Chapter 570: Immortal Cave
The lake water receded, and an underground immortal light flickered, emitting strange sounds. Before long, the entire immortal lake vanished, revealing a great rift valley.
It was surrounded by stone cliffs, as if artificially excavated, deliberately arranged into a lake. Spiritual essence was inexhaustible, and earthly dragon qi overflowed from below.
An ancient cave flowed with immortal light, containing dragon qi that sprayed outward. It was not particularly violent, but it carried an immortal charm, clearly not an ordinary place.
"Haha..." Fatty Duan laughed heartily. The place was quiet and had not disturbed anyone else.
In the distance, the crowd was still scrambling, fighting to enter the cave dwelling within the immortal vein. Little did they know, everything was calculated by the unscrupulous Taoist—he was merely borrowing their strength.
"Arranging a chain of cave dwellings, only I, a poor Taoist, can decipher this." Duan De was very conceited, smug and complacent, chuckling incessantly as he flashed inside.
"This man is truly mysterious, possessing such methods. Everyone else has been used." Princess Yu Die was astonished, never expecting Fatty Duan to be so unscrupulous.
Ye Fan and she waited for about fifteen minutes, then descended to the bottom of the dried-up immortal lake. Cliffs stood tall, an ancient cave shimmered with radiance, and a stone door engraved with dense runes had already been opened.
"This damn fatty is really something. To open this door, he made many cultivators fight for him dozens of miles away." Ye Fan grumbled inwardly, always feeling that Duan De deserved a beating, yet no one had ever managed to make him suffer a major loss.
"This place is very mysterious!" Princess Yu Die frowned. Although the stone door was open, there were still many traces of array patterns inside.
These ancient patterns had existed for who knows how many years, mysterious and complex. They tried to deduce the Dao patterns but could not comprehend them, finding it difficult to see through.
Neither of them was particularly proficient in Dao patterns, so they frowned. Entering rashly might trap them, and this was likely, as Duan De had said, related to an ancient Great Emperor.
"Wait here for me. I'll go in and take a look." Ye Fan decided to use the Stride Art to traverse the ancient array and give it a try. Otherwise, if he waited any longer, the entire cave dwelling would be emptied by Fatty Duan.
"Be careful!" Yu Die cautioned, her bright eyes and white teeth exuding a fragrant breath.
"Swish"
Ye Fan vanished in a flash, walking amidst auspicious light. This ancient cave was not damp but very dry. It was not inlaid with luminous pearls, but many strange stones emitted radiant light.
Inside the cave dwelling, immortal mist swirled, and colorful clouds shone brilliantly, giving it the charm of a fairyland. Not far in, he saw white jade steps leading deeper into the secluded depths.
"Immortal nectar and jade liquid..." Ye Fan was surprised. Beside a spring pool was a small Dao platform, only about half a foot high. On it sat a small bowl containing more than half a bowl of white liquid.
This was earthly milk nurtured by the earth's spiritual roots. If it came from the ancestral root, it could revive the dead and regrow flesh, ranking just below the Divine Immortality Pill, making it a priceless immortal treasure.
"Unfortunately, it's not true immortal nectar and jade liquid, just ordinary earthly milk from a common spiritual root." Ye Fan felt regret after careful inspection.
Suddenly, his expression stiffened. The half-foot-high small Dao platform was very special—crystal clear and transparent, emitting faint spiritual energy, carrying a mysterious aura.
"This is... solidified immortal nectar and jade liquid!" Ye Fan was shocked, utterly astounded.
Long ago, immortal treasures had been born here, dripping down as the spiritual energy dissipated, forming this half-foot-high small Dao platform. It seemed the immortal nectar and jade liquid had dried up, and later only ordinary earthly milk could be produced.
At this moment, Ye Fan felt pain in his heart, liver, and stomach. A half-foot-high small Dao platform—how much immortal milk would it take to condense? It was truly extravagant and wasteful.
Undoubtedly, countless eons ago, this place was connected to an ancestral vein immortal root, producing immortal nectar that all dripped down, unused by anyone.
Ye Fan sighed deeply and eventually put away the small Dao platform. It was heavy in his hand, like a small mountain peak, which surprised him greatly.
It looked like a piece of beautiful jade but weighed as much as a mountain. Ordinary cultivators could never lift it, and he muttered to himself.
Immortal nectar and jade liquid were rare and hard to come by. No one had ever heard of such abundance, nor would anyone waste it by letting it dry up naturally. Ye Fan felt that the material of this small Dao platform was special and might be of great use in the future.
Clouds of smoke flowed, and the ancient cave was dreamlike. Using the Stride Art to break through the array patterns, Ye Fan passed through the white jade steps and entered the depths of the cave dwelling.
"Withered spiritual herbs, all tens of thousands of years old!"
In a vast stone chamber, he found some plants growing in jade fields. They were clearly treasures, but they had long withered, unknown for how many years.
Only the Divine Immortality Pill could exist forever in the world, never withering. Other herbs, after growing for many tens of thousands of years, would eventually die, their spiritual energy dissipating.
"Could they have grown for hundreds of thousands of years before dying?"
Ye Fan muttered to himself. If so, it was truly letting divine objects return to dust, absorbing so much heavenly and earthly essence only to scatter it all in the end.
Suddenly, his expression froze. Right ahead sat a person, devoid of any aura, only noticed upon approaching.
"An old ape!"
Ye Fan was surprised. It was an ancient ape that had passed away who knows how many years ago. Its gray-white fur would turn to dust at the slightest touch, only the white bones inside still shimmering with luster.
Undoubtedly, this cave dwelling had existed for at least hundreds of thousands of years. The old ape's remains surviving to this day was enough to show its strength and terror in life.
Ye Fan muttered to himself. After carefully examining the white jade bones inside, this old ape was at least a Saint.
"Boom!"
A loud noise came from the cave dwelling, accompanied by clouds of smoke rushing out. Fatty Duan was making a big commotion inside, clearly breaking through restrictions.
They waited patiently, not rushing in to watch.
Over the next two hours, various sounds came from the ancient cave, growing louder and louder. Dense spiritual energy surged like water.
"I hope he gets a lot of immortal treasures, even a Great Emperor's ancient scripture!" the Barbarian said honestly.
Princess Yu Die was speechless. This guy was far less simple than he appeared on the surface. He was planning to give Duan De a good beating.
Ye Fan laughed, putting his arm around Dongfang Ye's shoulder, discussing for a long time how to make a move.
"He's coming out!"
Ye Fan's spiritual perception was very sharp. He sensed the aura, and they hid within the array patterns, not worried about being exposed.
Duan De came out humming and groaning, constantly cursing. His clothes were tattered, clearly having suffered a great loss inside.
"Buzz"
The array patterns activated, light flared up, and Duan De was momentarily dazed. His sea of consciousness was nearly stripped away and sealed forever!
"Bang!"
The Barbarian showed no mercy, swinging his great club from behind, directly hitting the back of Duan De's head. The pain made Fatty Duan roll his eyes, almost fainting immediately.
Duan De's body went limp, wobbling as he tried to turn around. At that moment, Ye Fan, holding the half-foot-high small Dao platform, slammed it face-first into his face.
"Bang!"
"Unscrupulous... damn it... Heavenly Venerable!" Duan De finally rolled his eyes, knocked unconscious by the two barbarians, and crumpled crookedly to the ground.