Rise of The Demon General

Chapter 288: Chapter 288. The Beginning of Retaliation

The second reason Amon wanted these bandits in his force was due to their real battle experience. Despite having fewer resources, an underworld member had better combat experience compared to students trained in a controlled environment. In the same comparison, a bandit in the wilderness had even better combat experience than an underworld member. This was because when they fought, it was always about life and death. There was no rule in the wilderness. If you didn’t fight hard enough, you died. Such an extreme condition bred hardy killers.

With better average cultivation and more savage battle mettle, these bandits would aid the Demon Gang greatly when things came down to a physical confrontation, which was what the current situation was. Each of these bandits served as an ideal enforcer. Even if they were still outnumbered, they didn’t lose in combat power.

Among these bandits was one with cultivation at the Beginning Mystic Stage. Together with Qiang Dan, Amon had two Mystic Stage cultivators in his force.

The bandit with the Beginning Mystic Stage cultivation was named Lu Fei. Amon appointed him as the leader of his bandit force.

Compared to everyone else in the bandit force, Lu Fei could be considered the odd one. This was because his appearance was out of place with the bandits who wore worn-out clothes and sported disheveled hair. His clothes were neat, and his style elegant. His hair was long and straight. He even carried a paper fan around like a scholarly noble.

He had that appearance because he used to be from a respectable clan. He was the young master of the clan. Though the clan had a respectful history, it was in terrible decline. When Lu Fei was still a teenager, the clan collapsed. To make matters worse, a rival clan used the chance to wipe out the clan to prevent future rivalry.

Lu Fei managed to escape, but he had to leave town. He stumbled upon a bandit group in the wilderness. The bandit took everything he owned. Since he had nowhere to go, he requested to join the bandits who had just robbed him.

The bandit leader took him in just for fun, but Lu Fei proved to be a capable man. He didn’t shy away from doing dirty work despite his background. He rose through the ranks and gained the other bandits’ trust and respect.

His advancement in cultivation was also better than everyone in the group due to his better foundation. In a short time, he already surpassed the bandit leader’s cultivation. He remained loyal to the leader despite the fact. This gained him even more respect from the members of the group.

When the bandit leader met an unfortunate demise during a raid, the other bandits agreed to appoint him their leader. The bandit group he led was among those who decided to join Amon without putting up a fight. Not because he was afraid of the overwhelming force Amon brought to intimidate them but because he saw something in Amon that made him think he could return to the noble life he used to enjoy in his childhood.

Amon had proven to fulfill half of that expectation. Amon brought him back into the civilized world. After joining the bandits, he thought he would spend the rest of his life in the wilderness.

The others shared the same thoughts as him. They were very happy to be able to enter this Qishurg City. Normally, they could only watch such a large city from afar. They enjoyed themselves very much these last three days but also felt restrained.

At the wilderness hideouts, Amon split them up into small groups and appointed leaders to each group. Amon picked those with a calmer demeanor to prevent these ragtag groups from causing trouble in the city. Amon gave them enough aer stones to enjoy themselves these three days before regrouping inside Demon Gang’s hideout.

The reason for that was because he knew someone might send people to monitor this crowd he let in. If it was only Zhuan San, he didn’t mind letting him know. Zhuan San already knew he asked for control of the gate to help him with the underworld situation. He took precautions in case another party was interested in the unusual situation of the Northern Gate. He figured three days was enough to throw the party off their scent.

Now, these bandits were crowding the hideout. Even though the hideout was big, four hundred people added with demon gang original members still made the place feel cramped. The bandits were also especially rowdy. They spoke loudly. With so many of them speaking at once, the whole place was very lively.

Amon nodded at Xin Wuming, who took a gong and slammed hard on it. Xin Wuming did this several times. The resonant sound from the gong caught everyone’s attention. Everyone stopped talking and turned to where Amon was standing.

Amon stood atop several crates stacked together, so he was in an elevated position. Everyone could see him.

”Do you all have enough fun these three days?” He asked.

The loud murmur returned as the bandits answered the question. Some laughed while answering. The jumbled voices made it hard to understand what everyone was saying. Even though Amon couldn’t clearly hear the answer, he still received the answer from everyone’s expression.

Amon lifted his hand. Everyone quieted down again. Although he only spent a short time with these bandits every time he went out on missions to eradicate other bandit groups, it was enough to teach them to respect him.

Once silence returned, Amon said, ”Now that you have enjoyed yourselves, it’s time for you all to show your worth. I explained the situation before you came here. I have told you the additional rules you have to abide by once you are inside this city. Please don’t act like you are still outside. Do not cause unnecessary trouble. Most of all, do not kill a civilian. If you cause trouble because of your stupidity, do not expect us to come bail you out. Is everyone clear?”

Some replied by answering. Others simply nodded.

”You will be split up again and placed in teams mixed with local members,” Amon continued. ”Follow this local members’ instructions. They will take you to the other hideouts. You will stay there until the next orders.”

The local demon gang members inserted themselves into the bandit force. They separated the bandit force into small groups and started leading them away. Three hundred fifty bandits left the hideout with the local members. Fifty remained in this hideout. Lu Fei was among the fifty.

Amon came to Lu Fei and said, ”Have ten of your people ready. Choose the best ones. We might make our move tomorrow night.”

”Only ten?” Lu Fei asked.

”It is not yet time for a full-out battle with the enemies. We need to weaken them first,” Amon answered. He then turned to Xin Wuming. ”Have our people monitor Liu Lang. Make sure he is still following his routine tomorrow.”

”Yes, brother,” Xin Wuming answered.

”Liu Lang? I guess he is our target?” Lu Fei asked. ”We are taking out the enemy one by one?”

”I have explained before you came here. We have two enemies working together,” Amon said. ”They have three Mystic Stage cultivators. The first order of business is to bring them down to our number.”

”This Liu Lang is one of them?”

Amon nodded. ”Liu Lang is Hu Ti’s right-hand man in the Alley Advocates. He is a Beginning Mystic Stage cultivator like you.”

”He is one of the top brass? Are ten men enough for the job?” Lu Fei asked.

”We will bring local members as well, but we can’t afford too many members. This is an ambush operation. Liu Lang might be a top brass, but he had grown complacent due to our lack of retaliation. He thinks they are already victorious. He is brash, cocky, and arrogant. Unlike Hu Ti and Dao Se, who mostly stay inside their hideouts, he likes to strut around conquered territories. Even when venturing out, Hu Ti and Dao Se usually have many bodyguards accompanying them. Liu Lang only brings a small team of followers. We have studied his routine. If tomorrow he sticks to this routine, we will teach him the folly of recklessness. It will be the beginning of our retaliation.”

”Good. I hate that kind of privileged asshole. They have their lives so easy inside here. Yet, they still act cocky.”

Amon chuckled. He took out something and handed it to Lu Fei. ”This is a welcome gift for you for returning to civilization. I have it specially made.”

The item in Amon’s hand was a paper fan with metal frames. Words of power were carved on its frames. Lu Fei received the metal fan and studied it. The frames were strong enough to endure clashing with other weapons. There was a panel by the frame’s side. When he pressed it, two sharp blades came out of the ends of its side frames.

”Try throwing it,” Amon said.

Lu Fei did. The metal fan flew in an arc before returning to Lu Fei’s hand. The words of power on the fan not only made the fan stronger but also turned it into a boomerang.

Lu Fei was delighted by the gift. As someone who used to be in a clan, he could recognize good weapons. For him who had lived in the wilderness for a long while, it had been some time since he acquired a quality item.

”Thank you, boss!” Lu Fei exclaimed.