Arriving at the Cave Mansion

Wang Ding narrowed his eyes and stared at Shi Mei. "What is this supposed to mean? Don't tell me Wei Qiang was your husband, and you're here to take back his belongings."

After saying that, Wang Ding fixed his gaze on Shi Mei, every muscle in his body taut, looking very much as if he would draw his blade the moment a single word crossed him.

Shi Mei was no ordinary woman either. She showed not the slightest fear of Wang Ding's threat and said, "Though he was not my husband, we had already made a vow to grow old together. Once we succeeded in taking the treasure this time, we were to become Dao companions. Who would have thought he would die here? It is only right and proper that I take back his belongings."

"Right and proper? Then does that mean you'll be avenging him too?"

Shi Mei's heart chilled. She immediately sensed the killing intent in Wang Ding's words and grew carefully on guard.

Seeing that the two were about to come to blows, Song Daokun suddenly jumped out and stood between them. "You two, hold on. Everyone, don't forget why we entered the desert this time. One person has already died. We absolutely must not fall into infighting, or we won't be able to take the treasure."

With Song Daokun mediating between them, Shi Mei had a way to step down. She did not truly want to fall out with Wang Ding; her main aim had still been that magic artifact. Since Wang Ding refused to let go, she no longer stirred up trouble.

However, looking at Wang Ding standing there, Shi Mei was still unwilling to let it go. Her eyes rolled, and a plan came to her. She said to the others, "Fine, I won't take back Fellow Daoist Wei's belongings. But this Sand Worm has no share for Fellow Daoist Huang. Fellow Daoist Fang, Fellow Daoist Song, and I were the ones who worked together for this. Isn't that right, Fellow Daoist Fang?"

When Fang Wen saw the fire burn over to him, he had no choice but to say, "That is how it should be." Then he said no more.

Seeing this, Wang Ding glanced at Shi Mei and said, "Don't worry, I won't take a share. No need to measure a gentleman's belly with a petty man's heart." After saying that, he stood off to the side and did not even look at Shi Mei again, making Shi Mei's almond eyes flare with anger. She was so furious she could not speak, as miserable as if she had swallowed a fly.

Song Daokun walked over beside Shi Mei and said, "Fellow Daoist Shi, let us begin dividing the spoils."

Wang Ding saw it clearly from the side. It was not that Song Daokun and Fang Wen had never thought of the three of them joining forces to pressure Wang Ding into handing over the magic artifact. But they were probably unsure how many Earth Escape Talismans Wang Ding still had on him, and they also lacked any effective means to stop him, which was why they had not attacked together. Right now, everyone was merely maintaining a delicate balance. Once they reached the cave residence, that would likely be the moment it erupted.

Song Daokun and the other two cut apart the Sand Worm, putting the useful parts together and tossing the useless parts aside. The three haggled for a while, and the demon core went to Song Daokun. He paid the other two twenty spirit stones each.

Shi Mei took the pair of fangs from the Sand Worm's mouth. The fangs were abnormally sharp; as long as she could invite an artifact refiner to work on them, they could be refined into a pair of magic artifacts.

Fang Wen took the Sand Worm's spine. It could be used to refine a white-bone magic sword, and its power would certainly be extraordinary.

By the time everyone finished all this, the sun was already at its zenith. They found another sand dune that could shield them from the sun and hid there, each beginning to rest.

At this moment, Wang Ding was sitting on the ground a little farther from the others. He took out the magic sword he had seized from Wei Qiang and examined it carefully. It was a small emerald-green sword, its blade smooth and bright like a pool of autumn water.

Because Wei Qiang was already dead, the small sword no longer had an owner's mark. Wang Ding planned to refine it in order to increase his strength. He bit open the index finger of his left hand, forced out a drop of blood essence, and let it fall onto the sword. In an instant, the blade sent out ring after ring of faint ripples, spreading more than a meter outward before finally stopping after a good while.

At this moment, Wang Ding established a wondrous connection with the sword-shaped magic artifact. The small sword was like his own arm; with a movement of his will, the small sword moved as he pleased.

