Trésor de Jianghu

Chapitre 32

I turned around and called out to the person who came in, "My beautiful father."

My father stepped forward, helped me up, and looked me over. He said, "Misty, I don't think you're destined for such a short life. Very good, not a single wound."

I said anxiously, "Don't let Sect Leader Sun leave, there's something wrong with him."

My husband comforted me, saying, "Don't worry, he won't get away. You'll see."

I turned around and saw that Sect Leader Sun had been acupunctured, and standing behind him was none other than Young Master Hanyu, Leng Yiwei.

I was both surprised and delighted, and I nudged Yi Ge, saying, "Yi Ge, Uncle Leng is your father."

Yi Ge's eyes were filled with turbulent emotions, but he remained silent.

But the beautiful father smiled at Uncle Leng and said, "My son-in-law is just not talkative. Yiwei, is he really your son? He has a similar temperament."

Then another group of people arrived one after another, and I saw that they were Uncle Xu's men.

The beautiful man's father explained, "Some people are still digging the tunnel that was blown up in front. I thought I'd try my luck around here, and sure enough, I did get some luck."

I said, "How come you came at such a convenient time? We just came out of that passage not long ago."

He laughed and said, "When we were searching, someone saw someone falling straight down the opposite cliff, so they came over to check. They had to take a detour after coming down from the peak, which took up a lot of time."

When we returned to Songxi Village, it was already night. Of course, someone had already gone back to report. Chunman, with red eyes, came to greet me and cried, "Princess, it's been more than four days. Chunman thought she would never see the princess again."

Eunuch Jing scolded her, "Nonsense! The princess is a blessed and long-lived person, how could anything happen to her?"

I was too exhausted to comfort them, and weakly said, "Chunman, do you have any steamed buns? I'm starving."

******

She slept soundly in Yi Ge's arms until noon, but when she woke up, Yi Ge was not by her side.

While I was washing up, someone suddenly rushed into my room and grabbed me so tightly that I almost fell over. When I regained my senses, I was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Ayan, what are you doing here?"

Tears streamed down his face, but he smiled and said, “Sister, I came with Uncle Tan. As soon as I arrived, I heard that you were trapped in the underground palace and couldn’t get out. I thought, I thought I would never see you again. I’ve been digging with them in the underground palace for the past three days. Last night, when they came to tell me that you and your husband had returned, I was overjoyed. But when my brother and I got back, you were already asleep.”

"Oh, what about my brother?"

“I was talking to my brother-in-law downstairs. He said you were still not awake, so I couldn’t resist coming up to check on you.”

I took Ayan's hand and went downstairs. The place was quite lively downstairs. Yi Ge, Qi Long, Qianqian, Ziqian, Zibu, Uncle Xu, Uncle Leng, and the beauty's father were all there, and even the sect leader Sun, whose face looked very ugly.

Yesterday, after Uncle Leng brought him back, he sealed his acupoints, saying he wanted to find a witness and seek an explanation that should have been obtained twenty years ago.

When Yi Ge saw me come downstairs, he came over and put his arm around my waist, inviting me to sit next to him. This gesture almost made Chun Man, who was serving me porridge, drop the tray she was carrying. While I was eating, she kept glancing at Yi Ge, as if trying to confirm that it really was him who had returned. I couldn't help but chuckle; this reaction was exactly the same as mine in the cave. Having grown accustomed to Yi Ge's aloof demeanor, his unexpected display of affection was indeed quite surprising.

Although we've been apart for three or four days, it feels like I've been away from them for a long time. Now I finally have the energy to recount the past few days in the cave.

I asked Qi Long with a hint of resentment, "Brother, you're so punctual! Do you really explode right on time?"

Qi Long blushed slightly, but then sighed, "How was I supposed to know there were idiots in the Thunderbolt Hall? After setting up the thunderbolt, he actually tripped over it by accident, and I never expected that the spot he pressed was right at the top of this last door. Anyway, that person is dead now, so there's no way to investigate. But this explosion actually made it easier for us to deal with the Western Barbarians and Southern Dan."

Author's Note: The next update will be tomorrow. Yes, this story is getting closer and closer to its conclusion.

Chapter Fifty-Two: Unveiling the Secret

When we talk about the Western Barbarians of Nandan, our attention naturally turns to Master Sun in one corner.

Yi Ge frowned and said, "Sect Leader Sun, I've always wanted to ask you who you really are. Are all your actions for Nan Dan?"

Sect Leader Sun's expression was somewhat indifferent, but it also carried a hint of arrogance.

He nodded and said, "That's right, I did it for Nandan, because I am a Nandan person."

