Establishing a Cave Abode
"Where is the Origin-Returning Sha Qi?" Song Wen asked.
An Tong asked, "Does the senior have a nautical chart?"
Song Wen flipped his hand and took out a Jade Slip. After infusing it with his Law Power, a phantom image of a sea chart appeared in mid-air.
An Tong pointed to the upper left corner of the nautical chart, where there was nothing but seawater.
"Here lies an underwater reef island. On the eastern side of the reef island is a tomb, Origin-Returning Sha Qi resides within it."
Song Wen frowned slightly. "An underwater reef? A reef is located underwater; how can we determine its location?"
An Tong said, "There are three islands within a hundred miles of the reef island, and the reef island is located in the center of the three islands."
Song Wen glanced at the three small islands on the nautical chart and nodded.
How did your father learn that there was a tomb on the underwater reef island?
An Tong said, "My father was invited by a friend to explore that tomb before he died, and he eventually died from the Sha Qi inside."
"Did your father tell you about the specific details of the tomb? Or did he have a map of the tomb?"
An Tong shook her head. "No. When my father returned, he was already filled with Sha Qi and on the verge of death. He didn't mention anything about the tomb."
Song Wen couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed.
Unexpectedly, An Yin, who had been silent all along, spoke up.
"No, there was a sketch. I saw it when I was sorting through my father's belongings."
An Tong looked at her younger sister in surprise, clearly unaware of the matter.
"Where is the sketch?" Song Wen asked.
"It was burned along with my father's other belongings," An Yin replied. "However, I remember."
Song Wen took out paper and pen from his storage ring. "Draw it."
An Tong took the paper and pen, glanced at the empty cave abode, and saw that there wasn't even a table. She could only lie on the ground and start drawing.
It's likely that their father didn't fully explore the tomb; An Tong's sketch was very simple, consisting of only a few strokes.
Only part of the tomb passage and the two side chambers on the left and right are depicted; there is no information about the main chamber.
Their father may not have entered the main room, or he may have encountered the Origin-Returning Sha Qi as soon as he entered the main room and was forced to leave.
The sketch doesn't provide much information, but Song Wen could roughly deduce that the tomb shouldn't be considered dangerous to him.
After all, if a Foundation Establishment cultivator can get close to the main chamber of the tomb, how dangerous could it be?
Song Wen unleashed a burst of Law Power, shattering the sketch.
"This matter must not be mentioned to outsiders in the slightest," Song Wen said in a deep voice.
"Don't worry, senior. As long as you don't send us away, we don't plan to leave this island in our lifetime, and no fourth person will ever know about this," An Tong said.
"That's excellent."
Song Wen moved to a corner of the cave abode, took out the <Starline Formation>, and after carefully calculating the positions of the constellations, began to set up the array.
Two hours later, night had fallen.
Suddenly, a dazzling silver beam of light shot up from the jade plate and streaked into the sky.
About fifteen minutes later, the beam of light gradually weakened, but it did not completely dissipate; instead, it lingered in the air, appearing and disappearing intermittently.
When outsiders see this pillar of light, they know that this island is inhabited and they will not trespass.
"From this day forward, the two of you will reside in this cave abode. You may take the birds, beasts, and spirit medicine from the island as you see fit, or cultivate your own spiritual gardens. In short, I will not interfere with your daily life and cultivation. However, you may not leave the island at will."
An Tong looked at Song Wen in surprise. She never expected that Song Wen would give them such a great deal of freedom and permission.
"Senior, don't you live in this cave abode?"
Song Wen said, "I will open another cave abode. As for where it is, you don't need to know. Your only task is to keep an eye on the <Starline Formation> for me. If anyone sends a message, you must notify me immediately."
As he spoke, Song Wen tossed over a Message Jade Slip.
An Tong took the Jade Slip. "What if the senior happens to be away from the island and can't receive the message?"
Song Wen said, "Then you should send a message every now and then until I receive it."
"Yes, senior."
Song Wen nodded, turned around, and left the cave abode.
He arrived above the island, intending to find a suitable place to build another cave abode.
That cave abode on the cliff is far too conspicuous. If one day it attracts a powerful enemy seeking revenge, the enemy will be able to spot the cave abode at a glance.
As for the An Tong sisters, they can divert the enemy's attention and buy Song Wen time to escape.
After observing from high above for a long time, Song Wen plunged into the sea.
He planned to stay on this island for a long time, so naturally he needed to have a thorough understanding of it.
A quarter of an hour later, Song Wen emerged from the water. He had found his ideal place to build his residence—the west side of the island, which was also the back of An Tong and her two daughters' cave abode.
The entrance to the cave abode is located at the bottom of a cliff, among a jumble of rocks where waves crash against the rocks.
It took Song Wen three hours to finally carve out the cave abode.
The entrance to the cave abode was very small, only about the height of a person, and was conveniently hidden by towering rocks and surging waves.
The passage after the entrance is narrow and slopes upwards. After walking for about a mile, the view suddenly opens up.
This is a spacious cave abode with a diameter of about one mile.
To avoid being trapped in the cave abode by his enemies, Song Wen opened two other exits within the cave abode.
A stream slopes downwards, extending deep into the sea.
A straight path leads directly to the mountaintop.
Neither passage was fully opened up; both retained layers of rock several meters thick.
The cave abode is beginning to take shape; the next step is to draw in the Earth Veins to enhance the Spiritual Qi of this place.
After carefully calculating the direction of the Earth Veins, Song Wen took out four blue Formation Flags and Formation Plate the size of a bronze mirror.
He was going to set up the <Spirit Pivot Illusory Vein Formation>, a second-order array that wasn't considered particularly profound, only able to slightly alter the direction of the microscopic Earth Veins energy.
Extreme Yin Island is only a few dozen miles long, so the <Spirit Pivot Illusory Vein Formation> is sufficient. Of course, Song Wen couldn't set up such an extremely complex Earth Veins array either.
Song Wen had already obtained the Formation Flags and Formation Plate of the <Spirit Pivot Illusory Vein Formation> when he was still in the Beast Taming Sect. He felt that the array was somewhat useful, so he never sold it.
Suddenly.
The entire Extreme Yin Island began to tremble slightly, the sand and stones on the ground moved, and the seawater churned, as if an invisible force was surging deep underground.
"Buzz!"
A deep, resonant sound came from the depths of the earth.
"What happened?" An Yin asked her sister beside her, her expression somewhat panicked.
An Tong shook her head, her delicate brows furrowed, her eyes filled with worry.
She and her sister had just received Song Wen's protection and didn't want any more unexpected changes to occur.
"Huh! The concentration of Spiritual Qi in the cave abode is rapidly decreasing," An Yin exclaimed in surprise.
An Tong suddenly thought of a possibility and said...
"It was probably done by a senior colleague."
An Yin asked, "What is Senior doing? Why doesn't he live in the same cave abode as us?"
An Tong said, "Don't try to guess what the senior is thinking. We just need to follow orders. The fact that the senior has given us sisters a place to stay is already an immense fortuitous opportunity for us."
An Yin exclaimed with emotion, "I never imagined there were such kind people as you, senior, in the Cultivation World."
Unbeknownst to the two women, in a corner of the cave abode, a tiny Gu Worm lurked in a crevice, spying on them.