Chapter 431: Black Fire Lotus

Wu Shidao immediately took out that silk pouch and handed it to Duan Rong.

Duan Rong took the pouch, cupped his hands slightly, and said, "Many thanks, Senior Brother Wu."

Wu Shidao smiled and said, "You and I are of the same Sect; there is no need for such formalities, Disciple."

Duan Rong's gaze flickered as he said, "By the way, Senior Brother Wu, where did that Immovable Wisdom King statue in our Cultivation Secret Chamber come from? It looks a bit strange standing there all by itself."

Wu Shidao's heart skipped a beat; this fellow really had a lot of questions. However, he still smiled and said, "That statue of the Immovable Wisdom King was originally there. There was already a secret chamber there to begin with. As for the Cultivation Secret Chamber for personal disciples, it was renovated based on the original secret chamber."

So that was it. Duan Rong wore a look of realization and continued to ask, "When I was testing in the Yougu, I also saw Immovable Wisdom King statues. However, I remember that there were four statues in the Yougu, standing in the four dimensions. It should have been like that here originally, right? Since it was renovated, where are the other three statues?"

Wu Shidao replied, "The other three were naturally integrated into the renovated cultivation secret chambers. Two of them are in the remaining two vacant secret chambers, and there is one more in Senior Sister Fan's cultivation secret chamber."

"I was just a bit curious; thank you for clearing up my confusion, Senior Brother Wu," Duan Rong said with a smile.

Wu Shidao said, "Little Disciple, you are not only a practitioner of bitter cultivation, but you also have a drive to get to the bottom of things. One day, you will surely be a dragon and elephant of our Sect."

"Senior Brother is too kind! I won't disturb you any further! Once I have studied this Topographical Map, I will return it to you."

"There is no rush. You may take your time to look at it, Disciple; it is no trouble."

"Many thanks, Senior Brother! Farewell!" Duan Rong cupped his hands slightly, turned, and left.

Walking along the veranda, Duan Rong began to mutter to himself. The two vacant cultivation secret chambers were easy enough to deal with, but the fact that one was in Fan Hongjiao's cultivation secret chamber made things a bit troublesome. Missing one was no different from missing three; the result was the same—it was incomplete, and he couldn't practice at all.

Thinking this, Duan Rong took the silk pouch and returned to his room in the pavilion. The Strange Beast Manual and the ancient Topographical Map from the Cultivation Secret Chamber had long since been brought out by Duan Rong.

Sitting before the desk, he spread out both the ancient Topographical Map and the map he had just obtained from Wu Shidao, comparing them side by side.

For the past month, Duan Rong had been focused on bitter cultivation, and he hadn't even flipped through that Topographical Map once.

At this moment, a rough glance left him greatly astonished.

This Underground World's Dark Forest was actually nearly a thousand miles in radius; its area was almost as vast as the Endless Great Mountains of the Changliu Mountain Range.

"This is practically an Underground World!"

Duan Rong looked at the map spread out on the desk before him, his expression one of shock.

It seemed now that the place they had entered last time was merely the edge of the edge, the outer periphery of the outer periphery.

Duan Rong then discovered that Wu Shidao's soft animal-hide map covered less than one-tenth of the entire map, located in the southwest corner, extending outward from the vicinity of the crash site of Yunfu Peak.

Duan Rong prepared his brush, ink, and pigments, and transferred the markings from Wu Shidao's Topographical Map onto his own ancient map.

Wu Shidao's markings were quite detailed, so Duan Rong only transcribed the most essential information.

As he was transcribing, Duan Rong's brow suddenly twitched.

"Black Fire Lotus?!"

The seeds of the Black Fire Lotus were the auxiliary medicine for practicing the twelfth layer of the Womb Treasury Sutra.

In fact, as a personal disciple of an Elder, with this level of status, the Sect should provide such medicine. But if he obtained it through the Sect, wouldn't that expose the fact that he had already reached the twelfth layer of the Womb Treasury Sutra?

Therefore, Duan Rong had long since decided that he would obtain the Black Fire Lotus seeds himself. However, he hadn't yet had the chance to gather information on this, and he hadn't expected to find this key information on Wu Shidao's Topographical Map.

According to the information marked by Wu Shidao, the place where the Black Fire Lotus grew was also occupied by Fire Toads and Fire Weasels; both were Low-Tier Beasts that fed on the Black Fire Lotus.

Next to Wu Shidao's information, the words "difficult to deal with" were noted. Wu Shidao was a Martial Artist of the Qi Cyclone Realm; if even he felt they were difficult, these two beasts were likely truly not easy to handle. Moreover, the Two-Legged Mad Python was also a Low-Tier Beast, and it had nearly killed Wu Shidao.

It seemed that the matter of obtaining the Black Fire Lotus seeds would have to be put on hold. He hadn't even achieved the First Layer of the Qi Refining Realm yet. Even if he had the means to suppress Origin Beasts, going so deep into the Dark Forest and facing two difficult beasts would likely result in a high probability of death.