Most of the people in the Ghost Palace are from Nandan, and I really can't understand why he would emphasize that. I said, "But you're also from the Ghost Palace. Did the former Palace Master wrong you? Are you trying to take the Ghost Palace's treasure to curry favor with Nandan?"

He was taken aback: "The Palace Master did not wrong me, but I have my own mission. As a Nandan person, shouldn't I retrieve the treasures that Nandan has lost? Don't you think so, Prince Xiaoyao?" He said the last sentence to his father, the beauty.

The beautiful father stared at him for a while before slowly saying, "Are you seeking treasures for a country or for one person? Besides, that person is no longer here, so what's the point of saying this? Since you recognize me, you must be one of his trusted men. Let me guess, are you one of the Regent's men? Or perhaps you are Sun Zhiren?"

Sect Leader Sun looked utterly shocked, and his words became somewhat slurred: "King Xiaoyao knows Dark Charm? Knows me, Sun?"

The beautiful father smiled charmingly: "Indeed, not many people know that the Regent has Dark Enchantresses under his command, and even fewer know about their leader. I happen to be one of those who do. Sometimes I do know things that others wouldn't think they know. But I merely know; I don't intend to change anything. I'm just curious why he would send someone as important as you to the Ghost Palace?"

Sect Leader Sun said, "Very well. Back then, I was only eighteen years old. After taking over the leadership of Dark Charm from my master, I was assigned a mission to find the prince's concubine and the young princess. At that time, the concubine and the young princess had been missing for many years. But my master had some clues, so I came here. By the time I truly confirmed that the palace mistress and the young lady were indeed the concubine and the young princess, the prince had already passed away, and the concubine had also passed away. I haven't moved since, but I have some desire to do something for the prince."

Uncle Leng coldly interjected from the side: "So more than twenty years ago, you led the martial arts practitioners of Yunyang to break the mechanisms of the Ghost Palace and destroy it?"

Master Sun remained silent.

Uncle Leng said, "It doesn't matter if you destroy the Ghost Palace, but you've made Yiyi misunderstand me, ruining our lives together." His voice sounded like steam rising from his lips.

Ayan chimed in, "Are there really such loyal subordinates? Our master has been dead for years, yet they're still stirring up these troubles. I suspect it's not just for our master; there's probably something else in the Ghost Palace that's more appealing."

I nodded: "That's right, people will die for money."

Sect Leader Sun's face slowly turned red, then purple, but he still remained silent.

Yi Ge sighed and said, "You've always come for the treasure, haven't you? Then why didn't you come into the underground palace with me at the last moment?"

He let out a long sigh and said, "This treasure hunt is not my private matter. It was arranged by Nandan, so Nandan secretly sent soldiers over. I originally didn't want to use soldiers, so I wanted you to take Fang Lan'er as a concubine and have Fang Lan'er try to obtain the token from the Ghost Palace, but you were unwilling to take her as a concubine. Later, Mu Ying came along, but unfortunately, it still didn't work out."

Qianqian sneered from the side, "So you want to trade your female disciples for treasure? Too bad it's not enough. Besides, even if they've all been taken by your brother-in-law, how can you guarantee that the token will end up in their hands? It's probably still with Awu."

Master Sun looked up at me and said, “I know the princess is a proud and arrogant person, and she would never be willing to share a husband with another. If the young master takes a concubine, she will definitely divorce him, and she will not care about the tokens of love. Only Master Gui will think that the princess, being from the royal family, has seen many wives and concubines, and will be magnanimous in accepting it. You know, if all members of the royal family thought like this, Princess Tan Qiyun would not have eloped with the old palace master of the Ghost Palace back then.”

I couldn't help but gasp; this person really hit the nail on the head.

Everyone in the room fell silent, and I felt Yi Ge tighten his grip on my waist.

After a while, Qi Long asked again, "So the concubine arrangement fell through. Given Yi Ge's trust in you, if there really was treasure, you would have a share. Your subsequent actions are rather unbelievable."

Sect Leader Sun raised his eyes again and said, "One copy? Nan Dan wants the whole thing. The reason I didn't enter the underground palace is because I discovered that the Ouyang family has ties with the Western Barbarians and has a princess as a hostage. It's inevitable that the young master will be biased towards them. I'm just going to the army to discuss things with people and make some arrangements outside as soon as possible."

Yi Ge asked, "What about Sun Jing?"

Sect Leader Sun said, "He should have followed you and taken the opportunity to act, but he came out because he discovered that the dozen or so people following Ouyang were soldiers from the Western Barbarians. In my opinion, it was unwise of him to come out and report this."

