```
With the intelligence from the Sect and various indications upon arriving in Bashan City, it was evident that the Li family indeed had colluded with the Great Spear Sect.
However, the reason for the Li family frequently entering and leaving Bashan remained unclear.
There was an insider from the Wanxiang Sect within the Great Spear Sect, so the news of the collusion was easily obtained.
But the issue of entering and leaving Bashan was not something the insider in the Great Spear Sect could help with.
After all, Bashan City was a small city under the jurisdiction of the Wanxiang Sect, and infiltrating a family in this small city with disciples from the Sect?
Using a sledgehammer to kill a fly!
The insiders from the Ye family and Bai family within the Li family were all rooted out by the Li family, and their fate goes without saying.
However, before Lin Qian even entered Bashan, he already knew the real reason behind the Li family's movements.
Ruins!
According to ancient annals, the Soul Martial Continent where Lin Qian was located had once experienced a cataclysm, causing the earth to collapse, leading to the extinction of many Ancient sect forces and their burial underground.
For this reason, there were many ancient sect ruins on the Soul Martial Continent.
The discovery of any of these ruins, no matter how small, would represent a significant fortune.
In the letter left by Lin Qian's parents, his father mentioned a ruin in Bashan.
After discovering these ruins, Lin Qian's father didn't tell anyone; he dismantled all the Arrays and mechanisms within the ruins out of sheer boredom.
Yet, he took nothing from inside but instead sealed the ruins back with a bloodline imprint.
As per his father's original words in the letter, the reason for sealing the ruins was: "These items don't interest me. Qianer, you can unseal and play with them when you're free."
Recalling his father's words, Lin Qian couldn't help but twitch his mouth.
Discovering even the smallest ruin would attract nearby Soul Martial Artists like mad, frenziedly gathering around the site.
Furthermore, any ancient sect ruins would be full of Arrays and mechanisms, requiring explorers to have a certain level of strength to carefully tread.
Exploring and cracking a ruin always involved a large number of Soul Martial Artists and factions working in collaboration.
Yet, his father discovered a ruin and dismantled all the Arrays and mechanisms entirely by himself unscathed. In Lin Qian's memory, his father had never been injured.
This meant when his father was out of boredom dismantling the ruins, he did it alone and without a scratch.
He left behind treasures that would drive Soul Martial Artists crazy just for his son to "play" with?
"Could it be that my parents are quite powerful beyond reason?" Lin Qian pondered silently as he channeled his Soul Power and ran deeper into Bashan.
Although his Soul Power was erupting now, the aura emanating from his body remained very faint.
The cause of this result was a talisman placed under his plain white robe.
This talisman was the Concealing Talisman used earlier by Ye Lin!
Lin Qian understood that his father had sealed the ruins within Bashan, and they were discovered by the Li family; such a precious place was bound to be guarded. His exploration would be twice as effective with the Concealing Talisman masking his aura.
Thus, he unceremoniously confiscated this Concealing Talisman from Ye Lin's hands.
Following the description in his father's letter, Lin Qian continuously approached the location of the ruins.
Soul Beasts, which also utilized nature's Spiritual Energy to refine into Soul Power, were prevalent in Bashan.
However, as Lin Qian approached deeper into Bashan, the number of Soul Beasts on the road decreased, becoming scarce, and with the Concealing Talisman, there were no issues encountered.
Presumably, the Li family had cleared out many Soul Beasts on the route to the ruins for easier access.
With the traces of Soul Beasts dwindling, Lin Qian's pace slowed. He knew he was nearing the ruins and might encounter people from the Li family at any moment. If he moved too quickly, he might get caught off guard.
"Hmm?" Lin Qian suddenly stopped in his tracks, quickly hiding behind a sturdy tree trunk, crouching in the waist-high grass.
Soul Power concentrated in his eyes, enhancing his vision significantly with the aid of Soul Power. Through the gaps in the grass, he easily observed the situation a hundred feet away.
In the distance ahead, at the entrance to a valley, two towering Soul Martial Artists stood guard.
This place, being extremely remote within Bashan, was rarely visited.
Such a place guarded by Soul Martial Artists; it was highly likely that the valley contained something crucial, undoubtedly the ruins.
Moreover, as indicated in his father's letter, it pointed exactly to this valley.
Beside the valley's entrance were two hills, with towering ancient trees growing on them, obscuring the entrance.
A regular person might attempt to bypass the valley by going over the hill.
But Lin Qian clearly saw that the bark on some of the trees on the hillside showed signs of external damage.
