The sword had a silver-white scabbard, making it incredibly dazzling. Two small characters were carved on the hilt: Liú Xiá.
Picking up the precious sword and drawing it from its sheath, a chilling aura emanated from the blade. With a couple of gentle swings, the sword produced faint, piercing sounds as it cut through the air.
This sword, buried here, must be a treasure, Lu Fan thought. He sheathed the sword and picked up the sheepskin scroll map again, studying it closely. Suddenly, a sense of familiarity struck him. This map looked somewhat similar to the mountains near Twelve Gou!
What was the use of this map? Could it be a legendary treasure map? And... what kind of treasure would it lead to? A hint of delight appeared on Lu Fan's face. Heh heh! If it was a treasure map, he could get rich!
He put away both items and re-erected the stone tablet. After bowing several times to the monument, Lu Fan hurried back. It was already very late. He hadn't expected to fight the stone figures for so long. Alas! He had almost lost his life. Fortunately, he had gained something.
Following the same path back, Lu Fan was surprised to find that the little rabbit hadn't run away. It still seemed very frightened, lying under a tree, not daring to move.
Lu Fan scooped up the little rabbit and quickly walked away. After rounding the two graves from before, he noticed that the wild rabbits and pheasants were long gone.
Without further ado, Lu Fan sprinted towards the outside of the mountain. Only after leaving the two graves did the eerie, chilling sensation gradually disappear.
He ran all the way, and Lu Fan realized his speed had increased significantly. Like a wild leopard, the wind whistled past his ears as he ran.
At Lu Fan's home, Zhao Rongrong and Lu Changfu lay in bed, unable to sleep.
"Hey, you think something might have happened to our son since he's not back this late?" Zhao Rongrong nudged Lu Changfu beside her.
"Impossible! Our son is amazing now. Didn't you hear the villagers say he single-handedly subdued those three troublemakers from Shiyi Dao Gou Village! This kid is just like me when I was young!" Lu Changfu said, rolling over and pulling Zhao Rongrong into his embrace to comfort her.
"Pah! My son is much better than you. Back then, you were timid and often bullied, and you didn't dare fight back when you were beaten! Humph!" Zhao Rongrong pouted, exposing Lu Changfu's past.
"Tch! I was just afraid of hurting them, I couldn't bear to strike. If I had acted, it would have been either death or serious injury! Humph!" Lu Changfu said shamelessly.
"Look at you, bragging. For so many years, you haven't just not beaten anyone, you haven't even been able to collect debts!" Zhao Rongrong said angrily.
"Tch! Look at how you've described me. I'll show you how capable I am right now!" Lu Changfu rolled over and pinned Zhao Rongrong beneath him.
"Show off! Show off! That's all you've got... Oh my..."
...
Lu Fan didn't go home directly upon his return. Instead, he ran towards the village committee office. With the snake gall of the Great Yin Body python, he could cure Liu Ruyan's illness. He wanted to share this good news with Liu Ruyan immediately and give her a surprise.
Arriving at the village committee office, Lu Fan pushed open the main gate and entered the courtyard.
Whoosh... Suddenly, he felt a gust of wind. Lu Fan spun around and unleashed a palm strike.
Bang... The two forces collided instantly. Whoosh... A figure was sent flying back four or five steps.
"Someone is in Liu Ruyan's courtyard?" Lu Fan's expression turned tense. Whoosh... He lunged forward, and before the other person could react, slap... he grabbed their throat!
"Ugh..." The person instantly felt their neck constricted by immense power, struggling to breathe.
"Xiao Fan... Stop!" A voice suddenly called out. Liu Ruyan rushed out of the room anxiously.
Seeing that Liu Ruyan was unharmed, Lu Fan released his grip. He took a closer look at the person before him and realized it was a man in his forties.
"Cough cough cough..." Wang Cheng coughed violently after being released, having nearly been choked to death. He truly hadn't expected to find such a powerful individual in this remote village. He had almost lost his life in an instant. This must be the level of a Grandmaster!
However, when Wang Cheng looked up and saw that Lu Fan was just a young man, his eyes nearly bulged out. How was this possible? A kid around twenty years old possessing such formidable skills?
"Uncle Wang! Are you alright!?" Liu Ruyan rushed over, holding Wang Cheng's arm.
"I... I won't die!" Wang Cheng shook his head.
"Lu Fan! You hit too hard! This is Uncle Wang Cheng! He's here to protect me!" Liu Ruyan looked at Lu Fan with a hint of resentment. She had been worried about this kid not returning all night, wondering if something had happened. Now he had come in the middle of the night. This made it impossible for her to explain to Uncle Wang. She didn't want her family to know about her relationship with Lu Fan.
"Uncle Wang?? I... How was I supposed to know he's your Uncle Wang? There was a stranger in your courtyard, I thought you were in danger!" Lu Fan shrugged, thinking, where did she get an Uncle Wang from?
"Uncle Wang! This is Lu Fan!" Liu Ruyan said to Wang Cheng.
"You are Lu Fan?" Wang Cheng looked at the young man before him with surprise, not expecting this kid to be Lu Fan. He was indeed very young.
"You... have you heard of me?" Lu Fan asked, somewhat surprised. Judging by Wang Cheng's tone, he had heard his name before.
"Yes, I have. You caused quite a stir at the Bai family in the provincial capital and offended the Lin family and Bai Siye of the Bai family. I was worried the Lin family might retaliate against you, affecting our young lady's safety, so I came! I just didn't expect you to be so formidable!" Wang Cheng said with a touch of surprise.
The matter of the Bai family in the provincial capital had long spread among the prominent families there. The Liu family naturally knew about it and understood that the usually arrogant Lin family would not let it go. Therefore, Wang Cheng came to protect Liu Ruyan. Moreover, Liu Ruyan was secretly learning martial arts from Wang Cheng, so Wang Cheng planned to personally guide the young lady.
Liu Ruyan was only here temporarily. They did not want any accidents to befall Liu Ruyan. Of course, if Liu Ruyan were to have an accident, the Liu family could still destroy the Lin family. But no one wanted that to happen.
However, Wang Cheng was not entirely convinced by the rumors about Lu Fan. Rumors often had embellishments. How could a kid in his teens be this powerful? This must have been deliberately orchestrated by Old Master Bai to shake off the Lin family's entanglement.
But seeing it with his own eyes, Wang Cheng was stunned. He himself was a Grandmaster, yet he was subdued by this kid in an instant! Could this kid truly be a Grandmaster? It was simply unbelievable!
"Lu Fan! You came to see me so late, is there something you need?" Liu Ruyan suddenly asked Lu Fan, blinking her eyes. She didn't want Wang Cheng to know that Lu Fan often came to see her alone. This would not be good if her father found out. Therefore, she wanted Lu Fan to make up a plausible excuse to cover it up.
"Ruyan! I found the medicinal ingredient that can cure your illness! So I wanted to come and give you a surprise!" Lu Fan said excitedly, completely oblivious to Liu Ruyan's expression.
"You can cure the young lady's illness?" Wang Cheng's face showed surprise again. Few people knew about Liu Ruyan's condition, but renowned doctors across the country had been consulted for Liu Ruyan's illness, and none could cure it. This kid claimed he could cure it??? Was he bragging!