It was already dusk when Niu Youdao's party appeared on a slope. They rushed all the way down and had already left the dangerous mountain range. The terrain in front of them was relatively flat, and a river flowed like a ribbon.
Black Peony waved her hand and pointed at a bridge on the river. "Daoye, should we go straight or cross the bridge?"
"Cross the bridge!" Niu Youdao answered.
The party arrived at the side of the bridge and quickly changed direction. They rushed across the stone bridge, dust billowing along the way.
In the forest overlooking this fork in the road, a black-clothed man slid down from the tree crown. Soon, a golden wing swept out from the forest and flew into the sky …
On the other side of Cloudcrossing Mountain, Hou Qingtian led over twenty people out of the mountain range. They took a shortcut and went straight, arriving at the area designated by the middleman.
In the forest, Hou Qingtian paced back and forth with his hands behind his back. A group of people sat on the ground and waited in boredom.
After a while, someone stood up and walked over. "Cave Master, what's the meaning of this? How much longer do we have to wait?"
Hou Qingtian said, "Let's wait. They can't blame us if there's no news. We have the deposit anyway."
As soon as he finished speaking, a golden wing descended from the sky. A person raised his hand and grabbed it. He took out a secret letter and handed it to Hou Qingtian.
After Hou Qingtian read the contents, he pointed in a direction. "The target will pass through three bends. We'll be able to intercept them if we get there before the hour of eleven. Let's go!"
The group quickly exited the forest and flew across a plain before entering a mountainous region. Each of them quickly glided and leaped, heading in a straight line towards their destination.
After about two hours, the party landed on a mountain peak. Looking around, the official road under the moonlight snaked along the mountain, making three bends.
Hou Qingtian waved his hand and sent a spy to keep watch on the mountain ahead. The others rested and waited.
After waiting for less than an hour, the spy he sent out hurriedly flew back and reported, "Cave Master, someone's coming. They might be the target."
"Get ready." Hou Qingtian shouted.
The group quickly rushed down the mountain and waited in ambush on both sides of the mountain path.
Gradually, the rumbling of horse hooves grew louder and louder as they approached.
On the hill, behind a big tree, Hou Qingtian hid sideways and peeped.
The people were getting closer and closer. Although they couldn't be seen clearly under the moonlight, they could gradually make out the number of people. Twelve riders and six people. It matched the information they had received. The target was said to be the youngest person in the group.
Hou Qingtian leaped down the mountain and led the two of them to stand on the road at the bend. They held their swords and waited, cutting off the target's path.
This group of people was naturally Niu Youdao and the rest. They did not know that there was an ambush ahead.
Just as they rushed past the bend, they saw some people holding shiny swords blocking their way under the moonlight. The group quickly stopped their horses.
Silhouettes emerged from all directions and surrounded the group on the spot.
"Ask for some money. Surrender and you can be spared from death!" Hou Qingtian said indifferently. These words were meant to fool people.
Black Peony and the others were greatly alarmed. They quickly drew their swords and were on guard.
Yuan Fang raised his Buddhist Commandment Blade with a ferocious look on his face. In the past, he was the one who robbed others. He didn't expect to be robbed today.
Under the moonlight, Niu Youdao was calm and collected. He looked around coldly and felt that the person in front of him looked familiar. When the person spoke, he suddenly narrowed his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Hou Qingtian, what are you trying to do?"
He slowly placed his hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes filled with killing intent.
When he said this, Yuan Fang and the rest were confused. They did not know what he was talking about.
However, Black Peony stared straight at the person in front of them.
The surrounding demonic cultivators were stunned. The person had called out the Cave Master's name. Did the target know the Cave Master?
Hou Qingtian was also stunned. He quickly released the Moon Butterfly and had it fly towards Niu Youdao to investigate.
As the Moon Butterfly approached, it clearly illuminated Niu Youdao's face. Hou Qingtian was speechless.
He then controlled the Moon Butterfly to circle around the group. That's right. Twelve riders and six people. Xuanyuan Dao was the youngest of the six.
The target of the assassination was actually this person? This … Hou Qingtian did not know whether to laugh or cry. The other party had given him two hundred thousand as a greeting gift. If he killed this person for a few tens of thousand, he might suffer a loss. Moreover, without his master's permission, he could not touch this person. He quickly waved his hand at the people he brought with him and shouted, "Put it down, put it down. He is one of us!"
He also sheathed his sword and walked quickly towards Niu Youdao. He cupped his hands and said, "Daoye!"
One of us? What was going on? The demonic cultivators slowly put down their weapons and looked at each other. They had never seen Niu Youdao before. They did not know where this Daoye had come from.
One of the demonic cultivators sheathed his saber and whispered to the person beside him, "That's right. I said there was something fishy about this transaction. Someone is probably trying to trick us."
Apart from Black Peony, Yuan Fang and the rest were also confused. They looked at each other.
Niu Youdao did not loosen his grip on the hilt of his sword. He stared coldly at Hou Qingtian. "Could it be that my elder brother sent you to kill me?"
Hou Qingtian quickly waved his hand. "How is that possible? You and my master are sworn brothers. My master would kill anyone but you!"
What was going on? The demonic cultivators were shocked. This person was their master's sworn brother?
Yuan Fang and the rest were confused. They did not understand. The master of Cloudcrossing Mountain should be Yun Huan, right? Daoye and Yun Huan were sworn brothers?
Niu Youdao asked, "Then why did you rob me?"
Hou Qingtian laughed dryly. "Daoye, it's a misunderstanding. It's really a misunderstanding. I was just looking for a way to earn some money with my brothers. We were lying in ambush here. Who knew that we would run into you, Daoye. I've sinned. I've sinned."
Niu Youdao said, "You're really fast. I set off earlier than you, but we still met here. You must have taken a shortcut from Cloudcrossing Mountain and just happened to intercept me. What a coincidence. It's really not easy for you to rush here in such a hurry just to rob us! "
Hou Qingtian smiled bitterly. Now that he said it, it did not make sense. He cupped his fists and said, "To be honest, Daoye, we just received a transaction on the mountain. Someone paid us to rush here to intercept you. I really did not expect the target to be you, Daoye. If I had known earlier, I would not have come here to offend you."
Niu Youdao believed him. Otherwise, he would have already made his move. There was no need for him to be so long-winded.
I've been targeted! This thought suddenly flashed through Niu Youdao's mind. He said in a low voice, "Have your men search the nearby forest. See if there are any suspicious people."
"…" Hou Qingtian was stunned. He thought to himself, 'Do you really think that you're my master's sworn brother?' But he still shouted to his left and right, "Are you all deaf? Didn't you hear Daoye's words? Search! Quickly search! "
"Yes!" The group of demon cultivators accepted the order and split into two groups. They leaped into the forest to search.
Niu Youdao jumped off his horse and slowly walked to Hou Qingtian. He asked, "Who told you to kill me?"
Hou Qingtian said, "Daoye, I really don't know. Looking at the situation now, I also want to know who killed you. I think my master also wants to know, but the middleman will not tell us."
Niu Youdao asked, "Who's the middleman?"
Hou Qingtian sighed, "Daoye, you don't have to ask about this. First of all, the middleman in this line of work must have a strong background. It's not easy to provoke him. Secondly, this is a shady business. The middleman won't easily reveal his identity. I don't know who the other party is. Besides, every line of work has its own rules. Even if I know, I can't tell you. Breaking the rules will bring trouble to Cloud Crossing Mountain. Besides, the buyer probably won't reveal his identity to the middleman. Even if you find the middleman, you may not be able to find out who the buyer is."
Niu Youdao thought about it and agreed. He didn't harp on this anymore. He asked, "How much is my life worth?"
"Hehe!" Hou Qingtian said with some embarrassment, "30,000 gold coins. If we knew it was Daoye, even if we wanted to kill you, we wouldn't have accepted this price."
Niu Youdao said, "If you don't kill me, how are you going to explain it to others?"
Hou Qingtian sighed, "We've accepted a deposit of 10,000 gold coins. According to the rules, if we fail, the rest of the money will be gone. The deposit will also have to be repaid in double. Of course, the boss won't harm his own brother for this little bit of money. "
Niu Youdao tilted his head and shouted, "Black Peony!"
Black Peony jumped off her mount and walked over. "Daoye!"
Niu Youdao asked, "How much money do you have on you?"
Black Peony said, "About 50,000 gold coins."
Niu Youdao knew that she only had this much on her. He didn't call her Yuan Fang but called her because he couldn't reveal his wealth when he shouldn't. He tilted his head and said, "Give him 50,000."
This person was really ruthless with his spending! Black Peony sighed in her heart. However, there was nothing much to say about this matter. She took out the gold notes she had on her, kept the odd bits, and handed five whole notes to Hou Qingtian.
Hou Qingtian pretended to decline. "How can I accept this?"
Niu Youdao said, "I can't let you suffer a loss just because I asked you to take it."
"Since Daoye said so, then I'll shamelessly thank you." Hou Qingtian cupped his hands and accepted the gold notes. He was delighted. He didn't lose out and even made a profit. This trip wasn't in vain. It was worth it!
Niu Youdao asked, "When did you receive this transaction?"
Hou Qingtian put the gold notes into his pocket and replied, "Not long after you left."
Niu Youdao narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze treacherous.
They chatted for a while on the road. When the demons returned from searching the mountain, they didn't find anything. They didn't find any suspicious people.
After asking about the situation, Hou Qingtian asked Niu Youdao, "Daoye, what do you think we should do next?"
Niu Youdao said, "You guys can go back first."
"Okay, that's fine. However, Daoye, you might have already been targeted. You have to be careful on the road. If we fail, the buyer might find someone else to target." Hou Qingtian reminded him seriously. It was better not to get into trouble with such a generous patron. There might be more benefits in the future.
"Mm, go back and send my regards to Elder Brother."
"Okay! Then we'll take our leave now. Take care, Daoye! "
After watching the demons disappear into the mountains, Niu Youdao pointed at Duan Hu and Wu San 'er, indicating for them to keep an eye on them.
When the two returned and confirmed that Hou Qingtian and the others had left, Niu Youdao mounted his horse again. He sat upright on the horse's back and stared at the unknown road ahead. His eyes flickered and he suddenly turned his horse around. "Let's go!"
He didn't go forward but led the group back the way they came.
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