My understanding is incredible: I gained enlightenment and immortality in the Kunlun Demon Kingdom

Tian Siyao's heart raced, and she couldn't help but shrink back.

Qin Miyue sensed Tian Siyao's unease and gently patted the back of her hand, "It's okay, we're together."

As Chen Ze gazed ahead, he noticed a faint ray of light. "There seems to be an exit over there."

He drew his sword from its scabbard at his waist and guided them closer in the darkness.

When they emerged from the darkness, they were greeted by a vast, bright space.

Deep within the Misty Earth Veins lies a massive circular cave.

It emits a soft and mysterious light.

The three of them breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a strange sense of security.

They smiled at each other and began to explore the mysterious cave.

The cave is filled with a variety of rare flowers, brimming with life and vitality.

Tian Siyao gazed at a particularly striking red flower.

"We found it!" Tian Siyao said excitedly in a low voice.

Qin Miyue approached the red flower with delight. "This flower is so beautiful, but it seems to have a mysterious power."

Chen Ze stood deep inside the cave, gazing at this mysterious scene with bewilderment.

He suddenly remembered the oil painting he had seen in the tomb, which matched everything before him so perfectly.

“Perhaps this cave is the important location indicated in the painting,” Chen Ze said softly.

Tian Siyao and Qin Miyue looked at him at the same time, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes.

Tian Siyao said excitedly, "This cave might be hiding something, let's go in and take a look."

The three approached the red flower and found a small scroll of paper among the petals.

It contained an ancient and obscure text.

"This is a riddle," Chen Ze said, frowning as he read it.

"Head southeast, look for discordant sounds around you, and you will soon find the door to the treasure."

The three entered the cave and continued forward, following the guidance of the flowers.

Sunlight streamed through the cave's enormous opening, illuminating the ground and highlighting the colorful flowers.

However, they soon discovered that the cave was not as simple as they had initially expected.

After taking only a few steps, they encountered a huge abyss.

The bottom was endless; the black abyss resembled gaping, hungry maws, echoing with low, sinister roars from the darkness.

Tian Siyao gripped Qin Miyue's hand tightly. "What do we do? How can we get there?"

Qin Miyue frowned. "It seems we need to find a solution." Chen Ze stood at the edge, carefully examining the area below. "Perhaps we can find some stable objects to build a bridge."

The three began searching for usable items in the surrounding area.

Beside several tall flowers, they found some thick, sturdy vines.

“These vines should be strong enough.”

Chen Ze said, "We can use them to build a temporary bridge."

They quickly began securing the vines to the rock walls on both sides, gradually building a bridge connecting the two banks.

Despite the numerous difficulties they faced, they cooperated and worked hard to overcome them.

In the end, they successfully built the bridge.

As the three carefully crossed the abyss, the entire cave suddenly shook violently.

"What's going on?" Tian Siyao asked nervously.

"It's probably because we triggered some mechanism," Qin Miyue guessed.

Chen Ze looked around and found a button on the wall. "Maybe we need to press this button to activate the consecration."

With little time to waste, the three resolutely decided to press the button.

As soon as the button was pressed, the vibrations inside the cave stopped.

They exhaled a long breath and continued forward.

However, the traps inside the cave were not over yet.

They encountered fire-breathing dragon traps, dropped blades, and so on.

Faced with these difficulties, Tian Siyao, Qin Miyue, and Chen Ze all felt increasingly troubled and stressed. "It's okay, we've encountered these before," Chen Ze said firmly.

Qin Miyue took a deep breath, trying her best to appear calm.

The three regrouped and continued forward with even greater vigilance.

Finally, they emerged from the cave.

They also discovered that the earth veins contained a strange fragrance similar to that of the Duoyun Temple.

Back in Lianhua Village, they consulted with the village chief, Guiyue, for more information about Duoyun Temple and the Fog Pole Vein.

"Duoyun Temple was once a sacred place in our village."

Guiyue explained, "For decades, the villagers have followed the rules and have never found anything unusual during the worship process."

"Only some miners are allowed to enter the Fog Extreme Vein, and it has not been studied in detail."

She paused for a moment, "But I've heard that someone tried to enter the Fog Pole ley lines on their own and caused trouble."

The three exchanged glances and began to suspect that the miners of the Misty Earth Vein might be the masterminds behind the strange fragrance inside the Cloud Temple.

But they were also puzzled because the unknown miners seemed unaware of the effects of the fragrance inside the Duoyun Temple.

"It seems we need more clues," Chen Ze said in a low voice.

Tian Siyao nodded. "We can...we can ask other people."

"Let's see if anyone knows anything more."

Qin Miyue added, "We also need to look up information about the Fog Extreme Earth Vein." Qin Miyue, Tian Siyao, and Chen Ze stood in the village chief Guiyue's living room, all with serious expressions on their faces.

The three of them pondered silently, trying to clear their minds.

Qin Miyue felt anxious and uneasy.

Although they had done some investigation into the strange fragrance at the Duyun Temple, they still knew nothing.

They knew nothing about what had happened inside the Duoyun Temple, nor whether the Fog Extreme Earth Vein and the miners were involved.

She was eager to find the answer as soon as possible, but it seemed they had hit a roadblock.

Qin Miyue turned to Tian Siyao and Chen Ze, "We need information about those miners."

Tian Siyao nodded. "Yes, we can't jump to conclusions beforehand."

"There is currently no conclusive evidence to prove a possible link between the Fog Polar Vein and the self-harm incidents."

Chen Ze gazed at the bookshelf in the village chief's house, which was filled with archives and documents. "Perhaps before that, we can take a look at the archives and documents kept in the village."

Qin Miyue looked at Guiyue, "Village Chief Guiyue, do you know of any information or other clues related to the Fog Extreme Vein?"

After a moment of thought, Guiyue said, "We will hold a celebration during the Lunar New Year to commemorate the establishment of Duoyun Temple."

“There is some relevant information in the past records.”

All three expressed interest in this clue.

After leaving the village chief's house, they immediately went to the village archives.

There, Qin Miyue, Tian Siyao, and Chen Ze quickly began to peruse documents that had been stored for many years.

Although most of the records are about the customs and history of Lotus Village, they have not given up.

"Hey! I found a report related to the Fog Extreme Earth Vein!" Tian Siyao exclaimed excitedly.

Qin Miyue and Chen Ze immediately went over and focused on the report together.

The report describes the initial discovery of the Fog Pole Vein and the conditions observed during the mining operations at that time.

"According to this report, the miners discovered some strange things during the exploration process."

Qin Miyue's expression became even more serious. "They described a strong, exotic fragrance that is very similar to the fragrance we smelled inside the Duoyun Temple."

Chen Ze rubbed his temples. "That means there's a high chance there's some kind of connection between the Duoyun Temple and the Fog Extreme Earth Vein."

Tian Siyao continued reading the report, "There's another section that mentions one of the miners accidentally caused a disaster during his exploration."

"Although it wasn't described in great detail, it gives the impression that it wasn't a coincidence."

Now they are beginning to believe that there is indeed some kind of link between the Duoyun Temple and the Fog Extreme Earth Vein.

Qin Miyue said in a deep voice, "I believe the answer is very close to us."

Tian Siyao and Chen Ze nodded in agreement. (End of Chapter)