Outside the cave entrance stood several figures, seemingly scattered but actually arranged with precision, clearly forming some kind of formation as they waited for those inside to come out. Counting carefully, there were nine people outside the cave.

The mine tunnel was narrow and slanted upward. Suddenly encountering enemies at this moment, the three inside all inwardly cursed their luck—the situation was now as unfavorable as it could get. The opponents didn’t even need to fight; just throwing a few stones down would be enough to overwhelm them.

Isaac Lowell crouched low, hiding his blade behind his back, his whole body tensed and ready to pounce at any moment.

Charles Quinn, meanwhile, let out a muffled shout as he raised his Yangshou Evil Bow. Though his hands were old and withered, they were still as steady as rock, drawing the bowstring taut. He was about to shout a command, but upon seeing the people outside clearly, he let out a surprised “Eh?” and his longbow involuntarily lowered a little.

By the sparse moonlight, Henry Lang looked out from behind his two companions and saw that the nine people outside the cave were all rather short and hunched, appearing to be elderly men. Their clothing, however, looked extremely familiar:

They wore cuttlefish-black robes, wind-shielding arm guards, embroidered spring knives at their waists, and large, brightly colored hats pulled low over their faces, making it impossible to see their features. Both hands were tucked into their sleeves.

These nine hunched old men lying in ambush at the cave entrance were, shockingly, all colleagues of Charles Quinn—elite Blue-Clad Guards under the command of the Great Flood Nine Dragons Division!

Henry Lang then looked farther out. Beyond the cave was a barren clearing, several hundred feet in diameter.

Isaac Lowell also recognized their attire, and after a brief pause, immediately declared his identity: “Feiyu Commander Isaac Lowell of the Renzi Institute, Nine Dragons Division, is here! Brothers outside, show your identity tokens!” As he spoke, he took off the palm-sized bronze token hanging from his neck and waved it toward those outside.

The blue-clad men outside remained silent, holding their formation tightly, not even shifting their stances.

Isaac Lowell took a deep breath and continued to shout, “My lord Mr. Quinn is also here! Why don’t you quickly identify yourselves!”

Still, the other side remained silent. Isaac Lowell glanced back at Charles Quinn, and after the latter nodded, he suddenly changed his tone, smiling as he called out, “It’s so dark out here, perhaps you can’t see my token clearly. That’s easy to fix!” With that, he tossed his token out.

Immediately, a dazzling golden light burst forth beside Henry Lang, blinding everyone for a split second. Isaac Lowell then let out a fierce shout, gripping his embroidered spring knife and darting toward the nine blue-clad old men blocking the cave entrance as swiftly as a cat!

Behind Charles Quinn stood the descendant of the The Lang Family, whom his family had protected for generations. Seeing the enemy blocking the cave with clear hostility, a murderous intent rose in his heart. He signaled Isaac Lowell to attack, and at the same time drew his evil bow, using its brilliant light to blind the enemy and cover Isaac Lowell’s sneak attack.

Isaac Lowell unleashed nine consecutive strikes as fast as thunder, and in the blink of an eye, all nine blue-clad old men were cut down. Only then did Isaac Lowell cry out in shock, “They’re all dead… They’ve been dead for who knows how many years!”

The nine blue-clad old men, struck by the blade, neither screamed nor bled. Instead, there was a series of rattling sounds as they all collapsed and scattered to the ground.

Their bodies lay strewn across the ground, with no flesh or blood at all—just piles of ashen-white bones…

Chapter Eleven: Eating Meat Is a Blessing

The exit of the pit was at the bottom of a mountain basin, a barren area several hundred feet across. Surrounded by mountains, it was unclear if there was any way out.

The nine hunched old men had died standing in formation at the cave entrance, long since turned to skeletons, dead for who knows how long.

The three who had finally escaped with their lives had no time to rejoice before being stunned by the strange scene before them.

Henry Lang sucked in a cold breath. Compared to the corpses littering the ground, he was even more surprised by the fabric of the Nine Dragons Blue-Clad Guards’ uniforms. The flesh of these nine had long since rotted away, leaving only skeletons, yet after so many years of wind, rain, and sun, their robes remained completely intact.

Charles Quinn examined the corpses around him, his gray-and-white brows furrowing tightly as he said calmly, “I had no idea our Nine Dragons Division ever had nine predecessors die at the bottom of Mount Kunai’s valley!”

Isaac Lowell stood nearby, carefully surveying the layout of the valley, and replied, “There shouldn’t be any records of this—it must have been deliberately concealed. Otherwise, if nine Blue-Clad Guards disappeared at once, the court would surely have investigated.”

Charles Quinn, who had deliberately mentored Henry Lang, turned to look at him. “What do you think?”

Henry Lang pondered for a moment before speaking: “Who knows how many years ago, nine Blue-Clad Guards fought enemies here. In the end, the enemy escaped into this mountain cave, and the nine guards formed a formation to seal the entrance…” At this point, Henry Lang’s mouth fell open in shock, his face full of astonishment.

Charles Quinn knew what he was thinking and nodded with a smile. “That’s right. Both these nine Blue-Clad Guards and their enemy were incredibly powerful!”

You have to understand, the pit through which Henry Lang and the others escaped was man-made. That enemy still had the strength to smash through the mountain wall and carve out a deep tunnel, yet he would rather dig through the mountain to escape than face the nine old Blue-Clad Guards again. That says everything about the strength of both sides!

The scene was clear at a glance, and it wasn’t hard to imagine the fierce battle that had taken place. However, Charles Quinn’s expression was far from pleasant, and Isaac Lowell muttered under his breath, “When did the Nine Dragons Division ever have such a group of experts?!”