Unparalleled medical and martial arts skills, saving the CEO's fiancée at the start.

For the next few days, Ye Chen practically lived in the training ground on the back mountain.

Every morning before dawn, he would get up, carrying two steamed buns made from mixed grains and a bottle of spring water, and with his withered sword on his back, and head up the mountain.

Ghost Servant and Aygul wisely refrained from disturbing him.

Su Qinghan would go up the mountain once every afternoon to check on him. She didn't say much, sometimes she would stand at a distance and watch for a while, and sometimes she would walk up to him, kick his stance, and correct a few minor mistakes in his swordsmanship.

Jiang Ruoxi practiced swordsmanship with Ayiguli in the courtyard.

Although it's called knife practice, most of the time is actually spent practicing how to dodge quickly, how to find cover, and how to escape danger in a very short distance.

Aygul didn't teach much, but every single one of her techniques was solid.

Jiang Ruoxi practiced extremely diligently, continuing even as her wrists bruised and purple. One time, she used too much force and flung the knife out of her hand. The tip of the knife grazed Ye Chen's buttocks and stuck into a pile of grass. Only then did Ye Chen come down from the mountain and, suppressing a laugh, bandage her wrist for half an hour.

"Have you considered switching to hidden weapon training?" Ye Chen asked as he applied medicine to her.

Why?

"With your aim, you don't need to carry a knife anymore. Just carry a few stones in your pocket."

Jiang Ruoxi turned her face away and said in a muffled voice, "What do you know? I was just demonstrating to Guli what a mistake is. If we don't go into tombs anymore, there's no use practicing the sword anymore. I just need to learn the three moves to save my life."

"Okay, Mr. Jiang is right." Ye Chen grinned and leaned closer.

"But to be honest, anything can happen on the third level. I don't want anything to happen to you, so starting tomorrow, I'll teach you a breathing technique that I learned from my master. It's for your own safety, and it can help you suppress the miasma in critical situations, allowing you to last a little longer than usual."

Jiang Ruoxi turned to look at him.

As dusk settled over the mountain peaks, it bathed Ye Chen's hair and shoulders in a thin, warm red hue.

Jiang Ruoxi responded softly, then extended her uninjured hand and shook Ye Chen's hand.

Ye Chen grabbed her fingers with his other hand and didn't say anything.

That night, Su Qinghan called everyone to the main room, closed the door, and began to discuss serious matters.

In her words, the third level of Longxin Ancient Cave was a place that was described very vaguely even in the ancient books of Medicine King Valley.

Twenty years ago, Ye Changfeng went in alone and never came out again.

Ye Chen and his group were able to escape unscathed from the second level last time thanks to the Dragon Heart Copper Lamp and a stroke of luck.

Now that the bronze lamp is lost, its power can no longer be relied upon in the ancient cave.

Su Qinghan said that before entering the third level, one must pass three tests.

"The first obstacle is the water vein. The entrance to the third level is below the Dragon Heart Ancient Cave. There is an underground river in the middle, which is no more than two zhang wide. However, the river water is extremely cold and does not melt in spring and summer. If a person falls in, he will be frozen unconscious in the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea. When crossing the river, you must find the right stone slab. Those stone slabs are soaked in water vapor all year round, and many of them have long been loose. Ruoxi and Guli must follow in the footprints of Ye Chen and me. Under no circumstances should they step on the wrong ones."

"The second obstacle is the iron chain bridge. After crossing the underground river, there is a natural fissure in the ground, more than ten feet wide, with only three iron chains as thick as an arm supporting it. Over the years, it has been eroded by wind and water, and it is hard to say whether it can still withstand the force. There are no wooden planks on the bridge. If you want to cross, you can only walk. Halfway across, a cold wind will blow up from under the fissure, which can sweep people down. For this obstacle, you must tie ropes together, two people in a group, and hook them together. Even if you fall down, there is still a chance to be rescued."

