The group of minions cut wood into poles and made tents into nets. They packed the captured nobles, servants, men and women in rattan nets and carried them up the mountain.
The two of them, Liu Qiao, hid in the mist and floated slowly among the mountains, observing the whereabouts of the thieves.
It feels slow when floating in the sky, but the thieves running on the ground are very fast.
Most of the bandits are accustomed to gathering in the green forest, walking on dangerous cliffs and steep mountains, running as fast as flying. Hundreds of thieves, like swallows in the forest, walked through the winding mountain road for seven or eight miles with a cup of tea.
After walking like this for about half an hour, we climbed over two or three mountains and arrived at the foot of a majestic mountain. From a distance, we could see the smoke curling up in the mountains, and the surrounding mountain tops were protected by towers.
Mountain patrollers, water carriers, firewood collectors, open sentinels, and hidden stakes are scattered throughout the mountain for more than ten miles. At a glance, there are hundreds of these handymen on the surface alone.
There is only a walled city in the middle of the mountain, which is built entirely with wooden fences. The walls on the four sides are about two feet high and about a mile long. There are watchtowers and turrets on the top, and there are fierce bandits guarding them with swords and guns.
There is also a specially dug canal in front of the village, about ten feet wide, which is filled with water and is so deep that it is bottomless.
In addition, in the open space on the left and right in front of the village, there are also bandits, big and small, in Wuyangyang. They are rehearsing military tactics, beating drums to advance, shouting gold to retreat, cutting bamboo into spears, and breaking wood into soldiers. There are at least a thousand people on the left and right.
"It's such a den of bandits, and the operation is like an iron barrel. No wonder there are no officers and soldiers to suppress it..." Liu Qiao admired hidden in the fog.
"Although this village is steep and well-defended, it is built entirely of wood. Isn't it afraid of fire?"
Chang Long chuckled softly and said: "In my opinion, let's just put a fire on it and burn them all to death."
"Although this method is wonderful, but not now, who knows how many sons of good families are still in the stronghold. If they are all burned to death in a fire, it will be your and my sin." Liu Qiao said speechlessly.
Chang Long was a different kind of person after all. In his opinion, it was the dry season of summer and autumn. It would be easier and less troublesome to just set fire to the mountains and burn all these monsters and bandits to death.
As for the children of good families who were kidnapped inside, I'm sorry, Master Chang can only count them as sacrificing their lives for the people of the world.
There is a fire on the mountain, and the police station is at the foot of the mountain.
Liu Qiao was still thinking about catching the demon and interrogating the magicians. If he wanted to do this, if he wanted to burn the mountain, he would have to at least save the people.
The man in green robe, who was probably a leader, led the bandits and captives back to the mountain. In surprise, the village gate opened wide, and countless bandits, big and small, came out to welcome them into the village.
Master Liu Qiao and his apprentice were hidden in the fog. They only dared to float and hover on the top of a steep cliff several miles away, but they did not dare to float to the front of the village.
The main reason is that the weather is unfavorable, the summer is hot, and the sky is clear and cloudless. If a cloud of fog that is dozens of feet wide suddenly floats by, even those bandits and monsters who are really stupid will notice something fishy.
They were too far apart, and they could only vaguely see the man in green robes, and the leaders in front of the village were laughing and chatting for a few words, but they couldn't make out what they said, so they were surrounded by people and entered the village.
"Master, there seems to be a stream at the bottom of this cliff. Let's hide in the stream. When a thief comes to fetch water, we can catch him and ask him about the details of the village."
Chang Long is a water snake and is extremely sensitive to water vapor. He can tell where there are water veins and streams from a long distance away.
Liu Qiao did his best, and the two of them descended from the steep cliff. Sure enough, they saw the sound of spring water at the bottom of the cliff valley, and a clear and quiet lake.
"I don't care if they eat the water or not, let's put some ingredients in it first..." Chang Long chuckled, silently used his magic power, opened his mouth to quench a mouthful of black water, and spit it into the water.
