What Xu Lang saw—
Was a bamboo tube hanging from his body.
A faint buzzing sound kept coming from inside it.
These were the human-faced venom bees Xu Lang had subdued earlier.
With these bees, they would definitely be able to find a way out.
Bees usually navigate by sunlight, but even in places with very poor lighting, they can still find their way.
Their greatest reliance is their sense of smell.
Bees can detect pollen from several kilometers away.
After gathering pollen, when returning to the hive, they can even leave behind a scented corridor.
That way, after unloading the pollen, they can return to the flower field along the same route.
If they were deep in the very bottom of Zhelong Mountain's underground caves, relying on these bees to find a path would not be realistic.
But here—
They were already very close to the exit of the underground cavern.
As long as there was airflow, the fragrance of flowers and plants from Worm Valley could guide the bees toward the passage.
The moment Xu Lang thought of this, he immediately took out the bamboo tube and released a dozen or so human-faced venom bees, directing them to search the surrounding area.
At first, Xu Lang did not want to release too many, in case the swarm scattered and became difficult to control.
Very quickly, though, Xu Lang realized there was no need to release more.
In less than ten minutes, the bees had already found a passage and returned to his side.
Xu Lang immediately followed their guidance and climbed behind a mushroom-shaped stone.
A cave entrance, about half a man's height and over two feet wide, appeared before him.
Xu Lang wet his hand and stretched it toward the entrance.
He could clearly feel that the side facing the opening was slightly cooler.
Wind.
And wind meant—
A path leading outside.
Xu Lang quickly called Hu Ba Yi, Shirley Yang, and Wang Pangzi, who were still resting nearby.
"Old Hu, Shirley Yang, Fatty—there's an opening here. It should lead outside!"
The other three immediately brightened with excitement.
This time, Xu Lang took the lead.
The four of them crawled into the stone passage.
After advancing for several dozen meters, the cave gradually widened.
Soon, another underground river appeared ahead.
Alongside the river, there were many clear signs of excavation.
In some places, there were even stone steps.
This was obviously a place people had once visited—
Possibly even lived in.
"I get it now. This must be the underground river Kongque and the innkeeper mentioned. We're back on the right route," Old Hu said, immediately grasping the situation.
The group swept their flashlights around.
Very quickly, they found several strange-looking remains along the bank.
These remains had long since decayed into dry bones.
Even the clothing on them had rotted away.
Higher up, more openings could be seen.
These openings were neatly arranged, clearly man-made.
On some of the bones, there were still traces of broken armor and weapons.
Xu Lang walked over for a look.
Most of the armor and weapons were badly deteriorated and held little value.
"These should be the bandits the innkeeper mentioned—the ones sealed inside the tunnels," Hu Ba Yi said, examining them under the flashlight.
"Judging by the era, probably late Ming."
Hu Ba Yi and Wang Pangzi had both spent some time around the antique markets in the capital, so they could still recognize some clues.
Wang Pangzi looked disgusted.
"Not worth a thing. Even if you dragged this junk back to the capital, it wouldn't cover the shipping cost."
Xu Lang stopped paying attention.
Originally, there wasn't supposed to be anything valuable near the tunnel exit beneath Zhelong Mountain.
Just as Xu Lang was about to keep moving and leave the tunnel—
He suddenly felt the Golden Silkworm Gu on his arm twitch.
"Something there?"
The Golden Silkworm Gu's senses were much sharper than his own.
Since there was already a clear path ahead, Xu Lang simply let Wang Pangzi scout in front while he remained behind.
Once the other three had gone ahead, the semi-transparent Golden Silkworm Gu flew out from Xu Lang's left arm.
Xu Lang looked over.
The Golden Silkworm Gu had landed on a skeleton leaning against a rock.
This skeleton's bones were unusually thick and sturdy, clearly belonging to a large man.
Although the armor on its body was also badly damaged, it was still noticeably more refined than the others.
Beside it lay a large spear with a waxwood shaft.
The spearhead, being close to the water, had corroded into a useless lump.
The Golden Silkworm Gu flapped its tiny wings and stared at Xu Lang with its mung-bean-sized eyes.
Could this skeleton be hiding something valuable?
Xu Lang stepped forward and pulled aside the ruined armor on the skeleton.
Very soon, inside the chest cavity, a bronze seal appeared before his eyes.
Xu Lang reached out and picked up the bronze seal.
At that very moment, a system notification rang out in his mind.
[System Notification]
[System has made contact with a Yuan-end Bronze Lion Seal]
[Qi Luck gained: 5 points]
Qi Luck!
Xu Lang instantly felt his heartbeat skip.
Right now, what concerned him most—
Was his fusion slot.
Only by activating a new fusion slot would it become possible to fuse with other Exotic Beasts and malevolent entities.
Although the system had stated that Qi Luck could be absorbed from ancient tombs or antiques, Xu Lang had never actually done it before and had no idea how it worked.
Now he knew.
Antiques had to be touched in order for Qi Luck to be absorbed.
And when Xu Lang had removed the ruined armor from the skeleton earlier, he had not gained any Qi Luck.
Which meant that absorbing Qi Luck had requirements regarding the value of the antique itself.
Broken scrap metal wouldn't work—
Even if it had sat there for hundreds of years.
Clearly, this Bronze Lion Seal was no ordinary piece of junk.
Just as Xu Lang was about to examine the Bronze Lion Seal more carefully—
Another system notification sounded in his mind.