203: Clues gathered! Nine orifices!

"Did you hear me?"

Wu Tian squinted his eyes and dismissively blocked the Xie Family subordinate in front of him, waving his hand impatiently at the latter.

"We don't need your Sub-maps!"

"Useless!"

"Get out!"

"Stop making a fool of yourself here!"

...

"What... what do you mean?"

The Xie Family subordinate was instantly dazed. Looking at Wu Xie, who seemed perfectly serious and not at all like he was joking, he began to stutter.

"You... you're from the Wu Family, I recognize you!"

"I'm from the Xie Family!"

"We have two Sub-maps in our hands; one is ours, and the other belongs to the Hong Family!"

"What?"

"You don't want them anymore?"

...

"Correct!"

Wu Xie smiled and nodded.

"Perhaps five minutes ago these two Sub-maps would have been useful to us, but now..."

Wu Tian spread his hands.

"Useless!"

...

"You..."

The Xie Family subordinate grew anxious and shouted at Wu Xie.

"How is that possible?"

"That Wu Tian must have lied to you, yes... it must be so!"

"Little Third Master!"

"You are one of us in the Nine Gates. You know how risky it is to enter a tomb prematurely if the ancestors' treasure map isn't fully deciphered, right?"

"Little Third Master!"

"You are an elite in our trade; you must not let that Wu Tian deceive you!"

...

Wu Xie frowned slightly.

He then looked coldly at the Xie Family servant and said,

"Kid!"

"Sometimes, you shouldn't speak recklessly. I know my own worth, and I can judge right from wrong, truth from falsehood, for myself."

"It's not up to you to decide!"

"Scram!"

"Say one more word, and I'll cut out your tongue!"

...

"But!"

The Xie Family subordinate didn't dare to leave easily.

Even if Wu Xie really was going to cut out his tongue... he still couldn't leave!

He didn't dare to leave!

"Little Third Master, our head is already on his way, and... this treasure map was designed with nine Sub-maps, which means every single piece is indispensable!"

"Think about it!"

"Just think about it!"

"Can we afford to miss any?"

"If we're missing any, it will truly be a death trap!"

...

"Heh..."

Wu Xie gave a low chuckle.

He slowly leaned down, leaning in close to the Xie Family's young shop hand with a cold sneer, and gently patted the latter's shoulder.

Pat, pat... "Hurry up and say a few more words; soon you won't have the chance!"

Clang!

While speaking,

Wu Xie reached out and nimbly drew the dagger from the sheath on the outside of his thigh, while his other hand reached directly for the latter's jaw.

Swish!

The Xie Family servant's face changed instantly, and he hurriedly leaned back, trying to hide in panic.

However... Click!

A soft sound echoed.

Wu Xie's right hand was as fast as lightning, directly pinching the latter's jaw, then he applied a slight force with two fingers!

"Crack..."

A dull crack!

The Xie Family servant's mandible was instantly dislocated.

Then Wu Xie reached out and quickly rummaged inside the man's mouth, and a tongue that had almost lost all sensation was pulled out by Wu Xie's two fingers.

Clang!

The cold light on the blade flickered.

A sharp dagger was held against the subordinate's tongue.

"Hehe..."

Wu Xie chuckled softly.

"May you grow a few more tongues in heaven, brother..."

"Say goodbye to your tongue!"

Swish!

A flash of cold light—the dagger in Wu Xie's hand was about to slice down onto the subordinate's tongue!

Suddenly!

"Wait!"

Wu Tian's voice came from inside the secret room.

"Leave his tongue for now. I still have some things I need to learn from his mouth."

...

Wu Xie's hand paused.

The cold, glinting dagger stopped just short of the servant's tongue.

He chuckled.

"Fine!"

"In that case, I'll leave his tongue in his mouth for now!"

Bang!

With that,

Wu Xie gave the Xie Family subordinate a kick.

He jerked his head toward the door of the secret room.

"Go on!"

"General Wu is calling you!"

"Go answer his questions. Once you're done... hehe..."

Wu Xie gave him a cruel smile.

