Immortality Cultivation

"Command confirmed. Cleaning program initiated." Old Jin’s emotionless voice rang out. The silver-white spider’s form flickered, splitting into several silver afterimages that began to rapidly weave through the corpses. Its movements were incredibly fast, its eight metal legs exceptionally nimble as it either picked or sliced, precisely removing Storage Pouches and Storage Rings from the bodies. Encountering slightly more valuable Magical Artifacts or armor, it stripped those away as well. For the corpses, Old Jin’s method was even more simple and crude; it directly spat out a stream of silver flame onto them. The flame’s temperature was extremely high and seemed to possess a certain decomposition property. Within a few breaths, the corpses and their clothing were incinerated into the finest ash, scattering with the wind until not a speck remained.

In just a few moments, dozens of corpses had vanished without a trace. Even the bloodstains were purified and decomposed by a silver liquid Old Jin spat out. Aside from some pits and battle marks, the ground showed almost no sign that a bloody massacre had just occurred here.

Old Jin returned to Fang Hao’s side, carrying a pile of colorful Storage Pouches and Storage Rings, along with several high-quality Magical Artifacts and Materials.

Fang Hao glanced over and nodded in satisfaction. Old Jin’s efficiency was as high as ever. With a wave of his hand, he swept the entire pile of "spoils of war" into his own Storage Ring, intending to take inventory when he had time.

Having finished all this, his gaze finally turned toward the pitch-black cave entrance that radiated an ancient aura.

The Restriction was broken, and the obstacles were removed. Now, it was time to see exactly what treasures were hidden in this secret cache left by the Red Leaf Valley Ancestral Master, and the potential Ancient Cultivators Relic related to the markings on Mo Yunhe’s map.

"Old Jin, on guard," Fang Hao commanded, stepping toward the cave entrance.

The silver-white spider followed silently behind him, its compound eyes flashing with a cold red light as it loyally fulfilled its duty as a bodyguard.

Fang Hao reached the cave entrance, paused briefly, and cautiously extended his Divine Sense inside. There were no other Restrictions at the entrance; inside was a downward-sloping, man-made tunnel that wound and twisted, leading to parts unknown. The tunnel walls were smooth, seemingly constructed from a special type of stone, and still held faint traces of Spiritual Qi fluctuations, indicating that defensive or warning Formations had once been placed there, though they were now defunct.

He did not hesitate and stepped into the tunnel. His figure was soon swallowed by the darkness of the cave.

Behind him, in front of Red Maple Cliff, the night wind howled, dispersing the last trace of the scent of blood and the remnants of that brief, cruel slaughter. Only the pits and charred Spell marks on the ground silently told the story of what had happened. Soon, even these traces would be erased by time.

Deep within the Cloud Dream Marsh, a small Sect with an eight-hundred-year Legacy had attracted greedy jackals because of its hidden treasures, leading to its total destruction. And those jackals, coveting the secret cache, had been silently harvested by an even more powerful hunter after their mutual infighting, leaving not even bones behind.

The world of Cultivators was just this cruel, just this real.

Fang Hao’s figure vanished into the depths of the tunnel. Would what awaited him be the Legacy left by Red Leaf Hermit, or... something else?

The tunnel was deep and sloped downward. The stone walls on both sides were smooth and cold; they might have originally been engraved with runes or murals, but after so much time and the impact of the shockwaves from the battle outside, many places had become mottled, peeled away, or blurred. The air was filled with a faint scent—a mixture of dust, moss, and some kind of old wood. It wasn’t unpleasant; instead, it had an ancient quality that felt like the settling of time.

Fang Hao walked slowly, his Divine Sense spread out like sensitive tentacles, carefully probing every inch of space within dozens of yards. Although the outer Restriction had been broken by Elder Mo and the others with brute force, who knew what contingencies Red Leaf Hermit had left inside this Immortal Cave? One could never be too careful with the relic of a Late Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator.

The metal spider that Old Jin had become was not perched on Fang Hao’s shoulder at this moment. Instead, like a true phantom sentinel, it would sometimes scout the path several yards ahead of Fang Hao with lightning speed, and then silently return to his side. Its eight compound eyes flickered with a faint light, scanning the surroundings at different frequencies, analyzing air composition, Spiritual Qi flow, ground material, and even acoustic vibrations; not a single anomaly escaped its perception.

The tunnel was long and not a straight shot; it twisted and turned with many forks. If an ordinary Cultivator entered without a map for guidance, they would likely lose their way easily. However, before entering, Fang Hao had already obtained a general description of the terrain from Lin Feng. Coupled with Old Jin’s powerful scanning and path-analysis capabilities, their pace was not slow.

After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, a faint light appeared ahead, and the air began to circulate, carrying a hint of cool water vapor. Fang Hao quickened his pace, turned a corner, and the view suddenly opened up.

He emerged into a massive, naturally formed grotto. The grotto was over ten yards high and nearly a hundred yards across. Many stalactites hung from the ceiling, dripping water that gathered into a small pool at the bottom. The four walls of the grotto were embedded with fluorites that emitted a soft white light, bathing the interior in a hazy glow.

However, what drew Fang Hao’s gaze was not the scenery of the grotto, but three simple stone rooms built side-by-side in the center. The doors of the stone rooms were tightly shut, their material indistinguishable—neither metal nor stone. A faint, nearly transparent halo flowed over their surfaces, clearly some kind of sophisticated Restriction.

And in front of the stone rooms, near the water pool, there was actually a small patch of cultivated medicine fields! The field wasn’t large, about two or three yards square, and the soil within was a strange dark red, with faint Spiritual Qi rising from it. In the field, dozens of different Spirit Medicines grew sparsely. Some were already mature, giving off an enticing medicinal fragrance, while others were still just seedlings.

