Chapter 13: The Dreaded Xiong Family

The Gate of Terror.

Flying Bear Mountain, Tiger Head Cliff.

Tiger Head Cliff towers a thousand fathoms high, shrouded in clouds and mist. From afar, it resembles a ferocious tiger baring its blood-red maw, roaring at the myriad peaks. Thus, the cliff was named Tiger Head.

Atop Tiger Head Cliff lies a vast cavern, naturally formed, its entrance rimmed with jagged stones like stalagmites, interlaced and sharp, giving it the appearance of a tiger’s mouth. It is called Tiger Mouth Cave.

Tiger Mouth Cave is the council chamber of the main stronghold of the Gate of Terror’s Thirteen Camps.

At this moment, within Tiger Mouth Cave, hundreds of martial artists clad in black attire stood solemn and motionless. At the front, thirteen camp leaders dared not even breathe loudly, their eyes fixed upon several corpses laid upon the ground.

The bodies of Bear Gang, Bear Fierce, and several henchmen were arranged in a row before the assembly. Among the crowd, expressions ranged from fury to terror, and disbelief.

“Ahuai! Speak! Describe exactly what happened, word for word, to me! Leave out a single detail, and I’ll break your legs!”

Suddenly, a tall and imposing man at the steps, his face bristling with a lion-like beard, bellowed this command.

Bear Zhan, head of the Bear family in the Gate of Terror, leader of the Gate itself and chief of the Thirteen Camps, possessed the cultivation of the Eighth Layer of Body Refining, and with the assistance of the savage beast, the Ghost-Faced Flying Bear, his strength rivaled even those at the Ninth Layer. He was the most formidable force within the Gate.

The Ten Layers of Body Refining: the first five focus on external strength, the latter five on internal energy. The Eighth Layer is the stage of tempering the inner power and qi.

Bear Zhan’s roar unleashed a surge of inner energy, shattering a stone three yards away; countless fragments bounced about like beans in a pan.

Thud!

Ahuai fell heavily to his knees, stammering, “Master! I don’t know what realm Chu Feng has reached now, but his strength is terrifying. The third young master struck his chest with a powerful punch, but Chu Feng’s muscles crushed his fist! In his hand was some unknown weapon; with a single blow, he smashed Ajian’s head and pulverized the garlic hammer in the third young master’s grasp! He also said...”

“What did he say? Speak!” Bear Zhan thundered.

“He said... he said no one from the Bear family in the Gate of Terror would escape! He also claimed that any camp leader who remains in the Gate of Terror, when he comes, will either die or be wounded...”

“What? Nonsense!”

Bear Zhan grabbed Ahuai off the ground. His furious shout sent chills through Ahuai’s body; his hair stood on end, blood streamed from his seven orifices, and he collapsed, frightened to death by Bear Zhan’s wrath.

“Father, third and fourth brothers are dead. You must not be too angry. If rage harms your health, it plays right into Chu Feng’s hands. Now, we should discuss how to capture Chu Feng swiftly and avenge our brothers!”

The speaker was Bear Zhan’s eldest son, Bear Wei, who had his eye on Chu Feng’s sister, Chu Xinlian.

Like his father, Bear Wei was also at the Eighth Layer of Body Refining. Though his current strength was slightly less than his father’s, his potential on the martial path far surpassed Bear Zhan. Bear Zhan was sixty, only breaking through to the Eighth Layer two years prior, while Bear Wei was not yet thirty and already nearly matched his father’s prowess. Their respective potentials were obvious.

“Big brother is right! That brat Chu Feng was just a menial in our Bear family ten days ago, with barely the strength of the First Layer—a martial artist at best. Who’d have thought, in just over ten days, he could kill our brothers? He must have had some great fortune! While his wings are yet unformed, we must capture him quickly; otherwise, as time passes, his strength will grow and even if we catch him, our Gate will suffer losses!”

Bear Wu, clad in martial attire, stepped forward.

The Bear family’s four sons were renowned for their strength and valor.

Bear Wu, second son of Bear Zhan and younger brother to Bear Wei, had just completed the first five layers focused on external training and entered the Sixth Layer, beginning to cultivate internal qi.

Though his strength lagged behind his elder brother, Bear Wu’s potential was great; at just twenty, he had reached the Sixth Layer—a rare feat among the millions of martial artists in the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Ridges.

Persuaded by his sons, Bear Zhan calmed himself from rage.

He scanned the thirteen camp leaders and said, “You all heard Ahuai’s words just now. Chu Feng seeks not only to harm our Bear family, but to involve all of you! If any camp leader feels the Gate of Terror brings only trouble and wishes to avoid it, you are free to leave. I will not force you!”

“Chief, what are you saying? Against the other three powers of the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Ridges, we have never backed down. Would we fear a mere Chu Feng? Rest assured, the task of capturing him falls to me, Pan Ba!”

The speaker was Pan Ba, the most esteemed leader among the Thirteen Camps, chief of Wolf Mountain Camp, and the foremost among the “Eight Overlords of the Gate of Terror,” possessing the Sixth Layer of Body Refining.