"I'll cut your tongue then!"

...

The Xie Family subordinate was terrified. He trembling pulled his tongue back into his mouth and repeatedly rubbed it against his teeth to confirm it was still there.

Then, he shakily scrambled up from the ground.

He walked into the secret room.

...

Entering the secret room,

The Xie Family subordinate looked up and saw an expensive table placed right in the center of the room. Six people were sitting around it, with several fierce-looking lackeys standing behind them.

At this moment... everyone in the room turned their gaze toward him!

This caused a massive, inexplicable surge of pressure to well up in his heart.

With a 'ping'!

A string in his mind snapped taut.

...

"Hmm..."

A minute slowly passed. Just as the Xie Family subordinate felt the atmosphere growing heavier and more suffocating... Wu Tian slowly nodded at him.

He asked indifferently,

"Little brother, what is your name?"

...

"Ah?"

"I... my name is Mo Qiu."

"Mo Qiu?"

Wu Tian raised an eyebrow and said with a smile,

"That's a good name. So, what kind of work do you usually do for the Xie Family, and how is the pay?"

...

Mo Qiu was stunned.

Amidst his nervousness, he was also a bit bewildered.

What did this man, whom even the Wu Family's Little Third Master called General Wu, want to do?

Why was he asking such strange questions as soon as he opened his mouth?

Could it be that this man really wasn't in a hurry?

But there was no choice... currently under someone else's roof, he had to bow his head. Mo Qiu's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, and he could only answer Wu Tian truthfully.

"Usually, I just do odd jobs for the Xie Family. Occasionally, I'm sent out to gather information or perform surveillance tasks. As for the pay..."

"It's barely enough to get by."

"Sometimes if the job is done well, I can get more money."

...

"Oh?"

"You do so much, such dangerous work, and they only give you that little money?"

Wu Tian frowned.

"These Xie Family people are really bastards, aren't they?"

...

Mo Qiu didn't respond.

The string in his mind remained taut at all times, guarding against any sudden questions from Wu Tian.

"How about this!"

"Come work for me. No matter how much the Xie Family pays you, I'll triple it!"

"Deal?"

"Stop working for those stingy people!"

"Think about it."

Wu Tian tried to persuade the latter with reason and emotion.

"The work you do is so dangerous—just today!"

The more Wu Tian spoke, the more emotional he became.

The more he spoke, the more impassioned his tone became!

He stood up directly from his seat, pointed at Wu Xie outside the door, and shouted at the Xie Family subordinate,

"You almost had your tongue cut out just for delivering a message!"

"Little brother!"

"This..."

"Is only just enough to fill your stomach!"

"Do you think it's worth it?"

"Is it worth it?"

...

Mo Qiu was stunned. Listening to Wu Tian's voice and thinking about what Wu Tian had just said, his eyes suddenly widened. Unconsciously... those words began to echo in his mind.

It seemed... what this Wu Tian said made a lot of sense!

I risk my life and do the hardest, most tiring work, yet I receive a pittance for a salary!

This... is indeed very unfair!

Yes!

The more Mo Qiu thought about it, the more he felt Wu Tian was right.

He didn't have much loyalty to the Xie Family anyway, and for all these years, his efforts and rewards had indeed been disproportionate.

If... Mo Qiu secretly told himself these thoughts were only 'ifs'!

But if... Wu Tian was serious about recruiting him to work as a subordinate... wouldn't he have a better way out?

A brighter future?

...

While Mo Qiu's mind was wandering... Wu Tian suddenly asked him out of the blue,

"Did the Xie Family arrive late on purpose?"

...

"Yes!"

Still caught in his fantasy, Mo Qiu nodded at Wu Tian without thinking, the word 'Yes' slipping directly from his mouth!

...Hmm?!

However!

Once that 'Yes' escaped his lips... Mo Qiu froze.

Then, his face turned deathly pale as he looked at Wu Tian and shouted,

"You tricked me?!"

...

"No!"

Wu Tian smiled slightly, giving Mo Qiu a meaningful grin.

"This is your tribute for joining us."

"Come!"

