Ji Mo stumbled out of the small cave, unwilling to face the tigress who had inexplicably become angry.
Women were troublesome, their moods as unpredictable as the weather. He was, after all, her savior, couldn't she be a little friendlier?
However, he couldn't be bothered to argue with Bai Jingjing. He didn't forget to remind her as he turned back, "Miss, anger shrinks your chest and ages you faster."
"Ahhh, get lost..."
Bai Jingjing's furious roar echoed, likely driving her mad.
"No good deed goes unpunished," Ji Mo muttered.
But as he raised his hand and caught the faint lingering fragrance on his fingertips, recalling their previous touch, his heart couldn't help but flutter.
"Ah, giving roses leaves a fragrance on the hand. Helping others makes me happy."
Ji Hanhan's mood instantly lifted, and he felt that he should do more of this kind of helpful deed, often.
He continued forward, intending to uncover the secrets of this ancient ruin, to see if any Blue Blood people still survived, and to continue searching for the scoundrel who dared to stab him in the kidney.
Such scum, who would stab such a beautiful girl, was heinous and unforgivable.
The passage was dim and seemed much quieter than before. He wondered if the group who entered had gone deeper into the cave or met with misfortune.
After walking a considerable distance, Ji Mo suddenly turned back and shouted, "Who's there? If you keep lurking behind me, I won't be polite."
However, behind him was an empty expanse, not a single soul in sight.
Was it a hallucination?
Ji Mo scratched his head, looking puzzled.
He really felt someone following him, secretly tailing him, but strangely, he couldn't see any trace of anyone.
It was truly ghostly!
But after his shout, the feeling of being followed had indeed disappeared.
After Ji Mo left, a strange dark shadow slowly emerged on the rock wall, emitting an incredibly ancient and eerie voice: "This kid is strange. Is he shouting randomly, or has he truly sensed my presence?"
"I don't know how many years have passed. My body has long since decayed, leaving only a weak soul. I thought I would remain in this sunless, dark abyss until I dissipated. Unexpectedly, heaven has not abandoned me; an outsider has intruded. Among these ants, there are four suitable candidates for possession. No, it should be five. This kid seems pretty good too; he can be included in the selection."
The dark shadow revealed a sinister smile, intending to continue preying on these intruders to strengthen its soul.
Then, it would search among the five heavenly talents for the most suitable candidate for possession.
It wanted to completely escape this place, break free, and once again reign supreme, reclaiming control of the entire Immortal Spirit Realm.
If any of the unfilial descendants who had betrayed their master and attacked him were still alive, they would be dealt with thoroughly.
The dark shadow did not continue to track Ji Mo. It disappeared back into the rock wall, extending its claws towards others.
Meanwhile.
Mian Abe's brow was furrowed.
Sai Gao finally sent a message, saying that he had encountered trouble while trying to stab someone's kidney, was seriously injured, and had now escaped his enemies, asking him to come and provide backup.
Afterward, Mian Abe felt uneasy.
He sensed that the bone spur he had embedded in Bai Jingjing's heart had suddenly lost its connection; his mark had been erased.
He wasn't worried about Bai Jingjing escaping because he was confident he could lock onto her exact location with the bone spur. Now that he had lost the connection, he had no idea of Bai Jingjing's whereabouts.
"Bai Jingjing definitely won't survive. As for why my bone spur suddenly lost contact, it's truly perplexing."
Mian Abe fell into deep thought.
Even if the bone spur fell into someone else's hands, it was impossible for an outsider to refine it in such a short time. What exactly had happened?
And who was the person who had caused Sai Gao to fail? Were there other unknown masters who had also entered here?
Just then.
The Golden Lion suddenly roared, "Who?"
Mian Abe immediately snapped back to attention, adopting a defensive stance, staring warily at the Golden Lion, preventing it from a sneak attack.
"Mian Abe, are you crazy? The person is behind you, why are you staring at me?"
The Golden Lion looked at him as if he were an idiot, convinced that Mian Abe's brain was definitely malfunctioning.
Mian Abe snorted disdainfully, "Hmph, playing diversion tactics to launch a sneak attack? I've played such tricks countless times, how could I fall for it?"
