Half an hour later.
In this Secret Chamber, apart from a withered skeleton, nothing remained; even the soil in the flowerbed was packed up by Xiao Xue.
These medicinal herbs were greenhouse plants; the fact that they could survive in this pitch-black Secret Chamber, and even grow so well, was simply defying the laws of nature.
Therefore, Xiao Xue felt that this soil had something special about it; it must have been "altered" by the influence of something underneath.
Using this soil to preserve rare medicinal herbs was surely more effective than those jade bottles or jade boxes.
Anyway, this soil was not a renewable resource, so there was no issue of depleting the roots; it would be a waste not to take it.
However, after turning the Secret Chamber upside down, apart from the herbs in the flowerbed, Xiao Xue did not discover anything else unusual.
However, since the [Hidden Mission] had not been settled yet, and the completion rate was not even 20%, it meant that there were still hidden mysteries here.
Very quickly, Xiao Xue thought of a method.
It had rained a few days ago, and this Secret Chamber was located below the entrance of the cave.
Before she entered, quite a bit of rainwater had accumulated at the entrance, only it had been blocked outside by her using her water control ability.
For Xiao Xue, who already possessed the cultivation of a Dou Master, this was not a difficult task.
And now, this rainwater could come in handy.
With a thought from Xiao Xue, the rainwater at the entrance flowed in.
Xiao Xue took out a small jade bottle from her storage ring, poured the colored medicinal liquid inside onto the rainwater, and then waited to see what would happen.
The medicinal liquid formed a huge yellow-green patch in the water. After a moment, a thin line of yellow-green color quietly flowed along the bottom of the water, like a small, sentient snake.
Soon, that line reached the bluestone platform where the three boxes were placed, and then it stopped moving forward, as if it had been blocked by something.
However, Xiao Xue knew that the water flow had not stopped moving forward; rather, it had flowed downwards.
Having found the direction, things would be easy to handle.
It seemed the entrance to these Ancient Ruins was right under this stone platform.
At the same time, Xiao Xue also discovered something unusual about this stone platform.
Within this bluestone platform, there seemed to be a mechanism.
Xiao Xue took out tools from her storage ring, pried open the stone box fixed on top of the stone platform, and then revealed a satisfied smile.
"As expected, just as I thought."
Underneath the three stone boxes were three keyholes, perfectly corresponding to the three keys that opened the stone boxes.
"I knew it! How could there be such a poor Dou Zun Ancient Ruins!"
Xiao Xue: As expected of me.JPG
After the keys were fully inserted into the three keyholes, the bluestone platform holding the stone boxes slowly moved aside, revealing a pitch-black passage.
Xiao Xue held her sword in one hand and a flashlight, exchanged from the System for 10 experience points, in the other, slowly walking downwards.
The reason Xiao Xue was so reckless and dared to go down and investigate directly was because she had just cast a [Detect] downwards:
[Danger Level: Low]
In other words, the methods remaining in these Ancient Ruins did not pose much danger.
If the danger level were [Advanced], Xiao Xue would definitely turn around and leave without looking back, waiting until she possessed the strength of a Dou Wang or Dou Huang to return.
No matter how good the Opportunity was, one had to be alive to take it.
However, since the danger level was only low, Xiao Xue did not mind taking a gamble.
The items inside these kinds of Ancient Ruins were more useful the lower one's cultivation was!
If you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you catch the tiger's cub!
While holding her sword in her right hand and the flashlight in her left, Xiao Xue activated the Water Curtain Formation on her bracelet.
Xiao Xue's bracelet was a gift from Xiao Xun Er; it contained a Water Curtain Formation that could withstand a full-strength strike from a Peak Dou Wang.
Walking down the passage, Xiao Xue could clearly feel that the aura of life was becoming richer.
She even felt that the speed of her Qi circulation was faintly accelerating, and her own cultivation seemed to have increased slightly.
It seemed that there really was something good down here.