"I won't go back on my word about tripling your salary; you are my man now!"

"Then no matter what I ask you, you should answer very seriously, right?"

...

As the words fell,

Wu Tian looked at Mo Qiu, who was not far away, with eyes full of chilling killing intent.

It seemed like a question.

But in reality, it was a statement of fact.

This question... Mo Qiu had to answer!

...

"Fine... okay..."

After a struggle... Mo Qiu looked at Wu Tian and slowly nodded. After organizing his thoughts, Mo Qiu spoke.

"After you, General Wu, came here and wiped out the Qi Family, Third Master Xie went to see Master Xie the Fourth, and the two of them discussed this matter at the Changsha market."

"Initially..."

"The Lao Si's idea was to see if they should try to contact you, because all the major families were moving quickly, and we couldn't afford to fall behind!"

"Then..."

Mo Qiu continued,

"The Lao San had a different opinion."

"The Lao San felt we shouldn't act so early because everyone was still watching, and we couldn't be the first bird to stick its head out. Besides, we have two Sub-maps in our hands, so we hold a huge advantage."

"Since cooperation is inevitable!"

"Then..."

"The Lao San felt we should make a grand entrance at the end, appearing only when most needed. A person who shows up after much anticipation is more valuable!"

"And we would be able to propose better terms!"

"But..."

At this point, Mo Qiu glanced at Wu Tian.

"Despite all their calculations, the Third and Lao Sis didn't expect that the seven families would have already gathered at the Qi Family's suburban manor!"

"Even less did they expect..."

"That you have now basically deciphered the secret of the treasure map using the Sub-maps of the other seven families!"

"So..."

Mo Qiu gave an awkward smile.

"The Third and Lao Sis had me reveal myself to try and keep you here!"

"So that the two Sub-maps in our hands could play their intended role!"

"But..."

"I don't need to say more about what happened next, right?"

"Hehe..."

Mo Qiu gave an awkward smile.

Then he closed his mouth.

...

"Oh!"

After hearing Mo Qiu's account, Wu Tian slowly nodded.

He now had a rough understanding of the situation.

"So that is to say..."

"The Xie Family, with their two Sub-maps, originally intended to cooperate but wanted to gain more profit from it?"

"But they didn't expect that their two maps would actually be of little significance to us now."

"So you got anxious!"

"Panicked!"

"They told you to keep us here so the two of them could rush over?"

"And then negotiate terms with me?"

...

"Yes!"

Mo Qiu nodded.

"That's basically it."

...

"Emmm..."

After listening to Mo Qiu's narrative, Wu Tian fell into deep thought.

To be honest... based on past experience, Wu Tian didn't feel he had completely deciphered the secret of the treasure map in his hand, because he always viewed these mysteries and puzzles as being far from simple.

Moreover... Wu Tian was no greenhorn.

He wouldn't be so naive as to think these two extra Sub-maps were completely useless!

Because in the Bagua, the eight directions are paired opposites, if the extra repeated directions were useless, why would eight Sub-maps be designed to repeat those directions again!

Wouldn't it have been simpler to just design four Sub-maps?

Wouldn't that be more convenient?

Wouldn't that damn well save a lot of trouble?

And... there's one more crucial problem!

That is... the Bagua only has eight directions, but the Nine Gates... have nine Sub-maps!

Could one of the Sub-maps be a fake?

Is it there to confuse everyone's vision?

No!

Wu Tian shook his head gently.

He glanced at Mo Qiu in front of him, a faint light flickering in his eyes.

Then, the light faded.

Wu Tian gave a light chuckle toward the latter.

Then he looked toward the various family heads beside him.

"Mo Qiu has finished speaking. What do you think?"

"Do you think it'll work?"

"Should we bring the Xie Family along?"

"..."

The group looked at each other, and then Wu Xie, who had the closest relationship with him, was the first to speak.

The latter leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.

While tapping his arm gently with two fingers, he lowered his head and analyzed calmly.

"The Xie Family still has two maps in their hands."

"Adding their two Sub-maps, the number of Sub-maps we have now reaches nine!"

