Zhang Xiaohua slipped down the wall and hid in a dark corner, his heart pounding wildly. This was the first time he had ever attempted something so dangerous, so it was only natural for him to feel nervous.

Once he calmed himself slightly, Zhang Xiaohua carefully observed his surroundings.

The place was a mess. Behind the wall was a large open area, cluttered with all sorts of discarded objects. In the dim night, it was impossible to make out exactly what they were. At the far end of the open space stood a cluster of hastily built, disorderly houses. The torches on the stockade walls cast a bright glow, but they only illuminated the edge of the square. Faint lights flickered from the distant houses, and even from afar, Zhang Xiaohua could hear the noise coming from that direction—evidently, it was a lively place.

Gazing at the open space he had to cross, Zhang Xiaohua furrowed his brows tightly. How could he pass through without drawing attention? And what exactly was going on in those houses?

All of a sudden, Zhang Xiaohua had the urge to slap himself. He had just remembered—didn’t he have his divine sense to use? Why had he rushed to the top of the wall without even scouting first? Sigh, he still wasn’t used to it. It seemed he would need to practice this ability more in the future.

With that thought, he immediately released his divine sense. Sure enough, he could see everything happening on the wall behind him with perfect clarity. Divine sense truly was an indispensable household tool for assassinations and arson on dark, windy nights! He then swept his senses toward the houses in the distance, but unfortunately, they were too far away for his divine sense to reach. Still, Zhang Xiaohua mused: “The houses are abnormally noisy—there must be some kind of commotion going on. Who would have the time to wander around aimlessly? Besides, judging by this bandit stronghold, it’s both chaotic and loosely structured, without even a single patrol in sight. It seems their main focus is outside the stronghold, while the interior is left relatively unguarded.”

Zhang Xiaohua swept his divine sense over the wall again. As expected, there were quite a few guards patrolling back and forth, but their faces were all turned outward, rarely paying attention to what was happening inside the stronghold. Zhang Xiaohua chuckled to himself—these so-called sentries were truly useless.

Seizing an opportunity, he slipped out of the shadows and used Qinggong, his figure flickering like a faint shadow as he drifted toward the cluster of houses. At the same time, he spread out his divine sense, keeping a close watch on any movement within the buildings.

Sure enough, just as he neared the houses, his divine sense detected someone staggering about. Startled, Zhang Xiaohua immediately halted, pressing himself flat against the ground. The open space was filled with all kinds of debris, and the torches couldn’t reach every corner, so he wasn’t too worried about being seen. Just as he crouched down, the door of the nearby house creaked open, and a disheveled man yawned as he stepped out. He glanced around, muttering under his breath: “A bunch of idiots, trying to copy military formations and night patrols? Bandits are just bandits. What’s the point of all this military-style management? Even if they trade their old weapons for cannons, they’re still just bandits in the end.”

With that, he casually loosened his clothing and began relieving himself in the open square.

Zhang Xiaohua was close enough to hear every word, and he couldn’t help but ponder: “Military-style management? What does that mean? Could something have changed in this stronghold?”

Once the man returned inside, Zhang Xiaohua rose to his feet and quickly darted to the side of a house. With a swift movement, he leaped onto the roof and flattened himself against it, taking a brief moment to rest. Recalling his smooth series of actions just now, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride. Could it be that I have a natural talent for night infiltration?

After indulging in his self-satisfaction, Zhang Xiaohua once again unleashed his divine sense to probe the interior of the buildings. Only now did he realize that this area contained a large number of houses. The ones on the outskirts were indeed chaotic, built haphazardly, but the deeper he looked, the more structured the layout became. In the center, there were proper stone houses with earthen walls, complete with courtyards and pavilions. Though it couldn’t compare to Huanxi Villa in scale, it was far superior to an ordinary rural village.

Seeing this, Zhang Xiaohua immediately understood—the outer houses were where the low-level lackeys lived. If he wanted to gather information about the Li family, he would have to venture deeper inside. With his decision made, he once again used Qinggong, moving swiftly along the rooftops.

The stronghold contained many houses, arranged in neat rows with little distance between them. As Zhang Xiaohua traversed the rooftops, his steps were impossibly light, making no sound at all. Before long, he had already reached the central area. Here, he exercised even greater caution. The outer lackeys were weak and naturally wouldn’t notice his presence, but the deeper he went, the higher the status of the people living there—and the stronger their martial arts. Their experience would also be greater. If he was careless, he would undoubtedly be discovered.

Inside the houses, the bandits were engaged in various activities, and the noise was incessant. Zhang Xiaohua wasn’t sure where to start, so he could only move forward slowly, carefully listening to the conversations around him. As he walked, a coarse voice suddenly reached his ears: “Damn it, we just handed that beauty over like that? Brother Xu, tell me, what kind of nonsense is this? We risked our lives to snatch that woman from the Evil Tiger Gang’s territory, thinking we could enjoy ourselves once we got back to the stronghold. But before we even reached the gate, the stronghold chief saw her! If we knew this would happen, we should’ve just had our fun at the foot of the mountain first!”

