Cave Treasure Hunt

That evening, Xia Mo went to Xiao Yi Xian's room to make Blood Coagulating Paste with her, and told her some of his plans.

"Big Sis Xiao Yi Xian, in the next few days, I plan to retrieve the treasure. Once I have it, I'll find a city to settle in temporarily and wait for Jia Nan Academy's recruitment. After passing the assessment, I'll study at Jia Nan Academy. Come with me. Qingshan Town is too small," Xia Mo said as he looked at Xiao Yi Xian.

"Sure. Wherever you go, I'll go," Xiao Yi Xian replied. "I picked you up, after all. If you think you can run away, no chance, you brat. I'm your big sister."

After spending a year together, the two had long since become inseparable. Xiao Yi Xian was the first person Xia Mo had seen after arriving in this world. The Poison Body of Calamity would awaken sooner or later, and he did not want Xiao Yi Xian to wander the Chu Yun Empire alone again, so he intended to take her to Jia Nan Academy.

"Then wait for me to return. We'll sell one copy of the Blood Coagulating Paste formula to the Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion and save up some more money. Then we'll set off. We might not come back again after that."

Early the next morning, Xia Mo set off alone in a black hooded robe. Since Xia Mo was absent for a few days every month, no one found it suspicious. He sped along the route he remembered, avoiding crowded places whenever possible. He released his Bloodline Pressure along the way, and no blind monster dared come and bother him.

As the sun gradually rose, the weather grew hot, but it barely affected Xia Mo. He continued onward at high speed. By the time the sun hung overhead, Xia Mo had reached his destination.

The dense forest near the cliff had become lush and verdant, and the White Orchid Fruit growing at the cliff's edge had ripened. Fortunately, this was a cliff that few people visited. Otherwise, the fruit would have been gone long ago.

Xia Mo glanced at the location of the cave in the cliff face. Seeing that it was hidden behind dense branches and leaves, he turned and left. The road lay beyond the forest, and people were constantly passing by. It would not be good if someone noticed him.

Xia Mo planned to find a place nearby to rest and wait until nightfall before acting. He walked beneath the shade of a large tree, beside a thick patch of bushes. Sitting cross-legged there, he would be nearly impossible to spot without looking carefully.

Before long, Xia Mo entered a cultivation state. However, he did not lower his guard. His soul power continuously sensed everything within five meters, which was enough distance for him to react unless his attacker was far too powerful.

The sun rose and set. Xia Mo awoke from cultivation, glanced at the sky, and quietly waited for night to arrive.

Xia Mo stood up. Having cultivated for the entire afternoon, he was still full of energy. He looked around and found that there was no one nearby.

Xia Mo walked to the edge of the cliff, picked the White Orchid Fruit, and stored it in his Storage Ring. Birds and magical beasts loved this kind of fruit. He could bring it back for Xiao Lan to eat. It was a mid-grade medicinal herb; perhaps it could help Xiao Lan advance.

After storing the White Orchid Fruit, Xia Mo looked around once more and confirmed that no one was present. Light flashed behind him, and a pair of Purple Gold Wings appeared. With a gentle flap, they lifted him about a foot off the ground.

These innate wings granted him incomparable speed. Xia Mo glanced down the cliff and dived. The Purple Gold Wings slowly flapped, faint sounds of wind and thunder echoing through the air. Within a few breaths, he landed outside the cave.

Xia Mo put away his wings and looked ahead. A Rock Snake lay coiled on the ground, trembling violently. The suppression that a high-grade bloodline exerted over a low-tier magical beast truly was immense.

Xia Mo merely glanced at it and ignored it. He cleared away the rubble and twisted wood at the cave entrance, opening up a path into the cave. With the aid of moonlight, he finally saw the cave clearly.

Slowly exhaling, Xia Mo summoned the Dragon Phoenix Flame and walked into the cave. Walking through this quiet, dark, and chilly cave always gave one a faint sense of coldness. Only the flame in his hand brought Xia Mo warmth.

Xia Mo walked alone through the silent passage. The only sound in the cave was his footsteps. After around five or six minutes, he finally reached the end.

At the end stood a stone door. Beyond it lay the target of this journey. Xia Mo did not hesitate. He raised one hand, the flames illuminating the path ahead, while his other hand slowly searched for the mechanism on the stone door.

Before long, Xia Mo found a protrusion beneath the stone door. He pressed down hard with his finger, and after a series of creaking sounds, the stone door slowly rose. He truly had no idea how the mechanisms of the Dou Qi Continent worked.

As the stone door rose, the inside became brightly illuminated. Xia Mo kicked a stone inside and, seeing no reaction, walked in. Beyond the door was a massive stone chamber, simple and empty.

The room was illuminated by Moonlight Stones. At its center stood a stone chair, upon which a skeleton sat withered and still. It reminded Xia Mo of the dried corpse on Brightness Peak from television dramas—it was practically identical.

In front of the stone chair was a bluestone platform, upon which sat three locked stone boxes. Gold coins and other treasures lay scattered in three corners of the stone chamber, while the last corner held a small flowerbed filled with plants. Xia Mo looked at the grass with alternating white and red blades in the center of the flowerbed. This should be the Ice Spirit Flame Grass. Altogether, these scattered treasures were probably worth several million gold coins.

Could this be some small kingdom's emperor who died far from home? Was he trying to gather wealth from all corners of the world?

Xia Mo looked at the skeleton on the stone chair, pressed his palms together, and slowly bowed. "Please do not blame me, Senior. I'll help you keep your treasures safe. At worst, I'll make sure you're properly buried."

Xia Mo walked before the skeleton, grabbed the key, and gave it a light tug. As he pulled out the key, the arm bone snapped and fell. Xia Mo picked up the arm bone and, through a crack in it, saw a small, ancient scroll. He pinched it out with two fingers. This was the Fragmented Map of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame.

The Fragmented Map was of no use to him for now, so Xia Mo put it away first.

Xia Mo bowed to the skeleton again. One could never go wrong with being polite. "Sorry, Senior. I'll tidy things up for you now and let you rest in peace." Xia Mo found a fairly large jade urn among the treasures and began carefully placing the Senior's bones inside.

As Xia Mo gathered the Senior's remains, he discovered a ring beneath the skull. Just as I thought. A Senior with this much wealth couldn't possibly be an ordinary person. There's so much stuff outside—I wonder what remains in his Storage Ring.

Xia Mo put on the Storage Ring, gently picked up the skull, and slowly placed it into the urn before covering it with the lid. He smashed a large pit behind the stone chair and placed the urn inside. Taking out jade bottles and a small jade shovel from the Storage Ring, he collected all the medicinal herbs from the flowerbed. Then he used the soil from the flowerbed to bury the Senior. Afterward, he bowed once more. Rest in peace, Senior.

Finally, he piled the treasures from the other three corners together, picked up the key, and slowly walked toward the three stone boxes on the bluestone platform.

PS: The beginner village treasure has been obtained. Time to set off.