Set a goal, and the system takes over the body.

Qi Xiuyuan stepped inside.

The stone house was originally dark, but as he stepped in, it was as if some kind of sensor was triggered, and the oil lamps on the stone walls lit up one after another.

The warm yellow light instantly filled the entire stone room.

The first thing you see is a dozen or so large wooden crates.

One of the chests was half-open, overflowing with gold and silver jewelry that dazzled the eye; any one piece would be enough for an ordinary family to live on for several years.

But he didn't stop in front of the treasure at all, and went straight to the most inconspicuous black wooden box in the corner.

The box was dark and unadorned, completely inconspicuous compared to the room full of gold and silver.

Qi Xiuyuan reached out and lifted the lid of the box. Inside, there was a thick layer of dark red velvet cloth, which was shock-absorbing and moisture-proof, clearly intended for storing valuable items.

On the velvet cloth lay a sealed white porcelain bottle, a jade box, and a piece of yellowed hemp paper.

In that instant, control of the body was regained.

Qi Xiuyuan picked up the piece of hemp paper, unfolded it, and after only a few glances, his heart skipped a beat.

"This is... the formula for the Bone-Rending Pill?"

Everyone in Tianfu City knows how precious the Minggu Pill is.

One pill can increase the chances of a peak Inner Strength Realm martial artist breaking through to the Bone-Ringing Realm by 30%, making it practically priceless and unavailable. The formula is tightly controlled by major powers, and it's simply not available on the market.

He never expected that the Black Wind Stronghold's treasure vault would contain a complete elixir formula.

He picked up the porcelain bottle again, uncorked it, and a rich yet slightly pungent medicinal aroma wafted out.

The pill tumbled slightly in the bottle, its color a dark red and translucent, exactly like the Minggu Pill described in the prescription.

"There's no mistake, this is the Bone-Ringing Pill!"

Qi Xiuyuan tucked the pill formula and the porcelain bottle into his pocket, and finally picked up the jade box. He opened it and found a black token inside, engraved with strange, crooked patterns that resembled runes or some kind of mark, the origin of which was unclear.

"Being packaged in such a fine jade box, this token must be extraordinary."

Before they could think further, the sounds of chaotic footsteps and shouts of battle could be heard in the distance, approaching the back mountain.

Qi Xiuyuan stuffed the token back into the jade box and put it away. He then took off his coat, hastily wrapped a bag of gold and silver jewelry, picked up the package, and turned to leave.

He suddenly stopped, turned around, and began hacking wildly at the corpses of the four bandits with his long sword.

After doing all this, he leaped up the slope and disappeared into the night in a few bounds.

After about half an incense stick's time.

Wearing a mask and carrying a sword, Huang Jing led a group of soldiers and martial arts disciples to the front of the treasure vault.

Upon seeing the four bandits lying on the ground, Huang Jing paused, his gaze immediately sweeping towards the stone house door. Seeing that the door was still closed and the lock intact, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"This place is already deep in the back mountains of Black Wind Stronghold, and yet there's such a hidden stone house, guarded by people. There must be something hidden inside. Who can open the door?"

Huang Jing's voice came through the mask, sounding somewhat hoarse.

A soldier stepped forward and said respectfully, "Reporting to Master Huang, my family has been locksmiths for generations. I learned some skills from my father since I was a child, so I should be able to open this door."

"Okay, go and give it a try." Huang Jing nodded.

The soldier stepped forward, took out two thin iron wires, inserted them into the keyhole, and fiddled with them for a few moments. The stone door opened with a click.

The crowd filed in.

The oil lamp on the stone wall lit up again.

Upon seeing more than a dozen large boxes piled up inside the room, someone stepped forward and opened them. Inside were gold and silver jewels, and many soldiers' eyes lit up, but no one dared to touch them.

Huang Jing didn't even glance at the gold and silver jewelry. His gaze swept around and landed directly on the black wooden box in the corner that had been opened. It was empty. His eyes narrowed suddenly, and his whole body turned cold.

Then, remembering the four bandits who died under suspicious circumstances outside, his heart skipped a beat.

"Oh no! Someone beat us to it!"

He gripped the sword hilt tightly, seething with hatred.

But this matter cannot be made public.

And you must not let anyone else know.

He could only forcefully suppress his anger.

"Gentlemen, the Black Wind Stronghold bandits are cunning and treacherous. Who knows how many more might still be hiding around us? Spread out and search everywhere. We must not let a single bandit escape!"

Huang Jing turned and gave instructions, then looked at General Lu beside him.

"General Lu, please have these valuables inventoried and escorted back to Tianfu City to be handled by Magistrate Zhao. Rewards will be given later based on merit."

"Rest assured, Master Huang, I will certainly live up to your expectations."

Lu Lang bowed and accepted.

He was a fifth-rank military officer in charge of the defense of Tianfu City. He was under the jurisdiction of the Yizhou General's Office and not directly under the prefect, but he still had to cooperate in the task of suppressing bandits and assisting in defense.

When such a lucrative opportunity is presented to you, why wouldn't you take it?

Huang Jing had no time to worry about any of that. He left the stone house and squatted down to examine the four bandit corpses.

The wounds were haphazard and disordered, making it impossible to discern which martial arts style had been used.

"Damn it, whoever made the move definitely knows about that item. They're deliberately trying to create confusion. It's all that good-for-nothing Qin Heilong's fault. Why didn't he run away sooner? He dragged it out for so long, making me arrive a step too late!"

Huang Jing cursed Qin Heilong a thousand times in his heart.

But by this time, Qin Heilong, who had been severely injured by the combined efforts of everyone, had already taken advantage of the chaos to break through and had disappeared.

He stood up, stared at the mountain range for a moment, selected the most likely direction, and then used his movement technique to chase after it.

After he had walked away, General Lu grinned, beckoned over a few trusted guards, and gave them instructions in a low voice.

"You lot, count this gold and silver, divide it into 60/40, take the larger portion back to my camp, and send the smaller portion to the prefectural government office to give to Magistrate Zhao. Be quick and efficient, and don't let anyone notice anything amiss, understand?"

"Don't worry, sir, we understand!"

Several guards nodded hurriedly, their faces beaming with joy.

Lu Lang has eaten his fill.

They were then able to drink some soup.

This is a lucrative job!

……

Behind Black Wind Village, beside the cliff on the east side.

Qi Xiuyuan lay on a thick branch of a towering tree, the dense canopy completely obscuring him. Combined with the thick darkness of night, it was impossible to spot him from below.

Less than two zhang away from him was the rock wall, the very spot the system had indicated for guarding Guan Bao.

"What a pity. If only we had storage bags, we could have emptied the treasure vault of gold and silver, which would have been worth at least tens of thousands of taels of silver."

Qi Xiuyuan touched the bundle beside him; the gold and silver jewelry inside was estimated to be worth only three to five thousand taels.

There are quite a few.

Compared to the dozens of chests of gold and silver treasures in the Black Wind Stronghold's treasury, it's far too little.

However, bringing too many people would make them too conspicuous, making it impossible to escape easily, not to mention having to wait until the fourth quarter of the morning to wait for Guan Bao to appear and seize the opportunity from him.

"If you don't find it here, search over there!"

"Search thoroughly, don't miss a single corner!"

"yes!!"

Shouts could be heard from time to time in the mountains and forests, and the light of torches flickered in the trees.

In addition to government soldiers, people from various martial arts schools and security escort agencies temporarily formed search teams, carrying torches and searching the mountains and fields for any remaining bandits.