Adventurers arrived upon hearing the news. The secret realm crystal operated by Time Traveler displayed content completely different from that of other Adventurers.
Time Traveler stood at a vantage point, overlooking an area surrounded by a large bamboo forest and a winding riverbank. The periphery was dotted with scattered civilian houses, with a main residence featuring vermilion beams and pillars clustered at its center.
This place was currently under siege. A large number of civilian houses were destroyed, raging fires lit up the night, and bodies of civilians and samurai lay everywhere. Screams echoed constantly, and groups of plundering bandits could be seen patrolling—a truly tragic sight.
This was clearly not Ashina Castle. It was the Hirata Estate on the Longquan Riverbank. Time Traveler had successfully unlocked a side quest, and this was no easy feat.
Although this side quest was relatively easy to trigger in the original game, Jack Chen had created a more vivid and realistic Ashina Castle in the remastered version. He populated it with numerous civilian residential areas, aiming to restore a relatively realistic ecosystem of a small country's capital city.
As for the old woman NPC who triggers the side quest? Although her dilapidated house was recognizable, triggering this side quest proved somewhat difficult due to the large number of ordinary civilians who could not provide effective information.
Time Traveler happened to be an Adventurer who liked to explore the stories of secret realms. He frequently interacted with these civilians, chatting with them and collecting valuable information about the history of Ashina Country, including details about characters like Undying Hanbei. In this process, he unexpectedly discovered this side quest.
"Wind in Sleep: What is this place? It doesn't look like Ashina Castle!"
"Nancilia explained: This is certainly not Ashina Castle, but the Hirata Estate invasion incident from three years ago!"
"Wind in Sleep was slightly stunned: Hirata... Could it be the home of the Divine Child, Hirata Kuro?"
"Lonely Swordsman couldn't help but ask: Since it's an event from three years ago, why can we enter?"
"Nancilia said: Time Traveler found an old woman outside Ashina Castle and obtained a bell from her. This bell seems to have some kind of magical power. As long as it is offered before a mysterious Buddha statue in the dilapidated temple, he can travel back here."
The Adventurers showed surprised expressions. "There's actually such a thing? Is this considered a hidden plot?"
Time Traveler had already challenged the Hirata Estate several times consecutively. This place was filled with enemies and was very difficult. Although he was an experienced Tier 2 Adventurer and skilled at role-playing, his operational skill was average, making it hard to clear the area quickly.
Nonetheless, he discovered a wealth of information during his adventures. Compared to how many enemies he killed or how much progress he made, this clearly excited him more.
"Brothers! I've found out! This Hirata family should be a 'branch family' or 'cadet branch' of the Ashina clan. You can understand it as the Hirata family being a collateral family with the same bloodline as the Ashina family but a different surname."
"According to my research, this system of branch families is relatively common in the Eastern Land, aiming to maintain family stability by diverting bloodline members and avoiding inheritance disputes."
"In the 'War for the Country' launched by Sword Saint Ashina Isshin, the Hirata family, as a cadet branch of Ashina, also played an important role in resisting the Inner Ministry forces. Therefore, the Hirata family became a core vassal of Ashina Country, not only responsible for guarding the strategic gateway near Ashina but also having an unknown major mission: secretly adopting and protecting the Dragon Heritage Divine Child, Kuro!"
"That's right! This Divine Child Kuro is the master we swear loyalty to."
Time Traveler enjoyed researching backgrounds, exploring and discovering hidden plots and stories. As he shared these tales, the other Adventurers listened with great interest. These historical details not only captivated them but also deepened the sense of reality in the world, greatly enhancing their experience and immersion!
"Nancilia: So Kuro has so many secrets? No wonder we, as the protagonists, have to bear the mission of protecting him!"
"Pear Blossom Rain Falling: What exactly is the Dragon Heritage Divine Child?"
"Cat Meow Meow: It's not clear yet; it's probably an important ability. Otherwise, why would Weiming Genichiro go to such lengths to snatch Kuro?"
Nancilia's expression grew serious. "This disaster at the Hirata Estate is not simple; I think it might be directed at this child!"
