Zhang Fei - The Abandoned Son

Chapter 569: Treasure Chest

In another area, Huangfu Lian and Huangfu Xiaofan continued to run forward, especially since countless beast rats were chasing behind them.

At first, there werenʼt many beast rats, so they killed them right away. Beyond their expectations, the beasts kept multiplying every time they killed them, and their numbers became even greater, so they decided to escape.

They were confused as they could not find the end of the path despite running for a considerable amount of time, which led them to realize that they had fallen into one of the mazeʼs traps.

”What should we do now, Big Brother? Weʼll be exhausted if we canʼt find the way out soon, and we canʼt kill these rats either.” Huangfu Xiaofan asked.

Huangfu Lian didnʼt respond to his little brother, and he kept running forward as his eyes scanned every area they passed, looking for a way out of the trap. After searching for quite some time, he discovered the areas they passed were completely similar, which made him realize that they had been running in the same place all this time. ”Damn it! Iʼve never been trapped in a trap like this before, and this place is like an endless loop.”

”Big Brother! Look up ahead!”

Huangfu Lian frowned after reading the words that appeared there, but he immediately stopped and took out his weapon, especially since the instructions said that they had to kill the beast rats until there were none left in order to get out of that place. ”Letʼs fight them, Xiaofan!”

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In another room, many humans are pinned to the wall. Two people in front of them, who were none other than Ximen Hongwu and Ximen Yueliang, smiled with satisfaction after killing them. ”These humans are too weak, Brother. We donʼt even need ten percent of our strength to kill them.”

”Yeah.” Ximen Hongwu nodded in agreement with that. ”From their clothes, they should be Huangfu Kingdomʼs people, so killing them doesnʼt matter. Huangfu Shou is too powerful, and our father still doesnʼt dare to attack him and his kingdom because of a powerful person behind him.”

Ximen Yueliang tilted her head to her brother. ”Who exactly is that person? How could there be a cultivator stronger than our father in our realm?”

”No one knows the identity of that person.” Ximen Hongwu then guided his sister along the path to their left. ”That person once appeared in front of our father and uncle, but they couldnʼt see that personʼs face or figure, so they didnʼt know whether the person was a man or a woman. That person could suppress them to the point where they couldnʼt move a single finger, so they suspected that the person came from the upper realms, but they couldnʼt be sure of that personʼs purpose in coming to our realm.”

”The upper realms?” Ximen Yueliang muttered with a frown. ”If that person is really that powerful, that person shouldnʼt need to care about affairs in our realm, right? Do you think there is something in our realm that interests that person?”

Ximen Hongwu shrugged in response. ”As far as I know, only this tower is the most interesting in our realm, but I have never heard news of that person appearing here, so I am confused about that personʼs purpose in supporting Huangfu Shou. Anyway, we donʼt need to think about that person, especially since weʼre clearly not his or her opponent.”

”Yeah, youʼre right.” A while later, they arrived at the next room, where they found a man lying on the ground unconscious with his body covered in blood. The two immediately checked his condition after they recognized his identity, which was none other than Zhou Tai. ”Brother, heʼs still alive, but his condition is critical.”

Ximen Hongwu immediately took out a pill and forced Zhou Tai to swallow it. ”If he werenʼt Zhou Xiaochuanʼs son, I would leave him to die here. The pill will stabilize his condition, but I donʼt think he will be able to continue this challenge with such injuries.”

”Hehe.” Ximen Yueliang chuckled. ”Zhou Xiaochuan is our fatherʼs puppet, and he would have killed him long ago if he didnʼt need slaves to get rid of the other kingdoms, so it shouldnʼt be a problem if we let this guy die here.”

Ximen Hongwu shook his head at his sisterʼs ignorance, but he couldnʼt blame her either, especially since she never interfered in royal affairs. ”Zhou Fang has been eliminated, and Zhou Tai is in such a condition, so there is only Zhou Meiling left to accompany Zhou Tong. However, that girl and the people of their kingdom are too weak, so they wonʼt be able to help him. Letʼs take a break first.”

”Yeah, Iʼm tired too.” Ximen Yueliang then sat down, leaning against one of the walls. ”This challenge is really boring! Weʼve been walking for hours and gone through many obstacles, but we still havenʼt reached the inner area.”

”In the last challenge, it took me and the others more than two weeks to get out of here.” Ximen Yueliang was surprised to hear that. ”Moreover, this maze has undergone a lot of changes, and weʼre not gathered together like in previous challenges, so it might take us a little longer.”

Ximen Yueliang released a heavy sigh before closing her eyes. ”Protect me, brother. I want to sleep sometime.”

Meanwhile, Zhou Tong continued to explore the maze alone, but he felt frustrated because he could not find his brother and sister. Additionally, he frequently encountered beasts at the heaven and sovereign ranks, which further irritated him.