"It seems there's a lookout in the treetops on the hillside," Lin Qian thought to himself, recognizing the damaged bark as signs of Soul Martial Artists utilizing them to climb.
An attempt to foolishly bypass the hill would have long been spotted by the lookout.
This entire valley had only this one visible entrance; stealthily passing through was out of the question.
However, according to his father's letter, entering the valley did not require using only this entrance.
In fact, the entrance his father mentioned wasn't even here.
Lin Qian discovered this valley entrance entirely by following the direction where Soul Beasts traces became sparse.
Carefully retreating, Lin Qian circled to the side of the valley.
The side of the valley was a completely vertical cliff. Although surpassing this cliff at Lin Qian's Realm wasn't difficult, the Li family would have considered this too. Surely, the valley's surroundings were under surveillance.
Yet, a sly smile appeared on Lin Qian's face as he directly approached the base of the cliff, in front of a large boulder.
The boulder was over three meters high, more than two meters wide, comparable to a small house.
"Phew!" Standing in front of the boulder, Lin Qian exhaled, gathering Soul Power into his hands, his eyes narrowing as he thrust towards the boulder.
Thud!
The hard boulder seemed to be made of tofu before Lin Qian. His Soul Power–wrapped hands pierced effortlessly into the boulder.
At this moment, Lin Qian's forearms were entirely embedded in the boulder up to his elbows.
Then, as Soul Power surged within him, his arms abruptly exerted force, lifting the massive boulder off the ground.
After raising the boulder, Lin Qian showed no signs of exertion, turning around as if nothing had happened.
Upon lifting the boulder and turning, an entrance suddenly appeared where the boulder once lay, now behind him.
Lin Qian turned his head to see the entrance, two meters high and one meter wide, its round shape and smooth walls evident of human creation.
Subsequently, Lin Qian carried the boulder inch by inch into the cave until it contacted the cliff and he gently placed it down to block the entrance, trapping himself inside.
Retrieving his hands from the boulder, Lin Qian dusted them off before proceeding further into the cave.
Soul Power surrounded Lin Qian, the ethereal white Soul Light illuminating the entire cave.
"This cave is evidently manmade, and created all in one go." Lin Qian thought as he checked his surroundings while advancing into the depth of the cave.
The scene appeared in his mind: a powerful Soul Martial Artist wielding a spear like a dragon, the spiraling spear force from condensed Soul Power penetrating the side of the valley's cliff.
Lin Qian remembered his father often messing around with a rubber wooden spear in their courtyard, which later disappeared.
With these thoughts, Lin Qian's eyes suddenly locked onto a broken wooden stick on the ground not far ahead.
The stick was only as long as a forearm, with the front half completely shattered.
Gulping down his saliva, Lin Qian shifted his gaze to the end of the stick, astonished to see the engraved word "Qian."
"As expected...this was the rubber spear my father used to play with." Seeing the inscription, Lin Qian immediately confirmed that this stick was the end of the spear handle his dad once had.
Because the "Qian" word was carved by himself in childhood, just for fun.
Now Lin Qian could ascertain that the cave running through the side of the valley was most likely his father's doing, using none other than that wooden spear!
"Father, how powerful are you exactly?" Tossing the stick aside, Lin Qian shook his head while continuing onward.
Now he was very curious about his father's true strength.
Before the mysterious Martial Soul appeared within him and before he cultivated, Lin Qian never thought his parents were anything special.
Reflecting upon past events once more, Lin Qian increasingly realized the unfathomable depth of his parents in this life.
With myriad thoughts whirling in his mind, Lin Qian's expression tensed as he noticed light appearing at the end of the cave in front of him.
According to his father's letter, the cave on the side of the valley was blocked by boulders on both ends; how could there be light up ahead?
"Could it be that people from the Li family discovered this cave?" Lin Qian cautiously speculated, concentrating Soul Power in his eyes to stare ahead.
However, all he saw was the empty scenery of the valley, with no one guarding the entrance.
Furthermore, Lin Qian felt no Soul Power fluctuations at the entrance, indicating no Soul Martial Artists were present.
Emphasizing cautiousness, Lin Qian withdrew his Soul Power inward, ready to release it at any moment while pouring maximum Soul Power into the Concealing Talisman. He cautiously made his way out of the cave.
Exiting the cave, a clear view burst in front of Lin Qian's eyes, a shimmering lake in the valley and a waterfall crashing down from the mountain to the left into the lake.
"Was I too paranoid?" Lin Qian murmured to himself, frowning slightly.
At that moment, Lin Qian's pupils constricted, his hair standing on end, and he quickly rolled away from the cave entrance.
```