"But the Bagua only has eight positions!"

"Hehe..."

Wu Xie gave everyone a faint smile.

"Everyone should understand what I mean by this!"

"These final two maps..."

"Are indispensable!"

"Only..."

"We cannot give the Xie Family any more benefits!"

"That is my opinion!"

Wu Xie said indifferently.

"You guys speak up!"

"..."

"I think Little Third Master is right!"

"Although the Xie Family might not have bad intentions, everyone is the same; they are just representing the Hong Family!"

"One map per family!"

"No special treatment!"

"Our gang bringing them along is already out of consideration for past ties!"

"Special treatment..."

"Impossible!"

Huo Nanfeng nodded and said with a frown.

"Right!"

"Everyone is the same. At worst, we distribute based on labor!"

"More work, more gain!"

"The more you contribute, the more you get!"

"If they have the ability, then it's beyond reproach!"

Chen Jie nodded.

"No problem!"

"Let's do exactly as Little Third Master says!"

"..."

"Do as Little Third Master says!"

"I have no objection."

"I have no objection either!"

"..."

"Good!"

Seeing that no one had any objections, Wu Tian nodded.

"Since everyone unanimously agrees with what Little Third Master said, then we'll do it this way!"

"If the Xie Family is reasonable, we will reach a cooperation."

"If they are unreasonable..."

A cold glint flashed in Wu Tian's eyes.

"Then I'm sorry!"

"What we are about to do cannot have any mistakes!"

"Everyone..."

"Get ready!"

"..."

...Half an hour later, Third Master Xie brought Fourth Master Xie to the Qi Family's suburban manor.

Third Master Xie and Fourth Master Xie still didn't know what the situation in the manor was like.

They still maintained an air of arrogance.

The two of them walked into the manor's courtyard, talking and laughing.

"I say, Third Brother."

"Do you think these people will be anxious waiting for us?"

"Hehe..."

"After all, we have two Sub-maps in our hands. To them, we must be like saviors, right?"

"..."

"Hehe..."

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Lao San, who had his entire body hidden under a black robe, chuckled and said to the Lao Si beside him.

"I can't guarantee 'saviors,' but they must be waiting anxiously."

"After all..."

Lao San, hidden under the black robe, spoke again.

"For us, the ultimate Secret is optional, but for these people, the ultimate Secret has already troubled them for a long time."

"Especially this Wu Tian..."

"Do you know why Wu Tian wants to find this ultimate Secret and is so proactive in cooperating with the other eight families?"

"..."

Lao Si was stunned as he looked at Lao San, who had turned his head toward him.

Then he asked Lao Si beside him.

"Could it be?"

"Because the state is also interested in this matter."

"Does the state side also know about the ultimate Secret?"

"Do they also want to get—do their people also want to be reborn?"

"No way, is it really possible?"

Lao Si asked Lao San with some disbelief.

"Hehe, who can say for sure about such things? Haven't emperors and generals throughout the ages all had an almost pathological pursuit of longevity?"

"Let's go, it's just ahead."

After Lao San said a word to Lao Si, he stepped into the Qi Family's manor.

"..."

Then the two of them passed directly through the Qi Family's backyard, which was strewn with corpses, and came straight to the Qi Family's secret room, knocking gently on the door.

"Clang, clang."

After a light sound, the door to the secret room actually wasn't closed, but was pushed open slightly by Lao San's knocking.

Lao San under the black robe was clearly stunned.

Then, without thinking much, he pushed the door and walked in.

And when he walked in, he saw the situation inside.

A huge table was placed in the middle of the secret room, and the heads of six families were sitting around it.

And sitting in the main seat was precisely that long-famous young man.

"Hello!"

Lao San under the black robe laughed softly toward Wu Tian in the main seat.

"You must be General Wu Tian, right?"

"As expected, seeing is better than hearing. Seeing you today, you truly are a young hero."

"Hehe."

"It seems our operation this time should be smooth and steady."

Hearing what the man in black said in the quiet secret room, everyone turned their gaze toward him, and Wu Tian also looked at the latter with a calm expression.

