Stirling never thought he would find corpses so fascinating. He had searched Green’s body many times.

  Unfortunately, Monk Green’s belongings weren’t as great as his magical powers. Aside from a slender sword, Stirling found nothing, which made him pout.

  Stirling thought it was very possible. With that in mind, he grabbed the lamp and hurried to the neighboring house.

  As it was late, people had locked every door and window, with shields against ghost hornets. Stirling felt no fear of the hornets. In fact, he welcomed them. Even a small mosquito provides a meal, and no one would reject a longer lifespan.

  But the ghost hornets seemed to sense his horror, and all vanished. The door of Monk Green’s house stood open, so Stirling walked in with ease. He closed the door, bolted it, and began searching with his enhanced lantern.

  Bluestone paved the floor, which was much more luxurious than Old Man Larry’s. This filled Stirling with hope. If he could find an elixir here, it would be a wonderful surprise.

  Stirling started in the front hall, but like Monk Green, this house had little substance. After a long search, he found nothing, leaving him discouraged. When he reached the bedroom, he noticed a blue cloth package on the wooden table.

  Stirling bit his lip and approached with caution, using his Tang Dao to pry open the parcel from a safe distance. No poisonous smoke or traps awaited him. In the lantern light, he saw only silver coins and dry food.

  Stirling frowned and scanned the room again. Soon, he spotted a leather umbrella with a missing handle in a corner. The hollow handle reminded him of Monk Green’s rapier.

  Rattle came to Stirling. Unfortunately, recognizing this didn’t help him, since he had already chosen the blade.

  Feeling impatient, he searched again but found nothing.

  That thought crossed his mind.

  Lost in thought, Stirling realized something, and his expression froze. He rushed back to Old Larry’s hut and stood before the dead body once more.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Stirling squatted and touched the monk’s green robe. His eyes narrowed as words appeared before him.

  [Current enhancement requires a lifespan of 1 year and 7 days. Enhance?]

  Stirling hesitated at the prompt. Enhancing it seemed risky. Even though he had increased his longevity a lot, he still didn’t want to waste it.

  Stirling rushed into the kitchen. He grabbed a charcoal pencil and then peeled the robe off Monk Green. He wrote, “Can enter and exit Rock Village” on it.

  After finishing, Stirling stared at the robe until the familiar words reappeared.

  [Current enhancement. Requests a lifespan of 1 year and 7 days. Do you want to enhance?]

  Stirling looked at the unchanged life expectancy value and punched the air in excitement. This caused his shoulder injury to flare up, making him wince.

  He cursed, setting the robe aside to gather his things.

  Now that he had a way to leave this damn village, he must hurry. Otherwise, Priest White on the mountain would notice that something was wrong. Stirling worked all night, finishing his preparations before dawn.

  As the first rays of sunlight streamed in, Stirling shouldered his bag, donned his robe, and stepped outside. After he left, Larry’s house lit up. Several flames flickered and danced. Soon, a massive fire grew, racing along the beams and engulfing the cabin. At that moment, Stirling reached the fork in the road at the entrance to the settlement, the end of the flowing sand map.

  He turned back to the community and saw thick smoke rising from Old Larry’s hut. He whispered, then took the path to the right.

  After some steps, he felt the air stagnate, then loosen, as if he had passed through a transparent barrier. An idea struck him, and he took out the quicksand map immediately.

  The road outside the village and various markings appeared on the map, filling him with joy.

  Stirling was on the verge of tears. A few days before, he had felt trapped in a desperate situation. After a series of plans and hard battles, he got out of the cage and took back his freedom!

  Stirling kneeled down, relieved. He pressed his head to the ground and grasped the quicksand map. The veins on his hands bulged, and his arms quivered.

  Reflecting on his time in Rock Village, a mixture of feeling coursed through him. He was furious that fate had thrown him into danger. Yet, Stirling was thankful for surviving against all odds. Today, he went through a storm alone; he was not what he used to be. The meek gentleman was gone, replaced by a ruthless fighter. Afterwards, he will use every means at his disposal—scheming, force, connections—to survive. Anything that blocks his way will face his ruthless blade.

  Stirling let go of his pent-up emotions in silence. He took a deep breath after what felt like an eternity. Dusting off the quicksand map carefully, he folded it and tucked it into his pocket. Standing tall, he smoothed his robe, as if with a gentle gesture to heal all the wounds of this journey. He finished gathering his things, looked up at the sky, and yelled. Then, he strode into the distance.