Chapter 15: The Treasure

After surveying the surroundings of the hall, everyone focused their attention on the four brocade boxes on the table and the flat box on the long table. Everyone knew that these boxes contained the key items of this mission, the treasures of this secret place.

However, everyone still had their doubts. It was quite coincidental that four forces had come, and there were exactly four brocade boxes on the table. If one of the forces had gotten lost in the dense forest or if only three forces had come, would there be one less brocade box on the table? These were just thoughts, as the boxes had been here for over three hundred years. How could they suddenly disappear or appear?

Scholar Yan Ming still approached cautiously, walking to the front of the square table. He did not rush to pick up the boxes but carefully observed them from all angles. He tapped the chair with a dagger and even knocked the cushions to the ground. Then, he used the dagger to move the brocade boxes, but found no unusual movements. Finally, he was still not reassured and walked to the right wall, lifting three paintings to check, but found no mechanisms. He then walked to the table and said to everyone, "It seems there are no mechanisms here. What do you think?"

The others had been following Scholar Yan Ming since entering the secret place. In the hall, they stood without moving. The concept of formations had long been a legend in their era, and even the few formation experts were only known by reputation. No one had heard of a formation expert using bamboo pieces or stones to create a formation and trap someone, let alone a large formation made of the entire jujube forest. This was clearly a grand gesture from hundreds of years ago, and everyone was already in awe and obediently followed the instructions of their master, taking Scholar Yan Ming as their leader. When he asked for their opinions, how could they disagree? They all nodded in agreement.

Scholar Yan Ming was very satisfied with their attitude and said with a smile, "The world is unpredictable, so it's better to be cautious. You can also look around the hall to see if there are any other mechanisms. If you find anything, it will be your good fortune."

Everyone exchanged glances and then dispersed to check various parts of the hall. They also had their doubts, wondering if Scholar Yan Ming had some ulterior motive, like switching the brocade boxes. However, the hall was not that large, and any actions would be clearly visible. They were not afraid of him making any moves. Perhaps the senior really had the intention to take care of the juniors. In any case, looking around would not cause much harm.

Sure enough, within a short time, everyone had finished searching and found nothing. It seemed that the treasures in the hall were just these boxes.

Seeing everyone return, Scholar Yan Ming cleared his throat and said, "According to the previous agreement, each of our four forces can choose one brocade box. Although Master Situ is from the Evil Tiger Gang, he should be considered part of Young Hero Ma's force, not a separate one. Does Master Situ have any objections?"

Situ Ping said calmly, "I have no objections."

Indeed, how could he dare to object, given that his life had just been saved by others?

Scholar Yan Ming continued, "Then, we will choose the boxes in the order of holding the maps, from left to right, from top to bottom. Whatever you get, it will be your fate." He then stood by the table.

Following the order, the first to choose a box should be the Piaomiao Sect. Wen Wenhai thought for a moment and walked forward, carefully examining the four brocade boxes on the table. They were identical, with no visible differences, and all had a layer of dust, indicating they had been there for a long time. After a moment of contemplation, he chose the second box from the left. Just as he was about to open it to see what was inside, Scholar Yan Ming stopped him, saying, "The boxes definitely contain treasures, and there are exactly four, one for each person, so everyone will have a gain. However, the contents of each box may differ. If everyone knows what the others have, it might lead to envy. It's better to keep the contents a mystery and not open the boxes here. We can decide what to do with them after we leave."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Wen Wenhai also put the brocade box in his chest and returned to his original position.

Next were Wan Jianfeng and Ma Xiangyang, followed by Scholar Yan Ming, and finally Tan Wu, who took the last brocade box. No one opened the boxes, but put them in their chests.

After the distribution was complete, everyone's eyes turned to the flat box on the long table at the far end.

Scholar Yan Ming walked to the far end of the long table, picked up the box, and found it hard and heavy. Upon closer inspection, it seemed to be carved from a single piece of stone. It appeared to contain a treasure, but why was it not placed on the table and instead left at the other end of the long table?

Scholar Yan Ming walked to the table, passed the box around for everyone to see, and then placed it on the table. He looked at everyone and said, "This is the last box in the room, and there is no way to divide it equally. Do you agree to decide who gets it by playing rock-paper-scissors, as we discussed before?"

Everyone looked at each other, feeling a bit absurd. How could martial artists use a child's game to decide such an important matter? However, without this gentle method, facing such coveted treasures, who would hold back their weapons? It was uncertain who would ultimately benefit.

Everyone silently agreed. At this moment, Ma Xiangyang spoke up, "Senior, I have a suggestion."

Scholar Yan Ming, with an unsurprised expression, said, "Young Hero Ma, please speak."

Ma Xiangyang said, "We have no objections to the rock-paper-scissors method, but I have a small request. Whoever gets this box should open it and let us see what's inside. What do you think?"

