Chapter 361: Chapter 78 The Tall, Handsome, and Omniscient
“`
After eating the grilled fish, Long Long suggested exploring the island.
Of course, in truth, he had already thoroughly surveyed the giant tree while the little fox was playing in the water by the sea, to ensure there were absolutely no dangers inside.
In this way, he could teach Long Hu how to investigate the ruins with peace of mind.
“Upon arriving at a strange place, the first thing we need to do is to stay alert,” Long Long patiently instructed her, “because there could be lurking dangers everywhere.”
“For example, hidden enemies, evil spirits, traps… you can never know what lies in the unknown waiting for you.”
“Do you still remember the observation methods I taught you? You must constantly watch in all directions and listen attentively, using vision, peripheral vision, and divine sense without missing any slight movement around you.”
“I got it,” Long Hu said eagerly.
They approached the roots of the Fusang Divine Tree, and Long Long continued:
“Besides vigilance, clarity and rationality are also very important.”
“Look up, what do you see there?” he asked.
Long Hu obediently lifted her head and looked at the barely visible wooden houses on the branches, saying:
Source: NovelFull.com, updated on ονǤօ.сᴑ
“Are those… buildings? Did someone once live here?”
“Correct,” Long Long said, “and from the number of buildings you can estimate the population that once lived here, as well as their form of social organization.”
“What is a social organization form?” the little fox asked curiously.
“It’s the relationship between individual members,” Long Long explained simply. “For example, if there are three or four people acting together, they might be a temporarily formed team; but if there are three or four hundred people moving together, they are most likely from the same family, sect, or alliance.”
“I see,” Long Hu observed carefully above and said, “Then there must have been a family living here.”
“Why not a sect?” Long Long deliberately quizzed her.
“Because if it were a sect, they would place the sect’s name in the most visible place, right?” Long Hu tried to analyze, “Sects need to recruit outsiders, so they would value dignity and reputation, but families wouldn’t accept members from outside their own race and would be more low-key, right?”
“Approximately,” Long Long then pointed around and continued to ask, “Since you think a demon race once lived here, which demon race was it?”
“It should be the Feathered Clan,” Long Hu observed for a moment and replied, “There are no pathways for walking from the base of the giant tree upwards.”
“Considering that there would definitely have been low rank members in the family who had not attained spiritual wisdom and couldn’t control a sword, this environmental design can only indicate that this race could fly from birth without relying on any external objects—that is, the Feathered Clan.”
“You are absolutely right,” Long Long was very pleased with her intelligence, “I suspect this was once a stronghold of the Golden Crow clan.”
“The Golden Crow clan?” Long Hu recalled the reason they had come here was to activate the array deep within the Fire Element Cave.
And the necessary items to drive that array: the Nine Phoenix Scorching Sun Stone and the Golden Crow True Fire Fan, both obviously related to the Golden Crow clan.
“If we know it’s the Golden Crow clan, then we can take targeted precautions,” Long Long continued to gently coax her, “for example, the Five Elements attribute of the Golden Crow clan is fire.”
“So, if you hadn’t yet come to this place, you could have prepared in advance some magical treasures to resist the fire system,” he explained.
“I see,” Long Hu suddenly said, “Oh right, my Flying Sword ‘Fire Fox Chant’ is also of the fire system.”
“If it’s the same fire system, then it’s more likely that the spoils of war will be compatible,” Long Long patiently instructed her, “For example, the likelihood of finding fire system swords, magical treasures, elixirs here is higher than in other places.”
The two of them joked and laughed as they rode their flying swords toward the treetops.
“Wow, Long Long,” Long Hu exclaimed in surprise, “this tree is so huge!”
“This is the Fusang Divine Tree,” Long Long said with his hands behind his back, “Standing alone overseas, reaching almost to heaven, I didn’t expect to see it here.”
“How do you know?” the little fox asked, half in astonishment and half in admiration.
“Of course…” Long Long suddenly hesitated.
Of course, it was by relying on the knowledge set by Luo Yan and others, as well as some clues obtained from previous exploration of this place, that he reached this conclusion.
If it had been Xu Yinglian or Shi Liuli, such a huge flaw would definitely have aroused their suspicions.
“`
But for the little fox… just fob her off.
“Of course, you wouldn’t understand even if I explained,” Long Long said arrogantly as he flicked his bangs away from his forehead, speaking nonchalantly.
The fox spirit puffed her cheeks in annoyance, but she also knew that no matter how much she prodded, Long Long would not tell her anything. She might even get mocked for her lack of experience… so she could only hold in her temper and grind her teeth in secret.