After a long time.

A faint ripple finally appeared in Wu Tian's eyes. He looked at Lao San under the black robe and asked softly,

"You, the last family to arrive, should be the Xie Family, right?"

"We've been waiting for you for a long time."

"So?"

Wu Tian had a faint smile on his face as he joked with the two of them.

"Were you stuck in airplane traffic or car traffic on the way?"

"How is it that everyone else has arrived, yet we had to wait for you for so long?"

"The most powerful people have the most style?"

Lao San under the black robe was taken aback by the words, then he smiled and said to Wu Tian,

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare."

"It's just that there were some problems while searching for the two Sub-maps in our hands, so we arrived late. Little General Wu must be forgiving."

"..."

"Oh?"

Wu Tian smiled slightly.

"I wonder how I should address you?"

Lao San under the black robe smiled slightly.

"Little General Wu is too polite; you can just call me Lao San."

"Oh?"

Wu Tian smiled slightly.

Looking at the other person behind Lao San, he joked,

"Then the one behind you must be Lao Si."

"Hehe."

"I wonder if your family's Liu Neng came today?"

"..."

Lao San was taken aback.

Then he understood Wu Tian's meaning and smiled somewhat forcedly, continuing to Wu Tian,

"Little General Wu is joking."

"The one behind me is indeed my younger clan brother; you can call him Lao Si. But we don't have a Liu Neng in our family, and this isn't 'Rural Love Story.'"

"Since we've already arrived today, let's not hide anything. Let's speak plainly. We have two maps in our hands, and you already have seven Sub-maps."

"It's very simple."

The man in black scanned everyone's expressions and said to Wu Tian with a face full of pride,

"We want to cooperate in exploring the secrets of the Soul-Bewitching Cave, but we are not in a hurry."

"But looking at everyone, it seems you are all quite anxious."

"How about this."

The man in black grinned and reached out to pull down the black robe over his head.

He looked at everyone with a proud expression and said,

"We will reluctantly contribute two maps and explore the secrets of the Soul-Bewitching Cave with you. Of course, we also have a condition."

"Because we contributed two maps, I feel our share of the profits should be higher."

"Hehe."

"I believe Little General Wu should understand."

...As the words of the man in black, Third Master Xie, fell, the expressions of the other seven families became somewhat unnatural.

But as secondary figures in this conversation, they all looked toward Wu Tian, who sat in the main seat, waiting for the latter's reply to Third Master Xie.

A few seconds later.

Wu Tian looked at Third Master Xie and chuckled.

Amidst the latter's proud and certain expression, he spoke up,

"Sorry, I never passed reading comprehension in Chinese class back in the day."

"I cannot understand you."

"But if I didn't hear wrong, your meaning is that since you contributed more maps, you should get more, and you aren't in a hurry to explore the secrets of the Soul-Bewitching Cave, nor is your Xie Family in a hurry for the ultimate."

"My understanding is correct, right?"

Third Master Xie frowned.

"That's right, but..."

Third Master Xie opened his mouth to say more, but was directly interrupted by Wu Tian.

Wu Tian, sitting in the main seat, simply yawned and waved his hand at the latter.

"If you want to raise the price, no way. But if you want to leave, you're welcome to."

"The world is vast; let's not meet again."

"However..."

Wu Tian looked at Third Master Xie and Fourth Master Xie with eyes flickering with a deep light.

"If you walk out of this secret room door, it means you are already our enemies. We need the maps in your hands, and to get them, I'm afraid we will do some things that no one wants to see."

"At that time, I hope the two of you will be understanding."

As Wu Tian's voice fell, Lao San's eyes instantly narrowed. He pointed a finger at Wu Tian and shouted loudly,

"Wu Tian, what do you mean?"

"You are threatening our Xie Family."

"Once we leave this door, you're going to make a move against us?"

"Hehe."

Wu Tian smiled slightly, neither confirming nor denying.

He simply said indifferently,

"You can give it a try."

...Third Master Xie was stunned.

Then he exchanged a glance with Lao Si beside him; they both saw solemnity in each other's eyes.

