Chapter Ten: Bones in the Cave

At that moment, Lin Yanghao felt something strange beneath his feet. The cave was too dark to see clearly, so he crouched down and picked up the objects to examine them. They felt like long, slender sticks.

"Could these be treasures hidden in this cave, just like in those web novels? Hahaha, the heavens are surely favoring me," he mused gleefully.

But as soon as he stepped out of the cave to get a better look, his heart nearly stopped. What he held in his arms was not treasure, but a pile of bones. Terrified, he instantly flung them to the ground. Cold sweat streamed down his face, and he stared in horror at his now filthy hands, remembering how he had just touched those remains.

"Oh—oh—" Lin Yanghao doubled over and vomited on the spot, his stomach churning so violently that he nearly brought up all the bird eggs he'd eaten that morning.

At that moment, Lin Yanghao wanted nothing more than to cry. Life, he felt, had lost all meaning; he was at his wits' end.

"Is there anyone in this world more wretched than me?" he thought bitterly. "Decades of misfortune and still no end in sight. Ah, such is life!"

Glancing again at the bones on the ground, a chill ran down his spine, making every hair stand on end.

While Lin Yanghao was still reeling from the shock, a shaft of sunlight pierced the cave. In the sunlit spot lay a black dagger. Curious, he picked it up. The dagger was entirely black, about fifteen centimeters long, its surface adorned with intricate patterns.

As he turned the dagger over in his hands, he accidentally cut his finger—the blade was exceptionally sharp. Blood welled up, but before Lin Yanghao could staunch it, he watched in astonishment as the dagger absorbed every drop at a visible speed.

Now, the dagger no longer appeared as dark as before. Lin Yanghao wondered if his eyes were playing tricks on him. He tried letting more blood drip onto the blade, but this time, nothing happened—the dagger did not absorb it, nor did the blood disappear.

Unable to make sense of the mystery, Lin Yanghao decided to leave it be for now, resolving to unravel its secrets another day. He glanced at the ring on his finger that had accompanied him for decades, thinking: “You’re a mystery too. One day, I’ll uncover all your secrets.”

“Hey, I don’t know your name and I didn’t mean to disturb your rest, but you’ve already scared the life out of me. I’m taking this dagger with me. You don’t need it anymore, right? Consider it compensation. How about that?” he said shamelessly to the pile of bones.

“You’re not saying anything, so I’ll take that as agreement. Thanks!” he added with a laugh, then left the cave grinning, dagger in hand.

He gazed down at the bottomless cliff with a bitter smile. By his estimate, the drop was at least a hundred meters.

After much deliberation, Lin Yanghao came up with two ways to get down, but neither seemed safe. If he stayed, he’d starve to death on the cliff. The first method was to braid the vines clinging to the cliff face into a rope and climb down, gathering more as he descended. The vines seemed sturdy, but there weren’t many; he’d have to collect and tie them as he went, though he couldn’t be sure there would be enough all the way down.

The second method was to use the dagger he’d just found. He tested it on the cliff wall; it held fast when plunged in, so he could theoretically climb down using the blade. But that was far riskier and would exhaust his strength quickly. He decided to go with the first plan, keeping the second as a backup if the vines ran out.

Wasting no time, he tied the vines around himself and anchored them to a pine tree, then began his descent.

Lin Yanghao had no idea how long he’d been climbing. At last, he looked down and saw green grass and trees—freedom was within reach, and his spirits soared.

Just then, as he had feared, the vines ran out. He looked down: still more than twenty meters to go. Drawing the dagger from his waist, he cut the vine, then used his backup plan and continued his descent.

Before long, he reached the ground.

"Phew—I've got a charmed life! Even the King of Hell won’t take me," he thought, breathing a sigh of relief and indulging in a little daydreaming.

Not far away, in the tall grass—

“Captain, shall we go out and catch him?”

“No, keep following him. That kid is slippery—he's escaped us more than once. Go report to Chief Huang and have him send reinforcements. This time, we can't let him get away.”

“Yes, Captain. You're as clever as ever!”

“Get going, will you!”

“Uh, this is awkward. What do I do now?” Lin Yanghao muttered as he pored over the map, feeling frustrated.

After descending the cliff, he found himself lost—there was no path to the White Tiger Sect. Checking the map given to him by Elder Lin, he was dismayed to find the cliff wasn’t marked at all. Worse, the only way to the White Tiger Sect was to cross the Land of Death. Lin Yanghao stared in disbelief, not knowing what to do.

“What’s that sound?” A rustling in the leaves caught his attention. Looking around, he spotted several figures hiding in the grass ahead.

At once, Lin Yanghao realized the Tian family’s men had found him again. He turned and fled in the opposite direction.

“Captain, look! He’s running—he must have spotted us!”

“Damn it, I’m not blind! That brat is sharp. Where are our backup men? Why are you all still standing there? After him!”

The captain shouted angrily at his men.

“Damn, you lot are like ghosts haunting me! All I did was kill your useless young master—do you really have to chase me this hard?” Lin Yanghao saw them gaining on him, so he stopped, turned, and hurled a string of curses at them.