Mu Lin stuffed the four bags into his ring, then carried the three girls to the cave entrance, and placed them one by one into the cave, the girls completely unaware. Then Mu Lin took out the bags from his ring, and pulled out an alcohol stove, starting a fire to cook macaroni for a midnight snack. He knew the girls had been exhausted all day and needed to replenish nutrients. After preparing the snack, Mu Lin woke the girls.
After hastily eating their snack, the girls stripped off all their clothes without any shyness in front of Mu Lin, then crawled into the sleeping bags Mu Lin had prepared for them.
If Mu Lin hadn’t already verified that the girls were still virgins, he might have thought they were a group of promiscuous women. However, Mu Lin had gradually become accustomed to the girls’ behavior, which gave him the chance to feast his eyes every day. After tidying everything up, Mu Lin set up a maze formation outside the cave. It was an inverted Bagua (Eight Trigrams) array on the outside and a correct Wu Xing (Five Elements) array on the inside, mainly used to confuse people within the formation. This was something he had learned during his travels in China.
Then Mu Lin began to meditate to restore his Zhen Yuan energy. Although today’s journey was nothing to him, the final exploration of the cave and breaking through its seals had consumed quite a bit of his Zhen Yuan energy. Mu Lin never fought unprepared, so he seized every opportunity to recover his energy. At present, there was no danger, but who could know what might happen in the long night ahead? At this moment, a thin white vapor began to rise from Mu Lin’s body, followed by more threads, until finally the white mist gradually enveloped both him and the girls.
About three hours later, Mu Lin stood up and checked on the girls, who were still asleep. He glanced at the time. This session had only lasted three hours, but upon internal inspection, he found his Zhen Yuan energy more refined than ever, and his cultivation had improved slightly. At this rate, Mu Lin believed he could break through to the middle-late stage of Yuan Dan (Golden Core) within half a year. It seemed his decision to cultivate in the mundane world had been a good one.
In the more than five years since descending the mountain, through various experiences, Mu Lin believed he had made progress in understanding people and human nature, especially this past year, which had been the most fruitful. What Mu Lin didn’t realize, however, was that the human heart is the hardest thing to grasp.
In the past, due to underdeveloped transportation and communication, people couldn’t learn about events happening elsewhere in a timely manner. Thus, the same deception could be used for a long time, even a lifetime. Daoist cultivators often lived secluded in deep mountains, where information was even more scarce. As a result, they were often deceived more than ordinary people in the martial world. These martial artists would escape with a single technique they had learned and then use it to deceive others, damaging the reputation of Daoist cultivators. At the same time, these deceived cultivators would have a significant flaw in their hearts, making it difficult to stabilize their Daoist cultivation, ultimately ruining their Daoist achievements. Therefore, cultivators in the past basically trained in secluded, uninhabited mountains.
Mu Lin didn’t dare to dismantle the formation and began to explore the entire cave. He left the cave with the strange stones for last. After he had explored the entire cave system, he realized they had arrived at the cave of the Meini people, which had already been featured in National Geographic magazine. The magazine had published archaeological findings about this cave, suggesting that this nation lived in the 9th to 11th centuries. This ethnic group made the caves their homes, carving interconnected chambers into the cliff faces, including meeting rooms and places of worship. In short, they conducted all activities except those outdoors within these caves.
They established a vast kingdom with productivity and development levels significantly higher than neighboring peoples. Yet, at the height of their prosperity, they mysteriously disappeared in the 11th century. No one knew where they went. Judging from the unearthed production tools, daily necessities, and military equipment from their tombs, neighboring peoples couldn’t have wiped them out. If it hadn’t been for the reconstruction of skulls from their burial sites and the use of DNA identification techniques, many people would have mistaken them for Native Americans, but they weren’t.
In such a place, Mu Lin had to be extra cautious. He carefully examined everything around him. Cursing these annoying people for building their homes on the cliffside, his spiritual awareness couldn’t penetrate far due to the thick cave walls. He had to keep moving forward to continue his search, spending over an hour to confirm that, aside from them, there were indeed no signs of life here. Only then did he relax and began exploring the cave he had discovered.
