Immortality Cultivation: I can use my clansmen’s energy and blood to add points.

The beads emit a soft glow in the water, illuminating the underwater world.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang saw that there were no living creatures underwater, so they stepped onto the stone bridge leading to the platform with confidence.

The stone bridge trembled slightly under their feet, but it was still stable.

They finally reached the platform and stood in front of the glittering golden treasure chest.

Luo Chen stretched out his hand and gently stroked the surface of the treasure chest, feeling the warm light.

"What's in this treasure chest?" Qingshuang asked curiously.

"We can only know if we open it." Luo Chen replied.

The two looked at each other again, and then Luo Chen pushed open the lid of the treasure chest with force.

Inside the treasure chest, a huge gem emitted a dazzling light, and the gem was surrounded by circles of runes.

"Is this the legendary rune stone?" Qingshuang said in surprise.

"It seems that we have found the real secret treasure." Luo Chen's eyes flashed with excitement.

They knew that the value of this rune stone was immeasurable. It could not only improve their cultivation, but also help them go further on the path of cultivation.

Luo Chen carefully took out the spirit stone, and then the two of them left the platform together and returned to the stone bridge.

Just as they were about to leave, a low roar suddenly came from the depths of the cave.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang immediately became alert. They knew that there were unknown creatures waiting for them in the cave.

"Be careful, Qingshuang." Luo Chen whispered, his eyes scanning the surroundings, trying to find the source of the sound.

"I will." Qingshuang replied, her staff ready to attack at any time.

The roaring sounded closer and closer, and suddenly, a huge figure rushed out from the shadows of the cave.

It was a huge water monster, its eyes flashing with ferocious light, and it opened its mouth wide and pounced towards Luo Chen and Qing Shuang.

Luo Chen and Qingshuang immediately separated and avoided the water monster's attack.

Each attack of the water monster was accompanied by tremendous force, causing the stone bridge to shake.

"Luo Chen, we have to find a way to subdue it!" Qingshuang shouted loudly.

"I'll take the first move." Luo Chen replied, his sword drawing sharp streaks in the air, trying to restrain the water monster.

Qingshuang began to cast spells. Her staff danced in the air, and runes condensed at her fingertips and flew towards the water monster.

The rune exploded on the water monster's body, causing considerable damage.

After a fierce battle, Luo Chen and Qing Shuang finally worked together to subdue the water monster.

The water monster let out a final howl and then fell onto the stone bridge.

The two were breathing heavily. They knew that this expedition was full of dangers, but they also understood that only by going through these challenges could they become stronger.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang looked at each other, and there was a hint of fatigue in each other's eyes, but more of it was the joy of victory.

They knew that this victory was not only due to their strength, but also because of the tacit understanding and trust between them.

They walked over to the monster's body and examined it carefully.

The water monster's body was covered with traces of the Qingshuang spell and wounds caused by Luo Chen's sword energy.

Although the battle was over, they remained vigilant in case the monster resurrected again.

"This water monster doesn't seem to be an ordinary creature." Qingshuang said with a frown. She squatted down and began to observe the water monster's body carefully.

"Well, its skin is extremely hard and incredibly strong." Luo Chen also squatted down. He gently poked the skin of the water monster with the tip of his sword and found that even his sword could not easily penetrate it.

"Look here." Qingshuang pointed at the water monster's back, where there was a strange mark, like some ancient rune.

Luo Chen looked closer and found that the rune seemed to be somewhat similar to the rune on the rune stone they had found in the treasure chest before.

"Could this be some kind of controlling or sealing rune?" he guessed.

Qingshuang nodded, took out a tattered book from her waist and began to read it.

The pages of the book are yellowed, and contain many ancient spells and symbols.

After some searching, Qingshuang finally found the symbol that matched the mark.

"This symbol is the mark of the ancient water god. It represents control and protection." Qingshuang explained: "It seems that this water monster is controlled by some kind of power, perhaps to protect this secret treasure."

