The Robbed Shi Wanshan

The Second Ancestor immediately caught on, nodding repeatedly and chiming in:

"Third Brother's insight is keen! I was being too narrow-minded! So, we'll temporarily 'hold onto' these worldly possessions for Little Shi."

"Later, when we return them, we'll tell him he was too careless and got ambushed. Fortunately, he was saved by... er, a passing 'senior master' who also dealt with his opponent."

"This ring and its contents were recovered from the villain by that senior master, who happened to run into us and asked us to return everything to its rightful owner."

The Third Patriarch's eyes lit up, and he nodded eagerly.

"Brilliant! This way, we keep the goods for now, and Little Shi still owes us a favor!"

"Plus, he won't dare make a fuss—after all, getting knocked out and stripped naked is way too embarrassing!"

"Exactly!" The Second Ancestor chuckled wickedly, quite pleased with his scheme.

But then, as if remembering something, he rubbed his chin and added, "Still, we can't screw the little rascal over too badly."

"If he hits a major danger in the Imperial Tomb and has no life-saving trinkets on him, and he ends up dead there, that would be no laughing matter."

The Third Patriarch's eyes darted around, and he immediately caught on. A knowing grin spread across his face as he nodded in agreement: "Second Brother, you're right!"

"We do need to leave him some foundation to stand on. He's one of our own kids, after all—we can't just send him bare-chested into a dragon's den or tiger's lair!"

"We should check what life-saving measures he's got in his storage ring and pick out a few to leave with him!"

"Absolutely not because I'm itching to see how many treasures this kid has hoarded during his endless trips to Purple Bamboo Peak. Absolutely not!"

Even as he spoke, he was already eagerly probing Shi Wanshan's storage ring.

The Third Patriarch, mid-sentence, hastily extended his spiritual sense into the ring.

"Hmm, let old Ancestor have a look now..."

The moment his spiritual sense swept inside, he was dazzled by the mountains of spiritual herbs, ores, and countless bottles and jars. Even with his vast experience, he couldn't help but marvel—this kid had quite the fortune on him.

He swiftly glossed over common pills and materials, his spiritual sense meticulously scanning a few sections sealed with restrictive arrays where important items were kept.

For someone who practiced the same "Can't See Through Me" technique and whose cultivation far surpassed Shi Wanshan's, these restrictions were nothing more than a paper tiger.

Soon, his attention settled on an ancient-looking, crimson jade vial tucked in a corner. A talisman was stuck to it, emanating a scorching energy ripple—clearly, whatever was inside was no ordinary thing.

Written on the vial in bold, vigorous strokes were five characters—

Fierce Tiger Blazing Sun Pill!

The Third Patriarch's face twitched, and he spoke to the Second Ancestor in an odd, strained tone:

"Second Brother! Take a look at this! Amazing! Little Shi actually has a legendary treasure like the 'Fierce Tiger Blazing Sun Pill'! That pill's potency is absolutely ferocious!"

The Second Ancestor didn't hesitate; his spiritual sense swept over as well, and upon recognizing the pill, the corner of his mouth twitched sharply too.

"This little bastard certainly knows how to stock up on good stuff. No sense of restraint at all!"

His words were high and mighty, but his actions were anything but—he swiftly slipped the vial of "Fierce Tiger Blazing Sun Pill" out from its hidden corner of the ring and stuffed it into the most secure pocket against his chest.

"Ahem, this pill is overly violent in nature. If it were to fall into enemy hands while sitting in his ring, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"I'll 'safeguard' it on his behalf for now. When the time comes and he truly needs it, I'll bestow it upon him, ensuring it achieves its maximum effect!"

The Second Ancestor declared this with an utterly righteous expression.

The Third Patriarch's face was twitching even harder now. He stared intently at where the pill rested against the Second Ancestor's chest, his expression as complicated as if he were watching an old friend stray from the righteous path. His lips quivered, and after a long pause, everything condensed into a long, meaningful sigh: "Second Brother... ah, you! For the sake of the sect, your painstaking efforts are truly commendable!"

"Yes! Such a fiery, potent medicine is indeed unfit for him to keep."

The Second Ancestor replied without blushing or breathing hard, the picture of high-minded virtue.

Then, his tone turned serious: "Alright, jokes aside. We can't neglect the real business. Let's see what else in his ring can truly save his life, and leave a few of those for him."

"Right, right. Priorities." The Third Patriarch quickly nodded.

Before long, they selected a number of life-saving tools.

"These should be enough for him to handle most dangers."

The Third Patriarch pulled several items out of the ring and handed them to the Second Ancestor for inspection.

The Second Ancestor gave them a glance and nodded: "Mm, still not entirely guaranteeing safety."

With that, a profound, mysterious aura emanated from the Second Ancestor and sank into Shi Wanshan's body.

"With this mark, should he run into life-threatening danger, it will autonomously activate a protective resonance—impenetrable even at the Saint King realm. What's more, it can unleash a Saint King's full-force strike, and another, and another."

He finished and let the light at his fingertip meld into Shi Wanshan's brow, making sure the young man would wake within a few breaths.

He then glanced over at the Purple-Robed Saint, who was embedded in the earth nearby and seemed to be on the verge of stirring.

"As for this unlucky wretch..."

The Third Patriarch got the hint. He walked over to the Purple-Robed Saint, picked up Shi Wanshan's "compact" wolf-tooth club from the ground, tested its weight in his hand.

"You, senior, better stay asleep a while longer. Waking up too soon is bad for everybody."

With that, he swung the wolf-tooth club and added another blow to the back of the Purple-Robed Saint's head.

"THUD!"

A dull crunch. The already unconscious saint's body convulsed once, his aura growing even more faint, before sinking into deep, deep unconsciousness.

"Done deal!"

The Third Patriarch casually tossed the wolf-tooth club beside Shi Wanshan's hand and dusted off his palms.

"Let's go!"

The Second Ancestor barked in a low voice and did not linger.

The two figures flickered like specters, blending into the shadows and vanishing from the shabby cave in an instant, leaving no trace behind—as if they had never been there.

Inside the cave, deathly silence reigned once more.

Only the unconscious Shi Wanshan remained, along with the Purple-Robed Saint beside him, who was now unconscious even deeper.

A few breaths later.

"Ugh..."

Shi Wanshan let out a pained groan. His eyelids twitched a few times before slowly blinking open.

His head felt as if it had been smashed by a giant hammer—a dull, ringing ache. His blood and qi felt sluggish, his spiritual power wouldn't circulate smoothly, and a sharp, needle-like sting stabbed at the back of his neck.

"Damn it, what the hell happened?"

He shook his still-foggy head, struggled to sit up, and instinctively rubbed his aching neck, trying to piece together his memories.

All he could recall was lying in ambush outside the cave, waiting like a mantis stalking a cicada to ambush the man in black—and then a sharp pain at the back of his neck, his vision going black, and nothing else!

"Which bastard, reeking of mildew, jumped me from behind?!"

Shi Wanshan shot to his feet, furious and alarmed, and swept his gaze around warily.

First, he spotted the familiar wolf-tooth club by his side.

Second, he spotted—not far away—the Purple-Robed Saint, stripped down to his underwear, sprawled half-buried in the dirt like a dead dog, barely drawing breath.

Third, he noticed his own disheveled disguise!

He instinctively felt for the finger where his storage ring had been—there was nothing there. The ring was gone!

He then felt his chest and waist—the hidden pockets where he usually stowed his odds and ends of treasures had all been turned inside out, ransacked down to the very bottom!