Xia Tao
I sat inside the cavity, reflecting on our current situation. Returning home had given me some time to check in, but as usual, circumstances forced me to leave again. This constant traveling made it difficult to maintain the accumulated effects of the rewards I received. I wondered if there was a way to resolve this with the system, but that would have to wait for another time.
About three hours later, I heard the sound of movement. A few moments later, Mei appeared with an unfamiliar young man following her. They approached the spot where I was seated, and Mei turned to the disciple.
"Try to sense and feel everything you can from here. We need to identify any anomalies in this cave. If you find anything useful, you'll receive high-quality strawberries like the ones you ate on the way here" Mei instructed.
At her words, a fierce determination ignited in his eyes. It made me a little uneasy. I understood that strawberries were rare and precious, but seeing someone so highly motivated by them was curious. Clearly, I still didn't fully grasp the realities of this world.
Mei and I started a small fire and watched as the disciple crawled around the cavity, listening intently and occasionally marking the ground or jotting down notes in his notebook. It seemed he was finding something. After about an hour of examining the floor, he moved on to the ceiling. It was fascinating to watch him literally walk on the ceiling, using a technique that reminded me of something from Naruto.
"He's quite skilled" I remarked to Mei, impressed by the disciple's dedication and technique.
"Yes, he's one of our most promising students when it comes to earth-related techniques" Mei replied, watching him with a satisfied expression.
After about three hours, the disciple approached us, beaming as if he had just won a giant lottery prize.
"I found several interesting things. First, there is a cavity below us, and it seems to be the source of the cold in the area. Whatever is down there is emitting the cold. Also, there are some spots above us that block my spiritual energy. I couldn't quite identify it, but the material is definitely not ordinary. It's possible there's qurrat ore up there, given the blocking effect, which is similar."
If he found ore deposits, he'd definitely earned himself a good reward.
"Did you notice any difference in your ability to sense the earth after eating the strawberries?" I asked.
"There is a big difference yeah" the disciple admitted.
"Okay, show us the best place to start digging for the cavity below, then wait for us at the entrance" Mei instructed.
The disciple pointed to a spot and mentioned that the cavity started about two or three meters down. He then left us to our work.
"What do you think?" I asked Mei.
"We won't be digging for the ore right now. It's not likely to be found by anyone else since it doesn't cause anomalies. Even if it is found, it's not a big deal—qurrat isn't very valuable. However, the cavity below is of interest because of the abnormal temperature it emits" Mei replied.
We went to the indicated spot and began digging, using specially designed local artifacts for this purpose. In about 30 seconds, we had uncovered the cavity. Before us lay a small hall with a platform surrounded by crystals, which appeared to be related to water, judging by the cold they emitted.
As we examined the platform, I noticed a big tablet in the center with a deep cut running through it, as if made by a sword.
"Master, don't look at the tablet!" Mei shouted, pulling me away.
I was about to ask why when I realized I couldn't open my mouth. I felt as if I had been exposed to extreme cold for hours. Glancing at myself, I was horrified to see frostbite burns all over my body, and my clothes were encased in ice. It was quite a shock from just a brief glance at the tablet. Looking at Mei, I saw she was also in bad shape, with frost-covered hair, visible frostbite burns, and a pale complexion.
"Master, I fear looking directly at that tablet will be death for us. It seems to contain sword intent far too powerful for us. Since we are not swordsmen and do not cultivate in that path, looking any longer or trying to understand it could kill us quickly, we are too weak. On the other hand, this item can be removed, we just need to wrap it up without looking at it directly and move it" Mei explained.
Carefully, we wrapped the tablet in thick cloth, avoiding direct eye contact. We also gathered the crystals, making several trips to ensure we had collected everything. Once we had secured the items, we left the cave and headed home on our cloud.
The flight back was extremely uncomfortable. The tablet emanated such intense cold that we had to use vast amounts of spiritual energy just to stay near it even without eye contact with it. After a couple of hours, we finally reached our base and placed the tablet near the stone. The stone quickly turned pale upon its arrival, and even after turning off the cooling array, it remained dark and emitted little heat.
We watched as the stone and tablet seemed to stabilize each other, the intense cold from the tablet balancing the heat from the stone. It was a remarkable sight, the elements of ice and fire finding harmony.
"We did it" Mei said, her voice weak but relieved.
We took some time to recover, using our spiritual energy to heal the frostbite burns and warm ourselves.
Once we were somewhat recovered, we examined the area around the stone and tablet. The balance between the elements had created a stable environment, but we needed to ensure it remained that way.
"Mei, what if we separated them instead? We could create two distinct zones—one cold and one hot. We could cultivate temperature-dependent plants in each."
Mei considered my suggestion. "I agree, Master, but I fear we don't have enough time right now. Plus, we would need to find a way to conceal them both, which could be challenging. The environmental impact is also uncertain. It's a good idea, but perhaps later, when we have more resources and time."
We decided to leave the stone and the tablet where they were for now. Having resolved the immediate issue, we headed back to the mansion. It was time to complete the quest to invite the Red Forest Mountain Palace to our auction.