First Exploration of the Ruins

"Something's not right outside?" Mo Chen squatted on the ground, fiddling with the parts, without looking up.

"Hmm." Lu Yuan walked to the stone slab. "There are sects searching for something in the stone forest. They're not just passing by."

Mo Chen stopped moving. He slowly straightened up, and the focus on his face faded.

"Troublesome." He rubbed his curled fingers together. "When did this happen?"

Lu Yuan briefly recounted the conversation fragments captured by the Blue Silver Grass.

Mo Chen remained silent for a moment, then let out a sneer.

"No wonder." He kicked at the parts beside him. "I felt a while ago that the turbulent flow of Soul Power in the stone forest was a bit strange—it seemed to have been repeatedly probed and disturbed."

He bent down and dragged out a tattered wooden box, then lifted the lid. Inside were several unfinished Soul Tool and dull crystals.

"Our meager possessions aren't even enough to fill their teeth." Mo Chen picked up a crystal and weighed it in his hand. "Trying to hide? The Stone Forest isn't that big. Trying to fight back is even more hopeless."

Lu Yuan didn't reply. His gaze fell on the rubbings of the ruins, and his index finger unconsciously tapped the edge of the stone slab.

Tap, tap, tap.

Mo Chen didn't urge him. He had figured out the young man's habits when he was thinking.

After a while, the tapping stopped.

"Ruins," Lu Yuan said, "We need to go in and take a look."

"Now?"

"The sooner the better." Lu Yuan looked at him. "If the 'thing' they're looking for is really in the Stone Forest, the ruins are the most likely hiding place. We have to get there first."

He paused.

"Moreover, the ruins might contain resources—remnants of Soul Tool, special materials. These are the things we lack most right now."

Mo Chen licked his chapped lips. A struggle flashed in his eyes, which finally turned into a fierce determination.

"Alright!" He grabbed the wooden crate. "I have a few semi-finished products here—a simple Soul Power stabilizer and a lighting Soul Tool."

He searched with great speed.

Lu Yuan took the rubbing paper and quickly sketched it with charcoal. He had deduced the direction of the remaining patterns at the entrance many times.

"Take this route." He marked the winding path on the map, "Avoid the highly turbulent areas. Set the depth at fifty meters initially."

Mo Chen leaned closer to look, his eyes lighting up.

"Your deduction..." He pointed to several marked points, "These locations did indeed show abnormal soul pressure during my last detection."

"The direction of the residual patterns, the degree of weathering, and the gradient of Soul Power concentration," Lu Yuan explained simply, "Comprehensive modeling."

Mo Chen opened his mouth, but didn't ask any more questions.

The two prepared themselves. Mo Chen adjusted his Soul Tool and pulled out two old leather armors. Lu Yuan checked his personal belongings: medicinal powder, thin rope, charcoal paper, and the family heirloom left by Lin Xiao. He carefully placed it close to his body.

An hour later, they stood before the entrance to the ruins.

The half-collapsed stone gate resembled a gaping maw, its interior shrouded in darkness. The wind howled through the cracks, carrying with it the earthy smell of soil.

Mo Chen activated the illumination Soul Tool. A dim yellow halo appeared, illuminating three to five meters ahead.

"Stay close to me," he said. "There are many side streets inside, and the turbulence can make you feel disoriented."

Lu Yuan nodded, and a few strands of Blue Silver Grass quietly emerged from his fingertips, extending close to the ground.

The two stepped into the darkness.

For the first ten meters or so, the passage was narrow and cramped. The ground was covered in a thick layer of dust, making it soft and spongy to walk on.

The light shimmered, casting distorted shadows on the stone wall.

Mo Chen walked slowly, his left hand holding a metal disc— Soul Power stabilizer. The fine needle at the center of the disc trembled slightly.

"The turbulence has intensified," he said in a low voice, "But it's still within the stabilizer's range."

Lu Yuan hummed in response. The feedback transmitted back by the fine threads of the Blue Silver Grass indicated that the Soul Power in the air was like boiling water, with various attribute fragments mixing and colliding.

The passageway gradually widened.

About thirty meters deep, the stone walls on both sides suddenly became smooth. The dim yellow light shone on them, revealing large patches of dark patterns.

Mo Chen stopped, raised the illumination Soul Tool, and approached.

"Look!" he exclaimed, his voice trembling with suppressed excitement, "It's even better preserved than the entrance!"

Lu Yuan stared intently at it.

The left side depicts a figure kneeling in worship. The right side shows a battle scene, with figures fighting against Soul Beast, and the energy trajectories of Soul Skill being sharp and powerful.

The transition area is engraved with many dots, connected by fine lines to form a complex network. Some dots are marked with ancient symbols.

"A star map?" Mo Chen narrowed his eyes.

"Very similar." Lu Yuan's fingertips lightly traced the network, "But it's not just about stars. The direction of the connecting lines—has similarities to the basic model of the human Soul Power circulation."

Mo Chen was taken aback.

"You mean, the ancients used star charts as a metaphor for the circulation of Soul Power?"

"Perhaps," Lu Yuan withdrew his hand, "Or perhaps the other way around—they observed the isomorphism between Soul Power and the laws of heaven and earth."

Mo Chen gasped.

This idea is too far-fetched. But looking closely at the pattern, I have a feeling... it's not impossible.

The two continued on their way.

The further you go, the more distinct the layers of Soul Power. After walking for a while, you feel warm all over; after turning a corner, the temperature drops sharply. The attributes are no longer mixed, but clearly differentiated into distinct regions.

