Main Story — Volume Three, Chapter 129: Legend of the Ancient Kingdom

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An Shu was quick-tongued, and in a flurry of chatter, she recounted everything that had happened.

After listening, Yu Mu felt a secret pang of sorrow. Earth Bear’s arm had been injured far too severely. Even if Earth Bear had not cut off the ruined limb himself, Yu Mu would have been unable to restore it.

He might be able to bring a dying person back to life, but he could not make a severed arm grow anew.

Yet apart from Earth Bear’s loss of an arm, there was another hidden danger that concerned them even more. So long as the remnant soul of the great chieftain’s nascent soul remained, Earth Bear would never know peace.

Unfortunately, none of them had any solution to the problem. They could only study it slowly and search for a way to break the curse.

Earth Bear seemed to understand Yu Mu’s feelings. With a hearty laugh, he said, “I’ve already avenged our brothers. Let alone one arm—even if I died this instant, I would have no regrets.”

Yu Mu secretly admired Earth Bear’s broad-minded nature. He rose to his feet and said, “Once we finish drawing the water, we should leave at once. This place is a den of trouble. Those scattered sand bandits could come here for water at any moment. We especially need to guard against Shi Dali.”

An Shu’s expression darkened, and she said coldly, “He was badly wounded last night, but he also snatched the treasure. Surely he wouldn’t come back to harm us, would he? Does he have no sense of honor at all? Hmph!”

Yu Mu shook his head with a bitter smile.

Shi Dali could not really be called a bad man, but neither could he be called a good one. He was eccentric and stubborn, always acting solely according to his own will. Otherwise, he would never have incurred Abidao’s enmity.

The two sides had merely joined forces temporarily, each using the other. Their relationship had never amounted to friendship. For a man like Shi Dali, taking advantage of another’s misfortune or kicking someone when they were down would create no psychological burden whatsoever.

Earth Bear nodded as well. “That’s right. Shi Dali has lost his senses. Though he was seriously wounded, our losses are even heavier. We have no chance of standing against him. It is always better to be safe than sorry. We should avoid him for now.”

“Mm.” An Shu nodded, then suddenly remembered something. “Did you notice? Those two seemed to know each other!”

Yu Mu nodded slightly. He, too, had always found that strange. Still, both men had come from Emerald City. It was hardly unusual that they knew one another.

After filling their containers from the well, the two of them supported Yu Mu as they headed toward the summit.

An Shu looked at Earth Bear in confusion. “Brother Earth Bear, why aren’t we leaving immediately? Why go to such a dangerous place as the bandits’ lair?”

Earth Bear smiled mysteriously. “You’ll know when we get there.”

The two were utterly bewildered, but they followed Earth Bear to the foot of Black Wind Ridge.

Black Wind Ridge stretched like a dragon, winding for a thousand miles. Sadly, it had long since been buried beneath the desert. Only this mountain range still stood proudly, resisting the endless wind and sand.

Looking around, they saw that Black Wind Ridge was shrouded in lifeless silence, as though everyone had long since abandoned it.

Earth Bear went ahead alone to investigate. When he returned, he said, “They’ve all fled. Come on, let’s go in.”

Only after the three climbed the ridge did they discover how primitive this bandits’ den truly was. One side of the mountain was riddled with cave dwellings dug out by the sand bandits themselves. From a distance, they looked like a cluster of pigeon cages.

The three entered the largest cave in the middle. Inside, everything was already in disarray, as though the place had been looted. Clutter lay scattered across the ground.

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At the sight of this scene, a small bandit with prominent canine teeth suddenly rose in Yu Mu’s mind.

Earth Bear seemed very familiar with the place. He led the two of them straight to the innermost room. Though it, too, was disorderly, its former furnishings had clearly been quite luxurious.

There was no need to ask. This had certainly been the great chieftain’s bedroom.

Earth Bear stepped forward and ripped away the mat covering the earthen platform. Then he embedded several spirit crystals into it one after another.

“A teleportation array?” The two of them were astonished.

They had never expected to find a concealed teleportation array beneath the earthen platform.

Once the array was activated, Earth Bear paid no attention to their bewildered expressions and stepped into it first. A flash of flowing light passed by, and his figure vanished. Yu Mu and An Shu did not dare delay and immediately followed him through.

The scene before them shifted. They found themselves in a space of roughly eighty square meters. Earth Bear stood to one side, smiling at them.

The two looked around. Everywhere they turned, they could see traces of excavation.