After hearing this, Luo Chen nodded thoughtfully.

"So, we may not be the first to discover this secret treasure. Maybe someone or some force has tried to use this water monster to protect this place."

"Yes, we have to be careful." Qingshuang closed the magic book and stood up. "This secret treasure may be more complicated than we thought."

Luo Chen also stood up. He looked around. The depths of the cave was still dark, as if it hid countless secrets.

"Let's keep going, but be more careful."

Qingshuang nodded, put the magic book back to her waist, then took out a glowing gem from her sleeve to illuminate the road ahead.

The two continued to move forward, going deeper into the cave.

As they went deeper, the air in the cave became more and more humid, and some strange plants began to appear on the walls. They emitted a faint fluorescence, illuminating the way ahead.

"These plants don't seem to grow naturally." Luo Chen observed these strange plants and found that the arrangement of these plants seemed to have a certain pattern.

"Yes, they are distributed in a very orderly manner and look like they were planted artificially." Qingshuang also noticed this.

They continued to move forward and finally came to a huge underground lake.

There are some strange flowers floating on the surface of the lake. They emit a faint fragrance that makes people feel dizzy.

"Be careful, these scents may be poisonous." Luo Chen reminded. He took out a medicine bottle from his waist, poured out two antidote pills and handed them to Qingshuang.

Qingshuang took the pill and after taking it, she felt a cool sensation and her mind became much clearer.

The two walked around the lake and came to a stone altar.

On the altar stood an ancient stone bowl filled with clear water.

"This water looks unusual." Luo Chen squatted down and carefully observed the water in the stone bowl.

Qingshuang also came over. She gently touched the water surface with her fingers and found that ripples were appearing on the water surface, as if there were life.

"This water may have some magical power." Qingshuang said. She took out an empty small bottle from her sleeve and carefully poured the water in the stone bowl into the bottle.

Just as they were about to leave the altar, suddenly, the ground beneath the altar began to shake, as if something was about to come out from the ground.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang immediately took a few steps back and looked around vigilantly.

The ground was shaking more and more violently, and suddenly, a huge stone door slowly rose from the ground, with complex runes engraved on it. "There must be a bigger secret behind this door." Luo Chen said, with a determined light in his eyes.

Qingshuang nodded. She knew that no matter what was hidden behind this door, they must explore it.

The two walked towards the stone gate together. Luo Chen stretched out his hand and pushed the stone door open with force.

The stone door slowly opened, revealing a long passage inside. There seemed to be a faint light at the end of the passage.

They walked into the passage and moved in the direction of the light.

The walls on both sides of the passage are covered with ancient murals depicting various strange creatures and mysterious rituals.

"These murals seem to tell the legend of the ancient water god." Qingshuang interpreted the contents of the murals as he walked.

As Luo Chen listened to Qingshuang's interpretation, he gained a deeper understanding of the origin and purpose of this secret treasure.

He knew that they were gradually uncovering the secrets of an ancient civilization.

At the end of the passage is a spacious stone chamber with a huge pool in the center. In the center of the pool floats a platform, and on the platform sits a treasure chest that is glowing blue.

"What's in this treasure chest?" Qingshuang asked curiously, with anticipation gleaming in her eyes.

"Who knows? Just start it." Luo Chen replied, with a hint of nervousness and excitement in his voice.

The two looked at each other again, and then Luo Chen pushed open the lid of the treasure chest with force.

Inside the treasure chest, a crystal ball emitting a soft blue light lay there quietly, surrounded by circles of runes.

"What is this?" Qingshuang said in surprise.

"Could it be a rune stone related to water?" Luo Chen's eyes flashed with excitement.

Luo Chen carefully took the crystal ball out of the treasure chest. He could feel that the soft blue light seemed to resonate with his spiritual power.

