Thankfully, the only spirit beasts that dwelled in the subterranean cave were Salamanders. Despite the thick humidity and stifling heat, there were no hot springs in the cavern, otherwise I would have settled for one there.
I supposed reality didn't want to make it too easy for me to complete the quest. Still, I was surprised. Hot springs were produced by the emergence of groundwater that were then heated by stuff like the volcanos. Groundwater should be commonly found in underground caves like this one, so I was hoping to find a small pocket that could serve as a hot spring.
Well, given that only ordinary ranked Salamanders were here, I doubted that any hot spring inside the cave would be potent enough to help me. There was a lot of fiery yang qi in the atmosphere, but it wasn't as saturated as the outside environment where the Volcanic Dragon reigned supreme.
Relying on that same sense that allowed me to measure the amount of qi in the surroundings, I traced a route back outside. Thankfully, there was another exit on the opposite side of the cave, which led to deeper inside the Di Yu Mountain range. I could sense an outflow of yang qi in the exterior, a saturated concentration that almost set my senses alight.
That had to be where the hot springs were.
By the time I reached the exit, I peeked outside and saw that it was night. Once again, it was super dark. Not enthusiastic about running into spirit beasts in the total darkness, I retreated back into the cave. At least there was some illumination here from the fire crystals, and with only Salamanders for company, I shouldn't have to worry about being attacked. As long as I didn't set up camp in their designated territories, anyway.
Another day gone. But it was better to err on the side of caution, so I began assembling my tent. Not bothering with the sleeping bag because of how warm the cave was, I crawled inside my tent and went to sleep.
When I woke up the next morning, the first thing I did was drink several gulps of water. Perhaps it was the heat, but I felt a lot thirstier than usual. If I didn't replenish my lost fluids, I would suffer from dehydration.
"Ugh…I can't wait to get out of this place."
Wiping the perspiration from my face, I packed up my tent and other essentials before exiting the cave. To my relief, there was no sign of any spirit beasts…nearby, anyway. I could see the Lava Drakes soaring in the distance. A growl from a Crimson Leopard echoed somewhere above, but it was stalking other prey. On a ridge, a couple of Fire Foxes darted across the narrow walkway, but they vanished around a bend a few seconds later.
The coast was clear.
Hurrying forward, I navigated through both rock manifestations and sulfurous fumes. The sulfur turned into watery steam that misted my glasses, and when I felt the warm moisture on my skin, I knew I was heading in the right direction.
"Yikes!"
I pulled back and leaned against a scorched wall when a Blazing Lion strode past, its fiery mane dancing proudly. It roared at something beyond my peripheral vision and leaped away, probably hunting something. Ember Wolves, if the howls were anything to go by.
My heart thudding in my chest, I waited for the noise to fade into the distance before I dared to peek around the wall. Thankfully, the Blazing Lion was long gone, lost to the mists and mirages. Breathing a sigh of relief, I resumed my journey. Stumbling over sand, I froze when I heard my shoes crunch against glass.
Damn, how intense was the heat in the area for the sand to turn into glass?
"Whoa!"
A sudden screech caused me to dive for cover. Bloody hell, that was a bad idea, given that the ground was covered in glass. Wincing from the pain, I scrambled toward a pile of blackened boulders and hid. Glancing upward, I saw the Volcanic Dragon soar pass, accompanied by its entourage of Lava Drakes.
Damned monster. It gave me a fright for nothing. Then again, the Volcanic Dragon could easily crush me like a bug, and given that I was in what it considered its territory, it was best not to draw its attention. Even if I was supposedly beneath its notice, I myself was guilty of swatting insects that had flown too close to my food.
Yeah, I could somewhat understand how a Volcanic Dragon would feel when it caught sight of a bug crawling inside its home. Best to stay out of its sight.
Closing my eyes, I counted to myself and waited for a few minutes before crawling out of the piled boulders. I rose to my feet and winced from the cuts that the glass left on my palms and flesh, then I proceeded to wipe them away. For now, I did my best to ignore the stings and proceed forward.
Everything would be healed once I got to the hot spring. Or so I hoped.
I trudged forward, resolved to see this journey to its end. I was sick of waiting. I was tired of being powerless. I was going to regain my cultivation, no matter the cost.
"Ugh!"
However, the acrid fumes caused me to gag and coughed. As I traversed the glassy ground, I couldn't help but feel a little woozy. Gritting my teeth, I put one foot ahead of me at a time, finally bursting clear of the smog and into steam. The damp soil almost gave way under my foot, and I immediately came to a halt.
