Bao Gu thought to herself, as a cultivator, how could she be afraid of these ghostly creatures? It should be these ghostly creatures that fear her. She mustered her courage and looked around.
She noticed that these ghost-like spirits were all emerging from the rock walls. These rock walls, like the stone skins encasing spirit stones in spirit mines, couldn’t be probed with divine sense.
She tried again to use her sword to cut a slit in the rock and found that, just like before, thick, foul-smelling black blood oozed out, carrying a stench of decay. Bao Gu was about to investigate further when Yu Mi suddenly shouted, “Step back!”
She grabbed Bao Gu’s shoulder and pulled her away from the rock wall, raising her Lihuo Sword to create a wall of fire that sealed the rock wall tightly. She said to Bao Gu, “Stay behind the little fox and don’t move around. You might not even know how you died!” As she spoke, she took a swig of monkey wine to replenish her spiritual energy.
Bao Gu asked, “Senior Sister, is there a spirit mine here?”
Yu Mi snorted, “A spirit mine? Why don’t you dig up some spirit stones and see for yourself?”
Bao Gu sensed the displeasure in her senior sister’s tone and dared not speak further. She noticed that the rock walls seemed to fear the flames released by her senior sister, retreating under the fire attack, making the narrow space more spacious.
After about half an incense stick’s time, Bao Gu suddenly felt the cold aura in the air dissipate significantly, and the space in front of her opened up.
A huge cavern appeared before them, with rows of snow-white stalactites neatly arranged. These stalactites were over ten feet long, curved, sharp at the top, and gradually widened downward.
Bao Gu was puzzled. This place was indeed strange, even the stalactites looked different from those in other places.
The little fox was the first to rush into the cavern and landed on the ground.
Bao Gu followed closely behind, rushing into the cavern. When she looked back, she saw her senior sister also rushing in with her sword, sealing the entrance with fire. After a few breaths, the fire at the entrance extinguished, and the entrance disappeared, leaving only a smooth rock wall. Bao Gu gaped in surprise, pointing at the vanished entrance, “Senior Sister, the entrance is gone.”
Yu Mi ignored Bao Gu, surveying the surroundings. Suddenly, she leaped into the air, raising her sword to slash at the hanging stalactites.
The clash of sword and stalactite produced a metallic sound and sparks flew. The stalactite cracked, and a few drops of snow-white liquid dripped down, releasing a refreshing fragrance.
Bao Gu felt a sense of comfort throughout her body upon smelling it and couldn’t help but take another breath. Suddenly, she remembered the strangeness of this place and quickly pinched her nose, asking, “Senior Sister, is this poisonous—” Before she could finish, she saw her senior sister already taking out a jade bottle to collect the dripping liquid.
The little fox also leaped to the top, scratching at the stalactite with its claws, but it was like scratching iron, leaving no marks. It could only call out to Yu Mi for help.
Yu Mi let the little fox take her place to collect the liquid and moved to another spot to cut down a section of the stalactite.
With a single slash, the Lihuo Sword clashed with the stalactite, producing a metallic sound. The stalactite cracked, but no liquid dripped out. Yu Mi had to slash six more times to cut through the stalactite, but still, no liquid was obtained. She continued to cut ten more stalactites, yet no liquid was found.
Yu Mi took another swig of monkey wine to replenish her spiritual energy and resumed slashing at the stalactites.
After cutting more than thirty stalactites, she finally found some liquid, but only a few drops dripped out before it stopped.
Bao Gu wasn’t idle either. She collected all the stalactites her senior sister had cut down into her large storage bag. She knew how powerful her senior sister’s Lihuo Sword was, and the fact that it took five or six slashes to cut through the stalactites showed how sturdy they were. They might be useful for crafting in the future.
As Bao Gu collected the stalactites, she felt something was off: what kind of stalactites could be so sturdy? The cave and the stalactites within it were extremely strange. There were water droplets in the cave, but not necessarily where the stalactites were, and vice versa. This indicated that the stalactites were not formed by dripping water!
