35: Chapter 35 is out! It's really out!

The flashlight beam pierced the murky river water like a sharp sword, probing downward. The water was about one and a half meters deep, and sure enough, a row of hidden stone piers was arranged on the riverbed. They were faintly visible, shimmering in the dark water, perfectly verifying his Feng Shui hypothesis of "Kan containing Gen."

The surfaces of these stone piers were covered in thick moss, blending almost perfectly with the color of the riverbed rocks. They were difficult to spot without careful observation; the camouflage was excellent, making them both a natural trap and the only path to survival.

The distance between the stone piers was about seventy to eighty centimeters, just enough for someone to step across the river. However, because they had been washed by the turbulent current for years, their surfaces were smooth as mirrors. A slight slip would cause one to fall into the river, to be instantly swallowed by this underground subterranean river, with unimaginable consequences.

Hu Tian retracted the flashlight, unhooked his trekking pole, and took a deep breath to calm his racing heart.

He carefully extended his right foot into the water to test the temperature and current speed.

A bone-chilling cold instantly spread from the sole of his foot throughout his entire body, as if countless ice needles were piercing into his marrow. He gritted his teeth to endure the discomfort, his features slightly distorted by the cold. His right foot landed accurately on the first stone pier, his movements steady, not daring to let it slip in the slightest.

The moss on the surface of the stone pier was extremely slippery; as soon as his foot applied pressure, it nearly slipped, and his body swayed violently.

He hurriedly jammed the trekking pole firmly against the riverbed, his arm muscles instantly tensing. He stabilized his center of gravity to avoid falling into the river, breaking out in a cold sweat that instantly soaked his back.

After confirming he was steady, he extended his left foot into the water and stepped toward the second stone pier.

The turbulent current constantly pounded against his legs, the immense thrust making his body sway, teetering on the edge of danger, as if he could be swallowed at any moment.

Hu Tian gripped the trekking pole tightly, wedging the tip into the gap between the stone piers to steady himself, the veins in his arms bulging.

Every step was exceptionally difficult, as if he were carrying a heavy load of a thousand catties, engaging in a life-and-death struggle against nature.

Just like that, he moved forward step by step. Each step required immense physical exertion to resist the impact of the current, and his breathing became heavy. Sweat and the cold river water mixed together, indistinguishable from each other, blurring his vision.

When he reached the fourth stone pier, an accident suddenly occurred.

The stone pier under his feet was somewhat loose at the edges due to its age, its foundation unstable and precarious.

When Hu Tian's weight pressed down on it, the stone pier swayed slightly, emitting a teeth-grinding friction sound, as if it would collapse at any moment and send him into the abyss.

His heart jumped, his pupils constricted. Before he could react, the surging current seized the opportunity to strike. He instantly lost his balance, his whole body tipping to the right. It looked like he was about to fall into the torrent, his life hanging by a thread.

In this critical moment, a flash of ferocity crossed Hu Tian's eyes. His reaction was lightning-fast; he violently thrust the trekking pole deep into a crevice in the riverbed rock, gripping the shaft tightly with both hands, his knuckles turning white from the effort, and pressed down with all his might.

"Hold firm!"

He let out a low shout. Relying on the support of the trekking pole, he held his body steady, managing to stabilize himself in the turbulent current, locked in a stalemate with nature, displaying astonishing explosive power.

River water splashed all over his head and face, choking him into several coughs. He was in a sorry state, but he had saved his life. This composure in the face of danger was truly astonishing.

"That was close!"

Hu Tian's heart beat like a drum, his face pale.

If he hadn't had this trekking pole, he would likely have been swept into the river, buried in the bellies of fish, and become a wronged soul in this subterranean river.

He panted heavily while waiting for his heart rate to stabilize, then pulled out the trekking pole. His gaze was even more resolute as he continued to move forward, not daring to relax for even a moment. Every step was taken with extreme caution, like walking a tightrope.

The remaining three stone piers were relatively stable. He stepped on them, moving step by step with difficulty until he reached the opposite bank.

