You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

He tentatively stepped on it and felt that there was some emptiness below.

There's something here.

He beckoned the woman's remaining spirit over.

The woman's remnant spirit drifted closer, her soul power gently sweeping over the stone slab, and she nodded.

"There is a passage below, and the entrance has very faint remnants of the restriction, but it is basically ineffective, leaving only a slight warning-like fluctuation."

Chen Yang carefully used his Xuan Sword to pry open the thick bluestone slab, revealing a dark, downward-pointing hole. An old but not decaying or dangerous aura wafted out.

"Shall we go down?"

Chen Yang looked at the woman's remnant spirit, his brows furrowing slightly.

“I have a feeling that there’s something indescribable about down there. It’s not exactly dangerous, but there’s no direct threat of death. It just makes me uneasy. How about we go check out the ancestral hall first? The targets are more obvious there, and maybe we can find more direct clues.”

The remnant spirit of the woman seemed quite persistent, gazing at the cave entrance with a look of inquiry in her eyes.

"My lord, my soul perception is more sensitive to the aura of these ancient ruins."

What I feel about this place is more of the sedimentation of time and some lingering 'ideas' than a real trap or killing formation.

Since the teleportation brought us to this island, and this passage just happened to appear, perhaps the key lies below. While the ancestral hall should certainly be investigated, I feel this place deserves our priority. Besides, with you here, even if something is indeed there, we can handle it together.”

Seeing that her argument was reasonable and her attitude was firm, Chen Yang no longer objected.

He was not a timid person to begin with; his reminder just now was more out of caution.

"Okay, let's go down and take a look. You stay behind me and stay alert."

The two stepped into the downward-sloping passageway, one after the other. The passageway was rather crudely carved, but spacious enough for two people to walk side by side. The walls were made of some kind of hard, bluish-gray rock, covered with traces of erosion from the years.

Before they had gone far, Chen Yang and the woman's remnant spirit were drawn to the carvings on the stone wall.

Those were not simple patterns, but a series of continuous reliefs, like ancient murals!
Although the lines are somewhat blurred due to their age, the general content can still be discerned.

The first few images depict a group of primitive people dressed in simple animal skins and holding stone spears and wooden bows, hunting a huge and ferocious beast!

Some of those giant beasts looked like saber-toothed tigers magnified dozens of times, some had bone spurs on their backs, and some spewed flames from their mouths. They were clearly not ordinary creatures, but more like legendary ancient species!

"This……"

Chen Yang gasped as he looked at the mural, pointing to the tiny yet fearless figures rushing towards the giant beast.

"What kind of people were these ancestors? The creatures they hunted, any one of them would be enough to give a Golden Core cultivator a headache today!"
"They dare to go in with only stone spears, wooden bows, and simple teamwork?"

The woman's remnant spirit drifted closer, observed carefully, and whispered.

"My lord, look at the movements and positions of these ancestors, and the faint lines flowing on their bodies... They were not just ordinary people."

They seem to possess some primal power that resonates with nature or totems. You can see the faint glow of wind or fire on the stone spears they throw, and the earth's power surging beneath their feet as they run.

This is more like... an ancient cultivation system that has long been lost, closely integrated with nature and totems.

Upon hearing this, Chen Yang looked more closely and indeed found that the ancient people and their weapons were engraved with some simple but powerful strange patterns, which echoed some of the natural patterns on the giant beasts they hunted.

As you move forward, the content of the murals begins to change. Scenes of the early inhabitants' settlement life, sacrificial rituals, and... sitting cross-legged on the ground, engaging in some kind of "contemplation" or "cultivation" towards the sun, moon, stars, or certain strange symbols appear.

The sense of energy flow in the images became increasingly stronger, even depicting scenes of ancient people controlling water, igniting subterranean fire, and communicating with the spirits of giant beasts.

"This goes beyond the scope of ordinary tribal civilizations."

Chen Yang looked solemn.

"They follow a path that is completely different from our current Qi cultivation and immortality practice, and they are more inclined to the direct resonance and borrowing of power between the physical body, the soul and all things in nature."

Further on, the murals become more abstract and mysterious. Lines that look like maps appear, marking mountains, rivers, and unique symbolic nodes.

There are also intricate patterns resembling star trails, and... depicting scenes of early people kneeling before a blurred portal that appears to be made of light.

"These patterns... are somewhat like some kind of guide, or... a treasure map?"

Chen Yang pointed to the map-like lines and special symbols.

The woman's remnant spirit nodded.

"Possibly."

These murals may be historical records and hints of heritage left by the island's early inhabitants.

