Free Web NovelChapter 447: Chapter 247: Huangfu Ancestral Land
Li Xuejin shook his head, then rose and cupped his hands. "I am at the Boss’s command."
Cheng Zongyang smiled faintly, pleased to see how quickly Li Xuejin was adapting to his new role. "So, you can take me to the Huangfu Ancestral Land now, right?"
Li Xuejin nodded. "I can. But we’ll have to wait until tonight. I still need to prepare a few things."
At this point, all he could do was continue to gamble—gamble that Cheng Zongyang wouldn’t discard him once he was no longer useful.
But he had no other choice. He couldn’t get his revenge, and guarding the ancestral land was pointless.
Cheng Zongyang was very satisfied with Li Xuejin’s decisiveness. He had already laid out his terms and promises; if the man still refused to act without a guaranteed outcome, there would have been nothing more to discuss.
As for why they had to go at night, he would find out soon enough.
After Li Xuejin left, Cheng Zongyang had someone summon Li Lu and informed him of the situation with Li Xuejin.
When Li Lu heard that Li Xuejin—Steward Li—would be in charge of the faction’s internal affairs while he would handle combat and external matters, he voiced no objections. In fact, he was glad to be free from the trivialities of administration. He was truly not skilled at handling such matters.
Cheng Zongyang’s arrangement was inspired by the military management models from his past life. Li Xuejin would be like a political commissar, while Li Lu was the military commander. Although he’d said they were equals, it was in fact a first- and second-in-command structure. He’d only phrased it that way to make the situation more palatable for Li Xuejin.
The reason he didn’t want Li Xuejin joining the Cheng Family was that it wasn’t necessary yet, and he didn’t want Zhou Zhendong and the others to be influenced by him.
Night fell quickly, but it wasn’t until nearly midnight that Li Xuejin personally drove a carriage, slowly departing from the West City gate and turning toward South City.
Inside the carriage, Cheng Zongyang wasn’t concerned about their destination, simply allowing Li Xuejin to drive them out of South City.
About a quarter of an hour later, the carriage slowly came to a stop at the foot of a small hill.
"Boss, we’re here." Li Xuejin said, dismounting and addressing Cheng Zongyang inside.
Cheng Zongyang stepped out of the carriage and scanned his surroundings, but the darkness of night made it impossible to immediately identify the location.
But then, Cheng Zongyang saw Li Xuejin pull something from his robes and walk toward a specific spot.
Frowning, Cheng Zongyang followed him. But as they walked, he realized the place looked somewhat familiar.
They continued until the grassy ground grew sparse, eventually opening into a barren clearing where not a single blade of grass grew.
Now he knew exactly where they were!
The Soul-Loss Pit! Also known as the Ghost Abyss!
He never would have imagined that Li Xuejin would bring him here!
Li Xuejin chose that moment to explain. "Every Gate Valve Family has its own hidden resources and secrets. They all have real and fake ancestral lands to deceive the outside world. My Huangfu Family is no exception."
"The Huangfu Family first rose to prominence in Jade Peak County before settling in Linchuan and fully establishing our enterprise there. This place, however, became the true Huangfu Ancestral Land. But to keep it secret, the ancestral land was moved to the Central Region of the Soul-Loss Pit."
"The Central Region?" Cheng Zongyang asked, confused. "In a secret passage or chamber within the Central Region?"
"Exactly." Li Xuejin nodded slightly.
As they spoke, the two arrived at the edge of the Ghost Abyss.
Looking down into the four-meter-wide fissure, Cheng Zongyang thought that no one would ever have guessed the Huangfu Family would move their ancestral land into an underground passage within it.
Cheng Zongyang didn’t ask any questions, waiting to see what Li Xuejin would do.
He watched Li Xuejin slowly crouch by the edge of the Ghost Abyss and toss the object he’d been holding into it.
Now, Cheng Zongyang was thoroughly confused.
But right after throwing the object, Li Xuejin scrambled to his feet and pulled Cheng Zongyang back, as if he were afraid of something.
Just as Cheng Zongyang was about to ask what was happening, a powerful gust of air erupted from the depths of the Ghost Abyss, carrying with it an exceptionally foul odor.
"Boss, hold your breath! Go!" Li Xuejin shouted to Cheng Zongyang before leaping into the Ghost Abyss.
The sight left Cheng Zongyang dumbfounded. If he hadn’t seen Li Xuejin jump first and so decisively, he would have suspected the man was trying to kill him.
But thoughts were just thoughts. He instantly retrieved the dagger from his marketplace hut and jumped in after him.
The dagger’s purpose was to be plunged into the cliff face in an emergency, to slow his descent.
The moment he jumped, Cheng Zongyang felt an updraft supporting his body. The current wasn’t strong enough to push him back up, nor was it so weak that he would plummet.
Borne by this current, his body descended at a gentle speed. He continued until he saw a section of the cliff with numerous wooden stakes driven into it.
With his sharp vision, he could see that Li Xuejin was already using the stakes to climb toward a platform on the left.
’Who would think to find a setup like this underground? The drop must be seventy or eighty meters.’
Cheng Zongyang estimated the distance, then used the stakes to leap across to the platform.
After landing, Li Xuejin kicked the numerous corpses and skeletons from the platform into the Ghost Abyss, clearing the space.
With a THUD, Cheng Zongyang also landed steadily.
Before them was a stone door.
Cheng Zongyang stepped forward and rapped his knuckles on it, discovering the stone’s material was the same as the one he had given Gangzi to use as a "scratching post."
This time, Li Xuejin took a Metal Key from his robes. He walked to a spot beside the door, peeled back a camouflaging layer of Stone Hide, and revealed a keyhole.
Cheng Zongyang recognized that the key looked similar to the one he had found in the Treasure Cave.