Another voice responded, and the moment Zhang Xiaohua heard it, his heart stirred—wasn’t this the slightly older bandit he had encountered in the forest that day, Brother Xu? Brother Xu said: “Old Cao, you should be satisfied. Didn’t we already split the loot we took from the Li family? Normally, the chief wouldn’t interfere in this kind of thing, but things aren’t like before. The Divine Cult has people staying in the stronghold, and the chief is doing everything he can to please them. If the Divine Cult favors our West Cui Mountain, we’ll have a powerful backer in the future, won’t we?”

Old Cao grumbled: “Brother Xu, you’re being too optimistic. Haven’t you noticed how those Divine Cult people barely acknowledge us? Even if they want to support someone, they’d pick the Evil Tiger Gang. We’re just a bunch of disorganized nobodies.”

Brother Xu chuckled: “That’s not necessarily true. The Evil Tiger Gang has its own disadvantages, while we have our own strengths. Haven’t you noticed how the Divine Cult has already started advising us? This whole military-style management—patrols at the foot of the mountain, extra guards at the stronghold gate—it’s completely different from before. It’s clear they plan to give us benefits. If the Evil Tiger Gang were easy to control, do you think they would’ve chosen us?”

Old Cao scoffed: “Military-style management? It looks proper on the outside, but inside, nothing has changed. Besides, in all these years, who’s ever dared to come up West Cui Mountain? What a load of nonsense.”

“It’s ‘worrying over nothing’.” Brother Xu corrected. “Forget it, we’re just lackeys. As long as we follow the chief, we’ll get by. If it weren’t for him arriving at the stronghold this year, we’d still be starving.”

“Fine, let’s drink, let’s drink!”

A round of clinking cups and laughter followed.

Zhang Xiaohua listened from the rooftop, feeling puzzled. “Divine Cult? What kind of sect is this? I’ve never heard of it before.” However, from the conversation of these bandits, he had at least learned news about Li Yinfeng. The only question was whether he had arrived too late. With that thought, he swept his divine sense across the room. Inside, he detected five or six people—it seemed to be the same group of bandits from the forest that day. There are too many of them. I can’t guarantee a single, decisive strike without alarming the others. This will be difficult. Should I rescue Li Yinfeng first? he pondered.

Just then, another sleazy voice spoke up: “I don’t know what the chief is thinking, keeping those two old geezers alive instead of throwing them off a cliff. What, is he raising them like his own parents?”

Brother Xu chuckled. “You just don’t understand. I secretly took a look at the Divine Cult’s envoy this afternoon. He’s a real dandy, one of those charming and romantic types. People like that are always weak to beauty. The chief saw this and deliberately offered up the girl to win his favor. The real problem is, if that girl truly catches his eye, and we’ve already killed her parents, what happens when she whispers in his ear at night? One word from her, and our whole stronghold might be wiped out! Keeping them alive for now is just a few extra meals—might as well be feeding pigs. Anyway, the chief is entertaining him right now, and tonight, they’ll enter the bridal chamber. If the envoy still doesn’t express any goodwill by tomorrow, then we can kill them.”

“Brilliant! Brother Xu, you really are the brains of our group. You understand the chief’s thinking better than anyone. Come, let’s toast to you! May we continue to thrive under your guidance!”

“No problem, no problem! Bottoms up, brothers! In a few days, we’ll head down the mountain again. I’ve heard that Balingou, Guo Village, and Guanyin Temple have some fine goods. We should go have a look!”

“Indeed! A few years back, the former chief led us down there, and he even brought back a wife to keep in the stronghold. We should make another trip sometime.”

Hearing this, Zhang Xiaohua’s heart leaped with joy. It seems I arrived just in time. The entire Li family is still alive! But the mention of Guo Village made his blood boil with rage. These scum! They actually plan to raid Guo Village! But now isn’t the time for revenge. I need to deal with the situation at hand first.

With that, he carefully memorized the layout of the buildings before moving further along the roof ridge. As he progressed, the houses beneath him grew more lavish and taller, indicating that he was getting close to his target. Stopping, he released his divine sense once more. After a brief scan, a faint smile appeared on his lips—inside a grand hall ahead to the left, two men sat, chatting and laughing. The banquet had not yet begun, and a few plainly dressed servant girls were still setting the table.

Gathering his breath, Zhang Xiaohua stealthily moved forward, landing lightly on the edge of a roof beam. Instead of peeking inside, he simply pricked up his ears while scanning the room with his divine sense. Inside, a plain-looking man in luxurious robes said with a courteous smile: “Envoy Ying, I’m truly delighted to see you again. My humble stronghold’s food and wine are crude and unworthy—please forgive me.”

The other man, also dressed in fine brocade, had eyebrows that slanted upward, giving him a frivolous and lecherous look. He idly twirled a folding fan in his hand and replied with a smirk: “Chief Liu, you’re being too polite. This isn’t our first meeting—why fuss over such trivial matters?” As he spoke, he flicked his fan forward, lightly tapping the rear of a serving girl who was setting the dishes. Startled, the girl trembled, nearly dropping the plate in her hands. ✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦ Orluros’s Vault of Secrets: If you liked the chapter feel free to donate 🙂 and if you find any errors in the translation please mention them in the comments here or in discord