No one dared to bargain with Chi Yama who had just killed someone, and they left reluctantly.
Hundreds of people scattered like birds and beasts, leaving only about a hundred people, most of whom looked forward to the thought of being able to meet an Immortal and soaring into the sky.
"You will be the fourth batch of mountain patrols for my Black Wind Stronghold, ranked with the initial ’Ding’. You will be mixed with the other three batches and patrol daily, each batch patrolling for three hours. Anyone found trespassing will be killed without mercy."
Chi Yama declared the arrangement for all of them.
"I wonder when we will be accepted as disciples by the stronghold leaders."
Someone mustered up the courage to ask, prompting many others to chime in. They didn’t come here to patrol the mountains, but to learn Martial Arts and Immortal Techniques, and even becoming a master would be worthwhile.
"You haven’t even figured out the patrol properly and you want to become disciples?"
The Red Flame Army sneered: "Back in the day, I patrolled the mountains for ten years before the third leader noticed me. Do you all think you can just perch and transform into a Phoenix right away?"
The person speaking shrunk his head, daring not to speak anymore, sensing that his counterpart was fierce enough to kill him at any moment.
Chi Yama waved to a few people around him: "Incorporate them into the patrol teams immediately!"
The four people on either side responded respectfully.
After speaking, Chi Yama stomped on the ground, and his dwarf body shot out, landing on the steps in an instant, then with another tap, he was a few yards away, quickly disappearing at the end of the steps.
The waterfall water kept falling. Shen Wang and others were taken to a row of thatched huts not far away, where a lot of food and miscellaneous items were stored.
The sound of snoring emanated from some of the thatched huts. One of the four small leaders who brought them over, the leader said: "This is where you live. Next, come and get your wooden tags. Based on these tags, you will patrol at different times, rotating every three days, with a complete cycle every twelve days."
Shen Wang received a tag labeled B88. Arranged by A, B, C, and D, with around the same number of people per batch, there should be over three hundred patrols!
Even when divided into four batches, there are an estimated eighty to ninety people per time slot, enough to cover the whole stronghold.
Such numbers were already giving Shen Wang a headache. He glanced at the mountain.
Even though he managed to sneak into the patrol team, he didn’t dare to make a move overtly anytime soon.
Shen Wang further realized the strength of Black Water Stronghold, seemingly not a mere loose cultivator force, no wonder they dared to target the Yun Family’s goods.
He glanced at the dirty and chaotic living area. Most of these bandits were recruited recently; weren’t they afraid Yun Family people might infiltrate?
But if they couldn’t even enter the village and were only patrolling the outskirts, there was nothing they could do even if they infiltrated.
Shen Wang showed nothing special, making himself at home with the others.
He quickly found that the small leaders who brought them were also monitoring them, forbidding them from wandering and requiring strict adherence to orders.
Not long after, about a dozen people came and further subdivided this batch of newcomers. Only then did Shen Wang learn that each patrol was divided into nine smaller teams.
Each team consisted of about ten people, and each team leader was an official bandit of the stronghold, responsible for managing the newcomers.
Shen Wang remained silent, confirming that his patrol was scheduled for the Hour of the Dragon. When night came, he opened his eyes.
Snoring was ceaseless all around. Several people were sleeping in a small room, though luckily, each had their own bed.
For ease of going out, he deliberately chose a spot by the window.
He took out a Talisman, activated it, and it transformed into a perfect replica of himself, lying in his place.
He used a Concealing Talisman to merge himself into the night, slipping lightly out the window and into the open.
Not far away, someone was patrolling, but Shen Wang hidden was unseen, slipping away from the side, slowly heading up the mountain.
Upon entering the mountain, Shen Wang heard a miserable scream, followed by a rush of footsteps.
"Sun Yama has killed another guy trying to sneak in."
A complacent voice carried over from the forest on the slope.
Shen Wang looked over and found that the guy lying on the ground was also one of today’s newcomers into the patrol team.
"Hmm, kill those who trespass, the Village Chief has ordered that no outsiders, including these newcomers, are allowed on Black Stone Platform."
Another voice responded, slightly shrill, belonging to a robust woman of about forty to fifty years, not considered beautiful.
The person executing orders responded, then a few people carried the corpse down the mountain, not noticing anything unusual as they passed near Shen Wang.
"Sun Yama, isn’t it said that this time, we’re raiding a major family, the Yun Family’s goods, is it really okay?"
The man who had been killing asked in a low voice.
"The Village Chief wouldn’t make a move without being confident, especially since it’s only a branch of the Yun Family, what’s there to fear?"
Sun Yama glared at the latter: "Just patrol honestly. We’ve recruited over three hundred people to guard the perimeter. Not even the Yun Family branch could scare us."
Watching Sun Yama leave, Shen Wang frowned.
After half a day of understanding, he had some insight into Black Water Stronghold’s inner workings.
The title Yama is not a nickname, but a position within Black Water Stronghold.
Those known as Yama are basically Innate Grandmasters, below them is Impermanence, such as the strong man asking questions, who is a Postnatal Martial Artist, mostly Late-stage Postnatal.
Other ordinary bandits are just a bunch of minor demons, mostly having some martial skills.
Above Yama is the Dharma Protector, all at Mid-stage Innate or mid-stage Cultivator level.
Further up are nine heads, second only to the Village Chief, who are all Advanced Grandmasters or Late-Stage Qi Cultivation Cultivators, with the Village Chief possessing Foundation Establishment level strength.
Though it is heard that the first few heads also have Foundation Establishment level cultivators, the true circumstances are unclear to those ordinary bandits.
No matter what, the strength of these individuals has surpassed what Shen Wang could handle alone. Two fists cannot defeat four hands, and he dared not act rashly.
After Sun Yama left, Shen Wang continued forward. The path was full of mechanisms, and if Shen Wang hadn’t cultivated the Contemplation Method, with his strong Divine Thought, he might have fallen to these traps meant for ordinary people.
Crossing the slope, suddenly, ahead was all a circle of bare stones, impossible to hide. On the rock wall, every ten yards, someone was sitting and guarding, truly heavily defended.
Shen Wang couldn’t help but feel his Talisman book was a worthwhile purchase, with its useful basic talismans allowing him to continue deceiving these people.
After passing through the rock wall, Shen Wang reached the slope where everything was a kind of black ore, blocking most of the paths, with only narrow roads between the stones, each manned by guards.
Shen Wang was speechless. These series of defenses were not simple. Even invisible, he needed to be cautious to get through.
His invisibility made him hard to spot, but his body still stirred airflow, his footsteps still present. Even using Spiritual Power to lighten himself generated a Spiritual Power fluctuation, risking detection by experts.
Guarding the narrow path, apart from ordinary stronghold members, was an Innate Grandmaster. Shen Wang didn’t dare get too close, letting his gaze fall on the stone beside, slowly passing over it.