"Those who are willing to surrender now, I will let bygones be bygones. You may leave! " Zhao Bao looked at the confused bandits standing in the Black Mountain Stronghold. Without Tao Duan, what else could they do? Moreover, it was too troublesome to recruit these people, so he might as well let them go.
After Zhao Bao finished speaking, these bandits threw away the weapons in their hands and left. Although Yang Fuzhao was a little dissatisfied, he still wanted to recruit these people after Tao Duan left, but now it seemed that it was a little difficult. However, since he had already obtained this item, there was nothing to regret.
"The rest of you, clean up the battlefield. Take away anything useful. " Zhao Bao directly ordered his men to ransack the Black Mountain Stronghold. Yang Fuzhao was wearing a mask, so his expression could not be seen clearly.
"General, this is all." Some of them cleaned up the battlefield, while others went to search for money. However, after a lot of work, they only found a few boxes of jewelry, and they were found in one of Tao Duan's side rooms. Zhao Bao's expression was very ugly. After attacking the Black Mountain Stronghold, he thought that he could get a lot of benefits, but now it seemed that this amount of money was not even enough to pay the soldiers.
"Tao Duan would usually distribute the money he collected to his subordinates, so the richest people in the Black Mountain Stronghold are actually those who ran away." Yang Fuzhao looked at Zhao Bao's face and felt a little comfortable in his heart, so he said.
"Retreat." Zhao Bao looked at Yang Fuzhao's appearance and was dissatisfied in his heart, so he ordered his men to carry the jewelry and leave. Yang Fuzhao looked at the huge Black Mountain Stronghold. At this moment, only he and his subordinates were left, and the smell of blood still lingered at the tip of his nose.
"Let's retreat too." Yang Fuzhao said. Yang Li heard Yang Fuzhao's words. "Young master, where are we going? Moreover, there is no one in the Black Mountain Stronghold anymore, why don't we continue to stay here?" This huge Black Mountain Stronghold was empty, wasn't it just the right place for them to hide?
"Are we going to hide in this deep mountain for the rest of our lives? Don't worry, I have already taken a lot of money from Tao Duan. It is enough for us to settle down. " Yang Fuzhao said. Although Tao Duan had distributed most of the money to his subordinates, the portion that he had for himself was not to be underestimated. Yang Fuzhao had already sent people to transfer the money during the battle, but before the transfer was completed, the battle here ended.
"Let's go!" Yang Fuzhao said and left with his men. The Black Mountain Stronghold was completely empty. Who would have thought that such a huge stronghold would be completely empty overnight?
"Boss." After everyone left, Xiong Ba brought Tao Duan back to the Black Mountain Stronghold. In fact, the two of them had not run. They had only found a place to hide. Xiong Ba supported Tao Duan as they walked out. Tao Duan looked at the silent Black Mountain Stronghold and sat down on the ground. His eyes were lifeless, as if he had aged ten years. In the end, he still had nothing left.
"Cough" Tao Duan coughed out a mouthful of black blood. His face became even paler, like a dead man. He never thought that he would be defeated by Nie Li's Great Bloody Hand. It was mainly because he had never seen such an evil martial technique before.
"Xiong Ba, tell me. In the end, why did I do all this?" Tao Duan looked at Xiong Ba. In the end, only this young man was still following him.
"Everything depends on the First Master. For the sake of power and money." Xiong Ba looked at Tao Duan. The originally high-spirited Tao Duan was now like a beggar on the street, chasing after a chance to live.
"Power. I, Tao Duan, was still a chess piece of the Duan Family. Money. Now that I'm dead, what use is money? " Tao Duan smiled bitterly as he coughed out a mouthful of blood. He also spat out a huge secret. "Boss, take care of your body." Although Xiong Ba was shocked in his heart, he did not show it. He watched as Tao Duan coughed out blood as if it was free. The black blood that he coughed out was incomparably cold, even forming frost on the ground.
"I can't hold on any longer. That person's palm contained internal energy that had already corroded my meridians. Even if I survive, my martial arts are crippled. Without martial arts, what's the point of living in this world?" Tao Duan definitely knew the condition of his body. Nie Li's blood was like a maggot attached to the bone, sucking his blood and constantly strengthening himself. In addition, Yang Fuzhao and Nie Li's joint attack had injured his body and consumed too much of his internal energy. It was already difficult for him to suppress the backlash from his blood.
"It will be fine." After Xiong Ba finished speaking, he used his right hand to channel his internal energy. However, he quickly discovered that his internal energy was unable to move an inch in Tao Duan's body. Even if he increased the output of his internal energy, it would quickly disappear.
"Don't waste your energy. Your internal energy is not as strong as that person's. His inner strength is simply too pure. This is also the reason why he is able to exchange blows with me even though his cultivation level is lower than mine. "Tao Duan gently pushed away Xiong Ba's hand. Xiong Ba could no longer save himself.
"Xiong Ba, your talent is not bad. Moreover, you are smart. After I die, go to the bottom of my chair. There is a secret compartment with a cultivation technique inside. Take it! "Tao Duan said as if he was giving his last words.
"I don't need any cultivation technique." Xiong Ba was unmoved. He looked at Tao Duan as if he did not care about any cultivation technique.
