Chapter 181 A Hero Saves the Scum from the Ashes?
[6,000 words]
When he was standing at the entrance of the cave, he had a feeling that someone had been here before, but he wasn't quite sure.
Now, there are many traces inside the cave indicating that someone has been here.
This cave is located on a steep cliff, and unless one comes across it by chance, it is virtually impossible for anyone to find it. Now, the cave has undergone some subtle changes.
Yan Yu's first thought was of Shen Jin, and he felt that Shen Jin had been here!
But after he called out, he was met with silence.
Overwhelmed with excitement, Yan Yu hurriedly walked forward a short distance and went inside, looking around anxiously, afraid that he might suddenly miss Shen Jin.
At this moment, Yan Yu saw a rabbit drawn on the ground with a stone.
Upon seeing the rabbit, Yan Yu's heart skipped a beat. A rabbit... He and Shen Jin had eaten rabbits together in this cave before.
"Shen Jin..." Yan Yu called out Shen Jin's name again, raising his voice once more, "Is it you? Please answer me!"
Upon realizing this possibility, Yan Yu was overjoyed and could hardly believe it. Could Shen Jin still be alive?
Yan Yu's fingers trembled with excitement, and he could barely speak.
Soon, Yan Yu wondered if Shen Jin was still alive after all this time. Could it be that he was just overthinking things, or that someone had just happened to come to this cave and happened to draw a rabbit here?
Moreover, if Shen Jin is still alive, why hasn't he come to see him yet?
Yan Yu's expression changed rapidly in an instant.
After thinking for a long time, Yan Yu continued walking into the cave, calling out Shen Jin's name: "Shen Jin, Shen Jin... are you there? Are you in here?"
However, there was no response to him.
The light inside the cave was too dim for Yan Yu to see clearly, so he could only look around little by little, calling out Shen Jin's name as he searched.
"Shen Jin, is that you? Are you there?" Yan Yu kept calling out.
Even if there was only the slightest hope, he wanted to find Shen Jin; he really wanted to find Shen Jin.
After searching for a while in the deepest part of the cave without finding anything, Yan Yu came out again and came to the outside. Here, the outside light shone in, and he could still see some things.
Yan Yu approached the rabbit, looked down at the painting, and remained silent for a long time.
Unconsciously, Yan Yu thought of the day they stayed in this cave, and suddenly, it felt like a lifetime had passed.
Yan Yu's eyes reddened. He blinked his sore eyes, forcing back the tears and preventing them from falling.
"Shen Jin, did you draw this?" Yan Yu looked at the rabbit and asked softly, "Where are you...?"
Finally, Yan Yu searched the entire cave but couldn't find Shen Jin. Standing inside the cave, Yan Yu was slightly out of breath, looking at the bright entrance.
After standing there for a while, Yan Yu did not hesitate and quickly went to the cave entrance.
Yan Yu searched around the cave entrance again.
After searching for a long time without any results, Yan Yu discovered several places that showed signs of someone having been there, which made him even more excited.
However, no matter how much evidence there was that someone had been there, he still couldn't find Shen Jin.
Yan Yu searched the cave and the outside repeatedly, but still found nothing.
Finally, Yan Yu stood dejectedly at the cave entrance for a while.
"The discovery that someone had been to this cave gave him hope, but when he couldn't find Shen Jin, that faint hope gradually faded away."
At the same time, he was also afraid that he might be wrong and that in the end it would all be for nothing.
Even if the hope is only a tiny bit, he will not give up. Maybe Shen Jin is waiting for him right now.
At that moment, Yan Yu suddenly noticed something in the bushes beside him.
Yan Yu was slightly taken aback, then squatted down and parted the bushes. Inside, he saw a lighter. Upon seeing that it was a lighter, Yan Yu was stunned for a moment.
With the lighter there, he was even more certain that someone had been there.
Afterwards, Yan Yu looked around, found some firewood, lit it with a lighter, took a thick piece of wood that was already on fire, and went back into the cave.
This time, with the torches illuminating the way, Yan Yu could clearly see what was inside the cave. He passed by the rabbit and continued walking inside.
At this moment, Yan Yu saw that someone had written some words on the ground.
Yan Yu quickly looked down and saw that the handwriting looked very much like Chen Jin's. Yan Yu recognized it at a glance, but he couldn't figure out what was written there.
These words look like they were just written and then erased; there are only a few scattered words left, and it's impossible to make out their content.
