: Exploring the Demon Cave Together

Hu Jiu liked Ning Zhuo's carefree demeanor, which made him even more excited. He took out stone bowls, one for each of them.

He eagerly sat down: "Here, here!"

Seeing him like this, Ning Zhuo couldn't help but sigh inwardly: Last time when Ning Zhuo offered tea, although Hu Jiu was happy, he was never as excited as now.

Ning Zhuo used the seal-opening finger technique taught in Zhu Xuanji's letter and successfully broke the mud seal.

In an instant, the aroma of wine wafted out, filling the entire cave.

The moment Hu Jiu smelled it, he exclaimed: "Oh? This is our national cellar!"

His eyes lit up, and he swallowed excitedly: "Goodness, this is a century-old national cellar lovesick wine. It's quite rare."

"Brother, where did you get this? I've asked others to acquire it many times. There are many national cellar spirit wines on the market, but it's extremely difficult to find one that's over a hundred years old."

"Thanks to your good fortune, brother, I'm truly in for a treat this time. Hahaha."

Ning Zhuo smiled and poured a full bowl for Hu Jiu and himself.

They clinked their bowls and began to drink.

In the stone bowl, the lovesick wine had a color like rosy pearls, clear and translucent, reflecting their expectant faces.

A gentle sniff revealed the aroma of wine mixed with a faint scent of red beans, soft yet lingering.

As the wine entered their mouths, it was smooth and mellow, warm like the first dew of spring. The subtle sweetness of red beans melted on the tip of the tongue, carrying a hint of emotion. The rich aftertaste, however, held a trace of hidden bitterness, like the unresolved feelings of longing that lingered in the heart.

Both of them savored the wine carefully, neither speaking for a while.

After a long time, Hu Jiu broke the silence: "The century-old national cellar truly lives up to its reputation! It’s gentle on the palate, with the sweetness of red beans and the rich aroma of a hundred years of brewing. The feeling of longing is elusive, but upon careful tasting, it feels profoundly heavy."

"A century has passed, yet the longing remains..." Ning Zhuo also sighed deeply. "The longer this wine ages, the stronger the longing. Good wine, truly good wine!"

Recently, Ning Zhuo had tasted three types of wine: Ice Jade Wine, Melancholy Brew, and Lovesick Wine.

Among the first two, Ice Jade Wine could elevate one's spiritual energy and rapidly improve one's cultivation. Hu Jiu had also benefited greatly from it. As for Melancholy Brew, regardless of whether it was genuine or fake, it could bridge the gap between yin and yang, bringing enlightenment from ancient sages.

Both of these wines had powerful effects.

But Lovesick Wine was different from the others. It seemed more extravagant, merely allowing one to experience the feeling of longing.

This wine was difficult to preserve.

Because longing itself was hard to sustain.

How long could an ordinary person long for someone? A year? Two years? Ten years? Or twenty years?

Hearts are fickle, emotions fade, and the passage of time washes away everything.

It’s hard for a feeling to last for years, let alone decades. As for a century? That’s even rarer.

After all, an ordinary person’s life spans only a hurried hundred years. What kind of emotion could make someone remember it for a lifetime?

Once, the Grand Empress of Southern Bean Country wanted to express exactly this kind of emotion.

It’s said that the Lovesick Wine she personally designed and brewed still exists today.

She wanted someone to drink it, but not a single jar of this fine wine had ever been successfully delivered!

Brewing Lovesick Wine was difficult. It required the spirit chef to harbor intense feelings of longing to even have a chance of making it.

Preserving Lovesick Wine was also challenging. It required the longing contained within to be enduring and persistent.

That’s why century-old Lovesick Wine was rare on the market. Once it exceeded a few decades, the wine would spoil and become undrinkable.

But today, Ning Zhuo and Hu Jiu were drinking such a wine.

For a moment, both were immersed in the emotion of longing, deeply affected and unable to extricate themselves.

