Chapter 74: The Ruins Exploration Team Has Returned

Chapter 74: Chapter 74: The Ruins Exploration Team Has Returned

Carrying the food and wine to the Government Office, Fang Xu warmly greeted the two Golden Scale Guards stationed at the door.

"Kid, are you fully recovered?" one of the Golden Scale Guards asked, sizing Fang Xu up with curiosity.

He had seen with his own eyes the miserable state Fang Xu was in that day, his qi and blood having been nearly sucked dry.

"Thanks to the Crown Prince’s blessing, I managed to keep my little life." Fang Xu smiled and raised the food and wine in his hand. "I also need to thank you brothers for that day. Today, I specifically bought some food and wine to treat everyone."

The Golden Scale Guard glanced at the items in his hand, a rare smile appearing on his face. "No wonder the Crown Prince likes you. You know how to conduct yourself.

"The two of us are on guard duty. Go inside and drink with the other brothers. Just leave some for us later."

"Will do! Thanks for your hard work, brothers!" Fang Xu carried the items straight into the Government Office.

To him, making friends was the same no matter who it was!

Walking into the Government Office, Fang Xu encountered a few patrolling Golden Scale Guards along the way and, uncharacteristically, greeted them with great enthusiasm.

Although the attitude of these Golden Scale Guards was incredibly aloof, making him feel like he was kissing up only to get the cold shoulder, he endured it in order to fill up his friends list!

Li Xun and his father, Li Xingchao, had brought a total of two hundred Golden Scale Guards to Fenglin Town this time. One hundred elites had been taken by Li Xingchao to the Tilan Mountain ruins, and of the remaining hundred, more than forty had died during the previous ambush. Not many were left in the Government Office.

Arriving at the Golden Scale Guards’ quarters, Fang Xu found only seven or eight people inside. The rest, likely off duty, had probably gone to town to have fun.

It happened to be lunchtime. Fang Xu carried in the food and wine he had spent a fortune on, greeted them warmly, and soon started drinking with the seven or eight men in the room.

As the wine in their cups went down their throats, the friends list deep in his sea of consciousness instantly changed from (4/10) to (10/10)!

Behind the names of the six newly added people, their Life Values were surprisingly identical—all were at 58%.

Seeing this, Fang Xu couldn’t help but think of the Landlord Strongmen in Fenglin Town from before.

When the Blood Food Shop opened, he had added all five of them as "friends." At that time, the Life Values behind their names had also been identical. In the end, the Wu Family brought in the Ascension Association, and all five were killed by Mu Xuan and his two companions on the exact same day!

Now, the Life Values behind the names of these six Golden Scale Guards were identical again. He wondered if this meant all six of them would die on the exact same day.

He thought it was truly pitiful...

Looking with a hint of pity at the men who were happily eating and drinking, Fang Xu cupped his hands slightly and smiled. "Brothers, keep drinking for now. I haven’t gone to pay my respects to the Crown Prince yet."

"Don’t tell the Crown Prince that we’re drinking!" one of the Golden Scale Guards hurriedly reminded him.

Fang Xu cupped his hands again. "Don’t worry, I understand."

Coming out of the Golden Scale Guards’ quarters, Fang Xu went to the front courtyard and saw Li Xun discussing something with Xu Liang. Both of their expressions were somewhat grim.

"Greetings, Crown Prince." Walking up to them, Fang Xu gave a slight bow with cupped hands.

Li Xun turned his head, looking at the still somewhat emaciated Fang Xu in surprise. "With such a severe depletion of qi and blood, not only did you survive, but you actually broke through to the Third Realm of Martial Disciple?"

Fang Xu hurriedly bowed. "It’s all thanks to the Elixir bestowed by the Crown Prince."

He hadn’t actually taken the rank-four Qi Blood Pill, but he had no choice but to lie right now and attribute everything to it.

"You’ve got a tough life, kid. You might achieve something in the future," Li Xun said casually, then changed the subject. "Do you know where that reckless fool from the Yun Family is staying?"

A reckless fool?

Fang Xu was taken aback, then suddenly realized Li Xun must be referring to Yun Qing.

"It should be an inn in town," Fang Xu answered respectfully.

He was curious. It shouldn’t be hard for Li Xun to find Yun Qing on his own, so why ask him?

"Go tell him to come to the Government Office tonight. Just say that Aunt Yun Jin is returning this evening."

Yun Jin? Was she the Yun Family member who had come to Fenglin Town with Li Xingchao and his son that day?

"Understood." Fang Xu didn’t dare ask too much. Accepting this errand, he directly left the Government Office.