The moment his feet touched the ground, it felt like being reborn. His heart was filled with the joy of surviving a disaster, and his lips couldn't help but curl upward.

Hu Tian didn't have time to rest. His body was very cold, and his teeth were chattering.

He took his flashlight and shone it forward. The beam pierced the darkness, illuminating the hope ahead.

In front of him was a stone gate, three meters high and two meters wide, built from dark-greenish boulders. It was heavy and solemn, exuding a sense of historical vicissitudes, as if waiting for its owner's return.

The stone gate was well-preserved. In the center, four large characters were carved: "Heavenly Kingdom Holy Treasury." The calligraphy was powerful and vigorous, exuding a majesty that made one afraid to look directly at it.

Hu Tian's heart rate accelerated. He felt less cold, and a rush of hot blood surged into his heart; his excitement was beyond words.

Years of searching had finally yielded a result. The legendary treasure trove was right before his eyes; all the hard work had been worth it.

Hu Tian took a deep breath to calm his excitement, placed his hands against the heavy stone gate, and pushed it open with force.

The door hinges emitted a piercing friction sound, exceptionally loud in the silence, as if opening the gates of history.

A musty odor rushed toward him, mixed with the smell of mold and dust, making him frown. But he didn't care at all; his eyes were only on the treasure about to be revealed, shining with infinite brilliance.

The flashlight shone into the storeroom, and countless golden rays reflected back, illuminating the interior as bright as day. It was so piercing that he couldn't open his eyes. He was immensely shocked, his breath catching in his throat.

Before him was a large stone chamber, twenty meters long and fifteen meters wide, a spacious area sufficient to hold thousands of treasures, truly breathtaking.

The walls were built of stone blocks, incredibly sturdy. The floor was paved with bluestone slabs, very tidy and spotless. Clearly, someone had been tending to it regularly, or the mechanisms had protected it well, allowing it to be preserved to this day.

Dozens of wooden chests were lined up neatly. Some were locked, the copper locks covered in rust; others had already rotted, the wooden planks decayed, revealing the treasures inside. They radiated light, dazzling and mesmerizing.

The Treasure Hunting Radar in Hu Tian's mind automatically activated, and a 3D scan image appeared in his consciousness, colorful and vibrant.

The halos of treasures throughout the stone chamber lit up like stars, densely filling the entire space, dazzling the eyes.

White halos were the most numerous, scattered in the wooden chests in every corner; they represented common antique artifacts. Blue halos were next, appearing in clusters around the outer wooden chests, indicating many valuable items. Green halos were dotted here and there, scattered in the central area of the stone chamber; those were rare-level treasures. Yellow halos were relatively concentrated, mainly distributed in a few wooden chests deep in the stone chamber, representing extremely precious artifacts. Purple halos were few and far between, like the brightest stars in the night sky; these were world-class national treasures.

And what made Hu Tian's heart race the most were the faint red halos vaguely visible in the deepest part of the stone chamber, along with two or three wisps of flickering golden light.

Red represented legendary-level rare treasures, while gold was mythological-level priceless treasures, something that could be encountered but not sought.

"Struck it rich, really struck it rich!"

Hu Tian's voice was trembling, and his eyes flashed with fanatical light.

The Holy Treasury of the Heavenly King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom truly lived up to its reputation. The legends were not false; the wealth hidden here was enough to drive anyone crazy.

He forcibly suppressed his excitement, stepped into the stone chamber, and swept the flashlight beam over every corner.

Hu Tian originally wanted to rush directly to the deepest part to see the treasures represented by those red and golden halos, but he soon discovered it was impossible.

The entire stone chamber was packed full of wooden chests, with almost no place to step, leaving only a narrow passage on the periphery.

These wooden chests were stacked layer upon layer, arranged tightly. To get inside, he had to clear away the outer wooden chests first.

"Fine, I'll just have to take it slow."

Hu Tian shook his head helplessly, took a deep breath, and began with the outermost wooden chests.

The first wooden chest was already rotten, the wooden boards loose, and it opened with a gentle pry.