"The third barrier is the Gate of Life and Death. Unlike the fake gate on the second level, this gate is real. Behind the gate is the earth's energy of the dragon vein. Once triggered, the entire cave will change. The withered sword left by your father is used to open this gate. There should be a groove on the gate that is the same length as the sword. Only when the sword is inserted into the groove can it be pushed. This third barrier cannot be passed by skill alone. It requires the sword and the jade pendant to respond at the same time. If there is the slightest mistake, the mechanism behind the gate will swallow you and the sword together."

After Su Qinghan finished speaking, the room became so quiet that the faint popping of the lamp wick could be heard.

Jiang Ruoxi sat upright, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.

Ye Chen, abandoning his usual playful demeanor, looked at Su Qinghan with a serious expression: "Master, how did you know all this?"

"After your uncle came out, he wrote down all the places he had been and the mechanisms he had seen. Those records, together with Jiang Yuanshan's notes, pieced together the complete route. I've been looking at them all these years, they're practically worn out. Did you think my master just spent his days in the mountains gathering herbs? I'm waiting, waiting for someone to be able to go in again." Su Qinghan stood up, took out a flat old wooden box from the cabinet, opened it, and inside were several pairs of soft boots of indistinguishable material, with several coils of extremely fine black gold rope pressed underneath.

"Master, I didn't know you had a secret weapon up your sleeve."

"These, and that batch of medicine, are what I've prepared for you these past few days. Wear soft boots when crossing stone slabs; they'll make less noise and provide a good grip on slippery surfaces. The black gold rope is more secure than ordinary ropes when used to tie the iron chain bridge."

Ye Chen walked over and took out a pair of soft boots to examine them. The material was soft yet resilient, with extremely fine lines sewn into the palm area, capable of absorbing slippery stones.

Aygul took a pair, put them on and tried them on. Her sharply defined eyebrows lifted slightly, clearly indicating that she was very satisfied.

Jiang Ruoxi also took a pair, and as she put them down, she said softly, "Thank you, Master Su."

Su Qinghan glanced at her, but didn't respond to her thanks. She only said, "Make sure you take the things your mother left you with you on the road, especially the velvet bag and the key. I have a feeling that there is something else on the third floor that is related to your mother. You will know when you get there."

Ye Chen's heart stirred slightly as he recalled the plum blossom embroidered on the velvet bag.

Jiang Ruoxi took the velvet bag out of her bag and placed it on her lap.

She looked up at Su Qinghan and nodded: "I will."

Two days later, news came back from Zhou Wantong and Song Tiezhu: the remnants of the Blackwater gang in the provincial capital had been basically wiped out, and Ji Changming had implicated two more undercover agents in his confession, both of whom have now been dealt with by Qiao San's men.

Qin Wuyi and Fang Jiuzhi are still imprisoned and under the supervision of special personnel.

After a round of investigation, Jiang Ruoxi's company resumed normal operations, except that all the lock cylinders in the president's office were replaced, and all confidential documents were put into a new encryption system.

In other words, things outside have temporarily calmed down.

The day before their departure, Ye Chen took Jiang Ruoxi and Ayiguli to give Dahuang a bath.

The yellow dog was splashing in the stream, soaking the three people.

Jiang Ruoxi laughed loudly, as if she wanted to laugh out all the tension she had been feeling these past few days.

Looking at her standing in the stream, her trousers soaked and water droplets clinging to her hair, Ye Chen suddenly thought that once they came out of Longxin Ancient Cave, he would definitely take her to see bigger rivers and lakes, and to see the mountain scenery she hadn't had a chance to see.

As night fell, he wiped the withered sword again and again.

The sword was still dark and dull, but when he held it in his hand, he felt more at ease than ever before.

The sword left by his father, the path his martial uncle had walked, the map his father-in-law had recorded, and Jiang Ruoxi's complete jade pendant.

They weren't going to their deaths.

It's about truly putting an end to the old issues.