Sun Jing's whereabouts are currently unknown. Perhaps realizing this, a look of dejection appeared on his face, and he fell silent. The beautiful father gestured to Uncle Xu, saying, "General Xu, please settle him in."

Uncle Xu got up and led Sect Leader Sun out. The troops stationed in Yunyang and Beidi were nearby, so he was probably taken to the military camp to be kept under close watch.

The atmosphere in the room relaxed a bit. I asked Qi Long, "When did you enter the underground palace to dig the passage?"

He said, "About an hour after the explosion. The four warring kingdoms were thrown into chaos by the blast. Besides, the place that was bombed happened to be where there were more people from Nandan, so it actually made things easier for us. I had Uncle Xu clean up the battlefield, and then I led my men into the underground palace, still hoping for some luck. We met Master Bai and Master Tao in the main hall of the Crimson Demon Palace. They said you were still inside. When we went in, we found that a corner of the library had been destroyed, and Master Nan of Nan Fortress was trapped underneath. We also saw my shadow guards. After dragging them out, we realized that only the two of you hadn't come out, and the door was completely blocked."

Actually, digging alone wouldn't work. I shouted and yelled outside, but there was no response from inside. I figured you'd probably gone far away. Besides, the South Fortress Lord said it was like a maze inside, with unknown depths. Sigh, in the end, we had the Thunderbolt Fortress men get some gunpowder to blast a gap in the door, and then the soldiers dug. It was cramped inside and couldn't hold many people, so digging was incredibly slow and frustrating.”

Qianqian chimed in, "Yeah, I'm really furious. I'm thinking, at this rate, we'll probably starve to death by the time we find anyone."

I chuckled and said, "I did buy some food in Laichun Town and brought it with me. I was planning to bring it to you, but I forgot to put it down."

Qi Long continued, "The next day, Uncle Tan arrived with Ayan, who burst into tears. After digging for more than a day, we finally managed to create a large opening in the door. Ayan, being small, crawled through first, and we called a few thin soldiers to follow him. The South Fortress Master said it was like a maze inside, so I had him take a long roll of thin rope inside, search for an hour, then come out, rest, and go back to search. In the end, we still couldn't find you. It wasn't until the door was widened enough for more people to enter that we felt comfortable searching inside for a while longer."

Ayan said, "On the third day, we actually found someone inside, but he was insane and starving to death."

Qi Long nodded and said, "Do you know who it is? It's actually Young Master Ouyang. We searched for him for the first two days but couldn't find him. On the third day, we found him not far from the exit, but he was delirious and looked like a ghost. We brought him out, fed him, and calmed him down. After a long time, we asked him again, and he said that the Second Young Master had fallen into some cave. He also said that there are ghosts in this underground palace. He has been vaguely hearing female ghosts screaming 'ah ah' for the past few days. When we asked him, he was still trembling."

What female ghost? I didn't hear anything. But then something suddenly occurred to me, and my face flushed red. I felt like banging my head against a block of tofu. Yi Ge seemed to have realized it too, and his gaze towards me was filled with a smile.

My beautiful father said to me, "Misty Baby, tell me how you got out. Was there anything in there?"

I then changed the subject. I went on to describe everything I had seen in the cave, and when I mentioned the crystal cave, Qianqian and Chunman's eyes widened, and they clicked their tongues and said, "The Ghost Palace Master is quite good at finding places, isn't he? Do you think he found the place first and then discovered this cave, or did he know there was such a cave and then found this place?"

I rolled my eyes at them: "How would I know?"

I still mentioned the cave filled with golden and silver light and the stone chamber where the real treasure was hidden. Amidst everyone's exclamations of wonder, the beautiful father suddenly asked, "That cave you said had golden and silver light, you said you picked up stones there?"

I nodded.

The beautiful woman's father said, "May I take a look?"

I asked Chunman to fetch a small purse that was on the table in my room.

The beautiful father rubbed the two stones in his hands for a long time, then took out a magnifying glass from the Kingdom of Daru and examined it for a long time. Suddenly he laughed and said, "Yao Zhen, you are indeed a thoughtful person. Wu Bao, the true treasure of the Ghost Palace has never been the stone cave that stores treasures. Although that crystal cave is priceless, it is not as valuable as the star-studded cave you visited. If I am not mistaken, that is a gold and silver symbiotic mine. Yao Zhen once managed the mining industry in Nandan. Over the years, he has also searched for quite a few mines. This gold mine is probably one of the mines he discovered during those years, but he has kept it a secret. I'm afraid the vein of this gold mine leads to Nandan. But Nandan's attention is focused on those national treasures that he embezzled earlier. In fact, these are just smoke and mirrors from Yao Zhen."

