The Fragment Map Secured

The passage inside the cave was narrow, with room for only two or three people to pass shoulder to shoulder.

It was also extremely dark, so Xiao Yan simply activated the Hundred-Forged Golden Sun Body.

In an instant, a faint golden radiance shone from Xiao Yan's body, illuminating the entire passage.

"How amazing!"

Xiao Yi Xian gave a surprised little cry, curiously looking Xiao Yan's body up and down.

Xiao Yan smiled and explained, "This is a body-tempering Dou Technique I practice. This happens once you master it."

"A body-tempering Dou Technique?"

"I've heard that practicing those techniques means enduring a lot of suffering, doesn't it?"

Looking at Xiao Yan's handsome, heroic face, Xiao Yi Xian couldn't help asking.

"I did suffer a teensy billion bits."

Xiao Yan smiled, his expression relaxed.

Looking back now, it had been nothing more than a little wind and frost!

Not worth mentioning!

After walking a little farther, Xiao Yan pointed at the ancient stone door standing a short distance ahead.

"We've reached the end!"

"I wonder what treasures are behind that stone door."

Xiao Yi Xian stepped forward and examined the stone door, anticipation quietly stirring in her heart.

This was her first time discovering a cave abode left behind by a predecessor.

Xiao Yan, who followed behind her, remained perfectly calm. After all, he already knew what treasures lay inside.

After feeling around for a while, Xiao Yi Xian mused, "This stone door must have some sort of mechanism installed. Fortunately, I've read a few books on mechanisms before. Give me some time to work it out, and opening this door shouldn't be difficult."

Hearing this, Xiao Yan stepped forward as well. After checking the door's thickness, he gave a casual smile.

"No need to go to all that trouble!"

"Step back a little!"

Xiao Yi Xian gave Xiao Yan a startled look, then immediately realized he intended to smash the door open. "Are you sure you can do it?"

Xiao Yan nodded slightly. Xiao Yi Xian didn't insist and slowly backed away to give him room.

Pressing one hand against the stone door, Xiao Yan shook his arm, and an unimaginably terrifying force burst from his palm.

Boom!

A deafening crash erupted inside the cave, echoing through the cramped space.

Xiao Yi Xian swayed slightly. For a moment, she had felt as though the entire mountain were shaking.

When she looked at the stone door again, only rubble remained.

Fragments of the door crashed to the ground, stirring up a cloud of dust.

"The door's open. Let's go inside!"

Xiao Yi Xian nodded slightly and followed Xiao Yan into the stone chamber beyond the doorway.

Once they entered the chamber, the space immediately opened up.

Luminous pearls were embedded in the chamber's walls, providing ample light and revealing everything inside to Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian.

In the corners of the stone chamber.

One held a small mountain of gold coins, their brilliant golden gleam dazzling to behold.

Another was piled with pearls, gemstones, and all manner of rare treasures.

Yet another was planted with a variety of high-grade medicinal herbs.

Besides those, three locked stone boxes sat on a stone platform in the center of the chamber.

Gulp...

At the sight before her, Xiao Yi Xian's lips parted slightly, and she instinctively reached out to tug Xiao Yan's sleeve.

"X-Xiao Yan, I think we've struck it rich!"

Above the cliff, a group of mercenaries wearing wolf-head badges on their chests gathered together. Leading them was a sinister-looking middle-aged man in a dark red fitted outfit.

Had Xiao Yi Xian been there, she would certainly have recognized them.

They were members of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, one of Qingshan Town's three major mercenary groups.

The sinister middle-aged man dressed in red was none other than the Wolf Head Mercenary Group's leader, the two-star Dou Shi, Mu She.

Mu She looked at the burly man beside him and asked calmly, "He Meng, are you certain you heard correctly?"

He Meng chuckled. Despite his burly build, his smile was incredibly sleazy.

"Commander, rest assured. Would I, He Meng, dare to fool you?

"There's definitely a secret beneath this cliff. I heard it from a long way off just now."

Mu She narrowed his eyes, but before he could speak, a young man following behind him, whose features bore some resemblance to his own, stepped forward impatiently, his expression feverish.

"Father, if the Third Regiment Commander is right, there must be a hidden world beneath this cliff. Some predecessor might have stashed treasures down there."

After all, countless such legends had long circulated across the Dou Qi Continent.

