Shirong found none other than the very bandits they had been looking for since the start.

'Who would have thought they would make their base so close to the capital.' Shirong thought.

They were mere hours away from the capital city and if any illegal activity was detected by the guards a strict action would be taken. This was the reason why criminals did not dare to do anything out of the capital.

Though once one entered the city, things were different. Crime was not as uncommon in the city itself and certain powers were behind this. Often times leaving the city was an easy way to get a robber to stop his pursuit than going to the guards yourself.

It was a strange situation created over many years and had now reached an equilibrium. But perhaps to take the advantage of this very balance, the bandits had chosen to create their base here.

Their base was also rather apparent. It was an outpost located half a kilometer away from the main path, hidden behind a dense patch of trees. Had it not been for Shirong's Spirit sense he would not have spotted them.

"Looks like we won't be failing this time. They are coming to us themselves…" Shirong said to the others.

"What do you mean young master?" The servant asked.

"The bandits, they are coming for us now," Shirong replied as he opened the window slightly and peeked out.

"Hmm… there are ten of them. Three in the core condensation realm with the rest in the Qi refining realm." Shirong counted.

"Should I act young master?" The servant asked as his face turned serious.

These 'servants' that Shirong had with him were no normal people and were core condensation realm clansmen from the Lu clan. They were no soft persimmons and had been through their fair share of battles.

"No, just wait here. I want to see how they go about their business. What could they have done that they were able to get two of my subordinates captured?" Shirong said in a cold tone.

It didn't take long for the ten men to approach them on horseback. The three core condensation realm cultivators were at the front and were looking at them with grim expressions.

"HALT!" the man at the front shouted.

The carriage subsequently stopped and the few guards that were with the carriage showed a tense expression just as they had practiced.

"Wh-what do you men want?" The carriage driver questioned, while stammering.

"Surrender your belonging and come with us. If you don't listen peacefully, prepare to lose your life." The man ordered.

"Ahahahahahah!" Lin Wu couldn't hold back anymore and laughed out loud.

"These dumb fucks! Can't they be any more generic?" Lin Wu said, feeling amazed at this.

The carrier driver gulped loudly to show his fear and looked at the back of the carrier.

~creek~

The door of the carriage opened and out walked the servant, with a scared look on his face.

"The young master told us to do as they ask. Just don't harm him." The servant spoke.

"Hehe, seems like this guy has some brains, at least. This will make it much easier for us." The leader of the bandits spoke.

"Come on, take the entire carriage to the hideout. We'll check the loot there." One of the core condensation realm cultivators ordered.

The Qi refining realm cultivators surrounded the carrier and prodded them ahead while the three experts led them to their hideout. They didn't travel fast though, as the path was rather rough. This was off the main path and it took them ten minutes to travel a mere half a kilometer.

On the way there though, the three core condensation realm cultivators were all very alert and were looking around.

"What do you think first brother? Is this the silk pants we got the information about?" The third core condensation realm cultivator asked the first one.

"Should be this one. The clan name of the carriage reads 'Ji' so it's definitely them." The first brother spoke.

"What if we got the wrong person thought? Perhaps this is the young master of the great Ji clan." The second brother asked with apprehension.

"Ahahha! Second brother, your joke is really good. Why would a young master of the great Ji clan travel in a carriage like this that too with so weak guards? Not to mention the guards, they themselves should be strong enough to fight us alone. This is clearly the young master of the local Ji clan." The first brother replied.

"Ahahah!" Lin Wu laughed again. He couldn't believe how accurate the words of the second person were.

The two men took another look at the carriage and indeed found it to be normal looking. There was nothing peculiar and the guards also had weak spirit Qi fluctuations. The concealment talismans that the Lu clan head had prepared were working well for them.

These talismans were single use ones, that could hide the spirit Qi fluctuation of a cultivator making it seem like they were one realm below the actual one. This talisman needed to be activated before someone detected you and worked for about six hours.

The guards and the servant had activated them, the moment Shirong had announced that these were the bandits they were looking for.

After approaching the hideout, the carriage was halted and a few more men walked out of the small building that was made from wood and stones.

"Seems like a good haul this time. We will make a fortune ransoming this guy." The first brother spoke with joy.

"But what if his clan is unable to pay or does not want to pay his ransom?" The second brother asked.

"You are as doubtful as ever, second brother. We have never had a clan who did not pay the ransom for one of their heirs. Besides, even if they don't pay us, we can very easily sell him off. The costs for well maintained and good looking slaves from rich clans are quite high. We will not be making a loss either way." The first brother spoke.