After making a round of several inns in town, he didn’t find any trace of Yun Qing. A thought crossed his mind, and he guessed that Yun Qing must have run to his house again.

Hurrying back home, Fang Xu indeed found a depressed-looking Yun Qing outside the courtyard door.

"Young Master Yun!"

Fang Xu called out to him from afar. Yun Qing flashed over to him in an instant and asked, "Where is Miss Chu?"

Fang Xu froze for a moment before suddenly remembering that Lu Qingluo had told him and Chu Muyun to move into Zhiyuan Hall this morning.

"She probably went to Zhiyuan Hall. Young Master Yun, please wait a moment. I’ll pack a few things and head over with you."

Entering the small courtyard, he simply packed some clothes. With Yun Qing present, Fang Xu didn’t bring the stone slabs for the *Divination God Treasure* and the *Flame Spirit True Understanding*. He planned to come back and get them at night when no one was around.

On their way to Zhiyuan Hall, Fang Xu spoke up. "Young Master Yun, I just went to pay my respects to the Crown Prince. He asked me to pass a message to you, telling you to visit the Government Office tonight. He said Aunt Yun Jin has returned."

"Aunt has returned from the Tilan Mountain ruins?" Yun Qing’s face lit up with joy upon hearing this. Then, he hurriedly told Fang Xu, "I won’t go to Zhiyuan Hall then. Tell Miss Chu I came looking for her."

Watching the hurried Yun Qing, Fang Xu shook his head somewhat helplessly and walked toward Zhiyuan Hall alone.

That night, at the Fenglin Town Government Office.

Li Xun looked at his father, who had lost an arm, his face covered in frost!

"Your Highness, are the ruins truly that dangerous?" Xu Liang asked, frowning.

Before coming to Fenglin Town, he had performed a divination. The hexagram indicated moderate fortune—though there would be danger, it wouldn’t be a major issue, and they would reap small rewards.

But now, how had it turned out like this?

Li Xingchao nodded with a solemn expression, unable to stop his mind from recalling what their group had encountered inside the ruins.

Nearly all of the over one hundred Golden Scale Guards—every one of them above the Martial Master realm—were either dead or severely injured. Aside from two Golden Scale Guard Hundred-man Commanders who had reached peak-stage Martial Master, and Yun Jin, the dozen or so who managed to return alive all bore heavy injuries.

"Forgive me, Your Highness! Your old servant is incompetent!" Xu Liang hurriedly bowed.

Li Xingchao waved his hand. "Taibu, there is no need for this. It was merely my bad luck. I shouldn’t have lost this arm, but for some inexplicable reason, my foot slipped, and I was hit by that mechanism."

He was well aware of Xu Liang’s divination abilities. Over the years, there had rarely been a time when his calculations were wrong.

"Aunt, Your Highness, did you see my sister in the ruins?" Yun Qing asked anxiously from the side.

Hearing this, Li Xingchao and Yun Jin’s expressions changed drastically.

"Wan’Er went to the ruins!?" Li Xingchao’s face darkened as he looked at Li Xun and demanded answers.

Meeting his father’s stern gaze, Li Xun lowered his head and bowed. "It was my negligence. I didn’t look after Sister Wan’Er properly and let her... let her run off to the ruins..."

"You..." Li Xingchao glared at his son in anger, then sighed helplessly.

Using the marriage between Yun Wan and Li Xun to win over the Yun Family was his next step. Currently, out of the Seven States of the Yu Kingdom, three had already explicitly stated their support for him. If they could win over the Yun Family, his side would hold an absolute advantage.

But now, Yun Wan had gone to the Tilan Mountain ruins, and her fate was unknown. This plan might very well fall through!

"Your Highness, I believe the matter of the ruins can no longer be covered up. It would be better to simply give the order to open the ruins to all forces within the Yu Kingdom, controlled by the royal family and the Yun Family. If any force truly manages to reap benefits from the ruins, we can also take a share." Yun Jin spoke slowly.

News of the ruins had already leaked out. She believed it wouldn’t be long before other forces began pressuring the royal family and the Yun Family.

Moreover, the ruins were far too dangerous. Sending in some cannon fodder to pave the way would only cost them some inconsequential lives, and the major powers like themselves would still divide up the ultimate benefits.

Yun Jin had another selfish motive for this proposal.

Her own niece had entered the ruins. Relying solely on the Yun Family’s strength, it would be difficult to delve deep enough to rescue her. As long as the ruins were opened to the public, the Yun Family could issue a bounty, rallying numerous explorers to help search for Yun Wan.