Judging from the attitudes of Wu Tian and the remaining seven family heads toward them, it was likely that Wu Tian's words were no idle boast.

As long as they dared to walk out of this secret room, Wu Tian and the others would definitely make a move against them.

Thinking of this, Lao San and Lao Si finally sensed that something was wrong.

Cold sweat gradually slid down their foreheads.

What they had thought in their hearts... wasn't it that these people were anxiously waiting for their arrival, waiting for the maps in their hands?

Wasn't it that by holding these two maps, they could make any demands they wanted?

Why was it completely different from what they had anticipated!

This Wu Tian doesn't play by the rules!

He's prepared to just rob us without even negotiating. What kind of damn logic is this?

Originally, holding the maps, they should have been the favorites.

Now... they had become meat on the chopping block, being eyed greedily by everyone.

"Well? How is your consideration going?"

Wu Tian looked at Lao San and Lao Si, whose expressions were shifting, and gave a faint smile.

He continued to ask the two of them,

"I will not give you any preferential treatment, but we can still cooperate!"

"I will treat you equally, just like the other families."

"From each family, I will select two young people to go with me to the Soul-Bewitching Cave. You get what you want, I get what I want. We each take what we need."

No delay to each other."

"Of course."

Wu Tian smiled slightly.

"You can also choose to leave with the two maps, but as for..."

"Whether you can successfully carry those two maps away, that is an unknown."

Hearing Wu Tian's threatening voice and seeing the cold expressions of the surrounding family heads, Lao San and Lao Si began to hesitate.

After a long time, the two of them finally recognized reality after a difficult psychological struggle.

Looking at Wu Tian on the main seat, Third Master Xie let out a sigh and spoke softly.

"Fine, we accept."

"But after all, we have contributed two maps, so I have one small request."

Third Master Xie looked at Wu Tian with a determined face as he spoke.

"Right now, my Xie Family and the Hong Family are in decline."

"Compared to the other families, we are very short on money—that is to say, the funerary objects in the tombs. If we encounter valuable artifacts, I hope our two families can take a bit more."

"How about it? This request isn't too much, is it?"

"..."

"Not too much, not too much at all!"

“Haha, to me, Wu Tian, wealth is like common dirt."

Wu Tian chuckled at Third Master Xie and Fourth Master Xie.

"When the time comes, as long as we enter the tomb, you can take whatever artifacts you encounter."

Wu Tian said with a generous smile.

But in his heart, he muttered to himself.

Of course you can take them as you please, but I'm running a live stream. In the end, they'll still have to be handed over to the state. I'll have to thank you for showcasing the goods.

"..."

"Good!"

Hearing Wu Tian's affirmative answer, Third Master Xie and Fourth Master Xie exchanged a look and then nodded.

They agreed to Wu Tian's request.

Then, without waiting for Wu Tian to urge them, they consciously pulled out two maps from their persons.

They handed them to Wu Tian on the main seat.

"These are the last two maps in our families' possession. See if you can find any clues."

Wu Tian nodded and took the two maps. After a glance, he handed them directly to Huo Nanfeng beside him.

He said with a smile.

"The usual rules."

Huo Nanfeng was stunned for a moment, then she gritted her teeth and replied in her heart.

The usual my ass!

You're still just using me as a tool.

Dammit, I was born to work hard.

Sighing, Huo Nanfeng was not one for wasting words. She pulled out a pencil and connected the overlapping parts of the map into a line, then handed the connected section to Wu Tian.

"Here."

"It's connected."

"Take a look. What are these words?"

Wu Tian didn't speak. He reached out to take the map Huo Nanfeng handed over and focused his gaze on it.

A few seconds later, Wu Tian slowly raised his head.

After taking a deep breath, he said to the crowd.

"As expected, this is the last line of the Eight Trigrams Formula..."

"Xun Xia Duan."

"The position of Xun is in the southeast and represents Wind."

"So this final clue connects with Qian and Kun, completing the lines for all eight directions."

"Come here."

As he spoke,

Wu Tian placed the map in the middle of the group and pointed to the eight lines on the map.

