Infusing the spirit sword with his spiritual energy, Xiao Chen felt its sharpness increase exponentially. With a small movement, the blade pierced the stone wall. Applying steady pressure, he carved out a large stone slab, about half his height, and carefully set it aside.
Before him lay a pitch-black cave. Xiao Chen hesitated briefly, his face betraying a flicker of uncertainty before his gaze hardened with resolve. Without further delay, he stepped into the cavern.
The interior was dim, the lack of light making it difficult to see. Xiao Chen channeled a trace of spiritual energy to his eyes, allowing him to discern the rough outlines of the path ahead. Carefully, he made his way deeper into the mountain.
After traveling roughly ten meters, he paused, running his hand along the damp stone walls. His fingertips felt the faint coolness of moisture. "Could there be an underground water source here?" he murmured to himself.
As he continued forward, the dampness in the air grew more pronounced. After turning a sharp corner, the faint sound of trickling water reached his ears.
At the same time, an almost imperceptible medicinal fragrance wafted toward him.
"Huh? This smells like Blue Lotus Flower…" Xiao Chen's face lit up with surprise. During his time in the Spirit Medicine Valley, although he hadn't mastered alchemy, he had grown familiar with some of the rare herbs from assisting the outer disciples. The Blue Lotus Flower was one such treasure.
"Wait, no… The scent is similar but carries a faint sourness. It must be from a wild herb instead." Shaking his head with a wry smile, Xiao Chen dismissed the thought. Blue Lotus Flower was a precious ingredient used in crafting over a dozen rare elixirs and unlikely to appear here.
Despite his reasoning, curiosity compelled him to press onward. His steps quickened as the sound of running water grew louder, and the medicinal fragrance intensified.
The twisting cavern eventually led to a dead end. Before him, a solid stone wall barred his way. Yet the unmistakable sound of flowing water echoed faintly from beyond it. Xiao Chen knocked on the wall, eliciting a hollow thud.
"It's not too thick," he muttered with relief. Retrieving his spirit sword, he infused it with energy once more and began carving. Like slicing through soft tofu, the blade made short work of the rock, and soon a man-sized opening appeared.
As the last piece of stone fell away, a brilliant light burst through the opening, momentarily blinding him. Shielding his eyes, Xiao Chen squinted into the newfound space. Before he could adjust, a wave of overwhelming medicinal fragrance surged through the gap.
"Cough! Cough!" Choking on the intense aroma, Xiao Chen staggered back, his face flushed crimson. The sheer potency of the scent was unlike anything he had ever encountered—an amalgamation of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of spiritual herbs, aged and condensed over centuries.
Yet beneath his discomfort lay undeniable excitement. "If the scent is this overpowering, then the herbs inside must be extraordinary!" Xiao Chen thought, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
Once the initial wave of fragrance subsided, he covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve and cautiously stepped inside.
The scene before him was nothing short of breathtaking.
The cavern spanned several hundred meters, its walls encrusted with pale, luminescent crystals that emitted a soft, ethereal glow. High above, a crack in the ceiling allowed a steady stream of water to cascade down. Over time, the flow had formed a triangular delta of soil, approximately twenty meters wide, teeming with wild spiritual herbs.
The water flowed gently through the delta, collecting in a small, dark pool at the far end of the cavern. The pool's depth was indiscernible, its surface as black as ink.
Xiao Chen's gaze swept across the lush landscape, his heart pounding wildly. He had to take several deep breaths to calm himself.
"Two-hundred-year-old Polygonum!"
"Three-hundred-year-old Golden Stem Grass!"
"Four-hundred-year-old Honeysuckle!"
"Three-hundred-year-old Iron Green Vine!"
The cavern was a treasure trove, with spiritual herbs growing in abundance like weeds. Xiao Chen felt as if he had stepped into a dream.
After a long moment of wonder, Xiao Chen's joy gave way to cautious deliberation. "Why are so many spiritual herbs thriving in such an isolated place? How have they survived without cultivation?"
His sharp eyes lingered on the glowing crystals embedded in the walls. A thought struck him, and his expression shifted. Closing his eyes, he activated the Grass and Wood Vitality Sutra, allowing his senses to attune to the surrounding energy.
Moments later, his eyes snapped open in shock. "A spirit vein?"
The cavern was saturated with spiritual energy—far more than even the herb fields of Yaodaozi. The source could only be a small fragment of a spirit vein buried beneath the ground. Its size was likely modest; otherwise, its presence would have long been discovered by the sect. The glowing crystals, too, were a result of prolonged exposure to the vein's energy, slowly transforming over time.
Still, the mystery of how the herbs arrived here remained. Could they have grown from seeds carried in by the water?
Xiao Chen knelt by the stream, his eyes narrowing as he examined the clear water. After a moment of searching, he spotted a small, flattened seed floating past. With a quick motion, he retrieved it and inspected it closely.
A memory surfaced: the water source for all the sect's herb gardens originated from a single spring upstream. That same spring flowed near his assigned garden.
"What a fortuitous coincidence!" Xiao Chen whispered, a smile spreading across his face. Seeds from mature spiritual herbs in the sect's gardens were likely carried downstream, eventually finding their way into this hidden cavern. With the spirit vein nurturing the soil, the herbs had thrived unchecked for centuries.
"A hidden treasure… all mine!"
Half a day later, Xiao Chen emerged from the cavern, his excitement barely contained. Though his garden was remote and seldom visited, he meticulously restored the stone slab over the opening and camouflaged it with rocks and weeds. Only when he was certain no one would discover it did he step back with a satisfied nod.
"What a twist of fate. What others deemed worthless has turned out to be my greatest fortune."
A laugh escaped him as he imagined Duan Huaming's fury if he ever learned the truth.
"Still," Xiao Chen mused, his expression growing serious, "I must take precautions. A few simple formations should suffice to detect intruders and secure the area."
Among the introductory techniques provided by Yaodaozi was a jade slip on basic formations. Grateful for his master's generosity, Xiao Chen hurried back to his hut, eager to begin his study.