Stories of youths who fell from cliffs, survived certain death, and stumbled upon treasures left by great masters, soaring into the heavens from that moment on.

Who wouldn't want to become the protagonist of a tale like that?

After pondering for a moment, Mu She fixed his gaze and swept his hand.

"Prepare the ropes!"

"He Meng, take a few men down first to scout the way. If someone has beaten us there, deal with them as you see fit."

He Meng grinned, his gaze icy.

There had already been noises coming from beneath the cliff. How could there not be someone down there?

He wondered who the lucky soul was.

What a pity. They were about to sew a wedding gown for the Wolf Head Mercenary Group to wear.

With that thought, He Meng turned and called over several capable members of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, preparing to scout beneath the cliff.

Just then, Mu Li suddenly stopped him.

"Third Regiment Commander, I'll come down with you!"

"Haha, in that case, Young Commander, come along with us."

Meanwhile, inside the cave!

Having recovered from her shock, Xiao Yi Xian looked at the rare medicinal herbs growing in the flower bed in the corner. Her beautiful eyes lit up, and she trotted over like a little money-grubber.

"Purple Blue Leaves, White Spirit Ginseng Fruit, snow lotus seeds... heavens, so many treasures!"

As a physician and an avid medicine-refining enthusiast, Xiao Yi Xian knew something about all kinds of medicinal ingredients.

Xiao Yan, who already knew the plot, paid them no attention. Instead, he turned his gaze toward the skeleton behind the stone table.

Three keys hung at the bases of three finger bones on the skeleton's hand, corresponding to the three stone boxes.

Xiao Yan strode forward. As he removed the three keys, he also tore off the skeleton's arm bone, revealing an ancient scroll faintly visible within.

Looking at the scroll in his hand, Xiao Yan's mood immediately brightened.

The Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame Fragment Map. I finally have it!

He beckoned to Xiao Yi Xian, and she walked over.

"There are three keys here, plus a scroll. I'll take the scroll and one key, and you can have the rest. How does that sound?"

Xiao Yi Xian asked curiously, "What is that scroll?"

"It seems to be part of a map."

As he spoke, Xiao Yan unrolled the scroll, revealing the fragment map inside.

"Wouldn't that leave you losing out?"

Xiao Yan's proposed division made Xiao Yi Xian feel a little embarrassed, as though she were taking advantage of him.

Even if this fragment belonged to a treasure map, it would be useless unless all the pieces were gathered.

Xiao Yan smiled. "Not at all. Who knows? Maybe one day I'll gather the other pieces."

For Xiao Yan, who knew the plot, collecting all the pieces of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame Fragment Map wasn't particularly difficult.

But Xiao Yi Xian disregarded all that and insisted, "Whether you can gather the remaining pieces someday is your business. Right now, I'm the one benefiting, so you should have first pick of the other treasures in this cave."

Seeing how firm she was, Xiao Yan stopped making a fuss. He immediately opened all three stone boxes and chose the Flying Dou Technique: Eagle Wings.

After making his choice, he saw Xiao Yi Xian staring blankly at the colored scroll in her hands, her little face pale.

Clearly, Xiao Yi Xian had learned about her constitution and the fate she would soon face.

Xiao Yan fell silent for a moment. Perhaps because this woman had been a source of regret for so many readers of the original story, himself included, he instinctively didn't want her to endure so much suffering in this life as she had in the original.

While Xiao Yan was lost in thought, a jumble of footsteps and shouts suddenly came from the passage outside the chamber.

"Quick, there's light over there!"

"The treasure and inheritance are right there!"

The chaotic noises interrupted both Xiao Yan's and Xiao Yi Xian's wandering thoughts.

Hearing the commotion nearby, Xiao Yi Xian instinctively felt a stab of panic.

But when she turned and saw Xiao Yan standing there, calm and composed, all her panic vanished in an instant, replaced by a natural sense of security.

Tap, tap, tap!

As the footsteps drew closer, Mu Li and He Meng were the first to reach the chamber.

At the sight inside, greed appeared on both Mu Li's and He Meng's faces.

Mu Li's gaze swept over the mountain of gold coins before finally settling on Xiao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian.

Looking at the stone boxes they had already opened, Mu Li grinned, his voice sinister and overbearing.

"You two..."

"This place is now under the control of our Wolf Head Mercenary Group!"