Bai Zihe never expected that breaking through this layer of restriction would cost Lin Yan his life. But as things stood, regret was meaningless. Bai Zihe moved Lin Yan's corpse, leaning it against a large rock. After paying his respects, he hurried into the mountain cave.
Upon entering, a powerful malevolent energy filled the entire cave, making Bai Zihe inwardly tremble. He fixed his gaze. The cave passage was already filled with countless corpses. Piles of white bones, numberless, formed a thick layer on the ground, leaving no place to step. What made Bai Zihe's heart pound even harder was the aura emanating from these bones... it inexplicably stirred his blood, a resonance.
Bai Zihe understood. These bones must all be from his mother's family, carrying blood that flowed in his veins, hence this strange phenomenon. "Since that's the case..." Bai Zihe's gaze fell upon the bones, and he sighed. He then gathered all the bones to the sides. After retrieving what was inside, he would deal with them slowly later.
The spread of bones also served to point a path for Bai Zihe. He advanced along it, reaching the door of a secret chamber at the very end. Beside the secret chamber, the piled-up remains reached a terrifying degree, almost obscuring the stone door of the chamber. It was likely that this was where the treasure Lin Yan had spoken of was located.
Bai Zihe cleared away the bones. He discovered that the stone door was engraved with countless mysterious runes, giving him a strange feeling—as if the stone door were alive. In the center of the stone door was a handprint indentation, still stained with dried blood.
This was... Bai Zihe subconsciously placed his hand upon it. A scorching sensation spread from his palm. "Kacha—" At the same time, the stone door slid open to the side, revealing what lay within. Inside, there was a stone table. Upon the table lay a yellowed parchment and a small stone bottle that looked utterly dilapidated.
Bai Zihe stepped forward, picked up the parchment, and read it carefully. "This is 'Hell's Blood'." "Consuming it can awaken supreme potential, allowing one to defy fate, conquer the world with ease, and even reshape the universe." "However, for those not of the bloodline, without immense willpower, or who are not supreme powerhouses, consumption carries the risk of immediate death. Exercise utmost caution!"
Hell's Blood! The name alone was enough to prove its extraordinary nature. But Bai Zihe was unsure if the bloodline mentioned referred to his mother's lineage. As for immense willpower and supreme powerhouses, he had no idea what they meant. Therefore, he would not take the risk.
Bai Zihe examined the secret chamber carefully. Confirming there was nothing else inside, he took the two items and emerged. He then cleaned up the remains, buried Lin Yan, and retraced his steps out of the ancient tomb, heading towards the Path of Life and Death.
On the Path of Life and Death, the strange tiger was teasing the ferocious beasts within, chasing them around, celebrating their survival. It was the Great Tiger King, how could it be a mount for a mere human? Impossible, absolutely impossible! The Great Tiger King's dignity was supreme; it would not serve as a human's mount.
The entire Path of Life and Death was in chaos. The ferocious beasts wailed. They had thought this bully had been subdued by that human. Unexpectedly, that human, despite possessing brute strength, was as foolish as a pig, having been tricked by this strange tiger into entering the ancient tomb. Not coming out for so long, they were certain he had died inside.
"Roar—" The strange tiger let out a long roar to the sky, utterly exultant. Having survived, it felt incredibly pleased. It stretched out its massive claw, easily pinning down a Blood Leopard, rendering it immobile. Then, it stuck out its scarlet tongue, continuously licking the Blood Leopard. The Blood Leopard trembled but dared not move.
"Little Tiger, what are you roaring about?" Just then, a voice drifted from a distance, tinged with a hint of amusement.
This was... The strange tiger froze instantly, looking up. In the distance, a person was walking towards them, clad in snow-white, immaculate. It was the human from before. The strange tiger immediately shivered in fear and prepared to bolt. But before it could even take a step, it found the person blocking its path, looking at it with a half-smile.
"Little Tiger, where are you planning to go?" Bai Zihe, in a good mood, teased the tiger.