The Void King

3. The Five Ghosts Bandits [I]

Feng was unaware that her counterattack had alarmed several branches of the Zhou family. Among these branches, some were happy, while others were surprised and angry. Yong's branch of the Zhou family was the most furious!

This was a courtyard house directly east of the Zhou family residence. The walls were entirely inlaid with the unique steelmaking stone from Creek Mountain, gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight, almost blinding to the eyes of ordinary passersby. This is the residence of Yong's lineage, the Zhou family's eastern wing.

Now, in a woodshed in the Zhou family's eastern backyard, six teenagers, all around fourteen or fifteen years old, had gathered.

"You said Feng is incredibly strong and easily defeated you all?" The speaker was a young man wearing a white crown and a white robe, holding a fan. He was extremely handsome, with a charming smile always on his delicate face. Anyone who didn't know him would think he was a very sensible and likable person. If this were alternate earth today, he would be a massive favorite of wealthy women.

This young man was Yong's grandson, Kang, the fifth-generation genius of the Zhou family. At such a young age, he had already reached the sixth level of Body Tempering. What was even more astonishing was that he only spent three months going from the fifth level of Body Tempering to the sixth level. He was expected to break through to the Yin-Yang Realm before he turns sixteen.

“Young Master Kang, everything I said is true. If you don’t believe me, you can ask them!” Bilin said with a bitter expression. After he finished speaking, he pointed to the four fifth-generation members of the Zhou family who had blocked Feng’s way with him earlier. 

All four nodded repeatedly, indicating that it was true.

Bilin was unaware that Feng had already shown him mercy. Otherwise, with a force of 200 jin striking his spine, he would have been crippled even if he hadn't died. At this moment, Bilin was both angry and afraid of Feng, and wished he could tear Feng's flesh and blood apart at any opportunity.

“Grandpa would never lie to me. So, this kid’s meridians have been repaired?” Kang muttered to himself. He knew very well that Feng’s meridians were completely severed, and the person who destroyed Feng’s meridians was his grandfather, Yong.

“Young Master Kang, I actually feel that Feng is much weaker now than before. I am also at the first level of Body Tempering. If it were before, I would have had no chance against him. But now his strength is limited, and he is only slightly stronger than me.” Bilin spoke cautiously. Although his strength was ordinary, his shrewdness was far beyond that of his peers. Now he wanted to use Kang to get rid of Feng.

"Nonsense." Kang stared at the respectful Bilin, a hint of disdain flashing across his face, before slowly speaking, "If I'm not mistaken, Feng has probably just repaired his meridians, and his blood and energy are likely extremely sparse. The reason he was able to easily defeat you is because he skillfully utilized his experience. After all, back then, even I could only look up to him." At this point, Kang's expression clearly changed, but it was quickly replaced by a ferocious look.

“Young Master Kang, are we just going to let him grow stronger?” Upon hearing this, Bilin did not feel that Kang intended to make a move, and immediately said urgently, “We absolutely cannot allow that. If he regains his former strength, I’m afraid our good days will be over.”

Although Bilin was only fifteen years old and weak, he had subtly distinguished himself among his peers with his cleverness and showed signs of becoming a leader.

Of course, this does not include geniuses such as Feng and Kang.

"Pffft." Kang sneered. He wasn't as dull as the average person. How could Kang not know Bilin's ulterior motives for wanting to get rid of Feng? This was using someone else to do the dirty work! But Kang was willing to use this tool, because he wanted to get rid of Feng even more than Bilin did.

If Feng were to grow stronger again, his title as the number one genius of the Zhou family would likely be handed over back to him soon.

"Are you sure Feng entered Creek Mountain?" Kang asked.

“Yes, he did enter Creek Mountain.” Bilin nodded emphatically, giving an affirmative answer.

Kang pondered for a moment, then his charming smile vanished instantly, replaced by a chilling and ferocious expression. "Since you're courting death, don't blame me, Kang, for being ruthless!"

.***

Feng was completely unaware that his single move had already made Kang wary. At this moment, he arrived at a dense forest, looked up and gazed ahead, and a vast, boundless mountain range immediately appeared before his eyes.

"Is this Creek Mountain?" Feeling the immense aura emanating from Creek Mountain, Feng was slightly moved. A gentle breeze swept by, and he could even catch a trace of bloodshed within it. This Creek Mountain was probably not as simple as he had imagined.

Feng frowned slightly, but this did not deter him. She then took a firm step forward and entered the dense forest. Once he passed through this forest, he would be on the outer edge of Creek Mountain, where the place he wanted to go was located.

Not long after Feng entered the forest, several whooshing sounds came from outside the forest. Then, five figures landed one after another on a boulder. These five people were about forty years old and were wearing the same clothes. The character "bandit" was engraved on the front of their clothes.

"Brother, Young Master Kang said that as long as we successfully eliminate Feng, we will be freed," a middle-aged man said excitedly.

"Well, this mission isn't too difficult. As death row inmates of the Zhou family, it's truly not easy for us to be freed." The scarred middle-aged man, as the leader of the five, naturally knew that this was their chance to break free from their fate and regain their freedom.

"This is a rare opportunity, we must seize it. In this Creek Mountain area, our reputation as the Five Ghosts has been almost forgotten." The scarred middle-aged man's words revealed endless bitterness and helplessness, but at this moment his expression was unusually ruthless. "Young Master Feng, I admire you very much, but we're sorry this time!"

Several years ago, the name of the Five Ghosts shocked the Creek Mountain area, and they massacred two large villages with a population of over a thousand overnight.

Such a vicious and ruthless force was naturally something that all the major forces want to eliminate, because the Five Ghosts were not strong to begin with. If they could be captured or killed, then the reputation of this force would definitely spread throughout the Creek Mountain area!

The Zhou family deserves this great reputation.

"Go! Find him!" the scarred middle-aged man ordered, and the five of them transformed into afterimages and shot into the depths of the forest.

Meanwhile, Feng's figure flashed continuously in the woods, like a cheetah in full charge, leaping past towering trees.

Half an hour later, Feng had passed through the woods and arrived at the foot of a hill. Looking at the continuous hills, a hint of excitement finally appeared on Feng's face. "Once I cross these hills, I'll be closer!"

But Feng knew that these seemingly ordinary and harmless rolling hills were actually quite the opposite. These hills, like mountains, were full of unknown dangers. However, for Feng, none of this mattered, because he had to cross these hills to reach his destination.

This wasn't Feng's first time here. Relying on his acquired memories, he identified a direction and then moved back and forth among the hills with the ease of a ghost. However, at this moment, a loud voice came from behind Feng.

"Feng, prepare to die!"