bookbashuk Chapter 309 Junior, you can't seize such an opportunity?
Chapter 309 Junior, you can't seize such an opportunity?
Red Cloud Island.
This island resembles a giant bronze sword thrust diagonally into the East China Sea. The entire island is composed of a volcano, and from a distance, the crater in the center of the island looks like a huge golden furnace.
It was noon, and the sun was blazing overhead. The light refracted repeatedly between the rugged rock walls, creating countless flowing waterfalls.
Because of the volcano, the fiery aura on the island is extremely intense; even a tiny bit inhaled is very difficult to expel, making it unsuitable for anyone other than a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
It was originally a good place for Fire-element cultivators to practice, but the spiritual veins on the island were of such low quality that almost no cultivators came to explore it over the long term.
When Zhang Lingyu saw the information about the presence of the Three Yang Bone Forging Pill and the Earth Lung Fire Essence in this place, he was also very surprised.
Which foolish cultivator placed such a precious item in the Earth's core to nurture it?
As the waves were whipped up by the wind, a streak of light appeared from afar, stopping three miles outside the island. It gazed with interest at the billowing smoke from the volcano's crater, feigning surprise, and exclaimed, "Wow, this is truly a rare sight. This island actually has a volcano?"
Judging from his appearance, it was Zhang Lingyu who had used the shape-changing technique.
"This island is called Crimson Cloud Island. There is only one first-order spiritual vein on the island, and there is nothing of value. Only when the volcano erupts will some Flame Cloud Stones appear. Due to their hard texture and special properties, they are excellent materials for making alchemy chambers and earth fire chambers."
The voice of the Spirit Puppet Transformation Box echoed in his mind, and the magical artifact continued:
"After each eruption, some late-stage Qi Refining cultivators risk their lives to come and collect the spirit stones they exchange for. They are almost useless to you, but if you are interested, you can go down and take a look."
Normally, upon seeing such a barren place, it would have made Zhang Lingyu leave immediately.
But today is different.
Early in the morning, he went out with Zhang Lingyu to stroll around Linyuan City. It would have been better if they hadn't gone out, because he ended up picking up a lot of good things from the various shops and stalls.
Jadeite, black lingzhi, and golden tangerine grass... these are all relatively rare items. What's even more amazing is that Zhang Lingyu actually found a stream of golden light in a jade gambling shop.
Although Flowing Gold is a fourth-grade top-quality spirit iron, many magical treasures require it.
This made others extremely envious. The owner of the jade gambling shop didn't believe it and let him open a few more, and without exception, they all had good stuff.
In order not to affect business, the boss reluctantly gave Zhang Lingyu some spirit stones before sending him away.
In just half a day, Zhang Lingyu earned a whopping twenty to thirty thousand spirit stones with less than a thousand spirit stones!
'This kid is really lucky. Could he be some kind of chosen one, favored by the heavens?' The Spirit Puppet Myriad Transformations Box thought to itself, but quickly dismissed the idea.
It had learned about Zhang Lingyu's past at Qingya Mountain; he was just a mortal with a spiritual talent, and his aptitude wasn't very good.
While luck played a part in getting us to where we are today, it was mostly through hard work and perseverance.
If one is truly favored by Heaven, how could one be born into a small Foundation Establishment family?
This time it was probably just good luck.
As they approached Crimson Cloud Island, Zhang Lingyu let out a soft exclamation and chuckled, "Elder Kui, there seems to be a cultivator's cave dwelling underground here..."
"Hmm, there are actually a few cultivators here?"
"what?"
The old puppet's heart skipped a beat. No, it had only casually suggested Zhang Lingyu take a look, and there really were some good things!
So they followed the other's gaze to Crimson Cloud Island, and looked through layers of rocks to the deepest part, where they saw four cultivators holding magical artifacts, working hard to break the restrictions.
The highest cultivation level among the four was only at the peak of Qi Refining, while the rest were at the eighth or ninth level. Judging from their clothing, they were undoubtedly all independent cultivators.
As for why they dared to venture so deep into the earth's veins without fear of the fiery aura, it was mostly due to the talisman hanging above their heads. However, the fiery aura was too intense, and they couldn't hold out for long.
"Heh...there really is something, but I wonder what good stuff is in the cave..." Old Puppet glanced around and said gloatingly.
"The cave's protective barriers were originally intact, and these four people, with their cultivation levels, would never have been able to discover it, let alone ordinary people who would venture deep underground."
"It's most likely that the volcanic eruption damaged the barrier, and these four people only discovered it by chance while they were on the island collecting the Flame Stone. They're really lucky. It's a pity they ran into you and me. Shall we go in and take a look?"
"Alright, if Heaven grants something, one must suffer the consequences. Let's go." Zhang Lingyu chuckled dryly, concealed his figure in mid-air, and headed deeper into the distance.
Despite his nonchalant attitude, he was actually quite nervous inside.
If I hadn't arrived at the right time, the two items would have been taken by four Qi Refining cultivators, and I would have truly missed this opportunity.
......
"The three of you, this barrier is about to break. Please give it your all!"
