Chapter 0095: Immortal Burial Map

Chapter 0095: Immortal Burial Map

Qin Yun followed Qin Yonghe to a forbidden area behind the Hualing Martial Arts Academy.

This area was adjacent to the vast mountains of the Yunlong Mountain Range.

At the foot of one of these giant mountains, there was a cave.

Qin Yonghe led Qin Yun into the cave and into a stone chamber filled with books.

"President, what are you going to give me?" Qin Yun couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

Qin Yonghe took out an old square piece of beast hide and laid it on the table, saying, "Take a look. What does this resemble?"

The snow-white beast hide looked very old and was over a meter square in size. Although its surface was worn, it felt soft to the touch, and when squeezed hard, it showed remarkable durability.

"This beast hide comes from a very powerful demonic beast... It has been specially treated, making it impervious to blades and resistant to water and fire," Qin Yun said in surprise after examining it closely.

Qin Yonghe was slightly surprised that Qin Yun could discern so much, and asked, "And then?"

"There are signs of cutting... It appears to have been cut from a larger square piece of beast hide." Qin Yun carefully examined the edges and frowned, adding, "Also, this hide is made up of several pieces pressed together, with traces of spirit patterns carved at the edges... What exactly is this? The quality of the beast hide is extremely high; I can't even carve spirit patterns on it with my tools."

After exclaiming in amazement, Qin Yonghe smiled and said, "Indeed, you are a genius in the art of crafting spirit patterns. To be honest, this is a fragment of a map!"

"A map? What kind of map? Such expensive and rare material must have been used for a special purpose, as there are no visible markings on its surface, suggesting they are hidden by some special means," Qin Yun exclaimed, realizing the significance of the map.

"The map is inscribed with hidden patterns, which I have been unable to decipher!" Qin Yonghe sighed. "I've had this map for over ten years, given to me by your father!"

"My father gave it to you?" Qin Yun was startled and hurriedly asked, "What is your relationship with my father?"

Qin Yonghe smiled gently, his eyes softening, and sighed, "I am your father's grandfather, which makes me your great-grandfather."

"How... How is that possible?" Qin Yun was shocked and couldn't believe it.

He knew quite a bit about his ancestors.

Especially his great-grandfather, named Qin Xingchen, who was one of the earliest emperors of Tian Qin and passed away at the age of thirty-seven.

Qin Yonghe explained, "I entered the Yunlong Mountain Range early on to explore and almost died, being trapped for decades. Later, the former president of the Hualing Martial Arts Academy saved me and trained me to become the new president. By then, I had already reached the martial realm and lost interest in imperial power, so I stayed here to practice and didn't return to the palace, thus changing my name."

"When your father studied at the Hualing Martial Arts Academy, he recognized me and promised not to reveal our relationship publicly," Qin Yonghe sighed. "When he suffered a severe mental injury during his cultivation breakthrough, he sought my help. His injury was mental, causing confusion... He has improved now."

"No wonder he couldn't take care of me; he was struggling himself." Qin Yun asked, "Where is Father now? Has he gotten better?"

Qin Yonghe shook his head and said, "He is in seclusion healing, and I'm not sure if he will recover. If you can understand him, that would be good. Your disinheritance deeply pained him and worsened his condition."

Qin Yun nodded, looking at the beast hide, and said, "Great-grandfather, are you giving me this map fragment?"

"This originally belonged to you! Your mother met your father because of this beast hide, but she also died because of it," Qin Yonghe said solemnly.

Qin Yun was stunned, realizing it was related to his mother's death!

He looked at Qin Yonghe in shock, eager to know more.

Qin Yonghe continued slowly, "This map is called the Immortal Burial Map. It fell from a meteorite near a small village and broke into four pieces. Your mother and three other women were washing clothes by the river and each found a piece."

"After the meteorite fell, it caught the attention of the three major empires, who immediately sent people to the village! That's when your mother met your father and fell in love. At the time, he was still a prince and married her despite opposition."

Qin Yun knew his mother was a commoner, which is why she faced jealousy from many noble-born concubines in the palace.

Qin Yonghe continued, "Two of the other women who obtained fragments of the Immortal Burial Map were taken by the princes of Tian Qi and Tian Xiao Empires, who are now their respective emperors."

"One of the women who went to Tian Qi Empire had a difficult life, working as a maid in the palace and dying shortly after giving birth!"

"The woman who went to Tian Xiao Empire had better luck, becoming a concubine, but she also died a few years after giving birth, just like your mother."

Qin Yun's thoughts raced as he asked, "What about the fourth woman?"

"She is your female mentor!" Qin Yonghe's words shocked Qin Yun.

"Is she... cursed too?" Qin Yun asked tremulously.

Qin Yonghe shook his head, "Not exactly. She is an anomaly, unaffected by the curse, but she did suffer some influence, allowing others to exploit her and accuse her of practicing dark arts."

Qin Yun clenched his fists in anger, whispering, "As I suspected!"

Qin Yonghe patted his shoulder and smiled, "She will be fine. After all, she avoided the curse and is probably just hiding to recuperate!"

"Great-grandfather, do I need to find the other three pieces of the beast hide?" Qin Yun asked.

Qin Yonghe replied, "From what I know, the woman who went to Tian Qi Empire became a maid due to her beauty and later gave birth to a daughter named Qi Meilian. The woman who went to Tian Xiao Empire is the mother of Xiao Yuelan and Xiao Yuemei."

Those two women turned out to be the mothers of Qi Meilian and Xiao Yuelan, shocking Qin Yun again!

He understood why he was once engaged to Xiao Yuelan, as their mothers were close friends.

Thinking about how both their mothers had died years ago, he sighed and asked, "Do they know about this?"

Qin Yonghe shook his head, "I'm not sure. You'll have to figure it out yourself. You and Qi Meilian are close, but Xiao Yuelan might be harder to approach. After you severely injured Xiao Lang, Tian Xiao considers you a major enemy and restricts your entry into their empire."

Qin Yun put away the beast hide, feeling very conflicted.

"The Hualing Martial Arts Academy has been secretly taken over by the Blue Spirit Star Palace, and I am effectively powerless, which is not a bad thing," Qin Yonghe patted Qin Yun's head and smiled. "Having a great-grandson like you, I can now explore the Yunlong Mountain Range without worry."

"Great-grandfather, you're leaving?" Qin Yun was reluctant, as he had finally experienced family affection after many years.

"The land of Jiuhuang is vast, and I want to see more of it," Qin Yonghe said with a wistful smile. "Once you reach my level, you'll feel the same way."