lcionline 68 Yin Sha Geological Site
68 Yin Sha Geological Site
Seeing Gao Zhun speak like this, Rong Qi knew that the deal was promising, and he immediately became quite excited, no longer looking as sleazy as when they first met.
"Fellow Daoist Huang seems to be an honest person. To be honest, I've never been inside this place either. The so-called map is just a random drawing to swindle some spirit stones. However, the information I have is much more useful than a mere map."
Gao Zhun noticed that Rong Qi's words were somewhat contradictory. He claimed he had never been inside, yet he possessed information more valuable than a map. Either he was making things up, or he had some secrets unknown to ordinary people. Thus, she became somewhat serious. She reinforced Rong Qi's soundproof barrier and then added another layer of protection to prevent others from peeping in before saying, "I wonder what Fellow Daoist Rong knows? Please speak freely. As for spirit stones, I, Huang, will certainly not shortchange you."
Upon hearing this, Rong Qi was overjoyed and immediately said, "I won't take advantage of you. I only need a thousand mid-grade spirit stones. Of course, I will tell you my information first. If Fellow Daoist Huang thinks my information is worth these spirit stones, then you can give it to me."
Upon hearing this, Gao Zhun couldn't help but smile. A rogue cultivator like Rong Qi, with a bone age of nearly two hundred, was barely at the Golden Core stage. Although he was still far from the 1,500-year lifespan of a Golden Core cultivator, it was still very close. She now understood the hardships of low-level rogue cultivators. A thousand mid-grade spirit stones were equivalent to only one high-grade spirit stone. No wonder so many people present hadn't bought Rong Qi's information.
Without wasting words, Gao Zhun took out a high-grade spirit stone from his storage ring and handed it to Rong Qi, saying with a faint smile, "Fellow Daoist Rong, making a living is not easy. I, Huang, will not do anything to take advantage of you. Please keep this high-grade spirit stone as a deposit for my information."
Rong Qi's smile widened, and he carefully placed the high-grade spirit stone into his storage bracelet before saying, "To be honest, Fellow Daoist Huang, this place is not a secret realm at all, but just a tomb."
"Oh?" Gao Zhun asked, puzzled. "Didn't Fellow Daoist Rong say earlier that he hadn't been inside? Why is he now saying that this place is a tomb?"
Rong Qi's subsequent answer cleared up Gao Zhun's doubts. Although Rong Qi was a rogue cultivator, he came from a small cultivation family. Their ancestors had originally been tomb raiders, but one day they stumbled upon a cultivator's tomb and received the owner's inheritance, thus embarking on the path of immortality. This place was precisely the secret that Rong's ancestor had inadvertently discovered during one of his operations. At the time, Rong's ancestor was raiding a tomb nearby when he suddenly heard strange noises. Thinking he had disturbed the tomb's owner, he hurriedly fled, only to find that cultivators were engaged in a magical battle outside.
A dozen or so cultivators surrounded one, their attacks capable of moving mountains and filling seas, earth-shattering and terrifying. The fact that the Rong family ancestor wasn't caught in the aftermath of the battle was a stroke of good luck. The battle didn't last long; the besieged cultivator was already at his limit and was thus killed on the spot in this secret realm. After killing him, the cultivators didn't leave immediately. Instead, they used their great supernatural powers to create a tomb. At the time, the Rong family ancestor simply thought these dozen or so immortals were merciful, leaving a mark not far away. He even wrote a notebook to record the ancestral signs he had witnessed that day.
The Rong family stopped engaging in tomb raiding after entering the world of cultivation, as such behavior violated the laws of nature. Doing too much of it would inevitably lead to being eliminated by the Heavenly Dao when advancing in cultivation. However, the special method of marking the tomb was indeed passed down, otherwise Rong Qi would not have recognized at a glance that this was the place where the Rong family's ancestors had seen the immortal traces.
If things were just like that, Gao Zhun's high-grade spirit stone would have been a waste. However, things were not that simple. Rong Qi deliberately kept them in suspense, but he was completely defeated by Ah Zhong's cold gaze and immediately told them everything that followed.
It turned out that the Rong family ancestor had described in great detail the process of those dozen or so cultivators building the tomb. Presumably, it was his first encounter with cultivators, and the memory was vivid, so he didn't want to miss a single detail when writing his notes. Therefore, when the Rong family members who later entered the cultivation world read these notes, they were shocked. It wasn't a tomb at all, but a Yin Sha Cave built using the resentment of the slain cultivators. The outside was decorated with arrays and designed to deceive the eye, transforming it into a secret realm, all to lure unsuspecting cultivators into becoming nourishment for this Yin Sha Cave! Of course, the Rong family members who learned the truth came to search for it, but at that time, the Yin Sha Cave hadn't yet taken shape. This large area was hidden by a maze array; how could a small family whose highest cultivation level was only at the Nascent Soul stage possibly break through such an array? So they had to give up. Tens of thousands of years of peace and quiet put the Rong family at ease, and they unknowingly forgot about the matter. It wasn't until recently, tens of thousands of years later, that the illusion was broken. If Rong Qi hadn't discovered his family's unique markings by chance and checked them at home, he wouldn't have dared to sell this information to earn spirit stones.
