Gu Jianfeng let the matter drop after hearing that, since he still had to give Mu Ling'er some face.
After all, he had been pursuing Mu Ling'er all this time. Unfortunately, she had never agreed to be with him, and he had been her devoted lapdog for more than a decade.
"Very well. Ling'er is right. This brat isn't worth my effort. I'll leave him alone." Gu Jianfeng looked at Mu Ling'er and spoke with a grin.
"For safety's sake, the four of us should join forces and deal with the demon beast inside first."
"As for the treasures inside, we'll claim them according to our own strength." The other Heavenly Talent, Lei De, spoke.
The Four Heavenly Talents reached a consensus and walked toward the cave dwelling in the jungle.
At that moment, Mu Ling'er turned her head and glanced at Yang Lingtian with a trace of bewitching charm in her eyes, as if she admired him.
Yang Lingtian also noticed Mu Ling'er's unusual gaze, and it instantly raised goosebumps all over him.
What the hell? Why did she look at me? Could she have taken a fancy to me?
But she's a big sister in her thirties. That won't do, that won't do!
Yang Lingtian secretly indulged in narcissistic fantasies. Since Mu Ling'er had helped him out of trouble, he still felt a trace of gratitude toward her.
After all, with his Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivation, if he truly fought a Foundation Establishment Late Stage expert, he would only have the option of fleeing.
Moreover, Gu Jianfeng was one of the Four Heavenly Talents and was considerably stronger than ordinary Foundation Establishment Late Stage experts.
But if they really did fight, Yang Lingtian had no fear in his heart.
Although he could not contend with a Foundation Establishment Late Stage expert head-on, he could still escape.
After the Four Heavenly Talents entered first, the others followed behind them.
They all wanted to drink some soup after the Four Heavenly Talents had eaten their fill.
The Four Heavenly Talents kept approaching the cave dwelling when, suddenly, several enormous beast roars came from ahead.
The roars echoed through heaven and earth, deafening everyone.
A huge demon beast then charged out of the cave entrance. It was a giant python.
In an instant, the area nearby was enveloped by an incomparably powerful aura, making everyone feel as if a stone were pressing down on their chests.
This was the terrifying aura of a peak second-order demon beast, and everyone's expressions turned solemn.
"Everyone, attack together!" Gu Jianfeng shouted.
He then drew a huge sword from his back. It was a Low-grade Spirit Artifact with extraordinary power.
As Gu Jianfeng drew his sword and charged at the giant python, the other three Heavenly Talents also brought out their own Low-grade Spirit Artifacts and charged at it at the same time.
The giant python endured multiple attacks and was instantly enraged, letting out shrill hissing cries one after another.
"Boom!"
The four men engaged the giant python in fierce battle. The violent aftershocks of combat swept outward like monstrous waves.
The already-ravaged ground around them was once again blasted beyond recognition.
Although the Four Heavenly Talents were only at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, the four of them had joined forces and were all wielding Low-grade Spirit Artifacts.
The power they erupted with had already come infinitely close to the Foundation Establishment Peak.
Facing the peak second-order giant python, they fought it to a deadlock.
"Why aren't you attacking too?" Gu Jianfeng shouted at the people behind him.
Faced with such powerful aftershocks, Qi Refining Stage cultivators did not dare step forward.
Only those in the Foundation Establishment Realm began to act, taking up their weapons and charging at the giant python.
Fully several dozen Foundation Establishment experts joined the battle. Under everyone's frenzied attacks, the giant python gradually fell into a disadvantage.
Amid the fierce battle, the giant python displayed the formidable might of a peak second-order demon beast.
The scales covering its body were like sturdy armor, allowing it to remain completely unscathed amid the attacks that came like a violent storm.
Its tail was like a gigantic whip, lashing out at an unpredictable speed and forcing everyone to retreat again and again.
Gu Jianfeng knew that he could not give the giant python any chance to counterattack. He circulated all the Spiritual Power in his body, causing the huge sword to blaze with intense light.
Then, like a shooting star, he slashed it toward the giant python.
The other three Heavenly Talents also displayed the full extent of their strength, waving their Spirit Artifacts like phantoms as they continuously closed in on the giant python.
"Boom!"
Another violent explosion rang out. The battle between dozens of Foundation Establishment experts and the giant python had already caused the jungle to tremble violently.
The aftershocks of battle spread in all directions like raging waves. Whether it was hard stone or fragile grass,
everything was swept away by the aftershocks and turned into clouds of dust.
Under everyone's united and ferocious assault, the giant python began to run out of strength.
Its attacks gradually slowed, while its defenses became even tighter.
However, the crowd's attacks did not weaken in the slightest. They coordinated with one another, leaving the giant python unable to find any opening.
The only sound was the giant python letting out another furious roar.
Yang Lingtian, who was watching the battle from afar, knew what the giant python was shouting about. It was asking for help!
The giant python continued roaring furiously. "Old thing inside, hurry up and come out to help!"
A beast roar came from inside the cave as well. "Ayaya, how come you couldn't hold on for so long?"
"I'm worried that if I go out, someone will rush in. What should I do?"
The giant python said, "Basically all the human experts have been held back by me. The remaining Qi Refining Stage trash don't have the guts to charge in."
"Besides, they don't know that there are only two of us demon beasts inside. They'll surely worry that there are more demon beasts in there and won't dare enter."
The demon beast inside the cave said, "That makes sense, that makes sense. Fine, I'm coming to save you."