Moreover, all the stalactites looked the same, only differing in direction. The more she thought about it, the more she felt something was wrong. She said, “Senior Sister, these stalactites seem really strange.”
Yu Mi replied, “You just noticed?”
Bao Gu moved closer to Yu Mi and said, “Senior Sister, stop keeping me in suspense.”
Yu Mi glanced at Bao Gu and said, “I’ll tell you when we get out of here. I don’t want to scare you.”
Bao Gu laughed, “What could possibly scare me?”
Yu Mi glanced at Bao Gu, then turned back to continue cutting the stalactites.
Suddenly, she stopped and listened intently, calling out, “Ling’er.” She then realized that the little fox had run off somewhere. She asked Bao Gu, “Where did Ling’er go?”
Bao Gu looked around and said, “Probably went treasure hunting somewhere!”
Yu Mi softly said, “Let’s go!” She took a swig of monkey wine to adjust her state to the best, then stepped on her flying sword and flew forward.
Bao Gu followed Yu Mi out of the large cavern and into a passage about ten feet in diameter. On both sides of the passage, every few feet, there was a curved stalactite, arranged in pairs as if someone had placed them there. Bao Gu realized that what she thought were stalactites were not stalactites at all.
Following Yu Mi, they turned a few corners. Yu Mi suddenly transmitted a message to her, “Stay where you are,” and then disappeared. Bao Gu quickly stopped, suppressing her aura to the minimum. She then felt a burst of energy ahead, seemingly her senior sister’s fire attribute energy, followed by the little fox’s energy.
The energy burst was fleeting. After a few breaths, her senior sister and the little fox returned together.
Yu Mi was holding a plump, golden-furred rat, nearly a foot long, staring at the little fox with terrified eyes.
Bao Gu stared at the golden rat and exclaimed, “A spirit rat?”
Yu Mi chuckled, “Have you ever seen a spirit rat with such golden fur?”
The little fox stared at the golden rat, licking its lips as if it were a delicacy.
Yu Mi held the rat by its tail and said, “With your strength, you couldn’t have gotten in here alone. Tell me, who else is with you? If you lie, I’ll feed you to Ling’er.”
The little fox immediately said, “No need to ask it. I’ll find out for you. Just let me eat it.”
The golden rat squeaked, “I’ll talk, I’ll talk! I’m from the Beast Taming Valley. My master is Young Master Ji. I came in with the young master. Don’t eat me, I’m valuable.”
Bao Gu exclaimed, “A golden rat?” She looked at the little fox and laughed, “Ling’er, it’s your companion.”
The little fox rolled its eyes at Bao Gu, then quickly realized it shouldn’t be rolling its eyes if it wanted to eat the golden rat. It immediately hugged Bao Gu’s leg and said, “I’m much better at treasure hunting than it is. With me here, it’s useless. Let me eat it!”
Bao Gu blinked at the little fox and said, “Isn’t it cats that like to eat rats?”
Yu Mi said to Bao Gu, “Look around. Do you still have the mood to tease Ling’er? Ling’er, in this place, it’s better to avoid trouble. If this rat behaves, I might consider returning it to its master. If not…”
The golden rat quickly said, “The young master has twelve people with him. They’re not far from here. I came to scout the way. They’ll be here soon. Don’t eat me. You can’t beat the young master with so few people. If you eat me, you’re doomed too.”
Bao Gu commented, “This rat is really smart!”
Yu Mi knew that with twelve people from the Beast Taming Valley, a confrontation was inevitable. Not only were they outnumbered, but they were also outmatched in strength. With a ninth-level beast cub with them, the Beast Taming Valley people wouldn’t let them go easily. She glared at the golden rat and said, “Are you threatening me?” She raised her hand, ready to throw it to the little fox.
The golden rat squeaked in fear, its sharp cry echoing far, clearly calling for help.