However, these words did indeed resemble Shen Jin's, which made Yan Yu even more excited and hopeful. He was both happy and afraid. He was happy that Shen Jin might still be alive, but afraid that all of this might be just his own wishful thinking.
"It must be his..." Yan Yu thought to himself, it definitely will be his.
Yan Yu left the cave but did not return. Instead, he searched the forest for other clues.
Yan Yu picked up a stone from the ground and marked a tree every so often he walked. Otherwise, people unfamiliar with the area would likely get lost in such a forest.
"Someone's there..."
Before long, Yan Yu saw a series of footprints.
Upon seeing the footprints, Yan Yu was stunned for a moment. He squatted down and examined them closely. The footprints were messy, and it looked like several people had walked there together.
"Who would come here?" Yan Yu looked at the footprints and muttered to himself in confusion.
Yan Yu hesitated for only a moment before standing up and following the footprints.
After walking for a while, Yan Yu saw some trash that someone had carelessly thrown on the ground. The trash bag was still new, so it looked like someone had just walked by not long ago.
Moreover, Yan Yu discovered that every few trees, one tree trunk had been slashed with a knife, which appeared to be a mark.
So, in places where there were no footprints, Yan Yu looked at the marks on the trees and continued forward.
Not long after, Yan Yu heard a noisy commotion ahead. It sounded like there were quite a few people talking.
Hearing voices, Yan Yu immediately held his breath, slowed his pace, and continued to walk forward slowly. Soon, the backs of a group of people came into Yan Yu's view.
"Boss, this haul looks pretty good. Enough for us brothers to have some fun for a while," one of them said with a smile, shaking a bag in his hand at a tall man next to him.
The man chuckled as well.
"Of course, we're the only ones around here with that kind of ability. Can any other bandits be as powerful as us?" another henchman echoed the first man's words.
Hearing their conversation, Yan Yu frowned slightly.
So, they were a gang of bandits?
"So what is our next goal?" another person asked.
This time, it was the man they called "Big Brother" who answered: "We've gained a lot this time, so we don't need to do anything for now. But it's time to teach those bandits who came to provoke us last time a lesson."
Upon hearing the bandit leader's words, the other bandits became agitated and began discussing how to teach them a lesson.
"Big brother is really something, he still remembers this," someone echoed.
Yan Yu hid behind a tree, listening to their conversation. He frowned slightly. He had only glanced at them briefly and hadn't seen them clearly, but he was certain that there were five of them in total.
However, after listening from behind the tree for a while, he only heard four voices, while one person remained silent.
Once the bandits were almost gone, Yan Yu hurriedly continued to walk slowly forward, raising his eyes to look at the backs of the group.
Suddenly, Yan Yu spotted a familiar figure among the group...
Yan Yu paused, frozen in place, his mouth agape, his voice trembling uncontrollably: "Shen Jin..."
Seeing that the group of people were walking further and further away, Yan Yu quickly realized what was happening and rushed forward.
Yan Yu shouted at that person, "Shen Jin!"
As he spoke, Yan Yu rushed over and, before the group could react, grabbed the man's hand, his fingers trembling.
The moment he grasped the other's hand, Yan Yu felt not only his fingers trembling, but his very soul. It felt unreal and unbelievable, and he cried out in a broken voice, "Shen Jin!"
"Huh?" The man was suddenly grabbed by the wrist and was stunned. He turned to look at Yan Yu.
However, it was not Shen Jin who stood before Yan Yu; instead, it was a completely unfamiliar face.
“Shen…” Yan Yu was stunned, still calling out Shen Jin’s name in a daze.
The others also looked over.
Yan Yu stared blankly at them, feeling a huge sense of disappointment. He had finally found Shen Jin, but it turned out to be all for nothing.
That feeling of going from hope to despair is just too painful.
“Shen Jin?” The bandit leader frowned, looked at Yan Yu, and said in a deep voice, “Who is that? I’ve never heard of him.”
The others also looked at Yan Yu with eyes full of hostility.
"Are you one of them?" the bandit leader asked Yan Yu menacingly. "You've mistaken me for someone else."
The bandit leader had a particularly long scar on his face, which would twitch as he spoke, making him look quite terrifying.
"Them?" Yan Yu was also taken aback when he heard the bandit leader's words.
He didn't know who he was referring to when he said "them".
Seeing Yan Yu's completely bewildered expression, the bandit leader frowned even more deeply.