"Finally…"
As I regained my balance, I surveyed the huge hot spring right in front of me. It was smaller than a pond but much bigger than a public bath. The water was clear enough for me to see the bottom, and I was relieved to see that it wasn't too deep. I wasn't a good swimmer, despite my mom being a marine biologist and taking me and my brother to sea a couple of times. The only swimming technique I mastered was dog paddling.
Staying afloat wasn't a problem, so I wasn't afraid of drowning. Just…embarrassing whenever people saw me paddle like a dog instead of executing an elegant breaststroke.
"Nothing inside…nothing around here."
After checking and rechecking that the coast was clear, I placed my bag down and prepared to strip down. Just to make sure no one else was present, I glanced around again. Inwardly, I felt a little disappointed. I was half-expecting to encounter a naked beautiful girl bathing in the hot spring, which would result in both misunderstandings and fanservice. And after some lucky accident, she would eventually fall for me and become part of my harem.
Wasn't that how the cliché worked in all these cultivation web novels? I guess reality wasn't as generous. Not all of us would be as lucky as Li Fu Chen. Shaking off the disappointment, I gripped the hem of my shirt and prepared to pull it off. While I did so, the system finally deigned to appear.
-The hot springs in Di Yu Mountain range located. Mission almost completed. Do you wish to soak in the hot spring? –
"Yeah," I replied without any hesitation. Annoyance flared inside me at how it refused to show up the entire time when I was trying to ask it questions, but I suppressed it. I needed the system right now. "If I do that, I'll regain my cultivation, right?"
-That is correct. However, this system must warn you that you will suffer excruciating agony beyond anything you have experienced before. Are you sure you wish to proceed? –
Pushing my glasses up my nose, I scoffed. The pain couldn't be as bad as the time when the Lava Drake stomped me to the ground and broke every bone in my body. I wasn't stupid enough to claim that I had suffered more pain when I was mocked for being powerless. Any author whose protagonist made that statement in cultivation web novels had never experienced true pain before. Sure, they could make the whole physical versus mental agony, and I wasn't going to discount psychological pain, but c'mon, you're telling me being insulted, humiliated and frustrated for one's powerlessness was somehow more painful than having one's internal organs pulped and skeleton shattered?
You have got to be kidding me.
-The pain is comparable to that experience. When the user soaks in the hot spring, your body will be broken down and reconstructed right from the cellular level. So it will be beyond even that time when you were injured by the Lava Drake. –
That actually gave me paused because I had suffered such a traumatic injury and I knew how painful that was.
"…fuck."
-There is a probability that you will be unable to endure the pain, which will result in the user's death. –
I wasn't surprised. I would go into shock at such a magnitude of agony, and my body would shut down, which will eventually lead to cardiac arrest.
However…
"I'll do it."
Closing my eyes, I remembered how dangerous it was for humanity at present. The constant attacks from spirit beasts and demonic beasts, and how they threatened the safety of my family. My dad might be a cultivator, but mom wasn't. Neither was Jun Hai. If I didn't regain my strength and protect them, then who would? Perhaps there were other cultivators, but I wasn't naïve enough to rely on others to safeguard my own family.
Risking death was totally worth regaining my cultivation. I didn't want to back out now, only to regret being powerless when my family came under attack.
Stripping my clothing, I folded them untidily and left them in a haphazard heap over my bag. Putting my glasses on top of my clothes, I then took a deep breath and stepped inside the hot spring.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then again, it was only my foot that was immersed inside the warm water. I swallowed and took the plunge, waddling into the hot spring until only my head was above the surface of the water.
A comfortable sensation flowed throughout my body and I relaxed for a second. I was half-expecting the excruciating agony that the system promised me, but at the moment, all I felt was bliss.
…I spoke too soon.
"Ugh! Argh!"
Pain exploded across my body and my vision turned red. I thrashed about in the pool, screaming and shrieking as burning agony lanced through my flesh and muscles like millions of knives, cutting deep to the bone. Even as I flailed, I felt my consciousness snap and break from the sheer magnitude of agony. The system wasn't kidding when it claimed that this would be worse than the ordeal with the Lava Drake.
Bubbles escaped my mouth as I sank into the hot spring, no longer able to float. More pain wracked my body, and as I drowned deeper into agony, my mind finally broke and I lost all consciousness and sensation.
Then there was only darkness.