235: Unique buildings in the cave

"No more words, it's truly a day full of harvest!"

Qi Chuanyu's face was beaming with a smile, and he walked with a swaggering gait, carrying a large bag full of various herbs harvested from the village compound on his shoulder.

Behind him were Jian Tong and Liao Zhongyang, also carrying large bags full of things.

It was practically like ransacking a landlord's home, taking everything that could be taken.

Anything valuable was not left behind.

Then they left calmly and fearlessly.

After all, all the Stranger had exploded in chaos, all chasing Shen Bei, which resulted in the compound having no substantial defensive power.

After the three of them simply dealt with a few Stranger, they treated the landlord's home as their backyard.

Now they were returning along the original route.

When they came, the biggest danger on this road was the wolf pack, but it had already been cleared.

So, the return journey was practically like a spring outing.

A few hours later.

Qi Chuanyu and the others had already passed through the forest and could see the distant valley.

"We're back!"

Everyone quickened their pace, eager to reunite with Shen Bei.

Then they would compare their respective harvests.

If they couldn't compare strength, they would compare money.

Perhaps this was the most hopeful thing they could do to get one over on Shen Bei in their entire lives.

They entered the valley base.

It was still a bustling scene here.

The engineers were still working hard.

After all, building a base by hand takes a considerable amount of time.

Modern machinery could come in, but it couldn't be used...

Any external kinetic energy is useless in the Earth Cave World.

This was also why Yu Qi didn't let the Martial Artists go out to explore.

Building a base requires time and a safe environment.

And if the Martial Artists went out and attracted Stranger to attack, they would not get any peace.

It would indefinitely prolong the time it takes to build the base.

Qi Chuanyu and the others searched the base, but they couldn't find Shen Bei!

"This guy still hasn't returned?" Qi Chuanyu's heart sank.

Logically speaking, Shen Bei had run off earlier than everyone else.

Although there were Stranger chasing him later, with Shen Bei's running speed, he could completely shake them off.

Liao Zhongyang scratched his head: "Could it be that this guy went to secretly eat something behind our backs?"

Jian Tong, on the other hand, became worried: "Should we go back and look for him?"

Qi Chuanyu lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then raised his head and said: "Let's wait another hour. If Shen Bei still doesn't return, we'll go back along the original path to look for him."

"Of course, the focus will still be on the landlord's home. If there's no movement at the landlord's home, it means Shen Bei has shaken off the Stranger and might have gotten lost and run off to some unknown place."

"In this situation, the best way is to wait at the base. With our strength, wandering around in the Earth Cave is very likely to get us trapped."

"Another situation is if the landlord's home is very lively, that would mean Shen Bei was captured. Then we'll ask Yu Qi to take action and directly push through to rescue him."

Qi Chuanyu analyzed the situation.

It must be said that his idea was very reasonable.

There was no need to search for Shen Bei everywhere; as long as they kept an eye on the landlord's home, everything would be clear.

If Shen Bei was captured, all the Stranger in the village would go to see the spectacle, and it would definitely be crowded.

If there was no movement, it meant he had successfully escaped, and they just needed to wait for Shen Bei to return on his own.

Of course, if too much time passed and he still didn't return, they could also spend money to hire Martial Artists to conduct a carpet search.

But doing so at the moment seemed unlikely.

The scale would be too large.

The tranquility of the base was still the most important thing.

The few of them calmed down.

After waiting an hour at the original spot, Shen Bei still hadn't returned.

They immediately set off, entering the Earth Cave again.

They proceeded along the safe route they had already explored.

Without exception, they arrived at the mountain near the village.

Looking down.

The landlord's compound only had Stranger tidying up the messy garden.

A perfectly normal rhythm of life.

Qi Chuanyu spread his hands and said: "No movement at all. Shen Bei really shook them off. Let's go back."

The three of them returned without any hesitation.

"You guys, which do you think is better, Shen Bei being captured or getting lost?"

Qi Chuanyu asked a question.

Liao Zhongyang stammered for a long time: "Hard to answer."

One is no body to be found, dead or alive.

The other is being captured, with a clear target, and asking Yu Qi to push through.

But being captured is closest to death...

Jian Tong, however, said: "As long as Shen Bei is capable, either situation doesn't matter."

Qi Chuanyu shrugged: "Since you have confidence in Shen Bei, I won't say any more comforting words."

Jian Tong pouted.

...

"Damn it, where did they chase me to? Is this still the Earth Cave?"

At this moment, Shen Bei surveyed his surroundings.

He was hiding in a cave, looking up at the vast, hazy night.

Outside, heavy rain lashed like whips, the splashing rainwater forming a vast white sheet. Lightning flashed like a sea, thunder rumbled, shaking the heavens and the earth.

Every flash of lightning brought a brief, overwhelming light.

Shen Bei could see a temple-like building on a distant mountain.

This made Shen Bei feel a hint of surprise.

Logically speaking, even though the Earth Cave World was very vast, it was still a world.

Shen Bei had traveled in the Luan County Earth Cave for nearly half a month last time and had never seen a temple-like building.

At most, there were cities.

Such isolated buildings appearing in the wilderness were truly rare.

"After the rain stops, I can go take a look."

