After a long time, the two finally reached their destination. It was a small county town, somewhat remote, with an economy that was neither strictly good nor bad, yet it bustled with a considerable population, appearing quite lively.

Strictly speaking, this location wasn't the ultimate destination, merely a stopping point. The true objective lay within the jurisdiction of this county. However, by the time they arrived, the day was already late, so they decided to lodge there overnight and resume their search for the Chixiao Sword the following day.

Nothing eventful happened that night. The next morning, the pair abandoned their car and rented two motorcycles for local transport. After confirming the directions, they set off, kicking up plumes of dust. After another two or three hours of travel, they finally arrived at the real destination: the hillside where the statue had been excavated.

“We’re here?”

Yu Feibai looked around, somewhat perplexed. “Is this the place? Why don’t I see that dilapidated temple?”

“This should be it,” Wang Guan checked the map, then used his phone for precise location confirmation. “Yes, this is the spot. As for the temple… let’s look around.”

“Mm.”

Yu Feibai nodded. Although it was just a hillside, it spanned a considerable area. Furthermore, there was no greenery to speak of, so the view was nothing but exposed earth and rock.

After locking the motorcycles nearby, the two naturally walked toward the higher ground of the slope. From this vantage point, they could see more clearly. In the distance, the faint outlines of a mountain village were visible. This was normal; where there were people, there would be a temple, or where there was a temple, people must have once resided.

However, seeing the village but not the ruined temple made them uneasy. Just then, Yu Feibai mused, “Could it be that after they dug up the statue, they reburied the old temple?”

“Uh, that’s a possibility,” Wang Guan considered for a moment, then suggested, “Let’s go to that village over there and ask around. Even if we don’t find the Chixiao Sword, we can still scope out some old properties.”

“That’s a good idea.” Yu Feibai agreed.

So, the two descended the slope and immediately rode their motorcycles toward the mountain village. After three to five minutes, they reached the village and were immediately stunned by what they saw.

From the hillside, they had only grasped the general outline, but now, standing at the village entrance, they realized it was entirely abandoned. The village comprised perhaps thirty to forty households, but it looked as if no one had lived there for a long time; some houses had already collapsed, leaving only broken walls and rubble.

The scene of decay, coupled with the utter stillness of the village—not a sound to be heard—created a profoundly eerie atmosphere. Even under the bright midday sun, it felt chilling.

“Thump, thump, thump…”

Their nerves already frayed upon arrival, the two instinctively stopped. Before either of them could speak, a strange sound echoed from within the village, startling them badly.

“Don’t tell me it’s actually haunted.”

For a moment, Yu Feibai’s face paled. If Wang Guan hadn't been beside him, he probably would have turned tail and fled immediately.

“It shouldn't be that bad.”

Wang Guan also felt a shiver of apprehension, his legs feeling weak, but he managed to maintain a semblance of calm.

“Hmm?”

At the same time, Yu Feibai noticed something amiss. “It sounds like someone is digging for something?”

“I see it.”

Wang Guan nodded, gesturing casually. “Under that large tree in the village—there’s another motorcycle.”

“So, it’s not ghosts causing trouble.”

Yu Feibai rubbed his chin, his expression instantly hardening, a fierce glint appearing in his eyes, brimming with killing intent. “We’ll go in too. Let’s see who’s trying to play ghost and scare people.”

“Wait.”

Wang Guan was more cautious, shaking his head gently. “Frankly, this is the wilderness. It’s better to avoid trouble than to seek it out. We should leave and keep looking for that ruined temple. Or perhaps we can circle around again; maybe there’s another village nearby.”

“What’s there to be afraid of?” Yu Feibai dismissed the concern. “The dead are one thing, but what’s there to fear from the living?”

“It’s not fear, it’s about not wanting to invite complications,” Wang Guan stated plainly. “If it’s just villagers, fine. But if it’s grave robbers, or people doing something shady, and we stumble upon their business, who knows how they might react defensively?”

“That makes sense…” Yu Feibai murmured thoughtfully, then also nodded lightly, dropping his insistence on investigating. Being brave means taking calculated risks; throwing oneself into danger needlessly is just foolishness.

“Let’s go,” Wang Gu signaled. “If we really can’t find it, we’ll have to call Old Man Hou.”

“We might as well just call him now…”

Yu Feibai suggested casually and prepared to turn the bike around to leave.

“Hold on, wait, wait…”

Just as the two were about to depart, someone suddenly jumped up from a corner of the village, waving frantically and shouting with an almost desperate excitement—the joy of finding water in a drought or a friend in a foreign land.

“What’s going on?”

They naturally turned back to look. A chubby young man, his face a mixture of surprise and delight, was running quickly through the abandoned village, waving and shouting continuously.