I had no reason not to believe my beautiful father's judgment, so after exclaiming "Wow!" I didn't know how to express my shock.

After a long pause, Qi Long finally said, "Leaving aside the mine, the contents of that storage room are probably incredibly valuable. The Western Barbarians have been frequently harassing the Northern Barbarian border lately. I've heard they seem to have formed an alliance with Nandan. Nandan is a small but wealthy country, but its military strength has always been weak. I suspect Nandan made some kind of promise to the Western Barbarians. It might be the promise of the Ghost Palace treasure, which is enough to arm several armies. That's why both countries secretly sent troops. I think Brother Yuan and Uncle's judgments are correct."

As everyone was talking, they suddenly heard a knock on the door. The door was actually open, and Qi Yi entered.

Qi Yi's eyes were filled with surprise and joy: "Young Master, you are indeed alright, that's great. Master Gui was worried all along, but now it's all right. However, Young Master, Master Gui is injured, quite badly."

Yi Ge's smile froze: "Master Gui is injured?"

Author's note: Ahem, I'll update again tomorrow.

There should be about ten chapters left before it's finished. I originally only planned to write 200,000 words for this story, but it's already exceeded that limit again. I guess I really can't be simple and concise.

Chapter Fifty-Three: Past Events

Yi Ge couldn't sit still any longer and said to me, "You should rest inside for a while. I'll go check on Grandpa Gui and come right back."

After he left, I went back to my room, but I was still somewhat unsettled.

Gui Ye's last move should have been to chase after Sun Jing, so how could he have been seriously injured?

Although his eagerness to take a concubine for Igor made me feel somewhat uncomfortable, he was, after all, the oldest person in the Ghost Palace, and I should go and see him.

In four days, Yitian Ridge was controlled by soldiers from Yunyang and Beidi. In the nearby villages, most of the martial arts practitioners who survived the catastrophe had left. Guiye and the others lived in a small village not far from Songxi Village. When I went there, I was surprised to find that in addition to Yige, Uncle Leng was also there, with a person with a black veil covering their face. Judging from the appearance, it should be a woman.

When Yi Ge saw me, his eyes lit up with surprise, but his mood was somewhat downcast. He said in a low voice, "Wu Bao, you're here. Come see Master Gui. This isn't good."

Uncle Leng also said, "Wu'er is here too. Come, let her meet Aunt Qin."

Aunt Qin was Yi Ge Niang's maid back then, and she was the familiar face that Uncle Leng saw on Paiyun Ridge. At that time, she was also tracking someone, who was Sun Li of Famen, also known as Sun Zhiren in the beauty's father's words.

It's said that Aunt Qin had been searching for Sect Leader Sun for twenty years, only discovering his whereabouts in the last two months. In her eyes, he was the culprit who led the enemy to invade and destroy the Ghost Palace. At that time, the Holy Maiden had already left the palace, but she, as the Holy Maiden's maid, remained in the Ghost Palace until its destruction. When the Crimson Demon Palace was destroyed and a fire broke out, she was burned. When she awoke, she was in a farmhouse at the foot of Paiyun Ridge. She was rescued by a guard, but that guard eventually left for distant lands.

Aunt Qin looked at Yi Ge and said, "Everyone says that the righteous path of the martial world destroyed the Ghost Palace, but in fact, it was the Palace Master himself who destroyed the Ghost Palace. When he learned that the Holy Maiden would never return, he had already collapsed. It wasn't because he reached a bottleneck in his cultivation and lost his power, as they say. He just wanted to destroy himself. That's why he detonated the Dry Sky Thunder in the Crimson Charm Palace. Even if he died, he wanted to die in the Crimson Charm Palace."

I felt both sympathy and resentment towards the Holy Maiden. Now, I've heard from Protector Gui that the Holy Maiden returned to the palace at the last moment, but it was too late; the Palace Master had already perished in the devastating lightning and fire. As for the traitor Sun Li who led the thief into the palace…” She paused, then continued, “At that time, the Palace Master was already somewhat deserted by her followers. Protector Tian thought Sun Li had led the thief into the palace for the Holy Maiden's sake, but I knew he had ulterior motives. Unfortunately, he disappeared in the chaos. I always believed he was alive, and later I did find him. I tracked him down, but then discovered the ambush from Nandan. Later, Young Master Leng arrived, but he still managed to escape. The net of Heaven is vast, and though its meshes are wide, nothing escapes it; he will ultimately have to pay the price for the Ghost Palace.”

