73: The Vanishing Black Stone

At this moment, Ai Yue was completely unaware of what was about to happen; she was currently occupied with Da Wang.

"Da Wang, oh, do you really have to come out with me? The situation outside is unclear, and who knows what dangers might be lurking. How about this: I'll go out alone, and when I come to a fork in the road, I'll let you out to show me the way to the place you mentioned, okay?" Ai Yue explained to it patiently.

"Roar, roar~"

Da Wang tugged at Ai Yue's pant leg, dragging her outward... Ai Yue rubbed her forehead, yanked her pant leg free, and vanished into her space, leaving Da Wang alone to let out an angry roar toward the sky!

Returning to the pitch-black cave, Ai Yue turned on her flashlight and carefully observed the surroundings. Hmm! It was a very ordinary cave!

However, there was a deep path in the cave leading straight into the darkness, with no other exits except for the one above.

Ai Yue had tried the exit above as well; she threw her flying tiger claws out, but they couldn't catch onto anything stable. After many failed attempts, she had no choice but to give up.

Ai Yue could only take the sole exit within the cave—that straight, pitch-black path.

The cave was far too long, and the path wound and twisted. After walking for over half an hour, she finally stopped, as two paths appeared before her.

Standing at the fork, she looked left and right but couldn't make sense of it. Not knowing which way to go, Ai Yue had to release Da Wang from her space.

The moment Da Wang emerged, he didn't even bother to pick a fight with Ai Yue; he hopped and skipped on his three legs toward the path on the left.

With one leg missing, Da Wang's speed was limited, and Ai Yue quickly caught up to him. She sent him straight back into the space; Da Wang's unwilling roars echoed through the cave, but his figure was already gone.

Ai Yue walked carefully along the path Da Wang had chosen. The further she went, the more she felt the path was spiraling downward. She wanted to turn back, but after some thought, she decided to keep going.

Ai Yue didn't know exactly how long she had been walking, but by the time she felt her stomach growling with hunger, she entered a grotto. Across from her was yet another path leading into the darkness.

This time, Ai Yue wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, she released Da Wang, wanting to understand the reason behind his unusual behavior.

Finally out, Da Bai's eyes gleamed as he lunged toward a corner of the cave. Ai Yue followed closely behind.

Da Bai excitedly pawed at a pile of rubble. Soon, he dug out a black stone the size of a fist and three others the size of thumbs.

Seeing the fist-sized black stone, Da Wang grew even more excited. He bit down on it, and with a "crack," the stone split into two—two very even pieces.

Da Wang proudly pushed half toward Ai Yue. Confused, she asked, "For me? This couldn't be some priceless jade, could it?" Having always needed jade, Ai Yue picked up the half-stone with interest. She turned it over and over but found nothing special about it.

"Isn't this just an ordinary black stone? You didn't go through all this trouble just to find this, did you?" Ai Yue pinched the stone, feeling helpless.

She took the opportunity to lecture Da Wang. "Da Wang, we can't just run off like this in unfamiliar places anymore, okay? This time we're trapped here, and there's no immediate danger, but what about next time? We won't always be this lucky. So, no more running off! Also, if you want black stones, there are plenty outside. I'll find as many as you want for you to play with. I'll let it slide this time, but don't do it again."

Ai Yue tossed the black stone up and down as she earnestly lectured Da Wang. Da Wang wasn't listening to a word she said; his eyes were glued to the black stone moving up and down.

After she finished speaking, Ai Yue casually threw it aside and clapped her hands, preparing to stand up. However, Da Wang chased after the flying stone, picked it up in his mouth, and brought it back to her.

Ai Yue was caught between laughter and tears at the sight. "Da Wang, you're not a dog. Why are you bringing it back to me? I really..."

Seeing that Ai Yue wouldn't take it, a flash of anger crossed Da Wang's eyes. Taking advantage of her lack of guard, he swiped his claw across her palm.

Ai Yue cried out in pain, "Da Wang, what are you doing?"

Ignoring her cry, Da Wang stuffed the stone he had pushed toward her directly into her injured palm, causing Ai Yue to cry out again.

Suddenly, she noticed that the stone in her hand was flickering against the backdrop of her blood.

Soon, the flickering frequency increased until it abruptly vanished. Ai Yue was stunned. What was going on?

Before she could react, she felt a sudden jolt, like an electric shock, and collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Seeing that Ai Yue had absorbed the stone, Da Wang took a deep breath and exhaled, finally feeling relieved.

He looked toward the cave exit with some reluctance but decided it was better to absorb what he had obtained first.

This kind of energy stone, regardless of size, could only be absorbed once in a lifetime. The bigger, the better. The ones they had obtained were already quite large; they shouldn't be greedy.

Da Wang raised his right paw to cut his left palm, but looking at the paw pad, he hesitated. He tilted his large head, stared at the black stone for a moment, and then suddenly opened his mouth and swallowed it whole.