Treasure-hunting: Into the Unknown

Larry and the other two leaders had already brought out their ceremonial gifts, while Jace, the leader of the Qiu Clan, remained calmly seated in his seat. The others glanced at him, confused why he hadn't moved to show his gift.

"Come on, Jace! Don't keep it a secret. If you have something to give to Harley, then please show us too," Jaxon said as he looked at Jace with a calculating smile on his face.

"The gift I prepared for him is nothing compared to yours. I think I'd better present it to him later in private," Jace answered in a humble tone, as he waved his hands at them in dismissal.

"That's not fair. Don't worry, we won't laugh at you even if you've brought an inferior treasure. Anyway, I think the treasure that you brought isn't as inferior as you think," insisted Holy Phoenix next. For once, the group seemed to work together just to see Jace's gift.

"She is right. Come on and show us!" Larry also urged.

"Okay, I guess I have no choice," Jace sighed in resignation, then took out his gift, as he stood up. The others craned their necks just to see better, eager to see what he had brought. A gasp escaped their surprised lips, as he took out a dagger and handed it to Zachary.

"This dagger is called the Heavenly Dagger. I have used it to defend myself for many years, and now, it is yours," Jace said as he handed the dagger to Zachary.

"Is that the Heavenly Dagger? Gosh! Isn't that one of the three great treasures of the Qiu Clan? It is said that if you get stabbed by that dagger, you won't die outright. Instead, your soul will be severed from your body and enter a strange place," Jaxon exclaimed in disbelief as he saw the dagger. It was so rare and valuable that ordinary warriors wouldn't even know of its existence. The Qiu Clan had hidden itself for more than three hundred years; thus, no one knew what famous treasures they had. Only those warriors at the premium stage of Sage Level and above would know of this dagger and the stories behind it.

"Jaxon, you do know a lot about this dagger, but it is very different from the rumors," Jace replied calmly.

"I've heard of this Heavenly Dagger before. It must be unique and extremely rare to be considered one of the three great treasures of the Qiu Clan," Larry commented as he eyed the dagger curiously.

"This dagger is unique because it is my token. If the disciples of

e wouldn't choose the Qiu Clan.

None of them figured out that Jace used the dagger to confirm Zachary's intentions and the possibility of their cooperation in the future. After all, if his thoughts could easily be perceived, he wouldn't be qualified to be the master of the Qiu Clan.

Although Jace had left, the competition still went on. Zachary didn't make his final decision, even though Larry, Jaxon and Holy Phoenix had already shown their sincerity and presented their precious gifts. This made them feel uneasy, because the longer he delayed, the more they felt that the situation was unfavorable to them.

"Harley, if you don't want to be Jace's disciple, you can be mine. I can pass on the Superb Dual Cultivation Method, the secret cultivation method of our Phoenix Pavilion to you. All previous leaders of our pavilion used this method to cultivate their successors," Holy Phoenix added in a bid to cultivate Zachary as her successor.

Upon hearing that, the onlookers erupted into a ruckus, because they felt that the Phoenix Pavilion had presented so many enticing advantages that Zachary would definitely choose them.

"Holy Phoenix, I think that only female disciples are allowed to practice the Superb Dual Cultivation Method, right?" Jaxon asked with an eyebrow raised in question.

"There is no limitation for the Superb Dual Cultivation Method at all. But because the Phoenix Pavilion only recruits female disciples, the outsiders mistakenly believed that only female disciples can practice such a skill, but that's not true," Holy Phoenix responded at once.