Chapter 8: Illusory Prohibition

Both the Hai family and the Li family were taken aback, and both hurriedly approached. Hai Wuya was the first to speak, "Chief Saru, why have you all become like this?"

"Could it be for any other reason? Isn't it because of that mysterious cave?" The middle-aged man who had arrived was none other than the chief of the Saru clan. Hai Tian could sense that this person's strength was slightly weaker than his father's.

However, with his current strength, he could not fully perceive the true strength of Chief Saru, only having a rough sense of it.

"Chief Saru, is that cave really that powerful? Even a Five-Star Great Sword Master like you suffered such severe injuries?" The head of the Li family also showed great surprise, and the old man in white beside him had a serious expression.

Chief Saru gave a bitter smile, "I don't mind telling you, every expert we brought this time was injured, and we only managed to enter the first level of the cave."

"The first level!" Everyone present exclaimed in shock.

Hai Tian also perked up his ears, listening carefully to what Chief Saru was saying. It seemed that this expert did not intend to wipe them out; otherwise, they might not have even been able to enter the first level.

But they found a high-grade yellow-class sword in just the first level, which was enough to indicate that there were more treasures inside the cave. Both the Hai family and the Li family became breathless with excitement.

However, they were not completely blinded by the treasures and were aware of the dangers. The head of the Li family cautiously asked, "Chief Saru, have you made any other discoveries?"

"No, we were blocked by an invisible film and couldn't enter any further. So I thought of inviting your two families to help us break through this invisible film." Chief Saru's face was full of bitterness. If he could, he would have claimed all the treasures inside the cave for himself, but he knew that was impossible.

Hai Wuya and the head of the Li family immediately began to think, weighing the pros and cons.

Hai Tian also pondered. If his guess was correct, that invisible film should be a restriction, and a defensive one at that. Otherwise, Chief Saru and his people wouldn't have been able to come out so easily.

The expert who could set up such a restriction was definitely not just a Sword Emperor; it could very well be a Sword Saint, or even a Sword God. A cave left behind by a Sword God expert was something that even a former Sword God like Hai Tian found very tempting.

Suddenly, a cold aura swept over Hai Tian's heart, making him startle and immediately look around. But that cold aura disappeared completely.

"Brother Tian, what's wrong?" Seeing Hai Tian looking around, Xiaoyu asked in confusion.

"Nothing, nothing." Hai Tian shook his head. Was it just his imagination earlier?

"Gentlemen, what do you think? This cave is very dangerous. If you insist on going, I suggest you let the young ones return. This is not a place for them." Chief Saru's face was serious.

Hai Wuya glanced at Hai Tian and the others, then smiled, "Don't worry, Chief Saru. I'll have them wait at the entrance of the cave and not let them enter, so they won't be in danger. As for us, since we're already here, why would we leave?"

"That's right, the head of the Hai family is correct. This is a good opportunity for the young ones to gain experience. I won't let Xiang'er enter either; he can stay outside and keep the three young Hai family members company." The head of the Li family immediately agreed, a smile on his face, though Hai Tian found this smile somewhat unsettling.

Chief Saru nodded, "Since that's the case, let's set off immediately. It's still a half day's journey to the cave."

Everyone immediately began to move. Hai Wuya had Hai Tian and the others walk in the middle to protect their safety. Along the way, he continuously explained the sights and sounds of the Seven-Grade Mountains to them, to broaden their horizons.

Hai Tian, who already knew about these things, was not very interested. Xiaoyu, however, listened with great enthusiasm, her eyes darting around, wishing she had another pair of eyes.

Walking through the deep mountains and old forests, Hai Tian's mood gradually relaxed. Suddenly, the cold aura that had disappeared earlier surged back into his heart.

Hai Tian immediately became alert and looked around, but the cold aura vanished again without a trace.

"Son, what's wrong?" Hai Wuya noticed Hai Tian's abnormality and asked in a low voice.

"Nothing, I just feel a bit strange." Hai Tian shook his head and did not tell Hai Wuya about the feeling in his heart. He knew it was not his imagination but that someone was watching him.

