After the Immortal Disappeared

Chapter 135: Chapter 136: An... An Immortal Cave Mansion?

Wu Shaoyi’s breathing was still faint. ”Are you a government soldier, or one of the Lui Thief’s men?”

Hee Lingchuan picked a black smudge from his temple. ”Government soldier.”

”You’re not wearing armor. Not just a common grunt, are you?”

”No.” Hee Lingchuan was impressed. ’The man is about to die, yet his eyes are still so sharp?’ ”I just handle errands for the squad.”

He seized control of the conversation. ”It’s clearly a Great Demon. Why do you call it the Crocodile God?”

”It came from the Northern Demon Kingdom to support the Saint Master. In any battle on the lakes and rivers, as long as it led the charge, we would win nine times out of ten. The army worshiped it as the Crocodile God, often sacrificing cattle and sheep to it. Other than the Saint Master, it... never communicated with anyone. Anyone who offended it, friend or foe, would be bitten to death.”

That was why, even though Wu Shaoyi knew the Crocodile Demon was sentient, he had never thought of speaking to it.

Relying on experience could be fatal.

Hee Lingchuan thought for a moment. The south was full of marshes, so Busin’s Rebel Army would indeed often have to attack Water Strongholds and Po City. ”So it was Hong Xiangqian’s Spirit Pet.”

”Not a Spirit Pet.” Wu Shaoyi shook his head slowly. ”The Saint Master once did it a great favor, and it was merely repaying the debt. It wasn’t a master-servant relationship. After the Saint Master passed away, no one saw the Crocodile God again. We all thought it had returned to the north, but unexpectedly, it’s now sided with Lui Yao.”

He sighed deeply at this.

’If not for the giant crocodile’s surprise attack, I would be cutting off Lui Yao’s head right now, not lying here waiting to die.’

Hee Lingchuan glanced at the giant crocodile not far away and suddenly understood how the tide of fish rushing toward the lake shore last night had happened. This giant crocodile was clearly not as peaceful as the Spirit Turtle. He figured the crocodile must have come out to hunt then, and its powerful presence had sent the Water Race fleeing in a panic.

The tide of fish had actually indicated its direction of travel.

In other words, the giant crocodile was swimming toward the shore at that time, while a few unsuspecting soldiers were scrubbing themselves in the lagoon. Just as they were about to become a tasty meal for the crocodile, Lui Yao, not wanting to alert the enemy, personally got into the water and ”persuaded” this Crocodile King to stop.

’And that giant fish he’d caught as a trophy? It must have been stunned by either fear or a blow from the giant crocodile.’

”Right, when we were retreating just now, I don’t know what Magical Artifact Lui Yao used to ambush us, but it blew my shield and horse to pieces. I fell off the cliff, and the thing actually chased after me!” Hee Lingchuan’s heart still pounded with fear as he recalled it. ”If I go back out, I wonder if I’ll be ambushed again.”

”You didn’t get a clear look?”

”It was too fast. Just a white blur. I think it was... an arrow?” Hee Lingchuan wasn’t sure.

”The Ghost Eye Bow,” Wu Shaoyi murmured. ”A treasure that belonged to the Saint Master. So Lui Yao got his hands on it too.”

”What’s that?”

”An arrow that can track and wound its target on its own is fired from the Ghost Eye Bow,” Wu Shaoyi explained. ”If it misses the first time, it can strike two more times. It’s also called the ’One Arrow, Three Strikes’.”

”Three times in total?” Hee Lingchuan relaxed a little. ”Are you sure?”

”Just as you said: it blew up your shield, killed your horse, and then shot at you again at the bottom of the cliff. With all three strikes used up, you should be safe now.”

Speaking of which, when Hee Lingchuan had gone to search the giant turtle earlier, he noticed the Divine Bone Necklace on his chest was flashing with a red light.

’Was this a sign that there was treasure on the turtle’s body?’

But after he’d searched it inside and out, the Divine Bone Necklace was still glowing, which was strange.

’Did that mean there was still some hidden treasure on the turtle’s body that he hadn’t found?’

When it was time to leave, Hee Lingchuan still felt uneasy, so he walked back to the giant turtle for another look.

