305: The Three Brothers of Tomb Raider

“Second Brother, don’t be anxious.”

“Third Elder Miao’s life tablet has not shattered; things haven’t reached that point yet.”

In the valley.

Two figures lay hidden.

Hearing his second brother’s words,

the eldest brother, a bald man with a scarred face, dressed in a white robe and wearing a folding fan at his waist, said confidently.

“Alas, Big Brother, it’s all your fault.”

“You listened to that nonsensical rumor, saying there’s a treasure in this desolate land full of barbarians.”

“How could there be any treasure in this broken place?”

The second brother, with an old and unpleasant face but an extremely effeminate voice, still refused to comply, grumbling and complaining.

“It’s caused Third Elder Miao to be without news for so long…”

The second brother chattered on endlessly.

“Enough!”

The bald, scarred eldest brother roared.

“My intuition has never been wrong; there must be a treasure in this desolate land.”

“Let’s wait another half a month. If Third Elder Miao still doesn’t appear, we’ll go search for him ourselves.”

The eldest brother made the final decision.

Seeing the eldest brother get angry,

the second brother pouted.

“As you wish…”

he said with a whiny, effeminate voice.

“Hiss!”

The eldest brother gasped.

Although he knew his second brother wasn’t truly like this, it still gave him goosebumps.

Within the Xuan She Tribe.

After Zhou Xiutong sent Zhou Leren away,

she did not immediately return to her seclusion spot.

Instead, she came to a stone building.

Around it, many Zhou Family Disciples who Cultivate The Way of the Totem stood guard.

Seeing Zhou Xiutong,

the surrounding Disciples bowed.

“How is the situation inside?”

Zhou Xiutong waved her hand, indicating they didn’t need to be so formal, and asked casually.

“Everything is as usual.”

A Disciple replied.

Zhou Xiutong nodded.

Under the respectful gazes of the many Disciples, she pushed open the stone door and walked in.

Inside.

A rather young male Cultivator sat cross-legged in meditation, but he had no magical power whatsoever.

“Senior Miao, my tribe’s hospitality has been inadequate; please forgive us.”

Zhou Xiutong smiled sweetly.

This Youth Cultivator was precisely the Early Golden Core Stage Cultivator she and Elder Heavenly Scorpion had captured after receiving a message from the Changliang Tribe.

The young Third Elder Miao looked resigned.

However, his heart was filled with sorrow.

He hadn’t expected that such a small barbarian tribe would actually have a Middle Stage Heavenly Scorpion great demon.

Moreover… there was also that unknown entity that had completely stripped him of his magical power without even showing itself.

“Fellow Daoist, why must you mock me?”

“I have already said everything that should be said and shouldn’t be said.”

“I only ask that Fellow Daoist grant me a swift end.”

Third Elder Miao glanced at the youthful, beautiful girl in front of him, full of the good things in the mortal world.

He only felt his face twitch uncontrollably.

That day, Zhou Xiutong and Heavenly Scorpion appeared, blocking his path.

The girl-like Cultivator wielded two large golden hammers and smashed them towards him.

He had been deceived by her appearance and was almost knocked to the ground by that pair of large golden hammers.

Thinking about it now, his face still hurt.

“Senior Miao, please don’t say that.”

“It’s just that your two sworn brothers haven’t appeared yet.”

“With powerful enemies lurking, Junior is truly uneasy.”

Zhou Xiutong chuckled softly.

Third Elder Miao couldn’t help but mutter inwardly,

“You don’t look uneasy at all…”

“I only hope my two brothers leave quickly and don’t stumble into this Dragon’s Den.”

Zhou Xiutong did not stay long.

A moment later, she pushed the door open and left.

Although this person was a Cultivator who came here to search for treasure,

he did not act recklessly.

Moreover, his cultivation was good, and he had two sworn brothers who were also in the Golden Core Stage.

If they could be subdued in one fell swoop, it would be a great increase in the Family’s strength.

Furthermore… Zhou Xiutong thought of the origins of Third Elder Miao and his two brothers.

The three of them were originally Loose Cultivators.

Although their Aptitude was good, resources were hard to find, and the great Dao seemed hopeless.

So, they resorted to tomb raiding and treasure hunting.

They specialized in seeking out the burial grounds of large families, powerful forces, or fallen experts.

Journeying like this, they actually managed to Cultivate to the Realm of a Golden Core True Person.

Logically speaking, having reached this Realm, they could be considered high-ranking individuals in a single prefecture.

