Logically speaking, this is an official road, so it's not surprising to see a large group of people here.
Along the way, they encountered many caravans of merchants.
However, this time Li Yao sensed that there were more than two hundred people driving more than a dozen horse-drawn carriages, which seemed a bit unusual.
That's why he became alert.
At this moment, Wei Yixiao stared blankly ahead. The road ahead was blocked by a grove of trees, and he couldn't see anyone at all.
Moreover, he pricked up his ears and listened carefully, but he didn't hear any unusual sounds.
He was puzzled. What exactly did the cult leader see or hear?
However, since the cult leader said so, it shouldn't be wrong.
Then, he looked around, pointed to a thicket of thorns not far from the road, and said to the cult leader, "Cult leader, we can hide there. Should we hide there and see what's going on?"
Li Yao's gaze remained fixed on a grove of trees in the distance, and he said calmly, "No need, we'll just wait here."
So Li Yao and Wei Yixiao sat on horseback, quietly watching what lay ahead.
Sure enough, a short while later, the sound of a large group of people walking could be heard.
Wei Yixiao gave Li Yao a thumbs-up with admiration and said, "Master, you are indeed amazing. You were right."
Li Yao smiled slightly, his gaze still fixed straight ahead.
A moment later, a group appeared in Li Yao and Wei Yixiao's line of sight from around the bend in the road.
At the very front of the procession, a young gentleman rode a fine horse, dressed in a royal blue silk robe, exuding an air of elegance and nobility.
This young man was exceptionally handsome, with bright, clear eyes and fair skin, as white as jade.
At the same time, Li Yao's gaze was immediately drawn to the long sword at the young master's waist.
On the hilt of the sword, the two seal characters "倚天" were clearly engraved.
"The Heaven-Slaying Sword!"
Wei Yixiao also spotted the sword and immediately exclaimed in surprise.
This precious sword is the very same Yitian Sword that Abbess Miejue used to slaughter Ming Cult members when she attacked Bright Peak.
Wei Yixiao asked in confusion, "Master, how did the Heaven-Reliant Sword of that old thief Miejue end up in that kid's hands?"
At this point, he suddenly remembered that the people from the six major sects had been kidnapped by the Prince of Ruyang's mansion.
Then he guessed, "Could it be that these people are all from the Prince of Ruyang's mansion?"
Li Yao nodded and said, "It seems that this is the only possibility."
In fact, as soon as Li Yao saw the Heaven-Slaying Sword, he had already guessed the handsome young man's true identity.
She must be Zhao Min, disguised as a man!
Wei Yixiao was even more puzzled and couldn't help but ask, "How did they get here?"
Li Yao did not speak, but instead focused his gaze on the carriages in the middle of the procession.
These carriages resembled caravans, covered with a black cloth, making it impossible to see what was inside.
Around the carriage, there were many guards, most of whom had their heads wrapped in turbans.
Besides these strange carriages, Li Yao discovered several unusual people.
Among them were two elderly men in their sixties or seventies, with high noses and deep-set eyes, who looked very much like people from the Western Regions.
Li Yao thought to himself, "They must be the Xuanming Elders."
These two old guys are considered top-tier experts in the world of Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. Their Xuanming Divine Palm is extremely cold and sinister. When the two of them join forces, they are almost impossible to defeat.
Besides the two elders of Xuanming, there are three other people who also attract a lot of attention.
One was a lean, wiry old man, tall and thin, with a face full of wrinkles and a worried expression, as if he had just lost his wife and children.
One was a bald old man with a sharp, capable appearance and eyes like an eagle's, emitting two piercing beams of light.
There was another one who was strong and muscular, with a fierce and imposing presence. His face, hands, and neck were covered with bulging muscles, as if he were bursting with energy. He had a black mole on his left cheek with a tuft of long hair growing on it.
Presumably, these three are Ah Da, Ah Er, and Ah San.
The person who attracted Li Yao's attention the most was a long-haired monk.
This monk was a large, imposing figure with a face covered in crisscrossing scars, making it difficult to discern his true appearance.
Moreover, his hair was reddish-brown.
Such an obvious appearance made Li Yao immediately guess that this person was very likely Fan Yao, who had been an undercover agent in the Prince of Ruyang's mansion for nearly twenty years.
Fan Yao is the Right Envoy of the Ming Cult, second only to Yang Xiao in rank.
Like Yang Xiao, he was one of the most handsome men in the Ming Cult.
However, twenty years ago, Yang Dingtian suddenly disappeared, and the Ming Cult was caught in a power struggle, on the verge of disintegration.
In order to find out the truth behind Yang Dingtian's disappearance, Fan Yao disfigured himself and infiltrated the Ruyang Prince's Mansion.
Now, Fan Yao is Zhao Min's mentor and one of her confidants.
At this moment, Zhao Min and her group had already spotted Li Yao and Wei Yixiao.
Zhao Min had many guards behind her, and they began to tense up, protecting her in case Li Yao and Wei Yixiao suddenly attacked.
