CHAPTER 411: CHAPTER 411: DAMN, GOT TRICKED (3 UPDATES)

Yang Xiao asked Lan Xin to quickly sketch a rough map of the cave. Behind the cave lay a sheer cliff, and in front, a mountainside. According to the map, Yang Xiao and the others were currently surrounded by Tibetan Mastiffs outside.

The only exit was the cave entrance in front of them, but outside, one to two hundred huge Tibetan Mastiffs stood guard, making it extremely difficult for Yang Xiao and his group to break out.

Moreover, the Tibetan Mastiffs were extremely intelligent and had become somewhat familiar with Yang Xiao’s Soul Skill. Once Yang Xiao charged out, the Mastiffs would surge up like a tide, and even if Yang Xiao could kill dozens of them in one go, he would be torn to pieces by the remainder.

Even if Yang Xiao and his people managed to fight to the death and kill all the Tibetan Mastiffs, it was estimated that all the girls would also die, making such a risk meaningless.

Yang Xiao sighed and said:

"Lan Xin, from now on, we only use charcoal for grilling meat and boiling water. We need to conserve our use, and we also need to economize our food consumption. We should be able to hold on without issues for ten to twenty days."

Lan Xin nodded and said:

"We have a custom here where we can directly strip the meat off the Tibetan Mastiffs, slice it, and leave it to air-dry in the cave. It’ll be ready in a few days, and the jerky can be eaten raw without any problem."

Yang Xiao nodded, and Xiao Lan and the others immediately got to work, taking out their Longswords to dissect the Tibetan Mastiff corpses. To avoid the stench of the carcasses, everyone dragged them to the cave entrance before starting the dissection.

"Don’t throw away the Tibetan Mastiff pelts. Hang them up on the walls separately; they can make a big carpet. Later on, we can all sleep together. It’ll be very warm," Yang Xiao said to Lan Xin.

Lan Xin heard this and blushed, retorting:

"Who wants to sleep with you?"

With that, she ran off, her face still red with embarrassment, to help with dissecting the Tibetan Mastiffs.

Yang Xiao: "..."

Did I say something wrong? It doesn’t seem like I did!

Yang Xiao couldn’t be bothered to join in the fuss, glancing at the bookshelf inside the cave, he picked up an oil lamp and walked over, casually picking up a book.

"Introduction to the Basic Knowledge of Divine Mountain Sword Skill," "Heart Method Mantra of Divine Mountain Sword Skill," "Seventy-Two Forms of Divine Mountain Sword Skill," "Internal Cultivation Methods of Divine Mountain," "Divine Mountain Light Skill," and beyond these, there were many more books on Ancient Martial Cultivation and about the ancient arts of various martial sects, even some mixed-sect martial skills.

The core cultivation of the Shenming Mountain Sect had three aspects: Inner Strength, Qinggong, and Swordsmanship, among which Inner Strength was the foundation.

Yang Xiao figured he could not learn the Internal Cultivation Methods in a short time, so he picked up a book on the basics of swordsmanship to read.

Swordsmanship consists of two parts: mental method and sword moves. The mental method is Inner Strength, while the sword moves are about skill.

Yang Xiao had been a fan of martial arts since childhood and never expected to encounter actual Martial Arts Secret Books from the legends. He began reading earnestly, absentmindedly gesturing the sword moves with his fingers as he read.

He didn’t know how long he had been reading, but when Yang Xiao closed the book of Divine Mountain Sword Skill basic knowledge, his mind was full of various sword moves.

"Ah, to think the legendary martial arts of the Shenming Mountain Sect are real."

Yang Xiao sighed deeply.

Then, a faint voice sounded from behind him.

"Is that so?"

Yang Xiao turned around to see Lan Xin, Xiao Lan, Ju Yun, and the others standing not far away looking at him with exceedingly odd expressions.

It appeared that they had been watching Yang Xiao for a while now, but he had been so engrossed that he hadn’t noticed.

Yang Xiao was startled, glanced at the book in his hands, placed it back on the shelf, and said with an awkward smile:

"Ah, sorry, I was just flipping through it out of boredom."

But Lan Xin coldly said:

"Just flipping through it? You do know what is most taboo in our martial arts world, right?"

"Peeking at another sect’s Martial Arts Secret Book?"