“Wait up, brothers…”

A moment later, the chubby man reached the village entrance. Though breathless, his smile was incredibly bright, overlaid with a sense of immense relief. “That’s great! I finally found some living people.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Yu Feibai raised an eyebrow, needle-sharp. “Are you implying you were just dealing with the dead?”

“…How could that be? Brother, you have a real sense of humor.”

The chubby man was momentarily startled and quickly explained, “My bike broke down. I’ve been waiting here for ages, expecting no one to show up. I was actually thinking about calling the police for help. Fortunately, you two showed up at the critical moment. Heaven doesn't cut off all paths!”

“Your bike broke down?”

Yu Feibai glanced at the motorcycle parked in the village, his expression deeply skeptical. “If your bike broke down, why didn’t you go to a nearby place to ask for help, instead of messing around in this desolate village?”

“Hehe…”

The chubby man plastered a smile on his face but didn’t answer Yu Feibai’s question. Instead, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a business card, handed it to them, and introduced himself. “My name is Pang Yue. If you two ever need anything in the future, please take care of me.”

“Oh?”

Wang Guan casually accepted the card and glanced down, suddenly understanding a bit more.

“…Zhengu Tang?”

Yu Feibai’s expression grew strange. “You run an antique shop?”

“Precisely. Just a small operation to make a living.” A flash of shrewdness crossed Pang Yue’s eyes, and he suddenly chuckled. “Looking at your attire, you must be in the same trade. You’re also out scouting properties in the countryside, aren't you?”

It wasn't surprising that Pang Yue made this assumption. Wang Guan and Yu Feibai had indeed gone through a "careful" change of clothes to fit in, swapping their trendy city wear for simpler, dirt-resistant clothing.

This was based on experience: when scouting properties in rural areas, if you dress too flashily, even the most honest villagers will unconsciously inflate prices, and if you haggle too aggressively, they might refuse to sell altogether. Human nature is such that there's always a degree of resentment toward wealth. Therefore, maintaining the fine tradition of humble simplicity was quite necessary.

“That’s right.”

There was no need to deny it. Yu Feibai nodded directly and instantly understood what Pang Yue had been doing in the village. He asked with genuine curiosity, “Did you manage to dig up anything around this village?”

“Nothing,” Pang Yue replied with a wry smile. “I was hoping to find something, but sadly, I came up empty. The whole village is just bricks and tiles; not even a scrap of scrap metal.”

Wang Guan and Yu Feibai exchanged a look and smiled involuntarily. It wasn't laughter at Pang Yue’s misfortune, but relief that they hadn't started digging around carelessly earlier. Thinking about it, one realized that with the inherent frugality of the Chinese people, when moving house, they would try to take everything, down to the dust on the floor, leaving nothing behind.

At the same time, Yu Feibai’s eyes shifted, and he asked casually, “You must have been exploring the vicinity for a while, right? Have you spotted any ruined temples or similar structures?”

“A ruined temple?” Pang Yue pondered for a moment, then immediately smiled. “As a matter of fact, there is one…”

“Where?”

Yu Feibai’s eyes lit up, but he quickly realized he had sounded too eager and tried to mask it. To his surprise, Pang Yue didn't pay it any mind and simply pointed behind him. “It’s right at the foot of the mountain behind us.”

As he spoke, Pang Yue added with a smile, “You must have heard about the treasure being dug up here? But I must advise you not to get your hopes up. The archaeological team camped here for over a month; if there were any treasures, they probably dug them all up.”

“We’re just curious and want to see what it looks like,” Wang Guan offered casually, then beckoned Yu Feibai toward the base of the mountain.

“Wait for me!”

Since the other two were on motorcycles, they were much faster, forcing Pang Yue to struggle to keep up.

Soon, the three arrived at the foot of the mountain. They didn't need to search for long; they saw the ruined temple amidst the excavated earth mound. But it truly was ruined—only the general outline remained, the rest was nothing but crumbling walls and debris.

After all, it was just a dilapidated temple, lacking significant cultural or research value, so it naturally didn't garner attention from the cultural bureau, let alone warranting the establishment of a museum for public viewing. If there had been nearby villagers, they might have maintained it, but since the mountain village had fallen into ruin, there was no one to hire for such a task, making its abandonment inevitable.

Judging by the thick layer of dust, no one had visited in a long time. Perhaps in a few more years, the soil and stones would pile up again, burying the temple once more, awaiting the next excavation.

However, Wang Guan’s sharp eyes noticed some scattered footprints near the ruins, the tracks quite clear, suggesting they were recently made. A thought struck him, and he turned to smile. “Mr. Pang, you’ve been here already, haven't you?”

“I have, which is why I advised you not to come,” Pang Yue admitted without embarrassment, even candidly. “I dug around for half a day, and all I found were broken bricks…”