But it wasn't the top of the cliff, but rather some steps along the cliff face. These steps circled the entire cliff, and one had to be extremely careful when walking along the cliff's edge, lest they fall off.
This entire process was incredibly difficult, with the constant threat of insect attacks. Ye Tiancheng saw many egg sacs on the outer wall of the cliff. These egg sacs seemed to sense vibrations and likely the scent of people, each one trembling, ready to break free from its cocoon at any moment.
Under these circumstances, it was best to stick close to the cliff and move slowly.
Ye Tiancheng only had a large backpack with him, so he had to face the cliff. The backpack contained plenty of food and daily necessities. Ye Tiancheng didn't know how long it would take to find the fragments of the Fuxi Qin, so he had to prepare enough food for seven days.
Finally, he descended the cliff, and Ye Tiancheng breathed a sigh of relief. Reaching the bottom of the cliff, he was met with an endless expanse of water, with no other path forward.
At this moment, Ye Tiancheng missed Lin Xue. His visit to Liu Lanying's ancestral home had been rather rushed, and Ye Tiancheng hadn't made many preparations, which was why he now felt somewhat helpless. Facing the boundless water ahead, Ye Tiancheng suddenly thought of jumping in.
But what if the water was bottomless? Ye Tiancheng's swimming skills were average; he could only say he knew how to swim, but in special circumstances, it might not be enough.
Ye Tiancheng hesitated for a moment, then lit a campfire by the water's edge and took out his simple pot to cook a bowl of instant noodles. It seemed only instant noodles could solve all his troubles. Ye Tiancheng couldn't continue to be so dejected. After finishing his instant noodles, he lay there motionless, feeling as though he wasn't here to find fragments of the Fuxi Qin but to go on a leisurely vacation.
Ye Tiancheng told himself he needed some drive, but then he didn't know what to do. He could only jump into the water, but even then, it was useless. He couldn't see anything underwater; it just felt like a vast darkness.
Ye Tiancheng protected himself with his true qi. After a long while, he couldn't bear it anymore and surfaced from the water. He then ran back to the campfire, and with a burp, the scent of instant noodles filled the air.
"Brother Ye, how could you come alone? You left Fatty behind. You don't consider me a brother. I was waiting to make braised pork for you tonight. I already bought the meat, but it's back in the fridge."
Fatty was as talkative as ever, but hearing Fatty's voice at this moment made Ye Tiancheng incredibly happy, as if he had been rescued. Ye Tiancheng rushed over and hugged Fatty tightly.
After the hug, he felt something was amiss. "That's not right. On my way here, I was almost taken by those monsters. I even jumped off a cliff tens of meters high. You fatty, how could you possibly come alone?"
"Brother Ye, you really can't hide anything from your eyes. I feel so foolish in front of you, like I know nothing. You are too wise. Your disciple also came. No, to be precise, it's your disciple, Miss Xue'er, who brought me along. I was just a burden the whole way."
Fatty said this shamelessly, then chuckled foolishly, showing no sign of embarrassment. Then Lin Xue appeared, watching the two of them quietly, still carrying an umbrella on her back, her face as cold as ever. Only when she called Ye Tiancheng "Master" did a hint of warmth appear.
"Good disciple, don't blame me. I mainly didn't want to drag you two down. You two finally had a few days of peace, and I've dragged you back into the vortex of trouble, haven't I?"
Ye Tiancheng was quite eloquent. With his words, the other two couldn't say much, only responding with傻笑 (silly smiles).
The three of them were finally reunited. Ye Tiancheng didn't treat Lin Xue as an outsider and explained the difficulties they were currently facing.
Lin Xue summoned the little phoenix with her spiritual power. The little phoenix flapped its wings and soared high, then suddenly dove into the water.
"Even if your phoenix can't find a way out, there's no need to throw it into the river so drastically. Isn't that a bit too exaggerated?"
"The phoenix must have sensed the aura of the divine artifact fragment, which is why it dove into the water. Master, I think it's very likely that this fragment of the Fuxi Qin is in the water. Just wait, the phoenix will come out soon."
The phoenix had been with Lin Xue for a long time, and the two had developed considerable默契 (tacit understanding). Under these circumstances, Lin Xue wouldn't doubt the phoenix; instead, she was eagerly anticipating the moment it would leap out.
After a few minutes of waiting, the phoenix indeed leaped out, not disappointing anyone. It flew out with a spiritual glow, leaving the three of them somewhat stunned.
"What did the phoenix say?"
"It said the entrance is in this water. As long as we follow the phoenix's guidance, we can enter the water and officially find the entrance."
Only its master could understand the phoenix's language. Apart from Lin Xue, no one else understood its chirping.
"I don't know how long we'll have to swim. The key is that I don't think I can last long. My spiritual power is too limited. It's embarrassing to say, but it's the truth."
"It's alright, Master. You just take care of yourself. I'll have the phoenix protect Fatty. With my spiritual power, I can protect all of you. Don't overthink it; there aren't that many difficulties to overcome. For now, everything seems to be going smoothly. We can start setting off."
