Convergence at the Radiance

In the distance, a beam of golden radiance shot into the sky, illuminating half the heavens.

Cang Dongqing's pupils constricted slightly, and her heart suddenly throbbed violently. An indescribable longing surged from the depths of her soul—she had to go there!

The last time she had felt this way was back at the sect, but she had ultimately missed out because of Li Nanyi, which had left her feeling miserable for days. This time, she absolutely could not miss it; there must be a great opportunity waiting for her there!

"Over there..." she murmured, her voice so soft it was barely audible. Yet, her fingers tightened uncontrollably around her sleeve, her knuckles turning white.

Le Changxi frowned and followed her gaze. "A vision of radiance... it's likely some heaven-sent treasure emerging, or..."

"An ancient cultivator's cave dwelling," Qu Chen added in a deep voice, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes. "A vision of this scale suggests at least the remains of a Nascent Soul cultivator."

Lin Shuang slowly stood up. The wound on her abdomen was still throbbing with pain, but her expression remained unchanged as she said coldly, "Given our current situation, it is not suitable to take further risks."

Upon hearing this, Cang Dongqing whipped her head around to look at her. A flash of urgency crossed her eyes, but she quickly suppressed it, replacing it with a look of deep concern. "But... those evil cultivators might still be hunting us. If we can obtain the opportunities within the cave dwelling, we might be able to protect ourselves..."

Lin Qingyu immediately chimed in. "Junior Sister Dongqing is right! We are all injured or crippled right now. If we're attacked again, I'm afraid our luck will run out. If we can get some magic tools or pills, it would at least increase our chances of winning!"

Lin Qingyu had his own little schemes. Following Cang Dongqing on this journey had proven quite fruitful. Not only was it safe to follow her, but he also gained things. The place she wanted to go now surely wouldn't be too risky either. As long as he stayed close to her, he would get some benefits sooner or later. By then, he might even have a chance to become a closed-door disciple of some elder.

Moreover... He glanced at Cang Dongqing again. He always felt that she was one of those legendary people of great fortune; following her certainly wouldn't lead to trouble.

If Li Nanzhu knew what he was thinking, she would probably burst out laughing. Did he not know that the ordinary people surrounding a protagonist often ended up dead, dead, or even more dead?

Lin Shuang gave a cold laugh. "Opportunities are often accompanied by even greater danger. We couldn't even handle two Golden Core evil cultivators. What makes you think we can safely enter and exit an ancient cultivator's cave dwelling?"

Cang Dongqing bit her lip, her eyes turning slightly red. "Senior Sister Lin... I know you have a problem with me, but this is truly for everyone's sake. That radiance feels very special to me, as if... there's a great opportunity for me inside. You also know that my intuition has always been very accurate."

Le Changxi's brow arched slightly. "Are you sure?"

Cang Dongqing nodded, her voice soft but firm. "Fourth Senior Brother, please believe me. I wouldn't harm you. Haven't we gained quite a bit by following my leads on this trip? That radiance... it feels very familiar, as if something is waiting for us."

Qu Chen pondered for a moment before looking at Le Changxi. "What do you think?"

Le Changxi's gaze swept between Cang Dongqing and Lin Shuang before he finally said, "If it really is an ancient cultivator's cave dwelling, it's indeed worth exploring. But Lin Shuang's concerns are also reasonable. Our current state..."

"But if we don't go, what happens if the evil cultivators come back?" Lin Qingyu asked anxiously. "Are we just going to sit here and wait for death?"

Seeing everyone's hesitation, Cang Dongqing suddenly took a step forward, her voice trembling with a hint of a sob. "Senior brothers, senior sister... I know my cultivation is low and I can't help much, but I really don't want to see anyone else die..." She lifted her hand, her sleeve sliding down to reveal the unhealed scars on her wrist. "If you aren't willing to take the risk, then I... I'll go by myself!"

"Nonsense!" Qu Chen shouted sternly. "Are you going there to die alone?"

Lin Shuang watched coldly, a sneer in her heart—Cang Dongqing was quite skilled at using this 'retreat to advance' tactic.

As expected, Le Changxi sighed and patted Cang Dongqing on the shoulder. "Don't be impulsive. We're a team, so naturally, we won't leave you behind."

Lin Qingyu immediately said, "Then we'll go and take a look! If things don't seem right, we'll retreat immediately!"

Qu Chen looked at Lin Shuang, his tone softening slightly. "Senior Sister Lin, your injuries are the most severe. If you don't want to go, you can find a safe place to adjust your breathing first. We'll rendezvous with you after we scout the situation."

Lin Shuang remained silent for a moment, her gaze sweeping over the group. Le Changxi and Qu Chen had already been swayed by Cang Dongqing, and Lin Qingyu followed her every lead. If she insisted on not going, it would look like she wasn't considering the bigger picture. It would have been fine if they had separated earlier, but now that she was heavily injured, leaving on her own might mean any random demonic beast could take her life.

"...Do as you wish," she finally said coldly. "But I'm warning you, an ancient cultivator's cave dwelling is never a safe place. Don't end up losing your lives before you even get the opportunity."

A smirk of success flashed in Cang Dongqing's eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a grateful expression. "Thank you for understanding, Senior Sister Lin!"

Lin Shuang ignored her, turned away, and took out clean cloth strips from her storage bag to silently bandage her wounds.

Seeing this, Le Changxi whispered, "Senior Sister Lin's concerns aren't without merit. We must be cautious."

