"Thank you..." the little demon girl followed, speaking softly.
Right!
With that senior protecting Ye Fan, why should I bother?
Perhaps that senior has already gone ahead to clear out the dangers?
Then, leaving me behind, the senior probably wanted me to protect Ye Fan in his absence.
...
Looking at Ye Fan's back, the little demon girl's heart warmed.
After being captured by that mad old man, there was nothing but torture and pain.
She hadn't experienced the feeling of being protected and having someone to rely on for a long time.
After walking for about half an hour, a faint light finally appeared in the darkness.
Upon closer inspection, they discovered two giant stone doors that had been opened.
The light was seeping through the cracks of the stone doors.
Ye Fan and the little demon girl walked in through the gap.
Before them lay a corridor, two zhang wide and extending as far as the eye could see.
The walls on both sides of the corridor were built from a dark green stone, with two rows of brown oil lamps hanging on them.
Ye Fan raised an eyebrow.
This was truly a grand undertaking!
Although Uming Stone was only a seventh-tier material, its yield was very scarce.
It was used in alchemy, artifact forging, and formations to varying degrees.
Its inherent value had long surpassed the seventh tier.
Judging by the smell, the oil in the lamps was likely the blood of Ice Li.
Ice Li's blood was an excellent material for formations, and using it as lamp oil was an immense waste.
If it were in the past, Ye Fan would have dismantled the lamps and walls.
But now, he was just a contented slacker who only wanted to lie flat, and these things were no more than passing clouds to him.
Ye Fan sniffed, leaned on the corridor railing, and looked down.
The corridor was built in mid-air, and below it, it looked like a vast river.
The river water appeared somewhat dark.
It was unclear if this was its natural color or due to insufficient light.
A strange odor wafted from the river, overlapping with a scent Ye Fan remembered.
"What are you looking at?" the little demon girl asked curiously, glancing down. "It's so dark, what's there to see?"
"Splash—!"
A strange fish, over a meter long, leaped out of the water.
The strange fish was covered in dark green scales, and had two four-toed claws on its underside.
The strange fish's mouth opened and closed continuously, revealing a mouthful of fangs that emitted a chilling gleam.
"Splash, splash—!"
"Splash, splash—!"
"Splash, splash—!"
...
Instantly, the water surface exploded as more and more similar strange fish emerged.
It seemed they intended to attack the two on the corridor.
However, due to their insufficient leaping height, they failed.
"As expected..." Ye Fan nodded in realization, muttering softly.
"Ye Fan, what are those things..." the little demon girl asked nervously, shrinking behind Ye Fan. "Why do I feel... a little scared..."
Although the strange fish were not of high cultivation in the little demon girl's eyes, she felt an inexplicable sense of dread.
"Mo Tun, a type of piranha-like demonic beast, especially fond of consuming things with demonic energy," Ye Fan replied casually. "It's likely your demonic energy that attracted them."
"Really..." the little demon girl asked nervously, "You're not lying to me, are you..."
"Of course, it's true," Ye Fan turned around and grinned. "Especially tender skin like yours, they like it even more."
"The special medicinal properties within them can neutralize your demonic energy and paralyze your body," Ye Fan continued. "If you fall in, you can only watch as they eat you bite by bite. That feeling... believe me, it's exhilarating!"
"I don't believe you!"
Although the little demon girl spoke defiantly, her hands still honestly clasped Ye Fan's arm, not daring to move away.
"Don't worry, if you fall, I'll burn a lot of paper money for you later."
Ye Fan had been teased mercilessly by the little demon girl during this time.
Now that he had finally gained the upper hand, Ye Fan felt his mood instantly brighten.
The little demon girl dared not speak, staying tightly by Ye Fan's side.
Actually, if she thought about it carefully, she would find the loopholes in Ye Fan's words.
The so-called restraint applied when the cultivation levels were not too far apart.
Her strength far surpassed that of these Mo Tun, so the so-called restraint was naturally a joke.
Ultimately, it was due to her lack of experience.
Before she was captured by the mad old man, she was merely a fledgling at the Golden Core stage.
At that time, as a Golden Core cultivator, she naturally had no opportunity to encounter advanced demonic beasts like Mo Tun.
And the subsequent tens of thousands of years were spent mostly in laboratories.
Although the old man used special methods to ensure her combat capabilities were no less than those of cultivators who trained diligently, her breadth of knowledge could not be compensated.
After walking another hundred meters or so, a mural appeared on the wall.
Ye Fan stepped forward to examine it.
The painting depicted a scene of poverty and backwardness.
The people in it appeared gaunt and clad in rags, their faces numb as they tilled the fields with farming tools.
The mural seemed to be telling a story, but it was clearly unfinished.
As expected.
After walking a while longer, Ye Fan saw another mural.
In the painting, a giant demonic beast was destroying the homes that people had painstakingly built.
The demonic beast was also carrying several corpses in its mouth, appearing incredibly ferocious.
The people in the painting were desperately fleeing, their faces filled with despair...
Without taking two steps, the third mural appeared.
There were several more demonic beasts, and the ground was littered with corpses.
Both the demonic beasts and the humans were looking up at the sky.
In the center of the scene was a little boy, appearing to be seven or eight years old.
The little boy had his back to the viewer, his head raised, his hands lifted as if welcoming something.
It seemed out of place with the surrounding scene.
Floating in mid-air was an object that emitted a glow.
Ye Fan's spirit jolted!
That object in mid-air was one of the jade pendants he had refined for his granddaughter!
Thus, Ye Fan and the little demon girl continued to view the murals one by one.
The little boy grew into a man and, with the power of the jade pendant, defeated the invading demonic beasts.
Subsequently, the man led the people to rebuild their homes and explore outward bit by bit...
In the last mural, the little boy was kneeling on one knee on a high platform.
Beside him stood a benevolent old man.
The old man held a magnificent crown in his hands, bestowing it upon him.
Around the high platform were countless cheering people.
...
The murals ended here.
Ye Fan pinched his chin, lost in thought.
From the third mural onwards, the shadow of the jade pendant could be seen in every painting.
Judging by its appearance and details, it was definitely one of the jade pendants he had refined.
However, his artifact refining skills at that time were still mediocre, and that jade pendant did not possess the immense power depicted in the mural.
It seemed that the jade pendant had arrived in this space tens of thousands of years ago, but at that time, he was still in another world...
Or perhaps...
The jade pendant, like himself, had arrived at a certain point in time?
This possibility could not be ruled out!
But there was one thing Ye Fan could confirm.
That is, the jade pendant had definitely been tampered with later.
Otherwise, it would not have possessed the immense power shown in the mural.
Speaking of which...
Why is it a tomb again?
This time I've transmigrated, and I've inexplicably been up against tombs...
...