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After being unconscious for quite some time, Qian Ying finally opened her eyes. She immediately felt a sharp pain in her head, and everything in front of her seemed to be spinning.

Qian Ying immediately used her qi to relieve her nausea, but she found herself completely naked and in another room. She immediately got off the stone bed and surveyed the surrounding area, discovering a variety of strange equipment she had never seen before. ”What kind of place is this? Where does all this equipment come from?”

Qian Ying then took a spare dress from her storage ring and wore it before walking out through the only door, where she found many people inside.

”These people are people from the five human kingdoms.” Qian Ying then looked for Ximen Yan and Bai Shouyi, but she couldnʼt find either of them among the people, so she went to the next room and found her master there.

Qian Ying immediately stopped in her spot after she sensed that Ximen Yan was not himself, and he appeared to be under control.

”Hehehe! I didnʼt expect you to wake up faster than I thought after you were exposed to the toxic substance.” Ximen Yan spoke, emitted an eerie laugh, and turned to face Qian Ying. ”You guessed right that I control this guy, and I did it because my body was destroyed a long time ago, so I will use his body for a while to escape from this place.”

”What are you going to do to my master?” Qian Ying asked nervously.

”Nothing.” Ximen Yan replied with a shake of his head. ”After I get out of here, I will leave this guyʼs body, and I will look for a stronger body to replace it.”

Qian Ying raised her eyebrow. ”Where is Bai Shouyi?”

”I didnʼt find the person you meant, and I only found the two of you in the trap room.” Ximen Yan then walked into the previous room. ”As for these people, I didnʼt bring them here but someone else. They previously fell into a trap and became unconscious like you and this guy, and they will wake up by themselves after some time.”

Qian Ying naturally didnʼt care about those people. ”Who exactly are you?”

”They call me Ma Kuangyu, and those traitors sent me here, but I wonʼt explain the details to you.” Ximen Yan then led Qian Ying away. ”Letʼs go; we have to find a way to leave this cursed place as soon as possible.”

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In one room, several people sat together and discussed their next plans, especially since they were separated from their group and there were not many of them.

ʼWhat do you think about that, Li Yao? You are our leader, so I will follow your decision.ʼ A young man asked via a voice transmission.

ʼI agree with them, Guo Jihai.ʼ Li Yao replied with a nod of agreement. ʼThere are only ten of us here now, and we already know each other, so itʼs fine if we go together.ʼ

Guo Jihai then speaks to his fiancée, Su Zhen. ʼPrince Xian Qifeng and Luo Qinglin are good people, so we donʼt need to worry about him. However, we must exercise caution around Prince Xian Yu and Prince Xian Mu due to their notoriety and their fatherʼs involvement with the Dark Demon Kingdom. Therefore, I want you to stay close to my side.ʼ

Su Zhen herself had heard about it a long time ago, so she immediately agreed. Moreover, she could see that Xian Yu and Xian Mu were repeatedly stealing glances at her and Li Yao, giving her a bad feeling. ʼAll right, I wonʼt be far from you. Then, what about their three friends?ʼ

”Iʼll kill them if they touch you or Li Yao.” Su Zhen smiled upon hearing that and rested her head on Guo Jihaiʼs shoulder. ʼHey, how about we get married after we get back from this tower?ʼ

Su Zhen was surprised by his proposal, but they had been lovers for years. ʼIn that case, you should ask your parents to talk to my parents, and I will marry you afterward.ʼ

ʼHaha! ʼ Guo Jihai laughed and hugged his fiancée tightly.

Although they were interested in seizing Su Zhen and Li Yao, Xian Yu and Xian Mu did not think much about them. Instead, their minds were more focused on meeting Zhang Fei as soon as possible, and they wanted to persuade him to join their side so they could use him to weaken Xian Feng and his family.

ʼDo you think that guy will be willing to join us, Big Brother?ʼ Xian Mu asked.

Xian Yu immediately shook his head in response. ʼThat guy has a close relationship with Xian Xianqi, and they seem to be exploring their relationship to become lovers, so Iʼm not sure he will be willing to join us. Even so, we will try to persuade him, and we can ask our father to do something for him if he refuses us.ʼ

ʼOur mother previously told me that Zhang Fei owns a restaurant in the capital, and several women there have close relationships with him, so she has sent people to monitor them in order to find his residence.ʼ Xian Yu himself also learned this information from their mother. ʼHey, big brother, are we going to make a move on Li Yao and Su Zhen soon?ʼ

Xian Yu glanced at the two women before shaking his head. ʼWe should not rush, and we will wait for the right time to seize them.ʼ

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[Ding]

[Daily Quest: Absorb 100,000 Qi.]

