Chapter 232: Hidden Mission

Chapter 232: Hidden Quest

Zhang Yuanqing's gaze fell upon the top of the corridor door, where the three-arch, three-recess curved wall bore a sheet of yellow talisman paper, inscribed with twisted incantations in cinnabar.

This did not exist within the illusion.

"Huh..."

Zhang Yuanqing stared at the yellow talisman for a moment, then ultimately decided not to touch it.

Can't be reckless... he thought silently, having already stowed away his pistol and brass knuckles.

He did not head toward the main burial chamber behind him, but instead walked down the tomb passage in the opposite direction.

Just moments ago, he had recalled a description from a certain tomb-raiding novel: nobles of status in ancient times would erect a stele in the tomb passage after death, recording the tomb owner's identity, birth date, and life deeds.

Zhang Yuanqing entered the tomb passage and, after a thorough search, indeed found a stone stele set into a blue-brick niche along the wall.

The characters on the stele had been worn away by more than half over the years, the information unclear.

Based on the remaining content, Zhang Yuanqing roughly understood the Princess's identity: she was the eldest daughter of a certain Prince in the early Ming Dynasty, her boudoir name Yin Yao. Intelligent from childhood, beautiful as a flower, she possessed rare cultivation talent.

She had once cultivated under the Three Paths Mountain Lady at the Song Mansion. After completing her training, she wandered the world, living two full cycles of sixty years, passing away only in the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty. She never married.

This Princess was the Old Crone's disciple?!

"So many Night Wanderer transcendence dungeons, and the first time I enter the Three Paths Mountain Lady's temple, the second time I enter her disciple's tomb? What kind of karmic entanglement do I have with that Old Crone?!"

No words could describe Zhang Yuanqing's feelings at this moment. If forced to choose, it would be—Holy fucking shit!

Zhang Yuanqing left the tomb passage with a complex mood, returning to the burial chamber.

Passing through the six-meter-long corridor door, he entered the main burial chamber. In the center of the chamber, vast as a five-star hotel lobby, sat a Sumeru-throne stone coffin bed, upon which rested a white jade coffin.

On the east, west, and south walls, niches were built into the masonry.

All of this was exactly the same as in the illusion. The only difference: the porcelain and pottery were largely shattered, and two waist-high black wooden chests had been pried open, their contents scattered across the floor.

All were clothing, books, and various items an ancient woman might use.

None were particularly precious. Not a single piece of major gold, silver, or jade ware remained, though there were plenty of small gold and silver ornaments—gold buttons the size of thumbnails, for instance.

Clearly, this place had just been looted.

Now that's more like it... Zhang Yuanqing muttered, but the words turned into righteous indignation at his lips:

"Stealing from the dead—Wang Xia'er has gone too far."

...Zhang Yuanqing froze, suddenly understanding. The price of the Houtu Boots had begun.

Honest man!

He glanced at the coffin, but dared not touch it due to his psychological trauma from opening coffins. He first examined the items scattered across the floor.

Clothing, bronze ware, ceramics, ceremonial implements, gold buttons, twisted and deformed silver hairpins... Zhang Yuanqing ran his hands over each piece, discovering no artifacts.

He then flipped through the yellowed, brittle books—several miscellaneous volumes, a couple of geographical records, and a *Night Wanderer Breathing Technique*.

"All junk of no great value. Tsk, Wang Xia'er just happened to take all the artifacts with him? Though those three artifacts looked valuable, for the burial chamber to have contained exactly those three and nothing else... a bit too coincidental..."

At this moment, Zhang Yuanqing let out a soft "Huh?", his gaze locking onto the *Night Roaming God Breathing Technique*. It wasn't the book itself that drew him, but rather the glimpse of something tucked between its pages.

Picking up the manual to inspect it, he discovered a sheet of parchment sandwiched inside, inscribed with a certain sacrificial method; gather the materials recorded upon it, perform the rite, and one could beseech power from the supreme existence lurking in the dark.

Gripping the parchment for a few seconds, item information materialized:

【Name: Mass-Produced Parchment】

【Type: Hide】

【Function: Sacrifice】

【Description: Conduct the sacrifice as recorded on the parchment to borrow power from the supreme existence in the dark.】

【Remark: It demands no price, so long as you can gather the sacrificial materials.】

What a strange thing... This was the first time Zhang Yuanqing had ever seen an item like this. No, to be precise, it was his first encounter with the very concept of "sacrificing to a supreme existence."

Based on his own understanding, he interpreted the item's function:

"Gaining a specific enhancement through sacrifice—it's very much like a buff skill in a game. Just don't know how strong the buff is. When I return to reality, I'll gather materials and give it a try. No cost anyway, just a bit of money. But if the boost is huge, it becomes another trump card."