Why take the risk?

This matter should wait for now.

Duan Rong studied the Topographical Map and the Strange Beast Manual in his room for several days in a row, sitting in silence.

During this time, Lu Geng and Wang Yue both came to look for him to chat.

The two soon discovered that Duan Rong was not only focused and crazy when it came to cultivation, but he was also a hard worker when it came to studying these things, sitting for days at a time.

Such dry things—if it were them, neither could sit still for it!?

Several days later, Duan Rong had basically gained a fairly detailed understanding of the terrain near the Yunfu Peak crash site, as well as the distribution and habits of the Origin Beasts.

This day, Lu Geng came to find him again, bringing him a plate of mountain fruits.

Lu Geng smiled and said, "Little Disciple, come, eat some fruit and take a break."

Duan Rong said, "Thank you, Senior Brother Lu." As he spoke, he picked up two fruits from the plate, handed one to Lu Geng, and took a bite of the other; immediately, the juices overflowed in his mouth.

Lu Geng also took a light bite and asked, "Little Disciple, how is the research on that Topographical Map going?"

Duan Rong glanced at it and said, "It's just about done."

"Disciple, Senior Brother is a bit curious: why are you researching this stuff? And working so hard at it, too."

Duan Rong chewed the berry in his mouth and smiled, "I'll say it's a hobby. I just love researching this stuff. Do you believe me, Senior Brother?"

Duan Rong saying this wasn't entirely nonsense or a brush-off. Looking at maps was indeed his hobby; he had liked doing this since he was a child. If he had to pick one subject out of all the disciplines that could be described as something he could use and enjoy, for him, that would be geography.

Upon hearing this, Lu Geng was slightly startled and said, "I believe you! Senior Brother Wu is that kind of person, just like you—he'd sit for days studying this stuff. Otherwise, how do you think that Topographical Map came to be?"

Duan Rong's gaze shifted. That was indeed true; Wu Shidao's Topographical Map could be called extremely detailed, containing even information that was completely useless for capturing Origin Beasts, yet Wu Shidao would still mark and record it.

"It seems this Senior Brother Wu is a kindred spirit!" Duan Rong sighed, then suddenly, as if remembering something, he looked at Lu Geng and asked, "By the way, Senior Brother Lu, are the keys to the other two vacant cultivation secret chambers also with you?"

Lu Geng gave Duan Rong a strange look and said, "What's wrong, Little Disciple? Do you think the cultivation secret chamber Senior Brother picked for you is not good? Disciple, let me tell you, there are statues in the other two cultivation secret chambers, but I specifically picked a refreshing one for you."

"It's not that. Senior Brother, please don't misunderstand," Duan Rong said. "When I was testing in the Yougu, I saw these four statues. I am just a bit curious: why does the Sect have these four statues? What exactly is the purpose of these statues?"

Lu Geng gave an awkward smile and said, "You are indeed a deep-thinking person, Disciple!"

Lu Geng had already practiced the Womb Treasury Sutra and had achieved the second layer, so he naturally knew what those four statues were for. But at this moment, Duan Rong clearly hadn't been taught the Womb Treasury Sutra yet, so he couldn't be loose-lipped and leak it. Even with Duan Rong's talent, it seemed he would be taught the Womb Treasury Sutra sooner or later, but telling him before he was taught would already count as leaking a secret, and he would be severely punished all the same. After all, this matter concerned the core cultivation method of the Sect and had always been dealt with strictly.

Little did Lu Geng know that Duan Rong was saying this precisely because he knew Lu Geng had already practiced the Womb Treasury Sutra.

Before long, Lu Geng handed the keys to the remaining two cultivation secret chambers to Duan Rong.

Taking the keys, Duan Rong went behind the Main Hall on the first floor of the pavilion and entered the space of the cultivation secret chambers.

He stood there, staring intently at the other two vacant cultivation secret chambers; one was next to his own, and the other was between the cultivation secret chambers of Wu Shidao and Wang Yue.

In fact, based solely on the orientation of those two vacant cultivation secret chambers and the Immovable Wisdom King statue beside him, Duan Rong had basically already determined which type of statue was in each of the two vacant cultivation secret chambers.

Duan Rong walked slowly to the stone door of one of the cultivation secret chambers, inserted the key in his hand into a certain eye-hole of the beast pattern on the stone door, and rotated it with effort for a little less than half a turn.

Amidst a flurry of falling stone dust, the stone door shook and opened; Duan Rong walked inside and used a Fire Folder to light the Candle Lamp on the stone wall.

As the dim light filled this Cultivation Secret Chamber, Duan Rong's gaze had already turned toward a certain corner, where a divine statue stood.

The size and specifications of this divine statue were the same as the Immovable Wisdom King statue outside.

These four divine statues were clearly originally intended to construct a Mandala for practicing the Womb Treasury Sutra, but for some unknown reason, this Mandala had been abandoned and later converted into a Cultivation Secret Chamber.