"A maze that even a Nascent Soul cultivator can't break must be the work of a Nascent Soul cultivator at least. I originally thought this place was just a cultivator's cave, but now it seems it was used by evil cultivators to take revenge on society." Gao Zhun said coldly. A maze that takes tens of thousands of years to dissipate, those people back then either ascended to the upper realm or have already turned into dust. What else could it be but harming future generations and taking revenge on society?
Gao Zhun gave Ah Zhong a wink, and Ah Zhong took out two more high-grade spirit stones and threw them into Rong Qi's arms. He didn't doubt whether what Rong Qi said was true or false, but he was worried that Gao Zhun would force his way into the tomb. After all, he also felt that this Yin Sha Cave was the work of a Nascent Soul cultivator. Compared to it, the two of them, who had just advanced to the Nascent Soul stage, were completely insignificant.
As they spoke, Rong Qi had already put away the spirit stones with a smile, and Gao Zhun had also removed the barrier. In just a short while, quite a few people had entered the so-called secret realm. Moreover, this secret realm was picky about its inhabitants; all those with a bone age greater than 150 were rejected, and only young cultivators with a bone age less than 150 were allowed to enter.
Of course, for every person who goes in, someone else comes out. However, the number of those who come out is less than one-tenth of those who go in. It seems that the builders of this Yin Sha Cave deliberately created a deception. If all cultivators went in and never returned, even if there were immortal artifacts and elixirs inside, it probably wouldn't attract many fearless individuals. However, Gao Zhun, using her Insight-Breaking ability, could see that these cultivators had indeed gained some benefits inside. These immortal herbs that specifically grow in Yin Sha places, a few Nascent Soul Pills, and a few high-grade magic treasures—things that Gao Zhun, who possessed countless rare treasures, would naturally look down upon. However, the undisguised joy on the faces of these cultivators made her shake her head. Others might not be able to see it, but she could see it clearly. These cultivators all had some injuries, presumably from the things in the cave. Now, each of them was filled with Yin energy, and their lifespans were only three to five months. If they fought with others again in the near future, they probably wouldn't even live for half a month.
Gao Zhun, who possesses the Heavenly Fire, can naturally help these cultivators expel the Yin energy that has entered their bodies. However, the most urgent task is to prevent more cultivators from entering and dying, and then destroy this Yin Sha Cave. Although she is currently at the Nascent Soul stage, which is higher than most people present, rashly preventing people from entering to seek opportunities might provoke public anger. This time, she needs to proceed cautiously.
After thinking it over, Gao Zhun took out two more talismans from her storage ring. This time they were still invisibility talismans. The talisman's precious light was completely concealed, and it looked no different from the low-level talisman she had used before. However, this was a genuine immortal-grade talisman. How could its power be compared to the low-level invisibility talisman that Gao Zhun, a half-baked talisman, had just drawn?
With the talisman on their bodies, Gao Zhun and A Zhong's figures disappeared. Fortunately, after Rong Qi left, no one paid attention to these two fat sheep who had been slaughtered. Otherwise, it would have definitely caused a commotion, which would have been detrimental to their subsequent actions.
Immortal-grade invisibility talismans not only conceal the body's form, but also completely hide the cultivator's spiritual energy fluctuations. Those who are not as skilled in talisman making as the talisman maker, or who possess special bloodlines like Gao Zhun, have absolutely no chance of detecting them.
After completely concealing himself and Ah Zhong, Gao Zhun's first action was to take out a Celestial-grade array plate from his storage ring, place it at the so-called entrance to the secret realm, and then extravagantly throw in several hundred mid-grade spirit stones to activate the array plate, finally stopping these cultivators who were trying to enter the Yin Sha Cave again.
As expected, the cultivators were in an uproar. After a short while, someone discovered that the entrance to the secret realm had obviously been tampered with. Several cultivators who were proficient in formations stepped forward to try to break it, but as soon as they tried to understand the situation, they felt their divine sense being pulled forcefully. This was a sign that the formations were far superior to their own. Immediately, the faces of the cultivators turned sour. One of the bolder ones even stepped forward and bowed to the air: "I wonder which senior has graced us with their presence. Such behavior is rather petty."
Standing in the crowd, Gao Zhun couldn't help but chuckle. These people actually thought she was sealing the entrance to monopolize all the treasures in the secret realm? However, they were unaware of this, and she wouldn't be angry. But simply blocking the entrance wasn't a solution. After thinking for a while, she rummaged through her storage ring for anything usable. And sure enough, she found something valuable. Immediately, her Mahayana stage aura was revealed. Gao Zhun cleared her throat and said in a deliberately profound tone, "This place is a Yin Sha Cave, painstakingly created tens of thousands of years ago by a dozen or so evil cultivators. I have temporarily sealed this entrance for your safety. Those cultivators who entered the cave earlier have already had their nourishment refined by the ghosts within."