The two carefully observed the murals as they proceeded. The passageway was not straight; after several turns, it suddenly opened up before them, revealing a huge natural grotto.

The grotto is an irregular circle, about ten zhang high and more than thirty zhang in diameter, and appears very spacious.

The rock walls surrounding the grotto are also covered with various scenes of sacrifices, dances, and coexistence with strange creatures, in a style consistent with the murals in the passageway, but on a larger scale and with richer details.

Most strikingly, eight dark, uniformly sized arched passageways are prominently displayed in all directions of the grotto! Above each entrance is an ancient, barely recognizable rune, emanating a faint but distinct aura.

"Eight Gates?"

Chen Yang's eyes narrowed as he walked to the center of the cave and looked around at the eight passageways.

"Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, Dui... Sheng, Si, Jing, Shang, Du, Jing, Xiu, Kai."

This was arranged according to the principles of Qimen Dunjia! Of the eight passages, only one is a safe exit—the others are either dead ends or treacherous traps!

The woman's remnant spirit floated to his side, looked at the eight deep cave entrances, and frowned.

"I don't have a deep understanding of formations, especially ancient formations that combine space and divination techniques."

"Sir, can you tell which one is the gate of life?"

Chen Yang did not answer immediately. Instead, he closed his eyes and slowly spread his divine sense, carefully sensing the subtle energy fluctuations, airflow changes, and even differences in rock wall textures emanating from the eight passage entrances.

At the same time, he quickly recalled the records of Qimen Dunjia and the key points of breaking the formation in the Qingwei School's classic texts.

"The Eight Gates are not fixed and can change with time, space and the intention of the person who sets up the formation. This place is ancient and the formation has no one in charge, but its basic principles still remain."

Chen Yang muttered to himself, his feet beginning to move in a mysterious footwork, his fingers forming hand seals, and his mouth chanting incantations, as if he were calculating something.

He would sometimes approach a passageway to sense the energy, and sometimes retreat to the center to observe the overall layout. The woman's remnant spirit followed quietly by his side, without disturbing him.

Suddenly, a glint flashed in Chen Yang's eyes as he pointed to the second passage on the left front.

"This gate has a hidden glimmer of life within its obscure aura. It seems ordinary at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the airflow within it is the most natural and smooth, the runes on the rock walls are the least worn, and it subtly forms a triad with the surrounding 'Rest' and 'Scenery' gates... It should be the Gate of Life!"
but……"

He changed the subject, his expression turning serious.

"The one who set up the formation is highly skilled. There must be confusion and tests before the gate of life. Look at this passage entrance, it seems unharmed, but three feet below the ground, there are three intersecting ground spike restrictions remaining. Three feet above the rock wall, there are faint, slow fluctuations of divine consciousness."

There's another triggered illusion trap at the third step on the left. We must proceed with extreme caution.

As he spoke, he took the lead and walked towards the passage. With the Xuan Sword in hand, he lightly touched the ground with the tip of the sword, infusing it with subtle magical power, easily triggering the hidden ground spikes.

After a few soft "clicks," several rusty but still sharp metal spikes popped out from the ground and slowly retracted, clearly having exhausted their energy and leaving only mechanical structures.

"Follow my steps, and don't go astray."

Chen Yang reminded the woman of her remaining spirit, and then carefully walked into the passage following the calculated safe path.

He would sometimes slash his sword to cut off the invisible threads of divine consciousness interference in the air, and sometimes flick out a few gusts of wind from his fingers to strike specific locations on the rock wall, dissolving potential trigger points for illusions.

The woman's remnant spirit followed step by step, her soul light and agile, and proceeded smoothly.

As she passed a seemingly ordinary rock wall, she subconsciously glanced at it again. The eye of a totem on the rock wall seemed to blink, and a chilling spiritual shock quietly arrived!

She let out a muffled groan, and her soul fluctuated violently.

"careful!"

Chen Yang reacted extremely quickly, turning around and striking the totem with his palm. Lightning burst forth from his palm, completely erasing the remaining evil spiritual imprint.

"Although these restrictions have been in disrepair for many years, some insidious tricks are still hard to guard against."

"Thank you, sir. It was my carelessness."

The woman's remnant spirit was still shaken, and she had even greater faith in Chen Yang's ability to break the formation.

With Chen Yang's precise guidance and intervention, the two passed through the relatively short passageway without any major incidents.

When the view opened up again, they found themselves standing before a tightly closed stone door made of some kind of warm, white jade.

