Serpent Ancestor

Should I give a warning?

This wasn’t something a mortal could perceive. Even if Xu Hei wanted to warn them, how would he explain it? Could he just say he had a gut feeling there was danger ahead?

Xu Hei pondered for a moment but ultimately said nothing, continuing to follow the convoy.

Two guards had already positioned themselves on the bridge, checking both sides. After confirming there was no danger, they signaled, and the carriage slowly moved forward.

Under the bridge, the river flowed gently. Heavy rain upstream had turned the water a murky yellow.

As usual, Xu Hei stayed at the back of the group. A Long and Zeng Ting had stopped bickering and were now alert to their surroundings.

When the carriage reached the middle of the bridge.

Suddenly, Xu Hei’s eyes narrowed. ”Here they come!”

”Clang, clang, clang!”

Out of nowhere, several steel blades emerged from the bridge, sweeping across like a rolling knife, severing the legs of the horses and overturning the carriage wheels.The horses neighed in agony, collapsing to the ground.

One of the guards couldn’t dodge in time and was about to have his leg cut off when Lei Hu’s wrist flicked, and his curved blade flashed like lightning, blocking the attack.

”Everyone, be on guard!”

Lei Hu roared, drawing his sword.

Then, with several loud explosions, the river erupted violently, sending muddy water skyward like rain. Five black-clothed figures shot up from the water, mixed with the rain, charging at the group.

At the same time, several holes were blasted into the bridge, and two black-clothed men emerged from beneath, brandishing gleaming broadswords, charging at the escort agency’s people without a word.

The Feihu Escort Agency wasn’t to be trifled with either. They drew their weapons, and soon both sides were locked in fierce combat.

This was the first large-scale conflict Xu Hei had encountered since joining.

”Be careful, Brother Xu!”

A warning came from the side. A Long deflected a thrown dart with his sword, glaring fiercely at the black-clothed man before charging forward with a slash.

Xu Hei also drew an iron sword, joining the fight against the water bandits.

In the mortal realm, ordinary water bandits were no match for the Feihu Escort Agency. However, this time, the opponents were clearly tough, well-coordinated, and trained, moving with the discipline of a regular army. After several rounds, only two of them had fallen.

Amidst the fierce battle, two more black-clothed men ran from afar, heading straight for a crate of goods. These were the two who had escaped earlier.

Lei Hu’s expression changed as he shouted, ”Protect the goods!”

At this moment, Xu Hei was the closest, and he stepped forward without hesitation. However, he left a gap on purpose, wanting to see what was inside.

As he tangled with one of them, the other reached the crate, took out a large bundle, tied it to the crate, and set it on fire.

”What is that?”

Xu Hei was taken aback, and everyone turned to look, retreating simultaneously.

”Not good!” Lei Hu exclaimed.

The next second—

”Boom!!”

With a deafening explosion, flames shot into the sky, and a shockwave erupted! The terrifying blast occurred right in front of Xu Hei. The large bundle was nothing other than gunpowder!

The black-clothed man who lit the gunpowder was too close to escape and was blown apart on the spot, his body shattered into pieces.

Xu Hei and another person weren’t much better off, both being blasted into the distance. The other man, covered in blood, fell into the water, while Xu Hei managed to grab the bridge’s railing, preventing himself from falling.

The stone bridge was left with a large hole, the carriage was completely destroyed, and the contents of the crate were scattered everywhere, either falling into the water or blown to bits, unrecognizable.

No one expected someone to use such a bundle of gunpowder to cause an explosion, showing no fear of death!

Everyone realized these black-clothed men weren’t ordinary bandits. Bandits robbed for money, but these people weren’t after wealth!

Their sole purpose was to destroy the escorted goods, even at the cost of their lives.

Xu Hei climbed up from the edge of the bridge, looking quite miserable, covered in dust and with tattered clothes, but without any major injuries.

It was then that Xu Hei discovered the carriage was transporting cannons, muskets, crossbows, and various parts, all intricately designed, not the work of mortals, likely products of a puppet sect.

No wonder A Long said they were items of the immortals.

But unlike other immortal items, these seemed usable by mortals.

”No!”

Lei Hu rushed over, picking up the shattered parts, trying to piece them together, his face growing paler. He knelt on the ground, eyes vacant, as if he’d lost his soul.

”It’s over, it’s all over. The Feihu Escort Agency is finished,” Lei Hu muttered to himself.

Li Fei grabbed a dying black-clothed person, shouting, ”Speak! Who are you?”

Pulling off the face mask, the black-clothed person turned out to be a woman. She spat at Li Fei, saying, ”Traitor Li Fei, you... will meet a terrible end!”

With that, the female bandit closed her eyes, her breath ceasing.

After checking, two of the escort agency’s five members were injured, one of the three guest experts had fled, and Xu Hei was injured.

Five black-clothed men were dead, and three had escaped.

The group gathered all the goods, piecing them together, but in the end, only a pile of broken parts remained.

Lei Hu glared at A Long, saying, ”I told you to check the water earlier. Why didn’t you find anything?”

A Long felt wronged, lowering his head, ”How was I supposed to know they hid so well?”

”Talking about it is useless. With the immortals’ goods damaged, we’re all doomed. None of us will survive,” Li Fei said through gritted teeth. ”Are we supposed to become bandits now?”

”Being bandits would be a blessing. You should pray the immortals don’t hold us accountable, or we’ll die without a trace,” Zeng Ting said dejectedly.

At this point, no one hid anything anymore.

Xu Hei learned that this batch of goods was lethal weapons made by the immortals, usable by mortals and capable of threatening cultivators.

Once deployed in mortal battles, these weapons would greatly enhance the combat power of mortal armies. In a surprise attack, they could even injure cultivators in the Qi Refining Stage.

This was undoubtedly a revolutionary innovation.

As for the traitor accusation... Xu Hei didn’t ask but could vaguely guess some things.

”We’re doomed. Brother Hu, maybe we should run?” Li Fei suggested.

Lei Hu looked around, then suddenly calmed down, lowering his voice, ”Don’t rush. There’s still a chance to redeem ourselves!”

After ensuring no one was around, Lei Hu clapped his hands and shouted.

Moments later, a rustling came from a distant bush, and a new carriage emerged, carrying goods, followed by a larger, denser batch of crates.