"Junior Sister, stay behind us! We'll take the lead!" Du Yi suddenly turned to speak to Chen Jinshu.
"Thank you, Senior Brother!"
Among the three, only the two senior brothers had information about the Incense Cavern. Even if Chen Jinshu had the will, she lacked the knowledge. It was better to follow their lead to ensure the exploration went smoothly.
In the blink of an eye, the trio arrived at a massive central chamber surrounded by caves on all sides. She carefully counted them—there were sixteen in total.
"Master once said that if you keep moving forward, you'll eventually reach a hidden resource area," Jiang Daoyu said, gazing into one of the pitch-black caverns ahead.
"My master didn't give many details—just said, 'all things are relative.' That likely means we should head straight across, to the opposite cave!" Du Yi added.
"Why don't we head into this one straight ahead together?" Chen Jinshu suggested after hearing the two speak.
"Sounds good. As for the other caves, we'll explore them after finishing this one!" The two nodded in agreement.
Chen Jinshu glanced around and casually applied a unique alchemical marking fluid to the wall of the cave. The fluid had a distinct scent, but unless someone sniffed closely, it would blend with the surroundings.
She couldn't smell it herself, but her companion, Xiao Yin, could. This marking fluid was something she had specially prepared for the expedition.
Drip.Drip.
After walking about five li into the cavern, the three abruptly halted in unison.
"There's movement up ahead—it seems we've reached a dripstone chamber. But it's unclear what's inside," Jiang Daoyu frowned slightly.
"That dripping sound suggests there's a shallow pond ahead, formed by water dripping from above."
"There are no other noises—should be no hidden creatures," Du Yi commented after scanning the area with his spiritual sense.
The three then entered the dripping cavern. It was vast, devoid of any strange scents, and unlike the incense-scented corridors or outer caves.
"Those must be stalactites," Jiang Daoyu murmured as he looked at the rows of downward-pointing rock formations.
"Why don't we split up to explore? This place is large—if we stick together, it'll take too long," Chen Jinshu proposed.
"Alright. If anything happens, alert us immediately!" Du Yi agreed, quickly striding forward.
Sensing heavier moisture to the right, Chen Jinshu headed that way, observing the changes in the stalactites. She noticed that the further she went, the slower the droplets fell, and the stalactites turned more ashen-white.
Soon, she saw a faint golden stalactite ahead, its droplet shimmering with golden light. On the ceiling nearby, there were golden, scale-like patches faintly glowing red.
"They're alive." Chen Jinshu noticed several of these scales twitching, like insect wings fluttering.
She quietly drew her disciple token from her storage pouch and used spiritual energy to write a message mid-air to her senior brothers, wary of alerting the unknown spirit butterflies.
Her token quickly received replies—they too had discovered resources and told her to act as she saw fit. If danger arose, she could summon them. If it was a chance encounter, she could claim it herself.
Chen Jinshu retrieved her Azure Frost Sword and placed Xiao Yin on her shoulder. The sparrow was about to speak when she signaled for silence and used her thoughts to ask it if it recognized the spirit insects.
The sparrow shook its head. It had only been about a year old when she found it—its memory and experience were limited.
"Master, that golden spiritual liquid looks extraordinary," the sparrow said, drawn toward a small pool of the liquid atop a stone platform.
"Don't worry. Once I collect it, I'll let you have some," she replied via a whisper.
Just as her sword neared within two inches of the golden pool—
The dormant golden butterflies above suddenly swarmed, forming a golden tide that surged toward her. She flicked her sword, releasing sword blossoms in a cross pattern, striking down several spirit butterflies. But the butterflies beat their wings, releasing a shower of golden scales and filling the area with a glittering toxic mist.
"Master! That powder is poisonous!"
Xiao Yin flapped its large blue-green wings furiously, blowing the poison dust forward. Fortunately, Chen Jinshu had already activated a Vajra Talisman, creating a defensive shield to protect herself.
"These are Golden Flame Butterflies!" she exclaimed, recognizing the creatures and their traits.
The butterflies earned their name from their golden toxic powder, which inflicted a burning, fevered agony on its victims—a fire poison that scorched both body and mind. However, once they released the powder, they couldn't strike again.
"What on earth is this golden spiritual liquid guarded by such dangerous creatures?"
She had never heard of Golden Flame Butterflies producing such a resource—only their toxins were well-known. She struck again, eliminating the remaining butterflies. After ensuring the area was clear, she took a jade bottle and collected the small pool of golden spiritual liquid from the stone platform. A shallow hole, an inch deep, remained where the liquid had been.
"I'll ask my senior brothers later—what is this stuff, really?"
Later, she met up with Du Yi and found a large patch of stalactites wrapped in black-green thorny vines. Blue flowers resembling Udumbara Blossoms bloomed among them.
Du Yi had sent a message saying he'd encountered a fierce beast and needed her help to handle it safely.
Sure enough, a seven-colored poisonous spider stood guard beside a deep blue spiritual flower at the center. Its fangs glinted as its eyes fixed warily on the two of them.
"Senior Brother, what do you plan to do?"
"Wait for Senior Brother Jiang," Du Yi replied, uncertain about handling the beast alone.
This species of spider usually appeared in pairs—if one was visible, the other was hidden, ready to ambush.
This spider had already reached the peak of Qi Refining and was on the verge of Foundation Establishment—a dangerous opponent even for most Foundation cultivators.
But the deep blue flower before them was simply too tempting to ignore.