Hearing the discussion outside, Time Traveler nodded and continued, "Yes, your guess should be correct. Today is the 'Longquan Worship Day,' the most important ritual for the Hirata family."
"A large number of Hirata family samurai were transferred away, and just when the estate's defenses were weak, it was suddenly invaded by bandits who burned, killed, and looted... How could there be such a coincidence?"
"I also don't think these bandits alone could breach the Hirata family defenses. There must be more than one internal and external force involved."
As for more specific details, Time Traveler wasn't very clear either, so he continued his actions, hoping to find more clues.
When Jack Chen was creating the Hirata Estate side quest, he optimized the scene for greater realism. For example, he expanded the area several times, making it seem more detailed with everyday life. Various civilians and corpses were present, and there were as many as four or five hundred invading bandits.
The individual strength of the wandering samurai and bandits was naturally inferior to that of the Ashina Soldier samurai. However, they always came in groups of three to five and were assisted by hunting dogs, making them very difficult to deal with!
Adventurers had to ensure that every battle was resolved quickly; otherwise, once the bandits called for help, they would be surrounded in minutes. This is why Time Traveler had died in the outer civilian residential area three times.
"I must get into the main residence! There must be more clues there!"
With this thought, plus the experience accumulated from several challenges, Time Traveler quickly moved through the blazing scene using the flexibility of his prosthetic arm.
This time, he had very good luck, successfully dispatching several waves of enemies and sneaking close to the main residence's entrance.
This was an open courtyard, surrounded by wooden buildings, corridors, and a pond. It was not difficult to see the usual simple elegance and luxury, making one sigh that the Hirata family was indeed a wealthy noble family.
Just as he was about to explore further, he encountered trouble. A large number of bandits and ninjas from other forces were guarding this area.
Among all the enemies, the most conspicuous was Serpent Heavy Hide, who was guarding the entrance. This person was tall and burly, with a physique even more unusual than most, boasting bulging muscles and a thick layer of fat.
He wore old and simple clothes, with only rough cloth and leather wrapped around his upper body and loose hakama pants on his lower body, tied with a dirty cloth belt. Yet, he gave off an extremely strong sense of oppression.
**[You have unlocked a new illustration!]**
Time Traveler learned from the illustration's description that the opponent had Tier 2 Two Star strength.
"This guy is only one star less than the Red Oni, the same level as a Samurai General. He is undoubtedly an elite enemy... From the current situation, I can't get in without eliminating him!"
Time Traveler braced himself and acted. First, he cleared the nearby small fry by assassination. Unexpectedly, just after killing a few, he made an operational error and was exposed.
"Who goes there?"
Serpent Heavy Hide picked up his odachi and stood up. His height was nearly two meters, and his weight was estimated to be over four hundred pounds. Several scars crossed his face, his nose bridge was wide, his brow ridge prominent, and his eyes were narrow and bloodshot, making him look fierce and rough.
"Not good!"
Time Traveler wanted to retreat, but it was too late. Several wandering samurai holding wooden shields and bandits holding torches surrounded him, forming an encirclement.
Serpent Heavy Hide carried his huge samurai sword and slowly moved forward. He first looked Time Traveler up and down, then let out a muffled laugh.
"Hahaha, I know who you are; you are the Divine Child's ninja... a defeated dog who is about to lose its master!"
"You actually recognize me?" Time Traveler was very surprised. Ninjas were a mysterious existence who performed assassination or protection missions in the dark and rarely revealed themselves publicly.
For this reason, although he was the Divine Child's ninja, very few people in the Hirata family knew of his existence. This guy was clearly just a bandit leader, and they had no past interactions. How could he recognize his identity at a glance?
Something is wrong! There must be an internal spy in the Hirata family, and this spy's status is not low!
"Step back!" Serpent Heavy Hide picked up his sake gourd, took two big gulps, wiped his mouth, and sneered: "I'm going to personally slaughter this dog!"
The other bandits retreated a distance. Although Time Traveler was full of questions, Serpent Heavy Hide didn't give him a chance to ask. He stomped his foot with explosive force, causing the floor to crack, and then suddenly attacked with a speed that didn't match his physique.
