Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 193: Chapter 189 Exposed Risks

After Yang Zhenshan finished scouring the entire underground space, he felt numb.

Two thousand taels of Gold could be exchanged for about twenty thousand taels of silver, the value of those jade and jewels should be around thirty to forty thousand taels of silver, plus there were eight thousand taels in silver ingots, the total value was roughly sixty to seventy thousand taels.

However, the most valuable items in this underground space were not the gold and silver, but the goods here.

Especially the herbs.

Yang Zhenshan actually found ten Treasure Medicines among them.

Eight of these Treasure Medicines were hundred-year ginseng, which should be the specialty of the East Sea Hu Clan.

There was also a nearly ten-foot-long Golden Blood Vine and a plant of moon star.

Moon star is a herb similar to the starwort; a one-year-old moon star can be used as medicine, with the effects of expelling wind, resolving the exterior, clearing heat, benefiting dampness, and relaxing tendons and muscles.

Moon star withers once a year, but its root will rejuvenate the following year.

The older it is, the stronger the effect of the moon star.

A thirty-year moon star will grow into Treasure Medicine, and its root, stem, leaves, and flowers can all be used as medicine, with the effects of replenishing vital energy and blood, as well as calming the mind and soothing the spirit.

Yang Zhenshan had moon stars planted in his Spiritual Spring Space and knew a lot about them, but he didn’t know their specific price.

But he knew the price of the Golden Blood Vine.

An inch of Blood Vine for an inch of gold.

A ten-foot-long Blood Vine was priceless—not just worth its weight in gold.

The Golden Blood Vine grows an inch a year, so a ten-foot Golden Blood Vine is a hundred-year Blood Vine.

An inch of Blood Vine for an inch of gold was just the price of a thirty-year Golden Blood Vine, and the price of a hundred-year Blood Vine would probably increase several times over.

The single Golden Blood Vine alone was estimated to be worth no less than thirty thousand taels.

The hundred-year ginseng should be the cheapest Treasure Medicine, but even one would cost several thousand taels of Silver.

Just these ten Treasure Medicines alone were almost as valuable as all that gold and silver, let alone the many other goods here.

Seeing this large pile of goods, Yang Zhenshan felt a headache coming on.

It wouldn’t be difficult for him to take away these many goods, but how should he dispose of them?

Furs, herbal medicines, and fabrics were fine; they could be used up slowly, but armaments were something he dared not use openly.

Hoarding armaments was like plotting treason.

As a Military Officer, having three or five sets of battle armor at home was explainable, but there were as many as three hundred sets here, and they were all Iron Armor.

It was also impossible to sell these things.

Yang Zhenshan hesitated for a moment but eventually decided to give up those armaments.

Because those items were of no use to him, they could even bring disaster upon him. Even if he didn’t take them out, keeping them in the Spiritual Spring Space would take up space.

As for the other items, he took away everything he could. It took Yang Zhenshan half an hour to transfer all the items into the Spiritual Spring Space.

Luckily, the Spiritual Spring Space had expanded a bit recently, and since he had not yet had the chance to plant herbs on the newly increased land due to his marriage, there was empty space to store these goods.

After transferring everything to the Spiritual Spring Space, Yang Zhenshan took another round in the underground space and confirmed that nothing was left behind. Then, Yang Zhenshan went to the deepest part of the underground space.

An underground passage leading to an unknown location!

The underground space at home also had such a passage, but that one had collapsed, and Yang Zhenshan had no idea where it led to.

Judging from the direction, both passages seemed to head in the same direction.

Yang Zhenshan thought for a moment, then extinguished the Fire Stick and groped his way into the passage.

In such pitch-dark surroundings, ears were more useful than eyes.

Yang Zhenshan walked forward cautiously, guessing that he had been walking for about two quarters of an hour when he suddenly stopped.

He seemed to hear a slight noise.

After stopping, the noise became more pronounced; it seemed like someone was speaking.

Right at the end of the passage.

Unfortunately, the distance was too far, and Yang Zhenshan couldn’t hear clearly.

Who could it be?

Hesitating for a moment, Yang Zhenshan reached out again and moved forward, this time even more slowly and softly.

However, just as he moved forward beyond a dozen feet, another space appeared, although this space was not large, roughly only the size of a room.

The sound of talking became clearer and clearer, and Yang Zhenshan could even clearly hear two men conversing.

On the other side of the space was a dim light shining through the passage.

Yang Zhenshan approached even more cautiously.

But just as he was moving over, suddenly a crisp Copper Coin gong sounded.

Clang!

In the quiet underground space, the gong sounded exceptionally loud.

”Who’s there!”

A voice called out immediately after, and without time for further thought, Yang Zhenshan quickly retreated and fled along the passage he had come from.

A series of footsteps followed from behind at such a swift pace that it shocked Yang Zhenshan.

A master!

Although he couldn’t determine the other person’s strength, the fact that the other person was even faster than him meant that their strength was at least not much weaker than his.

And in this pitch darkness, the pursuer dared to chase after him, indicating a strong confidence in their own abilities.

Feeling the other person getting closer, Yang Zhenshan suddenly flung something behind him.

Swoosh swoosh~~

Several whooshing sounds followed, and then a muffled grunt was heard.

”Make way, don’t let him escape!”

