Relics were sites built by powerful ancient martial artists in bygone eras.
The low-grade ones were things like ancient city ruins—cities buried under deserts, or underground palaces hidden beneath mountains.
But the high-grade relics involved powerful formations, far more dangerous and mysterious.
"If this really is a relic, I'd better be prepared first."
Xu Mu knew that once you entered some relics, getting out could be incredibly difficult. You had to bring enough supplies.
He went to a small convenience store nearby, bought two crates of bottled water, and several lighters.
After paying, he slipped into a corner and stored everything in his storage space.
Then he returned to the store and bought another two crates of water, along with instant noodles and sausages.
Those went into the storage space too. Then he came back again, this time buying more bottled water, a backpack, and various snacks like spicy strips, bread, and jerky.
The shopkeeper stared at him, confused. "What are you doing with all this stuff?"
"Big group," Xu Mu replied simply before leaving.
After loading everything into his storage space, he checked his supplies carefully—
Five full crates of bottled water, twenty-four bottles each, enough for several days.
Two boxes of instant noodles, one box of sausages, plus bread, jerky, and snacks.
If he really got trapped inside, he could survive comfortably for days.
He packed three bottles of water, two instant noodles, and a few snacks into the backpack—best to keep up appearances. If he just pulled food out of thin air, anyone watching would start asking questions.
Xu Mu preferred staying low-key—especially before his strength was absolute.
Slinging the backpack over his shoulder, he started climbing the mountain.
Moments after he left, another car pulled into the same hotel lot where his had been.
Dai Xiao jumped down from a black Mercedes G-Class and looked around. "Huh, pretty nice little county—lots of good cars around."
From the passenger seat stepped Dai Xingluo.
Today, she wasn't wearing her usual hanfu but a practical black athletic outfit.
At Dai Xiao's comment, she glanced at the nearby vehicles—
and her bright eyes widened, followed by a soft smile.
So fate really was playing tricks—they'd run into Xu Mu even here.
Still, she didn't plan to approach him. The important thing now was the treasure.
Finding heavenly materials and earthly treasures to strengthen herself came first.
Xu Mu followed the mountain trail upward. Based on the photos Xu Ningbing had sent, the location should be near the summit.
From those images, only shorter hills surrounded the area—nothing higher than the spot she'd photographed.
It was noon now; the mountain air was thick, hot, and humid.
Xu Mu moved fast, almost running, but his breathing stayed steady, as calm as if he were just strolling.
Even he didn't know where his current physical limits lay anymore.
Finally, he saw the mountaintop just ahead.
But he also noticed movement—people up front. Activating his perception, he detected three individuals.
Judging from their auras and distance from each other, they weren't a group.
Xu Mu didn't slow down, striding toward them.
After about three minutes, he could see them clearly.
Three people—two men and one woman.
Both men were middle-aged: one short and round-faced, the other thin, dark-skinned, with a square jaw and a knife scar across his cheek.
The woman wore jeans and a white shirt, a backpack slung across her chest.
She looked about twenty-five, with a high ponytail.
Her figure was impressive—tall and well-proportioned—but her face slightly spoiled it, marked by uneven skin and old acne scars.
"Kid! What are you doing here?" the scar-faced man barked, pointing at him.
"I'm looking for a friend," Xu Mu replied evenly. "She came here to camp two days ago and hasn't been heard from since."
"Perfect timing!" The scar-faced man sneered. "I know where your friend is. You—go with this woman and come with us."
"I'd rather search on my own. I don't even know you people," Xu Mu said calmly.
"On your own?" The scarred man grinned, grabbed a nearby tree trunk—
Crack!
A sharp sound rang out as he tore off a chunk of solid wood with his bare hand and tossed it aside.
"Disobey me, and your neck's next," he said coldly.
Xu Mu's eyes narrowed. A martial artist!
That meant this place wasn't just known to Xu Ningbing.
That woman really knew how to get herself into trouble—her situation just got a lot more dangerous.
"You're threatening me?" Xu Mu's expression turned cold—then he smiled faintly. "Fine then, I'll play along."
A soft laugh escaped the ponytailed woman.
"At least you're smart. Move!" the scarred man barked.
Xu Mu gave a faint smile—looked like they knew exactly where the entrance was.
Following them might save him some searching.
Under the two men's lead, they soon arrived behind a large outcropping of rock near the summit.
Inspecting it, Xu Mu noticed a crack in the stone—about three meters high, half a meter wide.
Exactly like the photos Xu Ningbing had sent. This was it.
"Go in!" the round-faced man ordered, shoving Xu Mu's back.
He turned sideways and squeezed through, moving about three meters in before spotting an opening in the left wall—
a cave.
The woman followed right behind him.
Glancing back, Xu Mu noticed something off about her.
Because of her makeup, he hadn't seen it earlier, but up close—her skin had no vitality at all.
It looked like a corpse's skin. Yet her eyes were unnaturally bright.
That left only one explanation—like Lin Yan before, she was wearing a human-skin mask.
Even with makeup covering it, his trained eye couldn't miss it.
Activating his Divine Eye, he checked:
Name: Fan Shiyu
Occupation: Assassin
Favorability: 2
Destiny Level: 3 (Max: 10)
Xu Mu was shocked. She's well hidden.
More and more, he began to worry for Xu Ningbing. Clearly, many strong individuals already knew about this place.
The two middle-aged men entered after them, grinning at the pitch-black tunnel.
"You two—walk ahead!" the scarred man ordered.
Now Xu Mu understood—they wanted him to act as a decoy.
If there was danger ahead, he'd die first, giving them time to react.
Xu Mu looked at the woman beside him and spoke lightly, "I'll go first. You follow behind me—if anyone dies, it'll be me."
Fan Shiyu smiled faintly at that.
"Heh, you're actually pretty nice."