Chapter 235

Ximen Mei had just successfully dug up the Blood Essence Mushroom; she didn't touch it with her hands but picked up the blood-red silk cloth on the ground, draped it over the mushroom, wrapped it within the cloth, and placed the bundled cloth and mushroom together into the black wooden box.

Only after carefully completing all this did the woman exhale a long breath.

Wang Yu smelled a faint metallic scent from the blood-red silk cloth, as if it had been soaked in beast blood.

Thus, Ximen Mei took out another silk cloth and wooden box, and began digging for the second Blood Essence Mushroom.

Wang Yu, however, stopped watching and stepped away a few paces, scanning around to see if there were any other gains.

After all, this Earth Spirit Spring clearly wasn't ordinary—besides the Blood Essence Mushrooms, there might be other valuable items to find.

Yet the entire edge of the pond was covered in white pebbles, stretching bare and endless in every direction, which was precisely why the two had spotted the Blood Essence Mushrooms at a glance.

But he wasn't ready to give up; he moved closer to the pond's edge, leaned his head inward, and peered at the exposed inner walls of the pond to see if he could find anything.

The only things he saw were some pale blue, moss-like growths—nothing particularly striking.

Wait, what was that?

Wang Yu was still in Overclock Mode; when his eyes accidentally swept across the pond's surface, they pierced straight through the water's top layer and revealed, just half a foot beneath, a small black hole in the wall.

It was small—only as wide as an arm—but its opening was unnaturally smooth, unlike something formed naturally.

Surprised, Wang Yu turned to glance at Ximen Mei, who stood a short distance away, having just successfully harvested the second Blood Essence Mushroom and now preparing to dig for the third.

She was utterly absorbed in her task, with no attention to anything else.

Wang Yu glanced again at the faint blue-green banner in his hand, measured its area of effect, then took a few more steps to the pond's edge near the hole and sent his spiritual sense downward—his brow furrowed slightly.

This pond was indeed unusual—it completely blocked his spiritual sense, preventing any probe into the small hole.

Wang Yu hesitated briefly, then made up his mind; he took a deep breath, and golden mist immediately rose along one arm, coalescing into a golden armored gauntlet that fully encased his limb.

He flipped his hand, drew a bone spear from his storage pouch, gripped the shaft, and crouched at the pond's edge, gently prodding the underwater hole with the spear.

"Thud."

The hole was surprisingly shallow—he barely moved his wrist before the spear's tip struck bottom, and he faintly felt something hard beneath.

Seeing no living thing inside, Wang Yu relaxed, retracted the spear, returned it to his storage pouch, and then reached directly into the hole with his golden-armored hand—his fingers touched a round, solid object.

He pulled his arm back, withdrew the object, stood up, and glanced at it: it was a milky-white, oval stone, marked with vein-like crimson patterns, yet unnaturally cold.

As Wang Yu was about to examine it more closely, Ximen Mei suddenly cried out from afar, forcing him to turn his head.

The woman, who had just wrapped the third Blood Essence Mushroom in silk, stood pale-faced, staring at the ground.

"Sister, what's wrong?" Wang Yu tossed the stone into his storage pouch and walked over, asking—but after glancing at the ground, his heart jolted.

From the three small pits where the red mushrooms had been dug up, thick crimson blood was now gushing out, increasing rapidly, soon filling all three pits and spilling over the edges in a fast-flowing tide.

"Something's off, let's go," Wang Yu said without hesitation.

"This is weird; little brother, get closer to me—I'll use a ground-dwelling talisman to take you with me."

Xi Menmei, with ample experience, quickly placed the item in her hand into a wooden box, stored it in her storage pouch, then flipped her wrist to produce a yellow talisman covered in faint silver spiritual runes, its appearance clearly extraordinary.

Seeing this, Wang Yu gripped the spectral image of the green banner in his hand and stepped forward half a pace.

Xi Menmei waved the yellow talisman in her hand, and a burst of yellow light emerged, within which faint runes drifted, completely enveloping both of them.

The two felt their bodies grow light, and the yellow light immediately shot them straight upward toward the cave ceiling.

But the next moment, a dull thud echoed.

The yellow light vanished upon hitting the cave ceiling, and the two figures suddenly tumbled down from above.

Wang Yu twisted his body mid-air, regaining stability, and landed firmly on both feet; seeing the figure above falling, he instinctively reached out with both arms and caught a soft, fragrant body in his embrace.

It was none other than Xi Menmei.

He held the beautiful young woman, who looked about seventeen or eighteen, in a princess-carrying pose, her faint feminine scent mingling with a sweet, pleasant aroma filling his nose.

Face to face, both felt the posture was far too intimate.

Xi Menmei's face flushed red, and without thinking, she swung her arm and slapped him hard.

Wang Yu was startled, his arms jerked, and he flung the "Sister Xi" away, waving his hands in protest:

"Sister Xi, it's a misunderstanding—my actions just now were purely instinctive; I had no intention of being disrespectful."

Due to Wang Yu's skillful use of force, Xi Menmei landed lightly and steadied herself, her face still flushed, eyes wide with fury as she glared at the man before her; after a long moment, she reluctantly said:

"This isn't over—I'll settle accounts with you once we leave this place."

Wang Yu sighed bitterly, about to explain further, but his gaze suddenly fell on the scene by the pond, his expression turning grave as he urgently warned:

"Sister, something's wrong over there—it looks like something's about to emerge from the pond."

"Something's coming out?"

Hearing this, Xi Menmei's heart tightened, and she immediately turned toward the pond.

The milky-white waters of the pond over there had suddenly surged violently, churning rapidly within the pool, faintly forming a massive vortex, as if some colossal entity were about to emerge from within.

Outside the pond, crimson blood water had nearly engulfed the entire pool, still gushing up from underground as if determined to flood the entire cave.

"Exit through the entrance."

Seeing this, Xi Menmei didn't hesitate; she swiftly stuck a green talisman to her body, and a swirling green wind erupted around her, wrapping her tightly as she rolled swiftly toward the cave entrance.

Wang Yu crouched slightly, stamped his foot against the ground, leaving a deep crater, and shot toward the entrance like a released crossbow bolt.