"Are you fucking playing dumb with me?" The bandit leader's face darkened as he asked.
Yan Yu simply looked at him without saying a word.
"Boss, I think this guy is one of them." A short bandit leaned over and whispered in the bandit leader's ear.
Although the voice was spoken right next to his ear, it was quite loud, and Yan Yu heard it clearly.
The bandit leader glanced at the young bandit but said nothing.
"Who are the people you're talking about?" Yan Yu asked after a moment of silence.
Are they referring to the ashes?
Because he had just mistaken one of the bandits here for Shen Jin, they assumed he knew Shen Jin and that's why they said he was one of them.
So, is it possible to find the whereabouts of the Ashes?
"Stop pretending to be stupid! Don't think we'll let you go just because you think this way!" one of the bandits said to Yan Yu.
“Yes, I think this guy is just pretending to be stupid,” another bandit chimed in.
The bandit leader stared at Yan Yu in silence for a while, seemingly pondering how to deal with him.
A moment later, the bandit leader ordered in a deep voice, "Take him away."
In short, regardless of whether this person is with them or not, they took him with them first. Having someone in their hands will allow them to threaten them later.
Several bandits quickly responded and then made a move to tie Yan Yu up.
“No need to tie me up, I’ll go with you,” Yan Yu said to one of the bandits.
This matter might be related to Shen Jin, so he definitely has to go with them to see what's going on; maybe that's how he'll find Shen Jin's whereabouts.
Upon hearing Yan Yu's words, one of the bandits sneered, turned to look at the bandit leader, and waited for him to make a decision.
The bandit leader glanced at Yan Yu, and seeing that Yan Yu really had no intention of running away, he nodded slightly in acknowledgment.
The two bandits then stopped tying Yan Yu up with ropes, but they still handcuffed his hands behind his back, holding him and restricting his movements.
"Behave yourself, you hear?" one of the bandits shoved Yan Yu and threatened him.
Yan Yu remained silent and did not speak.
Anyway, he was going to go with them anyway, so it didn't matter if they caught him. As long as he could see Shen Jin, he was willing to do anything.
After that, Yan Yu followed them.
"Boss, where do you think they went? How come we just disappeared after following them?" Not long after, the short bandit started talking to the bandit leader.
Yan Yu listened quietly to their conversation, trying to find some useful clues.
Yan Yu frowned slightly upon hearing this.
Did we lose them after following them all along?
"Anyway, they must still be in this mountain forest. They can't possibly use earth-遁术 (earth-遁术 is a type of magic that allows one to burrow underground), can they?" the bandit leader said to the young bandit.
The young bandit nodded in agreement, and the other bandits echoed his sentiment.
"That group of people must have stolen quite a few treasures from the tomb, right?" the bandit leader said at this moment.
"Yes, yes, there must be a lot of treasures." The other bandits nodded in agreement.
Yan Yu pursed his lips. Tomb raiding? Tomb raiding? What does this have to do with Shen Jin?
After a long silence, the bandit leader turned to look at Yan Yu.
"I'm asking you, how many treasures did you tomb raiders dig up, and where did you put them?" the bandit leader asked Yan Yu, his eyes revealing undisguised greed and desire.
Yan Yu chuckled and said, "I've already told you I have nothing to do with them, so what's the point of asking me?"
Upon hearing Yan Yu's answer, the bandit leader was not angry. Instead, he chuckled, not believing it.
"Looks like there's a lot of treasure." The bandit leader turned around and continued walking forward.
Yan Yu's smile vanished, his dark eyes fixed on them, his mind racing. Although he didn't know who the other group of bandits were, he didn't want to give up on anything that had anything to do with Shen Jin.
Afterwards, Yan Yu was led around aimlessly by them, and even as it was getting dark, they still hadn't found the "them" they were talking about.
At night, a man came and found the bandit leader, who also seemed to be one of the bandits he led.
"Boss, I got word that they're in a mountain not far away," the young bandit whispered to the bandit leader.
Although the sound was very soft, Yan Yu had excellent hearing, so he still heard it.
Upon hearing that they knew their location, Yan Yu's eyes lit up immediately. Did this mean that he would have a chance to see Shen Jin?
Upon hearing the bandit's words, the bandit leader's lips curled into a smile, and he immediately ordered, "Let's go, we'll be there right now, you lead the way."
"Yes!" the bandit replied quickly.
