Xuanwu War Sovereign

Qin Feng didn’t linger in Shanghe Town. After verifying the details about the Crystal Jade Ore Mine, he led the others toward the abandoned site.

As it happened, this abandoned Crystal Jade Ore Mine was not far from their location.

At the same time, the elite disciples of the great families of Mountain and River City—the Qin, Yu, and Song—arrived in Shanghe Town almost simultaneously. The situation outside Shanghe Town grew increasingly turbulent and unpredictable. A great storm was brewing, with treacherous undercurrents surging.

The winds forebode a coming storm. The geniuses from the great families, each with their own ulterior motives, began forming alliances, both overt and covert. Two hours later, these forces struck in unison, immediately surrounding the fierce bandits from the Iron Ridge Mountain Range!

Above ground, a bloodbath ensued. Below ground, things were no calmer.

Qin Feng’s group slowly approached the location of the Crystal Jade Ore Mine. His decision confused the others. A Crystal Jade Ore Mine might be valuable to a power like the Qin Family, but to the four of them, it was of dubious value. They knew that with their limited strength, they had no hope of occupying the abandoned mine.

"Qin Feng, what in this Crystal Jade Ore Mine is so attractive to you? You know this place has become a hotbed of conflict, so why are you so determined to go in?" On the way, Yu Yao had already lost count of how many times she had asked this question.

Qin Feng’s insistence infuriated her. The abandoned Crystal Jade Ore Mine had already become a focal point of contention, with numerous powers watching it. For them to enter now was like pulling chestnuts out of the fire—extremely dangerous!

If Qin Feng didn’t have something to hold over her, Yu Yao would have bailed long ago.

Just as they were approaching the entrance to the Crystal Jade Ore Mine, Qin Feng suddenly gave a hand signal and stopped. The others’ expressions shifted. They simultaneously extinguished their torches and slipped into the darkness. Soon, from a dark cave a hundred paces away, the sound of rustling footsteps emerged, and faint flickers of firelight appeared from the depths.

A voice suddenly carried from the distance. "Strange. I’m sure I saw a light over here. How did it disappear in the blink of an eye?"

Another voice laughed mockingly. "You’re too tense. Did the enemies outside scare you so much you’re seeing things?"

The first voice snorted, replying with some dissatisfaction, "We should still be careful. Although these secret passages are only known to the core members of our Qin Family, this place is a labyrinth. Especially that recently excavated tunnel of the abandoned Crystal Jade Ore Mine. I heard that strange sounds often come from those old, abandoned mine shafts, and supposedly some evil thing has escaped from inside! Several of our teams have lost contact. We should be careful!"

The footsteps grew closer, and a group of four or five people appeared in the tunnel. They carried weapons and held their torches high, their vigilance apparent.

"By the way, I heard that a few of the young masters, led by the Seventh Young Master, have already taken experts into those ancient mine shafts to investigate. My girl serves the Seventh Young Master—she’s one of his favored maids. Once, she overheard the head steward and the Seventh Young Master saying that there seems to be some incredibly important treasure in those ancient shafts. What kind of treasure could possibly be in an abandoned Crystal Jade Ore Mine?" another voice suddenly interjected.

The last voice also spoke in a low tone. "You heard about it too? I heard the brothers who were excavating that mine shaft found a few good things down there. They say they were Divine Weapons left over from the Ancient Era?"

The first voice said dismissively, "Nonsense. They were just a few ancient weapons. But their material is terrifyingly strong. I don’t know what precious Spiritual Materials they’re made of, but even a broken piece could easily cut through the refined Cold Iron from our Qin Family’s Artisan Workshop, which has been tempered a thousand times!"

The last voice grunted. "That’s still incredible. If I had a weapon like that, my combat power would increase by at least half a notch. And that was just at the collapsed entrance. Who knows, there might be complete Ancient Weapons inside!"

The second voice lamented, "Too bad we’re on patrol. We have to activate the mechanisms in the tunnels to deal with the enemy outside. We can’t go into the mines to try our luck!"

"Enough complaining. We’d better get ready. It probably won’t be long before the enemy outside breaks in. We have to hold on until the reinforcements from the Mountain and River City Lord’s House arrive!"

...

As the sounds of muttering and complaining, along with the rustling footsteps, gradually faded away, Qin Feng slipped out into the spot the men had just passed. He mused to himself, ’Strange. Why are there weapons in this abandoned Crystal Jade Ore Mine? Could there have been a battle here before it was abandoned? Looks like I’ll have to be extra cautious going inside.’

Qin Feng had a faint, ominous premonition, as if something terrible lurked in the Crystal Jade Ore Mine ahead. His expression turned grim.

"The Qin Family has already entered the underground Crystal Jade Ore Mine?" Yu Yao was the next to emerge from the darkness, a trace of anxiety on her beautiful face. Hearing that the Qin Family had already sent people to investigate, she couldn’t help but worry. If there was some treasure in the mine, wouldn’t the Yu Family fall behind the Qin Family?

This was especially true for an Ancient Divine Weapon. Divine Weapons possessed terrifying power. Even a Low-tier Divine Weapon, if obtained by the Qin Family, would not only allow them to fend off the attacks from the other major powers but could even be used to turn the tables and slaughter their assailants.