But it is a mouthful of snake venom that he has practiced for many years. If a person touches it, he will faint immediately. If it is eaten into the abdomen, or if it enters the flesh, the intestines will be pierced and the stomach will be rotten, and the throat will be sealed with blood.
Liu Qiao shook his head: "There are at least thousands of people in this village. With so many bandits, there must be springs and running water in the village. It's not of much use..."
As they were talking, they suddenly felt something. They immediately fell silent and hid in the grass at a depth of one person by the pool, keeping calm.
After a while, a thin man wearing linen clothes and holding a straw rope on his head came over. He was muttering in his mouth, carrying two wooden buckets, and walked to the pond to fetch water.
"Ah... uh" The thin man was scooping water, when suddenly the grass shook, and the wind blew loudly behind his head. Before he could scream, he felt pain in his neck, and his throat seemed to be clamped by iron vices.
However, Chang Long, under Liu Qiao's instructions, jumped out from the bush and grabbed the thin bandit by the neck, like a chicken, and carried him into the grass.
The water-carrying bandit felt suffocated for a while, being carried in someone's hand, as if he was flying in the clouds and mist, and the world was spinning.
After finally touching the ground with my feet, I regained my composure. I looked up and saw that the one on the top had a jade-like face, kind eyes, and extraordinary handsomeness, while the one on the left had a green face with fangs and erect pupils and fierce eyes. This was such a strong contrast that for a moment,
He was so frightened that he felt a chill running down his spine.
"This, uh... Your Majesty, please don't eat me."
The bandit thought he was meeting a mandrill wood guest, so he quickly knelt down and kowtowed: "My body is rickety and thin, and I can't produce two ounces of oil. Don't eat me... don't eat me..."
"Pa..." Chang Long slapped him on the head with a hand as big as a cattail fan, which made the bandit dizzy. He felt like a thunder exploded in his ears, and his head was buzzing.
While he was in a daze, the indigo face came close to his ear and shouted coldly: "Don't yell, you are such a big king and little king. Look clearly, I am your grandfather, and that person sitting there is your ancestor, huh...
"
Although this skinny little thief is said to be a demon gangster, he is still a mortal who has seen the true nature of these gods and demons.
At this time, Chang Long was talking to him face to face, mouthing blood. He could only smell the fishy wind blowing against his face, and his two pairs of fangs were dangling. He was trembling with fright and hurriedly changed his words: "Ah...yes, it's Grandpa...Old
Grandpa…”
"I told you to stop yelling. Why can't you hear clearly?" Chang Long said, waving his hand to hit him again.
But he was stopped by Liu Qiao, who said to the trembling little thief: "Brother, I see you look like this, you don't have the smell of blood in your body, you don't look like someone who is gathering in the mountains and forests. Whose name is it? How can you become a thief?"
"Old...grandpa, I have a little man, Niu Er, who used to farm at the foot of the mountain. Last year, my old mother was ill, so she went to the mountain to collect medicine, and the kings took it to her..." Niu Er saw Liu Qiaoxian's demeanor, and
The words are pleasant, and I can't help but feel a little at ease.
When he looked at Liu Qiao, he didn't look like the bandits who came from the mountain to fight against the bandits, but looked like officers and soldiers suppressing the bandits. He was afraid of being implicated, so he hurriedly picked out some innocent ones about his background and told all the truth and lies.
He said that his family did not voluntarily go to the mountains to become thieves, but there were wars in the mountains for many years, taxes were heavy, and his mother was ill. Last autumn, he went to the mountains to collect medicine to serve his mother, but the gangsters in the village took them away.
I was going to eat him as autumn food, but luckily a fellow villager who was a bandit in the village protected him.
But since then he has been forced to become a thief. There are thousands of thieves in the mountain, most of them are led by a group of demon thieves who bring good people with them.
If Chang Long hadn't been afraid of his verbosity, he would have even planned to reveal the incident of peeping at the widow taking a bath when he was a child to prove his innocence.
Regarding what he said, although Liu Qiao had just debuted, he was not a young knight and a novice in the world, so of course he would not fully believe it.