"No, you have to take that cultivation technique. Yang Fuzhao worked so hard for so long just for that. I only gave him a part of it, so there's still a part left. You can take it! I believe that with your talent, you will definitely be famous in the martial arts world. "Tao Duan still had a backup plan. He did not leave all the cultivation techniques to Yang Fuzhao.
"I understand." Xiong Ba did not say anything else. He nodded and remained silent. As for Tao Duan, he laid on the ground and looked at the stars in the sky. His eyes gradually lost focus.
"Xiong Ba, when the time comes, burn me and the Black Mountain Stronghold together!" Tao Duan suddenly said. His breath was weak. In the end, he still chose to die like this. He did not want to live a mediocre life.
"Don't worry, I will." Xiong Ba's tone was strange. He stood up and looked down at Tao Duan who was lying on the ground. He pulled out the sword at his waist.
"Xiong Ba, you." Tao Duan saw Xiong Ba pointing the sword at him. His eyes flashed with surprise, but he quickly regained his calm. He was about to die, so what if Xiong Ba killed him?
"I have been waiting for this day for a long time. Only by killing you can I be considered to have avenged my family. But revenge will never stop. The Duan family? They also have a share of this hatred. "Xiong Ba finished speaking and pierced Tao Duan's throat.
Following Tao Duan's instructions, he came to the hall and removed the tiger skin on Tao Duan's chair. There was indeed a secret compartment below. Xiong Ba opened the secret compartment and there was a jade slip inside. He put it in his pocket and walked out of the hall. But before he left, he knocked over the oil lamp.
Xiong Ba left the Black Mountain Stronghold. From afar, the Black Mountain Stronghold was already burning with raging flames. The flames lit up half the sky in the dark night.
"My lord, look!"
At this moment, on the cliff opposite the Black Mountain Stronghold, Nie Li and Shadow Killer's men had yet to leave. The Demon Apprentice suddenly reported that the Black Mountain Stronghold was on fire. Only then did Nie Li see the flames.
"Everyone, rest for a while. We will return tomorrow." Nie Li took a deep look at the Black Mountain Stronghold. He felt that something was wrong, but he could not put his finger on it. Since the mission was completed, he could return to report.
"My lord, what about those things?"
The Demon Apprentice asked quietly beside Nie Li. He was talking about the weapons that they had stolen.
"There's no hurry. I'll go back and ask for instructions." Nie Li frowned. It would not be good if too many people knew about this. If it was revealed when he returned, he would probably be in a perilous situation. Therefore, he had to be cautious. He had to stabilize this side and hide it from the other side.
As for these weapons, he was going to find an opportunity to ask Elder Gou to send someone to take them. Moreover, Emperor Song had not informed him of the specific situation. Now, he could only struggle at death's door in the cracks of power.
The next day, Nie Li left with everyone. The fire was still burning, but the heavens were kind. There was a heavy rain that extinguished the flames. The dilapidated Black Mountain Stronghold was now just a pile of ashes.
Nie Li brought everyone back to Shadow Killer's camp in the heavy rain. Once he returned, Nie Li went to Bu Gui's study to report. He stood outside the door and knocked. Bu Gui's voice came from inside.
Nie Li walked in, drenched. The hem of his cloak was still dripping with water, and his hair was also wet. "My lord, the mission has been completed," Nie Li said as he cupped his hands.
"I know. His Highness has also received the army's report of victory. You did very well this time. This is my reward for you. I reckon that His Highness's gift will arrive soon. You have done a great service in eliminating Black Mountain Stronghold. "After Bu Gui finished speaking, he took out a white medicine bottle from the drawer of his desk and tossed it to Nie Li.
Nie Li uncorked the bottle and smelled the rich medicinal fragrance inside. His body shook, and the internal energy in his body began to circulate involuntarily. Nie Li hurriedly took a deep breath to suppress the restlessness of his internal energy. He did not expect this medicine to be so powerful. Just smelling it would cause his internal energy to circulate. If he ate it, his strength would definitely improve.
"Thank you, my lord," Nie Li said respectfully to Bu Gui as he put away the medicine bottle. "You deserve it." Bu Gui waved his hand. Seeing Nie Li's impatient appearance, he did not mind.
"Right, there's one more thing. When you attacked Black Mountain Stronghold, did any other forces get involved? "Bu Gui suddenly asked.
"Why do you ask, my lord?" Nie Li's heart skipped a beat, but he did not show it on his face. He pretended not to understand.
"We have lost contact with His Highness's escort for a long time. We suspect that there are other forces involved, "Bu Gui said without holding back.
"This, I do not know." Nie Li thought to himself that it was indeed so. He did not expect the news to spread so quickly. Fortunately, as long as he did not ask his subordinates, no one would know that it was him who did it.
"Alright, you may leave first!" Seeing that Nie Li did not know, Bu Gui did not continue to ask and allowed Nie Li to leave.
Nie Li walked out of Bu Gui's study and let out a long sigh of relief. Looking at the gloomy sky and pitter-patter of rain outside, he returned to his room, changed his clothes, and took an umbrella. Although Nie Li could use his internal energy to avoid the rain with his current realm, the consumption was not small. If it was Tao Duan, who had his internal energy to form his aura qi, the rain would not be able to get close to him.
Holding the umbrella, Nie Li left Shadow Killer and headed to the Song Capital. He was going to find Elder Gou and have him send someone to transfer the items to avoid any unexpected events.
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