"A Gu." the leader's words echoed in the storage room.
"Why squander a good life to become a bandit?" A Gu cursed as he stuffed even the leader's prized wolf jerky into his sack.
He noticed the bag, half his height, already weighed over a hundred catties.
Silently, the storage room door opened. Mu Liang crept up behind A Gu, covering his mouth with one hand while pressing his combat knife lightly against the man's throat.
"Mmm…" A Gu froze, terror rooting him in place at the cold blade.
"Don't move, or I'll carve a slit down your throat." Mu Liang's low, hoarse warning whispered in A Gu's ear.
A Gu raised his hands immediately in surrender.
"You're smart," Mu Liang said evenly. "If you cooperate, you live."
A Gu nodded feebly.
"Good. As a reward for your compliance, I'll share some news." Mu Liang's calm tone made A Gu's blood run cold.
"Your leader… was just turned into a stiff by me."
A Gu's eyes widened in horror. The leader had left moments before—and been snapped dead right then? That meant the mysterious stranger had been in the hall the whole time!
"Exactly as you thought—I watched you from the hall." Mu Liang confirmed A Gu's realization with that same hoarse voice, using interrogation tactics honed in Special Forces.
"Mmm…" A Gu whimpered unintelligibly.
"You're smart. Don't turn your head, and keep quiet." Mu Liang slowly released A Gu's mouth and sheathed his knife.
"Sir… is there something you want me to do?" A Gu's small voice trembled. He sensed Mu Liang had use for him since he'd spared his life.
"No. I have no tasks for you." Mu Liang answered indifferently.
A Gu froze, unsure how to respond.
"By the way, Blood Beard's scouts are dead too." Mu Liang tilted his tone mockingly. "Today none returned; tomorrow new scouts will come. When they find your leader dead… what do you think Blood Beard will do?"
A Gu swallowed sharply, the answer obvious: the bandits would come to slaughter everyone.
"Consider this your reward for the information." Mu Liang picked up A Gu's meat-laden bag. At the door, he added evenly, "I'll be watching you—clever one."
A Gu's face stiffened; tears threatened to spill. He dreaded being watched by this shadowy avenger.
Mu Liang didn't linger to see A Gu's reaction. If A Gu proved too stupid to fulfill his end of the deal, he'd send the Three-Colored Lizard to claw a reminder across his face. The precise plan hadn't been finalized—just a spark of an idea.
With food secured, only water remained. Mu Liang waited in a deserted room for the Three-Colored Lizard to return with the jerky.
Hiss…
The lizard soon climbed in through the window.
"Mino will be shocked," Mu Liang smiled as he strapped the jerky bundle onto it. Unexpectedly, a mission for water had netted a haul of supplies. He sent the lizard off and crept toward the water chamber.
Guarded by a single sentry, the well room could not stand against an invisible intruder. Mu Liang tossed a stone down the corridor to draw the guard away, then approached silently and knocked him unconscious with a palm strike.
He pushed open the door, dragged in the guard, and relit the torch inside. In the center lay a two-meter-diameter well beneath removable floorboards. A bucket hung at its edge, but the shaft was pitch-black—no sure way to tell if water remained.
Clattering the bucket into the well, Mu Liang pulled it up to find only murky sludge with mud on its rim. "Almost dry, as expected." He replaced the boards.
Turning his attention to a stack of wooden barrels in the corner—each about a meter tall—he shook one and heard sloshing. Hoisting two full barrels on his shoulders was as easy as carrying two loaves of bread.
"Use sparingly—it should last a while." He departed at ease.
……
Meanwhile, A Gu still dared not move, haunted by Mu Liang's threat.
Tip-tap…
Footsteps hurried down the corridor, and the door crashed open. The maid burst in, frantic: "A Gu, the leader is dead!"
"Truly dead?" A Gu's tension melted; he braced himself on the table.
"Right there in the hall—neck snapped." the maid gasped.
"So he wasn't lying." A Gu's mind raced back to the mysterious man's words.
"And Blood Beard's scouts are dead too."
He understood the hidden motive: if he tried to escape alone, the stranger would kill him.
Grabbing an empty sack, A Gu hastily filled it with jerky. The maid stammered, "A Gu, the leader is dead—should we run?"
A Gu stiffened, then realized there was no rush to flee. He needed a new plan.
Why had the stranger tipped him off? There must be a greater purpose.
Remembering the final words—"I'll be watching you, clever one"—A Gu snapped out of his daze.
He turned to the maid and ordered urgently, "Fetch the hunting captains. I have grave news—our lives depend on it."
"I…I understand."
The maid saw her childhood friend's face turn so pale for the first time—was he really that scared?
"A smart person?" A Ku smiled wryly to himself.
His real intention was to lead the people in the camp to escape together—that was what the mysterious stranger truly wanted.
"Mysterious stranger…who are you really?"
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]