Chapter Two Hundred: Young Master, Please Take Us In! (Please Subscribe, Please Reward)

“Whooosh, whoosh, whoosh…”
Dozens of piercing sounds suddenly rang out as dozens of invisible sword qi lanced into the crowd. A vast swathe of bandits in front of the stronghold collapsed instantly. More than two hundred men gathered at the entrance were dead or dying within moments.

“Inner force released outward—a master of Innate level!” Zhang Fan’s gaze flicked over the penetrating wounds on the corpses. Those men had been slain by the lethal qi of an Innate powerhouse.

“Feng’er, don’t look!” Murong Feng quickly shielded her sister’s eyes. Though the bloody scene left her pale and shaken, a faint thread of hope stirred in her heart.

“I don’t know which expert has come,” Ye Yuan, the second-in-command, cupped his fists toward the surroundings and said. “If our Qingyun Stronghold has offended you in any way, please speak plainly.”

Qingyun Stronghold had endured for so long not only because local officials feared them, but because the stronghold never provoked anyone it could not defeat.

“This is my first time visiting Qingyun Stronghold. You have not offended me.” Above the gate, a white figure appeared. A faint voice drifted down.

“…” Ye Fan and the others exchanged puzzled glances. What did that mean?

“I’ll split you open with my black brother’s axe!” Without hesitation, the third-in-command Hei Xiong charged forward like a wild beast, giant axe swinging. Xiao E smiled faintly and moved with lightning speed.

“Clang!” Two fingers clamped the descending axe like a vice.

“Impossible!” Hei Xiong stared in disbelief. The hundred-jin axe, bolstered by his full strength and momentum, should have carried the weight of a thousand jin—yet it had been seized by two fingers.

“You’re quite surprised,” Xiao E said with a small smile. He placed one palm on Hei Xiong’s dantian. The Beiming Divine Skill activated at once, draining the man’s inner force in an instant.

“Converted five years of pure inner force…” Xiao E murmured. “The martial cultivation of this world truly surpasses that of the Sword Hero World.” Hei Xiong had possessed only a decade or so of inner force, yet it had been refined into five years of pure essence—an efficiency that would have been remarkable even by Yue Buqun’s standards. This was merely a third-rate warrior here.

After draining Hei Xiong dry, Xiao E slapped him dead and tossed the body aside.

Seeing Xiao E dispatch Hei Xiong with such ease, Ye Yuan wiped a cold sweat from his brow. Even though Hei Xiong was dim-witted, his innate divine strength had been formidable; Zhang Fan himself would have needed several minutes to fell him. Yet one strike from Xiao E had ended it all. Was this the terrifying might of an Innate master?

“Sir, what exactly do you desire?” Ye Yuan asked, steeling his voice.

Xiao E gestured at his coarse garments. “The clothes on my back are made of rough cloth. I need coin to spend. In the end, I set my sights on you. I now declare you all to be my captives.”

Zhang Fan and Ye Yuan felt as though they had been cuckolded by a husky. *We’re the bandits, damn it—who’s the bandit here?*

“Everyone, grasp hands and stand together. Quickly, or I will begin killing,” Xiao E commanded, then slapped the stronghold gate into splinters. “Hurry up!”

Zhang Fan glanced at the half-meter-thick oak door reduced to fragments. Even an ordinary Innate master would find it difficult to achieve such force. Zhang Fan was only a second-rate warrior, far from Innate; resistance was unthinkable.

Soon every bandit in the stronghold was assembled. A line of big men holding hands hand-in-hand was an undeniably striking sight.

Xiao E placed his palm on Zhang Fan’s dantian. The Beiming Divine Skill spun to life, drawing inner force from every bandit, converting it, and purifying it.

They realized the danger too late. Under the relentless suction, they could not break free, watching helplessly as their lifeblood was drained away drop by drop.

When the last traces of inner force had been absorbed, Xiao E raised his hand. Countless sword qi flew forth, felling every last bandit. Their hands were stained with blood, but Xiao E felt no hesitation in ending them.

“Inner force truly is scarce,” he sighed, feeling the hundred-plus years of pure inner force now flowing within him. Most of these men had cultivated only rudimentary arts; three hundred lives yielded little more than a century of refined essence. Zhang Fan alone had gifted him a full decade.

Xiao E’s current dou qi cultivation stood at the fourth rank of Dou Zong. Converted into inner force, it had reached over two thousand years of pure strength. To advance to the fifth rank would demand a vast quantity of dou qi energy—roughly a thousand years of inner force. In other words, he would need to clear ten such strongholds to gain one rank. The higher he rose, the greater the energy required.

“To break through, it would be best to return to the Dou Qi Continent first,” he said with a helpless smile. If he continued absorbing inner force here, countless martial artists would die in his wake—something he could not bring himself to do. Even if he drained every warrior in the world, he doubted he could leap to Dou Zun, for each breakthrough multiplied the required energy.

“Plop!”

Murong Feng watched Xiao E finish the last bandit and turn toward the rear courtyard. She pulled her sister along and knelt before him with a soft thud.

“What are you doing? The bandits are all dead. You may return home.”

The sight of the two sisters kneeling so obediently startled Xiao E. “Why are you acting this way?”

“Take us into your service, young master. We have no homes left. If we descend the mountain now, in this chaotic age…” Murong Feng wept. After witnessing the cruelty of the world, they understood that without a strong protector, their fate would be dire. With fortune, they might be sold as concubines; without it, they would be dragged into brothels.

“Take us with you! We excel at music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. We have learned to serve, and we will serve you well.”

Murong Huang had recovered her senses as well. Better to follow a handsome young master than to be sold to some decrepit old man or forced to become a bandit stronghold’s head wife. At least Xiao E was fair to look upon; the bed would be easier to bear.

“Enough. Rise, both of you. I cannot abide tears.” Xiao E looked at the two women kneeling, tears streaking their cheeks like pear blossoms in rain. A wave of inner qi lifted them gently to their feet.

“Thank you, young master. I am Murong Feng. This is my sister, Murong Huang.” The woman in red led her companion in blue forward and introduced them.

Xiao E nodded with a smile. “I am Xiao E. You may call me young master from now on.”

“Yes, young master.” The two sisters answered obediently, eyes shining.