"You can see that these eight lines intersect on the map, dividing it into four diagonal triangular patterns."

"Based on our previous speculation, at least two of these four triangles are confirmed tomb locations."

"One is the tomb of Zhang Daoling, the founder of the Way of the Celestial Masters during the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the other is the tomb of Li Xiong, the founding emperor of Cheng Han during the Sixteen Kingdoms period."

"Then there is no doubt that the remaining two triangular tomb areas should be Suspect Mounds."

"Now there is still one problem before us."

Wu Tian said solemnly.

"Clearly, this is just a guess of ours."

"Because eight directions cannot give us eight lines, as every two lines will overlap into the same direction. Eight lines would be a bit too cumbersome."

"According to my guess, there must be something we haven't thought of in the clues provided."

"..."

"Oh, right."

Wu Tian asked Huo Nanfeng beside him.

"Didn't I just give you two maps? Why was only one sentence deciphered?"

"What about the second page of the map?"

"Is there any information?"

Huo Nanfeng was slightly taken aback when asked.

Then she lowered her head and looked at the map.

She then pointed to a few very inconspicuous words near the area designated as a tomb and said to Wu Tian.

"Isn't this it?"

"Come and see what this sentence says."

Wu Tian nodded and lowered his head to look where Huo Nanfeng's finger was pointing. Sure enough, he found a line of words under her finger. This line was different from the previous clues which were three words each.

Instead, there were a full eight words.

Frowning, Wu Tian quickly analyzed the eight words and then murmured softly.

"Qian and Kun reversed, Heaven and Earth turned upside down!"

"..."

"Qian and Kun reversed, Heaven and Earth turned upside down?"

Huo Nanfeng was stunned. She turned to look at Wu Tian and asked.

"What does this mean? What 'reversing Qian and Kun' and 'turning heaven and earth upside down'? I don't understand."

"Does it mean swapping the directions of Qian and Kun?"

Huo Nanfeng guessed.

Then she shook her head and rejected her own guess.

She said to Wu Tian.

"No!"

"If Qian and Kun are reversed, their directions are still the same and the lines still overlap."

"This is completely meaningless."

"..."

"Yeah."

Wu Xie, who was leaning in to watch, also nodded and agreed with Huo Nanfeng's statement.

"Indeed, reversing Qian and Kun seems quite useless."

"But the second half, 'Heaven and Earth turned upside down'—shouldn't that be interpreted as well?"

"..."

"How do we interpret it?"

Hearing Wu Xie's words, Li Xiaotie, sitting nearby, couldn't help but interject.

"This is entirely a flat plane. Whether it's flipped or reversed, what's the difference? Isn't it all the same?"

"Wait!"

"What did you say?"

Wu Xie was startled, as if he had caught a detail in Li Xiaotie's words.

He asked the latter again with an urgent tone.

"..."

Li Xiaotie was also taken aback.

He then repeated to Wu Xie.

"What... what difference does it make if it's reversed or not?"

"It's all on one plane anyway, it looks the same to me."

"..."

Slap!

As Li Xiaotie's voice fell!

A flash of excitement instantly crossed Wu Xie's eyes, and he slapped his hand down forcefully.

He said to Wu Tian beside him.

"I've got it!"

"Since reversing Qian and Kun is useless on a flat plane, and turning Heaven and Earth upside down is also useless, can we place the Eight Trigrams in 3D?"

Wu Xie became more and more excited as he spoke.

"If it's in a 3D image, then this reversing of Qian and Kun and turning Heaven and Earth upside down becomes useful."

"If..."

While speaking, Wu Xie took out a pencil and found a blank piece of paper to draw lines on.

"In a 3D image, after we reverse Qian and Kun and flip Heaven and Earth, you'll find that the two lines that originally formed a cross have now become four parallel lines."

"And on these four parallel lines and a north-south cross line, two diagonal triangles are formed."

"And because of the 3D imaging, the positions of these two triangles have also changed slightly from before."

Wu Xie's expression was exceptionally excited.

He continued.

"Then the answer is very obvious."

