Attack on the Stronghold! Bronze Treasure Chest!

"?" Saber-Wielding Bandit.

"?" Archer Bandit.

At the stronghold gate, several bandits stared at the scene in confusion.

Before they could react, the pebbles that had curved through the air landed separately.

Two landed on the watchtower!

Boom!

The Divine Bird Sigil flashed past, and two blossoms of flame erupted, tearing the three archer bandits inside to pieces.

Two landed at the gate.

Just as the five saber-wielding bandits were about to speak, the flames spread and swallowed them whole.

Boom—!!!

Explosions continued to erupt at the stronghold gate as flames roared fiercely.

Wu Yu hid at a distance and watched cautiously. He did not emerge even after the flames had died out.

After waiting for quite a while, he carefully approached. Several pebbles engraved with the [Bi Fang Sigil] were clutched in his left hand, while several ordinary pebbles were in his right.

The stronghold gate had become a charred, ruined structure. The lookout post and archer tower had collapsed, leaving only half of them standing.

Several cards lay above, and several more were scattered across the ground.

Wu Yu did not let down his guard. He carefully circled the area and only went over to collect the cards after confirming that everyone was dead.

There were nine cards in total. He directly threw away four [Unappetizing Chunks of Flesh]. There were also two [Vitality Pills], one [Silver], and two [Bandit Shortbows].

"Bows!?"

Wu Yu's eyes lit up. He put away the other cards and used one [Bandit Shortbow] card.

The card dissolved into motes of light, and a short bow about a meter long appeared.

Its body was made of wood, while the bowstring was some kind of animal tendon.

"Interesting."

He played with it briefly, then put it straight into his inventory.

A bow without arrows, and he did not know archery either. It was only good for looking at.

"Heaven-and-Earth Toss is a hidden-weapon technique. Even if I used it with a bow, I could only throw arrows. I can't exactly throw the bow itself as a hidden weapon, can I?"

He shook his head and cautiously descended the mountain path, observing the stronghold in the distance.

Since it was not far away, the commotion here had drawn some attention.

Several bandits emerged from the stronghold, their sabers hanging at their waists as they strolled leisurely toward the gate.

Evil Tiger Stronghold lay deep within mountainous woodland with complex terrain. Naturally, the entire stronghold could not be clustered together like Redfang Village, but was instead divided into several sections.

The stronghold gate stood at a crossroads, with a steep cliff on one side and a mountain wall on the other.

Only a few buildings stood near the gate, most of them occupied by bandit guards.

Before they even reached the gate, one bandit stepped on a pebble.

"?" The bandit looked down.

Boom—!!!

Flames exploded outward, blasting the men walking together off their feet. The nearest ones became charred corpse fragments, while the others suffered severe injuries and fell to the ground screaming.

But Wu Yu soon pounced out, gripped a stone, and smashed it into the temples of the heavily wounded bandits!

The stone in his hand was no pebble. With the [Heaven-and-Earth] state activated, blood-red vapor coiled around it, and every strike landed true!

Bang! Bang!

In just a few blows, the heavily wounded bandits died as well, their bodies dissolving into light.

Cards appeared one after another.

Wu Yu let out a long breath. He first looked warily toward the buildings, then turned back to pick up the items only after finding no one there.

"Beast meat. Not bad."

"Unappetizing chunks of flesh again? Toss them, toss them!"

"Hmm? This is..."

There were seven cards in total. Apart from the ones he intended to throw away, Wu Yu examined the useful ones.

He had gotten most of them before, but when he saw the last card, his eyes could not help lighting up.

[Exquisite Dagger]

Type: Weapon.

Quality: White.

Description: An exquisite dagger used by bandits, suitable for slitting throats.

"Such good luck!"

Delight appeared on his face, and he decisively used it.

The card dissolved into motes of light, and a dagger slightly longer than his palm appeared in his hand.

"A little small. Not suitable for me."

"No, this can be used as a hidden weapon!"

Excitement surged through Wu Yu's heart.

He looked toward the stronghold gate and suddenly threw it!

Whoosh—!

The dagger shot out, wrapped in blood-red vapor. It flew straight through the gate and toward the distance.

Wu Yu hurriedly willed it back, and the dagger flying into the distance immediately returned, landing steadily on the ground before him.

"A knockoff flying sword!"

He laughed heartily and lovingly stroked the dagger. A glint flashed in his eyes.

Runes appeared along the dagger's smooth blade, stroke by stroke, instantly inscribing the Divine Bird Sigil.

[Exquisite Dagger]

Type: Weapon.

Quality: White.

Enchantment: [Bi Fang Sigil].

Description: An enchanted weapon capable of exploding instantly!

"Enchantment..."

Wu Yu fell into thought.

"Looks like it can't increase the power. It still just explodes like a stone."

"Then I can't casually use the [Bi Fang Sigil] on it."

Past the stronghold gate, the guard huts were extremely crude, with only a few simple decorations.

Most were animal hides and skulls.

Wu Yu searched the place and put all the animal hides into his inventory.

When he reached the last hut and opened its door, he immediately spotted something strange!

Inside the crude wooden hut stood a half-meter-tall bronze treasure chest in the middle of the room. Flowing light shimmered across it, making it seem utterly out of place amid its surroundings.

"A treasure chest... This is getting more and more like a game. Unbelievable."

Wu Yu had already mentally prepared himself, but seeing a treasure chest for real still made his heart race.

He forced himself to calm down and inspected the surroundings before entering and looking at the chest.

Unlike an ordinary box, this treasure chest was wrapped in flowing light. It was exquisite and mysterious, brimming with an ancient aura.

Wu Yu gripped the dagger and pressed it against the treasure chest's lid. A panel actually popped up!

[Bronze Treasure Chest] Opening Countdown: 4 minutes 59 seconds!

Wu Yu was startled and immediately pulled back.

As soon as the dagger moved away, the panel vanished.

His heart stirred, and he pressed it against the chest lid again. Sure enough, the panel appeared once more, but the countdown had reset as well!

"So that's how it is!"

Wu Yu understood.

Opening a treasure chest took time, and if he was interrupted midway, he would have to start over!

"Could this treasure chest, like the mist, be exclusive to tower climbers?"

"Would every treasure chest have the same countdown? Or would different chests have different countdowns? Or is it measured according to the value of the items inside?"

Countless thoughts sprang into Wu Yu's mind as he held the dagger against the chest lid.

The countdown appeared, ticking down second by second!

Before long, the countdown ended.

Crack—!

The chest lid automatically opened a crack. With a slight push from Wu Yu, the chest opened completely, revealing several items inside.

They were all cards, but they shone with different glows. One of them even radiated purple light!

[Vitality Pill]

(Omitted)

[Three-Treasure Vitality Pill]

Type: Consumable.

Quality: Blue.

Description: The Three Treasures protect the body, greatly increasing a mortal's vitality and consolidating their foundation.

Mountain Lord Ghost Servant Art

Type: Cultivation Method.

Quality: Green.

Description: Learn Mountain Lord Blood Demon Art after use and transform into a ghost servant.

[Mountain Lord Thunder Spirit Herb]

Type: Material.

Quality: Purple.

Description: A mutated spirit herb whose quality has greatly improved.