Chapter 29

"Mr. Qin, are you going down with us?"

Just as Mo Yongxin and her team had formulated a plan to enter the cave, Qin Yu approached her and directly told her that he would be going down with them this time.

"Yes, I am also very curious about this cave and want to go down and take a look."

Qin Yu and He Ping's conversation was not heard by Mo Yongxin. When she heard that Qin Yu was willing to accompany them, she was delighted. Over the past few days, Qin Yu's mysterious abilities had made her realize that the man in front of her was not as ordinary as his appearance suggested. Having such an extraordinary person join them in the cave would greatly increase their chances of obtaining the dragon crystal liquid.

"Mr. Qin, since you are willing to go down the cave with us, I will give you another million after this is over!"

Qin Yu smiled. He was willing to go down the cave not for the money, but to genuinely help Mo Yongxin. Additionally, through his observations over the past few days, he knew that with the Mo family's power, if they wanted to forcefully take his dragon-seeking compass, he would have no chance of resistance. For these two reasons, he had to go down the cave.

The people going down the cave had already been assigned. Six bodyguards, the Mo sisters, and Master He, now including Qin Yu, made a total of ten people. The six bodyguards went in first, followed closely by the four of them.

"Mr. Qin, it's your turn."

The others were already sitting in the iron basket. When Qin Yu reached the bottom of the cave, the black-clad man in charge of the pulley helped him secure the rope and then released the steel wire, allowing the iron basket to descend.

After descending about a hundred meters, it was already pitch black all around. Qin Yu turned on his powerful flashlight and shone it on the rock wall, which was only about two inches away, within reach.

As the steel wire continued to descend, the distance to the rock wall grew farther. Qin Yu knew they were now more than three hundred meters deep, just as the camera had shown earlier.

"Everyone is here, let's move inward, be careful."

Once Qin Yu landed at the bottom of the cave, Mo Yongxin began organizing the team. Four bodyguards went ahead, two followed behind, and the four of them were in the middle. The cave was wide enough for them to walk side by side.

Soon, they arrived at the place where the camera had captured the white skeleton. A black-clad man stepped forward and touched the bones, then turned to the group and said, "From the hardness and appearance of these bones, this skeleton has not been damaged."

"Without any damage, how could it not have had time to leave, and instead cut off its left hand? Could it have been bewitched by a ghost?"

Mo Yongxin's words made Qin Yu and He Ping exchange a glance. Both of their expressions were filled with doubt. This skeleton was eerie. From the missing left hand bone, it was clearly the body of the old feng shui master. However, according to his eldest son's notes, the old feng shui master had clearly encountered a dangerous situation, and in his haste to escape, he chose to cut off his hand to alert his son outside the cave.

"Do you think this skeleton might not be the old feng shui master's?" Mo Yongxin suggested.

"There is no doubt that this skeleton is the old feng shui master's." Qin Yu, feeling the dragon-seeking compass in his chest tremble, confirmed it. He could sense the compass mourning, a sign of its spiritual connection to its former owner.

"Why worry so much? Our goal is the dragon crystal liquid, not to fuss over a dead man's bones." Mo Yongxing, uninterested in the skeleton, urged them to continue.

The group continued forward and soon reached the river, where the camera footage had abruptly ended.

A powerful flashlight beam shone on the river surface. Qin Yu followed the light and looked at the water, his expression changing dramatically. The water was black as ink, and the flashlight beam could not penetrate to the bottom, making it look like a deep abyss.

"Is this... the Yellow Spring Water?" Qin Yu and He Ping both changed color, the latter exclaiming in shock.

"Yellow Spring Water? Could you explain more, Master He?"

"The Yellow Spring is known in folklore as the underworld, the dwelling place of ghosts. The Yellow Spring Water is said to be the river separating the living and the dead. It is believed to be bottomless, with the underworld lying beneath it. Ancient legends say that the Yellow Spring Water is as black as ink, and anything that touches it will be destroyed. People and animals that step into it will vanish."

"Is it really that sinister?" Mo Yongxing, not believing it, picked up the flashlight, bent down, and was about to put his hand in the water. Suddenly, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him back, making him sit on the ground.

"Qin Yu, what do you mean?"

The one who had pulled Mo Yongxing back was none other than Qin Yu. His expression was serious as he said, "I pulled you back to save your hand. Didn't you hear what Master He said? Anything that touches the Yellow Spring Water will be destroyed, not just submerged, but corroded. Even a single drop will corrode your bones."

