Chapter Fifty-Two: Identity Exposed

Ye Zihan and Yan Chen settled down to rest in the Liuguang Bandit Fortress, assigned to a woodshed for the night.

“It seems the chief of Liuguang really is as arrogant as the rumors say,” Yan Chen remarked. Their bold arrival had been predicated on this very trait of the chief.

Ye Zihan nodded in tacit agreement. “They surely think that if we were spies, entering the tiger’s den like this, we wouldn’t be able to stir up much trouble. They’re waiting to catch us like fish in a barrel.”

“Heh, I think it’s not just the chief—look at the other leaders. The disdain in their eyes makes it clear they know we’re not here to join them. They’re confident they can toy with us as they please.”

Just as they suspected, the chief of Liuguang Bandits did not believe they came to join. His arrogance drove him to see what trouble the two might cause; if they truly wished to join, he’d welcome it. Such a win-win situation was not one he would pass up.

Meanwhile, four or five bandits lurked in the shadows near the woodshed, tasked with observing any movement from Ye Zihan and Yan Chen.

Time trickled by in the quiet of night; there was no movement from the woodshed. Unbeknownst to the bandits, a dragon had already slipped out, cloaked by darkness and the black of its scales, and now soared high above the fortress, searching for the imprisoned son and daughter-in-law of the old man.

Ye Zihan and Yan Chen sat cross-legged, alternating between deep contemplation and practicing their respective arts, maintaining their vigilance. At the hour when sleep weighed heaviest—just before dawn—they quietly slipped out, evading the drowsy bandits.

The guards, convinced the two would remain still through the night, allowed themselves a brief nap. In that moment of distraction, the pair escaped.

“There are marks left by Moye—over there,” Ye Zihan said, pointing to a claw mark on a tree, and the two proceeded cautiously in that direction.

As dawn crept in, the bandits of Liuguang Fortress prepared for rest, patrols languishing in drowsiness, oblivious to the two figures moving steadily toward the prison.

“Boss, here’s the so-called prison of Liuguang Fortress,” Moye announced, flying into Ye Zihan’s arms with a childlike voice.

Ye Zihan nodded, saying little. Yan Chen, who enjoyed bantering with the little dragon, doubted, “How do you know this is the prison?”

“Absolutely certain. Someone saw me just now, thought I was a little bird, tried to catch me for soup. I got mad and beat him into a pig, then forced him to tell me where the prison was,” Moye replied nonchalantly.

“What? You beat up a bandit?” Ye Zihan exclaimed.

Yan Chen was speechless. “That’s trouble—what did you do with him afterwards?”

“He wanted to cook me, so I didn’t hold back. I killed him.”

“And his body?”

“It’s right where he found me, not far from the woodshed.”

Ye Zihan and Yan Chen exchanged helpless glances. They had hoped that if tonight’s plan failed, they could stay a while longer, but Moye’s actions had cut off their retreat.

“We need to hurry, before someone finds the body and exposes us,” Ye Zihan said, flipping his wrist to summon a crimson dagger. The blade glowed faintly with the light of a red lotus as he rushed forward.

Yan Chen wasted no words; with a gusting sword in hand and swift footwork, he dashed at the prison guards, plunging his blade into one.

Moye was no slower, darting in a blink and slashing a bandit’s neck with a claw before he could react.

The two and the dragon swiftly dispatched the guards, broke the chains, and entered the prison.

A heavy, damp odor greeted them. A narrow staircase, lit by lamps, wound downward. Below, dozens of cells held prisoners with tangled hair.

“Who is the son of Old Li?” Yan Chen called out, startling the inmates.

Awakened, the prisoners saw two strangers, weapons stained with blood, asking after Old Li’s son. Immediately, they clamored, “I’m Old Li’s son!”

“No, I am!”

“Heroes, are you here at my father’s request to save me?”

The voices of nearly a hundred prisoners rang out, echoing from the cells.

Ye Zihan and Yan Chen realized trouble was brewing—their presence would soon be discovered. In their urgency, they began breaking the chains, freeing the prisoners in a rush.

“Thank you, heroes! I’m not Old Li’s son, but thank you all the same.”

“Thank you, thank you!”

The prisoners, their spirits broken long ago, bolted from their cells like mad dogs, forgetting that escaping the monk meant nothing when the temple remained. The world outside was still under Liuguang’s control; escape meant certain death. Yet, with pent-up desperation unleashed, they cared only for a breath of freedom.

A few, more rational, followed behind Ye Zihan and Yan Chen in silence.

“Why don’t you run?” Yan Chen teased.

“We can’t. Outside is still Liuguang’s territory; we’d die if we fled. Our only hope is to follow you heroes,” replied a robust man, his body riddled with scars—burn marks, whip wounds, blood dried but chilling to see.

“You’re smarter than the rest,” Yan Chen told the seven or eight who stayed. “Do you know how many prisons Liuguang Fortress has?”

“Yes, there’s one for important captives. Heroes, follow us,” said the scarred man, leading them to another prison.

The tumult of escaping prisoners roused the fortress, bandits shouting and fighting as lights flared to full brightness. The dawn sky burned red, as if reflecting the chaos below.

“Heroes, it’s just ahead…” The scarred man stopped mid-sentence, trembling as terror filled his eyes, retreating several steps.

Ye Zihan and Yan Chen hurried forward to find three chiefs and ten leaders of Liuguang Fortress blocking the path, arrayed before them.

“You really are spies. Tell me, who sent you to plot against Liuguang Fortress?” The chief, broad and powerful, now seemed titanic, barring their way.

Yan Chen clenched his jaw; he knew they had no hope of escape. If these men attacked together, he and Ye Zihan would be wiped out. But he would never beg for mercy. “Hmph! Liuguang Fortress—robbery, rape, murder, every evil under the sun. No one sent us; we just couldn’t stand it, and wanted to avenge the people.”

Ye Zihan’s tone was cold and grim. “Release these innocent civilians now!”

Inherently kind, the two had not been long in the world; when they heard Old Li’s tale of his daughter-in-law stolen for her beauty, they had branded Liuguang Fortress as nothing but bandits.

The chief’s pupils shrank. “Who told you this?”

“Does anyone need to? Every commoner knows it in their heart!” Yan Chen and Ye Zihan replied together, unfazed despite the formidable enemy before them.

“So this is how Liuguang Fortress is seen by the people…” the chief murmured, disappointment and sorrow in his voice.

Behind him, several voices rang out: “Chief, don’t listen to their nonsense! We have always robbed the rich to help the poor, never pillaged or murdered. They’re just making excuses!”

“Hmph, they must be spies from another fortress, looking for an elaborate excuse.”

The leaders argued among themselves. Ye Zihan and Yan Chen frowned; the bandits’ words did not match Old Li’s tale.

“Who’s ‘elaborate’? Do you dare do evil but not admit it?” Yan Chen shouted.

“Ignorant brat! Let me ask you, who told you these things? We never commit rape or murder, never harm the people. We slay corrupt officials, seize ill-gotten gains—where is this evil you claim?” one leader roared, veins bulging in anger, provoked by their accusations.

Ye Zihan frowned. “Then answer me—several days ago, the Li family from Six Feather City, doctors for generations, went up the mountain to gather herbs. Why did you abduct their daughter-in-law for her beauty? Isn’t that rape and murder? Isn’t that harming the people? Isn’t that evil?”

“The Li family from Six Feather City? Are you saying this is what Old Li told you?”