"Strange?" Hai Wuya chuckled, "It's no wonder. This is your first time in the deep mountains and old forests. The Seven-Grade Mountains stretch for hundreds of miles across the Sangma Empire, with only one exit in the middle allowing passage between the two sides. Even on the entire Soul Sword Continent, the Seven-Grade Mountains are among the most famous." Hai Wuya thought Hai Tian was just awed by the vastness of the Seven-Grade Mountains and did not suspect anything else.

The Elder also chuckled, "Even a Sword King-level expert would take three to five years to find their way out of the Seven-Grade Mountains without a map."

"Wow, that's amazing. What about us?" Xiaoyu asked with wide eyes.

"Xiaoyu, even with a map, you wouldn't be able to leave safely. There are many spirit beasts in the Seven-Grade Mountains, some as powerful as us Great Sword Masters. If you encounter them, run first." Xiaoyu's father said seriously.

Hai Tian nodded in agreement. He knew that there were many high-level spirit beasts on the Soul Sword Continent, some powerful enough to match his former self.

"Everyone, pay attention, we're almost at the cave!" Chief Saru's voice suddenly came from the front.

Everyone, who had been relaxed, immediately became tense. Especially Hai Tian, whose thoughts kept expanding, but unfortunately, his limited strength restricted the distance.

"Brother Tian, where is the cave? I don't see it." Xiaoyu looked around and asked in a low voice.

"Hmph! The cave of a great predecessor is surely hidden deeply. How could a mere novice like you see it?" Hai Yun, who had been silent, sneered.

Xiaoyu frowned, "You're so great, then tell me where it's hidden."

"I..." Hai Yun's face turned red, and he looked around but found no trace of the cave.

Xiaoyu mocked, "I thought you were so great that you could see through the hidden cave. Turns out you're just like me."

"You! Hmph, I won't stoop to your level!" Hai Yun turned away, angry. He realized that every time he argued with Hai Tian and Xiaoyu, he never had a good outcome.

"The cave is hidden by an illusory restriction, which ordinary people can't detect." Hai Tian suddenly spoke. He had extended his thoughts and quickly found a place with a faint energy fluctuation.

An illusory restriction refers to a type of restriction that creates an illusion to conceal something. The current illusory restriction was not very sophisticated, but it was thanks to his past research on such restrictions that he could detect it. If it were someone else, it would be much harder to find.

His words immediately silenced everyone. The people from the Saru clan, who had been walking at the front, all looked at Hai Tian in shock, especially Chief Saru, who blurted out, "How did you know?"

Chief Saru's words clearly confirmed that Hai Tian's statement was correct. Everyone looked at Hai Tian as if he were a monster, making him very uncomfortable.

After all, except for a few young ones, everyone present was at least a Great Sword Master, and the Li family even had a Sword King-level expert. They had not detected the cave, but a novice who had just started practicing a few days ago had. How could they save face?

The old man in white from the Li family had a very difficult expression, his eyes constantly darting around.

Xiaoyu didn't care about these things. Seeing that Hai Tian was right, she looked at Hai Yun with pride, "What do you think? My Brother Tian is amazing, just because you don't know something doesn't mean he doesn't."

Hai Yun's face turned pale with anger, but he couldn't find a proper response and had to turn away.

"Son, how did you know?" Hai Wuya quickly asked.

Chief Saru also moved closer, "Actually, finding this cave was quite a coincidence. One of our clan members fell into the cave while gathering herbs and discovered that the outside of the cave was covered by something we couldn't see, concealing it. Nephew, how did you detect it?"

Everyone's eyes were fixed on Hai Tian, making him very uncomfortable. He didn't like being stared at, especially since his strength was the weakest among the group.

"I was just guessing. I've read a bit about this kind of thing. Chief Saru said we were almost there, but there were no traces around, so I thought it might be hidden by a restriction." Hai Tian quickly fabricated an explanation.

"Oh? Is that so? It seems you are quite knowledgeable, even studying restrictions. Old Hai, it looks like your family has a remarkable successor." Chief Saru sincerely praised.

Hai Wuya chuckled, "Not really, the young one is still too inexperienced and needs more training." While he said this, he was thinking, did their family have books on this topic?

However, no one noticed that Hai Yun was looking at Hai Tian with a resentful expression, his fists tightly clenched.

"Alright, everyone, prepare. The young ones will stay here, and we will enter the cave." Chief Saru led everyone to the entrance of the cave and said loudly.