But judging from his behavior, he didn't look like a thug. He had no blood in his body, and his eyes were cowardly. He had indeed never killed anyone, so he had no intention of embarrassing him.
Hearing him talk about the leaders of the stronghold, Liu Qiao and Xi asked: "Niu Er, how many kings are there in this stronghold? Do you know what skills they have and what their martial arts are like?"
"Great, you are really here to suppress bandits..." Niu Er said half-heartedly, with a face full of surprise.
His expression was as if he had been in the bandit camp for a long time and his heart was in the Han Dynasty, and he looked like he was waiting for Master Wang to come to rescue Zhongliang.
Chang Long stared into his eyes quietly and said: "Don't play tricks in front of my master. We know you are innocent, but don't let me do anything dangerous. Whatever you know about the situation in this village, you must deal with it truthfully..."
"Hmph... If you act like a fool and cause trouble, someone will know about it, and you won't be able to survive or die." Chang Long snorted coldly when he saw that his face turned pale with fright.
"No, I dare not hide it from grandpa. There are two kings in the village. They usually dress up as Taoists. They lead hundreds of tough thieves and command thousands of others like me."
"Oh?" When Liu Qiao heard that they were dressed as Taoists, his heart tightened. Knowing that they were from the left, he hurriedly asked, "What are their names? Where is the cave? Do they have any Taoist magic powers?"
"This mountain is called Maoshan, and these two great kings often practice in the mountain. The foreigners and masters who come and go call them the two saints.
The great king was born with a green face and a long beard, a yellow crown and a red robe. He made a double hook and had amazing magical power. He could drag nine oxen upside down, and he was called Lu Taoist.
The two great kings were born with black faces and curly beards, lotus crowns and green robes, and they were able to wield nine-ringed swords. They were also very brave and could fight in all directions among all the armies. They were called Mao Taoist, also known as Mao Taoist."
Niu Er thought for a while and then said: "They are also called the two saints of Lu Mao. Each has his own miraculous skills and is good at transformation. As for how powerful they are, I have never seen them. I only heard the legends told by the old people in the village... I don't know.
Whether it's true or not, I don't dare to say it for fear of misleading the two grandpas..."
Liu Qiao twisted his beard and said: "It is groundless, and the legend has its foundation. Just tell me. Even if there are exaggerations and omissions, I don't blame you."
"It is said in the village that Lu Sheng lived for one hundred and twenty years and Mao Sheng lived for ninety-eight years. However, both of them have youthful faces and strong bodies. They are both descendants of immortals.
Lu Sheng is good at opening altars, and he will know whoever wants to harm him, or if he is determined to follow the right path and wants to go down the mountain, he will bleed from all his orifices, or he will fall off the cliff in confusion, and he can subdue dragons and tigers, and soar through the clouds and mist.
Mao Sheng is good at summoning ghosts and gods. Whenever he comes out of the mountain, there will be mountain spirits, earth gods, ghosts, mandrills, wood guests, etc. to greet him. If he casts a spell, he can break a piece of thatch into soldiers and horses; if he breaks his sleeves, he can turn into snakes and insects;
The beard and hair can turn into the majestic beasts of tigers and leopards."
Liu Qiao and Chang Long looked at each other and nodded. Judging from the number of years they lived, these so-called "Two Saints" must have obtained the fundamental method of immortality. They are not the ordinary heretics who only rely on magic to achieve evil.
Calculating the power based on the years of penance, these two saints are said to have a hundred years of power.
Moreover, Left Dao is no better than Taiyi Xuanmen who practices hard and eats more mortal souls to increase his power. If he only eats one person every month for a hundred years, his magic power will increase in a thousand years at least.
As for how to deduce this standard, before Chang Long converted to Orthodoxy, he was too lazy to take shortcuts and relied on cannibalism to increase his merit and longevity. By eating a mortal with good spirituality, he could save several months of merit.
In addition, what Niu Er said, although the legend is exaggerated, the magic of Lu Mao Erdao is indeed mysterious. No wonder he dares to call his ancestors a saint in a remote mountain.