Establishing a sect would be no problem.

However, the three of them couldn’t give up their old profession.

They still made a living this way.

This time, they were even bolder.

They actually dug into the ancestral grave of a Family that had once produced a Nascent Soul Venerable.

But they failed to steal the fish and instead stirred up trouble.

After being discovered by that Family, they were hunted down and pursued, which led them to flee to this borderland.

Later, the eldest brother somehow received news that there was a great treasure in this desolate land.

The three of them discussed it and decided to come and investigate.

They sent Third Elder Miao, who was skilled in escape techniques, to enter the desolate land first to gather information.

However, the various tribes in this desolate land had long been subdued by the Zhou Family.

The Xuan She Tribe would immediately know of any slight disturbance.

Third Elder Miao had not been investigating for long before he was intercepted by Zhou Xiutong and Heavenly Scorpion.

With Heavenly Scorpion present, although Third Elder Miao’s escape techniques were astonishing, he was still captured.

His magical power was stripped, and he was confined in this stone house.

Zhou Xiutong was not afraid of him escaping.

Under her Old Ancestor’s nose, even if he had a hundred times more courage, he wouldn’t be able to stir up any trouble… Qingyang Prefecture.

On Qingyang Peak.

Ever since Zhou Xiangyu returned to the Family, he had been enduring the torment of suffering in his Immortal Cave.

His cultivation increased at a visible rate.

Outside Zhou Xiangyu’s Immortal Cave.

“Brother Yu.”

A young man, four or five years younger than Zhou Xiangyu, arrived before Zhou Xiangyu’s Immortal Cave.

However, he was blocked by a Formation and could only remain outside the Immortal Cave.

Inside the Immortal Cave.

Zhou Xiangyu’s eyes were bloodshot, and he was drenched in sweat, enduring increasingly severe pain.

When Zhou Xiangxu’s voice sounded outside,

the Demon Lord of Suffering recalled that black Qi.

Zhou Xiangyu exhaled heavily.

Sensing Zhou Xiangxu outside,

he bowed to the Demon Lord of Suffering and Bitter Heart.

He opened the Immortal Cave door and walked out.

Blinding sunlight shone down.

Zhou Xiangyu subconsciously blocked it with his hand, squinting his eyes, feeling quite uncomfortable.

Just a few days had passed, yet it felt like a lifetime.

Thinking that the next three years would be like this,

Zhou Xiangyu’s heart wavered slightly.

However, remembering what he had said before: A Cultivator should know what to do and what not to do.

His wavering resolve firmed up again.

“Xiao Xu.”

Zhou Xiangyu opened the Formation and walked out.

“Brother Yu, how are you…”

Zhou Xiangxu was startled when he saw the person who walked out.

He almost didn’t recognize Zhou Xiangyu.

The person before him had tired, somewhat numb eyes, and showed no vitality.

He was completely different from the Brother Yu he knew, who was like the morning sun; they were like two different people.

Zhou Xiangyu was startled.

He realized he had been careless, walking out without concealing himself.

So he immediately forced a smile.

Recalling his previous appearance, he relaxed.

He asked, “Xiao Xu, is something wrong?”

Seeing that Zhou Xiangyu seemed to have recovered,

Zhou Xiangxu didn’t think much of it.

“Brother Yu, you came back but didn’t come to find me.”

Zhou Xiangxu’s tone was a bit sour.

“I’m sorry, Xiao Xu, I had too many things to do and forgot to tell you.”

Zhou Xiangyu sighed inwardly.

“It’s nothing, Brother Yu. There’s an auction in Qingyang City a month from now. Do you want to go check it out together?”

Zhou Xiangxu didn’t take this small matter to heart.

Their relationship was very good; this kind of thing was nothing.

“This…”

“I’ve taken on another task and will be going out in a few days. I’m afraid I can’t go with you.”

Zhou Xiangyu’s heart stirred.

It had only been a few days, and he had almost revealed himself.

It would be better to find an opportunity to leave the Family.

“Alas…”

…Zhou Xiangxu left, his spirits low.

Zhou Xiangyu silently said “I’m sorry” to Zhou Xiangxu’s retreating back.

Five days later.

Zhou Xiangyu took on a task to guard a spiritual field alone and left Qingyang Peak.

Ten days later.

On the border of the desolate land, in a valley.

The two figures sitting cross-legged stood up.

They flew towards the interior of the desolate land.