304: Chapter 298 A New Treasure, We're Rich!

"Furthermore, I have just carefully inspected them."

"Whether it is the Spider King or the Spider Queen, neither has comprehended any racial Divine Ability."

"Apart from spitting poison and hand-to-hand combat, they possess no special means."

"This proves that their Bloodline has not undergone any powerful mutation and remains the most ordinary Golden Silk Spider Bloodline."

Chen Zhiwen's gaze became sharp as a sword.

He looked straight into Ren Quanxu's eyes.

"From this, it can be inferred that for such a low-level Bloodline to break through its shackles and forcibly advance to the fourth rank..."

"...they must have been influenced by some extremely powerful external factor."

"Either they consumed some Heaven And Earth Treasure."

"Or they obtained the legacy of some powerful expert."

Chen Zhiwen paused.

He observed Ren Quanxu's reaction.

Seeing that the other party remained silent, he decided to lay his cards on the table.

"Judging by Brother Ren's words earlier, it seems you know the background of this group of spiders like the back of your hand."

"Moreover, Brother Ren went straight to the point as soon as you came in, and you were not the least bit unfamiliar with the surrounding environment."

"Clearly, Brother Ren knows the origin of this group of Golden Silk Spiders."

Chen Zhiwen returned to the main point and asked straightforwardly.

"What exactly is hidden down there?"

Ren Quanxu was finally moved.

He looked deeply at Chen Zhiwen, his eyes filled with both admiration and wariness.

"Brilliant."

He clapped his hands lightly, producing a crisp sound.

"Fellow Daoist Chen not only has god-like swordsmanship, but this meticulous mind of yours also makes this old man admire you."

"Since Fellow Daoist Chen has already guessed this much, it would seem petty for me to keep hiding it."

Ren Quanxu cleared his throat.

His expression became serious, and his gaze turned deep and distant.

It was as if he were piercing through the pitch-black cave, seeing the distant past.

"Brother Chen, you must have read about the beast tide from over a hundred years ago in the Sect's records, right?"

He asked leisurely, his voice tinged with a hint of vicissitudes.

Chen Zhiwen's heart stirred.

A beast tide from a hundred years ago?

That was a catastrophe for the cultivation world of the Eastern Continent.

Countless Sects were destroyed, countless Cultivators fell, and the entire landscape of the cultivation world changed because of it.

"That is correct."

Chen Zhiwen nodded slightly.

"I have indeed seen records of that catastrophe in the texts."

"However, I only heard some generalities; as for the specific details, it was a long time ago, so I am not very clear about them."

Ren Quanxu nodded, appearing to fall into memories.

He paced slowly, walking to a protruding rock, and reached out to touch the ancient claw marks on it.

Then, he began to introduce:

"Over a hundred years ago, or perhaps that hundred years from even further back."

"The Eastern Continent erupted in a medium-scale beast tide disaster."

"That beast tide was no small matter."

"It was not launched by a single Yao Beast tribe, but by an organized and premeditated coalition army."

"It swept through the entire cultivation world."

Ren Quanxu's voice was low, carrying a sense of oppression.

"The leader of that beast tide was a fifth-rank Soul Transformation level Heaven-Swallowing Thunder Python."

"It possessed an ancient exotic beast Bloodline, its strength was terrifyingly unparalleled, capable of swallowing mountains and rivers, and commanding ten thousand thunders."

"Under its leadership, countless Yao Beasts marched in separate armies."

"They split into multiple routes, simultaneously attacking top Sects like the Ten Thousand Swords Sect, Tian Yin Pavilion, Divine Fire Gate, and the Taiyi Sect."

"That battle was fought until the sky turned dark and the sun and moon lost their light."

"Even the mountain-protecting formation of my Tian Yin Pavilion had a corner breached, and countless Disciples were killed or injured."

Speaking of this, a trace of lingering fear flashed in Ren Quanxu's eyes.

Clearly, even for a Nascent Soul Cultivator like him, that beast tide remained an inescapable nightmare.

He took a deep breath, calming his emotions.

Then he spoke quickly, steering the topic back to the present.

"Under that Heaven-Swallowing Thunder Python, there were several capable generals."

"Among them, the spider swarm commanded by a 'Polar Cold Plague Spider King' at the Great Perfection of Nascent Soul Stage was the most powerful."

"That Plague Spider King was incomparably poisonous; wherever it passed, not a blade of grass grew, and living beings were devastated."

"The plague Qi it spat out could even cause a Nascent Soul Cultivator's Physical Body to rot and their Nascent Soul to be defiled."

"It was one of the most terrifying existences in the beast tide at that time."

Chen Zhiwen listened quietly, scenes of tragedy appearing in his mind.

