I Have An Infinite Cultivation Resource
Chapter 87: Opportunity
The serpent slowly descended onto a deserted black mountain. Opening its mouth, it extended its tongue and carefully lowered Lu You and Lu Xiao'e to the ground.
After glancing at the steep mountainside, the serpent raised its head and repeatedly slammed into the stone wall with thunderous crashes, carving out a cave large enough for two people. Then it looked eagerly toward Lu You.
Seeing this, Lu Xiao'e left Lu You and the serpent where they stood and entered the cave first. After inspecting it, she gestured toward the entrance, indicating that the opening the serpent had made was far too large.
The serpent immediately grinned awkwardly. It picked up several enormous black boulders in its mouth and blocked most of the entrance, leaving only a narrow gap large enough for a single person to pass through.
Lu You activated a Soundproof Talisman, then reached out and patted the serpent's head.
"How are you feeling? Have you recovered at all?"
The serpent shook its head.
"I am already a dying creature. There is no recovery for me. But being able to soar freely one last time is enough for me to die without regrets. It's just a pity that so many of your spirit stones were wasted on me."
As it spoke, the serpent carefully glanced at Lu You.
"Human… no, Exalted One… do you still have more spirit stones? My offspring has also exhausted itself greatly. You didn't waste all your spirit stones and pills on me, did you?"
"If you had enough spirit stones, how much longer could you live?"
Using his spiritual sense, Lu You took out ten storage rings from the little cauldron. He filled each ring completely with spirit stones and Qi-Nourishing Pills.
Every storage ring Elder Wen had possessed contained a hundred cubic meters of storage space. The amount of spirit stones and medicinal pills Lu You took out now far exceeded everything consumed on the journey earlier.
After erasing the restrictions on the storage rings, Lu You tossed them into the serpent's mouth.
Without restrictions, even the serpent could use them.
After sensing the contents of the storage rings, the serpent's jaw visibly trembled.
"H-Human— no— Exalted One— do you have an entire spirit vein supporting you from behind?"
The serpent immediately relaxed.
"This little snake is at ease now. With my offspring in the fairy maiden's care, it will surely live an even greater life than mine."
Lu You frowned and secretly asked Evil Eye:
"Do all ancient monsters who've lived a long time know how to change sides with the wind this quickly?"
Evil Eye was shocked, his pupils full of admiration.
"As expected of Boss! What incredible insight! You instantly perceived our instinctive sensitivity to the winds of the era. But how could you merely be the wind? You are destiny itself! Our submission to your magnificent wisdom is simply following the will of heaven. And those who follow heaven naturally live long lives!"
After listening to Evil Eye's heartfelt words, Lu You nodded thoughtfully before looking back at the serpent.
Compared to Evil Eye, this serpent was still far too inexperienced.
"There's no need to conserve spirit stones. I need you to help me with something."
Lu You took out the porcelain bottle engraved with the tracking formation. He stuffed a Light Talisman inside, then tossed the bottle into the serpent's mouth.
"I'll send you several thousand li away. Dig a cave there—make it deep enough—and place this medicine bottle inside."
The serpent's eyes lit up instantly as it nodded wildly.
"Exalted One is truly brilliant! This way, even if they escape, they'll be lured away from this mountain."
Lu You shook his head. Then he took out nearly a thousand Mount Tai Talismans and threw them into the serpent's mouth as well.
"Embed these Mount Tai Talismans throughout the cave and hide them properly. The moment any elders enter the cave, activate the talismans."
So many Mount Tai Talismans!
The serpent shuddered.
Thankfully, earlier it had merely been testing Lu You's courage. If it had truly harbored malicious intentions toward him, then a few Mount Tai Talismans detonated inside its mouth would probably have crushed it to death on the spot.
The serpent lowered its head and pondered briefly before decisively speaking:
"Exalted One, if those Golden Core cultivators do not all enter the cave, then the moment I activate the talismans, my position will be exposed and I'll be surrounded by them."
Carefully analyzing Lu You's expression, the serpent bared its teeth slightly.
"Does Exalted One still possess more spirit stones and pills? This little snake's life force has already been severed. To be able to move freely before death is already a blessing from heaven. Now all I wish is to do more for Exalted One. If I can obtain even more spirit stones, I'm confident I can drag one or two Golden Core cultivators down with me before dying."
"It was my oversight."
Lu You once again took out ten more storage rings and tossed them into the serpent's mouth.
"Don't keep thinking about dying. Focus on surviving. There may still be a turning point."
The serpent swallowed the storage rings and solemnly bowed its head.
"This little snake obeys the immortal decree. Exalted One, I am ready."
Lu You glanced toward the cave behind him. Lu Xiao'e was honestly staying inside and hadn't secretly peeked even once.
With a thought, Lu You activated tens of thousands of teleportation talismans on the serpent.
In the next instant, the serpent vanished out of thin air.
BOOM!
The serpent felt the world spin violently before crashing heavily onto the ground.
Having lived inside the secret realm for millions of years, the serpent was already intimately familiar with its terrain. After looking around at its surroundings, it clicked its tongue in astonishment.
