Qin Ming felt something and glanced at the mountains where the Purple Lightning Beast had rushed out. However, he didn’t want to think too deeply about it; right now, getting to his destination was the most important thing.
Deep in the mountains, a man in his late thirties stood on a cliff, gazing into the distance.
On the opposite side, thick white mist covered the towering peaks, and within the fog, a powerful being appeared.
"The new city lord of Chixia City, why are you here instead of taking up your post?"
"I passed by and wanted to meet the mountain lord."
...
After running for several miles, the Purple Lightning Beast became restless again. Its flowing purple fur made it bumpy to ride, and it wasn’t as steady anymore.
Sometimes it would suddenly slow down, and if it were an ordinary person, they would have already fallen off.
Seeing it acting up again, Qin Ming pressed down on the long knife hanging around its neck. Instantly, a tuft of glowing purple mane fell off, and blood began to flow from a cut on its neck.
"If you won’t take me a bit further, then I’ll make you!" Qin Ming didn’t intend to completely subdue it.
At the same time, he didn’t feel guilty; the Purple Lightning Beast had kicked him first. An ordinary person would have had their skull crushed.
"If you don’t behave, you’ll be on your way!" Qin Ming pressed the knife down again, and this time the Purple Lightning Beast was genuinely frightened, its neck soaked in blood.
It then quieted down and became more obedient, allowing their journey to continue smoothly. They were now only a dozen miles away from Golden Rooster Ridge.
Qin Ming was slightly lost in thought. Even without using his special technique, he could sit steadily on the back of this beast and control it well.
Before this, he had never ridden any horses or similar animals in the Black and White Mountains. Especially now, he was riding bareback without any reins.
Vague images appeared in his mind. Outside a massive city, he had once ridden a beast that looked even better than this Purple Lightning Beast.
He shook his head, trying not to think about it. But out of habit, he used the back of his knife as a whip, lightly tapping the Purple Lightning Beast’s rear.
The creature jumped in surprise, thinking it was about to be hit again. It took off like the wind, speeding up like an arrow, its purple mist flowing as it tore through the dark night.
Qin Ming rode the fierce beast through the long night, approaching Golden Rooster Ridge!
Ahead, a bright area appeared. Even in the deep night, Golden Rooster Ridge was not dark, as the nearby fire spring was almost at level two, comparable to the one in Silver Vine Town.
The road was wide, leading straight up the mountain, flanked by dense forests. There were no strange creatures lurking around, as they knew the bandits here were not to be trifled with.
However, Golden Rooster Ridge was much quieter than before. Many of the creatures had suffered losses when they went to the Great Rift Valley to fight over mysterious resources, and many had overindulged that day.
Now, only about thirty people remained on the mountain. Those who could stay behind to guard had some connections, and they were even more vicious.
In the words of Old Liu, the remaining bandits were so careless that they could swing a knife without worrying about accidentally killing a good person; they could die several times without issue.
Qin Ming sheathed his long knife and took out a sturdy bow, riding the Purple Lightning Beast into the bright area where the fire spring flowed.
The first to notice him wasn’t the bandits, but a golden rooster, specifically bred for alerting. This creature, having mutated twice, was very responsible. It hid in the trees and, upon seeing someone intruding, squawked loudly, "Cluck cluck!"
Qin Ming shot his first iron arrow at it. With a thud, the rooster's head was pierced by the fast-flying arrow, and its call abruptly stopped.
"What happened?" Some people in the hideout were already drunk.
Some old bandits woke up, shouting, "Enemy attack!"
These men sprang up and saw a figure on a beast glowing with purple light charging down the road toward the mountain gate.
In the past, there would have been a group of archers on the lookout towers and the walls, but now Golden Rooster Ridge was in a semi-dilapidated state, and the remaining people rarely did any work.
In this cold season, snowflakes were still falling from the sky, and most of them were hiding inside, drinking and gambling.
Qin Ming rode in, and the sturdy mountain gate shattered under the heavy hooves of the Purple Lightning Beast with a loud crash, allowing him and his mount to charge directly into the bandit hideout.
"Get up, enemy attack!" Chaos erupted in Golden Rooster Ridge, even the drunkards realized what was happening.
The hideout was brightly lit, with the fire spring flowing with fiery mist, making it a valuable place, much better than the villages outside.
At this moment, Qin Ming was clad in shiny armor, his face covered by the helmet's face guard, leaving only his eyes and mouth exposed.
To the bandits, this lone rider was too fast, glowing with purple light, terrifying and powerful, with an unmatched force.
Qin Ming drew his bow and shot arrows in quick succession. Each iron arrow, illuminated by the fiery mist, flew like cold lightning.
Thud, thud, thud...
In just one encounter, he shot down five men. Some bandits hadn’t even reacted before an arrow pierced their foreheads, while two others were killed by the same arrow that went through their chests.
"Quick, shoot back!" Someone snapped back to reality, quickly organizing the others and signaling the trained golden roosters to charge at the enemy.
Qin Ming had studied the Wu family’s secret manual, which claimed he was skilled with both spear and bow, and it wasn’t a joke. The bow and arrows in his hands seemed to have a soul of their own, and his eyes were incredibly sharp. Before the order-giver could finish his command, Qin Ming shot a special heavy arrow that exploded the man’s head.