The stabilizer's humming became louder.

"Be careful," Mo Chen warned, "These pure attribute zones are often accompanied by a high concentration of Soul Power."

Lu Yuan nodded, and the fine Blue Silver Grass gathered up slightly.

After walking another twenty meters, the view suddenly opened up ahead.

The lighting halo spread, illuminating a spacious area, like a foyer, about ten meters in diameter. The floor was paved with neatly cut stone slabs.

Mo Chen raised the Soul Tool high, its halo sweeping across the surroundings.

Lu Yuan's pupils contracted.

In the center of the foyer, a circular stone platform is formed by a depression in the floor. The surface of the platform is engraved with patterns—geometric patterns on the outer layer, converging inwards to converge into a palm-sized groove in the center.

The groove shape is a regular hexagon.

Several skeletons were scattered around the stone platform. Beside the skeletons, several metal objects were half-buried in the dust.

Mo Chen's breathing became rapid.

"Soul Tool component!" He rushed over, squatted down, and began to examine the metal parts.

Lu Yuan didn't stop him. His gaze was fixed on the hexagonal groove.

That shape... it looks so familiar.

Size, proportion, corner angles...

He subconsciously reached into his robes and touched the family keepsake he kept close to his body. The warm, smooth texture of the jade and the hexagonal outline were clearly perceptible through his clothing.

The sound of metal scraping came from Mo Chen's side. He picked up the palm-sized part, blew off the dust, and examined it closely in the light.

"The core conduction module... is damaged, but its structure is ingenious!" He spoke rapidly, "The energy circuit design... is completely different from the current mainstream! It's much simpler!"

Lu Yuan didn't respond. He walked to the stone platform and bent down to examine the groove closely.

The groove has extremely fine lines, like a guiding structure. The bottom of the groove is covered with a thin layer of dust, and the edges are smooth—this groove is not for decoration; you really need to put something in it.

My heart beat a few beats faster.

If Lin Xiao's keepsake is Key...

As he was pondering, the keepsake in his arms suddenly felt slightly warm.

It was very slight, like a stone warmed by the sun. In this cold, damp place, this warmth was so distinct it was piercing.

Lu Yuan froze.

Mo Chen was still squatting nearby, intently studying the component. "... Using parallel current sharing to reduce the load is clever... but the material can't keep up..."

Lu Yuan slowly straightened up, pressing his hand to his chest. The token remained warm, pulsating faintly.

He suddenly looked up and gazed behind the stone platform.

There was a dark side path, extending diagonally downwards. The light couldn't penetrate that deep.

Just now, in the instant the keepsake heated up, he seemed to hear...

Mo Chen also stopped and listened intently.

Dead silence.

A few seconds later, the sound came.

rustle...

rustling...

Like countless tiny segments scraping against rocks, the sound came from afar, gradually becoming denser and louder.

Mo Chen's expression changed. He grabbed the component and staggered to his feet.

"What is that?" he asked in a low voice, turning his Soul Tool toward the fork in the road.

The dim, yellowish light trembled as it shone towards them.

It was empty, with only rocks.

But the rustling sound grew closer, as if it would burst forth at any moment.

Lu Yuan took two steps back, and fine strands of Blue Silver Grass emerged from his sleeve, weaving into a net in front of him. His other hand reached for the packet of medicinal powder.

"Retreat." He uttered the word, his eyes fixed on the fork in the road.

Mo Chen was already moving backward. He couldn't bear to throw away the parts, so he held them with one hand, his movements clumsy.

The rustling sound suddenly stopped.

There was a deathly silence. The only sounds were suppressed breathing and the hum of the stabilizer.

Lu Yuan's back tensed.

wrong.

It's too quiet--

At the fork in the road, the first thing poked its head out.

It is about the size of a fist, with a dark brown carapace, six pairs of slender segments, and a tail that is raised with sharp spikes that gleam with a cold, eerie blue light at the end.

Stone Scorpion.

The first one had barely peeked out when a second, a third... a dense swarm of dark brown figures emerged, instantly covering the rocks near the cave entrance. They moved with incredible speed, the scraping of their limbs creating a sickeningly loud rustling sound.

Mo Chen gasped.

"Run!" he roared, turning and charging back.

Lu Yuan didn't move. He stared at the Stone Scorpion, his pupils contracting.

Ordinary Stone Scorpion possess weak Soul Power and are sensitive to light. But these are different—their carapaces shimmer with Soul Power, and their dark blue stingers subtly radiate energy fluctuations.

A mutated species. Something born from the chaotic Soul Power of the ruins.

And the quantity... is too much.

Because of this delay, several Stone Scorpion pounced at my feet. With a flick of their stingers, creating a slight whooshing sound, they pierced my calves.

The fine threads of the Blue Silver Grass tightened abruptly, forming a net that swept downwards. At the same time, Lu Yuan waved his other hand, causing the powder packet to explode, releasing pale yellow dust.

The first few rushed into the grass net, their tails piercing the tough grass stems with muffled "plop" sounds. The medicinal powder stuck to their shells, making a soft "sizzle" sound and emitting white smoke.

The Stone Scorpion paused in its movements.

But those behind didn't stop at all, surging forward over their companions. The rustling sound filled the front hall like a tide.

Without further hesitation, Lu Yuan turned and retreated swiftly.

Mo Chen had already run more than ten meters when he looked back and saw that he was following, so he continued to rush forward. The lighting halo swayed wildly in the passage.

Behind them, a rustling sound followed closely.

And it's getting closer and closer.