Scholar Yan Ming thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. The others also had the same thought. They would know the contents of their own treasures when they returned, but they wanted to see what was in this box, as it might not be their own.

Scholar Yan Ming then arranged the order of the rock-paper-scissors game, following the same order as the selection of the brocade boxes. The Piaomiao Sect and Wan Jianfeng were in one group, and Scholar Yan Ming and the Tan family in another.

Wen Wenhai and Xue Qing exchanged glances, and Wen Wenhai nodded to Xue Qing, giving her an encouraging smile, though his face was also awkward. Xue Qing walked to the front of the table, knowing why her senior brother's face was awkward. Anyone who had played this game with her since childhood and always lost would feel awkward when it was mentioned.

Wan Jianfeng only had Ma Xiangyang, and he naturally would not let Situ Ping come up. Even if he trusted Situ Ping to play, Situ Ping would not dare to.

Seeing the two come forward, Scholar Yan Ming said, "The rules of rock-paper-scissors are: scissors beat paper, paper beats rock, and rock beats scissors. Before we start, each person will be blindfolded with a silk scarf. When I say one, two, three, everyone will simultaneously make their move. Then, we will remove the scarves and see who wins."

In the first round, both Xue Qing and Ma Xiangyang chose scissors. In the second round, Xue Qing still chose scissors, but Ma Xiangyang chose paper. When Ma Xiangyang removed his scarf for the second time, he regretfully stepped back.

The match between Scholar Yan Ming and Tan Wen was decided in one round. Scholar Yan Ming chose rock, and Tan Wen chose scissors.

The final round was crucial. Scholar Yan Ming thought for a moment and indicated for Situ Ping to blindfold him and Xue Qing. After Ma Xiangyang counted to three, Scholar Yan Ming chose scissors. When he removed his scarf, he found that Xue Qing had also chosen scissors. He blindfolded himself again, thought for a moment, and when the count reached three, he chose scissors again. He was surprised to find that Xue Qing had also chosen scissors. In fact, Scholar Yan Ming had his own motives for proposing this game. He was proficient in various skills, such as rock-paper-scissors and gambling, and had won more than he had lost. However, his martial arts skills were not at their peak due to his broad interests. At this critical moment, he realized that his opponent was also a skilled player, which made him even more cautious. In the third round, Scholar Yan Ming chose paper, and Xue Qing, the female hero, still chose scissors. As he removed his scarf, he sighed, thinking that a martial arts competition would have been better.

Regardless of Xue Qing's excited face, Wen Wenhai took the box and was about to open it. Scholar Yan Ming stopped him, saying, "Wait, put it on the table and use a sword to open it from a distance to prevent any mechanisms." Wen Wenhai followed his instructions, placing the box on the table and using the tip of his sword to prod it, but could not find the lid. He picked up the box again and carefully examined it, only to realize that the box was sealed. He tried to pry it open with force, but it did not budge. The others also could not open it, and Scholar Yan Ming used a dagger to pry it, but it was ineffective. Finally, he completely disregarded Wen Wenhai's gaze and even tried to cut the box with the dagger, but it did not leave any marks.

He finally understood why the box was thrown to the far end of the long table.

He casually handed it back to Wen Wenhai, who carefully put it in his chest.

Seeing that there was nothing left in the hall, everyone's thoughts had already flown to the medicinal garden. Scholar Yan Ming led everyone to the garden and said, "We are not well-prepared, and we don't know if we can take more medicinal herbs. I suggest we take some mature and preservable herbs, four sets in total, one for each force. The seeds and transplantation matters can be discussed by our four forces later. What do you think?"

Everyone had no objections. Scholar Yan Ming led them to collect the mature herbs, taking four sets of each, and packed them into four bundles, one for each force.

Finally, Scholar Yan Ming said to everyone, "Since none of us have any special opportunities, we can only give ourselves some comfort in the medicinal garden. The herbs we just collected are for our respective forces. Now, each of us can only take three mature herbs for personal use."

After saying this, Scholar Yan Ming led everyone through each medicinal field again, collecting herbs according to their individual needs. Most of the herbs they recognized were several hundred years old, such as ginseng, polygonum, tianqi, and mountain spirits.

By the time they finished, the light in the secret place had already dimmed, and it was probably well past noon outside. Everyone then thought about leaving. Entering had taken a long time, and leaving would likely be at night. Scholar Yan Ming smiled and reassured everyone, "To leave, just find a place and walk straight. You will be able to get out. However, it is time to leave, so let's go."

After saying this, everyone picked up their bundles and followed Scholar Yan Ming to two jujube trees in the middle of the jujube forest, walking straight.

However, they did not know that as soon as they entered the jujube forest, a snake-like monster's head emerged from the scorching lake, gazing at the direction they had gone, before retreating into the water, leaving only ripples on the surface.

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End of Chapter 15

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