Immediately afterward, another powerful aura came from inside the cave.
It was the Purple Gold Tiger, also a peak second-order demon beast. It quickly charged toward the people engaged in battle.
"Not good, another one! Split into two teams and deal with them separately."
With the arrival of the Purple Gold Tiger, the giant python's pressure was relieved.
The situation instantly reversed, and the humans fell into a disadvantage.
However, relying on their numerical advantage, the humans still held their ground against the two demon beasts.
Yang Lingtian felt that this was the perfect opportunity. Since he knew there were no more demon beasts inside, when else could he charge in if not now?
But if he wanted to rush in, he had to be fast and could not let them react.
Otherwise, before he could get inside, their attacks would already block him completely.
Therefore, he directly brought out the Imperial Sky Boat. Once he urged it with all his strength, its speed was comparable to that of a Foundation Establishment Peak expert.
With a whoosh, Yang Lingtian urged the Imperial Sky Boat and flew straight into the cave dwelling.
The fleeting figure instantly drew everyone's attention, while the two demon beasts also roared without pause.
"Who was that? Who sneaked in?"
"Which damned bastard was that? We've been working our tails off holding back the demon beasts, and he actually sneaked in by himself!"
"I couldn't see who it was. At that speed, he must be a Foundation Establishment Peak expert, right?"
"Don't worry. There are probably still demon beasts inside. Let him scout the way for us."
The dozens of Foundation Establishment experts discussed this while fighting.
However, the two demon beasts seemed unwilling to continue fighting. After repeatedly forcing the crowd back, they also charged into the cave dwelling.
The people who had just been fighting all breathed sighs of relief, their faces filled with schadenfreude.
"Hahaha, the person who charged in is done for this time."
"Hmph, that person actually wants to monopolize the treasures inside. How naive."
"Before the demon beasts inside are dealt with, no one can take the treasures."
The crowd still did not dare enter the cave, because they had no idea how many demon beasts were inside.
They could only wait quietly and see how things developed.
After Yang Lingtian rushed inside, he discovered that the cave dwelling was huge—far larger than he had imagined.
Moreover, its passages extended in every direction, making it resemble a maze.
This made him wonder how this could possibly be the cave dwelling of a Foundation Establishment Peak expert.
It had to be at least the work of a Golden Core expert!
Perhaps the insiders had spread the claim that it was a Foundation Establishment expert's cave dwelling to prevent Golden Core experts from coming to seize it.
After entering, Yang Lingtian felt as if he had entered a maze and began searching for treasures in the various stone chambers.
However, he found that every stone chamber was completely empty, without a single treasure in sight.
There were simply too many stone chambers here, and searching each one would take quite a lot of time.
At that moment, the two demon beasts charged into the cave dwelling, but Yang Lingtian's tracks had long since vanished.
The two demon beasts had no choice but to block the passage at the cave entrance and wait for the people inside to come out.
Just as Yang Lingtian was searching aimlessly, a childlike voice sounded in his mind.
"Master, there are treasures in the fourth stone chamber ahead."
The sudden voice genuinely startled Yang Lingtian, but it also seemed somewhat familiar.
"Who is it? Who's speaking?" Yang Lingtian asked softly toward the air.
"Master, I'm the Chaos Bead inside your dantian. I've already formed a connection with your soul."
Only then did Yang Lingtian remember that when he had bought the black stone last time, the Chaos Bead had reacted and made a sound like this.
It seemed that after absorbing and refining the black stone, the Chaos Bead had recovered somewhat and could now communicate with him telepathically.
This shocked him deeply. Having a system is already heaven-defying, and now I have a sentient Chaos Bead too!
Isn't that the same as having two great cheat abilities? This is simply too amazing.
I possess the bearing of an invincible man. I will surely become the strongest, hold the mountains and rivers in my palm, and shatter the starry sky.
When that time comes, the entire world will prostrate itself beneath my feet. I will look down upon the Nine Heavens—above and below the sky, I alone shall reign supreme.
"Hahahaha..."
After celebrating wildly in his heart for a while, Yang Lingtian came back to his senses. He still had to continue searching for treasures.
Following the Chaos Bead's instructions, Yang Lingtian arrived at that stone chamber.
However, he found it empty as well, with only a stone table inside.
"Master, there's a mechanism on the stone table." The childlike voice sounded beside his ear again.
Yang Lingtian went over to the stone table and indeed saw a mechanism button. He pressed it directly.
Suddenly, the ground trembled faintly, and then a door actually opened in the stone wall.
It turned out that another stone chamber was hidden inside this one.
Yang Lingtian entered with an expectant look on his face. The scene before him shocked him beyond words, and even his breathing began to quicken.
Dozens of Spirit Artifacts hung inside the stone chamber, and two of them were Mid-grade Spirit Artifacts.
More importantly, those two Mid-grade Spirit Artifacts were a Spirit Sword and a piece of armor.
They were practically tailor-made for him: one offensive Spirit Artifact and one defensive Spirit Artifact.
Adding the Imperial Sky Boat he already possessed, a flying artifact focused on speed, he had assembled a complete three-piece set!
These could all serve as his trump cards.
However, he could not use the Mid-grade Spirit Artifacts except at critical moments.
After all, it was far too rare for a Foundation Establishment cultivator to possess three Mid-grade Spirit Artifacts.
Even Golden Core experts might not possess a single Mid-grade Spirit Artifact.
If some ill-intentioned Golden Core experts learned about this, wouldn't they snatch them away?
Before you continue