Zhang Yuanqing tried to stash the parchment into his inventory, delighted to find it could indeed be stored away.

"Just this parchment alone is a profit!" he thought, a look of guilt on his face.

He had become a tomb raider, too.

Walking up to the jade outer coffin, he placed both hands on the lid, about to exert force and push it open, when item information suddenly popped into his view:

【Name: Millennium Jade Coffin】

【Type: Coffin】

【Function: Nurture Corporeal Body】

【Description: A relic left by the Lady of the Three Dao Mountains, originally used to house her physical body. After the Lady perished, her secular disciple had a stone coffin crafted to replace the jade one.】

【Remark: A truly touching tale of master-disciple affection.】

"Pfft—"

Zhang Yuanqing couldn't hold it back; he burst out laughing.

The old hag had indeed been lying in a stone coffin, one he had personally pushed open.

Zhang Yuanqing mused inwardly, *No wonder when I opened the coffin for the old hag, her lips were pale, her skin dull, looking like she'd suffered from a severe lack of maintenance.*

"No, no, how can I laugh? I shouldn't gloat over something like this... Then again, I wonder what the old hag's expression was when she woke up and found herself in a stone coffin. I simply *must* ask her someday. Hmm, at least wait until I reach the Ruler realm..."

"No, no, can't be picking at old scars."

Muttering to himself, his palms silently exerted force, pushing the coffin lid aside bit by bit.

Inside the outer coffin lay another jade coffin.

Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath, carefully prying open the lid of the jade coffin.

Within the coffin lay a Daoist in cyan robes, his hair silvered, his face etched with wrinkles, yet his complexion was ruddy, as if he were merely asleep.

……Zhang Yuanqing silently closed the coffin lid, then shut the outer coffin's cover, swearing in his heart that he would never open a coffin again in this lifetime.

The Wandering Daoist was inside the outer coffin; he was actually here, he was truly here… Zhang Yuanqing's mind was full of retorts.

The Wandering Daoist's appearance here was unexpected, yet reasonable.

In Wang Xia'er's description, the Wandering Daoist sought the Princess's tomb because his allotted lifespan was ending, wanting one final gamble; never mind whether he obtained the secret of immortality, this jade coffin that nurtured the flesh was a temptation no Daoist could resist.

What does "allotted lifespan ending" mean? Isn't it just the flesh decaying and marching toward death?

This coffin nurtures the flesh; in a certain sense, it truly has the effect of prolonging life.

After seeing the Daoist in the coffin, Zhang Yuanqing, combining the instance introduction and Wang Xia'er's description, figured out many things.

The course of events should have been like this:

After finding the ancient tomb, the Daoist delightedly discovered the outer coffin could slow the flesh's decay, and so wanted to usurp the magpie's nest, yet dreaded the Princess inside the coffin.

Thus, taking advantage of the resentful spirits in the artifacts sleeping during the day, he instigated Wang Xia'er to steal the artifacts from the burial chamber; this way, the Princess, discovering her artifacts stolen, would furiously pursue the thief, and on the other hand, the artifacts served as guardian spirits—unable to purge the terrifying resentful spirits of the "Three Persons," he dared not reside long in the burial chamber.

Once the Princess left, he immediately entered the ancient tomb and occupied the outer coffin.

"But in this speculation, there is a fatal flaw: after the Princess discovered the high ground was stolen, why did she not kill her way back? Instead, she dared not re-enter the burial chamber…"

Thinking thus, Zhang Yuanqing's heart stirred; he exited the main burial chamber and returned to the antechamber.

He stood beneath the arched corridor gate of the "Three Arches and Three Vaults," raised his head, and scrutinized the yellow paper talisman pasted on the wall.

In the illusion crafted by the bronze mirror, the yellow paper talisman did not exist.

In other words, this thing appeared only after the bronze mirror left the tomb; the bronze mirror knew nothing of the paper talisman's existence, and thus it did not manifest in the illusion.

Who pasted the yellow paper talisman? The answer was obvious.

It was pasted after the bronze mirror was stolen and the Princess left the ancient tomb.

Zhang Yuanqing climbed up the steep brick wall, fingers hooking into the gaps between bricks, inching upward; his entire body's weight was supported by a few fingertips—an ordinary person absolutely could not perform such an exaggerated feat.

Reaching the arched top, Zhang Yuanqing pinched the brick gap with two fingers, extended his other hand; he dared not tear it off directly, only touching the yellow paper talisman with his fingertip.

