flstandardbreds Chapter 159 The Hunter
Chapter 159 The Hunter
Seeing that Ma Liangcai was still pretending to be dead and refusing to make a move, and that Lin Fan was empty-handed, he dared not use the spider eggs again under the current circumstances.
With nowhere to retreat, Lin Fan used his sickle to deflect the swinging steel blade and then sprang up from the ground to grab the bandit leader around the waist.
Ninth Brother was surprised that the person who had been in excruciating pain just moments before had recovered so quickly.
Lin Fan not only hugged him, but also tried to grab the knife from him after slashing him in the back. In the end, neither of them managed to grab it, but the steel knife flew out of their hands.
And so, Lin, the bodyguard who became a strongman by taking drugs, and Ninth Brother, who had unparalleled martial arts skills, began to wrestle without any regard for appearances.
In fact, Lin Fan had never realized before that he, with his superior strength, would have an advantage in hand-to-hand combat with martial artists without weapons. After all, when people are fighting, it's all about who is stronger and who is less afraid of pain and can withstand more beatings.
As for those grappling techniques, they simply cannot be used when the two are locked in a tight embrace.
In this exchange of blows, Lin Fan clearly gains the upper hand.
Just as the surrounding bandits were about to close in, and as Ninth Brother was already dizzy from exchanging injuries, Lin Fan reached out again and grabbed the sickle that had flown out along with the steel knife, which flew back into his hand.
Ninth Brother's skin was cut, and he dreamt again of that desolate battlefield and the endless hordes of corpses. This time, however, he would never wake up again.
Lin Fan used brute force to pierce the throat with the not-so-sharp scythe blade.
Lin Fan, covered in blood, slowly rose from the group of bandits.
Some of these people were momentarily frightened, while others had completely different intentions.
Because Lin Fan truly managed to kill his two leaders single-handedly in a very short time, seemingly without much difficulty. Moreover, he defeated them with cunning rather than military force, and with sheer strength rather than Ninth Brother.
These people wondered if Ninth Brother was just bragging when he said he was as brave and strong as Xiang Yu and that his strategist was capable of anything.
These people, who weren't even martial artists, wondered if the differences between people were truly that great. If they killed the person who killed Ninth Brother, would they become the next Ninth Brother?
So, with the mindset of seeking fortune in danger, they rushed forward.
The first man swung a knife at Lin Fan, but he simply dodged it by slightly turning his body. Before the man could even react, he felt his vision begin to change. He didn't understand anything, but others saw it clearly: just as they brushed past each other, his head fell off on its own. Only the bloodstained black dagger in Lin Fan's hand gave them a clue.
The second man tried to ambush the archer with a crossbow, but before he could even fire, his scythe flew over first. Without any fancy moves, the scythe pierced the archer's forehead, and then flew back to the blue-clad bodyguard with red and yellow marks.
The third and fourth men, who charged forward with guns, were killed by a strange mechanical beast before the镖师 (bodyguard/escort) could even make a move.
The fifth, tall man, dressed in simple armor, tried to wield a meteor hammer, hoping to subdue the man with his brute strength.
The bodyguard put away his black dagger and sickle, caught the hammer handle held by the burly man with one hand, lifted him up like a chicken, and threw him far away.
After that, no one dared to step forward again, and the remaining people finally understood how amazing their Ninth Brother and Strategist were to be able to hold their own against such a monster for so long.
That fight, which didn't seem very intense, was actually incredibly dangerous.
The bad news was that they were the ones who ultimately lost. Even if they had all rushed in, could they have killed them all? They were all bandits; who would risk their lives? The remaining small groups of bandits naturally chose to scatter rather than be attacked one by one.
Lin Fan ignored them; he was there to relieve the caravan's siege, not to wipe out the bandits.
Lin Fan turned around, cut off Ninth Brother's head, and then went down the mountain.
At this moment, Li Tie was fiercely commanding the bandits to launch a strong attack on the caravan. It wasn't that the caravan's defenses were particularly tenacious, but Li Tie's main problem was that he simply couldn't force these bandits to charge forward.
Every time they showed themselves, the guards would fire a few arrows, and they would start to back down.
If it were Ninth Brother's order, the effect wouldn't have been so bad. But with Li Tie in between, the pressure was much weaker, and the bandits' fear of death took over their minds.
Li Tie was so angry that he wanted to kill a few people to establish his authority.
When Lin Fan appeared with Ninth Brother's head, everything changed.
"Your leaders have been executed. If anyone is dissatisfied, feel free to come and find me!"
Using the torches of the caravan, Lin Fan displayed Ninth Brother's head under the banner of "Sihai Escort Agency." Even so, not many bandits could clearly see his face, but the rumor that Ninth Brother had been killed quickly spread among the bandits.
The key was that Li Tie, who had the advantage of terrain to command, had a clear view.
As a minor leader among the bandits, he wasn't in a state of panic.
He gritted his teeth, weighed the options, and then raised the white flag to prepare for retreat.
Just then, another unexpected event occurred: the sound of horses' hooves came from the other side of the river, on the other side of the caravan.
Lin Fan and the others tensed up, and Chen Ergou voiced their thoughts, "No, it's just a small caravan, is it really necessary to send out cavalry?"
Li Tie, who could roughly make out the color of the enemy's flag from halfway up the mountain, exclaimed, "Marquis of Pingle? What's this damned hunter doing here!"
Although Li Tie said this, he was genuinely afraid. Regardless of the other party's reputation, he was a powerful figure with real connections to the imperial court.
After clearing his mind, he spoke rapidly to the men beside him, who were all Ninth Brother's confidants: "I received news a few days ago that the Hunter Marquis was actually recruiting volunteers to quell the rebellion. I didn't expect him to be serious. He even colluded with a merchant caravan to ambush us! We may die today, but at least we must make them pay a price, so that Ninth Brother's spirit may rest in peace!"
He then ordered everyone present to take up knives and red flags to signal an attack, and forced the remaining bandits to charge the carriage.
The others felt that it made sense but also seemed wrong. However, seeing that Li Tie was about to draw his knife and chop people, they did as he said without really understanding why. After all, they weren't being asked to charge into battle themselves.
Li Tie continued to observe from his original spot. He finally breathed a sigh of relief when the bandits finally overturned most of the carriages in one fell swoop, probably because his men had started killing people.
Many of the bandits didn't notice the approaching riders; some were even overjoyed at capturing the caravan and preparing to plunder the goods. They were simply hacked down like watermelons by the riders who had waded through the water.
Li Tie wasn't really acting out of spite; if he had ordered a retreat earlier, his chances of escaping wouldn't have been very high.
But things are different now. After confirming that those fools who rushed down the mountain had indeed risked their lives to hold back the men of the Marquis of Ping Le, Li Tie glanced around and, seeing that no one was around, turned and fled.