He vaguely guessed what Ren Quanxu was going to say next.

Sure enough.

Ren Quanxu continued:

"Later, the Old Ancestors of the various Human Race Sects joined forces and, after paying a heavy price, finally killed that Heaven-Swallowing Thunder Python."

"The beast tide scattered as a result."

"And after the Thunder Python fell, that Polar Cold Plague Spider King was also besieged by several Late Nascent Soul Stage great Cultivators of our Human Race."

"Although the Spider King was fierce, it could not withstand the sheer number of opponents."

"In the end, it was heavily injured, six of its eight legs were broken, and most of its poison arts were broken."

"But its vitality was extremely tenacious, and it forcibly dragged its dying body, used a blood escape technique, fled into the vast spider swarm, and disappeared without a trace."

"For a hundred years, countless Cultivators have been searching for its whereabouts."

"After all, the corpse of a Yao Beast at the Great Perfection of Nascent Soul Stage is enough to make any Sect go crazy."

"But nothing was ever found."

As the story reached this point.

The truth was already obvious.

Chen Zhiwen's eyes flickered as he looked at the traces filled with cold air and stench all around.

The environment here was so similar to the attributes of the Polar Cold Plague Spider King described by Ren Quanxu.

"So..."

Chen Zhiwen spoke slowly, his tone carrying a hint of certainty.

"Does Brother Ren suspect that the Dark Night Golden Silk Spiders occupying this ocean Spiritual Vein are the subordinates of that Plague Spider King from back then?"

"Or perhaps, are they the descendants of that Spider King?"

Ren Quanxu shook his head.

A mocking smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Descendants?"

"How could these lowly Golden Silk Spiders be worthy of the noble Bloodline of the Plague Spider King."

"They are just a bunch of lowly insects that got lucky."

Ren Quanxu turned around and pointed to the dark aura deep in the cave.

He said with a firm tone:

"Back then, when the Plague Spider King was heavily injured and fled, in its panic, it must have hidden in this hidden underwater Spiritual Vein."

"It wanted to use the Earth Vein Qi here to heal its wounds."

"Unfortunately, it was too badly injured."

"Not only did its Physical Body collapse, but even its Divine Soul suffered a devastating blow."

"Not long after, it died from its wounds and Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering."

Speaking of this, a trace of regret flashed in Ren Quanxu's eyes.

A generation of Vicious Beast, yet it ended up dying silently without anyone knowing.

"And this group of Dark Night Golden Silk Spiders that had been living here were originally just the lowest existence in the Spiritual Vein."

"Normally, they wouldn't even be qualified to be snacks for the Plague Spider King."

"But after the Spider King died, its corpse became a gluttonous feast for this group of low-rank Yao Beasts."

Ren Quanxu sneered.

"This is the so-called 'whale fall, all things grow'."

"This group of Golden Silk Spiders ignorantly gnawed on the flesh and blood of the Plague Spider King."

"That was flesh and blood at the Great Perfection of Nascent Soul Stage, containing terrifying energy and Law fragments."

"Most of the Golden Silk Spiders, unable to withstand that violent power, exploded and died."

"But there were a very few lucky ones, such as that Spider Queen and those few Spider Kings from just now."

"They barely survived."

"But they did indeed use this to break the shackles of their Bloodline, thereby breaking through a Bottleneck that was impossible to break, and advanced to the fourth rank."

Chen Zhiwen understood everything after hearing this.

So that was it.

This was why these spiders, despite their inferior Bloodline, could possess such strength.

This was why, even though they had reached the fourth rank, they had no racial Divine Ability.

Because their power was not cultivated, but eaten.

"The Plague Spider King was too heavily injured and Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, allowing the Golden Silk Spiders to pick up a huge bargain for free."

Ren Quanxu looked deep into the cave, his eyes flashing with a light called "greed".

"However."

"With the ability of fourth-rank Golden Silk Spiders, wanting to completely digest the corpse of a Great Perfection of Nascent Soul Stage Yao Beast is nothing but a pipe dream."

"Even after a hundred years."

"I'm afraid they haven't even digested one-tenth of it."

Ren Quanxu turned his head and looked at Chen Zhiwen.

A meaningful smile appeared on his face.

"Brother Chen."

"You say, the remaining corpse of that Plague Spider King..."

"Especially the Polar Cold Poison Pill inside it that condensed the essence of its entire life, and that indestructible skeleton."

"Where would it be now?"

Chen Zhiwen did not speak.

His gaze, along with Ren Quanxu's, was cast towards the bottomless dark cave.

There.

A heart-palpitating chill was slowly overflowing.

As if summoning new greedy people.