Afterwards, the group of people secretly found their way into the mountain.
When they got close to those people, almost everyone tiptoed and crouched down as they approached.
"Boss, it's just ahead," the bandit leader said in a very low voice.
The bandit leader nodded to indicate that he understood, and then gestured to the others to be quiet and get ready. Everyone understood and nodded.
The bandit leader glanced back at Yan Yu, who, like the others, remained silent and did not shout or call out to his companions.
This surprised the bandit leader.
Finally, the bandit leader attributed this to his own prestige; this person must be too afraid of him to dare to make any big moves.
Then, a group of people cautiously approached.
Not long after they walked, they saw another group of people ahead, but they were too far away to see their faces clearly.
"It's them." The bandit leader had seen those tomb raiders before, so he recognized them at a glance and immediately laughed.
It's like finding something you've been searching for everywhere without even looking for it, and then finding it without any effort at all.
Yan Yu frowned slightly and looked over there. The number of people there was about the same as the number of these bandits. They had lit a fire and seemed to be resting.
Because it was dark, Yan Yu couldn't see what they looked like, but his heart started racing.
Is it possible that the ashes are inside?
"Alright, we can't get too close, or we'll be discovered. We'll stay here and wait until they relax, then we'll go and rob them." The bandit leader stepped back a little and whispered instructions to the lesser bandits.
Everyone nodded, hiding behind the tree, motionless and without making a sound.
Yan Yu remained silent, not uttering a sound, but his eyes were fixed on the people over there, as if afraid they would suddenly leave.
After a long time, the bandit leader, seeing that the tomb raiders seemed to have lowered their guard, gave everyone a wink, and they all nodded in understanding.
Yan Yu guessed that they were about to take action, and immediately became vigilant.
A moment later, with a wave of the bandit's arm, everyone picked up their weapons and rushed over, directly to the tomb raiders, surrounding them.
Yan Yu was grabbed by someone, and a sharp knife was pointed at his neck.
The tomb raiders were caught off guard by the sudden appearance of so many people and were momentarily stunned.
Immediately afterwards, the bandits rushed forward and quickly extinguished the fire, plunging the surroundings into darkness, with only a faint moonlight remaining to make out a few figures.
"You, leave all the treasures to me! And I'll let you go!" The bandit leader shouted at the tomb raiders, brandishing a large knife.
"You guys?" one of the tomb raiders sneered.
Upon hearing this, the bandit leader's momentum instantly plummeted.
In fact, he had witnessed the prowess of those tomb raiders before, and he wasn't too willing to confront them head-on.
So the bandit leader grabbed Yan Yu: "This is one of your men. If you don't behave, I can't guarantee his safety!"
The bandit leader was met with another cold laugh.
Immediately afterward, the tomb raiders didn't waste any words and started fighting the bandits, who were all taken aback, including their leader.
The two sides fought fiercely, neither willing to give up. The bandits, in particular, were used to a life of robbery and plunder, and now that they had finally encountered a group of people, they naturally did not want to give up easily.
After all, the more tomb raiders there are, the richer they become. Who knows if they've stolen some antiques from other people's tombs? Those are absolute treasures!
The bandit leader grabbed Yan Yu, using him as a human shield, and cursed, "Damn it! Does this mean I've grabbed the wrong person?"
Otherwise, why would they remain indifferent?
In the darkness, swords and blades are naturally blind, but Yan Yu's eyes darted around, eager to find Chen Jin. Because he was too focused, he ignored the danger before him.
A bandit accidentally swung his knife at Yan Yu!
His pupils contracted sharply, and he quickly bent down to dodge.
"when!"
A sound of blades clashing rang out, and the knife was deflected, causing Yan Yu to breathe a sigh of relief, relieved that he had been scared.
Immediately afterwards, the man who had saved him kicked the bandit leader again with great force, making a dull thud.
"Ah!" Caught off guard, the bandit had no time to dodge and screamed in pain as he fell backward, staggering and nearly collapsing.
Yan Yu's hands were immediately freed, and he hurriedly looked at the person, politely saying, "Thank you for your help..."
The moment Yan Yu looked over, he froze.
The person's face was painted black, and since it was night, nothing could be seen clearly, but one could make out a small face, about the size of a palm, and a pair of incredibly clear eyes that seemed to glow in the darkness...
Yan Yu's heart skipped a beat. He was absolutely certain he wouldn't mistake those eyes... This time it really was Shen Jin!!!
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