Li Daoxuan had not chosen Gudu Ferry of Yongji on a whim.
There was a reason.
A very practical one.
From Gao Family Village to Dragon Gate Ferry was sixty-five li in a straight line. From Gao Family Village to Gudu Ferry—only fifty-seven.
When he had planted the Yellow River Bridge at Dragon Gate Ferry, Gudu Ferry had already fallen within his sight.
Within reach.
Within grasp.
The only reason he hadn't intervened earlier was simple: too many plates, not enough hands.
But now?
Now the plate was free.
The followers didn't know any of this.
They only knew that when the Dao Xuan Tianzun spoke, confidence bloomed like wildfire.
So they marched.
Five thousand ragged rebels trudged forward under Xing Honglang's banner, her six hundred Gao Family Village militia herding them like wolves guiding sheep.
To keep trouble from blooming, Xing Honglang deliberately chose empty paths—abandoned villages, broken trails, desolate fields.
"Imperial troops are everywhere," she said flatly. "Stray from the path and you die."
The rebels believed her.
No one dared touch a single civilian.
By dusk, the outline of Gudu Ferry appeared ahead.
The water fortress squatted by the river like a steel turtle, torches flickering atop its walls.
On Gao Chuwu's shoulder, the Puppet Dao Xuan Tianzun chuckled softly.
"Enough coddling," he said. "You may bare your fangs now."
The six hundred militia straightened.
Hands tightened on hilts.
Spines stiffened.
Among the five thousand, Cui Shanhu also found his courage.
Distance dulls fear.
With Xicheng Mountain far behind, Cao Wenzhao nowhere in sight, and five thousand bodies around him, Cui Shanhu's back grew straight again.
He pointed ahead and laughed loudly.
"Brothers! Look! A water fortress! People inside, torches lit—this place is fat with wealth!"
Xing Honglang snapped around, eyes blazing.
"Rob what, you idiot? That's my fortress!"
Cui Shanhu sneered.
"Oh? Boss Xing, you're a salt smuggler. You built a fortress and plan to defend it?"
He laughed harder.
"That's exactly how Wang Jiayin died. Got too comfortable. Declared himself king. Dug in."
He pointed toward the mountain behind them.
"Look how that ended."
As he spoke, the six hundred militia quietly drifted backward.
Not rushed.
Not obvious.
The rebels, loose and undisciplined, didn't notice.
By the time the open ground before the fortress was reached, the distance had already formed.
Then—
Xing Honglang raised her hand.
The six hundred stopped dead.
Horses stilled. Boots planted.
Not a sound.
Cui Shanhu froze.
His instincts screamed.
He backed away at once, retreating into his personal guard, a hundred men closing around him in a tight knot.
He roared, voice sharp with panic.
"Boss Xing! What are you doing?!"
Xing Honglang laughed.
"You asked if I feared an imperial siege."
Her voice carried across the field.
"I'll answer clearly: I fear nothing."
Cui Shanhu's face changed.
"You… surrendered?"
The word tasted poisonous.
Xing Honglang threw her head back and laughed outright.
"Me? Xing Honglang of Yongji? Surrender?"
She spat on the ground.
"Can your mouth produce anything except filth?"
"Then what do you want?" Cui Shanhu shouted.
The five thousand rebels began edging toward him, instincts pulling them toward whoever barked louder.
Xing Honglang raised her voice.
"I'll tell you the surest way to avoid being hunted."
She paused.
Let the silence bite.
Then—
"Stop burning. Stop killing. Stop looting."
Her voice rang like iron.
"Lay down your weapons. Become human again."
For a moment, the night went blank.
Then Cui Shanhu exploded.
"What?!"
He slapped his ear.
"Are you mad?! You're a salt smuggler! Why are you preaching like some rotten monk?!"
From the fortress tower, a bald head popped up.
"Amitabha," Zhan Seng said mildly. "This poor monk finds that description most offensive."
"Shut up!" Cui Shanhu snarled. "One more word and I'll chop you to pieces!"
"Goodness… goodness…" Zhan Seng sighed and ducked back down.
Xing Honglang stepped forward.
"I didn't gather you to help you keep being beasts."
Her gaze swept the mob.
"I gathered you to chain you."
"I know your kind. Words don't work on wolves."
Her hand dropped to her blade.
"So hear this clearly."
"I am fiercer than you."
"From today on, you obey."
"Speak a single word of defiance—and I summon the Dao Xuan Tianzun to crush you into meat."
Beside her, Gao Chuwu whispered, awed.
"Wow. My wife's scary."
Lao Nanfeng nodded approvingly.
"This is how you talk to bandits."
Cui Shanhu burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha! What a performance!"
He spread his arms.
"Six hundred scrawny dogs, threatening five thousand men?"
He turned and roared.
"Brothers! Whose orders will you follow—hers or mine?"
His hundred loyal men stepped forward at once, weapons raised.
The mob rumbled.
Temptation flickered.
Cui Shanhu's eyes gleamed.
"I won't reform!"
"I'll kill her first, loot the fortress, and feast!"
He pointed at Xing Honglang.
"Who's with me?!"
"We are!" his men shouted.
The five thousand hesitated.
Then—
Xing Honglang sneered.
"Very well."
"You may die."
Cui Shanhu sneered back.
"Oh? I'd like to see how you—"
The sky split.
Clouds tore apart like rotted cloth.
A colossal golden hand descended.
Wind screamed.
Thunder roared.
BOOM.
The palm smashed down.
Cui Shanhu.
His guard.
Gone.
The earth shook like it had been struck by heaven itself.
The hand lifted.
On the ground—
Nothing but a red, indistinct paste.
Screams erupted.
Men shrieked.
Some pissed themselves instantly.
Others collapsed gagging in filth.
The front ranks stumbled back.
The rear turned to flee.
Then—
BOOM.
The golden hand slammed down again, blocking the escape.
The ground cracked.
Dust rose.
The five thousand collapsed as one.
Knees hit dirt.
Foreheads slammed earth.
Silence fell.
Above them, the hand lingered.
Waiting.
Judging.