Even without touching it, Ye Chen could feel something different about it. There was a faint, unusual sensation coming from the pill. It wasn’t something he could explain, but it was enough to confirm that this pill was extraordinary.

He gulped, his greedy eyes fixed on it.

Then he noticed something.

There were words carved inside the lid.

He leaned closer and read them.

"A man without a sword is invincible... Thou who walks this path shall have no weakness."

If Lu Shixun were awake, he would definitely find this suspicious. All the murals and writings in this tomb were in ancient scripts, so why was this box written in a modern language?

With no one to point out this flaw, Ye Chen didn’t seem to notice anything wrong.

Instead, his eyes widened slightly, and a smile appeared on his face.

"Interesting..."

"Without a sword... no weakness..."

He repeated the words in his mind.

The meaning felt profound.

In his understanding, it meant abandoning sword techniques in exchange for absolute power.

He didn’t care about that.

He wasn’t a swordsman in the first place.

So this "cost" meant nothing to him.

As long as he could gain powerful strength without flaws, he would have nothing to fear in this world.

His grip tightened slightly around the box, excitement building in his chest.

At that moment—

The ground trembled.

*Rumble!*

It wasn’t strong, but it was clear.

Ye Chen’s expression changed instantly.

"This... doesn’t seem natural."

The tremor came from below.

Something heavy must have struck the structure.

His eyes narrowed. Although the python was large, it shouldn’t have such strength.

Then his eyes widened as the image of being chased in the forest flashed in his mind.

"...That old man. It must be him!"

There was no doubt now.

No one else could cause such a disturbance.

"They’ve caught up..."

Ye Chen’s heartbeat slowed, and his expression became serious.

His mind worked rapidly.

There was no escape route here.

If that old man and the gunmen entered this chamber, there would be no way out.

"What should I do?"

His gaze dropped to the pill in his hand.

This was his only chance.

He didn’t know what it would do, or whether the claim of granting supernatural power was true.

Given the situation, he had no choice but to gamble. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He had to bet on this legendary treasure.

Otherwise, he would die.

Ye Chen didn’t hesitate.

He raised the pill and swallowed it.

The moment it went down, a strange sensation spread through his body.

His muscles tensed. His breath hitched slightly.

Something inside him was changing.

’Is this pill strengthening me from the inside out?!’

Ye Chen’s eyes were filled with excitement.

At first, he welcomed the change.

But suddenly—

His expression stiffened.

For the first time, a trace of uncertainty appeared in his eyes.

But it was already too late.

The alteration had begun.

---

At first, Ye Chen expected power.

He thought his body would surge with strength, an overwhelming surge that would push his limits beyond anything he had known.

That was what a "legendary treasure" was supposed to do.

Instead—

Something felt... off.

Very wrong.

A strange heat spread through his body, but it wasn’t the kind of burning force he had imagined. It felt softer. Like something was being reshaped rather than strengthened. The sensation made his brows slowly knit together.

"...What is this feeling?"

He frowned, looking down at his hands.

At first glance, nothing seemed different. But the more he looked, the more uneasy he felt. The veins that used to stand out slightly beneath his skin began to fade. The firmness in his muscles softened, and the sharp definition he relied on slowly blurred.

"...Huh?"

Before he could figure it out, a tightness formed in his throat.

Ye Chen instinctively raised his hand and touched his neck. The familiar protrusion of his Adam’s apple was shrinking under his fingers.

A strange panic crept into his chest.

He tried to speak, but when his voice came out, he froze.

"...What is this?"

The voice was no longer his.

It sounded lighter, smoother, and completely unfamiliar.

His eyes widened as he stood there, stunned, but the changes didn’t stop.

A subtle pressure began to build on his chest. At first, he ignored it, thinking it was just part of the strange sensation. But it quickly became more noticeable.

His breathing slowed as he looked down.

And then he saw it—

Two visible mounds began forming beneath his clothes.

For a moment, his mind went completely blank. Of course, it was familiar with these things. He had borrowed these assets from others to play with many times. He just never expected to own them, too, one day.

Should he be happy that he got his favourite things? No, he wasn’t!

"No... that’s not possible."

His body continued to change without giving him time to react. His shoulders narrowed, his waist pulled in slightly, and his entire frame shifted into a more curved shape. The strength in his body didn’t disappear, but it no longer looked the same.

At the same time, something brushed against his neck.

He reached back and grabbed it instinctively.

His hair.

It had grown longer, now falling neatly to his shoulders. The texture felt smoother than before, almost silky between his fingers.

"This... this isn’t right."

His breathing became uneven.

Then a thought struck him.

A very important thought.

Slowly, with a stiff movement, his hand moved downward.

He hesitated for a moment, as if hoping he was mistaken.

Then he checked.

Everything went silent.

His hand froze in place.

His entire body froze with it.

Then—

"...WHERE IS IT?!"

The shout echoed through the chamber.

Ye Chen’s face twisted.

Shock turned into disbelief, and disbelief quickly spiralled into pure hysteria.

"It’s gone?! It’s GONE?!"

He checked again, faster this time, as if repeating the action would somehow fix the situation.

But nothing changed.

"How can it be gone?!"

There was still nothing in that place.