"The two triangles now shown on the image are built opposite each other. It's very likely they are the tombs of Zhang Daoling and Li Xiong."

"How about it?"

Wu Xie chuckled.

"There's nothing wrong with my analysis, right?"

Slap!

Wu Tian came back to his senses after being stunned for a moment, and he reached out to slap Wu Xie on the back.

He laughed loudly at the latter.

"Not bad! Your brain really is sharp. I wasn't wrong about you; everyone has their specialty!"

"Good!"

"All right then."

Looking at the map that had basically been deciphered, Wu Tian smiled slightly.

"Everything is pretty much ready now."

"So everyone, disperse. Go back and get prepared!"

"Three days."

Wu Tian held up three fingers to the crowd.

He said with a smile.

"Three days should be enough, right?"

"In three days, each of your families will bring a list of two chosen family members and various equipment to gather in this courtyard of the Xie Family. We will set off for the Soul-Bewitching Cave."

Wu Tian smiled slightly.

"How about it?"

"No problems?"

"..."

Everyone was stunned!

Things had almost reached their conclusion, but everyone's expressions suddenly became a bit unnatural.

They looked at each other and then turned their gazes toward Luo Que, who was standing behind Wu Tian.

They seemed to be expecting him to say something.

A few seconds later, Luo Que, seeing everyone's eyes on him, really couldn't hold out any longer.

He spoke in a low voice from behind Wu Tian.

"General Wu..."

"I'm afraid it won't work yet!"

"..."

Hearing Luo Que's voice from behind, Wu Tian was slightly taken aback.

He said,

"What do you mean?"

"What won't work yet?"

Luo Que looked at him expressionlessly and said,

"You do not yet have the qualifications to command the Nine Gates."

Wu Tian was startled.

"Oh?"

"The qualifications to command the Nine Gates."

"Interesting."

"So Luo Que, how does one obtain the qualifications to command the Nine Gates?"

Luo Que replied expressionlessly.

"It's simple: pass the trial of the Nine Gates."

"The trial of the Nine Gates?"

A deep light flashed in Wu Tian's eyes.

He continued to ask Luo Que beside him.

"Alright, since commanding the Nine Gates requires qualifications, then tell me, what kind of trial is it?"

"..."

"Well, the trial is simple."

"But it is also very difficult."

Luo Que said a piece of nonsense to Wu Tian with a straight face.

"Historically, those who command the Nine Gates have always been from the Zhang Family."

"Every member of the Zhang Family possesses an ability—an ability that no one else has."

A look of yearning flashed in Luo Que's eyes.

He softly uttered four words.

"Double Finger Cave Exploration."

"..."

Wu Tian was stunned.

Then, with a somewhat strange expression, he confirmed with Luo Que.

"What was that?"

"Double Finger Cave Exploration?"

"Are you sure it's Double Finger Cave Exploration?"

Luo Que was startled.

Then, seeing Wu Tian's excited expression, he continued with some confusion.

"Yes, is there a problem with Double Finger Cave Exploration?"

"..."

"No problem, no problem."

Wu Tian waved his hand and chuckled.

He said to Luo Que,

"Well, since it's a trial, then let's do it."

"What's the testing method?"

"Extracting seamless bricks with two fingers, or searching for objects with two fingers?"

"Let's just go with your traditional testing method."

"..."

"Good."

Luo Que nodded, then pulled a square box from his person and placed it in front of Wu Tian.

He introduced it softly to everyone.

"This is the Nine-Aperture Exquisite Box from the Northern Song Dynasty."

"Inside this casket is a treasure. There is only one way to open this casket, and that is to use two fingers to trigger the mechanism inside."

"Inside the casket are three thousand gold threads, but only one is connected to the switch."

"To open this casket,"

"it requires the locksmith to correctly touch that one gold thread among the three thousand. Furthermore, if the wrong gold thread is touched, dozens of poisonous hooks and barbs inside the casket will shoot out, destroying the hands of the person opening it."

"How about it?"

Luo Que asked Wu Tian with a calm face.

"Do you dare to give it a try?"

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