The two of them passed through layers of treetops and soon arrived in front of the biggest building.
This building stood more than ten zhang high and six zhang wide, majestic and spectacular. The back half was embedded in the Fusang Divine Tree, while the front half jutted out, adorned with various patterns and relief sculptures.
The fox spirit looked closely and saw depictions of divine birds with splendid feathers, fearsome Divine Dragons, and endless flames and tides, all eroding, wrestling, and clashing against each other.
“This must be the Council Hall,” Long Long said. “Whether it’s a clan or a sect, there’s basically a place like this for sacrifice ceremonies, receiving guests, or organizing gatherings.”
“Of course, it’s unlikely to have any treasures inside.”
As they entered the main hall, just as Long Long had said, the inside of the clan’s Council Hall, though grand and imposing, was completely empty.
“Generally speaking, the building we are looking for is the treasure chamber,” Long Long continued. “The treasure chamber is where the entire clan’s cultivation resources are stored, and it’s the place most worth exploring.”
“If the original inhabitants of this place, the Demon Race, abandoned it in a hurry, then the likelihood of high-value treasures being in the treasure chamber is quite high; but if they evacuated in an orderly manner, then it’s unlikely that there would be anything good in the treasure chamber. To go to an extreme, it’s also possible that it could be completely empty.”
“Of course, if there are high-value treasures, there would likely be traps set up outside to guard them; on the other hand, if the way is clear with no obstructions, then it’s very probable that the chamber has already been emptied out.”
“Like this?” the fox spirit queried.
“Yes, exactly like this,” Long Long replied.
Standing at the doorway of the treasure chamber, they saw rows of shelves inside, all of which were bare.
Of course, this was no surprise, since Long Long had already explored this place beforehand to ensure there were no leftovers.
After all, if there had been any dangerous magical treasures, the little fox with her lack of experience would not be able to resist upon seeing them!
Seeing that it was indeed empty inside, the fox spirit was visibly disappointed, her fox ears drooping down from within her hair bun.
“So boring,” she complained, pulling out the Golden Crow True Fire Fan, “Can’t there be a hidden chamber somewhere? Like the archway in the Fire Element Cave that was concealed in the rock wall, which had to be opened by special means?”
“Of course not,” Long Long said with a comforting smile, “It’s not like all the hidden chambers just happen to be opened with the Golden Crow True Fire Fan… eh?”
Before he could finish talking, the three Immortal Seal Scripts on the handle of the Golden Crow True Fire Fan in the little fox’s hand suddenly lit up.
At the same time, the wall of the treasure chamber directly opposite the main entrance rapidly became semi-transparent and then quickly disappeared—revealing the hidden chamber within.
Long Long: ………
“How’s that?” The fox spirit smiled smugly and playfully cocked her head towards Long Long, as if showing off.
After a long silence, Long Long finally realized the problem:
This Golden Crow True Fire Fan was obviously a very precious item passed down from generation to generation within the Golden Crow Clan, and might even symbolize the power of succession for the clan leaders.
Therefore, the long-distance transfer array that connected two places was designed to be activated with the Golden Crow True Fire Fan, implying that only the clan leader could activate the array.
So, the family’s secret treasure chamber could only be accessed by the clan leader wielding this fan, wasn’t that obvious?
Having grasped the key point, Long Long sighed in disappointment and said:
“Ah Jing, you also checked this place with me in advance. I might not have found anything, but how come you didn’t notice it either?”
“Wow, you’re blaming me for this too!” the Kunlun Mirror retorted indignantly, “You didn’t ask me to scan the area, so how would I know there was a hidden chamber?”
“Still trying to argue, you broken mirror! Isn’t detecting omissions and filling gaps part of your duties?” Long Long shamelessly argued back, “Now I’ve lost face in front of the little fox. What do you suggest we do?”
“Can’t you just be more sincere with her, and less calculating?” the Kunlun Mirror said with a complex tone, “It’s not as if your persona is invincible, so why obsess over such illusory facades?”
“You don’t understand, Ah Jing!” Long Long lamented, “My dedication to the persona is about maintaining a tall, handsome, and all-knowing image in front of the fox spirit! Only when she admires and follows me wholeheartedly can I do whatever I want with her, and then I’ll have the chance to go after the fragment of the Heaven-Mending Stone she’s wearing!”
“…I think you never managed to establish such an image in her mind from the start,” Ah Jing commented.