Chapter 59: The Ancient Cave and the Straight Man's Tacit Understanding Test
The ancient cave and the test of straight men's tacit understanding
The suddenly appeared cave entrance was deep and dark, and the ancient and evil aura emanating from it made everyone who had just relaxed tense up again in an instant.
"Grandma's notes really didn't mention it..." Qingluo looked at the hole helplessly, her small hands tugging at the corner of her clothes nervously, "Could it be that even Grandma doesn't know about it?"
Xuanjia poked his head out from Mangu's shoulder, his green eyes flashing with scrutiny. "This cave is extremely hidden. If it weren't for the energy stimulated by the Jianmu fragments, it would probably have been impossible to discover. The aura is ancient and desolate, and the evil in it is like a cancer attached to the bone... Strange, truly strange."
Li Jiuyou seemed eager to try, the red-gold demon fire leaped in his palm, illuminating his sharply contoured profile and excited eyes: "It's hidden so deeply, there must be good stuff! Maybe it's the cave of an ancient demon, who left treasures for his descendants!" He automatically put himself in the situation.
Jiang Xuelan concentrated for a moment, his ice-blue eyes calm as water: "Although the breath is of the same origin as the breath of sinking, it is more condensed, and has no intention of spreading and eroding. Instead, it seems... to be trapped here. The situation in the cave is unknown, and it may be dangerous to enter rashly." He habitually assessed the risks.
"What are you afraid of?" Li Jiuyou raised his eyebrows and glanced at Jiang Xuelan with dissatisfaction. "With me here, how can any rubbish hurt you?" After saying this, he seemed to feel that there was something wrong with what he said, and immediately added fiercely, "...Ahem, I'm afraid that if you die, it will implicate me!"
Jiang Xuelan didn't bother to pay attention to his lame explanation and glanced at the edge of the cave entrance - there were some extremely old marks that were almost worn away by time, which seemed to be the remnants of some kind of sealing formation.
"Since the Jianmu fragments led him out, it might not be a coincidence." He pondered, "Perhaps there are clues concerning the evil god or the safety of this world." His sense of responsibility as an immortal king made it impossible for him to ignore this possibility.
"Then what are you waiting for?" Li Jiuyou took the lead and walked towards the cave entrance. "Just go in and take a look, and you'll know! Stop hesitating!"
"Brother Li, Brother Jiang, be careful!" Ache shouted worriedly.
Man Gu immediately followed, carrying his bone club: "King, I'll lead the way!"
Jiang Xuelan sighed, condensed a little ice-blue fairy light from his fingertips to illuminate, and followed. Qingluo and Xuanjia stayed where they were, guarding the Jianmu fragments and the spring.
The entrance of the cave is very narrow at first, but just wide enough for one person to pass through. After walking a few dozen steps, it suddenly opens up.
The cave interior wasn't as eerie and gloomy as one might imagine; instead, it was remarkably spacious and dry. The walls were no longer rock, but a kind of warm, emerald jade, covered in numerous ancient murals. Despite their age, they were relatively well-preserved. The murals depicted bizarre scenes: towering giants chasing the scorching sun, nine-headed serpents writhing in the abyss, and scenes of ancient people offering sacrifices to enormous sacred trees... The atmosphere was filled with the aura of a primeval world.
The most striking feature was a circular stone platform in the center of the cavern. Inscribed on the ground surrounding the platform was a vast, complex formation that covered the entire cavern floor. The lines of the formation were cast from a dark golden metal. Though dim, the immense power within was palpable. The ancient, sinister aura emanated from the center of the platform.
"What is this place?" Man Gu stared at the mural with wide eyes, feeling that his brain was not enough.
Li Jiuyou also suppressed his arrogance. His scarlet eyes carefully scanned the murals and the formations on the ground, his brow furrowed. "This formation... seems to be used to suppress something." He pointed to the center of the stone platform, where there was a groove with a strange shape. "Look there, the core component is missing."
Jiang Xuelan's gaze was drawn to a skeleton on the side of the stone platform. The skeleton, shaped like jade, wasn't humanoid, but more like some large canine or feline. Its bones were translucent, even shimmering with a faint light. It lay prone, its skull facing the groove in the center of the stone platform, as if guarding it until the very end.
"The remains of the Zhe Clan?" Li Jiuyou also noticed it, his expression changing slightly. The faint aura emanating from the bones resonated slightly with the Zhe Clan bloodline in his body.
At this moment, two faint green flames suddenly lit up in the eye sockets of the jade-white skeleton!
"Be careful!" Jiang Xuelan warned immediately, holding the Frost Sword in his hand.
The skeleton made a crackling sound and slowly stood up! It didn't attack, but simply "looked" at Li Jiuyou with its pair of dark green fiery eyes. Its mandible opened and closed, emitting intermittent, ancient and obscure syllables, as if it was speaking.
Li Jiuyou was confused: "...What the hell is it saying?"
He didn't understand at all.
Jiang Xuelan listened intently for a moment, a hint of surprise flashing in his icy eyes. "It's the ancient language. It says... 'The later fellows... have finally waited for you... the seal... the key...'"
