Chapter 92: The Black Stone Gate

A day later, on a small dirt hill outside Qinghe Market, Song Qingming and Old Daoist Chen were sitting on the mountain meditating and resting.

After returning to his residence yesterday, Song Qingming thought about it again and again and finally decided to agree to Old Daoist Chen.

The next day, Song Qingming left a letter at his residence, writing down the matter of him and Old Daoist Chen going to explore the cave dwelling of an ancient cultivator. In case he encountered any accidents this time, the Song family members would know where he went in the future.

After Song Qingming packed his luggage, he asked for a month's leave from his Fourth Uncle, Song Changqiu, and asked him to continue to help manage the shop here.

Seeing that Song Qingming was going on a long journey again just after returning from Mount Funiu, Song Changqiu was a little worried about his safety and couldn't help but ask him a few questions.

However, Song Qingming had already promised Old Daoist Feng before and could not tell others about this matter. Facing Song Changqiu's concern, Song Qingming could only laugh it off.

Song Changqiu has been mixing in the market for so many years, and his ability to see people is definitely not ordinary. Even if Song Qingming didn't say it, he probably guessed that Song Qingming's trip this time must be related to the old Daoist who came to find him a few days ago.

Seeing that Song Qingming refused to speak directly, Song Changqiu did not continue to ask. He also saw that Song Qingming had made up his mind to go out this time, so he could only nag a few words and tell him to pay attention to safety on the road.

In the past few years, Wang Cheng has also grown a lot, and the big and small affairs in the shop can basically be handed over to him. Fourth Uncle only needs to come over and take a look occasionally. Song Qingming is relatively at ease about this.

Song Qingming and Old Daoist Chen waited on the small dirt hill for nearly two hours before a middle-aged Daoist wearing a green cloak came here.

Seeing this person, Old Daoist Chen, who was squinting his eyes, suddenly brightened up. He got up and stepped forward to the person and said: "Fellow Daoist Zhou has finally come. Let me introduce you. This is the Fellow Daoist Song I told you about before."

Hearing Old Daoist Chen introducing himself, Song Qingming also walked up and greeted this Fellow Daoist surnamed Zhou.

The middle-aged Daoist's name is Zhou Tangjin, and he is also a rogue cultivator who has only come to Qinghe Market in the past few years. He is also a helper specially invited by Old Daoist Chen this time.

After Zhou Tangjin took a look at Song Qingming, he didn't speak, just nodded slightly. His cultivation was higher than that of Song Qingming and Old Daoist Chen, having already reached the eighth level of Qi Refining.

After Old Daoist Chen introduced the two to each other, the three of them, under his leadership, went directly east towards Mount Yunwu.

Mount Yunwu is not too far from Qinghe Market. It took the three of them two days of full-speed travel to enter Mount Yunwu.

Mount Yunwu is located to the west of Qinghe Market and is the collective name for a huge mountain area spanning Qinghe, Pingyang, and Gucang counties.

In this area, the mountains are high and the forests are dense, demon beasts are rampant, and it is difficult for mortals to survive. Except for some cultivators who come to hunt demons nearby, basically no one will come here.

Although Mount Yunwu is not as dangerous as the Fuyun Mountain Range, there are also many demon beasts inside, and there are even second-level demon beasts in the depths. It is not a safe place.

Since Mount Yunwu does not have as many cultivators exploring it as the Fuyun Mountain Range, it is indeed not a strange thing for Old Daoist Chen to find some ancient cultivator cave dwellings.

It's just that whether there is anything in such ancient cultivator cave dwellings is not certain. Entering them may make a cultivator rich overnight, or it may be empty and have nothing after opening them. In general, most of the senior cultivator cave dwellings have something more or less. Of course, whether it is good or bad depends on the luck of the person who enters.

After walking for another two days in Mount Yunwu, the three came to the foot of a mountain hundreds of feet high.

This mountain peak is strange and independent among the surrounding mountains. The mountain terrain is very steep, like a knife cut. Except for flying birds, it is estimated that ordinary wild beasts are difficult to climb up.

The three operated the light-body technique and jumped left and right on the mountain rocks. It took a meal's time before they reached the top of the high mountain.

Unexpectedly, the cliffs under the mountain were steep, but the terrain on the top of the mountain was very flat, and there were many tall trees and flowers, a scene of lush green leaves.

Old Daoist Chen took Song Qingming and the other two and walked in the forest on the top of the mountain for half a quarter of an hour, and soon arrived at a simple and ancient stone cave.

At first, a trace of light could be seen, but as the three went deep into the ancient cave, it soon became pitch black.

Old Daoist Chen walked in the front. After walking another dozen feet, he waved his sleeve and released a ball of flame from his hand, which soon illuminated the situation in the cave clearly.

The stone cave was four or five feet in size. Directly in front was a black stone gate, and on both sides were several stone platforms, on which there was a pile of books and bamboo slips that had been turned into a mess.

Seeing the stone gate tightly closed, with no signs of damage on the surface, Old Daoist Feng let out a long sigh of relief and said: "It seems that this place has not been discovered by other cultivators. As long as we open this stone gate, we can enter the cave dwelling."

Seeing Song Qingming looking at the books and bamboo slips on the ground, Old Daoist Chen said to him again: "Fellow Daoist Song, don't look at them. Those on the ground are all useless low-grade techniques and the diary notes of that senior. I took away the useful ones last time."

Seeing this, Song Qingming nodded, and his gaze shifted back to the tightly closed stone gate.

Along the way, he heard Old Daoist Chen say that this senior cultivator's cave dwelling was found by him accidentally when he came here to pick spiritual herbs more than twenty years ago.

The restriction set outside the cave dwelling was relatively simple, and it had already been broken by Old Daoist Chen twenty years ago.

It was just that after arriving here, facing this pitch-black stone gate, Old Daoist Chen studied it hard for several months but failed to shake this restriction, so he had to leave here temporarily.

By a few years ago, Old Daoist Chen had raised his cultivation to the late stage of Qi Refining by relying on the spiritual items he found in the cave dwelling outside at that time.

Old Daoist Chen returned here again, but it was a pity that the restriction on the black stone gate was indeed set a bit deep. Old Daoist Chen tried various ways in the past few years and tried several times but still failed to break the restriction, so he finally gave up his exclusive enjoyment of this treasure and found Song Qingming and the other two.

Song Qingming carefully looked at the pitch-black stone gate and found that except for a strange rune engraved on the top of the stone gate, there was nothing unusual elsewhere.

"How is it, Fellow Daoist Song? Do you see any doorway? Are you sure you can break this restriction?"

Seeing Song Qingming staring at the black stone gate for a long time without speaking, Old Daoist Chen couldn't help but ask.

Song Qingming turned his head to look at the two and said: "To be able to set up such a deep restriction to guard the cave dwelling, it seems that this is indeed the cave dwelling of a Foundation Establishment senior. The restriction on this stone gate needs some effort to crack. The two of you should recover your magic power first. Next, I will have to trouble the two of you to help."

Hearing that there was a way, Old Daoist Chen and Zhou Jin-tang also showed joy on their faces and hurriedly took a Spirit-Returning Pill each, sitting down to recover the magic power in their bodies.

Song Qingming took out six array flags from his storage bag and inserted them into the six angles around the stone gate, and then took out a gray circular array disk.

After the two people next to him recovered their spiritual power, Song Qingming raised his eyebrows and said:

"Fellow Daoists, the restriction on the stone gate cannot be forcibly broken with our current cultivation. We can only rely on the array to change the texture of the restriction and weaken the power of this restriction. Next, I will have to trouble the two of you to use your magic power to help me maintain the array."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 129 =====