Chapter 395: Exploring the Demon Cave

Linghu Jiu loved Ning Zhuo's unrestrained spirit, becoming even more excited. He took out two stone bowls, one for each of them.

He hastily sat down: "Here, here!"

Seeing his demeanor, Ning Zhuo couldn't help but inwardly sigh: The last time Ning Zhuo offered tea, while Linghu Jiu was pleased, he was nowhere near this excited.

Ning Zhuo used the finger techniques for opening the jar, taught in Zhu Xuanji's letter, and successfully unsealed the clay.

In an instant, the aroma of wine permeated the entire cave.

As soon as Linghu Jiu caught a whiff, he blurted out: "Oh? It's actually our national cellar!"

His eyes lit up, and his Adam's apple bobbed with excitement: "Good heavens, this is a century-old national cellar Acacia Wine, quite rare."

"Esteemed brother, where did you get this? Your humble brother has repeatedly asked others to acquire it. There are many national cellar spirit wines on the market, but this kind of century-old national cellar is extremely difficult to obtain."

"Thanks to esteemed brother's great fortune, your humble brother is truly blessed with a feast this time, hahaha."

Ning Zhuo smiled, filling a bowl to the brim for both Linghu Jiu and himself.

Their stone bowls clinked together, and they began to drink.

In the stone bowls, the Acacia Wine's color was like绯红珠玉 (crimson pearl jade), clear and translucent, reflecting their expectant faces.

With a gentle sniff, the aroma of wine mingled with a faint scent of red beans, soft yet distant.

Upon entering the mouth, the wine was smooth and mellow, warm like the first dew of spring. The subtle sweetness of red beans melted on the tongue, carrying threads of emotion, followed by a rich aftertaste tinged with a hint of hidden bitterness, like long-accumulated acacia that has yet to dissipate, pressing on the heart and lingering.

They savored it in silence for a long time.

After a while, Linghu Jiu broke the silence: "A century-old national cellar, indeed worthy of its reputation! Gentle on the palate, with a hint of red bean sweetness, and the mellow richness brewed over a hundred years. The sentiment of acacia, ethereal and uncertain, but upon careful tasting, it feels exceptionally heavy."

"A hundred years of time, still acacia..." Ning Zhuo also sighed with emotion, "The longer the vintage of this wine, the deeper the acacia. Good wine, truly good wine!"

Ning Zhuo had recently tasted three kinds of wine: Ice Jade Wine,幽思冥酿 (Profound Contemplation Underworld Brew), and Acacia Wine.

Among the former two, Ice Jade Wine could guide Qi with Shen, quickly elevating Qi Sea cultivation. Linghu Jiu also benefited greatly from this. As for幽思冥酿, whether it was true or false wine, it could connect Yin and Yang, bringing guidance from ancient sages.

These two wines had powerful effects.

But Acacia Wine was unlike the former two; it seemed more luxurious, merely allowing one to experience the feeling of acacia.

This kind of wine was difficult to preserve.

This was because the feeling of acacia was difficult to sustain.

How long could an ordinary person feel acacia? One year, two years? Ten years, or twenty years?

The human heart is easily changed, and human emotions are prone to being forgotten. The flow of time can wash away everything, wearing down everything.

An emotion is difficult to maintain for several years, decades. As for a century? Even rarer.

This is because an ordinary person's life is only a hurried century. What kind of emotion can make someone remember for a lifetime?

In the past, what the Grand Empress Dowager of the Southern Bean Kingdom wanted to express was this very emotion.

It is said that the Acacia Wine she personally designed and brewed still exists today.

She wanted to give it to a certain person, but not a single jar of this fine wine was ever successfully delivered!

The production of Acacia Wine is very difficult, requiring the spiritual chef themselves to harbor a strong feeling of acacia for it to be possible.

The preservation of Acacia Wine is also very difficult. It requires the feeling of acacia it contains to be long-lasting.

Therefore, there are very few century-old Acacia Wines on the market. Once they exceed a few decades, the Acacia Wine itself deteriorates and is no longer drinkable.

But today, Ning Zhuo and Linghu Jiu drank this kind of wine.

For a moment, both of them were immersed in the feeling of acacia, deeply affected and unable to extricate themselves.

Ning Zhuo missed his mother. Now his mother had transformed into an automaton, accompanying him, seemingly close, but in reality still distant.