Li Jiuyou was even more surprised: "Ice Face, you actually understand this old-fashioned talk?"
"...I've dabbled in the Immortal Realm Library," Jiang Xuelan said calmly. In reality, she felt a faint sense of satisfaction at having this rare knowledge put to good use, but this was immediately replaced by a sense of caution. "It mentioned 'seal' and 'key'."
The skeleton of the Zhe tribe seemed to confirm Li Jiuyou's bloodline, and its dark green gaze turned to Jiang Xuelan, especially the Frost Sword in his hand that exuded icy fairy power. Its mandible opened and closed again, but the syllables it uttered carried a bit of vigilance and... rejection?
This time, Jiang Xuelan didn't need to translate, Li Jiuyou could feel it: "It seems that it doesn't like you?" He even felt a hint of... disgust towards immortal power (or divine power?) from the emotions of the skeleton?
The skeleton raised one of its front paws and pointed at the huge formation on the ground, then at the groove in the center of the stone platform. Its dark green eyes flashed and it uttered rapid syllables.
Jiang Xuelan translated, "It says that the seal has loosened over time. It needs to be infused with the blood of one's own race and... pure ice (it seems unable to accurately describe immortal power or divine power) into the formation's nodes. Only then can it be temporarily stabilized, revealing the true form and location of the 'key'. Otherwise, if the suppressed 'evil source core' is completely leaked, the consequences will be disastrous." He looked at Li Jiuyou, "Your blood and my immortal power are needed."
"What a hassle!" Li Jiuyou complained, but his movements were decisive. A flash of demonic fire appeared on his fingertips, and a gash appeared on his palm. Bright red blood dripped out. "Which node?"
The skeleton of the ferocious tribe guided him to drip blood into several specific grooves on the edge of the formation.
Jiang Xuelan, following the skeleton's guidance and the direction of the formation's veins, determined the corresponding nodes where immortal energy needed to be injected to balance them. He concentrated pure ice-blue immortal energy on his fingertips and precisely pointed it at several other grooves.
However, things are not that simple.
When Li Jiuyou's blood dripped into the node, the lines of the formation lit up with a crimson glow. Jiang Xuelan's icy blue immortal power touched the corresponding node, but was clearly repelled! The formation flickered and was extremely unstable!
"No!" Jiang Xuelan frowned, "The two power attributes counteract each other and cannot work together. Instead, they impact each other!" If they are injected forcibly, the formation might be detonated prematurely!
The skeleton of the Zhe tribe also made anxious clicking sounds.
Li Jiuyou scratched his hair irritably: "What should we do? Didn't this old bone say that we must have two kinds of power?"
The two looked at the formation on the ground, which was half lit, buzzing due to the conflict of power, and could go out of control at any time, and then looked at each other.
The presence of the blood pact was extremely clear at this moment.
Do I have to rely on that damn contract again?
Jiang Xuelan pursed her lips and stretched out her wrist first, revealing the vine pattern that shimmered with ice blue and red gold. "Try to guide the power to flow through the blood contract. Perhaps you can use its harmonizing power."
Li Jiuyou's face froze, clearly recalling the awkward moment when "Ice Soul Burning Heaven" synchronized with Echo Valley's heartbeat. But looking at the restless formation, he cursed and rudely reached out, grabbing Jiang Xuelan's wrist!
The moment their skin touched, the blood pact vine pattern suddenly became hot!
"Close your eyes, concentrate, and feel the rhythm of my immortal power flowing." Jiang Xuelan closed his eyes and guided the icy immortal power in his body through the blood covenant bridge, slowly flowing towards Li Jiuyou.
Li Jiuyou endured the strange feeling of the icy flow passing through his meridians, tried to relax his resistance, and tried to integrate his demonic fire power into it.
At first, it was extremely difficult. Ice and fire naturally repelled each other, colliding within their bodies and within their blood pacts, bringing waves of tearing pain. Sweat broke out on both of their foreheads.
But gradually, under the unreasonable forced reconciliation of the blood contract, and the extreme concentration that forced the two to concentrate on sensing the subtle changes in each other's energy, the power of ice and fire actually began to find a strange, dynamic balance point!
It is not a fusion, but like the yin and yang fish, they chase each other, depend on each other, and form a stable state of resonance!
"Now!" Jiang Xuelan said in a low voice.
At the same time, the two of them directed this strange ice and fire resonance energy, which was harmonized through the blood contract, to the nodes of the ground formation!
The entire formation instantly lit up! The red-gold and icy-blue lights no longer conflicted, but harmoniously intertwined, flowing rapidly along the complex lines of the formation, ultimately converging on the central stone platform!
The stone platform shook violently, and a bright light shone from the central groove! The outline of an object slowly emerged...
At the same time, the skeleton of the Zhe tribe seemed to have completed its final mission. Its dark green eyes flickered a few times and finally went out. The entire skeleton fell to the ground with a crash and turned into crystal powder, leaving only a canine tooth fossil emitting a warm white light.
**The tacit understanding test was passed with great difficulty, and the "key" finally appeared! **
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