"earth heart flame fruit?" Fang Hao’s gaze swept across and immediately landed on three small trees about half a person’s height in the center of the field. The trees were entirely crimson, their leaves like dancing flames. Several pigeon-egg-sized fruits hung from the branches, crystal clear with what looked like red flames flowing inside. These were exactly what Lin Feng had mentioned—the treasure of Red Leaf Valley, the third-rank Spirit Medicine, the earth heart flame fruit! Judging by their color and Spiritual Qi fluctuations, they had been aging for at least five hundred years, making their medicinal effects far superior to the norm.

Besides the earth heart flame fruits, there were seven or eight other types of Spirit Medicines in the field. Although not as precious as the earth heart flame fruit, they were all rare third or even fourth-rank varieties and were worth a fortune. It seemed Red Leaf Hermit was not only a ascetic Cultivator but also possessed significant skill in the art of spirit planting. This medicine field was clearly cultivated using the special Spiritual Veins of the grotto and that red spirit soil. After eight hundred years, it was truly remarkable that it still possessed such vitality.

However, Fang Hao’s attention only lingered on the medicine field for a moment before turning to the three stone rooms. While the field was good, compared to the lifelong collection of a Late Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, it could only be considered an appetizer.

He walked to the stone rooms and carefully observed the faint, nearly transparent halo of the Restriction. When his Divine Sense touched it, it was like a clay ox entering the sea, being repelled by a soft but resilient force. This Restriction was completely different from the red light Restriction outside; it wasn’t as aggressive, but it seemed more restrained and complex, faintly merging with the Spiritual Veins of the entire cave and even the environment of the grotto—a single move would affect the whole.

"Old Jin, scan this Restriction and analyze a cracking solution," Fang Hao ordered.

Red light flashed in the metal spider’s eyes as an invisible wave swept over the doors of the three stone rooms. A moment later, Old Jin’s mechanical voice rang out: "Target Restriction type: Composite Spirit-Lock Restriction, integrating Spiritual Vein energy, Divine Sense imprints, Bloodline triggers, and other mechanisms. The core energy source is suspected to be connected to the Spiritual Vein nodes beneath the cave. Forcible cracking will trigger high-intensity Spiritual Qi backlash and Spiritual Vein disorder. Estimated explosion power is equivalent to a full-strength strike from a Late Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator, with a very high probability of causing partial collapse of the cave. Suggested plan: Find the correct opening method, or use ultra-high intensity energy to strike three core nodes simultaneously within one ten-thousandth of a second for a forced entry. Success rate estimate: Plan one requires a key; Plan two has a success rate of 61.4% and may cause unknown damage to internal items."

"A self-destruct Restriction equivalent to a full-strength strike from a Late Nascent Soul Stage Cultivator? And it’s connected to the Spiritual Veins?" Fang Hao raised an eyebrow. Red Leaf Hermit was certainly ruthless; it seemed he was determined that if his approved descendants didn’t open it, he would rather destroy the Legacy than leave it to outsiders. Forcing it open wasn’t impossible, but the risk was significant, and it might damage the items inside, which wasn’t worth the loss.

The correct opening method... Fang Hao thought for a moment, flipped his hand, and the warm, jade-like "red leaf token" he had obtained from Lin Feng appeared in his palm.

He tried injecting a trace of Spiritual Qi into the red leaf token. The token brightened slightly, and the ancient character for "Leaf" on the front emitted a faint red light, creating a weak resonance with the halo flowing on the stone room doors. But that was all. The doors did not open.

"It seems having the red leaf token alone isn’t enough; it also needs a specific Bloodline incantation, or... the direct Bloodline of Red Leaf Valley?" Fang Hao rubbed his chin. Lin Feng had said the complete opening incantation required the stone tablet within the Forbidden Land. That tablet had likely been destroyed during the Black Fiend Sect’s attack. As for the Red Leaf Valley Bloodline... Lin Feng was still alive, but he was outside, and his cultivation was low; bringing him in would be a hassle.

"Do I really have to force it open?" Fang Hao was somewhat hesitant. A 61.4% success rate wasn’t low, but it wasn’t high either. Furthermore, the possibility of damaging the internal items was something he was reluctant to see. Who knew if there were particularly fragile but priceless treasures inside? Like Jade Slips, ancient books, or certain special Medicinal Pills?

He once again concentrated his Divine Sense on the red leaf token, carefully sensing that weak resonance between it and the stone room Restriction. Suddenly, a thought struck him. This resonance seemed to be more than just on the level of Spiritual Qi; there was also a more subtle fluctuation, similar to... a Soul imprint? Before Red Leaf Hermit passed away, could he have left a portion of his Divine Soul imprint within this Restriction or the red leaf token?

Fang Hao tried to separate an extremely fine wisp of Divine Sense and cautiously touched the red leaf token, mimicking the frequency of that Soul fluctuation.

The moment his Divine Sense frequency achieved a subtle synchronization with that hidden fluctuation in the red leaf token—

*Hum...*

The red leaf token vibrated slightly, and the red light it emitted suddenly brightened. Simultaneously, the transparent halo on the middle door of the three stone rooms rippled like water, and in its center, a recessed imprint identical in shape and size to the red leaf token slowly emerged.

"So that’s how it is!" Fang Hao’s eyes lit up. This red leaf token was not just a token of identity; it was also the "key" itself, and the "lock" to be opened was the frequency of Red Leaf Hermit’s Soul imprint contained within the door’s Restriction! No specific incantation or Bloodline was needed; as long as one’s Divine Sense was strong and sensitive enough to capture and simulate the unique Soul fluctuation within the red leaf token, the opening mechanism of the Restriction could be triggered!