Under the glow of the fire spring, this scene was clear, with blood and shattered bones splattering everywhere, intimidating the other bandits, some of whom froze in place.
However, they were all seasoned bandits with a strong ferocity. In an instant, they began to shout and fight back, with some drawing their bows to shoot arrows.
At that moment, five golden roosters charged over, spreading their wings, extending their massive beaks, and reaching out with their sharp claws toward Qin Ming and his mount.
The Purple Lightning Beast, already feeling frustrated, was now further enraged by the lower-level golden roosters attacking it. It roared fiercely, standing up on its hind legs. Though it had a horse-like head, its body resembled that of a fierce tiger or leopard.
With a powerful stomp, it crushed two golden roosters in quick succession—one's head was smashed, and the other’s body was pierced. Then it swung its head, its sharp teeth biting down on one rooster's neck, swiftly "executing" it.
Throughout this process, whether the beast stood up or leaped, Qin Ming remained firmly on its back as if he were on solid ground, shooting arrows continuously, suppressing the bandits' attacks.
Two big bandits silently appeared but didn’t act immediately. They knew that someone who dared to charge in alone was not an easy opponent, and he seemed quite formidable.
In fact, they underestimated Qin Ming. They judged his level based on the strength of his arrows, but the bow’s strength was limited and hadn’t even approached Qin Ming's full potential.
The next moment, they realized their mistake when one big bandit drew his bow and shot an arrow at Qin Ming.
Qin Ming lightly deflected the powerful arrow with one of his iron arrows, causing sparks to fly. The two big bandits felt a sinking feeling in their hearts.
At the same time, Qin Ming shot arrows back at them.
Thud!
The two big bandits dodged, but a young man beside them was shot through the head, falling backward without even having time to scream.
One of the big bandits growled, clearly enraged as this was someone he was close to, causing his killing intent to surge.
Qin Ming continued to shoot!
In just a moment, the number of bandits at Golden Rooster Ridge had decreased by over a dozen. Originally, there were only about thirty left, and now nearly half had been eliminated.
Qin Ming directed the Purple Lightning Beast toward the nearby wooden houses, putting away his bow and holding onto a sharp spear.
As he charged in, many bandits felt a chill run down their spines, as if an army was rushing at them. The mount was ferocious, instantly crushing several golden roosters that had mutated twice. The figure on the beast, clad in cold armor, appeared like a god of death, taking lives with each arrow. Many bandits couldn’t help but tremble under his gaze.
As he approached, Qin Ming thrust his spear forward with great force, lifting a wooden house and causing it to shatter instantly.
Inside the wooden house, two men panicked and swung their knives at him, but having only been reborn once, facing such a rider was essentially signing their death warrant.
Blood sprayed as Qin Ming moved like lightning, piercing them one after the other, then charging toward the two big bandits at Golden Rooster Ridge.
The Purple Lightning Beast stood up, its heavy hooves smashing forward, causing another wooden house to collapse into pieces.
Qin Ming sensed something and turned around quickly, thrusting his spear.
An older bandit, someone he had seen in the Great Rift Valley, had managed to return alive, obviously a three-time reborn individual. He was now riding a much larger golden rooster that had also mutated three times, swooping down from a higher position to attack.
"Golden Rooster Ridge has some tricks; it can cultivate these mutated creatures on a larger scale," Qin Ming thought, unafraid, as his spear created dozens of shadowy strikes.
In mid-air, the old man swung his sword, but was shaken to the point of numbness in his arm. He realized that he was far outmatched and that his surprise attack might cost him his life here.
At his level, his instincts were quite sharp, and he sensed danger.
In fact, death came faster than he imagined. As Qin Ming shook his spear, not only did he block the old man's sword, but he also created several bloody holes in the three-time mutated golden rooster, killing it instantly.
"Ah..." The old man shouted, trying to escape from mid-air.
However, the opponent below was much stronger. Amidst the flurry of spear shadows, he couldn’t tell which was real and which was an illusion. With a thud, he was pierced through the chest by a spear.
Qin Ming killed him and then, as if tossing aside a scarecrow, flung the old man's body off his spear, sending it flying over ten meters into a wooden house, causing those inside to retreat in shock.
This was a top expert in their hideout, second only to the two big bandits, and he had been so easily killed by the enemy.
At Qin Ming’s signal, the Purple Lightning Beast slowed down but let out a heavy cry, ignoring everyone else and heading straight for the two big bandits.
The two big bandits looked serious. One pulled out a broad sword, and the other held a long spear, both stepping forward.
Just then, another old man silently appeared from the shadows, attempting to ambush Qin Ming from behind, trying to coordinate with the two big bandits.
Qin Ming gripped his spear with one hand, pointing it at the two big bandits without moving, while quickly drawing the long knife from his back with his left hand. Like a flash of lightning, he sliced the old man’s sword away, sending it flying over twenty meters.
Qin Ming’s strike carried immense power, not even slowing down for a moment. After deflecting the sword, the knife blade sliced through the night, cutting the old man's shoulder, killing him instantly. Another three-time reborn individual had fallen!