As the stone gate slowly rose, a faint light emanated from within, dispelling the surrounding darkness.
The Little Fairy Doctor glanced at the brightly lit interior of the stone chamber and smiled faintly. However, she took two steps back, tilting her snow-white chin toward Gu He as she said softly, "Master, let's go in."
"Mm," Gu He replied with a gentle smile before stepping through the stone gate.
Seeing Gu He stride forward, the Little Fairy Doctor followed closely behind.
As the two entered the stone chamber, their vision expanded. The interior was a vast, simple, and somewhat empty stone room. Moonstones embedded in the walls illuminated the space, casting a soft glow.
In the center of the room stood a stone seat, upon which sat a skeletal figure. The deep-set skull rested on pale thigh bones, creating an eerie and somber atmosphere in the otherwise silent chamber.
In front of the seat was a wide, long bluestone platform. Neatly arranged on the platform were three locked stone boxes.
Additionally, in three corners of the stone room, piles of golden coins and other treasures were haphazardly stacked. The sheer amount of gold coins numbered in the hundreds of thousands.
Gu He, however, had no interest in wealth or treasures. The original owner of these items had clearly treated them with little regard, scattering them carelessly as if they held no real value.
Shifting his gaze away from the gold, Gu He's eyes settled on the skeletal remains. 'Is the remnant map of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame hidden within these bones?'
Meanwhile, the Little Fairy Doctor lingered in a corner of the chamber, her face lit with quiet delight.
In one corner, a small flower bed had been cultivated. Filled with soil, it was home to a variety of rare plants and flowers, their strange fragrance permeating the air.
The Little Fairy Doctor's eyes sparkled as she quickly approached the flower bed, her excitement evident.
While others might overlook these plants, she recognized their true worth.
These seemingly ordinary flowers and herbs were far more valuable than the piles of gold coins scattered throughout the room.
"Purple Blue Leaf, White Spirit Ginseng Fruit, and Snow Lotus Seed..."
Her delicate lips murmured the names of these rare and high-grade medicinal herbs, each one a treasure in its own right.
"Ice Spirit Flame Grass!" Her gaze swept across the flower bed before suddenly narrowing, finally locking onto a peculiar plant at its center.
The plant's leaves were divided into two distinct colors: white and red.
The white branches were dotted with ice-crystal-like formations, while the fiery red crown resembled a burning flame.
Despite their opposing attributes, the two colors coexisted harmoniously on a single plant, a truly miraculous sight.
A faint mist surrounded the plant, giving it an ethereal, cloud-like appearance.
This extraordinary herb, known as Ice Spirit Flame Grass, was an exceedingly rare find in the outside world.
Having been taught by Gu He, a sixth-tier alchemist, the Little Fairy Doctor immediately recognized its significance. Among the plants in the flower bed, this was undoubtedly the most valuable.
"If you like them, go ahead and dig them all up," Gu He said with a smile, noticing the Little Fairy Doctor's barely contained joy.
"Mm!" she responded eagerly, quickly retrieving her tools and beginning to carefully extract the herbs.
While the Little Fairy Doctor busied herself with the plants, Gu He continued to survey the stone chamber. Finding nothing else of interest, he turned his attention to the three locked stone boxes on the bluestone platform.
Approaching the stone table, Gu He touched the metal lock, feeling a slight warmth. He frowned slightly.
'After all this time, it still retains warmth? This is no ordinary metal. Forcing it open won't be an option.'
"Where are the keys?" he muttered, his gaze shifting to the skeletal remains behind the stone table. His eyes lit up as he noticed three black keys clutched in the skeleton's palm, suspended above the bones.
After a moment's hesitation, Gu He stepped forward and gently tugged at the skeletal arm.
"Crack..."
Due to the passage of time, the brittle bone snapped under the slight pressure.
Gu He smirked mischievously before picking up the broken arm, intending to reattach it.
However, as he held the bone, he noticed something unusual. The weight felt... off.
Examining the arm more closely, Gu He spotted a small scroll hidden within the hollow bone.
His heart leaped with excitement. 'This must be the remnant map of the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame!'
Carefully, Gu He extracted the scroll. It was made of an unknown material, slightly yellowed with age. Irregular lines were drawn across its surface, but no matter how he traced them, they seemed to lead nowhere.
As he fully unfurled the parchment, his eyes fell on a faint, lotus-shaped mark in one corner. His expression shifted, and he bent down for a closer look.
The lotus was black, its surface covered in a thin layer of dark flame. Despite its faded appearance, it exuded an eerie, almost hypnotic aura.
Gu He's pupils contracted slightly. 'It really is the Purifying Demonic Lotus Flame!'
Suppressing his excitement, he swiftly stored the remnant map in his spatial ring.
After dusting off the skeletal arm, he respectfully returned it to its original position.
With the black keys in hand, Gu He turned his attention to the three stone boxes on the platform.
Approaching the first box, he inserted the key into the warm metal lock.
"Click."
The lock opened with a crisp sound, revealing a scroll inside.
Gu He picked up the scroll and unrolled it, revealing four bold characters: Seven-Colored Poison Sutra!
…
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