Item information surfaced:

【Name: Blazing Flame Divine Talisman】

【Type: Talisman】

【Function: Warding the Dwelling】

【Description: A talisman drawn with fresh blood containing the divine power of the sun, capable of suppressing evil spirits and safeguarding the household's peace.】

【Note: It can only be used once.】

"As expected, it was this talisman blocking the Princess; she cannot return to the tomb, only wander the village. Good thing I didn't tear it off just now…" Zhang Yuanqing withdrew his hand and leaped down from the wall.

"It seems the Princess cannot return; then as long as I stay in the ancient tomb until ten o'clock tomorrow morning, I can clear the Mute Village instance and return to reality."

At this point, the Mute Village instance was considered thoroughly cleared.

Truly exhausted; in one night I nearly died three times, this is ten thousand times more thrilling than an arena match; why am I so unlucky, encountering hell-mode instances every time… Zhang Yuanqing's mood was very poor.

But soon, his mood soured further, for he recalled the instance he had entered—it was most likely one the Demon Lord had experienced.

And given the Demon Lord’s hidden rating, there were still quite a few Hell-mode instances in his future.

It was all the Demon Lord’s fault!

Wait… Zhang Yuanqing frowned. If hiding in the tomb chamber was enough to clear the instance, then by normal logic, the Princess’s appearance window ending—meaning the end of the fourth watch—should have marked the instance’s conclusion.

Because all the bosses were past; staying any longer served no purpose.

But the instance’s main quest was twenty-four hours. After dawn, I’d have to remain inside for another ten hours.

“These ten hours are completely meaningless, far too exaggerated. Is it a bug? If it’s not a bug, then going by my experience, this instance must have a hidden quest. So these ten hours are reserved for Spirit Realm Walkers to complete that hidden quest…”

“Survival instances are the type where the Spirit Realm gives zero hints. Whether a hidden quest exists, you have to guess yourself. Unlike Yin-Yang Town, where once a hidden quest triggers, the Spirit Realm prompts you.”

What is the hidden quest?

An artifact that falls dormant come daylight, a Princess with a home she cannot return to…

Zhang Yuanqing understood.

The hidden quest was to help the Princess recover her artifact and aid her return to the ancient tomb.

So the artifact’s dormancy during the day was designed to let Spirit Realm Walkers search for it without distraction.

“In that case, finding the artifact is no easy task either. But no matter, I have Little Clown!” The more Zhang Yuanqing thought, the more certain he grew, his eyes brightening.

And it fit his persona of passionate honesty perfectly.

Mind made up, Zhang Yuanqing sat in the corner of the outer chamber, back against the brick wall, and closed his eyes for a brief rest.

Three hours later, Zhang Yuanqing woke from his light sleep, put on the Red Dancing Shoes, walked up the steep brick wall, entered the robber’s tunnel above, and climbed out of the earth.

The outside world was already bright.

The mountain hollow was lush with green, layered peaks rising on both sides, dense forests everywhere.

Zhang Yuanqing made full use of the Red Dancing Shoes’ wear time, walking out of the deep mountains. Outside the village, he accompanied them for a dance before entering the settlement.

Just like when he entered yesterday, the desolate, ruined village was deathly silent, no human voices, but no danger either.

Zhang Yuanqing released Little Clown, ordering him to hunt for treasure.

Little Clown crawled to his master’s feet, spread his short, stubby arms, hugged Zhang Yuanqing’s calf, and rubbed his round face against it affectionately.

Having survived last night’s crisis, his nascent intelligence had taught him gratitude.

Little Clown scrambled ahead on all fours to lead the way; Zhang Yuanqing followed at a leisurely pace. Before long, they found Corpse No. 1 in a narrow alley.

Corpse No. 1 lay stiff on the ground, like a frozen corpse. There were no obvious external wounds, but Zhang Yuanqing’s face was heavy with grief.

The spirit body inside the Yin Corpse had been destroyed.

When refining a Yin Corpse, the first step is to make the residual spirit body in the corpse re-harmonize with the flesh.

The spirit body is the foundation of the Yin Corpse, its core.

Without the shattered spirit body, the Yin Corpse is merely a husk—effectively scrapped.

Zhang Yuanqing fell to his knees beside the Yin Corpse with a heavy thud, kowtowing fiercely:

"Brother, you died for me. This debt of gratitude I shall never forget; I can only repay it in the next life. Farewell!"

After the kowtows, Zhang Yuanqing felt something was amiss, but being of an honest disposition, he did not dwell on it, turning instead to pick up the human skin sheath lying beside the Yin Corpse.

The perfect human skin remained, untaken by the Commandery Princess; it had sloughed off the corpse of its own accord.

"It was you who forced me to make the decision to sacrifice my brother. You are nothing but a calamity. Once I clear this instance, I'm selling you off."

With a heart full of anguish, Zhang Yuanqing stowed it back into his inventory, then made his way to the small courtyard where Mister Xu resided, retrieving the silver rouge box sitting on the writing desk.

