"The End" 027. (Mugong Family Arc) Strange Underground Cavern

Coming out of the mediocre doctor's clinic, facing the morning sunlight, Qingyan let out a long breath, and his expression, which had been stiff like a wooden board, relaxed.\ It was really tormenting! It seems that knowing some secrets is not a fun thing after all...\ Qingyan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, feeling bitter in his heart.\ Last night, after looking at the medical books' records about Chilon Yin and Tianxin Powder, and recalling what Xiaoyu said about the sudden appearance of Tianxin Powder in the mediocre doctor's clinic, Qingyan completely began to suspect the divine healer Bai Yan!\ Isn't it obvious? Originally, the conduct of this divine healer Bai Yan was very peculiar and he was also very taciturn. Although he looked fairly kind-faced, isn't there a saying: you can't judge a person by their appearance? Such a coincidence of Tianxin Powder appearing at the mediocre doctor's clinic at least indicates that this divine healer Bai Yan has some inexplicable relationship with the military of the Huaxia Empire. Since that's the case, who can deny that he isn't preparing some hidden plot? Moreover, where is there such an extraordinary healer? Uncle Li Chong's illness, despite seeing so many doctors, remained undiagnosed, yet with Bai Yan, in just a quarter of an hour, he could identify the nature of Li Chong's illness. Isn't that suspicious? Yes, it definitely is!\ Sure enough, divine healer Bai Yan has a problem!\ Qingyan's thoughts ran wild with speculation, and the more he thought, the more absurd the suspicions became. Yet, strangely, as he followed these guesses along, it only made him more certain of his initial suspicions.\ After all, he was still a fifteen-year-old boy; it was normal for his thoughts to be in disarray. However, is the truth really that simple? Now, no one could say for sure.\ Yet, regardless of the reality, such notions gradually took root in Qingyan's mind.\ Therefore, carrying a deep suspicion of divine healer Bai Yan, Qingyan escorted Muguang Xiaoyu to class in the morning, always feeling that in Bai Yan's gaze, there was constantly a murderous glint! Even the water that Bai Yan handed him in the clinic made him nervously suspect: could it be poisoned?\ After waiting for nearly half an hour, the divine healer Bai Yan finally began his medical lecture.Qingyan finally managed to break free from the entanglement of the witch Mugong Xiaoyu, and so he bolted out, rolling and crawling along the way, as if he never wanted to stay another second in this mediocre doctor's clinic!

Of course, Qingyan knew that whether or not there was this so-called conspiracy, there was almost no chance it would involve a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy like him who had nothing. However, knowing this and being so close to the mysterious Baiyan Divine Doctor, instinctively, one could not help but feel quite uneasy, even unconsciously developing a sense of aversion in one's heart.

With his thoughts tangled into a mess, Qingyan shook his head hard. Looking at the bustling street in front of him, he realized that he had already walked out of the outskirts where the mediocre doctor's clinic was located and returned to the central streets of Jingdong City during the time he had been lost in thought.

"Forget it, don't bother worrying about things that may not matter. I still have some silver in my pocket; I might as well buy some food early and give that big snake a treat."

Pressing his right hand to his temple, Qingyan forced himself to suppress his thoughts. After patting his money pouch, he finally decided and said in a voice only he could hear.

…

Time passed quickly, and the bustling of Jingdong City did not pause for even a moment. At this time, it was already noon.

On one side were the splendid, gilded residences of wealthy families, and on the other, towering curved valleys. Qingyan carried a huge pack on his back, and the strength with which he held it fully showed its weight.

This was the secluded valley at the back of the Mugong family estate. The high mountain blocked a large area of sunlight, creating a cool shade, complemented by the slightly chilly early February breeze—it was truly pleasant.

Going around an otherwise ordinary blue stone, Qingyan stooped slightly and stepped down, and a rock protruding from the mountain appeared before him.

The rock was about one person's height and not very wide. Pale green algae lightly crawled over it, hidden behind the blue stone, giving it a naturally cool and serene atmosphere.

Qingyan adjusted his breathing slightly, then summoned his profound power and continuously tapped on the smooth surface of the rock. Upon closer inspection, one could see that the tapping followed an extremely mysterious rhythm, and even the locations of the taps were carefully chosen.

“Boom! Boom!”As Qing Yan's final palm strike heavily struck the right side of the mountain rock, a heavy sound of moving rocks suddenly echoed from the rock in front of him.\ The heavy rock before his eyes was slowly moving!\ Qing Yan took a small step back, his face showing no hint of surprise.\ After a while, the rock before him had completely shifted to the left, revealing an opening just large enough to fit a person. A pitch-black darkness lay within the cave, and standing at the entrance, one could not see what was inside even a few meters away. It truly gave a deep and eerie feeling.\ Yet, without any hesitation, Qing Yan took a large step forward, crouched slightly, and entered the cave. His steps were steady, and in less than a moment, Qing Yan had stepped into the darkness, completely disappearing from sight!\ Nine steps! Turn left! Three steps! Turn right!\ In the darkness, Qing Yan showed no signs of panic, calmly counting his steps in his mind, with not a trace of hesitation in his movements.\ Suddenly, he stepped into emptiness! Qing Yan's body plunged downward instantly!\ Well-prepared, he flexed his legs to cushion the fall from the two-meter drop and immediately regained his footing. Before him, a sudden expanse of brightness appeared!\ A fiery red color! The first impression it gave was a full view of crimson, without any exaggeration.\ This particular cave was entirely made of a peculiar fiery red rock. Or rather, to be precise, the fiery red all around was an extremely rare volcanic molten stone.\ The volcanic molten stone is entirely red, not very hard, and feels smooth like jade to the touch. As the name suggests, it is a unique stone found only around active volcanoes. Within this stone, a large presence of volcanic lava scales remains can be found, which continuously emit a fiery red luster and can last for decades. It is a very popular material in human settlements. Of course, its most precious aspect is the powerful fire elemental energy it contains. Especially those molten stones formed over thousands of years by active volcanoes can significantly accelerate the cultivation of fire elemental power, equivalent to the cultivation that an ordinary person would achieve in several years!The volcanic cavern before him, judging by its deep and heavy crimson color, clearly showed its history of thousands of years, and its preciousness could be imagined.

What lay ahead was an underground cavern entirely composed of volcanic rock! At first glance, it covered an area of four to five hundred square meters, with a faint red glow continuously emanating from the surrounding rocks. A warm yet slightly cool feeling filled the entire underground cavern. The pale red firelight gave this tranquil cave an extremely magical and enchanting color.

However, Qing Yan paid no attention to the cavern's strangeness and instead gazed directly at the left side of the cave, where a calm, mirror-like underground lake lay.

"Splash!"

Suddenly, the surface of the lake broke as the water collided, raising a sparkling splash. A completely crimson object was about to leap out of the lake!