Before even pushing open the stone door, an incredibly rich fragrance, a blend of countless herbs and exotic medicinal properties, seeped out from the cracks! Just a whiff of it made Chen Yang feel his pores open up, and his internal magical power seemed to become more active!
"Such a strong medicinal smell!"

Chen Yang and the woman's remnant spirit exchanged a glance, both seeing the astonishment in each other's eyes.

Chen Yang reached out and cautiously pushed the stone door. The stone door was lighter than he had imagined, sliding open silently.

In an instant, an even more powerful aroma of medicine wafted over, almost forming a light mist!
Behind the door was a stone chamber, slightly smaller than the outer grotto, but more exquisite. Several luminous pearls emitting a soft white light were embedded in the ceiling of the chamber, illuminating the entire space.

In the center of the stone chamber is a square pool made of the same type of white jade, which occupies most of the area!
The pool was not filled with ordinary clear water, but rather displayed a magnificent, slowly flowing seven-colored hue! Upon closer inspection, the "water" was actually a spiritual liquid formed by the melting and mixing of countless rare and precious natural treasures that had long since disappeared!
Crimson Flame Fruit, Nine-Leaf Ice Lotus, Dragon Blood Grass, Star Sand... many names that Chen Yang had only seen in ancient books could now be found in the pool with corresponding spiritual light flashing!

Even more miraculously, bubbles kept rising from the bottom of the pool, carrying incredibly pure spiritual energy, causing the spiritual liquid in the entire pool to gently boil and churn like a hot spring, but it was not scalding hot; instead, it exuded a warm and intoxicating vitality.

"This is... a spirit pool? A medicinal pool?"

Chen Yang walked to the edge of the pool and stared in shock at the terrifying accumulation of resources within.

Even a single ladleful of this could cause a bloodbath in the outside world!
The woman's remnant spirit also drifted to the edge of the pool, her soul seemingly becoming more solidified as she approached this boundless vitality.

She carefully observed the pool, then looked at the bubbling spring at the bottom, and suddenly realized.

"My lord, this is no ordinary medicinal pool. Look at the bottom of the pool; that is the source of a rare 'Earth Spirit Spring'!"

This spiritual spring contains the purest life force of heaven and earth, its energy gentle yet vast, a sacred substance for nourishing all things. It is precisely because of this spiritual spring as its foundation that so many rare and precious medicinal treasures, each with different attributes and potent medicinal properties, can be perfectly fused and nurtured, retaining their vitality even after countless years, and instead stimulating each other, thus enhancing their medicinal effects!

This is truly astonishing!

Chen Yang then understood why these rare and precious treasures had been able to coexist to this day.

His gaze swept across the walls of the stone chamber, and he noticed that the surrounding walls were also covered with various patterns and... characters?
The characters were twisted like insects and snakes, ancient and vigorous, unlike any other script he knew, clearly an extremely ancient script.

"Woman, can you read these words?"

Chen Yang pointed to the wall and asked.

This woman, a remnant spirit, is of extraordinary birth and possesses extensive knowledge; perhaps she knows someone.

The woman's lingering spirit drifted to the wall, gazed intently at it, and after a moment, nodded.

I recognize some of them.

This is 'Primordial Spiritual Script', a very ancient script often used to record important traditions or events.

The contents recorded here…

She read it aloud as she identified it.

"'Gathering the essence of the eight directions and the essence of the earth's veins, this cleansing pool is built. All members of my clan, or those who are destined to enter, can cleanse their marrow and bones, rebuild their foundation, and be reborn...' The following is a description of the pool's effects, taboos, and auxiliary techniques."

She turned her head, her eyes filled with excitement and certainty.

"My lord, this spiritual spring medicinal pool is called the 'Purification Pool'."

Its function is to cleanse the bones and marrow, reshape the foundation of the physical body, and even nourish and purify the soul!
For practitioners, this is an unparalleled opportunity! Look at these murals; they depict the scene of our ancestors undergoing a complete transformation while immersed in the pools.”

Chen Yang followed her finger and saw that the pattern on the wall did indeed depict a figure cultivating in a pool, expelling impurities and radiating brilliance. However, he still had doubts.

"The medicinal properties in this pool are a mixture of countless rare and precious herbs, further enhanced by the spiritual spring; it certainly seems extraordinary. However, after such a long period of time, its specific effects, whether it will undergo unknown changes, and whether there are hidden costs or risks are all unpredictable. Should we…"

Before he could finish speaking, the woman's remnant spirit seemed completely captivated by the "Cleansing Pool," a resolute glint flashing in her eyes. (End of Chapter)