His second goal, the胎息灵舸 (Womb Breathing Spirit Boat), was too distant and massive. As of now, Ning Zhuo had not found a feasible path to destroy it.

Linghu Jiu thought of his junior sister, Lin Shanshan.

The taste of Acacia Wine spread in his mouth, as if a million threads gently wrapped around his heart.

He was adopted by Lin Bufan when he was very young and watched Lin Shanshan grow up little by little.

The sweet and brief moments he spent with Lin Shanshan, in this wine, seemed to be elongated by the accumulation of time, becoming even more profound and distant.

The Acacia Wine transformed each of Linghu Jiu's thoughts into droplets within the wine, gradually spreading within his heart.

"Life is like wine, acacia is like a song." Linghu Jiu sighed wistfully, "Some acacia eventually fades with the passage of time, while some acacia is brewed deeper and deeper!"

Their drinking session this time had a vastly different atmosphere than before. The previous time was lively, this time was deeply emotional.

After three rounds of wine, Ning Zhuo directly stated his situation: "Brother Linghu, I recently drank幽思冥酿 again, but received no guidance from the ancestors."

Linghu Jiu pointed at Ning Zhuo: "This situation is absolutely normal."

"You must know that drinking this wine merely provides us with an opportunity, an opportunity to communicate with the ancestors in the underworld."

"At a certain time and moment, if the ancestors in the underworld are willing and free, and find you and me agreeable, they will not hesitate to offer a word or two of guidance."

"Most of the time I drink幽思冥酿, nothing happens. Even if something does, most of the time it's ethereal murmurs, difficult to understand. I can only rely on my own talent to comprehend and gain from these murmurs."

"Esteemed brother's surge of luck last time was not the norm."

Ning Zhuo smiled slightly: "So that's how it is."

He looked deeply at Linghu Jiu, silent for a moment.

Seeing his strange expression and intense gaze, Linghu Jiu smiled freely: "Esteemed brother, if you have anything to say, just say it!"

Ning Zhuo did not use 人命悬丝 (Human Fate Suspended Thread), so he could not use 我佛心魔印 (My Buddha Heart Demon Seal) to sense Linghu Jiu's innermost thoughts.

But relying on his more than a decade of life experience and his skill in assessing human nature, he confirmed Linghu Jiu's sincerity.

A sharp glint flashed in Ning Zhuo's eyes, and he boldly spoke his mind.

He first mentioned that he had asked the Ning family's Golden Core patriarch to request the wine recipe, but was sternly refused by Lin Bufan with no room for discussion.

He then gave the wine to a spiritual chef to taste, asking the latter to try and identify the recipe, but received an unexpected evaluation.

Linghu Jiu was surprised upon hearing this: "You said,幽思冥酿 is fake wine? It actually has no function of communicating with the ancestors in the underworld?"

"Impossible!"

Linghu Jiu immediately shook his head and said resolutely: "This is the wine my master personally gave me, and he strictly ordered me... to keep this secret."

At this point, Linghu Jiu felt a little unnatural.

His nature was lazy and unrestrained. To put it impolitely, when he was moved by emotion or passion, he often forgot some of the instructions given to him.

幽思冥酿 was the best example.

His master clearly asked him to strictly keep the secret, but in Linghu Jiu's opinion, this wine, which he had a talent for, was ineffective most of the time he drank it, so its value was not high.

Therefore, the last time he found Ning Zhuo agreeable, he directly took it out and let Ning Zhuo drink to his heart's content.

Ning Zhuo saw that Linghu Jiu trusted Lin Bufan implicitly, so he said: "Last time I heard brother say that Lord Lin Bufan personally traveled for brother's matters and specifically found a great chef to design this wine recipe."

"Your humble brother dares to make a presumptuous guess: Perhaps Lord Lin Bufan was also deceived? After all, he is not a spiritual chef. Among the hundred arts of cultivation, being able to be involved in spiritual plants, healing, and alchemy is already like a scholar among mortals."

"Different fields are like different mountains, and there are specialties in different professions. It's not impossible to be deceived, is it?"

Linghu Jiu nodded: "That is indeed the case."

He immediately cupped his hands: "Thank you for telling me about this, esteemed brother. I will report to my master on a chosen day."

Ning Zhuo raised his hand: "Brother Linghu, I have some more interesting information to tell you. It's related to that Five Elements Divine Lord..."

After listening, Linghu Jiu immediately fell into deep thought.