“Yes! Pan Ba is right. Do we fear Chu Feng? Only afraid he’s too cowardly to show himself!”

“The day we catch him, we’ll crush him! Chop his flesh and feed it to the bears!”

“Exactly! Roast him over the fire, let him suffer the ten tortures of the Gate of Terror, make him beg for death!”

“Avenge the third and fourth young masters! Revenge! Revenge!”

A dozen camp leaders, eager to display loyalty before Bear Zhan, shouted and waved their arms, their hatred for Chu Feng burning hot.

“Good! Brothers, your loyalty is noted!” Bear Zhan nodded. “Pan Ba, I entrust you with the task of capturing Chu Feng! Issue a warrant immediately, a reward of one hundred thousand silver—alive or dead, bring him to me! Search every inch of the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Ridges if you must!”

“Yes, Master!” Pan Ba knelt to accept the order.

Initially, when Chu Feng and his sister Chu Xinlian fled the Gate of Terror, the Bear family’s primary target was Chu Xinlian. As long as she was caught and brought to Bear Wei, Chu Feng’s whereabouts were unimportant; the losses from the burning of the camp could be recouped from the lovely Chu Xinlian.

But now, Chu Feng had killed several henchmen and brutally slaughtered Bear Gang and Bear Fierce—plucking the whiskers from the tiger’s mouth. The Bear family’s desire to capture Chu Feng far surpassed their interest in Chu Xinlian.

“Father, Chu Feng is clever. Searching for him across the Nine Mountains and Eighteen Ridges is like fishing in the ocean—high effort, low reward,” Bear Wei said. “I’ve already guessed where Chu Feng might go, and I have an idea to make our search much more effective!”

“What idea? Speak quickly, son!” Bear Zhan demanded.

Bear Wei spoke calmly, “Chu Feng has stirred up so much trouble; he knows the Nine Mountains are too risky for him to remain. He’ll take the water route, sailing to Outer Town near Hengshan to hide awhile. Therefore, our primary search force should be deployed in Outer Town. It’s best to inform the elders of Hengshan Sect’s Outer Sect and ask them to assist us.”

“Yes! Big brother is absolutely right! Father, our Gate pays tribute to Hengshan Sect’s Outer Sect every year; that tribute shouldn’t go to waste. In this situation, they should send men to help us capture Chu Feng!”

Bear Wu nodded in agreement.

“Hm…” Bear Zhan frowned and shook his head. “No! Capturing Chu Feng is important, but so is our family’s reputation! Gang and Fierce died terribly at Chu Feng’s hand; soon, word will spread throughout the Nine Mountains, reaching Hengshan Sect’s Outer Sect—shame enough! If we cannot capture him ourselves and must beg for help, how much more humiliating would that be?”

“My intention is, once Chu Feng is caught, punish him as required, avenge Gang and Fierce, and let the matter fade away.”

For the Bear family, the simultaneous deaths of “Four Tiger” Bear Gang and “Five Tiger” Bear Fierce at the hands of a mere menial from the Gate of Terror was a disgrace. Outsiders might say the two tigers were worthless, or marvel at the menial’s prowess.

“Yes, father is right!” Bear Wei nodded. “Father, this time I wish to leave the mountain with second brother, unite with Pan Ba, and pursue Chu Feng on multiple fronts, striving to avenge our brothers swiftly!”

“No!” Bear Zhan shook his head decisively. “Not only you, but Wu too—you must both remain on the mountain and train day and night! Gang and Fierce’s revenge is mine to take, not yours!”

“But—Father, third and fourth brothers died at Chu Feng’s hand because of me! If I cannot personally join the hunt, my heart will not rest, my martial spirit will falter, and even secluded training will yield poor results!”

Bear Wei shook his head in distress, filled with regret. Had he not coveted Chu Xinlian, forcing Chu Feng to burn the camp and become a deadly enemy, Bear Gang and Bear Fierce would not lie dead.

Thus, Bear Wei was eager to participate. Only by capturing and killing Chu Feng himself would his heart be at ease, unobstructed in his martial cultivation.

“No! I said no, and that is final!” Bear Zhan grew irritable, barking, “If you don’t hunt Chu Feng, others will! But in three months, Hengshan Sect’s Outer Sect will host their quinquennial martial tournament. If you don’t compete, who will? Last time, our Bear family returned defeated; this time, we must claim first place! You and Wu must train hard, elevate your strength to the peak, and amaze the crowd, winning the heart of Ouyang Rui, daughter of the Hengshan Sect Outer Sect’s master Ouyang Hao. That is far more important than avenging your brothers! Do you understand?!”

“I... I understand. I do!” Seeing his father’s fury and admonition, Bear Wei dared not retort. He lowered his head, thinking, “Indeed! Capturing Chu Feng won’t happen overnight; rather than dwell on revenge, it’s better to focus solely on training. If I win first place at the tournament and earn Ouyang Rui’s favor, isn’t that more worthwhile?”

Having come to this realization, Bear Wei took a deep breath. When he looked again at the corpses of Bear Gang and Bear Fierce, they seemed no more than piles of beast meat, unrelated to himself, and the urge for revenge vanished completely from his heart.