Outside the cave deep within Crimson Cloud Island, the leader was an old man in yellow robes, sweating profusely. As his magical power gradually dried up, he grew increasingly anxious.
This isn't the worst part; the main problem is that the talismans meant to ward off the fiery energy are almost ineffective.
When the fiery energy enters the body, the meridians will be damaged, not only will one lose everything, but the path to the Great Dao will also be hopeless.
"We knew, but we didn't expect that even if the restriction was damaged, it would still be so difficult to open!" The other three were weaker and their faces were even paler. If they didn't break it, they would really collapse from exhaustion.
"Damn it, why did this senior who left behind the cave have to set up such a high-level restriction?" Seeing the attacks of the group gradually subside, the old man in yellow became extremely agitated.
Just as the Spirit Puppet Myriad Transformations Box had guessed, three days ago, he risked his life to go ashore to collect Flame Stones to earn spirit stones, but unexpectedly discovered a cave.
He was overjoyed; the cultivator who had opened the cave here must undoubtedly be a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
If he can acquire some good items to sell, and with his own savings to purchase a Foundation Establishment Pill, he should have no problem establishing his foundation within five years, given his peak Qi Refining cultivation.
However, there was a restriction outside the cave, which could not be broken by one person alone.
After weighing the options, we had no choice but to invite many friends to come and explore, which led to the situation we see today.
As everyone grew increasingly exhausted, the restrictions on the door suddenly became chaotic and showed signs of collapse. The old man in yellow was overjoyed and immediately urged them to increase their magical output.
With a deafening roar, the barrier was finally broken!
"The talisman can only withstand the fire energy for a limited time. Let's go in quickly, grab what we need, and leave." The barrier was broken, and it should have been time to replenish our mana and prepare to go in again, but the old man in yellow had already pushed the door open and entered.
Normally, the other three would have become suspicious, but the fiery aura was too overwhelming, and they couldn't think about it anymore.
But he remained cautiously wary of the others' movements, to prevent being stabbed in the back.
As the door was pushed open, a burst of scorching fiery energy rushed out, causing the protective spiritual shields of the four people to flicker, but fortunately they still held on.
When the group opened their eyes, the various furnishings inside came into view.
The cave dwelling was much smaller than I had imagined, about fifty square meters. It was more like an alchemy room than a place for cultivators to live and cultivate.
Directly opposite the entrance is a dark black three-legged alchemy furnace, its body engraved with intricate patterns of kui dragons holding fire, covered in dust.
Beneath the alchemy furnace, earth fire surged forth from the fissures in the earth's veins, burning fiercely and illuminating the bottom of the furnace.
On the stone platform beside the furnace, several small pill bottles were scattered around, and even a jade slip with a dull color leaned against the furnace wall. Everything remained as it was, as if the cave owner had just finished refining a batch of important pills and had only left for a short while, and might return at any time.
On the right side of the cave, close to the rock wall, there is a small pool about ten feet square, in which lava flows.
Dozens of chains were deeply wedged into the rocky ground at the edge of the pool. One end was firmly fixed to the ground or rock wall, while the other end was taut and extended straight towards the center of the pool, deeply submerged beneath the churning lava, as if tightly binding something at the bottom of the pool.
The churning lava in the pool obscured the view, making it impossible to see what lay at the end of the chains.
"Thump!"
A deep, resonant pulse suddenly emanated from the depths of the magma pool, causing the magma on the surface to ripple violently.
The sound began to rise rhythmically, echoing and overlapping hollowly in the narrow cave, each beat striking the rock walls and slamming hard into the intruder's chest.
What's even more chilling is that the eerie throbbing sound coming from the bottom of the pool seemed to resonate and echo in the hearts and lungs of everyone present in an indescribable way.
A dull pain shot through their chest, their blood and qi surged, and fear and intense discomfort instantly gripped everyone.
"What the hell is that?!"
"Just stay away, grab your things and leave. This is no place to linger!"
The group dared not approach and quickly took several pills to feel better. Fortunately, nothing rushed out of the pool, so they cautiously searched the surrounding area.
Most of the items in the pool were priceless, but they were beyond their reach. The only good stuff left was the alchemy furnace in the center.
If I'm not mistaken, its rank should be at the lower level of Foundation Establishment.
In addition, a number of pills were found in some cabinets. Although much of their medicinal properties had been lost, they were all third-tier pills.
"We've struck it rich!"
Just as they were happily filling their storage bags, a gust of cold wind blew in from outside the door, making everyone squint. When they finally opened their eyes, a man in red had appeared at the door.
"what?"
"Foundation Establishment... Demonic Cultivation?"
The fiery aura of Crimson Cloud Island was intense, and it was located deep within the earth's veins. The eerie winds made them shiver. Who else could they be but demonic cultivators?
The four of them froze on the spot, not daring to breathe. The first one to react had already knelt down and begged for mercy.
Zhang Lingyu glanced at them casually and said indifferently, "Youngsters, if you can't seize such an opportunity, why don't you hurry up and hand over the item?"
"Yes...yes!"