"Hmph, seems you’re not very dumb. You’re not a disciple of our Shenming Mountain Sect, yet you peeked at our sect’s martial arts secret books. This is against the rules, and it puts me in a difficult position."

"Oh, I’m really sorry about that. I only looked at one book; it shouldn’t be a problem, right?"

Yang Xiao felt frustrated inside. I just casually flipped through a few pages; why so serious? If there were the internet available right now, I could probably find a ton of Martial Arts Secret Books with a simple search on my smartphone.

Lan Xin smiled faintly and said:

"Xiao Lan, what is the punishment for someone who peeks at our Shenming Mountain Sect’s martial arts secret books?"

"Punishment?"

Xiao Lan was startled, then Lan Xin winked at her.

Xiao Lan suddenly realized what was happening, walked up to Yang Xiao, and said loudly:

"Master Yang, although you are our guest, you can’t just flip through our Martial Arts Secret Books. We have rules, you know."

Yang Xiao suddenly realized he might have caused trouble and asked:

"What rules?"

"It’s simple. If you viewed with the left eye, scoop out the left eye. If the right eye, scoop out the right eye. If you’ve learned the sword moves, chop off both hands. If you’ve learned the Light Skill, chop off both feet."

Yang Xiao: "@#￥%"

"Cough!"

Lan Xin coughed lightly, signaling Xiao Lan not to go too far.

Xiao Lan was very quick-witted and immediately said:

"Of course, there are exceptions for special cases."

Although Yang Xiao wasn’t really worried about actually losing his eyes or hands, he did in fact break the rules and sneak a look at Shenming Mountain Sect’s Martial Arts Secret Books, which was both unreasonable and inappropriate. So, he asked:

"What special cases? Would my situation be considered a special case?"

Xiao Lan nodded and said:

"Although you did it unintentionally, you still violated the rules of Shenming Mountain Sect. If you don’t want to make things difficult for us sisters, there’s only one way out."

"What way?"

"Join our Shenming Mountain Sect. If you join us, you won’t have to suffer these punishments, because as a disciple of Shenming Mountain Sect, you naturally have the right to learn."

Yang Xiao was stunned. What kind of trick was this?

Then he saw Lan Xin come forward with a look of difficulty on her face, and she said:

"Yang Xiao, these are the rules passed down through generations in our Shenming Mountain Sect. Although our master is no longer here, and now I am the senior sister, I know that your cultivation is higher than mine, and I can’t really do anything to you, but, well, let’s just say that our sect is almost extinct, so what’s the point of these rules? If you like these secret manuals, feel free to read them. What can we really do to you?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiao thought, what kind of thing to say? It made him seem like someone who took advantage of others in distress for his own benefit.

Especially in front of Lan Xin and the other girls, how could Yang Xiao adopt an attitude that says "I’ve seen your secret books, what can you do about it?"

Yang Xiao wondered, am I really that disgraceful?

Lan Xin stood in front of Yang Xiao, looking so pitiful and adorable, making Yang Xiao appear even more like a bully taking advantage of the situation.

Sigh, clearly knowing that peeping at others’ Martial Arts Secret Books is a grave taboo in Jianghu, how could he have been so careless?

"Cough,"

Yang Xiao gave a light cough and said:

"Lan Xin, I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to do it on purpose. I only looked at one book, I swear, I definitely didn’t peek at any others."

"Yang Xiao, I’ve said it’s no issue. If you like to read them, then feel free to do so. I also know, when you were in the desert, you intended to invite Brother Ben Yin from Shaolin Temple to your Nanmu City to teach Shaolin Martial Arts..."

Yang Xiao realized he had fallen into a trap. This clearly showed that he coveted Shenming Mountain Sect’s martial arts and intentionally peeked at them.

And he couldn’t even prove his innocence, especially since he indeed intended to learn Ancient Martial Cultivation.

Yang Xiao looked at Lan Xin.

Lan Xin looked back at Yang Xiao, her eyes filled with loneliness, helplessness, and a touch of sorrow.

The two locked eyes, and Yang Xiao conceded defeat, saying:

"Alright, I’ll join your Shenming Mountain Sect then, with you as my teacher?"

"Really?"

Lan Xin suddenly beamed with joy, as happy as a little child.

Yang Xiao was suddenly taken aback. Damn, he had been schemed against.