This cave was located at the lowest level of all the caves, likely serving as a hidden room here. It was ten meters below the uppermost cave. Such thick stone walls made it impossible for ordinary instruments to detect this cave. First, his spiritual awareness scanned the perimeter. This room had been sealed by a massive stone, and after centuries of weathering, the outer wall had merged with the surrounding rock. Without spiritual awareness, no one could have discovered this cave dwelling.
First, he cleaned the outer layer of the stone wall, then used his Zhen Yuan energy to clear out the debris in the stone joints. Mu Lin exerted force and pulled out this massive stone. Then, he began using his spiritual awareness to explore the cave from the outside. First, he examined the enchantments around the energy crystal. Mu Lin discovered that this enchantment was actually an array formed using stones identical to the energy crystal inside. Unlike the arrays he had previously discovered, this one greatly intrigued him.
Firstly, this crystal contained abundant energy. Mu Lin vaguely remembered reading about this kind of crystal in some records. Thinking about it, he recalled this was something he had learned during his travels—a cave dwelling of a cultivator specializing in forging artifacts. In a book titled “The Great Dao of Alchemical Furnace,” this stone was referred to as “floating stone,” an essential energy stone for forging top-grade flying swords. Unfortunately, there were only a few vague sentences about it, with no detailed information.
Mu Lin remembered how angry he had felt when he read that section. If the cultivator knew about this stone, he should have thoroughly researched its origin, properties, and so on. But in the end, the book only mentioned that the source, quantity, and usage method were unknown. Later, he learned that these stones had already been completely mined out in the Central Plains due to the large number of cultivators. If the author hadn’t been a master of forging artifacts, he probably wouldn’t have even heard of them.
Now, he had actually discovered this energy crystal. If not for the fact that the crystal’s energy had weakened somewhat over hundreds of years, it would have been completely impossible for Mu Lin, with his current spiritual awareness, to break through. He found that this enchantment merely prevented the energy stone from leaking energy outward. Carefully observing the positions, spacing, and arrangement of the stones, he noticed a resemblance to the “Eight Immortals Formation” described in a book. This was a defensive formation.
He carefully contemplated it. If some of the stones were slightly misaligned, it would form a completely defensive formation. If inside it he added the “Ambush on All Sides” formation, it would become the “Immortal Capturing Formation” described in the manual. Heh, never thought, never thought that on the distant American continent, far from the Central Plains, he would discover a formation basically similar to the Eight Immortals Formation. He already knew the Ambush on All Sides formation, and now he had learned the Eight Immortals Formation. Hmph, now even if an immortal came and looked at him the wrong way, he could play a trick on him too.
Mu Lin was lost in his thoughts. He didn’t consider at that moment why these people had so many floating stones, where they had mined them from, or why they had left such valuable floating stones behind when they left. Glancing at the time, it was getting late, and he didn’t have time anymore. If these girls woke up, it would be troublesome. Thinking about their clingy nature made Mu Lin’s head ache, and he shuddered inwardly. If they saw this, they would surely insist he hand over these energy stones.
These girls had received modern education and still believed that important things should be handed over to the government. How could he explain to them that he was a cultivator? Moreover, he didn’t trust these foreign girls that much. Who knew if they might betray him? Thinking of this, he quickly stored the floating stones in his ring without even carefully examining their energy properties.
Mu Lin stuffed the four bags into his ring, then carried the three girls to the entrance of the cave and proceeded to push them one by one into the cavern, all while they remained completely unaware. After retrieving the bags from the ring, he took out an alcohol stove and started a fire to cook some pasta for a late-night snack. He knew the girls had been exhausted from the day’s activities and needed some nourishment. Once the food was ready, Mu Lin woke them up.
After hastily finishing their meal, the girls stripped off their clothes without the slightest hesitation in front of Mu Lin and crawled into the sleeping bags he had prepared for them.
Had Mu Lin not already confirmed that the girls were still virgins, he might have mistaken them for a group of wanton women. However, he had gradually grown accustomed to their behavior, which also gave him the opportunity to feast his eyes daily—after all, Mu Lin was slowly maturing.
