89: earthquake

About an hour later, the Yellow-Feathered Chick, which had been weaving through the pile of rocks in search of something, finally seemed satisfied.

It walked back to Lu Chen's feet with slightly waddling steps. The faint golden halo circulating around its body was much more solid than before; clearly, it had gained a lot this time.

The little fellow let out a long, lazy yawn, showing some weariness. Ignoring its surroundings, it curled up by Lu Chen's boot, tilted its head, and began to let out a faint, steady snore, falling fast asleep.

Seeing this, Lu Chen couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head. He leaned down and carefully picked up the little fellow, whose belly was now round from eating. He gently placed it back into the spirit beast pouch, allowing it to peacefully digest this Opportunity.

On the other side, Qing Yi had already stopped her search.

As a Heaven And Earth Treasure that nourished soul bodies, yin marrow fluid was extremely rare. Even in this place where Yin Qi gathered, its supply was limited.

After a careful investigation, she had collected all the yin marrow fluid she could sense within the cave.

At this moment, she was floating quietly beside the soul nurturing pearl. Inside the pearl, faint threads of dark light could be seen circulating; it was clearly absorbing the cold energy slowly.

Silence returned to the cave.

Lu Chen looked around, knowing that his accidental arrival here was entirely thanks to the Yellow-Feathered Chick's extraordinary treasure-seeking instinct.

Now that his guide was sound asleep and the path ahead was unknown, should he turn back and choose another fork in the road that might lead to the Fragment mentioned by the Old Man, or should he continue exploring the depths of this cave, which clearly still held secrets?

He walked over to a relatively flat boulder, sat down, and closed his eyes slightly to organize his thoughts.

This path was led by the Yellow-Feathered Chick. Although he had gained some unexpected wealth, it had clearly deviated from his original goal.

Searching for the Fragment the Old Man mentioned, which could be beneficial to Qing Cang.

Reason told him that the safest choice would be to return the way he came and re-evaluate the fork in the road to find a path that better matched the description.

"Very well. Though Opportunities are good, I must not lose sight of my priorities." Lu Chen made his decision and prepared to stand up and turn back.

However, just as he stood up and before he could even take a step!

"Rumble!!!"

A sudden, violent tremor erupted from deep underground without any warning!

This shaking didn't start slowly; it exploded abruptly with an extremely high frequency and immense force, as if the entire mountain interior was about to be torn apart!

Lu Chen felt the ground beneath his feet surging like waves, leaving him with no footing. Despite his quick reactions, he stumbled and lost his balance, falling heavily to the ground with a "thud."

Even more terrifyingly, at the moment he fell, a massive rock weighing thousands of catties, which had been embedded in the cavern wall, suddenly shook loose due to the sudden tremor. It plummeted toward him with a heart-stopping whistle!

Shadows instantly enveloped him as the aura of death rushed toward his face!

Lu Chen's expression changed drastically. In this critical moment, he suppressed his dizziness and raised his arm, intending to activate the flash thunder spear to strike upward, hoping to deflect the giant rock even by a fraction!

But the falling momentum was too fast and too fierce. Having just fallen, his breath was uneven, and his movements were ultimately half a beat too slow!

At the critical moment!

A faint green shadow, like mist or smoke, suddenly appeared by his side. It was Qing Yi!

Her soul body flashed with light as she pressed her hands into the air. A pure and gentle force instantly enveloped Lu Chen's entire body.

This force did not meet the rock head-on but instead skillfully guided and pushed him. Lu Chen felt his body grow light as he was pulled across the uneven ground by an invisible hand, sliding rapidly to the side!

The very next instant after his body moved—

"Boom!!!"

A deafening roar exploded within the cave!

The massive rock slammed down exactly where he had been lying. The ground shook violently, and debris and dust flew everywhere. The wild shockwave even sent several smaller stones nearby flying.

Lu Chen was sent several dozen feet away by that gentle force, stopping only when his back hit the cave wall.

Still shaken, he looked up and saw that the impact of the giant rock had shaken loose some rocks above, revealing a sliver of daylight—or perhaps a glimmer of light from a fissure higher up—which happened to shine upon the fallen boulder.

Only then did he see its full appearance.

It was a massive, ink-black rock as large as a house, with jagged edges!

If he had been crushed by it, even if he had Cultivated a Lightning Body, he would likely have been turned into meat paste on the spot!

The violent tremors came quickly and left just as fast. The cave soon returned to a deathly silence, leaving only the dust in the air to slowly settle.

Lu Chen lay on the ground, gasping for air. His heart was still pounding, and waves of intense dizziness kept hitting him—the aftermath of his blood surging and his Divine Soul being shaken in the moment of crisis.

He struggled to prop himself up with his hands and slowly sat up. It took a while for the scene before his eyes to stop spinning.

He looked with a complex gaze at Qing Yi, who was floating quietly nearby, her soul light appearing somewhat dimmer. A surge of fear and gratitude rose in his heart.

If she hadn't sensed it in time and saved him with the unique gentle strength of a soul body, he might have inexplicably perished here today.

"Qing Yi..."

Lu Chen's voice was slightly hoarse as he said sincerely, "This time, I owe it to you."

Qing Yi's soul body fluctuated slightly, conveying a somewhat weary but steady thought: "As long as the Young Master is unharmed. This is my duty as your Little Maid."

She paused, her soul body turning toward the deep pit created by the fallen rock and the fissure above through which light filtered. Her tone carried a hint of gravity. "Young Master, that earthquake just now... didn't seem ordinary. It felt more like... a very powerful Restriction was triggered, or... something heavy struck the mountain with great force nearby."

Hearing this, Lu Chen nodded slightly with a solemn expression.

What Qing Yi said was exactly what he was thinking.

Why would such a violent tremor break out for no reason deep within the Dragon Imprisonment Mountain Range?

There must be something suspicious about it. Most likely, some unknown ancient Restriction had been triggered, or a world-shaking event had occurred outside, with its vibrations reaching even the depths of this mountain.

He took a deep breath, forcing down the waves of emotion caused by the sudden shock, and his eyes became sharp and calm once more.

The priority now was to find an exit as quickly as possible.

He walked quickly toward the narrow, cramped entrance of the passage they had come through.

However, the sight before him caused his heart to sink instantly.

The crevice that had barely allowed him to pass sideways was now completely filled with collapsed debris and twisted rocks. It was sealed so tightly that not even a mouse could squeeze through, let alone a person.

These rocks were jagged and sharp, clearly having collapsed from the ceiling and sides during the violent tremors, blocking the way back completely.

Lu Chen didn't give up and quickly turned to the other side of the cave.

There had also been a natural corridor there that seemed to lead deeper.

Sure enough, as expected, the situation there was even worse. Not only was the passage buried, but large sections of the walls on both sides had also collapsed, piling up like a mountain and completely cutting off any possibility of moving forward.

Facing this dead end where both the front and back were blocked, Lu Chen's face didn't show much disappointment or panic.

He had already sensed that since that sudden, violent earthquake could change the geological structure, it wouldn't just block one place.

Now that his suspicion was confirmed, it actually calmed his heart.

Since the way back was cut off, there was no need to hesitate anymore. He only needed to find a new way out.

His gaze slowly moved upward, finally settling on the ceiling of the cave.

That was the place where the giant rock had fallen and forced open the fissure, allowing a faint light to filter through.

Several twisted cracks, like black scars, were etched into the jagged rocky ceiling. A faint current of air blew down from above, carrying a slightly crisp scent that was completely different from the murky and stifling air inside the cave.

That might be his only chance of survival right now and the only path to the unknown.