The three people other than the old man in yellow were in a panic, quickly taking out all the things they had just looted and placing them on the ground, awaiting their fate.
"A pile of junk, I have no use for it, keep it and get out!"
"Huh?" The three were a little confused, wondering why this demonic cultivator neither accepted the items nor killed them. But it was still a good thing, so they quickly packed up the items and rode away on the wind.
Before leaving, he glanced at the old man who was standing still and sneered inwardly.
"Old fool, daring to be so arrogant in front of a Foundation Establishment demonic cultivator! You truly don't know what's good for you!"
"I heard he has a mid-grade third-tier talisman; I guess he wants to try his luck. If he misses this opportunity, his chances of reaching Foundation Establishment will be slim."
The three secretly communicated through telepathy. Although they were eager to see if the power of the third-tier mid-grade talisman could kill the demonic cultivator, they dared not linger and could only go outside the island to observe.
"Why aren't you leaving yet? It seems you can't bear to part with this alchemy furnace. I've given you a chance to escape."
"Senior, we discovered this cave, so there should be a principle of first come, first served, right?" The old man in yellow was quite unwilling, and he clenched the talisman in his sleeve even tighter.
"First come, first served? When did the cultivation world have such a rule? Isn't it always the case that whoever has the strongest fist is right? You've lived all these years for nothing, you've really wasted your life."
Zhang Lingyu scoffed as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world:
"With that mid-grade third-tier talisman in your sleeve? An ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator would probably be wary of it, but what do you take me for!"
His trump card was instantly exposed, and the old man in yellow's expression changed drastically. He hurriedly threw out the talisman and then flashed away from the cave.
Unexpectedly, the man in the blood-red robe gently wiped away the explosion of the third-grade mid-level talisman, and at the same time, a sea of blood appeared. The old man's physical body was completely dissolved at the same moment, leaving only a storage bag.
"I gave him a way out, and he still doesn't appreciate it. He's really ungrateful."
"Who can argue with that? But if this old man doesn't use this talisman to try his luck, he has no hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage in this lifetime. Oh right, he's completely hopeless."
With a flash of light, the Spirit Puppet Transformation Box transformed into a humanoid puppet standing in the cave. It didn't look at the alchemy furnace, but stared intently at the pool of fire, exclaiming in amazement:
"Earthly Fire Essence, I never expected to find such a good thing here. You're really lucky, kid."
I thought there wasn't anything good inside the cave, but when I heard that "thump-thump" heartbeat outside the cave, my feelings immediately became complicated.
Could it be that Zhang Lingyu has truly been blessed with good fortune?
"It's definitely a good product."
With a wave of Zhang Lingyu's right hand, dozens of chains in the fire pool snapped, the magma churned, and something resembling a heart and lung emerged from it, throbbing wildly in mid-air.
In an instant, the Burning Yuan Heart Flame within his heart and lungs began to stir restlessly, yearning to devour it completely.
He forcefully suppressed it, and at the same time took out a jade box to put away the Earth Lung Fire Essence.
At this point, apart from the low-grade Foundation Establishment alchemy furnace and the Three Yang Bone Forging Pill inside, there were no other valuable items in the cave.
They had received the items, but deep doubts still lingered in their minds.
Crimson Cloud Island is only a first-order spiritual vein. It doesn't look like a place that can spontaneously generate Earth Lung Fire Essence. Even if someone puts it here to nurture, it should be placed on a third-order spiritual vein.
Based on the location of this cave, the Earth Lung Fire Essence has been stored here for at least some years.
Let alone continuing to rely on the spiritual veins to grow stronger, it would be a blessing if the essence within them were not lost.
"There must be something else going on here that hasn't been discovered yet. Those chains were there not only to prevent the Earth Lung Fire Essence from being taken away, but also to suppress its frantic absorption of fire energy."
"Not bad." Zhang Lingyu nodded in response to the old puppet's words.
There's no other reason than that, in order to prevent the loss of the Earth Lung Fire Essence, it would at least need to be placed on a second-tier spiritual vein, which is absolutely impossible here.
He stepped forward to probe the fire pool and discovered that his divine sense could not see the bottom at all.
"This is deep within the island's geological ley lines; so deep, it likely leads directly to the seabed..."
Zhang Lingyu immediately understood that there were likely higher-level spiritual veins at the bottom of the sea, which were of the fire attribute. The cave owner wanted to use them to nourish the Earth Lung Fire Essence, but dared not place it directly inside. So he used Crimson Cloud Island as a cover to secretly absorb the fire energy from the underwater spiritual veins to nourish it.
The spiritual veins beneath Crimson Cloud Island are mostly branches of the underwater spiritual veins.
After all, if they were to put it in directly, not only would the demons notice, but the Earth Fire Essence would also develop to a point where it would be out of their control.
After he shared his thoughts, the Spirit Puppet Transformation Box nodded in agreement and said softly, "Let's go, let's go deep into the sea and take a look."
"With me here, there should be no problem spying on things, and even if the Demon King is right in front of us, we will have a chance to escape."
......
......