It had actually been transported tens of thousands of li away in an instant.
Unsure when the Golden Core cultivators would break free, the serpent dared not waste time. It immediately began digging into the mountain at full speed.
Remembering Lu You's instructions, the serpent dug exceptionally deep this time. It even created two winding forked tunnels to make the cave appear more realistic.
After placing the medicine bottle at the end of one branch tunnel, the serpent crawled back out and climbed directly onto the mountain peak. Its massive body merged with the black mountain itself, becoming a giant black stone almost identical to the first time Lu You had encountered it.
Meanwhile, after the serpent departed, Lu You returned to the cave.
To his surprise, Lu Xiao'e's flexible sword had somehow returned to her hand, and she was currently using it to excavate the walls.
Clearly, her soft sword was a treasured artifact. The sturdy rock walls were sliced apart like tofu the moment the blade touched them.
In the short time Lu You had spent talking with the serpent, Lu Xiao'e had already carved out an entire bedroom. She had even intentionally left behind a massive rectangular slab of stone and polished it smooth with the soft sword, turning it into a large stone bed.
When she saw Lu You return, Lu Xiao'e sighed regretfully.
"What a pity. The treasured artifact I gave you got shattered earlier. Otherwise you could've helped decorate the room too."
"The room?"
Lu You looked around, realizing that Lu Xiao'e clearly had far more survival experience than Senior Sister Zeng Yan.
Zeng Yan couldn't even build a proper wooden cabin, while Lu Xiao'e casually carved an ordinary stone cave into something resembling an actual room.
After finishing the spacious bedroom and stone bed, Lu Xiao'e skipped toward the opposite end of the room and began digging another pit with her soft sword.
None of the broken stone debris was left lying around. To prevent others from discovering the cave by following the rubble, Lu Xiao'e stored every piece inside her storage ring.
"And what's this supposed to be?"
Lu You stared at the pit Lu Xiao'e had carved into the bedroom floor, completely baffled.
Lu Xiao'e ignored him and carefully polished the pit smooth. She even carved several small steps into one side.
Looking proudly at her masterpiece, she smiled in satisfaction.
"Obviously it's a bath pool! Hehehe. Little servant boy, you've never seen one before, have you?"
In this life, Lu You was an orphan. After joining the Verdant Cloud Sect, he had only ever worked as a menial disciple. On top of that, cultivators' bodies had already been transformed by high-energy spiritual matter. They no longer required ordinary metabolism, remaining naturally spotless and free from filth.
So Lu Xiao'e subconsciously assumed Lu You had never even encountered something like a bath.
"You fill this with nice hot water, then lie down inside with your head resting on the steps…"
Lu Xiao'e exaggeratedly demonstrated the posture before hopping directly into the pool and reclining dramatically inside it.
Then she grinned mischievously at Lu You.
"Well? Don't you want to look?"
"Save it."
Lu You had already completely figured out Lu Xiao'e's tricks and snorted dismissively at such shallow temptation.
"If I said yes, you'd immediately jump out and tell me to 'take a good look at the pool,' right?"
Seeing through her scheme, Lu Xiao'e simply hopped back out of the pool. She grabbed Lu You by the arm and dragged him from the bedroom back toward the cave entrance.
Pointing at another untouched section of wall, she asked excitedly:
"What kind of room do you like? I can carve one out for you too. Hmm… should I make you a secret cultivation chamber?"
"We're only hiding here temporarily."
Looking at the suddenly playful Lu Xiao'e, Lu You felt a headache coming on.
But Lu Xiao'e shook her head.
"No. Inside this secret realm, I don't have any chance to recover my spiritual roots. I'm not even sure I can withstand the realm constantly draining spiritual energy."
She paused before continuing softly:
"And with only you left alone, there's no way you can fight those elders either."
"So we'll just hide here properly until the Deep Literary Pavilion elders open the secret realm again. Then we'll slip away while they're distracted."
Lu Xiao'e used her flexible sword to sketch a rough blueprint onto the wall.
"We can't just dig out a bedroom and cultivation room. We also need to create another escape tunnel leading outside, just in case we end up trapped like turtles in a jar."
As she spoke, Lu Xiao'e shot Lu You a mischievous grin.
So childish. Even at a time like this, she still had to play word games.
Lu You snorted unhappily.
"You're the turtle."
"Hehe~"
Lu Xiao'e laughed sweetly and tugged at her collar. The red robe she had deliberately worn to imitate Dongfang Bubai slipped off, revealing the emerald-green dress underneath.
She spun gracefully in front of Lu You and declared proudly:
"Even if I were a turtle, I'd still be the prettiest turtle beauty of them all."
The two bantered back and forth for a while until Lu Xiao'e forced Lu You into helping with construction.
Seeing how enthusiastically she worked, Lu You eventually took another treasured artifact out of his storage ring.
"This sword didn't break?"
Lu Xiao'e hurriedly snatched it away for inspection and immediately realized it was the very sword she had previously given Lu You.
Lu You coughed lightly, his expression perfectly calm.
