Cultivation Nerd

Chapter 175: Down The Hatch We Go

"We have come to receive the message you have sent," said one of the Core Elders from the Void Piercing Sect. The same man who had taken charge of the conversation when we encountered the swamp people.

The statue stood motionless again, resembling a true statue, as if the voice we had heard was just an illusion. But then came another rumbling sound. The statue opened and closed its mouth, emitting that deep, growling noise once more.

"It wasn't I who sent the message. I am merely the guardian of a great man's tomb, a man who once lived. I know little of his plans, but I will do my duty," said the stone head. Then it opened its mouth, revealing a door where the back of its throat should have been.

On the roof of the statue's mouth was a cross-like symbol with intricate, flowery details.

Nothing more needed to be said. Some disciples lingered in cautious anticipation, their eyes darting between the newly revealed door and the Core Elders, waiting for a signal or command to guide their next move. However, not everyone was content to wait. A few of the more impetuous disciples, driven by a mix of curiosity and bravado, charged toward the door without a second thought.

Witnessing this bold action, others quickly shed their hesitation, not wanting to be left behind or miss out on whatever treasures lay beyond. This sudden rush set off a chain reaction, with more and more disciples surging forward to follow the trailblazers into the unknown.

Chaos ensued for a few seconds as swishing winds echoed, marking disciples moving at their top speeds. The looks in their eyes promised death to anyone who dared stand in their way.

"What're we waiting for?" Song Song asked, nudging me out of my thoughts and pointing at my cousins, who were also looking at me.

Were they waiting for my decision? That was unexpected. I didn't think they would wait or listen to me. But seniority or age didn't matter much when I had Song Song. If she was listening to me, my cousins would too, as a matter of principle—at least when Song Song was present.

Some others had adopted the same cautious approach, choosing to wait. With Song San mentioning that this could be the tomb of an immortal, excitement and greed clouded many people's rational thinking. They were too afraid someone else might steal the opportunity.

A handful of people approached the door at the back of the statue's throat and walked right in, passing through what seemed like a shadowy mucus. But they were the minority, as a surprising number of others slammed into some sort of invisible wall just as they were about to reach the statue.

These people who couldn’t pass had one thing in common…

Song Song frowned at the sight and cursed under her breath. Even her usually calm brother's eye twitched. However, he maintained a serene appearance, wearing a mask of indifference beyond that slight twitch.

"It seems like those at Foundation Establishment or higher can't enter," I concluded the obvious.

It was a shame many had made the journey all the way here only to end up with nothing. At least, that would be the case until people began emerging from the place with treasures. I imagined a lot of murdering and thievery would occur until we returned to the Blazing Sun Sect.

Thankfully, that wasn't something I had to worry about with Song Song around.

"Well, this is as good a time as any to go and try our luck," I said, walking toward the statue. I didn't go far before turning around, meeting Song Song's blue eyes, and adding, "Be careful, and wait for some good news."

My cousins followed as we pushed forward, taking the lead since most were at a higher cultivation level than me.

We would be at a disadvantage as a group because our strength was rather average. Sure, I could somewhat fight above my level. Still, even I couldn't defeat a nine-star Qi Gathering Cultivator like many people who had already entered.

As we got closer, my eyes were glued to the symbol in the statue's mouth. I memorized every intricate detail.

There was a book in the Song Clan Library called Record on Immortals. Despite the intriguing subject, it was a dry read. As the title suggested, it was about immortals who lived through the ages. The book was mostly filled with rumors and gossip, often based on their enemies' words. It speculated about whether a certain immortal was born a peasant boy or a clan heir but spoke little of their powers, lives, or what they were like during their time alive.

But despite being a book without much substance—or anything really entertaining—it contained a few things that caught my interest. One was the immortals' epithets, and the other was their symbols. For example, the symbol of the Blazing Sun Immortal was a large sun, and another immortal had a flowery plus symbol.

This was a symbol I recognized!

The book discussed a surprisingly large number of immortals over fifty thousand years. Liu Feng's memory was good, but it wasn't photographic.

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Based on the design, this symbol should date from two to five thousand years ago, when the Blazing Sun Immortal was still active. Some of us might be walking into the tomb of someone who could have been an enemy of the four great sect founders.

Unlike the rest, I knew this was not our enemy. The Blazing Sun Immortal had only one sworn enemy, the Blue Sea Immortal. There wasn't much detail on what happened between them, but we should be safe whatever it was. As for the other Sects… who knew...

After many people had entered, I pushed my hand through the dark sludge of the door. At first, nothing happened, but then I felt a cold grip wrap around my wrist, and it tried to drag me in.

I turned toward my cousins, wide-eyed. Even some of the more hesitant cultivators who had stayed behind to see what would happen seemed disturbed, as it was clear that something was pulling me through the door.