Once everything was tidied up, he set up a *Mixing Illusion Formation* outside the cave—an outer reverse Eight Trigrams and inner orthodox Five Elements array, designed to disorient anyone who entered. This was one of the skills he had acquired during his travels in China. Then, Mu Lin began meditating to restore his spiritual energy. Although today’s journey hadn’t been particularly strenuous for him, the final exploration of the cave and breaking the seal had drained a fair amount of his energy. Mu Lin never liked to fight unprepared, so he seized every opportunity to recover. For now, there didn’t seem to be any immediate danger, but who knew what the long night might bring? As he meditated, faint wisps of white mist began to emanate from his body, gradually enveloping both him and the girls.
About three hours later, Mu Lin stood up and checked on the girls—they were still sound asleep. Glancing at the time, he noted that he had only meditated for a little over three hours. Upon inspecting his internal state, he found that his spiritual energy had become even more refined, and his cultivation seemed to have improved slightly. If this progress continued, Mu Lin believed he could break through to the late stage of the mid-Yuan Dan realm within half a year. It seemed his decision to cultivate in the secular world had been the right one.
Over the past five years since descending the mountain, Mu Lin had encountered various experiences that convinced him he had gained a better understanding of human nature—especially this past year, which had been particularly fruitful. What he didn’t realize, however, was that the human heart was the most unpredictable thing of all.
In the past, due to underdeveloped transportation and communication, people often remained unaware of many events, allowing the same deceptive tactics to be used for extended periods—sometimes even a lifetime. Cultivators, who often secluded themselves in remote mountains, were even more isolated, making them more susceptible to deception than ordinary people in the martial world. These swindlers would vanish after learning a trick or two, then use those same tricks to swindle others, tarnishing the reputation of cultivators and leaving psychological scars on their victims. These scars could destabilize one’s Dao heart and ultimately ruin one’s cultivation. This was why most cultivators of the past chose to train in secluded mountain areas.
Not daring to dismantle the formation yet, Mu Lin began exploring the entire cave system. He saved the cavern with the strange stones for last. After completing his survey, he realized they had stumbled upon the caves of the ancient *Menia* people, located deep within the Grand Canyon.
This discovery had already been documented in *National Geographic*, which also included archaeological findings about the cave. The *Menia* were believed to have lived between the 9th and 11th centuries, using caves as their homes. They had hollowed out interconnected chambers in the mountainside, complete with meeting halls, sacrificial sites—essentially, all their activities except outdoor production took place within these caves.
They had established a vast kingdom with productivity and technological advancements far surpassing neighboring tribes. Yet, at the height of their prosperity in the 11th century, they mysteriously vanished en masse.
No one knew where they went. Based on the artifacts unearthed from their tombs—ranging from daily utensils to military equipment—it was unlikely that neighboring tribes could have wiped them out. If not for skull reconstructions and DNA analysis, many would have mistaken them for Native Americans—but they were not.
Given the circumstances, Mu Lin had to proceed with extreme caution. He meticulously examined the surroundings. *Why did these people have to build their homes into the mountainside?* The thick cave walls made it difficult for his spiritual sense to penetrate beyond a certain distance, forcing him to physically move forward to continue his search. After over an hour, he confirmed that aside from their group, there were no signs of life here. Relieved, he turned his attention to the mysterious cavern he had discovered.
This cave was located at the lowest level of the entire system—likely a hidden chamber. It was separated from the nearest upper cave by a ten-meter-thick stone wall, making it virtually undetectable by conventional means. Using his spiritual sense, Mu Lin first scanned the periphery and found that the entrance had been sealed off by a massive boulder. Over centuries of weathering, the outer wall had fused seamlessly with the surrounding rock. Without his spiritual sense, Mu Lin would never have discovered this hidden chamber.
After clearing the outer layer of the wall and using his spiritual energy to remove debris from the crevices, Mu Lin exerted his strength to pull out the massive stone. Then, he began probing the cavern with his spiritual sense. His first focus was the energy barrier surrounding the strange stones. He discovered that the barrier was actually a formation composed of the same type of energy-rich crystals inside—unlike any formation he had encountered before, which piqued his interest immensely.
First, these crystals contained an abundance of energy. Mu Lin faintly recalled reading about such stones somewhere. After a moment of reflection, he remembered—this was knowledge he had acquired during his travels. This cave must have belonged to a weapon-forging cultivator. A book titled *The Great Path of Alchemy and Cauldrons* had briefly mentioned these stones, referring to them as *Floating Stones*—an essential material for crafting top-tier flying swords. Unfortunately, the book only provided a few vague lines, leaving much unexplained.