"The attack that killed the Golden Core cultivator was a sword technique, so it only looked like it shattered. Besides, it was a gift from a friend. How could I possibly break it?"
After muddling through the explanation, Lu You and Lu Xiao'e worked together to excavate the tunnel.
With treasured artifacts doing most of the work, very little spiritual energy was required. Under the two of them working together, it took only the time of an incense stick to dig completely through the mountain.
After cutting away the final layer of rock blocking the exit, Lu You pushed the stone aside and activated a Divine Eye Talisman.
The serpent had left Lu You and Lu Xiao'e atop a high mountain.
Within the secret realm, the higher the mountain, the greater the spiritual energy consumption. No sane cultivator would climb one for no reason at all.
Still, to be safe, Lu You decided to inspect the surroundings.
"You activated a talisman?"
Lu Xiao'e sensed the spiritual fluctuations around Lu You's eyes.
Since Lu You possessed the Cauldron of Cornucopia, he could activate talismans directly inside it, so Lu Xiao'e had never actually seen him take one out.
Understanding the unspoken question behind her words, Lu You raised a finger and lightly tapped the center of her forehead, secretly applying a Divine Eye Talisman to her as well.
"So beautiful!"
With the enhancement from the Divine Eye Talisman, Lu Xiao'e didn't even bother checking for danger. Instead, standing atop the towering mountain, she gazed into the distant horizon.
Lu You looked around too.
"This secret realm has no sky, no clouds—just endless blackness everywhere. What's beautiful about it?"
"Lu You, sometimes beauty is a feeling. It doesn't always have to be visual."
Lu Xiao'e stepped a little closer to him and pointed toward the distant mountains of varying shapes.
"Look at that one. Doesn't it look like braised pork? And that one over there—curved like a giant black crescent moon."
Then she pointed farther into the distance.
"Try looking even farther. See that mountain all the way out there? Doesn't it look like a person gazing upward at something?"
Following Lu Xiao'e's line of sight, Lu You looked carefully.
Aside from the "braised pork" mountain—which he still had reservations about—the others really did resemble what she described.
Every mountain peak appeared vivid and lifelike.
Especially the final one Lu Xiao'e pointed out.
Lu You could almost see the silhouette of a solitary woman standing apart from the world itself.
Her long black hair cascaded down to her feet like a waterfall, both fists clasped before her chest as she silently gazed toward something far away.
"This place's mountains really do seem crafted by hands."
Lu You's thoughts raced.
The moment he entered the secret realm, the first thing he had done was climb a mountain. But the mountains where he had been earlier had not possessed this same vivid, lifelike appearance.
Subconsciously, Lu You activated several dozen more Divine Eye Talismans. His sight sharpened even further.
When he looked again, the mountain shaped like a woman became even more realistic.
As though sensing Lu You's gaze, the mountain shifted ever so slightly, as if it were about to turn around at any moment.
Lu You immediately withdrew his gaze.
"Did you see that? That mountain looked like it was about to turn around."
"Turn around?"
Clearly, Lu Xiao'e hadn't sensed the mountain's movement. But after hearing Lu You's words, she didn't dismiss them.
"A mountain turning around… a twist in the path ahead…"
Her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Lu You, if you're not mistaken, then that place could be the formation core!"
Lu Xiao'e looked overjoyed. Seeing Lu You's confused expression, she hurriedly dragged him back into the cave and sealed the entrance tightly with the stone slab.
"This secret realm constantly devours the spiritual energy inside cultivators. Even a demon like the serpent has been exhausted to the point of nearing death."
She took a breath before continuing:
"In other words, this secret realm is basically no different from a death trap."
"But the reason secret realms are called 'secret realms' is because no matter how dangerous they are, they always leave a path of survival for someone with great destiny."
"You just saw the mountain turning around. Doesn't that symbolize a twist in the road ahead? In a desperate situation, the path suddenly changes—that's exactly the meaning of surviving through death itself!"
Lu Xiao'e's face was full of excitement.
"I can't believe my random words actually came true. You really do have destiny on your side."
After hearing her explanation, Lu You looked once more toward the distant mountain.
Sure enough, the more carefully he stared at it, the stronger the sensation became that the mountain was slowly turning around.
After finally dispelling the Divine Eye Talismans, Lu You said quietly:
"This is all just speculation between the two of us. Even if it's real, then you're the one with great destiny. If it weren't for you, why would I have had the mood to admire scenery at a time like this?"
Lu You slowly exhaled.
After spending so much time around Lu Xiao'e, he suddenly gained a new understanding of immortality.
What mattered more—the pursuit of immortality itself, or the scenery encountered along the path toward it?
If one pursued immortality alone without caring about anything else, then after achieving immortality… would scenery like this still even exist?
After hearing Lu You's words, Lu Xiao'e thoughtfully studied him for a moment.
"My Golden Core is damaged. Whether I can even leave this secret realm alive is still uncertain. This so-called great destiny feels far too vague."
Then she suddenly smiled slyly.
"But speaking of which, the fact that the two of us reunited inside this secret realm already proves the word 'fate.'"