A flicker of deep worry passed through Yu Yao’s eyes, but she couldn’t get away to report back. She could only bury this anxiety in the depths of her heart.

In contrast, Qin Shou and Qin Gang were eager and excited. What Martial Artist didn’t dream of one day owning a Divine Weapon? It was just that Divine Weapons were incredibly rare and difficult to obtain.

The underground tunnels were a labyrinth—cold, damp, and filled with terrifying traps and mazes. If not for Qin Shou and Qin Gang leading the way, not even Qin Feng would dare claim he could navigate them unhindered.

They soon found the entrance. Or more accurately, there were many entrances before them. It seemed a sudden collapse had occurred here, revealing numerous ancient mine tunnels, all gray and covered in dust and cobwebs. There were three main paths directly in front of them, with several more branching off to the left and right.

But they were all the same: every ancient mine tunnel was dark and gloomy, exuding a strange, sinister aura that hinted at mystery, darkness, and terror.

"Why are there abandoned mine shafts here? Wasn’t this supposed to be a pristine Crystal Jade Ore Mine? Is this whole place already depleted?" Looking at the cobweb-covered caves, a sense of foreboding flickered in Yu Yao’s eyes.

"Which one should we take?" Behind him, the others looked lost, waiting for Qin Feng to make a decision.

Qin Feng closed his eyes, using his Sensing for a moment. When he opened them again, a gleam of light flashed in his dark pupils. Following the guidance of his Spiritual Sense from the unseen world, his gaze fell upon the middle tunnel.

"This way."

Qin Feng took the lead, darting straight inside. Qin Gang followed close behind. Yu Yao hesitated, her eyes flickering as she glanced around, seemingly scheming something. But someone behind was watching her intently, causing her to grunt in frustration and follow them in.

Qin Shou let out a cold snort. Qin Feng had instructed him long ago to keep a close eye on Yu Yao. Qin Shou wasn’t slacking in the slightest. This was his chance to prove himself; he couldn’t let Qin Feng think he couldn’t even handle a small task like this.

The abandoned mine tunnel was deep and dark, covered in dust and thick with cobwebs. They occasionally saw dried bones along the way, a terrifying sight. However, faint points of fluorescent light occasionally dotted the cave walls—the glow of Crystal Jade Ore. Most of these exposed ore deposits were fragmented and small. Even the larger chunks had extremely poor color, clearly low-grade Crystal Jade with no practical use.

Suddenly, the quiet tunnel was filled with a clamor of noise—CLINK, CLANG—and the distant sound of triumphant laughter.

"Someone’s coming!" Qin Feng gave a hand signal, and the group slowly retreated to a fork in the path, hiding in another tunnel. After a moment, a voice drifted toward them, growing louder.

"Fifth Young Master, our luck is really incredible this time! We actually found a complete Ancient Sword. This sword is unbelievably sharp; cutting through gold and jade is nothing to it! With this Ancient Sword, Fifth Young Master, I bet not even the Seventh Young Master is a match for you!"

In the darkness, Qin Feng’s expression flickered. He thought, ’Fifth Young Master? Isn’t that bastard Qin Muhai?’

Sure enough, a familiar voice rang out, sounding slightly smug yet feigning modesty. "Don’t get careless. Lao Qi is the genius of our Qin Family. Who can compare to him?"

The first voice spoke again, unconvinced. "I don’t think so. Fifth Young Master, you also broke through to the Martial Arts Three Heavens realm a few days ago. To reach the Martial Arts Three Heavens at the tender age of fifteen is a top achievement in the Qin Family. The Seventh Young Master only managed to cultivate to the Peak of Martial Arts Three Heavens in such a short time because he has the Patriarch’s favor and an endless supply of Elixirs. If you, Fifth Young Master, received the family’s full support, you might even be a step ahead of him!"

Someone else chimed in. "That’s right! The Fifth Young Master is the true chosen one of the Qin Family! In a real fight, the Seventh Young Master might not be your match! You, Fifth Young Master, are the true Revival Lord of the Qin Family! Only you are worthy of Miss Yu Yao!"

Another person said coldly, "Don’t celebrate too early. If we’re talking about the number one talent of the Qin Family, it might have been the Seventh Young Master, Qin Fang, before. But now... I’m afraid it’s *that* person."

The first speaker said with some disdain, "You’re talking about that piece of trash Qin Feng, right? He’s just a stray dog. What right does he have to be compared to the Fifth Young Master!"

Qin Muhai also spoke coldly. "Qin Wei, who the hell is Qin Feng? He only got where he is by stumbling upon some treasure left behind by Qin Zhan! Now that I, Qin Muhai, have obtained this Ancient Sword, it won’t be difficult to pass the Main Family’s trial. Before long, I’ll be able to enter the Mountain and River City Lord’s House and be trained by the Main Family. When that time comes, what will that piece of trash Qin Feng amount to? The next time I see him, I’ll crush that little bastard with a flip of my hand!"

...

Hidden in the darkness, Qin Feng couldn’t help but sneer as he listened to their fawning words. ’It’s true that enemies are bound to meet,’ he thought. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Hearing Qin Muhai’s dismissive words, he suddenly burst out laughing. He and his group of four swaggered out of the darkness. A sentence echoed from the shadows, causing the faces of everyone in the tunnel to turn ashen.

"Qin Muhai, I, Qin Feng, am here. No need to wait until next time!"