This was likely the reason why those medicinal herbs could survive in the pitch-black Secret Chamber above.
The passage was not very deep, probably only a few dozen meters, but it was winding, and there seemed to be Formations carved on both sides of the passage.
According to the System's feedback, the Formations on both sides of the passage were enough to instantly kill an ordinary Dou Huang, and even a Dou Zong would be threatened.
However, perhaps due to disrepair over the years, these Formations, which were originally used for defense, had now all failed without exception.
Therefore, the danger level of these Ancient Ruins was only [Low].
Otherwise, if one wanted to explore Dou Zun Ancient Ruins, without the strength of a Dou Huang or higher, one should not even think about it.
These Ancient Ruins seemed to be right here, waiting for someone destined to discover them.
It seems that Luck is also a part of strength.
Xiao Xue continued walking downwards for a few dozen steps, and suddenly the area in front of her opened up, revealing a larger space.
In the empty space, some scrolls, medicinal herbs, and the like were scattered about, which should have been left behind by the owner of these Ancient Ruins.
Because the aura of life was abundant, the medicinal herbs placed here were of quite good quality, and there were even a few rare medicinal herbs that were extremely difficult to find in the outside world.
At the end of the space was a stone chamber; it was unknown what was inside.
Just at this moment, a wisp of faint green smoke drifted in front of Xiao Xue.
The green smoke gathered by her side and condensed into a small, fleshy paw.
Because the green smoke was faint and relatively blurry, Xiao Xue could not distinguish whether this was a cat's paw, a dog's paw, or a fox's paw?
In any case, it was definitely not a human hand.
The small, fleshy paw formed by the green smoke waved at Xiao Xue, signaling her to follow it over.
It looked dull, and it did not seem very smart.
Xiao Xue cast a [Detect] at the green smoke and obtained the other party's data panel:
Name: Eight-Tailed Demon Zun
Race: Heavenly Fox
Gender: Female
Rank: Level 53 (Level 89.9)
HP:???
Qi:???
Soul Power: Mortal Realm Late Stage (Spirit Realm Great Perfection)
Aptitude: 8
Opportunity: 8
Charm: 9
Note: Soul severely damaged, causing memory loss
Character Panel Summary:
[A dull and silly Heavenly Fox remnant soul]
Xiao Xue:!!!
"Heavenly Fox remnant soul"!
You must know, according to the data displayed on the System panel, the other party had the combat strength of a Ninth Revolution Dou Zun during their lifetime!
The "Level 53" in the System panel represented that this remnant soul currently possessed the strength of a three-star Dou Wang.
Levels 1-9 corresponded to the 1-9 stars within each Realm, while Level 10 represented a half-step into the next Realm.
For example, Level 70 was Half-step Dou Zong, and Level 71 was One-Star Dou Zong!
Similarly, Level 89 was Nine-Star Dou Zun, and the "Level 89.9" of this Demon Zun during their lifetime was Ninth Revolution Dou Zun!
Just one step away from being a Half-Saint expert!
What race is the Heavenly Fox? Nine-Tailed Fox?
Possessing an existence at the Peak Ninth Revolution Dou Zun, how could this race be unknown?!
But in the original work, from beginning to end, this race was never even mentioned!
Xiao Xue took a deep breath to calm herself down; there must be a great secret in this, at least not something she was qualified to come into contact with right now.
Xiao Xue silently followed the fox paw inside and soon arrived beside the stone coffin in the stone chamber.
The green smoke permeated the stone coffin, and then, very abruptly, a piece of paper of unknown material appeared out of thin air, floating in front of Xiao Xue.
At least with Xiao Xue's current strength, she completely failed to see how this piece of paper appeared.
Xiao Xue composed herself and began to read the content on the paper.
[This Venerable One once luckily obtained a Secret Technique in some Ancient Ruins, but as a result, suffered pursuit from a Half-Saint.]