Next came the search for the Ghost Doll and the Bronze Mirror.

The Little Scamp led Zhang Yuanqing winding through the dilapidated mountain village, only to circle back, surprisingly, to Wang Er's dwelling.

Beside the path outside the courtyard, the old grandpa's headless corpse still lay.

Watching the infant spirit crawl into the courtyard without the slightest hesitation, Zhang Yuanqing raised an eyebrow, about to quicken his pace and follow, when he suddenly caught sight of the old grandpa's corpse.

A wave of guilt, utterly without reason, surged in his heart, followed by a pang of sorrow.

He walked to the old grandpa's corpse, dropped to his knees with a thud, and kowtowed three solid times, honest and sincere, by way of apology.

Then he rose and pursued the Little Scamp, entering the inner room where a coffin sat. The little infant spirit was crouched beneath the coffin, its tiny hands patting the packed earth floor, its mouth emitting childish "aba aba" sounds.

Zhang Yuanqing's heart stirred. He drew the Bloodthirsty Blade, the sharp tip gouging into the hard earth.

He dug ten-odd centimeters deep when the tip suddenly rang with a *ding*, as if it had struck something hard.

Zhang Yuanqing reached out to brush away the loose soil, revealing the lid of an iron box in the pit. He continued digging, and as the pit widened, he finally unearthed the iron box.

The iron box was half a meter long, twenty centimeters wide, and thirty centimeters high, secured with a copper padlock.

Zhang Yuanqing easily severed the padlock and lifted the lid. Inside lay a box full of gold, silver, and jade. On the very top sat a statuette, entirely pitch-black and translucent, carved in the image of a little girl with prominent ears.

The little girl's mouth was open, but there was no tongue inside.

Beside the statuette lay a palm-sized round bronze mirror, dull gray, its back engraved with a luan bird and a phoenix, their eyes set with two red gems.

Zhang Yuanqing flipped the bronze mirror over and held it up to his own face, but his reflection did not appear in the mirror.

This was a mirror that did not reflect people.

Holding the two artifacts, he waited a moment, and the item information materialized:

[Name: Yin Jade Doll]

[Type: Artifact]

[Function: Possession]

[Introduction: It was originally a piece of Yin Jade nurtured for a hundred years in a land of extreme Yin. By chance, it came into the possession of a lonely, helpless little girl. The girl carried the Yin Jade for a long time, and gradually the Yin Qi entered her body; she soon died. Her spirit fused with the Yin Jade, transforming into a statuette.]

[Note 1: The spirit within the Yin Jade craves playing games. Anyone who refuses to play with her will be possessed. This possession is unavoidable and unstoppable. The spirit cannot be completely eradicated.]

[Note 2: Let's play a game. I want to be the third person, heehee~]

Zhang Yuanqing stared, mouth agape, murmuring: "A ru... rule-type artifact..."

In the item attributes, any description bearing "Cannot XX" or "Unable to XX" denotes a Rule-class artifact.

For only Rule-class artifacts are so tyrannical; a rule is a rule, immutable and absolute.

The Ghost Doll’s function was singular, yet it was undeniably a Rule-class artifact.

In truth, upon learning that a party of three was required to avert the Ghost Doll’s crisis, a premonition had stirred in Zhang Yuanqing’s heart—it bore a striking resemblance to the Red Dancing Shoes’ rule.

—One must dance to unravel the rule, to evade the hunt.

Zhang Yuanqing instinctively, subconsciously, in a manner utterly unbefitting his honest nature, wanted to stash the Ghost Doll into his inventory, to claim it for his own.

[Ding! This item cannot be collected.]

This belongs to the Commandery Princess; I cannot take it… Zhang Yuanqing felt a pang of shame for a few seconds, then turned his gaze to the second artifact’s information:

[Name: Ghost Mirror]

[Type: Mirror]

[Function: Charm Arts, Reveal Spirits]

[Introduction: All things under heaven can be reflected, yet the human heart alone eludes capture. The Ghost Mirror is the artifact forged by Commandery Princess Yin Yao after two sixty-year cycles of wandering the world, weathering vicissitudes, witnessing the affairs of men, and perfecting her Charm Arts. It records all it has seen and heard, weaving illusions indistinguishable from reality.]

[Note: The moment you use it, you become—a Great Sage.]

A Great Sage? That counts as a price?

Because he was not the artifact’s owner, Zhang Yuanqing could not experience what the specific price of "Great Sage" entailed.

But that mattered little; returning the artifacts to the poor Commandery Princess was paramount.

He found a bamboo basket in the outer hall to hold the three artifacts, carried it out of Wang Xiaoeer’s stone room, and walked toward the rear.

It was time to complete the hidden quest, to clear the instance.