He noticed the red light would sometimes grow stronger and sometimes weaker, as if changing based on his position.

Wu Shaoyi asked him, ”What are you doing?”

”Wait, something doesn’t feel right.” ’If the strength of the Divine Bone Necklace’s red glow indicated proximity, then with the giant turtle right in front of him, the light shouldn’t be changing at all.’

’Could there be something unusual nearby?’

Hee Lingchuan searched everywhere with the candle and finally found a gray clamshell on the ground not far from the turtle’s foot, tucked into a recess in the rock wall.

It was a little smaller than a coconut. In this light, someone with poorer eyesight would never have noticed it.

’Food left over by a Water Spirit?’ ’Doesn’t seem likely. The giant turtle had a huge mouth. Wouldn’t it have just crunched a clam like this in one bite?’

He reached out to pry the clamshell open but couldn’t budge it.

’This thing is tough.’

The giant crocodile, which hadn’t finished resting, suddenly spoke. ”What are you doing?”

Hee Lingchuan could only say, ”It seems like there’s something else here.” ’Anything that can make the Divine Bone Necklace glow has to be a treasure. I don’t want to miss it.’

The Crocodile Demon swished its tail, stirring the pool with a great SPLASH. ”There’s a Cave Mansion behind that dead turtle.”

Both men were stunned. ”What?”

”It occupied a Cave Mansion. Otherwise, why would it make its nest in a place this dark and small?” the Crocodile Demon said. ”I waited outside the Cave Mansion for half a day before I caught this turtle crawling out.”

”A Cave Mansion? The kind that legends say only Immortals possess. Are you sure?”

”Why don’t you go in and see for yourself?”

This news was far more shocking than the existence of the giant turtle or the Crocodile God itself. Filled with curiosity, Hee Lingchuan walked behind the giant turtle and reached out to touch the stone wall.

’He’d heard eighty, if not a hundred, legends about Immortals, all saying that Upper Immortals had world-shaking powers. In that case, an Immortal’s Cave Mansion must be pretty extraordinary, right?’

’I have to go see this marvel for myself.’

The uneven rock wall was solid. He knocked on it. It was hollow.

’Is this how you open a Cave Mansion? I’m so clueless.’ The Crocodile Demon instructed him, ”There’s a shell in the corner. Kick it.”

’Oh, so this gray clamshell isn’t for prying, it’s for kicking?’

’Who would have thought of that?’

He stuck out his foot and gave it a kick, and the clamshell opened its mouth. At the same time, ripples seemed to spread across the stone wall, and then an opening appeared.

Light shone out from within.

The Crocodile Demon closed its eyes and said, ”Go on in. It’s safe inside.” It had, of course, been inside before.

Only after hearing this did Hee Lingchuan feel safe enough to walk in.

The space inside resembled a small courtyard on a back mountain. The sky was a hazy gray, neither bright nor dark.

The rocks bore traces of long-term water erosion, suggesting it was once a pool, but now there wasn’t a single drop of water. The ground was barren. The plants had long since withered and died, with only a few grass stems stuck to the cracked earth, their original forms unrecognizable.

Only the small courtyard still looked intact, but its style was completely different from any Hee Lingchuan had ever seen. It must have originally been exceptionally luxurious and elegant, as he could see a faint trace of gold trim remaining under the eaves, but much of the wall plaster had peeled away.

There were drag marks in the sandy soil on the ground, and half of the fence had collapsed. It looked like the work of either the giant turtle or the Crocodile God.

Hee Lingchuan walked into the small courtyard. The door was open, and inside, it was fully furnished, though some pieces had been knocked over. Scrolls were scattered everywhere, and a skeleton sat on a meditation cushion on the first floor.

Hee Lingchuan couldn’t understand the script on the book covers. He casually picked one up, but the moment his fingertip touched the cover, the entire book disintegrated into ash.

’That’s it?’

’This is an Immortal Cave Mansion? It’s nothing like the ethereal and magically radiant place I’d imagined.’

The dust was choking. Hee Lingchuan fought back a sneeze, terrified he might blast the other scrolls here to dust as well.

Reading the books was a lost cause, so he squatted down to examine the skeleton on the meditation cushion.