"Hiss~" The myriad horse bandits of the White Horse Camp reined in their steeds, fearing they might trample the corpse of their leader.

A phantom figure swiftly sliced through the cavalry formation, arriving at the body. It was the grim-faced Fourth Master Hong. Hong Fourth Master touched his beloved disciple’s neck, then closely examined the hole in the armor on his back, inwardly startled: "What projectile? It actually pierced through both layers of armor, chest and back?"

Looking up, Fourth Master Hong fixed his gaze on the two Wang brothers in the distance, his eyes like venomous snakes: "I didn't expect these three Wang brothers would have an accomplice!"

Projectiles were difficult to master.

To become a true master required adequate wrist strength and a unique method of channeling inner force.

"Brothers, surround and kill them," Fourth Master Hong roared, his voice filled with fury. "Neither of these Wang brothers will escape today." With that, clutching his long saber, he transformed into a phantom and lunged at the two Wang brothers with terrifying speed.

"Kill!!!"

The cavalry of the White Horse Camp spurred their horses once more, galloping along the paths within the stockade. It must be known that the stronghold of the Iron Mountain Gang was vast enough to house thousands, a major fortress where large numbers often drilled and rode at full speed. Its breadth and length spanned several li.

"Haha, Old Man Hong, you’d better be wary of my brother's projectiles," Wang Tieshan, who was fleeing, suddenly had an idea and laughed loudly.

Fourth Master Hong’s expression was frigid, but he offered no reply, relentlessly closing the distance.

Just then, many of the White Horse Camp cavalry, charging ahead on horseback, immediately leaped down, their armored forms fanning out to encircle the two Wang brothers.

"Big Brother, the situation is not good," the Second-in-Command, Wang Tiefeng, grew anxious.

"Kill them all!" Wang Tieshan licked his lips, a fierce glint like that of a wolf in his eyes. "With a master secretly assisting us, today, whether we die or that Old Man Hong dies is still up in the air."

The thought of that projectile from moments ago instilled a surge of confidence in Wang Tiefeng.

...

Inside the loft, Teng Qingshan watched from afar as Fourth Master Hong and the White Horse Camp men cornered the two Wang brothers. Meanwhile, the rest of the White Horse Gang scattered, slaughtering the Iron Mountain Gang members, ensuring the gang’s followers could offer no aid to the Wang brothers.

"This Fourth Master Hong is truly vigilant; when pursuing the two Wang brothers, he doesn't dare let his guard down for even a moment," Teng Qingshan clearly observed that Fourth Master Hong’s speed was noticeably slower than before, and his gaze occasionally flickered toward this direction, as the projectile had been fired from somewhere near here.

However, the projectile was too fast; no one knew precisely where it had been launched from.

"Old fellow... don't rush. In a moment, I'll send you on your way," Teng Qingshan quietly slipped out of the loft.

Since Fourth Master Hong and his men had rushed into the nooks and crannies of the dense houses, Teng Qingshan would find no opportunity from the loft.

As for killing Fourth Master Hong...

Teng Qingshan was quite confident. In his previous life, when Teng Qingshan threw a flying knife at full strength, its power surpassed that of a bullet. Throwing a pebble was slightly weaker, but still close to a bullet’s force. If the pebbles thrown in his past life were like pistol bullets, then the pebbles thrown in this life were like armor-piercing rounds!

They could easily pierce steel plates!

When speed reaches its extreme, even a falling leaf can kill a man, let alone a stone.

**

In the alleys amidst the dense houses, a bloody slaughter was unfolding.

"Hahaha, die all of you!" Wang Tiefeng roared, wildly swinging a pair of bronze hammers. As soon as a hero from the White Horse Camp lunged with a spear at Wang Tiefeng, the bronze hammer swung off his hand, smashing directly onto the hero's helmet. Even with the head protection, the impact shattered the skull, blood gushed out, and the man died instantly.

Wang Tiefeng’s pair of bronze hammers kept him perfectly protected.

Compared to Wang Tiefeng, Wang Tieshan was more terrifying.

That mountain-cleaving saber, nearly as tall as a man, swung like a massive guillotine. A strike imbued with inner force could easily cleave an armored horse bandit in two.

"You have nowhere to run!"

A cold voice rang out. The grim-faced Fourth Master Hong lunged forward, his long saber instantly transforming into nine spectral blades, striking at Wang Tiefeng simultaneously.

"Clang!" "Clang!" "Clang!"...

Wang Tiefeng spun his bronze hammers in an impenetrable defense, shouting, "Eighteen Mountain Crushing Hammers!" Hammer shadows flew, colliding repeatedly with the long saber. Intense bursts of inner force erupted, causing numerous holes and cracks in the surrounding house walls.

Eerily—

The saber shadows shifted, tracing a bizarre arc toward Wang Tiefeng’s throat. Wang Tiefeng’s expression changed drastically.

"Clang!"

Suddenly, a mountain-cleaving saber thrust in, blocking the fatal blow—it was his elder brother, Wang Tieshan, saving him. Wang Tiefeng bellowed, tossing one of his bronze hammers forward toward Fourth Master Hong. Fourth Master Hong quickly retracted his saber and spun around, easily dodging the hammer strike.

"Second Brother, get to the rooftops," Wang Tieshan shouted urgently.

With that, Wang Tieshan and Wang Tiefeng immediately leaped onto the tiles above.