The Golden Lion rolled its eyes, clearly unwilling to argue with an idiot.
Who the hell is playing diversion tactics with you? There really is someone.
"Yo, isn't the Righteous Young Master Mian Abe always upright and honorable? Why are you also playing diversion tactics and resorting to sneak attacks, such low-class tricks?"
A teasing voice sounded.
Immediately, an old man in plain clothes appeared behind Mian Abe.
Mian Abe's mouth twitched uncontrollably, feeling incredibly embarrassed. He hadn't expected his carefully maintained persona of righteousness to be shattered so easily and known to outsiders.
However, when he turned around and saw the newcomer's appearance, he breathed a sigh of relief, because the other party was no saint either, just a tomb robber who liked to operate under the guise of archaeology.
"Yao Zhong, if we're talking about low-class, people like you who constantly dig up ancestral graves are even more low-class."
Mian Abe was not polite at all, directly exposing the other's past.
If it were anyone else, he would have silenced them on the spot.
But Yao Zhong was not easy to deal with. He was cunning and experienced, and his cultivation was not much inferior to his own.
Moreover, Yao Zhong had been excavating various ancient tombs for a long time, so he must have had many good things on him. Mian Abe did not want to engage in a head-on confrontation with him.
"Youngsters shouldn't speak nonsense when they don't understand. I'm doing archaeological research, which is worlds apart from tomb robbing. Don't slander me."
Yao Zhong forcefully explained, regardless of whether others believed him or not, he would insist it was archaeology.
The Golden Lion couldn't help but interject, "You humans are all hypocritical. One is a true villain, the other a false gentleman. Stop pretending."
This statement immediately rendered both of them speechless.
"The body-refining treasure art of the Blue Blood race, this is a good thing!"
Yao Zhong saw the diagrams and text appearing on the wall, his face filled with surprise. He stopped arguing with Mian Abe and exclaimed with admiration.
He seemed to have figured something out and said, "My previous research direction was not wrong. The Blue Blood people are indeed an ancient race left over from the previous epoch. I wonder how they avoided the 'harvest.' Did they join the darkness, or did they hide deep underground, relying on the special properties of the Blue Jade ore veins to successfully evade the dark harvest and preserve their lineage?"
This was an ancient cave, showing various traces of the Blue Blood people. Now, the discovery of the unique treasure art of the Blue Blood race proved that the Blue Blood people were indeed ancient remnants.
It was just that Yao Zhong couldn't understand why this place, which should have been the holy land of the Blue Blood people, seemed to have been abandoned by them and sealed with a special enchantment, as if something was trapped here.
"If that's the case, isn't this also a blessed land? If the apocalypse comes, could one hide here and thus escape the fate of being harvested?"
The Golden Lion's breathing hitched, its eyes gleaming.
When darkness arrived, all realms would perish, and all living beings would become food.
Only by falling into darkness and becoming a lackey, or by being powerful enough, could one possibly survive this catastrophe.
And the harvest of this epoch was likely imminent.
Therefore, the Golden Lion was extremely excited to learn that this place might be a "shelter."
"You're thinking too much. The so-called shelter might truly exist, but it definitely won't be here, otherwise, why would the Blue Blood people abandon it?"
Mian Abe saw things more clearly. Although this was a treasure trove, it was far from reaching the level of a shelter; it was still a long way off.
He also knew some insider information: the Blue Blood people had survived by falling into darkness.
And over the years, his and Sai Gao's efforts to stab and dig out kidneys were aimed at pleasing a certain important figure, thereby gaining the qualification to become a lackey of darkness.
"Those with no hair on their lips speak with no certainty. Young people, remember not to be so absolute in your words. Everything is possible. Let me study this carefully before making a conclusion. Perhaps I can find a way to avoid the harvest."
Yao Zhong contradicted Mian Abe and, at the same time, began to frantically memorize the treasure art recorded on the wall.
This guy was also a dog, using research as an excuse to steal knowledge.
Mian Abe's face turned ashen. He resolved to meet Sai Gao as soon as possible and find an opportunity to harvest this old man, the kind that involved cutting hearts and kidneys.
The Golden Lion suddenly roared again, as if it had discovered another situation.