Chapter 194: Layers of Mechanisms

The moment the second metal box was pried open, Lin Yu almost popped his eyes out.

What kind of junk was inside? A letter that was broken beyond recognition, and next to it lay a box smaller than a thumb, sitting there like some arrogant, insufferable brat.

He leaned in for a closer look, and the handwriting on the letter was as thin as ants crawling, and blurry as hell.

"This thing needs careful handling." Lin Yu picked up the letter, and the smell of aged mold drilled straight into his nostrils, making him frown tightly. A bright idea struck him, and he took out a lighter, wanting to heat it up, but he wasn't careful and almost burned the edge, scaring him so much that his hand shook and his heart jumped into his throat.

He tried soaking it in water, but the paper immediately became impossibly soft, feeling like it would dissolve at a touch. In desperation, he even poured the "Immortal Water" passed down through his sect generations onto it to test it, but it was all a waste of effort; the handwriting remained as if it had been deliberately smeared by someone.

Sweat rolled down from his forehead and dripped onto his collar. Time passed second by second, and Lin Yu was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, spinning in circles with no solution. This note likely hid some incredible secret, yet he was now as helpless as a rookie.

Xuanyuan Qing had been observing from the side for a long time and finally couldn't help but speak: "Uncle Lin, do you know the Image Revealing Technique? It's that set of skills for antique restoration."

"Damn, I actually forgot about that!" Lin Yu slapped his forehead, stomping his feet in annoyance. The Image Revealing Technique was a basic skill for ancient artifact restoration, capable of making those vanished handwritings reappear.

He immediately rummaged through boxes and cabinets, grabbing several special medicinal herbs. Fortunately, his foundation in Traditional Chinese Medicine was solid, and this little task couldn't stump him. He pounded the herbs into powder, mixed them according to a ratio, and then added a special solution, his hands as steady as a mountain throughout the process, terrified of damaging this once-in-a-thousand-years clue.

After the reagent was prepared, Lin Yu picked up a fine brush and carefully applied it to the letter.

"It really works!" He was pleasantly surprised to find that the blurry, illegible handwriting was slowly becoming clear.

Lin Yu stared fixedly at the paper surface, unwilling to even blink. As the medicinal liquid permeated, more and more characters emerged, piecing together into information intermittently.

"... Shennong... Secret Treasury... Kunlun..."

These few words made Lin Yu's head buzz. Shennong Secret Treasury? Kunlun Heavenly Ladder? These two terms exploded in his mind.

The Shennong Secret Treasury! The legendary treasure vault left behind by Shennong after tasting the hundred herbs, said to be filled with heavenly materials and lost medical arts. And the Kunlun Heavenly Ladder was even more of a mythological existence, rumored to be the passage connecting the human world and the immortal realm, which only the "Chosen One" could find.

Lin Yu took a deep breath, calming his excited mood. This letter was, nine times out of ten, an important clue left by Old Man Yan, guiding him to find the secret treasure and even uncover the truth about the Heavenly Ladder.

He carefully put away the letter and turned his gaze to the third metal box. This one was even more exquisite than the first two, with complex patterns carved on its surface, shining with a mysterious metallic luster under the light.

He carefully examined the structure of the box and found that this thing was seamless, not even a needle could be inserted, let alone finding a switch. He pulled hard, but the box didn't budge, almost breaking his fingernails.

"Three Essentials of Ao Fist..." He recalled Old Man Yan's teachings—force penetrating hardness and softness, breath connecting heaven and earth, body harmonizing yin and yang. These three sentences sounded like chanting, but they were the essence of the ancient Ao Fist.

Lin Yu closed his eyes, recalling the fist techniques taught by Yan Nanshan in his dreams. He tried to integrate the essentials of the fist technique into the action of opening the box, slowly inputting his internal energy into his fingertips and pressing lightly on the box surface.

The metal box vibrated slightly but still didn't open. Lin Yu didn't get discouraged; such precise mechanisms often required patience and skill.

Xuanyuan Qing, who was on the side, was practicing the Locking Method taught to her by Xiao Chengzhou, her hands dancing with astonishing speed.

Suddenly, she inadvertently made a strange gesture, pointing her fingertips into the air, emitting a faint "hum." Although this sound was slight, it caught Lin Yu's attention.

He looked up abruptly, surprised to find that the patterns on the metal box were somewhat similar to the gesture Xuanyuan Qing had just made.

"Do that movement again." Lin Yu suddenly had an inspiration and asked Xuanyuan Qing to repeat the gesture, while he observed carefully, memorizing every detail.

Then, he closed his eyes and tried to combine the essentials of Ao Fist and the Locking Method. His hands moved over the metal box, sometimes as fierce as a tiger, sometimes as soft as water, his fingers constantly changing into complex postures.

Following his movements, the metal box began to make clicking sounds, and the patterns on its surface changed accordingly, as if it had been injected with life.

Suddenly, the box trembled slightly and slowly opened. A soft light spilled out from the box, illuminating the entire room.

Lin Yu opened his eyes and saw a jade pendant lying quietly in the center of the box. The jade was translucent, smooth to the touch, and engraved with mysterious runes on its surface, emitting a faint spiritual aura.

He carefully picked up the jade pendant and held it in his palm. At this moment, a massive amount of information suddenly flooded into his mind, like a scalding hot current washing over his consciousness.

It was a clue about the Shennong Secret Treasury, fragments of ancient memories.

In the memory, Kunlun Mountain was majestic and magnificent, shrouded in clouds and mist, hiding a secret valley with a huge stone tablet standing at the entrance, engraved with the three vigorous and ancient characters "Shennong Valley."

Behind the stone tablet was a winding path leading to the depths of the valley. Strange flowers and herbs grew on both sides of the road, emitting a refreshing fragrance.

At the end of the valley was an ancient altar, with a huge stone gate standing in the center, carved with complex patterns and exuding an extraordinary aura.

The memory ended abruptly, and Lin Yu's consciousness returned to reality. Opening his eyes, he saw that he was still standing in the room of the Zhongcaotang, holding the jade pendant tightly in his hand.

He suddenly realized that this was one of the keys to opening the Shennong Secret Treasury. But what exactly was hidden in the Shennong Secret Treasury? What was behind that stone gate? All of this remained for him to explore personally.

Lin Yu pinched the jade pendant, his fingertips feeling the patterns on it.

"How could Kunlun Mountain and the Shennong Secret Treasury be related?"

He sat cross-legged on the ground, focusing on organizing the information transmitted by the jade pendant.

Nine tokens were scattered everywhere, and one was actually in Huacheng, which saved a lot of trouble.

"Find the nearby one first."

He stood up, put the jade pendant into his inner pocket, and patted the dust off his clothes.

A few stars hung in the night sky outside the window, quietly watching this young man who was about to embark on a strange journey.

After lying down, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep, his mind filled with those dense patterns and information.

At the first light of dawn, Lin Yu got up.

He drove alone to the suburbs of Huacheng, encountering almost no cars along the way.

The navigation led him into a dirt road, at the end of which was a dilapidated ancient temple. ===== CHAPTER 195 =====