So, Sect Leader Sun has been coveting the Ghost Palace's treasure for over twenty years.

Gui Ye, lying on the bed, slightly raised himself up, and Yi Ge quickly placed several pillows under him. I also turned over and carefully inquired about how Gui Ye had been injured. Gui Ye sighed and said, "I was also injured by Sun Li. When I followed Sun Jing out, I didn't suspect anything at first. I was just worried that the young master would be short of help in the underground palace, so I wanted to keep him there. But I ended up following him out of the underground palace and saw him rushing towards a small hill. I was about to call out to him, but then I discovered the traces of Nan Dan soldiers. Remembering the relationship between the Ouyang family and the Western Barbarians, I immediately realized that Nan Dan was probably behind Fa Men. Thinking back to the news that the Ghost Palace had a treasure, which also came from Lingnan, at first they thought it was Nanfeng Fort that released the news, since they had participated in the destruction of the palace. But now that I think about it, the one who knows so much about the Ghost Palace must have been Fa Men who released the message. They just didn't have the ability to break into the underground palace, so they hoped to use the power of the martial arts world and Nan Dan's support to win in the chaos."

Master Gui continued, saying that after waiting for Sun Jing to come out, he followed him to find out what had happened. Unexpectedly, he ran into Sun Li again, and after a real fight, he discovered that Sun Li's skill was far beyond his expectations. Therefore, in the ensuing exchange, he was wounded in the chest and lower abdomen by the strange, piercing sword, barely managing to escape and hide in the forest, where he collapsed unconscious in a cave. If it weren't for Young Master Leng and Qin Niang finding him while searching for Sun Li, he probably wouldn't have returned alive. However, at that time, there were sounds of battle echoing across Yitian Ridge, indicating that a war had broken out. Sun Li had come to join the Ghost Palace thirty-five or thirty-six years ago, claiming to be from Lantian in Lingnan. When he entered, the Palace Master tested his martial arts; his cultivation was high, but considering his seniority, he was only promoted to guard. Back then, even protectors couldn't easily enter the depths of the underground palace, so guards naturally couldn't easily approach it. Therefore, although he knew there was an underground palace, he probably didn't know what was inside.

After coughing for a while, Master Gui said, "I just don't know how Young Master Leng and Qin Niang knew his background and happened to save me at that time."

Qin Niang said, "Back then, after the Palace Master killed some of the people who attacked the Palace, he entered the Crimson Demon Hall. However, I saw that Guard Sun, who was supposed to be guarding outside, went to the Asura Hall. At that time, a palace servant reported that they couldn't defend against those martial artists, and the brothers on the outermost perimeter were almost all slaughtered. So how did he survive? I sent someone to the Asura Hall to tell him to retreat to the Crimson Demon Hall and protect the Palace Master, because among the survivors, besides the Palace Master, he was the best in martial arts. But that person never returned, and Sun Li didn't come either. I went to the entrance of the main hall to look around, and the Palace Master had already triggered the drought lightning. The fire started quickly, and I didn't even think about escaping. I just wanted to be buried with the Palace Master and the Ghost Palace. Unexpectedly, I was saved by Guard Tian. For a long time afterward, Guard Tian and I wondered who betrayed the Ghost Palace. The more we thought about it, the more suspicious he became. Besides, he wasn't originally a member of the Ghost Palace. He was someone who came to join the Ghost Palace after it moved to Yunyang."

Uncle Leng also said, "At that time, I thought Yiyi had perished in the fire of the Crimson Demon Palace. Thinking that she died with resentment towards me, I was always unwilling. I stayed here, firstly to protect her, and secondly to find the culprit and clear my name at Yiyi's grave. Unfortunately, fate played a trick on me. In the past twenty years, apart from those who disappeared, I have secretly investigated everyone I knew who was alive in the Ghost Palace. Everyone else was hiding or had gone far away. Only he, although he returned to his hometown, was openly recruiting disciples and establishing the Famen Sect. Moreover, I knew that he was unharmed at the time, so I became suspicious, but I had no evidence, so I held back. Until that day, I saw Wu'er and wanted to follow her back to Songxi Village to reunite with Ge'er and his son. On the way, I saw Qin Niang's figure and chased after her. I didn't expect that she also suspected Sun Li and happened to see Sun Li meeting with the commander of Nandan, so she chased after him all the way. This guy is quite slippery. It took us three or four days to catch him."

Master Gui asked in surprise, "What did Young Master Leng say? Father and son recognizing each other? Isn't the young master the son of the Holy Maiden and the Palace Master? Qin Niang?"