Yang Zhenshan’s eyes flashed with a ferocious glint as he threw again.

Dozens of Copper Coins left his hand.

In the narrow passageway, there was no way to avoid them, followed by several pained grunts.

However, Yang Zhenshan could not afford to look back; he had already reached the underground space beneath the rockery, with no pause whatsoever, he dashed towards the exit at full speed.

Fortunately, he had just spent a long time searching this area and was familiar with the environment, otherwise, in this pitch-darkness, he might have run headlong into a pillar.

He had been cautious on his way in, but now as he ran, he could no longer afford such caution.

He punched directly, shattering the rockery blocking the upper entrance with a loud bang, breaking the stillness of the night.

The next instant, Yang Zhenshan shot out of the hole like a cannonball, his figure leaping and in the blink of an eye, he had already run dozens of feet away.

Two figures were hot on his heels.

Under the cold moonlight, Yang Zhenshan saw clearly the two people behind him—one tall and one short, dressed in grey hemp clothes, looking no different from ordinary civilians.

Originally, Yang Zhenshan did not want to entangle with them, but his thoughts shifted, and a fierce light flashed in his eyes.

He could not let these people go!

Because he had taken the items inside.

That was something worth hundreds of thousands of taels of Silver, and the other party would definitely not let him go.

If he was not exposed, then everything would be fine.

But there was a risk of exposure.

This risk came from Yu Qingyi, or more precisely, from the way he used the Copper Coins.

When he saved Yu Qingyi, he had used the Thousand Mechanism Hand to throw Copper Coins at Li He.

Clearly, these people were connected with Sha Pingchuan, Yi Shan, Li He, and that group.

At that time, it had not mattered when he made his move against Li He, for he was assisting the Secret Martial Guards with their case.

But now it was different—he had taken the items, and if his identity were exposed, the other party would undoubtedly entangle with him endlessly.

”I’ve been too careless!”

Yang Zhenshan inwardly criticized himself, feeling that wearing this night outfit was somewhat overcompensating.

Martial skills and techniques are characteristic of a Martial Artist; it is very common to confirm a Martial Artist’s identity through their skills and techniques.

However, Yang Zhenshan had overlooked this issue, which was not entirely his fault since he had not been involved in the worldly society and had rarely the opportunity to show himself partially.

With a quick thought, Yang Zhenshan turned and pounced towards the people chasing him from behind.

He spread his arms, and two Short Spears suddenly appeared in his hands.

The two oncoming chasers were surprised by Yang Zhenshan’s sudden turnaround and even more so by the Short Spears that appeared out of nowhere in his hands.

Their first thought was why did this person turn around.

The second was where did his spears come from.

As these thoughts flashed by, Yang Zhenshan had already arrived in front of them.

The spear tips gleamed under the snow-white moonlight, directly aiming for their throats.

The complexions of both men changed slightly; one ducked to avoid while the other raised a long knife to block.

But their reactions were obviously too slow; with a ’pfft,’ the spear light slashed across their throats, and the bright red blood splattered, flashing a bewitching lustre under the cold moonlight.

”Their strength isn’t very strong, probably around the fourth or fifth level of the Xiantian stage. However, their speed is very fast, likely specializing in some unique movement technique!”

Yang Zhenshan assessed their strength in an instant.

During the escape in the corridor, the opponents were a bit faster than Yang Zhenshan, but speed didn’t equate to strength. Yang Zhenshan wasn’t skilled in footwork or movement techniques, and many Jianghu Martial Artists far surpassed him in this aspect.

At that moment, another figure popped out from the rockery tunnel.

Without a second thought, Yang Zhenshan threw his Short Spears at them.

Swoosh!

The piercing sound tore through the quiet night, followed by two screams.

Thud.

Two figures fell at the tunnel entrance.

One spear pierced through both their chests, a display of overwhelming power only Yang Zhenshan possessed.

Yang Zhenshan stopped and listened intently for any movements around him.

Footsteps, disorderly footsteps, but they weren’t coming from the tunnel entrance; they were coming from afar, probably constables attracted to the noise.

This was no place to stay for long.

Yang Zhenshan looked at the bodies lying on the ground, his figure moved slightly, and in the blink of an eye, he had taken the bodies into the Spiritual Spring Space.

Instead of leaving, he re-entered the underground space.

This time, he didn’t proceed cautiously, but quickly ran towards the innermost passageway.

Meanwhile, outside, four constables ran over to the rockery; they didn’t notice the bloodstains on the ground, but saw the rockery shattered by Yang Zhenshan’s punch.

”What has happened here?” a young constable asked in confusion.

”Wait, don’t go over!” an older constable quickly stopped his comrades, saying at the same time, ”Sound the gong and call for help!”

Immediately, an urgent gong rang out, completely shattering the silence of the night.

But it no longer had anything to do with Yang Zhenshan; he had already followed the passage to the deepest part, where the four Martial Artists had been.

There was nothing special here, just an underground space the size of a room, with a table and several simple wooden beds.

It seemed they had been guarding here for a long time.

As to why they hadn’t transported the items away, naturally, it was because they couldn’t do so stealthily.

An Yuan City had been heavily guarded recently, with strict inspections by the garrison and soldiers at the city gate; there was no way for them to quietly transport the items out of the city.