Ning Zhuo thought of his mother. Now, his mother had turned into a mechanism, staying by his side. Though she seemed close, she was still distant.

His second goal, the Fetal Breath Spirit Boat, was too far away and immense. So far, Ning Zhuo hadn’t found a feasible way to destroy it.

Hu Jiu thought of his junior sister, Lin Shanshan.

The taste of Lovesick Wine spread in his mouth, as if countless threads gently wrapped around his heart.

He had been adopted by Lin Bufan at a very young age and watched Lin Shanshan grow up bit by bit.

The sweet but short moments he spent with Lin Shanshan seemed to stretch out in the wine, becoming deeper and more profound with the passage of time.

Lovesick Wine transformed every thought in Hu Jiu’s heart into drops of wine, gradually spreading and lingering within him.

"Life is like wine, longing is like a song," Hu Jiu said wistfully. "Some longings fade with time, while others grow deeper with age!"

This time, the atmosphere of their drinking was vastly different from before. The previous time was lively; this time, it was heartfelt.

After three rounds of wine, Ning Zhuo directly brought up his situation: "Brother Hu, I recently drank Melancholy Brew again but received no guidance from the ancients."

Hu Jiu pointed at Ning Zhuo: "That’s perfectly normal."

"You must understand that drinking this wine only provides us with an opportunity to communicate with the sages of the underworld."

"At a certain time, if the underworld sages are willing, have free time, and find us agreeable, they might impart some wisdom."

"Most of the time when I drink Melancholy Brew, nothing happens. Even when it does, it’s often vague murmurs that are hard to understand. I rely on my own talent to gain insights and benefits from these murmurs."

"Your last burst of luck was not the norm."

Ning Zhuo smiled slightly: "So that’s how it is."

He looked deeply at Hu Jiu, remaining silent for a moment.

Seeing Ning Zhuo’s strange expression and intense gaze, Hu Jiu laughed heartily: "Brother, if you have something to say, speak freely!"

Ning Zhuo didn’t use the Life Thread, so he couldn’t employ the Heart Demon Seal to sense Hu Jiu’s innermost thoughts.

But based on his own life experience and understanding of human nature, he was certain of Hu Jiu’s sincerity.

A glint flashed in Ning Zhuo’s eyes, and he mustered his courage to speak frankly.

He first mentioned how he had asked the Ning family’s Golden Core ancestor to request the wine recipe, only to be sternly refused by Lin Bufan without any room for negotiation.

He then gave the wine to a spirit chef to taste and try to identify the recipe, but received an unexpected evaluation.

Hu Jiu was greatly intrigued: "You’re saying that Melancholy Brew is fake? That it doesn’t actually have the function of communicating with underworld sages?"

"Impossible!"

Hu Jiu shook his head decisively: "This wine was given to me personally by my master, and he strictly ordered me... to keep it a secret."

At this point, Hu Jiu seemed somewhat uncomfortable.

He was by nature lazy and carefree—to put it bluntly, when he was emotional, he often forgot his promises.

Melancholy Brew was the best example.

Even though his master had demanded strict secrecy, Hu Jiu felt that the wine was of little value since it was ineffective most of the time, even for someone as talented as himself.

So, the last time he found Ning Zhuo agreeable, he directly brought it out and let him drink freely.

Seeing Hu Jiu’s unwavering trust in Lin Bufan, Ning Zhuo said: "Last time, I heard you say that Lord Lin Bufan went to great lengths for your sake, even hiring a master chef to design this wine recipe."

"I dare to make a disrespectful guess: Perhaps Lord Lin Bufan was also deceived? After all, he’s not a spirit chef. In the myriad arts of cultivation, he’s already a master in spirit plants, healing, and alchemy."

"Different trades are separated by barriers, and each has its specialties. Isn’t it possible he was fooled?"

Hu Jiu nodded: "That’s true."

He then clasped his hands: "Thank you for telling me this, brother. I will report it to my master at an appropriate time."

