Yang Che felt like he had a very strange dream.
In the dream, he transformed into a black orb of light, about half the size of a fist, freely soaring through a hazy world.
Suddenly, a green orb of light aggressively burst in.
This green orb was several times larger than him, but its light was very dim. Upon seeing the black orb of light that Yang Che had become, it seemed to freeze, as if startled.
However, very quickly, this green orb ferociously pounced, beginning to devour the black orb of light that Yang Che had become.
Yang Che was not to be outdone and similarly pounced back fiercely. Although the green orb was larger and quickly surrounded Yang Che completely, the ferocity of the black orb that Yang Che had become far surpassed that of the green orb.
For a time, neither could prevail over the other, and a tug-of-war ensued.
Gradually, as time passed, the black orb of light that Yang Che had become grew more and more ferocious, slowly beginning to gain the upper hand.
The green orb sensed that something was wrong and was greatly startled again, but it seemed extremely unwilling to give up, tearing at Yang Che once more. However, after Yang Che devoured a portion of the green orb, he tasted its wonderful flavor and became even more ferociously unstoppable.
Finally, the green orb realized it was no match for Yang Che and began to flee out of this hazy world.
At this moment, Yang Che had only one thought: no matter what, he could not let this green orb escape. Under his strong will, this hazy world suddenly underwent a strange change, with faint arcs of light flashing, completely trapping the green orb inside.
The black orb of light that Yang Che had become was overjoyed at this sight and quickly devoured the green orb completely.
Afterward, Yang Che seemed unsatisfied, still hoping that similar orbs of light would break in for him to eat his fill, but after waiting for a long time, there was no longer any movement in this hazy world…
After an unknown amount of time, Yang Che felt a jolt throughout his body and finally slowly opened his eyes.
His body was extremely tired and weak, and his head was particularly heavy, leaving him somewhat dazed.
Soon, he woke up, recalling the green orb of light that flew out from the flower before he fainted, and the scene in his dream where he and the green orb tore at and devoured each other.
Although Yang Che could not understand everything that had happened, he was certain that the green orb had absolutely malicious intentions towards him.
“Flower Demon?”
Yang Che called out softly, but for a long time, there was no reply.
Yang Che’s heart sank immediately. He struggled to stand up, only to find that the strange flower had withered away at some unknown time.
The original seven black fruits, one of which he had eaten, leaving six, had all become shriveled and dry, leaving only a layer of withered skin.
And the seven leaves had turned yellow and fallen off, completely devoid of color.
“Flower Demon?”
“Flower Demon!”
…
Yang Che suddenly roared in anger.
But in this Stone Cave, there was no longer any sound from the previous Flower Demon.
Yang Che had already guessed that the green orb was most likely the Flower Demon.
He didn't know why all this had happened. He was confused, even scared.
But more than that, he was angry.
He thought the Flower Demon was good to him, and he was filled with gratitude and trust for the Flower Demon, but in the end, this Flower Demon had been deceiving him all along, always trying to harm him!
“Why, why, why…”
At this moment, Yang Che’s young heart was once again deeply wounded.
He sat blankly on the stone stool, staring into space for a long time.
Afterward, Yang Che stood up with cold eyes and began to meticulously search the Stone Cave again.
At the same time, he had a question in his mind: although he had successfully Cultivated the first layer of the Purple Origin Art, it seemed that apart from some strange Qi currents in his Dantian whose purpose he did not know, his strength had not significantly increased. So, was he considered an Immortal or not?
It was a pity that he was illiterate. With the Flower Demon dead, he could no longer continue to Cultivate this Purple Origin Art.
Yang Che made up his mind that after he got out, he would learn to read and write no matter what.
Having found nothing else in the two layers of storage stone compartments, Yang Che unconsciously came before the skeleton.
Upon touching it, the clothes on the skeleton, along with the skeleton itself, turned into dust and vanished.
“Oh?” Yang Che discovered that where the skeleton had been sitting, an open secret compartment was revealed.
Inside were a white, flat jade stone and a square box, palm-sized, made of an unknown material.
Yang Che held the white, flat jade stone in his hand, studying it for a long time but truly couldn't figure out what it was.
Then he opened the square box and found that it was filled with embroidery needles?
They shouldn't be embroidery needles; they were much thicker than embroidery needles, and there was a faint, mysterious luster flowing on them.
After searching carefully multiple times, Yang Che found nothing else. Only then did he wrap the three yellowed ancient books, one black scroll, four jade bottles, one flat jade stone, and the box filled with unknown fine needles in his close-fitting clothes.
Finally, after glancing at the withered seven-leaf flower, Yang Che first went to the collapsed tunnel entrance, and after realizing there was no way up, he had no choice but to return to the Stone Cave and follow the underground river downwards.
Previously, the Flower Demon had vaguely mentioned that this underground river flowed to a canyon. He presumed he should be able to find a way out.
…
When Yang Che finally emerged from the canyon, after a winding journey, and left Wanglong Mountain, looking at the clear, cloudless sky, for a moment, he felt somewhat lost.
He had originally planned to go directly to the town to learn to read and write, not returning to Yang Village for now.
But then he thought about the things he was carrying; if they were discovered by someone with ulterior motives, that would be bad.
Moreover, he was penniless, and even if he went to town, he would be at a loss.
But if he returned to Yang Village, his 'disappearance' for over two months would definitely arouse suspicion among the villagers.
Especially Yang Hu, who would definitely get to the bottom of it.
If he were already literate, he would certainly not go anywhere but would Cultivate diligently in the mountains until he had the ability to avenge his grandfather.
After much thought, Yang Che decided to return to Yang Village first. After all, he felt safer in a familiar place.
Waiting until nightfall, Yang Che secretly buried the items in his bundle in an inconspicuous patch of barren weeds outside the village. Only then did he return to the village alone and walk towards his dilapidated mud house.
Before he even got close to the mud house, a dog's bark suddenly rang out.
It was Yang Hu's dog, which had heard the commotion and started barking wildly.
“Who is it?” Yang Hu pushed open the door and came out, holding a gleaming axe.
“It’s me,” Yang Che said indifferently.
Recognizing Yang Che’s voice, Yang Hu was first stunned, then said with some surprise, “Yang Che? You’re actually still alive? Where have you been these past two months? I thought you had died outside.”
Yang Hu’s voice was very indifferent and uncaring. In his eyes, Yang Che was even less important than his own watchdog.
So, Yang Che’s life or death meant nothing to him. He only bothered to keep Yang Che alive as long as he was in the village, for the sake of his reputation, so that others couldn’t criticize him for occupying Yang Che’s few acres of barren land.
Yang Che didn't bother to say another word to Yang Hu. He walked straight into his dilapidated mud house, lay directly on the hard wooden plank bed, and fell into a deep sleep.
Yang Hu’s eyes blazed with anger, but Yang Che had always treated him with this cold attitude. Even if he beat and cursed Yang Che every day and only gave him one meal every two days, Yang Che’s attitude never changed.
“Hmph, it’s good that he’s not dead. I can still make a big profit this time,” Yang Hu snorted coldly and turned back into the house.
For several days after returning to the village, Yang Che acted as usual, showing no abnormalities.
Only late one night, he quietly went to the barren weed patch to retrieve the buried items and brought them back to hide in his dilapidated mud house.
Strangely enough, since Yang Che returned, Yang Hu had uncharacteristically brought him meals every day.
On the fifth day, as he had just gotten up and walked out of the mud house, he saw that a fierce-looking stranger had come to Yang Hu’s house.