[After a life-and-death battle, this Venerable One used a spatial passage to escape to this place, fortunately not dying.]
[However, my Soul was severely damaged, and I am beyond saving; my time is approaching, so I leave this letter, hoping that a destined person can obtain its mysteries.]
[If my remnant soul has not yet dissipated, I hope the later comer will provide some care.]
After reading the content on the paper, Xiao Xue understood; no wonder there would be Ancient Ruins left by a Dou Zun in a small mountain gully in a small place like Qingshan Town.
It turned out the other party was being hunted by enemies, escaped through a spatial passage, and arrived here by chance.
Falling out of a spatial rift and landing anywhere, that was really all up to fate.
All one can say is, the circle, it is indescribably wonderful.
The small hermit hides in the wild, the great hermit hides in the city, and the god hermit hides in the grave.
Someone like Hai Bodong is way behind; true big shots would not just find a sparsely populated place to seclude themselves, but would even have their own graves dug!
She turned her head to look at the little fox condensed from green smoke on the side; the little fox also raised its head to look at her, and both the human and the ghost saw the clear stupidity in the other's eyes.
——[Soul severely damaged, causing memory loss]
Xiao Xue scrutinized the Demon Zun's remnant soul, and the more she looked, the more she felt it did not look like memory loss, but rather like it had become stupid?
Fortunately, this remnant soul still remembered to take out the "last words" left behind for her to see, which saved her a lot of effort.
After reading the "last words", one thing attracted her very much.
That was the Secret Technique discovered in those Ancient Ruins!
Aside from Cultivation Techniques and Dou Techniques, there existed some special Secret Techniques on the Fighting Qi Continent.
Their effects were very enticing; some Secret Techniques could even significantly increase one's own strength.
And how could this Secret Technique, which was worth a Half-Saint expert taking action to snatch, be an ordinary item?
"Senior! That Secret Technique, can you let me see it?" Xiao Xue was worried that the Demon Zun was hard of hearing, so she deliberately raised her voice and shouted.
Hearing Xiao Xue's words, the little fox obviously paused for a moment and just stood there blankly.
It was unknown if this Senior had been lying in the coffin for too long, or if it was for other reasons, but anyway, its brain was not very bright.
It took a long time before it barely managed to keep up with Xiao Xue's train of thought.
The next moment, a Jade Slip appeared out of thin air, floating in front of Xiao Xue.
Xiao Xue's eyes lit up; she was just holding onto the idea of trying it out, and she did not expect the other party to really take out the Secret Technique just like that!
The status of this "Great Demon" in Xiao Xue's heart began to align infinitely with the little rich girl, Xun'er.
Having an elder at home is like having a treasure!
In the future, follow me when we go out, and you will eat nine meals in three days!
Facing this Jade Slip, while excited, Xiao Xue was also incomparably solemn.
Right now, even reading a Pill Formula for a fifth-grade pill would make her feel exceptionally strenuous.
Reading this Jade Slip directly using Soul Power was seeking death.
Therefore, Xiao Xue spent a little experience points to have the System scan the contents inside the Jade Slip.
After seeing the effects of the Secret Technique, even the always indifferent Xiao Xue could not maintain her calm expression.
She could not help but exclaim, "Holy crap!"
As a Transmigration traveler who knew the plot, there were not many things in the world that could make Xiao Xue feel extremely shocked.
But at this moment, a mountain-shaking tsunami was rising in her heart.
It was actually this!
Let alone a Half-Saint, as long as one truly understood the effects of this Secret Technique, even a real Dou Sheng would take action to snatch it!
How this Demon Zun referred to this Secret Technique, she did not know.
She only knew that the System also sold this Secret Technique, and its Rank even reached beyond Heaven Rank!
In the System's introduction, this Secret Technique was one of the three founding ultimate arts of the "Wu" lineage, a transcendent force within the three thousand Universe seas.
Its name—"River of Immortality"!