Mu Lin remembered feeling frustrated when he first read that passage. *If this cultivator knew about these stones, why didn’t he document their origins, properties, or usage methods properly?* By the end, he learned that these stones had been completely mined out in ancient China due to the sheer number of cultivators. If not for the fact that the author was from a weapon-forging sect, Mu Lin might never have even heard of them.
Now, he had stumbled upon these very stones. Had it not been for the fact that their energy had weakened over centuries, Mu Lin’s current spiritual sense wouldn’t have been strong enough to break the barrier. He realized that the formation was designed solely to prevent the energy from leaking out. Observing the arrangement of the stones—their spacing and positioning—he noticed similarities to the *Eight Immortals Formation* described in a book he had read. It was a defensive array.
After careful analysis, he deduced that shifting some of the stones slightly would turn it into a complete defensive formation. If combined with the *Ambush from Ten Directions* formation, it would resemble the *Immortal-Trapping Formation* mentioned in ancient manuals. *Heh, who would’ve thought?* Mu Lin smirked. *On the distant continent of America, far from China, I’d find a formation almost identical to the Eight Immortals Formation.* He already knew the *Ambush from Ten Directions*—now, with the *Eight Immortals Formation* under his belt, even an immortal would have to watch their step around him.
Lost in his triumphant musings, Mu Lin momentarily forgot to question why these people had so many Floating Stones. Where had they mined them? Why had they left such precious materials behind? Glancing at the sky, he realized dawn was approaching. *If those girls wake up and see this, they’ll probably insist on handing these stones over to the government.*
Raised with modern education, the girls believed that important discoveries should be submitted to authorities. How could he explain this to them? They’d never believe he was a cultivator. Besides, he wasn’t entirely sure he could trust these foreign girls—who knew if they’d side with outsiders? With that thought, he hastily stored the Floating Stones in his ring, not even bothering to study their energy properties in detail.
*Better safe than sorry.* It didn’t occur to him that no one in the world could possibly take anything from him—let alone from his spatial ring. After resealing the cave entrance and restoring it to its original state, Mu Lin returned to the cavern where the girls were sleeping. He didn’t want his discovery to be exposed—not that he feared anyone, but avoiding unnecessary trouble was always wise. The girls were still asleep, so he relaxed slightly, dismantled the formation, and crawled into his sleeping bag. After a night of exertion, he needed some rest too.
By the time he finished his next meditation session, dawn had broken. Mu Lin had barely dozed off when the girls woke him. Opening his eyes, he saw they had already freshened up and even prepared breakfast. *Another missed opportunity to feast my eyes,* he lamented silently. But he noticed their spirits were unusually high. *Did they eat something special?* Before he could finish the thought, the girls surrounded him.
“Daniel, what did you give us to eat last night? We feel more energetic than ever today!” they clamored.
“Oh? I just made pasta. Didn’t you have anything else this morning?” Mu Lin replied after a brief pause.
“No! We thought you must’ve slipped us something amazing!” they chattered excitedly.
*Nothing? Then why are they so energetic?* Logically, today should’ve been their most exhausted day. Even after a night’s rest, their vigor shouldn’t be this high. Mu Lin pondered this as he ate his breakfast.
After recovering again, it was dawn. Mu Lin had barely dozed off when the girls woke him up. He looked up and saw the girls had already finished their preparations and even had breakfast ready. Mu Lin sighed inwardly, having missed another chance to feast his eyes. However, he noticed the girls looked particularly energetic. Could it be they had eaten something special? Before he could finish thinking, the girls surrounded him.
“Daniel, what did you feed us yesterday? Why do we feel so energetic today?” they asked in unison.
“Oh, that was just macaroni I gave you. Nothing else. Did you eat something special this morning?” Mu Lin replied after a moment’s thought.
“No, we thought you might have given us something special,” the girls answered chattering away. They hadn’t eaten anything? Then why did they have such great energy? Logically, today should have been the time when the girls were most tired. Even after a night’s rest, their energy shouldn’t have been this good, should it? Mu Lin pondered while eating his breakfast.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage