The angry roar drowned out the sound of the bamboo house collapsing.
The entire mountain stronghold was immediately alarmed, and the voices of young disciples and ordinary people being awakened could be heard.
Almost instantly, small flames erupted in all directions, accompanied by sharp, cold shouts:
"Enemy attack! If you don’t want to die, get out now!"
After shooting his arrow, Yu Lie immediately crouched down, hiding on the rooftop to avoid being spotted by the attackers.
However, as he watched the stronghold quickly spring into action, there was no trace of pride or satisfaction in his eyes for having acted swiftly.
Instead, he felt a sense of frustration.
The reaction from the stronghold was too timely, almost as if it had been orchestrated to coincide with his arrow strike.
But according to what Yu Lie knew, the disciples in the stronghold hadn’t arranged any sentries or guards.
It was clear that a few of the disciples, like him, had also sensed something was wrong and knew an attack was coming.
But unlike him, they had chosen to hide and observe the situation rather than act immediately.
Realizing this, Yu Lie couldn’t help but curse inwardly.
Fortunately, he had been cautious and hadn’t recklessly tried to kill the enemy.
Plus, the night was dark, and it was unlikely anyone had noticed him.
Yu Lie stayed hidden on the rooftop, watching as the stronghold grew more chaotic.
After a few moments, he let out a cold shout, calling out to the disciples of the Poison Fang group who lived nearby:
"Enemy attack!"
Disciples immediately rushed out of their bamboo houses.
Upon hearing Yu Lie’s voice, the Poison Fang disciples instinctively gathered around him.
Perhaps because of the warning Yu Lie had given them earlier that evening, nearly half of his subordinates had managed to rush out of their houses in time.
About a third of them were even fully dressed, wearing the gray-black robes issued by Blackwater Town.
Although the robes were cumbersome in the forest, they were made of high-quality, durable material.
In the hands of ordinary people, they could even serve as armor.
So, aside from wealthy disciples like Yu Lie, most disciples still wore these standard robes when outside the town.
Radish Head and two other chubby leaders, who lived closest to Yu Lie, quickly gathered around him and whispered:
"Boss Yu, what should we do now?"
At the same time, screams began to echo through the stronghold.
"Ahhh!"
"Who? Who’s there?"
With their night raid discovered, the disciples from Greenwood Town quickened their pace and stopped hiding their actions.
Many of the Blackwater Town disciples, who had been carousing earlier in the night, found themselves unable to get out of bed even after hearing the commotion.
Some who did manage to get up were quickly surrounded and killed by small groups of Greenwood Town disciples.
The flames grew higher, no longer just warning signals but deliberate acts of arson by the Greenwood Town disciples to create chaos and panic.
The once fierce and strong Blackwater Town disciples now seemed like helpless lambs, easily slaughtered in their bamboo houses.
Laughter rang out: "Hahaha! We’re going to be rich!"
Yu Lie and his group, having been cautious earlier in the day, had chosen to stay in an area that wasn’t the best but was close to a cliff at the edge of the stronghold.
Seeing that nearly half of the Poison Fang disciples had gathered around him, Yu Lie didn’t hesitate.
He led his group toward the cliff.
"Follow me!"
With that, Yu Lie leaped onto the roof of a bamboo house, moving like a ghost.
Those among his followers who were agile enough to jump onto the roofs did so, moving like a troop of monkeys.
Those who weren’t as nimble ran on the ground, breaking through bamboo houses as they followed closely behind Yu Lie.
It was a wild, boar-like charge.
Yu Lie stood on a large green rock, first carefully examining the cliff behind him.
Then he released the myna bird from his shoulder, sending it to perch on the cliff as a lookout.
Finally, he turned his attention back to the burning stronghold.
In the short time it had taken them to move, the fire in the stronghold had grown, now a blazing red.
In the light of the flames, the figures of the attackers became clearly visible.
One of the more experienced disciples recognized the robes of the attackers and gasped:
"These... these are Greenwood Town disciples?"
Radish Head, who had run up beside Yu Lie, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and asked in confusion, "Greenwood Town? Why are they attacking us?"
Thanks to their quick reaction and Yu Lie’s leadership, the Poison Fang disciples were now in a relatively safe position to face the enemy.
But even though they could see the attackers clearly, they were still bewildered.
In past large-scale skirmishes, the disciples of the three towns along the Black River had often clashed, sometimes killing a dozen people over a single spirit herb.
But such conflicts usually occurred at the borders between the towns.
A full-scale night raid like this, with an entire group attacking, had never happened since the founding of Blackwater Town.
This was a first!
Yu Lie listened to the murmurs of confusion from his subordinates, his brow furrowed as his mind raced.
But he quickly pushed aside his doubts and issued a cold command:
"Enough watching! Grab your weapons and get ready to fight! They’re coming this way."
Radish Head and the others tensed up, immediately noticing shadowy figures moving toward the cliff where they were stationed.
After setting the stronghold ablaze, the Greenwood Town disciples, led by their captains, had turned their attention to the group of Blackwater Town disciples who had managed to gather and react.
As for the scattered and still-sleeping Blackwater Town disciples, they were left to be easily surrounded, killed, and looted by a few teams of Greenwood Town disciples.
The stronghold where the Blackwater Town Alchemy Hall was stationed had been completely overrun by Greenwood Town.
Yu Lie observed the experienced movements of the Greenwood Town disciples.
Although his voice remained calm, he felt a growing sense of unease.
In just this short time, nearly half of the Alchemy Hall disciples had been killed or injured.
This level of response was hardly even worthy of being called a ragtag militia.
What’s more, from the direction of the bamboo tower, a figure riding a black leopard had leaped out.
But instead of joining the fight, the figure simply stood on the tower, calmly watching the chaos below, as if they were merely spectators.
Yu Lie’s eyes narrowed in suspicion: "Why hasn’t She Shuangbai made a move yet?"
He hesitated, unsure whether he should stand his ground against the incoming Greenwood Town disciples or lead his group in a desperate breakout.
At that moment, the figure on the tall bamboo tower finally moved.
The black leopard leaped!
Under the moonlight, a nimble figure rode the black leopard, charging through the burning stronghold, parting the flames as if splitting the fire in two.
A wild voice rang out:
"I’ve found you! Little rat!"
Ku Mu, a disciple from Greenwood Town, had been pacing at the entrance of the stronghold, his expression just beginning to calm.
But upon hearing the wild shout, he looked up and saw the leopard rider charging straight toward him.
His face immediately changed.
Seeing this, Yu Lie felt a slight sense of relief.
After a moment of hesitation, he raised his bow and fired an arrow at the approaching enemy...
(End of Chapter)