Chapter 298: The Secret Missed At The Beginning

Chapter 298 The Secret Missed Back Then

“Are you really sure? Don’t end up like Wan Zhuang…”

“Oh, how affectionate. Wan Zhuang~”

“Can you please focus on the main point?”

“Sure… seventy to eighty percent. No one can claim absolute certainty at any stage, even the first barrier carries risks. Seventy to eighty percent odds are basically as stable as it gets.”

“Mm…” Zhao Changhe asked, “Is there anything I can help with?”

“No need… you?”

“…”

San Niang said with a grin, “You’ve already made a great contribution in this matter, and your words were very well put. You clearly wanted to win me over to deal together with Wubalu, yet you made it sound like you were doing a special favor for the Four Symbols Sect, giving them a gift…”

Zhao Changhe sighed, “That was the truth. Even without giving you this thing, I could still have rallied you against Wubalu—you wanted to kill him anyway, who are you trying to fool?”

San Niang fell silent.

Indeed, Zhao Changhe’s act of giving the Basalt Stone at that time had no other motive; it was purely to help the Four Symbols Sect.

Or perhaps one could say he didn’t want the Four Symbols Sect to cause him trouble. After all, he had handed the space over to Ying Wu. When San Niang went in later and found nothing, the jelly all dug up, she would naturally come to him demanding something—that would be a sign of falling out.

He didn’t want a falling out, nor did he covet the gem, so he simply gave it away as a favor. At least the ring he got could keep for himself, and they wouldn’t have the nerve to ask for it back, since the place was his discovery.

After receiving the gem, Vermilion Bird also fell silent. Even now, knowing that this man was most likely not the Night Emperor’s heir, it would be hard for her to kill him.

If he had used this Basalt Gem as a betrothal gift to ask for Xia Chichi, or to seek marriage with someone like Winged Fire Snake, the joke might have been considerable. But he asked for nothing—truly gave it away for free.

No matter how demonic the cult or how wicked the women, favors had to be acknowledged. That was also why San Niang was so nice to him now.

Zhao Changhe suddenly smiled, “Alright, as long as it helps you improve, that’s good. I’ll be waiting for the day your Four Symbols Sect steps onto the Heavenly Ranking.”

San Niang said, “That’ll make it even harder for you to beat Vermilion Bird.”

Zhao Changhe seemed unconcerned and instead changed the subject: “The Four Symbols Sect and I have deep ties, all entangled with personal feelings. Once we start talking, there’s no end. Let’s discuss something serious? I want the Dragon-Elephant Blood Ginseng. Does Ying Wu have any leads?”

“Yes,” San Niang said. “In the far west, there is the Kunlun Heavenly Lake. In the records of the previous era, this thing existed there, but it’s gone in this era—maybe because the environment changed, or maybe due to excessive human destruction, preventing the blood ginseng from growing to its required age. If you can find some secret realm there, you might obtain a surviving blood ginseng from ancient times… But the odds are slim. Secret realms themselves are hard to find, and even if you find one, it might not contain blood ginseng. Are you willing to travel thousands of miles to try?”

Zhao Changhe was silent for a moment, then sighed, “What else can I do? I’ll just have to try. Anyway, I have no fixed home—wherever I go is fine.”

“Alright, our people will help you then.”

“Your people—do you mean the Four Symbols Sect or Ying Wu?”

San Niang smiled faintly, “Both, of course. But you need to be careful. There are powerful forces there, and even Heavenly Ranking experts.”

Zhao Changhe showed little reaction. “Got it. I’m not going to cause trouble. Whether there’s a Heavenly Ranking expert or not isn’t that important—they won’t kill people on sight, will they… Actually, having a major force might be a good thing. They might privately possess Dragon-Elephant Blood Ginseng, and I could try to make a deal with them…”

“You’re overthinking it,” San Niang said flatly. “That’s a land of exile, a paradise for villains. Many outcasts from the Central Plains who can’t make it there gather—wanted criminals, those who’ve offended powerful enemies—all kinds of scum. They stop at nothing: cheating, robbing, looting. Countless chivalrous warriors from the Central Plains have vanished there without a trace. Even Tang Wanzhuang’s people dare not set foot there lightly. Our Four Symbols Sect doesn’t dare to develop followers there casually… If you, a stranger, go there, your head might be taken off before you know it, and you still want to make deals?”

“Then I’ll keep a low profile. I’ll just say I’m Wang Daozhong.”

San Niang: “…”

Actually, at this moment, San Niang felt a bit strange in her heart. Some things really were fated.

Chichi’s training ground this time was precisely that place—the Western White Tiger, fitting perfectly. Her first secret realm was there. And Vermilion Bird might also go, both to secretly protect Chichi and to make final preparations for breaking through her own third secret realm.