Inside were bundles of silver ingots, each weighing about fifty taels, the snow-white silver light glowing with a soft luster under the flashlight's beam.

Before Hu Tian could examine them closely, a line of small golden characters suddenly popped up in his mind.

[Item Name: Qing Dynasty Official Silver, Purity 98.7%, Total 237 ingots, Total Weight 11,850 taels]

[Estimated Value: ¥ 4,740,000]

[Spiritual Charm Energy: +2370 points, Total Energy: 2510 points]

Holy crap!

Hu Tian was stunned on the spot for three seconds, his heart rate accelerating.

Nearly five million?

Just as Hu Tian was still marveling, the System prompt sounded in his mind again.

[Reminder to Host: The System can be upgraded to LV.2, requiring 500 upgrade energy points. Does the Host wish to upgrade?]

"Upgrade."

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the excitement in his heart, and focused his thoughts.

[Ding, upgrade successful. Host current level is LV2. Consumed Spiritual Charm Energy: -500 points. Next upgrade to LV3 requires 10,000 Spiritual Charm Energy points.]

[System Space Expansion: 10 cubic meters → 15 cubic meters]

"10,000 points?"

Hu Tian was shocked when he saw the required energy points; upgrading to level 3 meant a twenty-fold increase.

Wouldn't it be an astronomical figure later on?

A thought stirred in Hu Tian's mind, and he asked silently in his consciousness: "System, can you introduce the energy points required for the next few upgrade levels? Don't hit me with a million or ten million later on; how long would I have to search for that?"

The System's cold electronic voice quickly sounded in his mind.

[LV1 → LV2: 500 points] [LV2 → LV3: 10,000 points] [LV3 → LV4: 2,000,000 points]

[LV4 → LV5: 50,000,000 points]

[LV5 → LV6: 3,000,000,000 points]

[LV6 → LV7: 150,000,000,000 points]

[LV7 → LV8: 10,000,000,000,000 points]

[LV8 → LV9: 1,000,000,000,000,000 points]

[LV9 → LV10: 100,000,000,000,000,000 points]

[Note: The System's maximum level is LV10. After each upgrade, the System Space will expand, the scanning range will increase, and new functions will be obtained. Specific functions need to be unlocked after upgrading.]

"What the hell!"

Seeing that long string of "0s" behind, Hu Tian nearly fainted.

One hundred quintillion points of Spiritual Charm Energy?

How many treasures would he need to find to get enough!

However, he quickly realized that this System setting was quite reasonable. The further you go, the harder it is to upgrade; otherwise, if you could reach the max level in a few days, it would be boring.

Moreover, according to this calculation, if he could collect everything in this Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Holy Treasury, he conservatively estimated that he could obtain at least several million, or even tens of millions, of Spiritual Charm Energy, enough to upgrade to LV4 or even LV5.

Thinking of this, Hu Tian cheered up again, put the box of silver ingots into his System Space, and turned to the next wooden chest.

This wooden chest was better preserved, the lid intact, but the lock was rusted.

Hu Tian gently pried it with a crowbar, and the lid opened in response.

He shone the flashlight inside, and, well!

Another bundle of silver ingots, stacked neatly.

[Item Name: Qing Dynasty Official Silver, Purity 97.3%, Total 189 ingots, Total Weight 9,450 taels]

[Estimated Value: ¥ 3,780,000]

[Spiritual Charm Energy: +1890 points, Total Energy: 3900 points]

Another three million plus!

Hu Tian's hands trembled slightly as he continued to open the chests.

The third, the fourth, the fifth...

Every time he opened a chest, the small golden characters popped up to fill the screen.

Silver ingots, silver ingots, still more silver ingots.

[Spiritual Charm Energy +2140 points, Total Energy: 6040 points]

...

Just when Hu Tian opened the 5th chest.

[Obtained Spiritual Charm Energy +1950 points, Total Energy: 10990 points]

[Reminder to Host: The System can be upgraded to LV3, requiring 10,000 Spiritual Charm Energy points. Does the Host wish to upgrade?]

"Upgrade."

He took a deep breath and focused his thoughts.