He raised his head and gazed at Ning Zhuo: "I already know what esteemed brother means. You mean there is a problem here!"

He pointed to the cave.

"Exactly." Ning Zhuo clapped his hands and smiled, "The ancient Ten Thousand Demon Mountain, today's Ten Thousand Demon Cave, the Five Elements Divine Lord once perished here. Did he leave anything behind? So much so that he can still influence the outside world to this day."

"Last time, after I returned, the effects of the wine had dissipated, but I still received his guidance again under the Spiritual Concealment Willow tree, and my Five Elements realm had a terrifying elevation that could change the world."

"Whether from the perspective of Yin Shou (Underworld Longevity) or 幽思冥酿, this is not normal."

Linghu Jiu burst into laughter and stood up: "Interesting, interesting!"

"I was punished by my master with confinement, and this is where I stay most often. I originally thought it was unremarkable, but with what esteemed brother said, your humble brother already feels a hint of mystery."

"Why not take advantage of the high spirits from the wine, and we'll explore the Ten Thousand Demon Cave together arm in arm. Anyway, I was punished to be here, and I have the responsibility of keeping watch."

Ning Zhuo was overjoyed: "It is my wish, I dare not ask for more, brother, please!"

The two walked side by side, delving deeper into the Ten Thousand Demon Cave.

The cave was completely dark, the stone steps underfoot were damp and slippery, and the sound of water droplets hitting the rock walls echoed around them, as if the cave itself had life, silently recounting the secrets of time.

Ning Zhuo and Linghu Jiu both performed hand seals, emitting bright light to illuminate the surroundings and the path ahead.

As they descended the steps, the air became increasingly stuffy. Both of them communicated through sound transmission, with only the sound of their footsteps echoing in the silent cave.

After walking for a while, the artificial traces like stone stairs disappeared.

The darkness became deeper, and even the range of the bright light they maintained by expending mana was noticeably compressed.

The cave path began to become steep, and in some places, they could only pass with one person in front of the other, squeezing sideways.

Ning Zhuo could clearly feel himself continuously descending deep underground in a downward sloping direction.

He began to faintly hear the sound of water.

It wasn't the dripping sound of water seeping from the rock walls along the way, but the sound of a river.

Linghu Jiu was quite familiar with the path. When there were forks, he would tell Ning Zhuo which ones were dead ends.

"Sometimes when I'm confined, I'm extremely bored, and I'll go deep underground by myself to explore."

"Don't laugh, esteemed brother, I've often hoped that some demon beasts would appear so I could slay them. Either to relieve boredom, or to earn merit and have my master lift my confinement."

"But I always return empty-handed."

"Demon beasts, and even beast tides, used to appear in the Ten Thousand Demon Cave. But in the past hundred years, it has been peaceful."

"The biggest disturbance was still when your Ning family suddenly intruded into our Ten Thousand Medicine Valley by following the underground river."

Linghu Jiu transmitted his voice.

Ning Zhuo smiled and also transmitted his voice in agreement.

The two chatted and walked.

Turning a corner, Ning Zhuo's vision suddenly opened up - they had entered a huge underground溶洞 (karst cave).

The ceiling of the溶洞 was high above, like a canopy, dotted with countless fluorescent stones, twinkling like stars, illuminating the entire溶洞 like a dream. Crystal vine-like structures hung from the cave walls, like dripping icicles, flowing with a faint radiance between stillness and motion.

Ning Zhuo couldn't help but stop and admire the beautiful scene before him.

Linghu Jiu, however, had seen it too many times and found it uninteresting, but he wisely stopped as well, giving Ning Zhuo time.

"After passing through here, there will gradually be signs of life."

"After walking for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, we'll be able to descend to the edge of the underground river. Can you imagine a large river flowing ceaselessly deep underground?"

"Haha, that's also a wondrous sight!"

Linghu Jiu wasn't actually too concerned about verifying Ning Zhuo's conjecture. What he was thinking was that leading Ning Zhuo on a tour wouldn't be a waste of time.

But in the next moment, Ning Zhuo's expression changed dramatically.

This was because Ning Zhuo seemed to hear a voice.

He was extremely familiar with that voice; it was the voice of the Five Elements Divine Lord - Boy, did you come down specifically to see me? Haha, look at that stalactite, study it carefully! That is the portal.

(End of this chapter)

Please: m.badaoge.info