Chapter 258: Stone Chamber

Old Man Dique, believing Qin Sang to be dead, likely wouldn't bother to go to Shaohua Mountain and spread rumors. As long as he could escape the ancient ruins, he could flee to another location before Old Man Dique realized what happened. He could also widely spread the news that Old Man Dique had ambushed Daoist Xuanyu, effectively creating a distraction that would keep Old Man Dique too preoccupied to bother with him.

However, escaping Old Man Dique's control would only provide temporary safety. The immediate challenge for Qin Sang was how to leave the ancient cultivator's ruins. He had carefully memorized all the methods to break the restrictions on the mountain path. Yet, his current strength was insufficient. Even knowing the methods didn't guarantee he could execute them, and he might end up trapped and perish on the mountain.

Should he remain here to cultivate? Qin Sang quietly moved to the rock wall and touched its scorching surface. The spiritual energy within the volcano crater was incredibly abundant, making it feasible to establish a cave dwelling there. He had already comprehended the second killing talisman, and before reaching the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, he merely needed to cultivate diligently in seclusion. Over two decades, he was bound to find an opportunity to escape.

After some thought, Qin Sang looked upwards. Old Man Dique excelled at Myriad Illusions Divine Sound, so the firebirds wouldn't pose a problem for him. Qin Sang realized he needed to find a place to hide. However, if he hid among the firebirds, Old Man Dique wouldn't be able to conduct an extensive search using spiritual energy and divine sense, so Qin Sang wasn't afraid of being discovered.

With this thought, Qin Sang leaned forward slightly. His vision didn't extend far, but he could discern that the entire belly of the volcano was densely packed with firebirds. Their numbers far surpassed the flying monkeys in the magma lake; it was clearly an enormous firebird nest. Any treasure guarded by so many firebirds must surely be more precious than the Red Gold Vine. After hesitating for a moment, his curiosity got the better of him, and Qin Sang began to slowly descend.

The volcano seemed bottomless. Along the way, Qin Sang found no signs of restrictions. He had no idea how deep he had descended, yet Qin Sang still couldn't see the bottom. The fire element power here was incredibly intense, and the heat was unbearable. He had changed into a magic robe woven from the feathers of an Ice Ring Bird, which was designed to resist fierce flames with icy qi circulating within for protection. Now, even its feathers were beginning to curl.

"I must be nearing the magma," Qin Sang thought to himself, observing the increasingly dense swarm of firebirds. Everything before him was crimson, and firebirds were everywhere. Qin Sang moved even more cautiously, blending among them and carefully avoiding any collisions that might reveal his presence. Although Qin Sang could turn invisible at any moment to evade the firebirds and escape combat, Daoist Xuanyu was likely below. Even if he couldn't fully release his divine sense to perceive Qin Sang, any unusual commotion among the firebirds would certainly alert him.

Suddenly, Qin Sang paused. He was now almost pressed against the edge of the volcano's belly. Unexpectedly, he saw a wave of magma splash against the rock wall beneath his feet before slowly flowing downwards. The rock wall, clearly refined by countless trials, remained completely unharmed. Furthermore, amidst the constant chirping of birds, Qin Sang faintly heard the churning of magma.

He had finally reached the bottom, but there was no ancient immortal's cave dwelling as he had imagined. Qin Sang stared at the ground with surprise. Soon after, another large wave of magma surged upwards. Here... there were no restrictions sealing the magma river? Qin Sang was greatly surprised. Since entering the ancient immortal's ruins, whether in the trial space or the underground cave, the churning magma had always been firmly sealed below by circular restrictions. Not even the most powerful waves could shake these restrictions in the slightest.

Qin Sang suspected that these restrictions might be part of the ancient immortal's ruins' grand formation, isolating the ruins from the outside world, implying that the magma below wasn't part of the ruins themselves. Were there truly no restrictions here, or were they simply special and hidden beneath the surface? A thought stirred in Qin Sang's mind: if he jumped into the magma river, could he escape directly? The prerequisite was that he wouldn't be consumed by the magma due to spiritual energy exhaustion before finding an exit.

He didn't act rashly. Instead, he blended into the firebird flock and slowly moved along the edge of the volcano's belly, observing carefully. Soon, Qin Sang made a discovery. Not far away, he found the familiar circular restrictions, or more precisely, fragments of them. These restriction fragments were scattered sporadically, with cracks of all sizes visible everywhere. In many places, large sections were simply missing, allowing magma waves to surge through the gaps if they were powerful enough. It wasn't that there were no restrictions here; rather, they had been damaged!

Qin Sang moved cautiously, patiently circling the wide expanse of the volcano's belly. This was a magma lake even vaster than the underground cave, and it took Qin Sang a considerable amount of time to complete one full circuit. He wondered if it was due to the passage of time, with the restrictions' power eroded by the years, or for some other reason, but all the restrictions throughout the volcano's belly were fragmented in this way. Beyond this, he made no other discoveries. The rock walls of the volcano's belly were seamless, with no sign of caves or secret chambers.

Where was the ancient cultivator's cave dwelling? Doubt arose in Qin Sang's mind. His gaze shifted, focusing on the center of the volcano crater. After a moment of contemplation, he quietly moved towards it.

Meanwhile, on the mountaintop.

Ren Hong, filled with bone-deep hatred, glared at Old Man Dique's aged face. He could only produce guttural sounds from his throat, uttering the most vicious curses. But this was destined to be futile and powerless. Ren Hong died with his eyes wide open, unwilling to rest in peace, until the light faded from them.

Old Man Dique's expression remained unchanged. He gently vibrated the Heavenly Sound Conch, and a burst of divine sound energy instantly pulverized Ren Hong's corpse, as easily as crushing an ant. Indifferently, he withdrew his gaze and looked towards the firebird flock. Next, Old Man Dique absorbed the Heavenly Sound Conch back into his body, and strands of divine sound energy floated out from him. Flame-like feathers were the first to manifest, then his body began to transform, eventually becoming a firebird. Gently flapping its wings, it flew into the volcano crater.

Suddenly impacted by the chaotic chirping of the flock, the 'firebird' stiffened, and its feathers ruffled slightly. It quickly regained its composure, and after playfully mingling with the real firebirds for a moment, a gleam of intelligence flashed in its eyes before it swiftly flew towards the bottom of the volcano.

A massive stone platform floated in the center of the volcano's belly. The circular restrictions beneath the stone platform were even more severely damaged, with almost nothing remaining. The magma was completely exposed, and huge waves crashed onto the stone platform. The circular stone platform was entirely occupied by an ancient stone palace, leaving almost no room to stand. The stone palace was exceedingly crude, built entirely from dozens of long stone blocks. The suspected entrance was directly blocked by a large, square bluestone. Moreover, these stone blocks were exceptionally rough, with visible cracks everywhere. The stone palace seemed on the verge of collapse, as if it would crumble with the slightest touch. Even a mortal wouldn't live in such a dwelling!

However, the layered restrictions on the stone palace shimmered with a faint green light, forming a stark contrast with the churning crimson magma below. In this place, they appeared unique and mysterious. Around the stone palace, a hemispherical space remained empty. Firebirds could only fly outside, unable to penetrate this area.