Ren Quanxu and Chen Zhiwen lowered their heads simultaneously, looking at the swampy ground beneath their feet that emitted a rotten odor.

There was a dead, dark brown area.

Occasionally, huge bubbles rolled up, bursting with a "pop" sound, releasing nauseating poisonous miasma.

But beneath this dirty appearance, the secret that both of them were most eager for at this moment was hidden.

"It seems that without me saying more, Brother Chen has already guessed it."

Ren Quanxu's mouth curled slightly, revealing a meaningful smile.

Chen Zhiwen did not speak, just nodded slightly.

In his eyes, the divine light was restrained.

The next moment, two incomparably powerful Divine Senses, like two invisible sharp swords, instantly pierced the air and stabbed fiercely into the mud below.

Moving out again.

The Divine Sense penetrated the viscous mud, and the world in his mind turned into black and white lines.

At first, it was all dark brown silt in all directions.

Inside, it was mixed with countless rotten plant roots and some corpses of low-rank Yao insects.

One hundred zhang.

Two hundred zhang.

As the Divine Sense continued to deepen, the resistance became greater and greater.

That unique sense of oppression from underground felt as if it were going to crush a person's Soul and deform it.

Finally.

At a depth of nearly three hundred zhang underground, the mud disappeared.

Replacing it was a strange space paved with a thick layer of hard rock.

The rock presented an eerie grey-white color, as if it had been instantly sintered by some high temperature.

And under these rocks.

Several hundred incomparably wide underground passages appeared.

These passages were intricate, like a huge maze, extending all the way to the deepest part of the underground.

Chen Zhiwen's Divine Sense swept over the rock walls of the passages.

They were covered with shocking claw marks.

Each claw mark was several feet deep; these were the marks left by eight legs walking side by side.

Rough, wild, and carrying a kind of primitive power.

"It is highly likely the dwelling place of the fourth-rank Spider King and Spider Queen."

Chen Zhiwen judged secretly in his heart.

Only such colossal creatures could carve out such a magnificent underground palace in this hard rock layer.

His Divine Sense continued to deepen, passing through layers of mazes.

Finally, it arrived at the core area of this underground nest.

It was a huge spherical space.

There was not a bit of soil in the space; instead, it was extremely dry.

Strands of slender, translucent spider silk floated in the air.

These spider silks had not decayed after hundreds of years and still emitted a faint spiritual light, cutting the entire space into pieces.

And in the center of these spider silks.

A huge, terrifying dark green skeleton lay quietly!

The moment his Divine Sense touched this skeleton, a clap of thunder seemed to ring in Chen Zhiwen's mind.

That was the pressure from a high-order life form.

Even after dying for hundreds of years, that terrifying aura originating from the depths of the Bloodline still made one feel a palpitation.

A detailed look.

This corpse should have been a super large spider with thirty-two legs when it was alive.

Its size was unimaginably huge.

Just that broken torso alone was over eighty zhang long.

If you added those curled-up giant legs, it could probably easily cover a small hill.

Compared to it.

Those arrogant fourth-rank Golden Silk Spider Kings from before were really just little ones in front of it.

Just like a few lizards surrounding a dragon.

They were simply not on the same level.

"This is... the legendary Polar Cold Plague Spider King."

Chen Zhiwen withdrew his Divine Sense and slowly opened his eyes.

A trace of undisguisable shock flashed in his eyes.

Although it was just a skeleton, this was a genuine Great Perfection of Nascent Soul Stage Yao Beast.

Also commonly known as "half-step Soul Transformation".

For a Yao Beast of this level, the bones of its entire body had been tempered by the Laws of Heaven and Earth, and their hardness was comparable to top-tier fourth-rank Magic Treasure Materials.

It could even be said.

This skeleton itself was a huge Treasure Trove.

"The corpse of the Plague Spider King."

Ren Quanxu also opened his eyes, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.

He took a deep breath, appearing to want to calm the waves in his heart.

"This is the biggest gain of this trip."

He sighed, his tone carrying a bit of mockery.

"Zhang Xing, Xu Wen, and that impatient Elder of the Divine Fire Gate."

"They only stared at the petty profits in front of them, took some spider legs and spider silk, and left satisfied."

"It seems that this heaven-sent Opportunity was destined not to be theirs."

Chen Zhiwen also smiled faintly.

This is the cultivation world.

Opportunity is often reserved for those who are prepared, have vision, and can keep their cool.

If those three had a little more patience, or a little more knowledge, they wouldn't have missed this real treasure.

"Brother Ren."

Chen Zhiwen turned his head and looked at Ren Quanxu beside him.

Since the Treasure Trove had been discovered, the next question was how to retrieve it.