The prisoners neither stopped nor joined him in plundering each and every building in the vicinity.
Zhou Xuanji saved them, so naturally, they would not compete with him for the treasures in Shady Mountain Stronghold.
All who could adventure into the Gulan Forest were wealthy people.
As they watched him plunder, they began interacting with one another, asking about Sword God Zhou and his background.
Zhang Ruyu did not stay put but went down the mountain to clean up the remaining brigands.
The brigands were vermin to him.
They could have their own reasons for their heinous actions, but no matter what the reasons were, they could not avoid their fate.
On the other side.
Zhou Xuanji found a small cage in the Head Chief's house. A little mouse was locked inside the cage. Its hair was yellowish-brown and it had large eyes, with two lines of golden hair that ran down his back.
Little Jiang Xue's eyes brightened and she rushed toward it once she saw it.
"Could this be the Three-Eyed Drought Rodent that they were talking about? It can identify all the treasures in the world."
Little Jiang Xue said to Zhou Xuanji. Having heard this, his eyes brightened too.
They heard about the legendary beasts in the world from Qiu Baili, and amongst them was the Three-Eyed Drought Rodent.
Zhou Xuanji stored his sword and freed the Three-Eyed Drought Rodent.
The Three-Eyed Drought Rodent was so afraid that it trembled and curled into a ball.
Little Jiang Xue tried to catch it, but Zhou Xuanji got it before her.
He wrapped it into its arms and said, "What if this little guy is dangerous?"
Little Jiang Xue heard him and pulled back her hand quickly. It was better to let Zhou Xuanji tame it first.
After that, they continued plundering.
One had to acknowledge that the Shady Mountain Stronghold was really wealthy. Zhou Xuanji found more than two hundred thousand spirit stones, and the highest level was level three.
Other than the stones, there were many treasures and elixirs. He stored them all into the Supreme Storage.
When they came back to the open ground, the prisoners had yet to leave.
They looked at him eagerly.
Zhou Xuanji raised his eyebrow. Did they want to snatch from him?
Thud!
A man knelt down suddenly and cried, "Thank you, Sword God Zhou."
After he finished speaking, he began to kowtow.
The other prisoners knelt down as well and thanked him.
Zhou Xuanji was so powerful, it would not be a loss of face even if they were to pay respects to him as a senior.
He was moved when he saw how thankful they were.
He had an idea suddenly.
That was to eliminate all the brigands in Gulan Forest, and by doing so, he could take their wealth and treasures, but also help ordinary people.
Yes!
And use them to hone my skills!
Zhou Xuanji shouted on the spot, "Everyone, please get up. I, Sword God Zhou, hereby swear to eliminate all brigands in the peripheral territories of the southern Snow Kingdom!"
After he finished, he left with Little Jiang Xue and Small Er.
The prisoners got up one after another and were overjoyed.
If he was true to his word, it would be significantly less dangerous for them to train here in the future.
The woman dressed in yellow that accompanied Little Jiang Xue bit her teeth and followed after Zhou Xuanji and Little Jiang Xue.
On the way down the mountain, there were miserable shrieks that came from below. Zhang Ruyu was slaughtering the brigands. They desperately hid, while some even jumped off the cliff straightaway and fell to their death.
Zhou Xuanji said as he walked, "Sis, don't go too far next time. From tomorrow onwards, you need to train more. I will be your trainer."
"Okay!"
Little Jiang Xue held onto his small hands and agreed with a smile.
Once she became strong enough, she could defend herself and help Zhou Xuanji, so naturally, she was willing.
The Three-Eyed Drought Rodent in his arms popped out its small head, fearfully observed its surroundings, but did not attempt to escape.
The Three-Eyed Drought Rodent was a legendary beast that had a spirit. It could feel that Zhou Xuanji and Little Jiang Xue had no ill intentions, so it did not escape.
The prisoners followed behind but did not dare to move too close.
After Zhou Xuanji and Little Jiang Xue went down the mountain, Ah Big flew over from afar, stopped right in front of Small Er, and kept on rubbing its head against its little sibling.
He examined Small Er's injuries and found out that it could still fly.
Just as they prepared to leave, Zhang Ruyu walked over.
He held his sword in hand and cupped his fist, saying, "Senior Sword God Zhou, thank you for helping out."
He was not deceived by his appearance and was instead mesmerized by his sword will.
He thought that Zhou Xuanji was a cultivator beyond the Foundation Building, so he addressed him as a senior.
Zhou Xuanji glanced at him and said, "I should be the one to thank you."
"No, no, you flatter me."
Zhang Ruyu said in shock from his praise. The superiority of Zhou Xuanji made him feel like he was facing his father.
He had slain both the Second Chief and the Third Chief with one slash each.
Such power, it was...
Even in the night, that slash was so breathtaking to him.
He felt that Zhou Xuanji's sword techniques were even more mesmerizing than those of Zhang Tianjian.
It's the style that he longed for.
It was both swift and impactful!
Before he could speak further, Zhou Xuanji leaped onto Ah Big's back and pulled Little Jiang Xue up.
The woman in a yellow dress that was following them closely behind walked over and knelt in front of Ah Big and bit her teeth, saying, "Sword God Zhou, please take me along, let me be your maidservant!"
Zhou Xuanji had already noticed back then that she was following, but he did not expect her to be willing to become his maidservant.
This woman's cultivation was at the eighth level of Qi Nurturing. It was not considered strong but was not too weak neither.
However, why would Zhou Xuanji bring her along?
He shook his head and said, "I don't need a maidservant."
The woman in yellow became anxious, "I will do anything you ask me to do!"
Zhang Ruyu had an expression of ridicule on his face. Although this woman's face was dirty, she had a good figure. Why would a normal man reject her?
Zhou Xuanji shook his head, clamped his legs, and Ah Big flew up.
Small Er followed right behind.
The woman in yellow was stunned. She immediately got up and chased after Ah Big and Small Er.
Zhang Ruyu looked over at Zhou Xuanji's back and sighed in admiration, "With a dragon eagle as his mount, Sword God Zhou indeed!"
The prisoners sighed in admiration as well.
If not for Sword God Zhou, they could not imagine what would have happened to them.
...
In the middle of the night, Zhou Xuanji and Little Jiang Xue returned to the valley.
Little Jiang Xue examined Small Er's wounds, while Zhou Xuanji took out the Three-Eyed Drought Rodent.
"From now on, follow me, how about that?"
He tapped the Three-Eyed Drought Rodent's nose with his index finger and asked.
The Three-Eyed Drought Rodent gave a silly nod and rubbed its head against his hand to express its friendliness.
Zhou Xuanji smiled satisfactorily and left it alone.
The took out all the plunder from today and began counting.
Other than spirit stones and elixirs, there were many enchanted artifacts, energy techniques, and spells.
He called Little Jiang Xue over and let her pick as she pleased.
There was plenty of time to spare, and they had no need to leave the valley.
They only left so Ah Big and Small Er could go hunting every day.
While they focused on cultivating, the legend about Sword God Zhou began spreading in the Southern Snow Kingdom.
Zhou Xuanji went out to destroy a brigand stronghold once each month.
He picked the weak ones, especially. The ones that did not have any cultivators exceeding the Foundation Building stage. He could destroy them easily and reap great rewards.
Half a year passed.
He destroyed four brigand strongholds and saved thousands of prisoners and slaves. The name of Sword God Zhou was gradually deified.
It was because he slew all the head chiefs of brigand strongholds with just one slash.
The prisoners and slaves who were eyewitnesses began to praise him once they returned to the Southern Snow Kingdom.
"Analyzed that the Sword Owner has reached eight years old. Gacha started!"