"This is super interesting. I can actually feel a humanoid hand dragging me. It feels like a feminine hand, though it's a bit too big, so I'd say it's a male hand, but soft," I explained to the onlookers. Slowly, my body was pulled in, no matter how hard I tried to resist. It was like being in quicksand.

“You look mighty calm for someone getting forcefully dragged in,” Liu Bo said with a wince.

“If I die, tell Song Song she shouldn’t be sad. Also, she can’t afford to act stupid anymore,” I said calmly.

I meant it more as a joke to ease the tension, and Liu Qian and Liu Heng seemed to understand that. The latter frowned, clearly not approving of such a joke at a time like this. On the other hand, Liu Bo looked genuinely sad, almost teary-eyed.

Liu Bo was always a bit odd. Sometimes he showed impressive insight into certain projects, while other times, he missed basic social cues—like right now. But he was a good guy.

My vision was soon engulfed in darkness, and I felt the wriggling shadows wrap around my body like soft, cold hands rubbing all over me.

It felt uncomfortable as hell.

The sensation didn’t last long, and when I opened my eyes, I found myself inside a strange building. The floor was made of dark stones that looked like obsidian. The walls were lined with flickering torches, and thick, translucent pillars held up a roof colored a soft blue.

I wasn’t alone. Many people were around, the same people who had come in before me. They were gathered around a strange object in the room that looked like a stone coffin, though they kept some distance from it. Judging by the crimson smudge on the floor, I assumed someone had tried to approach the coffin before I came in here and met some nasty end.

Translucent pillars, a dark atmosphere, and the plus symbol on the roof of the statue’s mouth—it all refreshed my memory a bit. I had a rough idea of which immortal we were dealing with.

The Four Beast Horror Immortal. There were almost no records about him. Even in the book, which lacked detailed records on most immortals, this guy was among the few with barely any mention of his existence. There were no records of which sect he belonged to; he had just appeared one day.

The disciples eyed each other warily as if a fight could break out any second. No one said anything, but some who had come together were already forming teams. Seeing this, I stayed away from the crowd and observed from the sidelines.

I tested my Qi by moving it through my body, and a translucent jade needle formed in my fingertips.

Yep, everything was working fine. There was no suppression array or anything like that around here.

Just then, dark cocoons formed, and people emerged from them. It was my three cousins and a handful of others. They looked around, confused.

Was that how I had come here too?

I waved at my cousins, and when they met my gaze, Liu Bo breathed a sigh of relief. Liu Heng nodded as if approving of something.

"Wow, you guys look like you're about to kill each other," a voice echoed through the room.

At first, confusion reigned as everyone's gaze darted around, searching for the voice's origin. Soon, lines of pure white smoke, sparkling eerily in the dim light, slithered through the air like ethereal serpents. They converged above the ancient stone coffin, forming into a dense, shimmering cloud.

Gradually, the smoke shaped itself into the ghostly figure of a young man. His long dark hair flowed around a somber face, and he wore an oversized robe that draped past his hands, fluttering slightly as if stirred by an unseen breeze. This spectral apparition hovered silently.

The ghost was handsome, but its eyes were childish, almost playful. On closer inspection, the ghost appeared more like a hologram.

Everyone remained silent, aware that this might be a spirit leading them to the inheritance. Even those about to speak were silenced by sharp glares from the others.

The hologram's eyes wandered over the crowd, sometimes lingering a second longer on specific individuals.

"What an interesting group of people. This is a good era to get things rolling. What do you youngsters think about that?" the ghostly figure asked, leaning his head on his palm, his elbow resting on his knee as he sat atop the stone coffin with one leg crossed over the other.

"We even have someone chosen by the heavens amongst us. That's quite something. And an otherworlder too. The last one might sound less exciting, but I've seen some impressive otherworlders in my time. There was this one guy who came from a world where humans had colonized other planets. I had fun getting that information out of him," the immortal chuckled. He never looked directly at anyone as he spoke, as if he were planning a game of hide-and-seek and didn't want his fun spoiled.

My heart dropped, and the hair on the back of my neck stood at an end when I realized he had seen through me. Just a ghost of an immortal, he had easily uncovered one of my biggest secrets!

By now, I had learned that being an otherworlder wasn't the most impressive thing. However, it was still intimidating how effortlessly he had seen through me. But there was no use worrying about it right now.

Of course, there was also the possibility that another otherworlder was in the crowd, and he had noticed only them. But that was unlikely.

"Anyway, anything you get will be due to your own merit," he said, smiling. But then his gaze turned sharp. "Heaven's chosen are lucky, but I will warn you. If any slave of the heavens comes and thinks to try his luck, this is my domain. The heavens and fate have no hand here. You will meet a gruesome end otherwise."

People froze in place, most appearing confused, but the hologram continued, "Know your place, heaven's slave. Don't parade in my palace!"