Urban Martial Saint

Seeing this piece of cloth, Ye Qing’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat; he knew he had finally chosen the right direction. Without a doubt, Yin Xianzi must have gone this way. This piece of cloth probably got caught on the rock as Yin Xianzi was walking by.

Ye Qing didn’t pick up the cloth; instead, he wrapped it around the rock and continued running in this direction.

After walking for more than an hour, the surroundings fell completely silent, as if all forms of life had disappeared. Ye Qing hadn’t seen even an ant this whole time, causing his heart to grow anxious. Without a doubt, he was not far from the Devouring Demon Flower!

Reaching this point, Ye Qing became even more cautious. As he walked, he observed his surroundings, scrutinizing any hint of greenery to ensure they weren’t vines. Fortunately, although he occasionally encountered green plants, they were mostly flowers and grass, with no sign of vines. It was still unclear where exactly the Devouring Demon Flower was growing.

However, along the way, Ye Qing did grow somewhat familiar with the terrain of Beimang Mountain. The Stone Mountain in the depths was even broader than the Ancient Forest outside. The scarcity of life here indicated that there must be something terrifying in Stone Mountain, scaring away any living beings. This also confirmed what Yin Xianzi had said earlier; the rumors about the Devouring Demon Flower inside Beimang Mountain might indeed be true!

Ye Qing continued in the same direction until the path finally ended. Ahead lay an extremely steep mountain. The sheer cliffs made it impossible for even someone of Ye Qing’s ability to climb up.

At the base of the mountain, there was a spacious cave. The entrance of this cave was much larger than any Ye Qing had seen before, large enough for two trucks to drive side by side.

The inside of the cave was extremely dark. As he reached the entrance, Ye Qing caught a whiff of a strange fragrance.

Ye Qing was slightly surprised. The fragrance smelled like a flower’s aroma, yet also resembled the scent of medicine. However, he couldn’t determine exactly what it was. Intuition warned him that there was something wrong within this cave; perhaps the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi had both entered here.

After pondering at the cave entrance for a moment, Ye Qing finally decided to enter. After all, there was no more path ahead, and if he wanted to find the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi, this cave was the primary choice. Though danger might lurk inside, having ventured into Beimang Mountain, Ye Qing was not one to shrink back in fear.

Coming from outside, Ye Qing had brought some essential tools for mountain exploration, one of which was a flashlight. With it, he didn’t have to stumble blindly inside the cave.

The cave was more spacious than the outside. Not far from the entrance, he encountered five diverging paths, each looking similar, making it a difficult decision to choose one. If he chose the wrong path, finding the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi would be uncertain; he might not even be able to find his way back.

Ye Qing reached the fork in the road and carefully examined the five paths, hoping to discern any differences. But upon arrival, he was astonished to find that each path was marked. And not just marked once, but multiple times!

Ye Qing was stunned. Besides the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi who had recently entered, who else could’ve made these marks? Even if they marked their path while entering, they wouldn’t have left so many marks. It was as if over ten thousand people had traveled through here before, and some marks were visibly ancient, eroded by time, left who knows how many years ago.

Seeing these marks, Ye Qing’s heart suddenly jumped. He remembered what Yin Xianzi had said: after the Great Demon King perished here, many who sought longevity ventured into Beimang Mountain, hoping to find the Great Demon King’s unique secret technique to extend their lifespans. Could these marks have been left by those seeking opportunities?

With this realization, Ye Qing understood the origin of these marks, but it also fueled his shock. From ancient to modern times, many have sought longevity. People risk everything, even knowing the dangers in Beimang Mountain, to pursue eternal life. Achieving immortality has been the dream of exceptional talents through the ages!

Determining the marks’ origins, Ye Qing was certain that he was in the right place. It seemed the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi had indeed entered this cave. However, he needed to identify which path they took.

The cave was a maze, and even the ancients would leave marks at the forks in the paths for guidance. It seemed that the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi likely left marks here as well.

Ye Qing carefully examined each path, looking for the most recent mark. Despite searching along the five paths, he didn’t find any newly made marks. The most recent marks seemed at least a few days old, given the dust on the stone carvings had mostly blown away, indicating they weren’t recent.

What was going on? Did the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi enter without leaving any marks? Why didn’t they leave marks? Were they not worried about getting lost? Or were they so confident in their knowledge of the cave’s layout?

The fact that the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi chose the same direction to enter implies they knew more secrets about Beimang Mountain that Ye Qing was unaware of. Perhaps they knew the cave’s routes, which explained the lack of marks. It wasn’t that strange.

However, although they knew the cave’s layout, Ye Qing did not. If he continued blindly, finding the sorcerer and Yin Xianzi seemed hopeless. Choosing which of the five paths to take truly became a daunting challenge.

Frowning in contemplation, Ye Qing examined the five paths’ markings again, hoping to find clues. After a while, he suddenly noticed a peculiar symbol on one of the paths.

Most markings left by others were either inscriptions, carvings with knives, or personal symbols. But this symbol was particularly strange among them all. Despite its oddity, Ye Qing felt a familiar sense about it, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

Staring at the symbol for quite a while, Ye Qing suddenly exclaimed, ”Buddhist Texts!?”

This symbol was indeed one of the Buddhist texts Ye Qing had seen carved inside the Dragon Blood Wooden Box. At the time, Broom Star even translated these texts. However, despite the translation back then, looking at the symbol now, Ye Qing couldn’t recall its meaning at all.

Nonetheless, the presence of the Buddhist text symbol reassured Ye Qing. Those who understood Buddhist texts were esteemed monks, endowed with considerable wisdom. They weren’t ordinary figures. Most importantly, these monks might know many secrets about Beimang Mountain, and the path they chose might indeed be the right one.

Thinking this, Ye Qing didn’t hesitate any longer and proceeded down the path marked by the Buddhist text.

Inside the cave, it was even quieter than outside. In the outside world, at least insect chirps broke the silence occasionally, but inside this cave, there was absolutely no sound. It was a deathly silence. As Ye Qing walked in the cave, he felt as if many eyes were watching him, filling him with discomfort. Yet when he shone his flashlight around, there was nothing in the cave, let alone people.

This deepened Ye Qing’s perplexity. The mystery of Beimang Mountain continued inside this strange cave. What dangers could be lurking here? Especially the infamous Devouring Demon Flower rumored to be most terrifying in Beimang Mountain—was it hiding within this cave?

With unknown dangers looming in the darkness, Ye Qing drew the Wu Hong Dagger and held it tight. Even though Yin Xianzi claimed the dagger was ineffective against the Devouring Demon Flower, it was the only weapon Ye Qing had.

Yet, after traversing deeper into the cave for some time, Ye Qing still encountered no danger. Instead, he found another fork, identical to the previous one, branching into five paths.

Seeing the fork, Ye Qing felt even more puzzled. Having walked so far without encountering anything, he kept running into these forks. First five paths, and now five again—what did it mean? Was it merely a series of choices to test him?

Hesitant, Ye Qing approached the fork. When he looked back at the path he’d come from, he was astonished to find that it too split into five exits!

Ye Qing was stunned. How could this be? Five exits ahead and five behind? The topography of this cave was incredibly complex!