Qingshan’s expression changed slightly in the pavilion. “That Fourth Master Hong managed eighteen strikes in an instant—how can it be so fast?

Every strike was real, not just an illusion.” Teng Qingshan knew well that even with his physical strength, he could probably only unleash eight or nine saber shadows simultaneously. His speed could not match Fourth Master Hong’s.

But Fourth Master Hong’s physical body definitely couldn't compare to his own. “Is this the power of a saber manual?” Teng Qingshan pondered.

On the continent of Kyushu, throughout countless years and generations of masters, the manuals that emerged were extraordinary. The manual Teng Qingshan practiced himself, Sky’s End Journey, relied on internal energy for movement techniques, making him much faster than relying purely on his physical limits.

If Qinggong (lightness skill) had manuals, then saber arts, sword arts, and spear arts had them too. One must never underestimate a martial manual.

“The saber technique is indeed excellent, but my spear technique evolved from the millennium-old essence of internal martial arts, the ‘Five Elements Fist,’ and can easily defend against it, and killing him is simple too.” Teng Qingshan’s expertise lay in spear arts. “Wait… they are all riding Gray Mane Horses?

All wearing armor? That must be the legendary White Horse Battalion!” …… Fourth Master Hong’s saber strikes were fierce, but the three Wang brothers supported each other in their combined defense, holding their own without yielding ground.

Especially the eldest, ‘Wang Tieshan’s’ broad saber, even managed to inflict a wound on Fourth Master Hong. “Boom!” “Boom!”…… The earth trembled.

“Not good.” The faces of the three Wang brothers changed drastically. They saw the White Horse Gang troops part to create a lane, and an elite cavalry unit, with men and horses completely encased in armor, charged forward.

The lead rider wielded a saber identical to Fourth Master Hong’s, and his technique was equally sharp. This elite cavalry unit charged forth unstoppable.

The armor provided tight protection; when they charged, the Iron Mountain Gang bandits were easily scattered and many were killed. Yet, when these bandits tried to strike back, they couldn't pierce the enemy’s armor at all.

This elite cavalry unit of two hundred men surged forward like a torrent of steel toward the three Wang brothers. …… In the pavilion, although the horses’ armor was tight, their coat colors were still visible.

“This entire unit is wearing armor. Their horses are Gray Mane Horses.

It must be the White Horse Battalion! The one leading them is on a Red Fire Horse!

He is the commander of the White Horse Battalion, and his saber technique is the same as Fourth Master Hong’s! He must be the White Horse Gang’s Young Master.” Teng Qingshan’s gaze turned cold, and he picked up a pebble in his hand.

…… This White Horse Battalion, an absolute elite unit, was terrifying when charging. They feared neither arrows nor enemy saber strikes; their heavy armor easily protected them.

They simply charged! “Second Brother, Third Brother, get back,” Wang Tieshan’s face changed drastically, and he shouted repeatedly.

Facing such a torrent of steel, the three Wang brothers, with their flesh-and-blood bodies, could only choose to evade. The White Horse Battalion swept past like a gust of wind, and numerous spear shadows stabbed toward the three Wang brothers.

Surviving in the midst of thousands of combatants… was incredibly difficult. At least, the three Wang brothers couldn’t manage it.

“Stab! Stab!” The third brother, ‘Wang Tiehai,’ who was already injured, could not escape.

He was pierced by several spear tips simultaneously, his entire body riddled with holes, before being violently tossed aside. “Third Brother!” The fleeing brothers, Wang Tieshan and Wang Tiefeng, watched with faces twisted in horror.

“Hah! You cannot escape,” a loud laugh came from the leader of the White Horse Battalion.

Riding the Red Fire Horse, he led his cavalry in a frenzied pursuit of Wang Tieshan and Wang Tiefeng. Just then— “Swish!” It was like a shooting star blazing across the sky, flying out from the ranks of the Iron Mountain Gang.

“Thwack!” That streak of light pierced the chest of the White Horse Battalion leader, easily penetrating his armor. The leader’s eyes snapped wide open, but he still tumbled off his horse.

The riders behind him immediately reined in their horses, causing a wave of chaos.