Nothing further happened during the latter half of the night. Early the next morning, as the first faint glimmer of dawn lit up the horizon, the empty spirits that had roared and roamed all night saw their translucent bodies grow increasingly faint. Like smoke and dust, as the wind blew, their bodies twisted and stretched into bizarre shapes, fading away until, in just a few breaths, they vanished completely, as if they had never existed at all.
As soon as the empty spirits dissipated, Su Guanying stood up immediately. “Let's go. It's time to hit the road.”
Everyone had packed their belongings early, merely waiting for daybreak. Now, at Su Guanying's order, they deftly mounted their Sand Camels and prepared to set off.
...
During the day, the temperature rose. After traveling for several hours, the group noticed increasing signs of human passage along the way.
Almost every distance they covered, several corpses came into view. Winds and sand swept across the ancient desert daily, so bodies left on the ground would be buried completely in as little as half a day, or at most a few days. The fact that these corpses were still visible meant they were fresh, killed within the last few days.
Danger abounded in the ancient desert, making death here far from uncommon. What was strange, however, was that the body count was far higher than usual.
After sending someone over to retrieve the valuables from the corpses, Su Guanying could not help but frown slightly. “Lately, there have been more and more people coming and going through the ancient desert.”
In the past, when they conducted trade in the ancient desert, it was common not to see a single soul for an entire journey.
But this time...
Ninth Uncle snorted lightly. “Looks like they're all heading for the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts. That godforsaken place—”
His tone was filled with dismissal, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he suddenly remembered that Shi Yu and her companions had mentioned the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts before joining the caravan, and were also heading there.
Oh dear, how did my complaining end up targeting our caravan's benefactors? Ninth Uncle cursed himself internally.
Coughing lightly, he quickly tried to smooth things over. “Still, with rumors like that floating around, it's bound to tempt people. If we didn't have trade to attend to, I'd want to go take a look myself.”
Su Guanying's lips twitched slightly. She then gave Shi Yu and the others a hesitant look. Feeling that Shi Yu was easy to talk to, she could not help but ask, “Young Master Shi, are you heading to the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts for the immortal secret treasure as well?”
An immortal secret treasure?
Shi Yu's ears twitched. After thinking for a moment, she shook her head. “I merely want to gather some Jade-Blood Cold Gold in a place of such concentrated evil and Yin energy. I require a large quantity, which is difficult to collect in ordinary places.”
Hearing that Shi Yu was not going to the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts for the secret treasure, Su Guanying breathed a sigh of relief and advised, “If you are only looking for Jade-Blood Cold Gold, there is no need to make a special trip to the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts. Though it is rare, it can still be found in other places.”
Though that was true, Shi Yu had another goal for this trip: to gather Yin Qi in a land of evil energy like the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts to convert her internal spiritual Qi into Yin and Yang Qi.
If she missed this opportunity, finding another suitable location would delay her for quite some time.
Besides, Shi Yu was somewhat curious about the secret treasure Su Guanying and Ninth Uncle had mentioned.
Looking at Su Guanying and Ninth Uncle, she asked, “May I ask what this immortal secret treasure you mentioned is...? When I first arrived in these parts, I rested at the Ancient Desert Tea Shop and heard the landlady mention that something strange had happened at the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts. Is it because of this secret treasure?”
The caravan was far better informed than the tea shop landlady. Having no intention of hiding anything, Su Guanying shared everything she knew upon hearing Shi Yu's inquiry.
Across the vast and endless sea of sand, Su Guanying's voice mingled with the crisp chiming of the camel bells.
Through her narration, Shi Yu gradually learned of the rumors surrounding the secret treasure within the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts.
It turned out that the place was the grave of an ancient powerhouse. Because too much time had passed, the ancient texts recording information about it were either lost or destroyed, leaving descendants with no knowledge of the powerhouse's name or background. Only a few scattered words had been passed down orally among the cultivators of the ancient desert.