Lin Xue was always quite assertive, and Ye Tiancheng could also straighten his chest. "Alright, let's do that. We can start setting off."
All of them jumped into the water. With a splash, their figures quickly disappeared.
Protected by a massive shield, they reached the cave entrance without any issues, their bodies completely dry.
"Your phoenix is truly amazing, Xue'er. Master, can I discuss something with you? Can I exchange my Nuwa Stone, the Great Green Snake, and the Little Stone, these three divine artifacts, for your phoenix?"
"The phoenix will eventually undergo nirvana and fly away, becoming the master of a pure land. Master, I fear that if I give it to you, all your three divine artifacts will be lost, and in the end, you will be the one at a disadvantage."
Lin Xue had a point. Knowing it was a losing deal, Ye Tiancheng wouldn't be so foolish. He decided to drop the matter as if it had never been mentioned, and Lin Xue would certainly not hold him accountable as her master.
"This seems to be a secret chamber. This must be where Liu Lanying's ancestors hid their treasures. I heard from Master before that Liu Lanying's ancestor was a very famous divine doctor. Because he treated many high-ranking officials and extended the lives of many wealthy individuals, he obtained many priceless treasures."
Lin Xue rarely spoke so much; it seemed she was very invested in this matter. The group walked further inside.
They pressed onward. Fortunately, the enemies ahead were minor nuisances with no real threat. However, the ones behind were different; a strong dark aura was clearly felt.
As they tried to push forward, Fatty covered their rear. Several bats attempted to attack the three of them, but Fatty beat them away with his club.
"Master, it seems we can't go any further. The evil energy here is too strong. There should be a very powerful beast ahead."
"How powerful can it be?"
"It's likely that even the combined strength of you, me, and Brother Fatty won't be a match for this beast. After all, it's the last fragment, so it being difficult is normal."
Lin Xue's words made Ye Tiancheng realize that his burning passion couldn't escape reality. This was indeed the case. Despite his best efforts, this last fragment, and the fact that they had been blocked several times before and never gotten this close, indicated that it would be difficult. At this point, no matter how hard he tried, it would be in vain. He should adjust his mindset. Sometimes things seemed very difficult, but there was always progress, which meant that Ye Tiancheng had at least tried his best, rather than always being muddled and at the mercy of others.
Ye Tiancheng had no time to think further; a massive ball of dark energy struck. At the critical moment, Ye Tiancheng countered it with his true qi, but he was clearly unable to withstand it. Lin Xue immediately came to help, but it didn't make much difference. The master and disciple were facing an unprecedented crisis.
"Xue'er, I can't hold on any longer. Let's run back quickly. We can't do this now; this guy is too powerful. Let's gather our strength again. We can't be too hasty."
At this critical juncture, Ye Tiancheng had to take charge of the overall situation and quickly lead his disciple and Fatty to retreat. If his momentary obsession caused harm to the two people closest to him, Ye Tiancheng would never be able to forgive himself.
"Understood, Master. Then let's retreat first. I also feel I can't hold on any longer. Little Phoenix, quickly cover our retreat."
Ye Tiancheng led Lin Xue and Fatty backward, then retreated along the original path and submerged underwater. No matter how many attacks came, the little phoenix rose into the air, spread its wings, and blocked them all.
However, even so, a ball of dark energy pursued them into the water. At a critical moment, Ye Tiancheng shielded Lin Xue.
A massive ball of dark energy struck Ye Tiancheng directly on the back, almost making him spit blood. Lin Xue cried out in alarm. At that critical moment, the Little Stone inside Ye Tiancheng's body helped to block some of the impact, thus saving his life.
He scrambled back to the water's edge in a sorry state. The campfire that had been lit was still smoldering. Lin Xue quickly asked Fatty to rekindle the fire.
"Miss Xue'er, how is my Brother Ye? He looks very weak. Is there anything I can do to help? I'm really worried watching this!"
Fatty was so anxious that he was pacing back and forth on the ground. Lin Xue used her spiritual power to examine him.
She found that Ye Tiancheng was not dead, but he had sustained some injuries, and there was some dark energy moving erratically within his body.
Lin Xue tried to use her spiritual power to heal Ye Tiancheng, but she couldn't sustain it for long and even spat out a mouthful of blood, which looked quite terrifying.
"Xue'er, are you alright? Why are you spitting blood?"
Fatty was truly scared. If it hadn't been Ye Tiancheng blocking, Fatty, being an ordinary person with a bit of flesh, would have been attacked by that dark energy and turned into dust, leaving no intact corpse. Already terrified by the near-death experience and covered in sweat, he now saw Ye Tiancheng unconscious, and on top of that, Lin Xue spitting blood. All these events were enough to scare someone to death.
"It's alright, I'm just a bit exhausted. I don't plan to push myself any further. If I force myself, I'm afraid I'll be more severely injured and unable to protect you. The most important thing now is to give me some time to recover my strength. You take good care of my Master. He's fine now, don't worry."