Qingshuang observed carefully from the side. She knew that this crystal ball was no ordinary thing.

"The power contained in this crystal ball is very strong." Qingshuang whispered, her fingers gently sliding across the runes on the surface of the crystal ball, "I have never seen such pure water energy."

Luo Chen nodded. He could feel that the crystal ball contained not only power, but also an ancient and mysterious wisdom.

"This may be the true treasure of this secret cache," he said, with a hint of awe in his voice.

The two stood by the pool, and the stone chamber around them was quiet and solemn.

Qingshuang suddenly remembered something. She took out the rune stone she had found before from her waist and compared it with the runes on the crystal ball.

"Look, these runes are very similar to the runes on the crystal ball." Qingshuang pointed out the connection between the two, "This may mean that the crystal ball has a direct connection with this secret treasure."

After careful observation, Luo Chen also discovered the secret.

"So, how do we use this crystal ball?" he asked a key question.

Qingshuang pondered for a moment, then slowly spoke: "Perhaps, we need to put it back on the altar and let it interact with other powers in the secret treasure."

The two decided to act according to Qingshuang's advice.

They carefully brought the crystal ball back to the altar and placed it next to the stone bowl in a specific order.

As soon as the crystal ball touched the altar, it began to emit a brighter light, and the air around it seemed to vibrate.

"Back off quickly!" Luo Chen shouted, and the two of them quickly retreated, watching the changes in the altar vigilantly.

The light gradually dissipated, and the runes on the altar began to emit a faint glow, and the entire stone chamber seemed to come alive.

Suddenly, a curtain of water rose from the pool, forming a transparent barrier separating them from the crystal ball.

"What's going on?" Qingshuang asked nervously. She had never seen such a scene before.

Luo Chen shook his head, he was also confused.

"Perhaps this is some kind of protection mechanism," he speculated. "Perhaps we need to wait."

They stood in front of the water curtain, waiting patiently.

As time passed, the water curtain suddenly began to fluctuate, and pictures emerged from it, as if telling an ancient story.

In the picture, an ancient civilization prospered under the protection of the water god, but later suffered a disaster and the entire civilization was almost destroyed.

In order to protect this secret treasure, the Water God used powerful magic power to seal it. Only those who truly understand the Water God's will can unlock the seal.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang looked at these scenes and were shocked.

They finally understood the significance of this secret treasure and the responsibilities they shouldered.

"We can't let the wisdom and power of this civilization disappear like this." Luo Chen said firmly, "We must pass on this knowledge."

Qingshuang nodded. She knew it would be a long and difficult road, but she believed that as long as they worked together, nothing would be impossible.

The two looked at the crystal ball again. It was no longer glowing and was lying quietly on the altar.

They know that now is not the time to use it and they need more preparation and understanding.

"Let's go back first." Qingshuang suggested, "We need more time to study these runes and images and find the correct way to use them."

Luo Chen agreed to Qingshuang's proposal, and they decided to keep the discovery secret until they fully understood the secret.

The two left the stone chamber and returned along the passage they came from.

The air in the cave was still humid, but their hearts were filled with hope and determination.

However, when they wanted to leave this secret underwater place along the original route.

Suddenly, there were hurried footsteps coming from all around.

Is someone coming???

Luo Chen and Qingshuang looked at each other, and a trace of nervousness flashed through their hearts.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and the two quickly looked for a hiding place, and finally hid in a hidden groove in the stone wall.

"Did you hear that?" a rough voice sounded in the passage.

"Yes, boss, the sound seems to come from the front." Another voice answered with a slight tremor.

"Hurry up, we have to find the legendary treasure before anyone else." The man called the boss urged.

Luo Chen and Qing Shuang held their breath, they knew that the target of these intruders was most likely the crystal ball they had just discovered.

They had to be careful not to let these uninvited guests discover their presence.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and a group of people wearing black cloaks appeared at the entrance of the stone chamber. (End of this chapter)