Chapter 51

On the verge of death, if it weren't for the thousand-year-old vine being strong enough, if it weren't for him already becoming a pattern hunter, if it weren't for the soul power in his body stabilizing just before it ran out, if it weren't for the dagger being sturdy enough, countless "ifs" had saved his life. Compared to his own life, even if he could gain something, what was there to be happy about?

A man and a bear puffed on their cigarettes, using the spiciness of the tobacco to erase the fear of death. Bu Li and Dahei didn't speak, leaning against the wall as if exhausted, each lost in their own thoughts.

After a long while, Bu Li felt he had recovered a bit and didn't want to linger too long, in case something else changed in the Divine Legacy Mountains. If a person were to suddenly disappear, attracting a more powerful being, he wouldn't even have time to cry.

Slowly standing up, his whole body ached. He didn't know how many times he had collided with the rocks. Even with his strong and powerful body, he couldn't avoid feeling sore.

"Be careful," Dahei said, reluctantly drawing on his cigarette, which was almost burning his palm, but he still didn't want to throw it away. Seeing Bu Li stand up, he added.

Bu Li nodded without speaking.

Behind the bones, a row of tiny characters was carved into the rock, covered in dust. Bu Li walked around the bones, gently blew away the dust, and read carefully.

"Throughout my life, I have lived by my grudges and joys, killing without mercy. Being imprisoned underground is a fitting retribution. But to waste my profound soul techniques here, and for future generations to be unaware of me, is a regret."

Reading this, Bu Li thought, so this person was trapped here. If he was trapped by someone, and still claimed to have profound soul techniques, it was truly incomprehensible. Continuing to read, "I will leave the essence of my soul techniques here. Future generations who learn them will dominate the world, and I will be immortal."

Bu Li's heart raced more and more. Although he didn't fully believe it, he still felt a greedy excitement.

Then, Bu Li smiled. He thought he was calm and composed, able to face the world calmly, but when faced with such a strange situation, he still felt his heart race.

"What does it say?"

"It says he had a godlike power."

"Oh, then you'll be the senior disciple of the Red Lotus Sect, invulnerable to blades and fire, no longer needing me to lead the charge. That's great." Dahei reluctantly finished his last puff of the cigarette and mocked Bu Li.

This damn dog, why hasn't he ever said anything pleasant since he learned to speak!

Feeling the light was dim below, Bu Li took the night pearl from the stone pillar, bent down, and continued reading.

Strange, why did it feel so familiar! The next thing Bu Li saw made his mind go blank. Every word and sentence seemed familiar, yet not exactly the same. It was clearly the technique written on the three pages Hu Wu had given him, but there were some minor differences in the wording.

Without spending too much time pondering the differences, Bu Li memorized the thousand or so characters. He already knew most of it by heart, so he only needed to remember the differences. Bu Li's memory was good, and after reading the words three times, he found no errors and stopped.

Turning around, Bu Li looked at the black wooden box on the ground, hesitating. He didn't know what kind of person this old predecessor was. If he opened it rashly and there were poisons or hidden weapons inside, it would be troublesome.

Dahei found Bu Li's cautiousness amusing and said, "You're not thinking of having me stand in front, are you?"

"Exactly that." Bu Li said, using his foot to gently kick the wooden box. Seeing no abnormalities, he picked up the box and placed it on one side of the small room. He stood in front of Dahei, holding a crossbow, and shot an arrow at the intricate array on the wooden box.

Bu Li had never seen this kind of array before, but he felt it should be like this. Looking at the withered bones, he wondered how many thousands of years had passed. The soul power in the array should have run out.

The arrow hit the wooden box directly, and Bu Li suddenly saw a seven-colored light shine. A horned monster appeared on the box, its shadow dim but still clearly visible. The monster wore a full set of armor, with red lava seeping from the edges, and the smell of sulfur was almost palpable. In its left hand was a light whip, and in its right hand was a flaming longsword. Its eyes, like volcanoes, stared at Bu Li.

Dahei pressed himself against the stone wall behind Bu Li, his fat body almost flattened.

The light whip lashed at Bu Li. Although the shadow was dim, the fierce killing intent was real and tangible, like a knife cutting into Bu Li's body.

Bu Li sidestepped, raised his dagger, and blocked the place where the light whip was about to strike.

As Bu Li had expected, over time, the soul power in the wooden box had mostly dissipated. The shadow was dim, and the light whip faded before it even touched the dagger, then disappeared.

With the shadow gone, the wooden box "clicked" open. Apart from the power in the array, there were no other defenses. Bu Li observed for a while before approaching the box to see what treasures were inside.

A black bag, only palm-sized, of unknown material, was placed in the box. Next to it was a coil of grayish-white sinew. Bu Li recognized it as sinew but didn't know what kind of wild beast it came from. There was nothing else, the box was empty.

"I thought there would be something to eat," Dahei said from behind.

"Anything left for so long would have rotted," Bu Li said as he approached, taking out the coil of sinew and gently touching it.

"Dragon meat wouldn't," Dahei argued. "I've always wanted to try it. I was just thinking if there might be some here."

Bu Li ignored Dahei's chatter, his fingers gently caressing the grayish-white sinew. A comfortable, smooth sensation flowed through his fingertips. Even with a light touch, with Bu Li's experience as an old hunter, this was definitely a high-quality sinew, perfect for stringing a longbow.

Picking up the sinew, Bu Li saw another item underneath, a silver-white ring. Bu Li had always wanted to make a ring. Although his recovery ability was strong, it still hurt when ironwood arrows grazed his fingers. But the West Mountain had few resources, and it was impossible to make one. He had heard that pattern hunters on the Soul Wave Continent all had their own rings, with various enhancing soul techniques engraved on them. Bu Li was delighted and picked up the ring.

It was slightly warm to the touch, and on the inner side of the ring were eight characters: "No need for intention, my heart is unwavering."

When Bu Li's fingers touched the eight characters, he keenly felt a faint soul power floating on the ring. The slightly concave surface of the ring, where the arrow would be placed, began to glow with tiny points of light.