Rumor had it that the grave contained treasures left behind by that powerhouse. The tales did not specify what items were inside, only that it held supreme good fortune capable of allowing one to leap to the top in a single bound and achieve the Immortal Dao.
“This was originally dismissed as nonsense born of false rumors. You see, although the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts has 'cave' in its name, it is actually a marsh that gathers evil and Yin energy. Many people have dived into the marsh in search of the legendary treasure, but the bottom is completely empty. Leave aside any treasure—not even half a spirit stone can be found!”
“However, a while ago—on the fifteenth of last month, the night of the full moon—the moonlight was as bright as day, and it actually projected an extraordinarily massive underground palace gate above the marsh.”
As Su Guanying reached this part, her eyes flickered with emotion. “That underground palace gate was originally tightly closed, but drawn by the moonlight, it slowly cracked open a gap. The gap was no wider than a finger, yet it was enough to let people clearly see the world beyond the gate.”
Shi Yu asked, “What was it like?”
“Beyond the gate was a display of wondrous visions. Palaces and pavilions appeared as though constructed from gold, jade, and glazed tiles. Floating jade bridges connected various marvelous sights, and at the very center stood a tower reaching into the clouds. Atop the tower rested a massive orb radiating thousands of colorful beams that illuminated the entire underground palace.” Although Su Guanying had not witnessed it herself, she pieced it together from the many accounts circulating, recreating a scene that was not far from the truth.
In the end, she could not hide her yearning. “It was undoubtedly an immortal's underground palace.”
A strange light flashed in Shi Yu's eyes, and she pressed on, “And what happened after?”
“Afterward...” Su Guanying composed herself and shook her head. “The gate only opened for a brief moment before slowly closing again. But since many people witnessed it, the news spread privately. From then on, numerous well-informed cultivators flooded into the ancient desert and headed for the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts, eager to enter the underground palace and search for the immortal secret treasure.”
“Regrettably, the gate has never opened again since. Many suspect that on the night of the next full moon, the gate will open once more.”
Shi Yu nodded thoughtfully. The next full moon night would be half a month from now.
She looked up at Su Guanying and offered a faint smile. “Is Miss Su not the least bit curious about the underground palace and the secret treasure?”
Su Guanying gave a self-deprecating shake of her head. “Even if there really is an underground palace secret treasure, my status and strength are nowhere near enough to participate in such a struggle. We are only here to trade in the ancient desert, and we neither wish to nor can get involved in such matters. As for you, Young Master Shi... if you truly plan to visit the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts, I advise you to think carefully before acting.”
Sitting beside them, Qingzhou—who had been listening quietly without a word—looked up and murmured softly, “Since we're already here, wouldn't it be a pity not to see it for ourselves?”
Seeing that they had no intention of changing their minds, Su Guanying said no more. She merely sighed and said, “Since you insist, I shall not try to dissuade you further. But the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts is exceedingly dangerous... Young Master Shi, please be utmost cautious.”
Ninth Uncle also chimed in with a frown. “The Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts was already an eerie and terrifying place, thick with accumulated evil and Yin energy where countless empty spirits and demons haunt the night. Now, it's even more treacherous. Ever since news of the secret treasure broke, crowds have rushed in to tamper with things, hoping to find a way into the underground palace. Sadly, most of them lack real ability. Not only did they fail, but they ended up causing the ghost Qi within the Cave of Ten Thousand Ghosts to surge, making the empty spirits even more ferocious and violent... Word is that even daytime isn't safe there anymore.”
“You must be extra, extra careful, and do not succumb to greed. If anything seems amiss, pull back immediately.”
Shi Yu's main goal in going there was merely to acquire the Jade-Blood Cold Gold and convert her energy into Yin and Yang Qi. As for the underground palace secret treasure, though she was curious, her intuition told her that something was amiss. Thus, she had no intention of obsessing over it, planning only to take a casual look along the way.
“Thank you both for letting us know. We will be careful.” Meeting Su Guanying's worried yet restrained gaze, Shi Yu nodded gently.
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