“Where are we?” they asked in unison.

Only then did Earth Bear explain, “This is where the sand bandit leader hid his treasure.”

“Treasure?” Following Earth Bear’s gaze, they saw several wooden chests piled in one corner.

They hurried over and opened them. Inside were all kinds of valuables, including many rare and precious items.

Earth Bear chuckled. “These are the riches the sand bandits accumulated over the years. They sold quite a lot, but most of what remained consists of good things. This was Black Boss’s—er, Black Second’s—private hoard.”

“How do you know all this?” An Shu finally asked the question she had kept bottled up for a long time.

Earth Bear gave a bitter smile. “When the great chieftain and I fought over spiritual awareness, we shared a portion of one another’s memories.”

“Ah!” The two were deeply shocked. Only now did they realize how perilous Earth Bear’s situation had been at the time.

Earth Bear continued slowly, “Those memories also contained the connection between the great chieftain and this place.”

“He had a connection with this place?” The two were amazed.

“That’s right. His ancestors were descendants of a fallen kingdom. I once heard legends about that lost nation myself.”

Earth Bear raised his head and gazed upward as he continued, “They say that ten thousand years ago, this place was still an oasis. An outside tribe occupied it and established a kingdom here.

“The kingdom was small, but extraordinarily wealthy and powerful. Then, for reasons unknown, it vanished overnight.

“Soon afterward, the region began turning into desert at a mad pace. Within a few days, the entire area had been buried, and not even a trace of the ancient kingdom remained. All that survived were a few mysterious legends.

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“They say that the ancient kingdom left behind endless wealth. Before becoming a kingdom, it had been the seat of a prestigious and powerful sect, and countless mystical arts and spirit artifacts were buried underground as well.

“Thus, for thousands of years after the kingdom disappeared, people came here to search for treasure based on those legends. Sadly, every one of them returned empty-handed. In time, people stopped believing the tale.

“That continued until this band of sand bandits chose this place to establish their stronghold. While digging out their cave dwellings, they accidentally unearthed a jade artifact. This is where it happened.”

As he spoke, he pointed at the space in which the three stood and continued, “At first, they did not take it seriously. Not long ago, however, while disposing of stolen goods, the sand bandits accidentally mixed the jade artifact in with them.

“By coincidence, the people who purchased the stolen goods were members of the great chieftain’s clan. The moment they saw the object, they recognized it as an artifact from the ancient kingdom. They therefore sent the great chieftain here to investigate.

“After arriving, the great chieftain first seized this stronghold for himself. Once he learned where the jade artifact had been found, he filled in the passageway to prevent the news from spreading. He then set up a teleportation array, allowing only himself and a few trusted people to enter and leave, so they could continue excavating in the hope of finding the legendary treasure.

“Yet to this day, aside from that jade artifact, they have found nothing at all.”

At this point, a trace of mockery appeared on Earth Bear’s face. “A legend is only a legend! It is laughable that people would spend their entire lives—and even lose their lives—for wealth that may not exist at all. When I think of them, I cannot help but feel sorry for them.”

After hearing Earth Bear’s account, the two were utterly astonished.

They had never imagined that this desolate, uninhabited desert concealed such a strange and wondrous legend.

Whether the legend was true or not, however, the several chests of treasure before them were undeniably real. The three did not stand on ceremony and stripped the chests of every valuable item.

Yu Mu had spent a great deal of money while fleeing along the way. He had never expected that his gains would be even greater. The wealth he now possessed was enough to make him a minor tycoon.

In particular, once the bag of high-grade spirit crystals that Flower of Huyu City had given him was added to the treasures found here, his fortune—converted into the currency of his former life—would amount to several tens of millions.

Compared with this, the riches he had obtained earlier at Devil’s Slope were not even worth calling pocket money.

The three did not leave after securing the treasure. This place not only sheltered them from the wind and kept them warm, but was also extremely well hidden. Anyone who knew of it was probably already dead; otherwise, the treasure would never have fallen into their hands.

This space was therefore an ideal place to recuperate and heal their wounds.

After discussing the matter, the three decided to settle here temporarily.

Yu Mu’s injuries were severe. In order to recover as quickly as possible, he no longer concealed the truth from them. Besides, both of them were people he could trust.

Suddenly, his body swayed. With a thunderous rumble, his true form appeared, taking root in the soil.

The moment Yu Mu revealed his true form, the other two were left gaping in stunned disbelief.

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