"Ridiculous, still trying to quibble at the brink of death?" Zixia was too lazy to waste words with these scoundrels brimming with evil deeds, and she struck forward without hesitation, not dealing deadly blows, but managing to knock all the bandits protecting Li Ping'an to the ground in just a few moves, leaving them crying and wailing for their parents.
Cen Zhen, Protector Wang, the Second-in-command, and the Third-in-command were all amazed as they watched. Zixia, who looked like a delicate girl, turned out to have such ruthless tactics, and this was without even using the Immortal Technique, showcasing her incredible strength!
Seeing Zixia about to catch up to them, the Second-in-command and Third-in-command realized this woman was not to be trifled with. Facing the imminent piercing strike of the two Flying Swords and having never encountered a Sword Controlling Cultivator before, the two were in a panic. Terrified of death, they immediately knelt down to beg for mercy:
"Heroine! It's a misunderstanding, a huge misunderstanding! The evil deeds you mentioned just now truly weren't committed by us!"
Following the lead of the Second-in-command and Third-in-command, the rest of the bandits, chilled to the bone, also knelt to beg for mercy, explaining their reasons.
"Heroine! All the evil deeds you've mentioned were done by the local Official Residence using our reputation, disguising themselves as members of our Axe Guild. We've always only robbed the unkind wealthy; when ordinary people pass by here, we just charge a toll, that's all!"
"Immortal, don't believe the lies of these bandits. They have always been bullies and cowards, terrified by the Immortal's prowess. They are now deceiving you, Immortal. Do not hesitate, kill them immediately to rid the locals of this scourge. I am willing to pay for an ancestral temple to be built in your honor, to commemorate the Immortal's great virtue!"
Cen Zhen and Chang Qing never expected that without using any Taoist sect Divine Skills, just with her martial prowess, Zixia had made those bandits kneel and beg for mercy, crying for their parents; the situation had reversed so quickly that they felt extremely relieved and immediately fanned the flames from the side.
Li Ping'an, although too lazy to explain, was also listening carefully, analyzing the situation.
The evil acts Zixia had accused the Wuxing Mountain Axe Gang of committing earlier did seem to be the actions of bandits.
But if these were truly acts of the bandits themselves, just take the robbery and massacre of the wealthy and kind family of Benefactor Wang from Wuxing Mountain County, where they stole ten thousand taels of silver.
That amount of money could support the Wuxing Mountain Axe Gang for ten years' worth of food and clothing.
Yet the bandits in front of them were dressed no better than beggars, with yellowed skin and gaunt physiques, their clothes in tatters and patched all over. To call them a gang was more reminiscent of the Beggars' Sect.
The reason bandits rob is to drink wine from big bowls, eat meat by the mouthful, and change into sets of new clothes; otherwise, why steal money? To deposit it in a money house? That makes no sense.
Therefore, there had to be a wrongful accusation here!
"Master, please hold off! I believe them!"
"What a joke, are you their Gang Leader, the Head Chief? Of course, you would speak on their behalf!"
Zixia turned her head away, not willing to see Li Ping'an, who had deceived her feelings, anymore.
"Master, if you want to know whether their words are true or false, why don't we go down to Wuxing Mountain County to investigate right now?"
"If it's true, I will join you in killing these beasts. If it's false, wouldn't we have wronged them?"
"Without saying, we would have wrongfully taken dozens of lives and also tarnished your good name, giving people all over the world reason to say that Zixia, a cultivator of Qingyun Sect, bullied the weak and wantonly killed the innocent!"
Li Ping'an pleads earnestly from the bottom of his heart.
But upon hearing these words, Cen Zhen and Chang Qing became as antsy as ants on a hot pan, and in their moment of covered faces, they ground their teeth in anger, filled with extreme resentment toward Li Ping'an.
"No need!" Zixia glanced out of the corner of her eye at Cen Zhen, Cen Changqing, their wife and daughter, and Protector Wang, and after a moment of contemplation, she retracted her Flying Sword, turned around, and said decisively:
"Li Ping'an, let's pretend we've never met. This is where we part ways!"
After saying that, Zixia walked away toward the Five Fingers Summit of Wuxing Mountain without looking back.
Seeing Zixia spare their lives, the Third-in-command quickly got up and shouted:
"Heroine, wait! Since you are our Gang Leader's master and you have spared our lives, you must be a good person! We can't bear to see you go to your death. The truth is, Six Demons have recently arrived at Five Fingers Peak!"
Zixia halted at his words. Seeing Zixia stop, Li Ping'an thought there might still be a chance and immediately interrogated his subordinates:
"What demon monster? What does it look like? Speak quickly!"
"What does the demon monster look like... I don't know..."
The second-in-command honestly said:
"All I know is that these six demons are called Eye Sees Joy, Ear Hears Anger, Nose Smells Love, Tongue Tastes Thought, Opinion and Desire, Body's Inherent Worry!"
Li Ping'an questioned in puzzlement:
"These six demon monsters have such bizarre names!"
The third-in-command then added:
"These six demon monsters excel at beguiling the hearts of men, turning good people bad and bad people even worse, then causing them to slaughter each other before feasting on their flesh and bones!"
"Why didn't the six demon monsters beguile you, causing you to kill each other?"
Li Ping'an voiced his doubts.
The second-in-command laughed shamelessly:
"Gang Leader, do we, the morally bankrupt scum of the human realm, the dregs who oppress the weak, need to be beguiled by demon monsters? You're on point, right, sir?"
"That's bullshit. You live closest to those demons, they only harm passersby and not you? Do you take me for a fool?"
Li Ping'an didn't believe a word of it. After speaking, he used his Divine Skills: Secluded Cave to look towards the mountain top, and Zixia also observed carefully.
They saw six demon creatures, shrouded in black turbid qi, floating above Five Fingers Summit. Even with Divine Skills: Secluded Cave they couldn't discern their true appearances, not knowing what kind of demons they were.
These six demons continuously emitted their murky demonic qi, enveloping the entire summit of Five Fingers Mountain, forming a giant that stood atop the mountain, looming over them in a terrifying manner!
Only Li Ping'an and Zixia could see this, of course.
Witnessing this eerie phenomenon, Li Ping'an and Zixia couldn't help but inhale sharply. The demonic qi emitted by the Human-Headed Dog Demon they encountered on Dog Head Peak only lingered around its body, while the qi released by the creatures on Five Fingers Peak almost reached the heavens, sending chills down one's spine!
What was most terrifying was that not only could Li Ping'an not see the demons' forms, but he could also not discern their Cultivation levels, which showed how immensely powerful their demonic force was; they had to be true Demon Kings!
"Gang Leader, why have your eyes gone purple?"
The second-in-command and the third-in-command suddenly interrupted Li Ping'an's thoughts.
"Oh, I have blood from the Western Regions..."
Li Ping'an responded casually.
"So the Gang Leader is a mixed-breed, hahaha!"
The second-in-command and the third-in-command covered their mouths and whispered, laughing and not taking it seriously.
After confirming, Zixia's face turned stern. She then turned around and remained silent, simply looking at Li Ping'an with seriousness. After all, Li Ping'an was extremely talented and his eyes could see demons and ghosts. She wanted to confirm her own judgment with him.
"..."
Li Ping'an first nodded to acknowledge the danger, then slightly shook his head, signaling that one must not cross Five Fingers Peak alone; otherwise, death was certain.