Luo Qingying's account was like a boulder hurled into a still lake, stirring a thousand waves in the Conference Hall.
Twenty-seven meters of divine source!
That staggering figure made Jiang Wei suck in a breath of cold air.
Even as a scion of a Desolate Ancient Family who had seen his share of grand spectacles, he could not conceal the burning light in his eyes. Clearly, his heart was nowhere near as calm as his expression.
But he also knew full well that behind wealth worth entire cities often lurked dangers that could swallow the heavens.
Old Master Luo's condition said it all. A mighty cultivator renowned throughout his corner of the Northern Region, he had been a hero all his life, counted among the same generation as the Jiang Family's Holy Lord. Yet entering the mining grounds had nearly cost him his life.
"Twenty-seven meters of divine source..."
Jiang Wei's voice held a dryness even he failed to notice. Forcing down the agitation in his heart, he pressed on. "Third Uncle Luo, how did the old master and the others become tainted by that sinister presence?"
"What exactly was the source of the curse? Was there... anything unusual inside the divine source?" This string of questions concerned what the Jiang Family most wanted to know.
But the Luo Family's third uncle shook his head.
Even Old Master Luo himself could not have explained these things had he been there.
They had merely glanced at the divine source when the surrounding stone walls deep inside the ancient mine began seeping mist, black as ink and bitterly cold.
The mist seemed alive. It ignored their protective divine radiance and burrowed straight into their bodies.
Stranger still, indescribable whispers and howls rose from deeper in the mine, like countless ghosts and gods wailing in grief, piercing straight into their souls.
Among the accompanying clansmen and elders, those with weaker cultivation were instantly swallowed by the black mist and reduced to dry bones. Even some highly cultivated Dragon Transformation Realm elders held out for only a moment before their minds descended into chaos, nearly driving them to slaughter one another.
A deathly silence filled the Conference Hall, as though that sinister black mist and those terrifying whispers had already spread here.
"Only because the old master possessed such profound cultivation was he able to tear through part of the black mist at the cost of severe injuries and escape with a few surviving elders."
Even Old Master Luo, whose cultivation was the highest among them, had failed to see what lay hidden in the deepest reaches of the ancient mine.
After returning, Old Master Luo could not describe it. He had felt only an irresistible terror and despair born of the very instinct to survive. That shadow seemed to have endured since time immemorial; merely a wisp of its aura had tainted the entire ancient mine with ill fortune.
After hearing all this, Jiang Wei knitted his brows, his expression more grave than ever. He could not help sighing. "Something that could frighten even Old Master Luo... I fear this ancient mine is a hundred times more troublesome than we imagined."
He pondered for a moment, then turned toward Luo Yue, who had remained silent throughout. "Little Yue, what do you think?"
"The Holy Lord once said your constitution was special, that your divine blood naturally subdues all evil forces and curses beneath the heavens. Perhaps your perception is sharper than most?"
His words carried a hint of uncertainty. After all, Luo Yue was far too young, but the Divine King Body's reputation was so illustrious that he did not dare disregard her entirely.
You really do think highly of me, Luo Yue thought.
A divine physique versus the Primordial Race?
And judging by that description, they might even possess a royal bloodline among the Primordial Race!
Still, it was true that divine blood subdued evil forces and curses. The White-Clad God King had once used his divine blood to cleanse Ye Fan of the curse that prevented the Desolate Ancient Sacred Body from breaking through into the Four Extremes, forcibly restoring Ye Fan's path of cultivation with that blood.
Thoughts raced through Luo Yue's mind.
She slowly raised her ice-blue eyes toward Luo Qingying and Jiang Wei. Her voice still held the childish softness of a seven-year-old, but her words stunned everyone present.
"Uncle Wei, Third Uncle, I think we should stop digging in this mine."
Before they could speak, Luo Yue continued, "If all we want is divine source, why not go to the Primordial Ancient Mine? As far as I know, there should be even more rare treasures and divine source there. Why don't we see anyone mining it?"
Her words left everyone momentarily taken aback.
"Little Yue, what are you saying? Do you know what sort of place the Primordial Ancient Mine is? Since ancient times, how many people have ever come out of that forbidden land alive?" Jiang Wei asked with some amusement, assuming she was simply speaking with a child's innocent frankness.
"No, I just think mining the Primordial Ancient Mine would make dying quicker and more convenient," the silver-haired little girl said with perfect seriousness.
As her words fell, the hall became so quiet that not even a crow or sparrow could be heard.
Looking at the little girl's earnest face, Jiang Wei could not tell whether she was joking.
Seeing their bewildered expressions, Luo Yue maintained her cool facade, but inwardly, she could not help sighing.
It suddenly occurred to her that these people in Shrouding the Heavens were all the sort who refused to turn back until they slammed into the southern wall.
These holy lands and Desolate Ancient Families were arrogant beyond all bounds. Right from the outset, they had dared dig up the Azure Emperor's tomb without knowing anything about it.
They had fought over his Emperor Weapon before his grave, right in front of his descendants.
Was there anything they would not do?
Only after taking a tumble would these holy lands and Desolate Ancient Families behave themselves for a while.
Of course, only for a while. After that, they were either courting death or on their way to doing so.
Luo Yue wanted no part in this affair. In her eyes, it was no different from dancing on someone's grave.
Right now, she only wanted to find somewhere to hide so she would not get caught in the fallout.
"Yue'er, come to the rear mountain."
Just then, an aged voice sounded in the hall.
Luo Yue's ice-blue pupils contracted slightly. Old Master Luo's aged voice, carrying an unquestionable force, rang directly inside her mind.
Something stirred within her.
Under the mildly questioning gazes of the Luo Family's third uncle and Jiang Wei, Luo Yue calmly rose. "Third Uncle, Uncle Wei, Great-Grandfather just summoned me. I need to go to the rear mountain."
Jiang Wei nodded. The great families had strict rules, and it was only natural for an elder of the clan to summon a junior.
The Luo Family's third uncle, Luo Qingying, immediately said, "I'll take you there."
"There's no need, Third Uncle."
Luo Yue shook her head. Drawing on the original owner's hazy fragments of memory, she roughly knew the direction of the secluded chamber in the rear mountain. "I know the way. It's more important that you continue discussing the matter at hand."
Luo Qingying glanced at Jiang Wei. Seeing no objection from him, he said, "Very well. The old master is recuperating in Cold Pool Cave on the rear mountain. Go straight there."
Luo Yue gave a slight nod, her small figure leaving the heavy atmosphere of the Conference Hall at an unhurried pace.
Passing through the Luo Residence's solemn corridors and around several courtyards suffused with spiritual energy, Luo Yue reached the rear mountain deep within the estate, beside a solitary reddish-brown peak.
At the foot of the mountain lay the entrance to a natural limestone cave, radiating a chilling cold. At its mouth,
powerful restrictions pulsed, evidently intended both to shut out outside disturbances and to help the old master suppress the sinister curse within his body.
As Luo Yue approached the cave entrance, the invisible restrictions rippled like water, opening a passage for her. The instant she stepped inside, a bone-piercing chill enveloped her entire body, utterly unlike the dry heat of the oasis outside.
Thick ice crystals coated the cave walls. The faint sound of flowing water came from its depths, where the cold air originated.
Deep inside the cave, a cold pool emitted a dim blue glow. A figure sat cross-legged beside it.
It was Luo Tiangang-the Luo Family's only remaining Immortal Platform mighty cultivator.