Qin Yu picked up an iron rod and carefully dipped one end into the water. Then he lifted the rod, and everyone gasped. The part that had touched the water had been completely corroded, shortening the rod.

Especially Mo Yongxing, who broke out in a cold sweat. Seeing the iron rod corrode, he was now terrified, thinking about how he had almost put his hand in. He looked at Qin Yu with a newfound gratitude.

Qin Yu, however, was not paying attention to Mo Yongxing's gaze. His brows were furrowed. The corrosive nature of the Yellow Spring Water was mentioned in the Zhuge Nei Jing, but it referred to this corrosive property as "death qi," a force from the nine netherworlds that would destroy anything from the living world that touched it, far more powerful than concentrated sulfuric acid.

"Brother Qin is indeed well-versed. I only knew a little about the Yellow Spring Water, but I didn't expect you to know so much." He Ping was genuinely impressed. Qin Yu's ability to control the dragon-seeking compass and his knowledge of the Yellow Spring Water's properties showed that his feng shui skills were on par with, if not superior to, his own.

"Master He is too modest. I am merely benefiting from the knowledge of my predecessors," Qin Yu humbly replied, then continued, "The Yellow Spring Water is extremely corrosive. To cross it, we either need to find a way around or jump over it. Nothing can float on its surface without being corroded."

The river was about two zhang wide, making it impossible to jump over. The group had no choice but to find a way around, following the river upstream in hopes of finding an end or a narrower section.

As they walked, Mo Yongxing kept a safe distance from the river, as if it contained some kind of monster, which made Qin Yu chuckle.

In fact, not just Mo Yongxing, but even the black-clad bodyguards walked cautiously, having witnessed the corrosive power of the Yellow Spring Water.

As Qin Yu walked among the group, his thoughts wandered. The Yellow Spring Water was extremely rare. To form it, there needed to be a sufficient amount of death qi, which came from the dead. A cup of Yellow Spring Water might require the death qi of a thousand corpses, let alone this river, which would require an immeasurable amount of death qi.

After walking for about ten minutes, the group suddenly stopped. Qin Yu looked ahead and saw a rock wall illuminated by the flashlight, with a cave entrance about one zhang wide in the middle, from which the Yellow Spring Water was gushing out.

There was no way forward. The river was flowing from the rock wall, making it impossible to go upstream. Mo Yongxin turned to Qin Yu and Master He for help.

He Ping's face showed a hint of shame as he said, "Miss Mo, the Yellow Spring Water is extraordinary. I believe the downstream section is similar to the upstream, with a cave entrance. It's impossible to go around."

He Ping's words dimmed Mo Yongxin's hope, but she quickly turned to Qin Yu with a hopeful look, believing that he might have a way to cross the Yellow Spring Water.

Seeing Mo Yongxin's hopeful gaze, Qin Yu smiled bitterly and said, "If it were just a cup of Yellow Spring Water, I might have a way. But for a river of Yellow Spring Water, I have no good solution."

Qin Yu's words extinguished Mo Yongxin's last hope. Just as she was about to give up, Mo Yongxing suddenly shouted, "There's a protruding slot here!"

It turned out that while the group was at a loss, Mo Yongxing had been shining the flashlight on the wall and discovered a protruding stone. He pressed it down before Qin Yu could stop him. The group felt a tremor, and a round stone door slowly descended from the rock wall, blocking the cave entrance and cutting off the river.

"This..."

The group raised their flashlights and shone them on the stone door, which was covered in intricate patterns, inscriptions, and special symbols.

Mo Yongxing, confused by the stone door he had triggered, scratched his head, unsure of what to do.

As the stone door descended, the river gradually dried up, and the riverbed was soon exposed. Everyone's eyes widened as they saw the riverbed and the surrounding rocks covered in red inscriptions and strange patterns, resembling a heart full of blood vessels, making their skin crawl.

"This Yellow Spring Water flow was artificially designed," Qin Yu said confidently.

From the moment he recognized the Yellow Spring Water, he had suspected this. The inscriptions and patterns on the walls, clearly man-made, confirmed his suspicion.

"Artificially? Brother Qin, are you saying someone entered this cave before us and created this Yellow Spring Water river?" He Ping asked.

"It's not just before us. I believe this river was already here before the old feng shui master entered the cave."

"Brother Qin, are you sure?"

Qin Yu smiled and was about to explain when Mo Yongxin's eyes suddenly lit up, and she said, "I understand."