Wang Ding walked outside the hill and began controlling the small sword. Under Wang Ding's command, the small sword traced line after line through the air, sparkling beneath the sun, beautiful beyond words.

Suddenly, Wang Ding's face went pale. He hurriedly recalled the small sword and carefully sensed his body, only to discover that in that brief moment just now, he had nearly exhausted all his vital essence.

Wang Ding quickly took out a medicinal pill and swallowed it. Immediately, surging vital essence flowed from his stomach into his entire body, easing his fatigue. Looking at the emerald-green small sword in his hand, Wang Ding thought to himself, From now on, you'll be called the Green Duckweed Treasure Sword.

At this moment, the other three had already seen Wang Ding finish refining the magic artifact he had obtained from Wei Qiang, and different feelings arose in each of them.

Hmph, I'll let you strut for a while first. There'll come a day when you drink this old lady's foot-washing water, Shi Mei sneered inwardly.

This man kills decisively. I must treat him with caution, Fang Wen thought as he looked at Wang Ding beneath the sunlight.

I hope this treasure hunt succeeds the instant the horse arrives, otherwise...

The sky gradually darkened, and everyone woke from their rest. After gathering them together, Song Daokun once again took up the role of leader and began guiding the way in front.

Watching Song Daokun lead the way ahead, Wang Ding suddenly thought of a problem. How was Song Daokun finding the direction? If they found the cave residence and obtained the treasure, and then he ran off, how would Wang Ding get out afterward? His heart immediately chilled. I need to observe carefully how he determines the direction.

For five days straight, Wang Ding's group did not encounter any demonic beasts. Along the way, they only saw two giant beasts fighting. An area within a hundred li was affected, countless stone spikes and boulders scattered everywhere, and the enormous fluctuations of primordial energy could be felt from far away. The wind and sand stirred up by the battle blotted out the sky and covered the sun. Wang Ding's group did not dare approach and quickly left.

After several days of constantly observing Song Daokun, Wang Ding finally discovered how he judged direction. It turned out that Song Daokun was using the angles of the stars in the sky to determine their bearing. Wang Ding had observed carefully; every so often, Song Daokun would quietly glance up at the sky twice, separately confirming two different stars. After Wang Ding's continuous observation, he finally discovered which two stars they were.

By comparing the directions Song Daokun chose each day, Wang Ding finally grasped the secret within and no longer worried that there would be no road back when the time came.

In the blink of an eye, another three days passed. At last, they arrived at a place. Before them, as far as the eye could see, there was only desert, with nothing else at all. Yet Song Daokun's face was full of excitement as he said, "We're here, we're here, we're finally here."

Shi Mei could not help saying, "Fatty Song, you wouldn't be tricking us, would you? It's boundless in every direction, and there's nothing here."

"This place isn't that easy to find. If I hadn't seen it by accident, I would have thought there was nothing here too."

Everyone was restless at this moment. After nearly ten days of walking through the desert with extreme caution, they had long since become exhausted. How could they still have the patience to think about anything else?

Seeing Song Daokun deliberately keeping them in suspense, they said, "Stop saying useless things. Hurry and tell us exactly where the cave residence is."

Seeing that everyone was anxious, Song Daokun no longer kept them guessing and said, "In the desert before our eyes, there is an illusion formation covering an area of ten li. What we need to do now is find it."

After hearing this, everyone could not help being astonished. An area of ten li—at the very least, that was a formation only a Spirit Transformation cultivator could complete. Thinking that it might be the cave residence of a Spirit Transformation cultivator, everyone immediately regained their energy and began searching the surroundings.

After quite a while, Song Daokun discovered that illusion formation and immediately shouted. Everyone was instantly drawn over.

When they reached the place where Song Daokun was shouting, Song Daokun's head was currently floating in midair. Everyone could not help being extremely amazed. They looked at one another, then stepped across and entered.

A red world appeared before everyone's eyes: red trees, red stones, a red little lake. If this place were green, it would simply be an oasis in the desert. Now, it ought to be called "Red Oasis."