Before Duan Rong entered, he had already roughly judged that what should be in this Cultivation Secret Chamber was the Vajrayaksa Wisdom King Stone Statue, which resided in the north of the Mandala.

However, this vacant Cultivation Secret Chamber was also full of dust, especially the divine statue, which was covered in a thick layer of dust; even its eyes, nose bridge, and some decorations were difficult to distinguish, and for a moment, Duan Rong could not tell whether this statue was indeed the Vajrayaksa Wisdom King.

He walked over slowly and stood beside the statue in the corner; ignoring the filth on the statue's surface, Duan Rong pressed his palm directly onto it and whispered in his heart: "Spirit Reader!"

Following this, a set of data appeared before Duan Rong's eyes.

It really was the Vajrayaksa Wisdom King!

Artifact: Vajrayaksa Wisdom King Stone Statue

Spirit Artifact Tier: Tenth Rank

Devouring Artifact Spirit Requirement: Host Spiritual Power Level 10 (Satisfied)

Devouring Effect: Thirteenth Layer of Womb Treasury Sutra (Incomplete), Fourteenth Layer of Womb Treasury Sutra (Incomplete), Fifteenth Layer of Womb Treasury Sutra (Incomplete)

"Devour!"

Following Duan Rong's silent command, the data panel before his eyes dissipated and vanished; for some reason, the dust on the divine statue actually fell off in a flurry.

Duan Rong was startled and took a few steps back, looking at the statue with a shocked expression. The Vajrayaksa Wisdom King statue displayed a wrathful appearance, ferocious and ugly; as some of the dust fell away, its true face was revealed, which made Duan Rong's heart thump wildly.

He had never known that when Devouring Artifact Spirit, the Artifact would actually have a reaction!?

Otherwise, why would the dust on the statue suddenly fall off in a flurry?

There could not be any wind inside this Secret Chamber!

There was only one explanation: Spiritual Power, or something like the Divine Soul, could have a slight influence on the material world, and this influence was so subtle that it was difficult to manifest, which was why Duan Rong had never noticed it before.

If it weren't for the fact that this statue had been placed in a sealed space for who knows how many years and was covered in thick dust, it would have only shed a very small amount of dust in that instant.

It was as if the statue had trembled slightly at the very moment Duan Rong devoured it.

Duan Rong stared blankly at the statue before him, feeling more and more creeped out the longer he looked.

The statue still displayed a ferocious and ugly appearance, and now that such a strange event had occurred, someone with a smaller heart might have already been scared to the point of wetting themselves.

Duan Rong watched for a while, and confirming that the statue had no further abnormalities, his heart eased slightly. This phenomenon could only be studied slowly in the future; he extinguished the Candle Lamp and exited the Cultivation Secret Chamber.

As the stone door behind him slowly closed, Duan Rong let out a long breath. In his previous life, he had watched plenty of horror movies, and at that moment, he had truly felt a bit spooked.

At this time, Duan Rong calmed down a little; he thought that the phenomenon just now might be a certain reaction when an Artifact and an Artifact Spirit were separated.

Although an Artifact Spirit was something on the level of a Divine Soul, when it was extracted, the Artifact itself also underwent some subtle changes at that moment.

An Artifact Spirit, after all, was also a type of spirit!

They were merely a type of Divine Soul existence formed by human Divine Soul imprints eroding an Artifact, but they had not developed an independent will.

Wait!

Not having developed one did not mean they would not develop one!

Perhaps the highest-grade Artifact Spirits possessed intelligence and independent will, and had even evolved into some kind of biological entity.

At that time, wouldn't Duan Rong's devouring be equivalent to eating a spirit body alive?

Although Duan Rong felt a bit creeped out, he could not give up on the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth layers of the Womb Treasury Sutra.

He simply suppressed the horror in his heart, walked into another vacant Cultivation Secret Chamber, quickly devoured the Artifact Spirit of that divine statue, and the moment the dust fell in a flurry, Duan Rong ran out in a panic.

Duan Rong stood there and glanced at the stone door of Fan Hongjiao's Cultivation Secret Chamber. Only one statue was left. However, Fan Hongjiao was not in the Secret Chamber, so he would have to find an opportunity to deal with it later.

Duan Rong then left the Cultivation Secret Chamber and returned to his room in the pavilion; he first ordered some food and had a full meal.

After eating and drinking his fill, he lay down on the bed.

Before entering the Dark Forest alone, he had to adjust his state, at the very least get a good night's sleep, and restore his energy.

Duan Rong slept until the next day; when the sun was high, he climbed out of bed, stretched, and felt very refreshed in his head; the two Artifact Spirits he had devoured yesterday had clearly been digested and absorbed.

Although he had collected the Artifact Spirits of three divine statues, the three layers of cultivation techniques of the Womb Treasury Sutra in his mind were still one-quarter incomplete.

However, Duan Rong no longer had the extra energy to focus on this matter; he had to prepare a bit, and then he would head down into the Dark Forest.

(End of this chapter)