But Ning Zhuo raised his hand: "Brother Hu, I have some more interesting information to share with you. It’s related to the Five Elements Sovereign..."

After listening, Hu Jiu fell into deep thought.

He looked up and stared at Ning Zhuo: "I understand what you mean. You’re suggesting there’s a problem here!"

He pointed at the cave.

"Exactly." Ning Zhuo clapped and laughed. "The ancient Ten-Thousand Demon Mountain, today’s Ten-Thousand Demon Cave—this is where the Five Elements Sovereign fell. Did he leave something behind that allows him to influence the outside world to this day?"

"Last time, after I returned and sobered up, I still received his guidance under the Hidden Willow Tree. My understanding of the Five Elements underwent a terrifyingly drastic improvement."

"Whether in terms of underworld longevity or Melancholy Brew, this is abnormal."

Hu Jiu laughed heartily and stood up: "Interesting, interesting!"

"I’ve been punished with confinement here, and this is where I spend most of my time. I thought it was ordinary, but after what you said, I sense something mysterious about it."

"Why not take advantage of the wine’s effect and explore the Ten-Thousand Demon Cave together? After all, part of my punishment is to guard this place."

Ning Zhuo was overjoyed: "That’s exactly what I wished for but didn’t dare ask! Brother, after you!"

Side by side, the two ventured deep into the Ten-Thousand Demon Cave.

The cave was pitch dark, the stone steps underfoot damp and slippery. The sound of water dripping echoed around them, as if the cave had a life of its own, silently recounting the secrets of time.

Ning Zhuo and Hu Jiu both formed hand seals, emitting light to illuminate their surroundings and the path ahead.

As they descended, the air grew increasingly heavy. They communicated through sound transmission, with only their footsteps echoing in the silent cave.

After walking for a while, the man-made stone steps disappeared.

The darkness deepened, and even the light maintained by their spiritual power was noticeably compressed in range.

The cave path became steep, and in some places, they had to squeeze through single file.

Ning Zhuo could clearly feel himself descending deeper underground along the sloping path.

He began to faintly hear the sound of water.

Not the dripping from the cave walls but the sound of a river.

Hu Jiu was quite familiar with the path. Whenever a fork appeared, he would inform Ning Zhuo which paths were dead ends.

"Sometimes, when I’m confined and bored, I venture underground alone to explore."

"Don’t laugh, brother, but I often hope to encounter some demons to fight. Either to pass the time or to earn merit and have my confinement lifted."

"But I always return empty-handed."

"Demons and even hordes have appeared in the Ten-Thousand Demon Cave before, but in the last hundred years, it’s been peaceful."

"The biggest disturbance was when your Ning family suddenly barged into our Ten-Thousand Herb Valley through the underground river."

Hu Jiu transmitted his words.

Ning Zhuo smiled and responded in kind.

As they talked, they continued walking.

Turning a corner, Ning Zhuo’s eyes widened—they had entered an immense underground cavern.

The cavern’s dome hung high like a canopy, dotted with countless fluorescent stones that sparkled like stars, casting a dreamlike glow over the entire space. Crystal formations resembling vines hung from the walls, dripping like icicles, flowing with a faint light in their stillness.

Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but stop to admire the beautiful scene.

Hu Jiu, having seen it many times, found it unremarkable but tactfully paused to give Ning Zhuo time to take it in.

"Beyond here, there will gradually be signs of life."

"After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, we’ll reach the underground river. Can you imagine a mighty river flowing endlessly deep underground?"

"Haha, it’s quite a sight!"

Hu Jiu wasn’t particularly concerned about verifying Ning Zhuo’s theory. He thought that showing Ning Zhuo around would still be worthwhile.

But the next moment, Ning Zhuo’s expression changed abruptly.

Because he seemed to hear a voice.

A voice he was very familiar with—the voice of the Five Elements Sovereign: "Kid, did you come down here just to see me? Haha, look at that stalactite! Study it carefully! That’s the entrance."

(End of )