Yu Mi’s expression turned cold. “Courting death!” She threw the golden rat to the little fox. Since a fight was inevitable, she might as well deal with this creature first.
The little fox leaped up, caught the golden rat in its mouth, and bit off its neck, swallowing it in a few bites. It then licked its lips, still unsatisfied.
Bao Gu took a deep breath and cursed inwardly, “Wasteful senior sister!”
A golden rat! Although it was only a third-level beast, its treasure-hunting skills and rarity made it highly valuable. A golden rat worth a hundred top-grade spirit stones was fed to the little fox without a second thought. She thought that the golden rat had brought this upon itself. Knowing her senior sister’s miserly nature, if the golden rat hadn’t screamed, her senior sister might not have fed it to the little fox.
Yu Mi disappeared without warning.
Bao Gu then heard a voice ahead, “Over here!”
The little fox leaped backward and disappeared.
Bao Gu stood still, looking around. In an instant, she was alone. Then she saw a richly dressed boy of about fourteen or fifteen leading three burly youths into her sight.
The boy saw Bao Gu and paused, saying, “Are you Bao Gu, the owner of the Duobao Spirit Monkey?”
Bao Gu nodded.
The boy asked, “Have you seen a golden rat?” He looked around warily.
Bao Gu hesitated, then nodded.
The boy asked, “Where did it go?”
Bao Gu said, “It was… eaten.”
The boy’s face darkened immediately. He asked in a deep voice, “Who ate it?”
Bao Gu said, “Not me!”
The boy asked, “Who else is here?”
Bao Gu suddenly realized, “Hey, why should I tell you?”
A burly youth behind the boy stared at a magical artifact above and said, “Young master, there’s a fox’s aura but no demonic energy. Something’s strange.”
A wisp of energy suddenly appeared beside the boy. Sensing danger, he tried to retreat but felt a scorching heat at his neck, stopping him in his tracks. He shouted, “Don’t move!”
He said, “Immortal Yu Mi, is that you?”
Yu Mi appeared beside the boy with a smile, “People from the Beast Taming Valley, nice to meet you. You know, I don’t like being threatened. That golden rat dared to threaten me, so I fed it to Ling’er. Young master, you wouldn’t want to threaten me too, would you?”
The boy smiled, “I wouldn’t dare!” His face suddenly darkened, and a claw emerged from the void, grabbing Yu Mi’s Lihuo Sword. A shadow shot from the boy’s body, aiming at Yu Mi’s vital points.
Yu Mi hadn’t even reacted when she was struck in the chest. She grunted, gripping her Lihuo Sword tightly and pressing it down.
The boy took advantage of the claw’s grip on the Lihuo Sword to slip away from Yu Mi’s side. He twisted his waist, drawing a pair of curved daggers to stab at Yu Mi’s vital points.
Seeing Yu Mi under attack, Bao Gu shouted, “Senior Sister, run!” She activated a Nascent Soul-level talisman and slapped it towards the boy.
The boy sensed Bao Gu’s movement and cursed, “Damn it!” He quickly retreated.
Bao Gu stepped on her flying sword and rushed towards the cavern.
Yu Mi shouted, “Go!” She flew ahead, slashing at the air.
The sword energy caused a beast to howl in pain, and blood splattered in the air.
Bao Gu broke into a cold sweat, not daring to stop, rushing forward at full speed.
As she turned a corner, she felt the Nascent Soul-level talisman explode behind her.
Bao Gu thought, “Another talisman gone,” feeling the energy from the talisman rushing towards her.
Yu Mi landed on Bao Gu’s flying sword, hugging Bao Gu from behind. She placed the Lihuo Sword behind them, forming a shield with her spiritual energy. The next moment, the talisman’s energy hit them. The Lihuo Sword blocked the first impact but was knocked away. The remaining force shattered Yu Mi’s protective aura and slammed into them, sending them flying.
Bao Gu screamed as she crashed into the rock wall, feeling like her bones were breaking.
Yu Mi spat blood and slid off Bao Gu, unconscious.
