Treasure Acquired

As Xiao Yang's right hand withdrew from the Snow Demon Sky Ape's heart, the enormous corpse toppled to the ground.

Xiao Yang held two fingers together like a blade and plunged them straight into the Snow Demon Sky Ape's head, extracting a fifth-tier Magic Core.

He took out a bag of water from his Sumeru Ring, poured some out, and washed his hands clean.

Then the two of them swaggered straight into the valley.

The valley was extremely spacious, thick with trees and scattered with jagged rocks. Yet there were no other living creatures within it; they had evidently all been driven away by the Snow Demon Sky Ape.

The stark white bones exposed across the ground, coupled with this deathly scene, made one's scalp tingle.

"Looks like it isn't just humans who covet the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk. Even some magical beasts intend to fight over it."

Looking at those massive bones, Xiao Yang could not help but sigh softly.

"Um, Xiao Yang," Zi Yan's voice sounded beside him. "The Earth Core Body Tempering Milk's miraculous effects of cleansing marrow and tempering bones are also highly useful to magical beasts. It can not only increase their physical strength, but also make it much easier for them to take human form in the future."

As they spoke, the two had already reached the end of the valley, where the entrance to a huge cave appeared before Xiao Yang.

Although the dim light left the cave pitch-black, it posed no obstacle at all to Xiao Yang, who possessed the Heavenly Demon Blood Eyes.

Xiao Yang turned to Zi Yan, who nodded. "I can sense it. The Earth Core Body Tempering Milk should be inside the Snow Demon Sky Ape's nest."

The cave was quite large, otherwise it would have been unable to house the Snow Demon Sky Ape. Its ceiling rose more than ten meters high. Boulders lay scattered throughout, and white fur could be seen everywhere. Yet after surveying the surroundings, Xiao Yang did not find the stalactite described in the original work as containing the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.

So Xiao Yang could only turn his gaze toward Zi Yan.

At a time like this, he could only rely on this humanoid treasure detector.

Zi Yan gave a mischievous grin, swung her little fist, and viciously slammed it into a huge depression in the cave floor that was covered in white fur.

Xiao Yang froze for a moment and activated the X-ray sight of his Heavenly Demon Blood Eyes to look over. But in the very next second, Zi Yan's little fist had smashed open the enormous hole hidden beneath that depression.

Zi Yan was utterly unconcerned. With a leap, she jumped straight down, and Xiao Yang hurriedly followed.

Xiao Yang remembered clearly that Yao Lao had said in the original work that the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk could only be stored in jade vessels—even one's hands could not touch it. Although this little girl Zi Yan was exceptionally gifted and could sense heavenly treasures, she might not know the taboos involved in collecting the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.

If she followed her usual reckless nature and dug it out with her hands, the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk might all be ruined. Xiao Yang would have nowhere to cry then.

Xiao Yang followed Zi Yan for roughly ten minutes. At the end of the pitch-black underground passage ahead, a faint white speck of light suddenly appeared. Delighted, he quickly picked up his pace.

As Xiao Yang and Zi Yan continued approaching, the white speck gradually enlarged. In the end, it had become a cave entrance glowing with white light.

Standing at the mouth of the passage, Xiao Yang took a deep breath and stepped out.

The moment his foot left the dark passage, Xiao Yang suddenly felt the world before him brighten. After gradually adjusting to the light, he looked around—and when he saw the surrounding environment, astonishment could not help but appear on his face.

Before Xiao Yang lay an underground world filled with stalactites. As far as the eye could see, milky-white stalactites stretched endlessly to the horizon, emitting a pale glow that drove away all the darkness here. Stalactites grew everywhere. Some hung from the ceiling above, and some even extended for a hundred meters. At a glance, enormous stalactites hung densely from the cavern vault. Occasionally, droplets of white milky fluid fell from above, splashing milky-white droplets across the ground.

"What an underground world..." After a long while, Xiao Yang slowly recovered and clicked his tongue in amazement.

Zi Yan, however, wore a miserable little expression. "This place is so huge. How are we supposed to find it?"

Xiao Yang smiled and rubbed Zi Yan's head. "Just head toward the direction where the power of the earth is strongest."

At those words, Zi Yan was instantly overjoyed. After sensing for a moment, she raised a hand and pointed. "This way."

After about the time it took to burn an incense stick, the two arrived at their destination.

Looking up at the incomparably massive stalactite before them, even Xiao Yang could not help but marvel.

Xiao Yang had lived a rather eventful life in his previous world and had visited scenic sites like Dragon Cave. But such a gigantic stalactite was something he had never seen in either of his two lives.

This stalactite connected to the cavern vault at one end and hung straight down at the other. Its immense body was several hundred meters long and dozens of meters thick in diameter. A pale white radiance lingered around it, making it look like a crystal pillar. This stalactite was undoubtedly the largest in this underground world. With such a size, it was like the emperor among stalactites, receiving the worship of countless surrounding stalactites.

Xiao Yang's gaze gradually shifted downward. Beneath this stalactite was an enormous slab of bluestone, more than half of which was buried underground. At its top was a shallow groove less than half a foot deep, positioned directly beneath the pointed tip of the stalactite above. The groove contained milky-white liquid two inches deep. A faint white mist floated over the liquid. The mist was quite strange: no matter how it drifted, it never dispersed. Xiao Yang took a light breath, and immediately felt an unusual sensation, as though every bone in his body had gone numb.

By then, Zi Yan was already impatiently preparing to pounce on it. Both annoyed and amused, Xiao Yang grabbed the back of her neck and lifted her up. "Silly girl, the truly good stuff isn't this."

Then, carrying Zi Yan, Xiao Yang flew all the way to the top of the largest stalactite.

This was where the stalactite connected with the cavern ceiling. A faint fluorescent glow seeped out from within the stalactite, making it resemble transparent crystal. It was exceptionally beautiful.

Activating the X-ray power of the Heavenly Demon Blood Eyes, Xiao Yang took out a two-foot-long Mystic Jade Short Sword and directly dug into it.

The short sword cut a circle, digging a round slab of stalactite from the main body. A powerful beam of light suddenly shot out from where the fragment had fallen away. Instinctively, he shut his eyes against the blinding glare, while the wings on his back beat rapidly in reflex. He retreated more than ten meters in succession before finally stopping.

A moment later, the powerful light faded. Inside the stalactite floated a mass of viscous, jade-green liquid. As though it possessed intelligence, the liquid slowly flowed within the stalactite.

Xiao Yang smiled at Zi Yan. "This is the real Earth Core Body Tempering Milk.

"But it can only be collected and stored in jade. Otherwise, if you messed around like that, even smashing this stalactite to pieces would only ruin the Earth Core Body Tempering Milk."