Volume One: Another World Chapter Seventeen: Only the Strong Have the Right to Rule

It was clear that not only Li Yu had realized there might be something wrong with the traveling merchants. Stone Village had always been harmonious and peaceful; though there were occasional casualties, those were always accidents during mountain hunts. Now, with a murder occurring within the village, only outsiders could be truly suspect.

As the old man assigned people to fetch weapons and arm themselves, he also called some to the main house, intending to cooperate with Old Mu in restraining the group of traveling merchants.

“Second Grandfather, the people in the neighboring houses, all...” A swift-footed youth glanced around the nearby houses and spoke quietly to the old man.

Old Mu Luo banged his cane fiercely against the ground. “Hurry up! Something big is about to happen in the village!”

The fire had already spread considerably. Though the area was relatively remote, there were still a few households nearby—yet no one had noticed? At first, Mu Luo found it odd but thought perhaps everyone had finished dinner early and gone to the square. However, after discovering the murdered villager in the burning house, a sense of foreboding crept in, prompting him to send others to investigate.

“They’re not traveling merchants at all—they’re bandits!” Mu Luo spat out, waving his cane. “Where are the knives? Why aren’t they here yet? Stay together, it’s safer. Let’s go get the weapons first.”

Li Yu said nothing more but melted into the crowd. Now was certainly not the time to be alone—if there were still bandits lurking nearby, that would be disastrous.

As they hurried on, cries of alarm erupted from the people ahead. Bloodstains appeared on the roadside, and several corpses had been tossed into the nearby ditch—young men Mu Luo had dispatched to check on the village.

Mu Luo’s brows drew together in a deep frown, but he said nothing, merely gestured for everyone to follow.

“This was clearly premeditated,” Li Yu worried silently in the middle of the group. Passing by the ditch, he saw the bodies, each marked with multiple wounds, and his brows knitted in distress.

Were it not for his determination to make himself accustomed to the events of this other world, Li Yu might already have fled back to Blue Star, waiting for the storm to pass before returning.

As they went on, no more bodies appeared, and Li Yu’s brow eased slightly; after all this time, he’d grown attached to many in Stone Village. It also suggested, in a way, that while the bandits were vicious, they might not have the strength to overcome the village directly—otherwise, they wouldn’t have needed to start a fire to lure people away, nor would they have only dared to ambush isolated villagers.

When they reached the central part of the village, Li Yu’s ears twitched—he could make out the sounds of confrontation ahead.

The group quickly grabbed hoes and sickles, rushing toward the noise. Rounding a corner, they saw seven or eight bandits disguised as traveling merchants, surrounding more than twenty villagers.

Several bodies of Stone Village folk lay on the ground.

“You bandits are truly audacious!” Mu Luo roared, brandishing his cane as he charged forward.

Because the fire’s origin was somewhat distant from the village, most of those who had rushed over were young and strong; those left behind were mainly the elderly and children. The bandits, unafraid, ceded some ground, allowing Mu Luo and the others to shield the vulnerable.

Li Yu followed along, and the villagers treated him as a child, keeping him safely in the middle.

The disparity was obvious: the bandits wore armor and wielded cold weapons, while most villagers clutched farm tools—only a handful wore iron armor.

Such a disadvantage—the bandits had the upper hand from the start. They’d come prepared, set the fire to lure away the strong, then ambushed the isolated. By the time the villagers realized something was wrong, the bandits had already killed many.

Though the hunting team in Stone Village had armor and blades, most people, distracted by their meal or the fire, wore only everyday clothes. Only a few remained on guard.

Li Yu’s face was grim. He had thought the bandits resorted to trickery because they were weak, but they merely wanted to minimize their own losses, using whatever underhanded tactics suited them.

They had strength, yet chose to be cunning as well.

The two sides stood off—Stone Village dared not strike first, and the bandits seemed to await something, doing nothing more than surrounding the group.

But soon, things changed—hoofbeats rang out across the village, coming closer and closer.

“All taken care of?” one of the bandits asked.

“All done!”

Bandits on scaled horses rode in from all directions, blood still dripping from their weapons—a clear sign of what had befallen any lone villagers.

“That boy is among them—kill everyone but him,” Scarface commanded, his eyes flashing with bloodlust as he nodded toward the surrounded crowd.

“Got it.” “Heh, what a tender little thing.”

The standoff collapsed instantly. Several bandits on scaled horses charged, scattering the villagers, while those on foot swung their weapons—each strike drawing blood.

The villagers fought back fiercely, mountain folk with blood in their veins—many lived by the hunt. Clutching sickles and hoes, they resisted with all their might.

Li Yu’s mind went blank.

Part of him was stunned by the carnage. In powerful Huaxia, with strict laws, murder was rare—Li Yu had never even seen chicken slaughtered, let alone human blood.

But Scarface’s words echoed in his mind—was this massacre happening because of him?

He didn’t know how long he was lost in that daze before he snapped out of it. His mouth opened and closed, but no sound came. So many around him were gone. As he turned to look, he realized the situation had changed again.

Several rampaging scaled horses now lay on the ground, marked by deep palm-shaped dents. Bandit corpses lay scattered, their blood still seeping into the earth.

The remaining bandits had retreated to a distance, afraid to advance. Li Yu turned and saw Mu Yinhua had appeared at his side, as had Old Mu, Ergou, and others.

“A cultivator of the Divine Path!” Scarface’s face turned ashen. “Where’s the boss?”

In such a remote, impoverished place, how could there be an eighth-rank cultivator of the Divine Path? Many bandits now wavered, especially since Lin Sanjin had not appeared for a long time. No one said it, but all feared he had met a grim fate.

“Damn, nearly got caught off guard!” In the distance, Lin Sanjin finally appeared, clutching his bleeding abdomen.

Old Mu’s gaze was cold as he stared at Lin Sanjin mounted before the bandits. “You’re bold indeed, to attack the village directly.”

“What’s the difference—killing a few more or a few less?” Lin Sanjin sneered. “Old man, you can still stand after taking my Tendon-Softening Powder. Impressive.”

Is this other world so chaotic everywhere?

Looking at the bandits, Li Yu felt, for the first time, the importance of a peaceful nation.

But seeing Old Mu standing at the very front gave him a deep sense of security. Clearly, it was Old Mu’s status as an eighth-rank Divine Path cultivator that had cowed these ruthless killers.

In that moment, Li Yu understood the law of survival in this world: only the strong have the power to rule.

“Old man, let’s make a deal. Hand him over and we’ll leave.” Lin Sanjin pointed his long blade.

Old Mu glanced at Li Yu without a trace of hesitation and flatly refused. “Are you dreaming in broad daylight?”

“So I was really their target! But why me?”

Li Yu watched Lin Sanjin’s blade aimed straight at him. He felt no great fear; Scarface had already pointed him out. He knew this was coming. Besides, he could always return to Blue Star if he wished.

What surprised him was Old Mu’s refusal—he hadn’t even considered handing him over.

Li Yu’s tense heart eased a little, but quickly tightened again. With Old Mu’s rejection, a bloody confrontation was inevitable. Many from Stone Village had already perished at the hands of the bandits.

This was now a blood feud!