Shen Bei muttered, then lit a fire in the cave, roasted dry biscuits, collected some rainwater, and casually made do with a meal.

Originally, after Shen Bei escaped from the compound, he could have returned the way he came.

But considering the large number of Stranger chasing him, his speed was not comparable to that of Qi Chuanyu and the others.

The Stranger couldn't catch him, but they could easily catch them.

So, Shen Bei chose to make a detour, returning to the safe zone along the safe route that had been opened up.

Shen Bei himself had the Fifth Dimension speed bonus, plus the visual interference Phantom Step provided to the Stranger. Although the enemy had a large number of people, they couldn't even touch a single hair on Shen Bei.

But as he ran and ran, he seemed to have gone off course.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

His feet suddenly found no ground.

His entire body fell from the cliff.

Fortunately, Shen Bei's Fifth Dimension Attribute reduced fall damage by 50%, so he was fine after falling to the ground. He lay on the ground for a minute, and his body recovered.

And those Stranger probably thought Shen Bei would die from the fall, so they retreated and left.

This was how Shen Bei managed to survive.

"I wonder if those idiots will take the opportunity to loot the landlord's compound after I 'pulled the train'."

"If they don't loot it, then they're really brain-dead."

Shen Bei muttered to himself.

In Shen Bei's opinion, whether they would loot it depended entirely on Qi Chuanyu.

The big guy goes with the flow.

Jian Tong wasn't as eloquent as Qi Chuanyu.

"They should, right?" Shen Bei leaned against the cave wall and lay down comfortably: "After all, this guy has been with me for so long; he should have learned the word 'shameless'."

...

The night passed without incident.

When he woke up, the rain outside had stopped, and the world was as clean as a wash, exuding a refreshed aura.

Shen Bei looked at the green mountains and the knife-cut iron-colored cliffs, took a deep breath, and seeing the flowers and plants refreshed by the rain, he smiled inexplicably.

Although he didn't know where this was, having a goal gave him motivation.

Shen Bei stood at the mouth of the cave, adjusted his direction, and looked at the building hidden in the dense forest in the distance.

"Let's go!"

If he hadn't seen it, that would be one thing.

But having seen it, if he didn't go explore it, he wouldn't be able to sleep when he got back.

Shen Bei temporarily stored the stolen books in this cave.

He traveled light.

He jumped out of the cave and headed straight for it.

There was no danger along the way.

He could see some dry, broken bones, and one was even a relatively complete skull.

And from the bone structure, it didn't look like a human's, but rather an animal's.

"It seems there are also Vicious Beasts here."

Shen Bei simply activated the Hidden Breath Technique.

Shen Bei was not afraid of any battle.

Although battles always involve life and death, there are no always-victorious generals.

But some battles are meaningless.

Avoid Vicious Beasts that can be avoided.

There's really no need to waste time.

After Hidden Breath Technique was activated.

Although Shen Bei's movement speed was a bit slower.

He could swagger past Vicious Beasts with low intelligence.

Another feline-like Vicious Beast still needed to be circled.

These creatures were too playful; the more things moved, the more curious they became.

They could harass a person until they vomited blood.

Gradually.

He didn't know how much time had passed.

Shen Bei trekked all the way.

The surrounding environment changed somewhat; there was more sand underfoot.

The night was gloomy, dark shadows covering the shallow quicksand as he walked.

The evening wind gradually changed from bleak to heavy and sticky, carrying sand and tainted with Evil Qi, so that even the buildings hidden in the dense forest could no longer be seen, only shallow footprints on the sand and stone.

The footprints would be covered by the flowing sand in a moment, and Shen Bei's heavy figure blended into the misty night.

The cold wind brushed past his ears, like an unseen entity brushing past him, whispering in his ear.

Shen Bei was expressionless. As he continued to move, the vegetation around him increased, but most of it was withered. What came into view was one terrifying shadow of Vicious Beasts after another.

He completely ignored them.

He passed through the dense forest again.

Half an hour later.

Shen Bei finally arrived at the predetermined location.

It was truly a case of 'seeing a mountain and running a dead horse,' Shen Bei understood that feeling.

At this moment, a crescent moon hung alone in the sky like a hook.

A majestic and grand dark red ancient city was shrouded in mist.

Shen Bei's clothes fluttered backward in the wind. The layers of palaces were not too tall, but they were solemn and profound, standing majestically. Now, with the moonlight dappled and sand swirling in the wind, what met his eyes was a vast and silent desolation, like the palace of the King of Hell standing in the underworld.

"What is this thing..."

Shen Bei looked up.

He could see a stone plaque on the building, but the characters carved on it were completely unrecognizable.

"No culture, what a disadvantage..."

Shen Bei sniffed and quietly approached the building.

He circled the perimeter.

Only then did he confirm in his heart that this was an abandoned building.

Not to mention the rusty iron on the wooden doors.

Even the surrounding weeds were growing wildly, and some tree roots had even grown in the cracks of the walls.

Some corners of the walls had already collapsed into rubble.

It was clear that it had been unattended and unmaintained for a very long time.

Shen Bei relaxed, deactivated the Hidden Breath Technique.

He let his blood start to boil, and his body temperature began to rise.

He arrived at the main entrance.

Shen Bei took a deep breath.

He slowly pushed it open...