Qu Chen nodded. "Le Changxi and I will take the lead. Lin Qingyu, you protect Junior Sister Dongqing. Lin Shuang will bring up the rear. If we encounter danger, retreat immediately; do not get drawn into a fight."

With no further objections, the group performed a quick rest and then set off rapidly toward the golden radiance.

Lin Shuang followed at the very back, her gaze heavy as it fell on Cang Dongqing's back.

As the group advanced toward the light, Qu Chen easily dealt with a few tier 1 demonic beasts they encountered along the way.

With a flash of sword light, the last iron-claws wolf collapsed. Le Changxi frowned and kicked the wolf's corpse. "Something's wrong. These demonic beasts all have blood-red pupils."

Lin Shuang silently used her sword tip to cut open the wolf's belly. A glob of black slime immediately oozed out, emitting a foul stench. She looked toward the depths of the forest. "The further in we go, the fewer demonic beasts there are."

"Could it be related to the previous beast riot?" Lin Qingyu spoke up, thinking. Logically, after traveling for so long, they should have seen more of the rioting beasts, but they were entirely absent. Only scattered patches of blood that had already turned brown could be seen nearby.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Cang Dongqing walked briskly at the front. "It saves us time."

Everyone exchanged looks, but since they had already come this far, they might encounter the sect's forces if they continued inward.

Indeed, before this, they had already sent a signal to the sect explaining the vision of the ancient cave dwelling's emergence. The sect would quickly dispatch people who would also head straight for the cave dwelling. Turning back now would actually make it easier to miss them.

"Let's keep moving," Qu Chen said deeply.

They traveled toward the light for another half-day, and the journey was strangely quiet.

Qu Chen swung his sword to clear away the thorns blocking the path, frowning. "This is too strange. Since entering the middle region, we haven't seen a single demonic beast."

Fine frost condensed on Lin Shuang's scabbard. She suddenly stopped. "I smell blood."

Behind the bushes ahead, the corpses of several iron-claws wolves lay strewn on the ground. Le Changxi squatted to examine them, his frown deepening. "No external injuries... it looks like their essence blood was sucked dry."

"Could it be the work of evil cultivators?" Lin Qingyu's voice trembled, and he unconsciously leaned closer to Cang Dongqing. "I've heard that some evil cultivators use arrays to drain the essence souls of demonic beasts..."

Cang Dongqing seemed not to hear him, her eyes fixed intently on the increasingly bright radiance in the distance. "We're almost there... it's just ahead..."

"Junior Sister?" Le Changxi gently patted her shoulder, but was startled by the abnormal expression on her face. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Cang Dongqing turned her head abruptly, her eyes shining with an unusual light. "Don't you think this is providence? The demonic beasts are gone, allowing us to pass through smoothly..."

Lin Shuang watched Cang Dongqing's excitement with a cold eye and suddenly asked, "Are you sure you want to continue?"

"Of course!" Cang Dongqing replied without hesitation, then softened her tone. "Senior Sister Lin, I know you're worried about everyone. But look, hasn't the journey been peaceful so far? Perhaps my luck is at work again?"

Lin Qingyu hesitated for a moment then also nodded. "Junior Sister Dongqing has a point. She's been leading the way all along without any issues. But should we take a rest now?"

"I don't want to rest right now." Cang Dongqing suddenly pulled her hand away from Le Changxi, her lips trembling as if she were about to cry. She started walking forward on her own. "Opportunities don't wait. I already failed to break through to Foundation Establishment because of my injury in the secret realm last time. Now that there's a chance, I won't miss it again. I have to go!"

Everyone looked at each other. Qu Chen sighed, "Let's follow her. We can't let her take the risk alone."

Fortunately, as they continued, the Forest of Demonic Beasts seemed to return to normal.

With a flash of sword light, the last iron-toothed tiger blocking the way collapsed.

Qu Chen flicked the blood from his blade and frowned at his surroundings. "This is already the fifth wave. Why are these demonic beasts wandering away from their territories? Running around like this is worse than not encountering any at all."

"There are people ahead," Le Changxi suddenly whispered.

In a clearing about thirty yards away, five or six rogue cultivators were surrounding a freshly killed iron-backed bear to divide the spoils.

Upon seeing the Sword Heart Sect group, they immediately gathered together warily. However, when their eyes fell on the embroidery on Qu Chen's collar and they felt his Golden Core stage aura, they immediately clasped their hands and smiled. "So it's the elite disciples of the Sword Heart Sect. Our apologies."

Qu Chen gave a slight nod but said nothing, leading his team onward.

"It seems quite a few people have their eyes on this opportunity," Le Changxi whispered.

Cang Dongqing walked with light steps, her eyes flashing with excitement. "This proves our judgment was correct. There must be good things inside!"

This scenario repeated itself throughout the rest of their journey. Sometimes they met rogue cultivators in groups of three or five, and sometimes they saw disciples of other small sects. Every time they met, the others would quickly move aside upon recognizing the Sword Heart Sect uniforms. Occasionally, hushed discussions could be heard.

"Those are direct disciples from the Sword Heart Sect..."

"Is that female cultivator the new disciple of Immortal Venerable Ling Xiao..."

"Don't look for trouble, let's go!"

The corners of Cang Dongqing's mouth curled up unconsciously. This feeling of being feared and respected made her feel exhilarated, making her steps even lighter.

These long-lost looks of envy also made the others feel a sense of relief. Having so many people traveling together was much better than the eerie silence from before.

Soon, the group reached the source of the golden radiance.