Zhao Min showed no sign of tension, simply smiling as she looked at Li Yao and Wei Yixiao before slowly riding up.
Chapter 108 Beating the Lackeys with a Stick, Slapping the Hounds with a Palm
Zhao Min rode in on horseback, but her guards stared nervously at Li Yao and Wei Yixiao.
When they were about three zhang away from Li Yao, Zhao Min reined in her horse and said with a smile, "This must be the new leader of the Ming Cult, the Great Leader Li!"
Upon hearing this, a strange light flashed in Fan Yao's eyes behind Zhao Min, but it disappeared in an instant.
Li Yao feigned surprise and said, "Oh, you recognize me?"
Zhao Min said, "In the battle of Bright Peak, Grand Master Li defeated the six major sects single-handedly. Now, Grand Master Li's name is known to everyone in the martial arts world."
Li Yao said, "That's true. I'm afraid that under the deliberate vilification by your Ruyang Prince's Mansion, my Ming Cult has become a wicked and evil cult, and I am the infamous demon king."
Upon hearing Li Yao reveal their identities, Zhao Min was slightly taken aback, then smiled and said, "Master Li is joking. We are all from Jiangnan, how could we be from the Prince of Ruyang's mansion?"
Seeing that Zhao Min did not acknowledge his identity, Li Yao did not say much, but asked, "May I ask how you should address me, young lady?"
Zhao Min was not surprised that Li Yao had accurately identified her as a woman.
Because she didn't try to hide her voice at all, anyone who wasn't completely clueless could tell she was a woman.
Zhao Min cupped her hands and said, "My name is Zhao Min."
Li Yao thought to himself: She really is Zhao Min.
"Nice to meet you!"
He nodded calmly, then pointed to the carriage behind Zhao Min and asked, "Miss Zhao, what's in these carriages? Why are they all covered with black cloth?"
Zhao Min was startled, but she remained calm and said, "Actually, we are merchants from Jiangnan. The carriage is full of goods that I transported from Jiangnan to Dadu for sale."
Li Yao laughed and said, "Wouldn't it be safer and more convenient to transport so many goods by water? Also, the direction you came from should be Shaolin Temple. Do you mean you're doing business with the monks of Shaolin Temple?"
Li Yao immediately seized on two loopholes, and Zhao Min, who always thought herself to be exceptionally intelligent, showed a hint of panic in her eyes.
However, Zhao Min remained calm and said, "Our goods are not suitable for waterway travel. As for why we came from the direction of Shaolin Temple, it's because we are unfamiliar with the area and went the wrong way."
Li Yao asked with curiosity, "Then I'd really like to see what kind of goods are unsuitable for water transport?"
As he spoke, he spurred his horse toward a carriage covered with a black cloth.
Immediately, Ah Da, Ah Er, and Ah San, along with a group of people armed with various weapons, surrounded Li Yao and Wei Yixiao.
Zhao Min smiled slightly and said, "Master Li, I'm so sorry, the goods inside are extremely special and it's not convenient to show them to the public."
Li Yao said, "Then why do I insist on seeing what's inside today?"
Zhao Min's face darkened, but she smiled and said, "I don't care, but my servants don't have very good tempers. I'm afraid they won't agree."
Li Yao smiled faintly and said, "Then I'll see what kind of temper your servants have!"
After saying that, he gave Wei Yixiao a wink.
At the same time, his figure moved like lightning, quickly circling around his horse.
Fists flashed like shuttles!
Immediately, screams rang out, and all the people surrounding his horse were sent flying backward.
In an instant, a large number of people lay on the ground, groaning and screaming incessantly.
Seeing this, Ah Da, Ah Er, and Ah San rushed towards Li Yao.
Ah Da is known as the "Eight-Armed Divine Swordsman" and uses a sword as his weapon.
Ah Er and Ah San are disciples of the Vajra Sect of the Western Regions, whose special skills are the Vajra Palm and the Vajra Finger.
So, Li Yao used his foot to lift a stick off the ground.
He wielded a staff with his left hand, using the Dog-Beating Staff Technique to fight against Ah Da, while his right hand unleashed the Vajra Palm and Dragon Claw Hand techniques in succession to fight against Ah Er and Ah San.
"The Dog-Beating Stick Technique?!"
Ah Da was taken aback.
Ah Da's original name was Fang Dongbai. He was originally the head of the four elders of the Beggars' Sect, so he naturally knew the Dog-Beating Stick Technique.
The Dog-Beating Stick Technique is a unique skill of the Beggars' Sect, passed down only to the sect leader.
Of course, this rule was later broken by Hong Qigong and Huang Rong and passed on to Yang Guo, who was not a member of the Beggars' Sect.
Ah Da never expected that Li Yao would actually know the Dog-Beating Stick Technique!
"The Mighty Vajra Palm?!"
Ah Er and Ah San were also quite surprised.
Previously, they had heard that Li Yao had defeated Kongxing, one of the four great monks of Shaolin, with the Dragon Claw Hand.