[Reward: 1,000 bronze coins.]

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[Daily Quest: Killing 500 beasts or demon beasts at the earth realm or above.]

[Reward: Daily gift pack x1.]

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Along with the appearance of the two notifications, Zhang Fei heard the sound of mechanical gears from the three walls in the room, especially after he and the two princesses managed to complete the three puzzles. Instantly, the three walls disappeared upwards, and three new paths appeared in front of them. ”You can choose one, Princess Xianqin.”

”This way.” Xian Xianqin pointed to the path in front of her.

”Letʼs go then.” Zhang Fei immediately led them away through that path, but they arrived at a dead-end room with a treasure chest in the middle. Xian Xianqin and Yun Xinyue immediately approached it and opened it, where they found various items, such as jewels, elemental crystals, and several others. ”Are these treasure chests always available in this maze?”

”Yes.” Yun Xinyue then told him. ”Back then, we found millions of jewels of various colors, and we also found many precious pills, which were very helpful for our cultivation.”

Xian Xianqin also informed him. ”We found a soul weapon in our last challenge, but it didnʼt choose me or Xianwu; it chose Bai Tianʼer.”

”Oh?” Zhang Fei was truly surprised at that. ”Hey! Finding a soul weapon is not as simple as finding a cabbage, but if we manage to find one during this challenge, we will be extremely fortunate. Therefore, we will continue to search for other treasures.ʼ

Xian Xianqin and Yun Xinyue giggled as they listened to him. ”This maze has a limited number of treasure chests, with only five located in the outer, inner, and center areas. Moreover, there are still quite a lot of participants left, and some of them may have found the others. Thatʼs why we shouldnʼt have too much hope of finding them, and we will find them if we are lucky.”

”Yeah, you two are right.” After he stored all the items inside the treasure chest in the system inventory, Zhang Fei immediately led them back to the previous room. They proceeded through one of the other doors, only to find themselves in an empty, dead-end room, forcing them to turn back.

Zhang Fei then led them through the last door until they arrived at the three-way intersection, but he sensed something from the path on the left, so he immediately led them there.

When they arrived there, they found a young woman lying naked in an unconscious state, and they immediately recognized her identity because she was Bai Shouyi.

Xian Xianqin and Yun Xinyue exchanged confused glances as they felt strange about Bai Shaoyiʼs situation. They then glanced at Zhang Fei, but he was unfazed by her naked body.

ʼWhy did she suddenly appear here? Did those people bring her to me on purpose? Why did they do that?ʼ Zhang Fei immediately went over to Bai Shouyi, crouched down beside her, and checked her condition. ”I donʼt know what happened to her, but I found a strange substance in her body. It didnʼt harm her life, but it paralyzed her.”

”Can you remove it from her body?” Xian Xianqin inquired as she and Yun Xinyue walked beside him.

”Iʼll try it.” Zhang Fei then sat Bai Shouyi down before sitting behind her. He then pressed his palm against her back, locked the poison inside her body with his senses, and channeled his fire qi into it to evaporate it.

”Ugh!” Bai Shouyi let out a soft groan as her body started to turn red from Zhang Feiʼs fire qi, and sweat started to pour down her body.

An hour later, Zhang Fei had already pulled his hand back, and Bai Shouyi collapsed onto his chest.

”Princess Xinyue, your body is the same size as Bai Shouyiʼs, so you can lend her your spare dress.” Yun Xinyue nodded and took out a spare dress, and Xian Xianqin helped her put it on Bai Shouyi. After she was fully dressed, Zhang Fei immediately carried the Bai Princess on his back and led them to leave the place, and they then walked away through the last path. ”Are you both considering taking action against this woman? After all, she is the princess of the Bai Kingdom, and her kingdom poses a threat to your two kingdoms. She even tried to kill you during the battle challenge, Princess Xinyue.”

”No.” Both women immediately shook their heads at Zhang Fei. ”We are not cowards, and we would never do anything to someone defenseless. Moreover, we have heard from our parents that Huangfu Shou only controls her parents, so she and her siblings should be innocent.”

Zhang Fei himself knew nothing about the situation in the Bai Kingdom, so he chose not to comment on it. ”You guys said that we only need three keys to get out of this maze, so the other two keys should be in the inner and center areas, right?”

”Thatʼs right.” Both women nodded at him. ”We can only find the other two keys in the two areas, so we must head to the inner area soon to find the second key. Unfortunately, this maze is much more complicated than before, so I think it will take a few days to reach the inner area.”

”Thatʼs okay. We donʼt have to rush, and who knows, we might find another treasure chest.” Xian Xianqin and Yun Xinyue shook their heads at Zhang Feiʼs response, but they also hoped to find the other treasure chests.

- To Be Continued -