On the path to immortality, I can see destiny.

Zhao Fan stepped forward, stopped in front of the skeleton, and seeing nothing unusual, reached out and picked up the box.

The box wasn't locked, and Zhao Fan easily opened it.

Inside the box, there was only one thing: an ordinary-looking black ring.

Zhao Fan reached out and picked up the ring, and then heard a voice in his ear.

"This item contains my entire legacy, the culmination of a thousand years of accumulation. Those who are destined to receive it may take it."

Zhao Fan was startled and immediately threw the box and ring away, then looked around warily.

After waiting for a long time, nothing happened.

He was a little confused, so he carefully moved forward and tried to pick up the box and the ring.

This time, it was completely quiet, with no more strange noises.

Once he was sure everything was alright, Zhao Fan recalled the sound he had just heard.

"A thousand years of accumulation, those with the right fate will take it..."

He had heard his master say that a cultivator's lifespan is related to their cultivation level. Normally, a cultivator in the Qi Refining stage has a lifespan that is almost no different from that of an ordinary person.

Although most Qi cultivators can live up to 110 or 120 years, there are also ordinary people who live to be 100.

Rather than saying that Qi Refining cultivators have increased lifespan, it would be more accurate to say that Qi Refining cultivators are more likely to live to the limit of human lifespan.

Only by reaching the Foundation Establishment stage can one be considered to have fully embarked on the path of cultivation, and their lifespan can double, reaching two or three hundred years.

This is what the middle-aged cultivator surnamed Su meant when he said he had not yet entered the Dao.

Above that are the Golden Core stage cultivators, whose lifespan is based on the Foundation Establishment stage, but doubles to five or six hundred years.

Above that lies the legendary realm of the Nascent Soul stage. It is said that those who reach this realm can live for over a thousand years, and their magical power is so vast that it can move mountains and overturn seas.

The voice spoke of a thousand years of accumulation; could it be a Nascent Soul stage ancestor?

Thinking of this, Zhao Fan's heart skipped a beat.

Previously, Master had been saying that the Zhou family patriarch had obtained the inheritance of a Foundation Establishment cultivator and would soar to great heights, achieving Foundation Establishment.

If the inheritance of a Foundation Establishment cultivator is this powerful, then wouldn't the inheritance of a Nascent Soul cultivator enable one to achieve Nascent Soul status?

Although Zhao Fan didn't quite understand what the Nascent Soul represented, just the fact that it granted a thousand-year lifespan was something everyone longed for.

"Since you've said so, senior, then I'll accept it."

Zhao Fan chuckled, clutching the ring tightly in his hand, reluctant to let go.

However, Zhao Fan felt somewhat guilty for taking it away, as it was a gift from his senior. After thinking for a moment, he respectfully bowed three times to the remains in front of him.

Zhao Fan was quite convinced of the cave's owner's identity as a Nascent Soul stage cultivator.

Just based on that one spiritual spring outside, it's definitely not something an ordinary cultivator could possess.

Finally, Zhao Fan glanced around again to make sure there was nothing else he could take with him before turning away and leaving the room.

As Zhao Fan came out, the door slowly closed again until it shut once more.

However, when Zhao Fan tried to retrieve the tortoise shell, he discovered that the tortoise shell that had been embedded in the door had disappeared!

After circling the house, Zhao Fan couldn't find the tortoise shell and could only silently accept the situation.

However, compared to the inheritance, that tortoise shell is nothing.

After figuring it out, Zhao Fan happily walked down the stairs.

He casually put the ring on his hand and examined it closely by the light of the surrounding luminous pearls.

It has to be said that the items of a Nascent Soul cultivator are extraordinary; the more Zhao Fan looked at them, the better they seemed.

As he walked, Zhao Fan suddenly remembered something: he didn't seem to know how to get out.

Just then, a faint cool sensation emanated from the ring, traveled up my arm, and finally converged in my eyes.

A strange change also appeared before Zhao Fan's eyes.

Zhao Fan couldn't quite put his finger on what the change was; he only felt that what he saw seemed different from before.

Strange air currents appeared in the air.

Although the airflow was clearly transparent, Zhao Fan could see it clearly, and he could even see completely different colors within these transparent streams of air.

Zhao Fan reached out and could gently manipulate these strange gusts of air.

Although it can be turned, it still cannot change the direction of the airflow.

Zhao Fan soon discovered something else: some air currents were actually flowing from his own body. These air currents looked very strange to Zhao Fan. Looking at the "color" they displayed, Zhao Fan could instantly sense that these air currents belonged to him.

The air currents emanating from him all converged in the same direction, surging deeper into the cave.

Attracted by the aura, Zhao Fan took a step and followed.

……

On the other side, Zhang Tie was walking along a dark corridor.

He had been walking along this road for who knows how long, but no matter how he walked, he could never get out.

He grew increasingly anxious as he couldn't find Zhao Fan and the cultivator surnamed Lu.

With spiritual power at his disposal, Zhao Fan might not be a match for the cultivator surnamed Lu.

As he was walking, he suddenly kicked something.

There had never been anything unusual on the road before, but this time he suddenly kicked something, which surprised him. Finally, something was different.

Reaching down, Zhang Tie touched a cold, oval-shaped hard object.

As soon as the hard object was in his hand, before Zhang Tie could examine it carefully, it moved up his arm and, in the blink of an eye, reached his chest.

Zhang Tie was startled by the thing and immediately reached up to his chest, gripping it tightly, trying to pry it off.

No matter how hard he tried, the thing remained stuck to his chest, completely unmoved.

After a while, Zhang Tie finally realized that the thing didn't seem to have caused any harm to his body, so he was relieved for the time being.

Looking up again, Zhang Tie could hardly believe his eyes. The dark passage that he had been walking for who knows how many hours had suddenly opened up a door in front of him!

Zhang Tie strode forward and pushed hard with his hand.

The door was easily pushed open, and the light from the luminous pearl filled Zhang Tie's eyes.

He glanced around and saw that the flowers on both sides were in full bloom and had a wonderful fragrance.

After confirming that the surrounding environment was safe, he immediately looked at his chest to see what was stuck to his body.

After seeing it clearly, Zhang Tie was both surprised and delighted.

This is actually the tortoise shell that Zhao Fan was wearing before!

During his previous fight with Zhao Fan, he saw by the moonlight that the impenetrable thing on Zhao Fan's body was extending from the tortoise shell.

Or rather, this is what they wanted to take from Zhao Fan.

Although he didn't know why, this thing actually appeared beside him on its own initiative and has now become one with him. No matter how you look at it, it's a great thing.

"It was probably lost when that kid fell. In that case, even if Brother Lu encounters him, he should be able to defeat him easily."

Thinking to himself, Zhang Tie walked forward along the path. When he reached the stream, he was so surprised to see that the nearly two-meter-wide stream was carrying a huge amount of spiritual energy. He was speechless.

After a moment's hesitation, Zhang Tie immediately knelt on the ground.

"This junior did not intend to trespass into your cave, senior. Please spare my life!"

He called out several times but received no response. Then he quietly looked up and realized that there really was no one there!

An uninhabited cultivator's cave dwelling; it's unclear whether the owner is gone or has gone out.