And now this guy, looking for Dragon-Elephant Blood Ginseng, was also heading there. San Niang hadn’t yet told Vermilion Bird or Chichi about this—it belonged to Ying Wu’s line of business. She wondered what sparks would fly if these few met by chance over there… Thinking of this, San Niang almost didn’t want to go to the Yellow Sand Collection anymore. What fun was there in the Yellow Sand Collection now? How could it compare to Kunlun?

Too bad she needed to go to the Basalt secret realm to check it out—the training would likely be beneficial, and she couldn’t leave in the short term. What a pity.

“Oh, by the way…” Zhao Changhe tapped his head. “San Niang, do you know where the Thieves’ Sect is?”

“Why ask about that?”

“I feel like they’d love places like this. It just came to mind.”

“Right. The Thieves’ Sect should be based there, though no one knows the exact location of their mountain gate. Maybe a seemingly ordinary grocery store you see on the surface is actually their headquarters, who knows.”

“That’s enough confirmation for me.” With many questions settled, Zhao Changhe was in a good mood and raised his cup in a toast: “San Niang, you’re really my lucky star.”

San Niang clinked her cup with a grin: “Mutual. When do you plan to go?”

Zhao Changhe silently looked inward.

During the past few days of teaching everyone cultivation, his injuries had indeed healed. He had also used the Heavenly Book to reproduce and carefully studied his blade techniques and the spear move of the Vulture Hunter for a few days, feeling he had made some progress.

As for breaking through to the ninth level of the Blood Fiend Art… the blood token Ying Wu had given him—after studying it, he felt that if he extracted the fiendish energy from the blood token to nourish and temper himself, there was indeed a possibility of breaking through to the ninth level. However, according to Cui Wenjing’s theory, relying solely on this method of breakthrough would result in a half-baked ninth level. To achieve the perfection of life-and-death cultivation, he would still need other tempering and insights. No rush.

This item could serve as a foundation. When the opportunity came, he wouldn’t need to worry about where to find fiendish energy to absorb—he’d have it ready on him. The annoying thing was that he was carrying more and more stuff, which was truly uncomfortable. His first task upon reaching the western frontier might not be finding the blood ginseng, but finding the Thieves’ Sect.

Thinking this, he said, “Actually, I can leave anytime… But before that, could I ask San Niang for one more favor?”

San Niang was taken aback. “What favor?”

“To hand over the brothers in the stronghold to the Blood God Sect… If San Niang introduces them, it should be no problem, right?”

San Niang gave him a meaningful look for a long moment, then suddenly smiled. “Little brother, you’re not being honest. You’re planning to take over the nest.”

Zhao Changhe also smiled but said nothing.

“I’ll write them a letter of introduction. Xue Canghai has to give me that face.” San Niang lazily stood up, stretched, and for a moment, waves surged.

Zhao Changhe lowered his head and drank.

“Since you’ve added a request, I’ll make a small one too.” San Niang turned and walked out. “Take me to see the Green Dragon Pool.”

The Green Dragon Pool, the Water Curtain Cave.

That was the place where Zhao Changhe and Xia Chichi had pledged their love. During the time when Xia Chichi left with Vermilion Bird and Zhao Changhe became the stronghold’s master, he rarely came here anymore. When he did, it was for battle preparations…

Because coming here easily stirred memories of her, affecting his martial arts progress during that period.

Now, with summer already here, this was no longer an issue. Zhao Changhe also wanted to enter the Water Curtain Cave once more to see if they had missed anything back then.

Leading San Niang into the cave, the space inside was still small. In the center was a small altar that had held the Green Dragon Seal, and nothing else. It was very similar to the Basalt mountain cave, clearly from the same tradition.

But in the Basalt cave, the altar could be pushed aside, revealing an exit.

What about here?

San Niang’s gaze also fell on the altar. Seeing Zhao Changhe about to push it, she suddenly reached out to stop him. “Don’t move.”

Zhao Changhe: “?”

San Niang frowned and stared for a long time, then suddenly said, “This place gives me a strange feeling… The energy is abnormal. Such a peaceful, ordinary place actually makes my heart race… You were lucky back then not to touch it recklessly. If you had really pushed it open, even Beimang might have been gone…”

Zhao Changhe gasped.

Could it be that the reason Beimang had shifted to the north of the capital lay here?

Was this a huge secret hidden in the newbie village?

San Niang circled the altar repeatedly, examining it for a while, then her brow relaxed. “Oh, it’s not that exaggerated. Ordinary people can’t push it. Let me see…”

She gently turned the altar, shifting its orientation.

A rumbling sound could be heard from deep underground, as if some massive mechanism was connecting.

“The ancient Green Dragon, also a legacy of the Human Emperor…” San Niang turned to look at Zhao Changhe, her eyes gleaming. “What do you think—should I kill you and keep this treasure vault for myself?”

Zhao Changhe said irritably, “If I’m not mistaken, inside is just a grave mound, and lying in it is someone trying to crawl out.”