"Hmm?" Fourth Master Hong’s face darkened. "Once we are on the roof, that hidden projectile master will easily spot me, and then I’ll be in danger." Although he wrestled with hesitation, driven by confidence in his own strength and the absolute need to kill the two Wang brothers, Fourth Master Hong paused briefly before leaping onto the roof himself.

The rooftops were not entirely sturdy, but all three were masters of inner force, moving with the lightness of swallows by channeling their Neijin.

"Thwack!"

"Thwack!"

A large number of White Horse Camp men thrust their long spears upward from below, attempting to strike the two Wang brothers on the roof. The Wang brothers narrowly dodged the attacks.

"Big Brother, if we stay on the roof, that large group from the White Horse Gang sees us, and we’re in danger too," Wang Tiefeng urged anxiously, simultaneously batting away an arrow aimed at him! By now, more and more members of the White Horse Gang were gathering around.

"Up here, that projectile master can see Old Man Hong and kill him," Wang Tieshan muttered low. "Right now, we ignore everything else. We just charge northwest, and if we can reach the Great Yan Mountains, all the better!" Both Wang Tieshan and Wang Tiefeng wore armor, but this protection was effective only against common arrows.

Against the thrust of heavy, powerful spears, it was hard to resist.

The force of two hundred White Horse Camp cavalry charging with their warhorses possessed enough power in a single spear thrust to pierce steel. Even without the momentum of the horses, the raw strength of the White Horse Camp warriors made their spear thrusts not to be underestimated.

"Big Brother, that old villain is pursuing us," Wang Tiefeng said urgently.

"Whoosh!"

A swift blade shadow shot toward Wang Tiefeng, resembling a cascading waterfall. Wang Tiefeng roared, bringing his bronze hammer up to smash it. At that precise moment, Fourth Master Hong’s gaze turned cold, his face flushed violently, and the long saber in his hand suddenly dipped low, evading the hammer strike. Simultaneously, the saber’s speed instantly escalated to a terrifying level.

Hoo!

It felt like a gust of wind swept past, and Wang Tiefeng stood frozen, a crack appearing around his waist armor, blood beginning to seep out profusely.

The two bronze hammers fell with a crash, smashing through the tiles and dropping below.

"Second Brother!" Wang Tieshan’s face changed dramatically.

Wang Tiefeng tumbled off the roof, his body split in two, blood staining the ground crimson.

"Wang Tieshan, only you remain now," Fourth Master Hong’s flushed face slowly returned to normal, and he sneered at Wang Tieshan. "Go down to the Yellow Springs road and accompany your two brothers." Now that things had reached this point, Fourth Master Hong was supremely confident; one-on-one, victory was his.

"Shing!"

A terrifying, sharp whistle pierced the air!

Like a shooting star, it traversed dozens of zhang in an instant!

"Too fast." Fourth Master Hong was an old veteran of the martial world and had never relaxed his guard against the projectile master. His face changed, his complexion flushing scarlet once more as his long saber swept out a phantom arc.

"Clang!"

The projectile struck the flat of the long saber. The blade was knocked from his grip and sent flying.

"What terrifying power, what terrifying speed." Fourth Master Hong’s right hand went numb. Having personally experienced the might of that projectile, he was finally shocked. "This projectile master absolutely ranks among the Seventy-Two Experts listed on the Earth Ranking!" After reaching the peak of the Houtian realm, Fourth Master Hong had only felt such terror and helplessness when facing 'Yang Fan,' an expert listed on the Earth Ranking.

Fortunately, his saber was a divine weapon, forged from materials costing tens of thousands of silver taels.

Had it been an ordinary blade, it would have been pierced through.

"Ah!"

Only after deflecting the projectile did Fourth Master Hong feel a searing pain in his neck.

"I..." Fourth Master Hong’s head swam. Looking at the fiercely grinning Wang Tieshan ahead, and then at the stunned members of the White Horse Gang surrounding him, Fourth Master Hong suddenly found it difficult to breathe, clutching his throat, desperately trying to inhale, but a gurgling flow of blood poured out.

"I've been struck!" Fourth Master Hong stared wide-eyed in horror.

Throughout his years roaming the Nine Provinces, whenever Fourth Master Hong saw an enemy realize they had been cut by his blade only upon their imminent death, he often boasted how fast his saber was! But today... the very same scene unfolded upon him.

Just as he was preoccupied with fending off the deadly projectile, Wang Tieshan had seized the opportunity to slash brutally across Fourth Master Hong’s throat.

The blade was so fast that Fourth Master Hong only realized he had been cut when his neck began to burn with pain.

"You, you..." Fourth Master Hong covered his throat, staring wide-eyed at Wang Tieshan, wanting to speak but unable to utter another word. He crashed from the rooftop, rolling onto the ground below. His helmet fell aside, and blood soaked his silver hair. The local emperor of Yicheng was thus slain!

Fourth Master Hong felt utter unwillingness!

Wang Tieshan alone was no match for him. If he hadn't been completely stunned by the projectile for that split second, with all his attention focused on defense, how could Wang Tieshan possibly have found an opening?

...

Amidst the panicked crowd of the Iron Mountain Gang members further away, an unkempt, extremely burly man watched the scene with icy detachment.

"Time to go back."

He glanced at the surrounding chaotic bandits and thieves, then swiftly fled toward the direction of the Great Yan Mountains, vanishing momentarily.