“Can a mere key keep others from entering?” Su Changhe looked up. “Couldn’t one simply climb over these courtyard walls?”
“When this key opens the courtyard gate, all the mysterious formations within will simultaneously withdraw. If you try to climb in directly, believe me, even as the Family Head of the Dark River, you won’t make it out alive.” The stout man smiled craftily. “Your Dark River’s Spider’s Nest…”
Su Muyu’s brow furrowed slightly. “You know of the Spider’s Nest?”
The stout man raised one finger and waved it lightly: “It’s nothing worth mentioning.” Then he inserted the key into the copper lock and turned it gently. With a “click,” the lock opened, and a series of clicking sounds emerged from within the courtyard, continuing for a full quarter-hour before falling silent. The stout man tossed the key back to Su Changhe: “Keep this key safe. Soon you’ll understand just how precious it is.”
Su Changhe smiled. “Very well.”
The stout man waved his hand, and the main gate opened. He stepped inside to find the courtyard packed with small houses, leaving no space. Su Muyu asked in confusion: “This is the Dark River’s treasury?”
“First, let’s start with something crude.” The stout man swept his long sleeve, and three houses before they opened. A golden light spilled out, revealing rooms stacked floor to ceiling with gold ingots. Though the Yellow Springs Pawnshop was dimly lit, these three opened doors instantly brightened the entire space.
Su Changhe stared in shock: “This… how many assassination contracts would it take to amass such wealth?”
Su Muyu stepped forward and picked up a gold ingot: “Are these three houses of gold ingots considered much?”
Su Changhe sighed helplessly: “Could you try to understand mortal concerns? My entire house of silver plus the residence itself isn’t worth as much as this single row of gold ingots, and this room alone has nearly a hundred layers of them.”
“I see.” Su Muyu put down the gold ingot. “The Dark River has hidden all its wealth here.”
“If you think it’s merely wealth, then Clan Head Su underestimates your Dark River ancestors.” The stout man waved his hand again, closing the doors of the three houses and opening three more.
Su Muyu immediately took down his paper umbrella, while Su Changhe gripped his daggers.
“No rush, no rush. The rooms are empty of people,” the stout man smiled.
“Empty of people but full of sword energy—these swords, they’re from the Sword Heart Tomb?” Su Muyu asked gravely.
The stout man took out a paper fan from his robes and looked proudly at the weapons and armor filling the three rooms: “The famous swords here mostly come from the Sword Heart Tomb, Famous Sword Manor, and the now-destroyed No Sword City. The armor, long sabers, and crossbows were crafted by renowned houses like the Lu Family of the Northern Mountains. See that Hegemon Armor? The world believes only the Mu Family has one set, but your Dark River has an identical one.”
Su Muyu walked to the room of famous swords and picked up a charred black longsword. His eyes revealed a hint of sorrow that vanished instantly: “These three rooms are worth more than those three rooms of gold ingots.”
“In terms of monetary value, they can’t compare to the three rooms of gold. But these weapons can’t be bought at any price,” the stout man said proudly. “Any single item here is worth fighting to the death over in the martial world.”
Su Changhe stroked his mustache: “I say, Shopkeeper, why do you sound so proud? Aren’t these all our possessions?”
The stout man gave an embarrassed laugh: “Force of habit, force of habit. Let’s look at what’s behind these. But be careful with what comes next!” This time the stout man personally walked to the doors and opened them, revealing wooden barrels with contents hidden from view. Each barrel had red paper pasted on it with large black characters:
“Thunder-Piercing Ears,” “Fire and Thunder,” “Heaven-Shaking Earth-Shattering,” “Lightning Strikes Heaven and Earth,” “Drum Thunder Gate,” “Blue Sky Lightning”…
Su Muyu’s pupils contracted slightly: “I once participated in the encirclement of Ye Dingzhi with Lei Qianting of the Thunder Gate. I heard him mention all these names—they’re Thunder Gate’s most powerful explosives. The Dark River even has these Thunder Gate items hidden away?”
“Except for the Qilin Fire Fang, this room is filled with every Heaven-ranked explosive from Thunder Gate.” The stout man carefully closed the door again. “That’s why we must be especially careful opening this door. Its four walls and this main door are forged from Six Harmonies Iron. Otherwise, if all the explosives inside detonated simultaneously, the entire Yellow Springs Pawnshop would be reduced to rubble. The next door also requires caution, because one wrong move and all three of us are finished.” The stout man opened the neighboring room’s door, where a sleeping three-cornered strange snake opened its eyes.
Su Changhe stepped back: “A Sleep Snake.”
“This is the Sleep Snake King, raised using the deadliest poisons from the Wen Family, Tang Clan, Hundred Poisons Clan, and other poison-wielding families. Now this snake’s entire body contains incurable deadly poison. Just one drop of its blood could easily fell a Heaven-realm master with thirty years of cultivation.” The stout man stepped back and hurriedly closed the door again. “The two medicine cabinets beside it are also filled with various exotic poisons.”
“If I’m not mistaken, the remaining door contains various hidden weapons,” Su Muyu suddenly said.
The stout man stated: “You’re clever. Correct. The next room is filled with various hidden weapons. Though it lacks the Tang Clan’s secret weapons like the Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needles, Buddha’s Wrath Lotus, and Peacock Plume, it has everything else. The following rooms contain art of mysterious formations, official maps of important cities, and so on. Whatever you can think of, the Dark River’s ancestors have collected it here.”
“So this is the Dark River’s treasure,” Su Muyu said gravely.
The stout man waved his paper fan: “You don’t seem very happy. This is wealth accumulated over the Dark River’s hundred-year heritage. Only with these resources can the entire Dark River operate. So when we say one must obtain the Sleeping Dragon Sword to inherit the position of Family Head, did you think it was merely the sword’s symbolism?”
“If it were only those three rooms of gold ingots, perhaps I could think that. But seeing all this today, I have only one thought.” Su Muyu sighed softly. “If these were brought back to the Dark River, it could become an army at any moment.”
Su Changhe nodded: “The strongest army in the world. Unstoppable, killing gods who stand in its way.”
The stout man smiled: “And Buddhas too.”