So fast!
Time Traveler believed that compared to speed, the opponent's strength would be more terrifying, so he immediately used the sword deflection technique, resolving the incoming slash with skillful force.
The two blades collided.
Sparks flew.
Serpent Heavy Hide retreated two steps.
Time Traveler seized the opportunity to attack immediately. Both strikes successfully hit the target but failed to cause significant damage to Serpent Heavy Hide.
He looked carefully and realized that the opponent's skin was very rough, with scale-like textures particularly noticeable on exposed areas like the neck or arms.
This guy's physique was not only unusual, but his flesh was also abnormally tough. Simple slashes were difficult to inflict fatal wounds.
Serpent Heavy Hide counterattacked directly with a heavy two-handed chop. Each strike was powerful and heavy, with the force to shatter stone tablets.
Clang clang!
Sparks flew!
The attack was deflected again!
Serpent Heavy Hide retreated a step to gather strength, then suddenly made a forward pouncing motion. This was a sumo grappling technique from the Eastern Land.
Danger!
Time Traveler felt a warning from his intuition.
He immediately dodged, avoiding this potentially fatal attack.
"Hahaha, as the Divine Child's loyal dog, you're quite capable... So, how about this next move?"
Serpent Heavy Hide suddenly spat out a large glob of green venom, instantly covering a large fan-shaped area in front of him.
Nowhere to dodge this time!
Time Traveler had no idea the opponent had such a move.
Caught off guard, not only were his skin and eyes burned, but his body also fell into a brief state of paralysis and stiffness.
"It's over!" Serpent Heavy Hide sneered and raised his samurai sword. A huge blade aura quickly slashed out, instantly beheading Time Traveler.
Death!
Another failed challenge!
Other Adventurers showed regret. They were just a little bit away from entering the Hirata main residence to find the truth.
Unexpectedly, at the entrance, there was such a formidable obstacle.
Bihua was also in the crowd watching at this moment. While everyone was discussing the content of the hidden map, the Hirata Estate, and commenting on the moves of the elite enemy, Serpent Heavy Hide, her eyes grew brighter and brighter!
She hadn't expected that within the currently open Ashina Chapter plot, there was such a hidden location and hidden plot to explore!
The content of this world is so rich!
So, should she continue exploring the outskirts of the city to find an entrance into the city, or enter this hidden place to challenge and explore?
This wasn't a difficult choice!
There were hundreds of Adventurers exploring the outskirts of the city. Those Samurai Generals and the Red Oni had already been challenged repeatedly hundreds of times. In contrast, the Hirata Estate was only recently discovered. Very few people were currently exploring it.
Although the scale of this hidden scene was not small, with her ability, she should be able to investigate it today. Instead of walking the path others had walked, it was better to be the first to clear the Hirata Estate!
Bihua was young and spirited, with a particularly strong competitive spirit. She always wanted to be ahead of others to prove that she was the most capable Adventurer. It was like this when she was the first to defeat Ashina Genichiro, and it was also like this now when she wanted to break through the Hirata Estate side quest.
However, it was probably precisely this kind of personality that allowed her, at a young age, to achieve accomplishments far beyond her peers.
Challenging again.
Entering the secret realm once more, Bihua immediately took action.
Revenge should not wait overnight! She must get it right away!
First, she found the Samurai General Kawarada Naomori, who had killed her once. This time, Bihua was prepared and more cautious, and she was already familiar enough with his moves.
Clang clang clang!
Several clashes and deflections!
Kawarada Naomori lost his balance and was staggered back. Bihua seized the opportunity, leaped up, and plunged Kusabimaru into his neck through a gap in his armor.
The next moment!
Blood gushed out.
This Samurai General, who had killed at least hundreds of Adventurers, fell.
"As expected of the great Bihua! Strong! She defeated the Samurai General in just two attempts. Such killing efficiency is unmatched!"
---
After successfully getting revenge, she found the side quest item, the Guardian Bell.
Under the guidance of the Sculptor, she immediately unlocked the side quest!
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