Xu Yi and Ji Buwang ignored the bearded cultivator who was jumping with agitation. Both lowered their eyes, lost in thought.
Xu Yi planned to return to the Xuanji Sect after finding the Fire Plasma Fruit and delivering it, along with the Soul-Shattering Bell, to the Monkey King. She needed to visit the Vermilion Bird Tomb to thoroughly investigate the origin of her innate magical treasure, the Admonishment Ruler.
Ji Buwang shared a similar sentiment. Both were now deeply interested in the Vermilion Bird Tomb and no longer entirely dismissed the bearded cultivator's previous explanation.
"You mentioned you'd dreamt of a Vermilion Bird before. Do you remember any of the scenes from your dream?" Xu Yi asked, looking intently at the bearded cultivator, unwilling to miss any detail.
"Of course, I remember," the bearded cultivator replied, lifting his head and speaking volubly.
According to him, he had dreamt of a sea of fire. Within the sea of fire, there was a colossal shadowy figure, too indistinct for him to discern. Just as he tried to get a closer look, a clear, melodious bird cry instantly jolted him awake. Upon waking, he discovered a Vermilion Bird totem on the back of his hand. Simultaneously, he was drenched in sweat, as if he had just emerged from water.
For a soul body of his cultivation level, neither cold nor heat was a concern, nor would they typically bleed or sweat. This could only happen if the opposing force was so powerful as to cause a tremor in his soul body. Therefore, the bearded cultivator firmly believed he must have seen a Vermilion Bird and was fortunate enough to become its follower.
Xu Yi's brow furrowed slightly. The bearded cultivator's dream was indeed mystical. While it might be related to the Vermilion Bird, it still felt somewhat far-fetched.
"Then how did you know this egg was a Vermilion Bird egg?" Ji Buwang suddenly pointed to the stone egg.
Xu Yi's eyes lit up. That was right. If the man hadn't actually seen a Vermilion Bird, why was he so certain this stone egg was a Vermilion Bird egg? The two of them felt they had found a flaw and their gazes turned scrutinizing.
Faced with their examination, the bearded cultivator showed no fear. Instead, he casually grabbed two stone creatures from behind him, held them up, and declared loudly, "They told me."
Xu Yi's gaze met the pale eyes of the stone creatures. For some reason, Xu Yi saw a hint of panic in those emotionless eyes. It seemed they hadn't expected to be suddenly apprehended and put on display.
After a moment, the two stone creatures finally reacted, beginning to struggle incessantly and emit unpleasant shrieks. Xu Yi had reason to suspect they were verbally abusing someone, and quite nastily at that. The bearded cultivator was long accustomed to the stone creatures' behavior and remained unfazed by their scolding. He even craned his neck to continue his explanation to Xu Yi.
"After the Vermilion Bird totem appeared on my hand, I gained a skill I never possessed before: the ability to understand these stone spirits."
The first time the bearded cultivator heard the stone spirits speak, he thought he was too lonely and had gone mad, suffering from hallucinations. After several such occurrences, he finally confirmed he wasn't insane; rather, the stone spirits were the ones who had gone mad.
Stone spirits, as their name suggested, were spirits born from rocks. To transform a stone into a stone spirit, both opportune timing and favorable location were indispensable. On the Jiuzhou Continent, stone spirits were as rare as cultivators in the Mahayana stage – often, one heard of them but never saw their true form. However, in Mount Huofeng, stone spirits existed in swarms, like common rubble by the roadside. They possessed simple minds and could only express their emotions through cries.
When the bearded cultivator first heard the stone spirits speak, all he heard were simple greetings, almost devoid of emotion. It was akin to the polite salutations exchanged between human cultivators when they met. The difference was that after greeting each other, cultivators would move on to the next topic, whereas the stone spirits would repeat their greetings endlessly.
Initially, the bearded cultivator found it amusing, as he was truly too empty, lonely, and cold being alone. But soon, he realized he had been too naive. Stone spirits had no consciousness and never tired, so their greetings never ceased. Since hearing them speak, his ears were constantly bombarded, and he felt they were about to break. Only when he later learned how to ignore their chatter did he feel he had come back to life. Just when he thought stone spirits could only say one thing, he finally discovered Mount Huofeng's greatest secret.
Hearing this, Xu Yi and Ji Buwang held their breath, a flicker of imperceptible anticipation in their eyes. Next, the bearded cultivator was expected to recount the story of this Vermilion Bird egg.
To their surprise, the bearded cultivator paused at this moment, playing coy. He chuckled and asked, "Weren't you just asking about the ores within Mount Huofeng? I said it was related to these stone spirits. Can you guess why?"
Although the bearded cultivator no longer intended to antagonize Xu Yi and Ji Buwang, their previous behavior had displeased him. Therefore, he decided to make things difficult for them, at least preventing them from easily obtaining the answer. However, the outcome was bound to disappoint him. The information he had already revealed was sufficient for Xu Yi and Ji Buwang to piece together the truth.
"Stone spirits possess sentience and delight in devouring all rocks. However, time does not completely consume the rocks, and they will expel the remaining, indigestible parts."
"The stone spirits' consumption is essentially a process of impurity removal. The rocks they expel are purified high-grade ores."
Xu Yi and Ji Buwang spoke in turn, explaining the origin of the ores. Those high-grade ores, in other words, were the excrement of the stone spirits.
Upon hearing this, the bearded cultivator's old face instantly drooped. These two were truly troublesome.
"Can you answer our question now?" Xu Yi asked, smiling at him, her tone carrying a subtle hint of threat.
The bearded cultivator glanced warily at the Admonishment Ruler in her hand, pouted, tossed the two stone creatures back into the group behind him, and then continued.
"The existence of the Vermilion Bird egg was told to me by the stone spirits. Their birth was for the sole purpose of guarding this Vermilion Bird egg."
Hundreds of years ago, on a certain day, a Mahayana cultivator arrived at Mount Huofeng, intending to borrow its fire spirit energy to break through the final barrier of cultivation. He entered the mountain's core, greedily absorbing its fire spirit energy, and planned to use the power of the magma to temper his innate magical treasure. At that moment, the entire Mount Huofeng was violently affected, beginning to collapse, with magma erupting outward. The bearded cultivator wanted to intervene but was powerless, able only to watch as Mount Huofeng's spiritual energy was drained bit by bit.
It was at this time that the stone spirits ceased hiding their presence and attacked the Mahayana cultivator. Individually, the stone spirits were not powerful. However, with tens of thousands of them acting in unison, the energy unleashed was just enough to contend with the Mahayana cultivator for a time. As both sides reached a stalemate, the stone spirits chose to seek help from the bearded cultivator. Just as he had grown accustomed to their existence, they had long since accepted him as an anomaly. They learned that the bearded cultivator was also a follower of the Vermilion Bird, and thus, they informed him of the Vermilion Bird egg hidden beneath the magma. Hearing this news, the bearded cultivator immediately decided to join forces with the stone spirits, ensuring that the unfortunate Mahayana cultivator remained forever within Mount Huofeng.
"So that's how Patriarch Lingyan met his end here."