Starting from the imperial palace guards, his clones spread all over the world.

Chapter 724 Giant Shell
What appeared before Liang Jin was an underground space so vast that it defied description and made him feel insignificant.

Rather than calling it a natural cave, it's more like... a nest belonging to some primordial behemoth, forgotten deep in time!

This is also the core of the mysterious area that he couldn't penetrate on the ground even with his [Si Face] "Fire Eye" ability!
What first caught his eye was the dense, exposed ore covering the entire cavern's surrounding rock walls.

They are no longer scattered here and there, but rather like stars embedded in the rock strata, exposed in large swaths, all radiating that deep, mysterious, greenish fluorescence.

Thousands upon thousands of these minerals glowed together, illuminating the vast cavern with a bright light.

The light refracts and intertwines between the damp, smooth rock walls, creating a bizarre and dreamlike spectacle that is both breathtakingly beautiful and eerily unsettling.

However, what made Liang Jin's heart tighten and his hair stand on end was not these priceless spirit ore stones containing immense energy.

But -

That enormous tortoise shell, lying silently and lifelessly in the very center of the cave!

The tortoise shell was so large that it almost filled Liang Jin's entire field of vision, bringing an unparalleled visual impact and sense of oppression.

It lies there quietly, its height roughly estimated to be at least as majestic as a six-story building; its length is probably an astonishing ten zhang (approximately 33 meters), stretching across the cave like an insurmountable ancient city wall.

This tortoise shell was clearly not a recent find.

It exudes an ancient and deathly aura that has endured countless years.

The shell completely lacks the life-giving texture and vitality that a normal turtle should have; instead, it presents a gray and heavy appearance, similar to that of a rock.

The surface cuticle seems to have assimilated with the rock, covered by a thick, calcified stone shell. In many places, clear, layered patterns, like tree rings, can even be seen, marks etched by the passage of time.

Especially at the bottom edge of that huge tortoise shell, near the ground where water can drip and soak for a long time, some short stalagmites, about two inches high, have been formed!
These stalagmites, as if "growing" from a tortoise shell, are tightly connected to the outer shell, silently telling the story of the long time they have remained absolutely still in this place.

Such a sight could not have appeared if it had not remained motionless for thousands of days and nights!
"God...Turtle!"

Liang Jin involuntarily gasped, the icy air filling his lungs and instantly snapping him out of his shock.

In an instant, all the muscles in his body tensed to the extreme, and his internal energy, like a stone thrown into a lake, quietly accelerated its flow in his meridians, and he entered the highest level of alert.

Such an enormous tortoise shell defies common sense and has long exceeded the limits that ordinary creatures can achieve.

Apart from the divine tortoise that exists in myths and legends and is almost in the realm of "gods", Liang Jin could not think of any other possibility!
However, a strong sense of unease and doubt immediately welled up in his mind.

This enormous tortoise shell has remained in an absolute and unsettling stillness ever since they entered the cave.

Those holes, which should have been the heads, limbs, and tails of the divine turtles, were pitch black, with no signs of life, not a breath could be heard, and no vitality could be felt.

It stood there quietly and lifelessly, as if it had long since merged with the cave and the rock walls, becoming an unchanging part of the geological structure.

"Could it be... that this divine tortoise is already dead?"

A thought arose in Liang Jin's mind.

If it were an ordinary turtle, remaining motionless for such a long time, it would undoubtedly have long since turned into a skeleton, or even completely decayed.

The proverb says "a thousand-year-old tortoise, a ten-thousand-year-old turtle," but that is ultimately just an exaggerated metaphor. The lifespan of ordinary turtles, reaching several hundred years, is extremely rare.

But what he was facing was a divine tortoise!
It is a divine beast that transcends mortal life!
Liang Jin suddenly recalled that Wu Ling had mentioned that divine beasts possessed a life form that far exceeded human imagination and was almost eternal.

They can fall into an extremely deep slumber that spans countless ages, sleeping until the world changes and the stars revolve, until the environment of heaven and earth becomes suitable for their survival again, at which point they will awaken from their ancient dream and reappear in the world.

If... if the divine tortoise before him is not dead, but merely in this deep slumber, then his sudden intrusion, with even the slightest movement, could become the fuse that awakens this ancient being.
And the consequences of waking it up... Liang Jin simply couldn't imagine!
That could be devastating, a disaster that no one can predict or control!

In a flash, Liang Jin raised an arm and stopped the two children who were following closely behind him, peeking out curiously and fearfully, preventing them from entering the core area of ​​the cave.

The three of them stood quietly at the entrance of the cave, like three tiny intruders, gazing at this miracle that seemed to have frozen time with awe and vigilance.

At this moment, A-Shi's timid voice broke the silence. He pointed to the glowing minerals inside the cave and whispered to Liang Jin:

"Grandpa, the ore... I found it right here."

"They're everywhere here, look, you can have them all! Please... can you please let us go?"

Although the cave appears to be filled with "treasures," these spiritual minerals are extremely hard, far exceeding the quality of ordinary jade.

Even for adults, mining is extremely difficult without specialized tools, let alone for a four-year-old child like Ashi.

Last time, he also went through a lot of trouble to pry out a fist-sized, relatively loose piece of ore from the crack in the rock wall.

But now, the ore he regarded as his lifeline has already fallen into Liang Jin's hands.

Upon hearing this, Liang Jin shifted his gaze from the enormous tortoise shell to A Shi's dirty little face, and asked in a deep voice:
"Have you been inside this cave? What's the furthest you've gone?"

Ashi stretched out his dark little finger, pointed to the majestic tortoise shell, and replied:

"There is another path to take behind this big rock."

"But it was pitch black inside, there was nothing there, and it got narrower and narrower as you went in, until finally it was so narrow that I couldn't squeeze through anymore. All the water in there flowed into that crevice."

When Liang Jin heard Ah Shi refer to the enormous tortoise shell as "the big stone," he was slightly taken aback at first, but then he understood.

The turtle's shell is covered with a thick layer of calcification and stony deposits, making it look exactly like the surrounding rocks.

Given the arid climate of the Western Desert, turtles are already scarce. It's quite reasonable that Ashi, a child who grew up in a mining area and had limited experience, wouldn't recognize a turtle and mistake it for some kind of strange boulder.

What reassured Liang Jin even more was that A Shi had clearly been in this cave, even close to the tortoise shell, without causing any unusual occurrences.

This seems to confirm two possibilities: either the divine tortoise is truly dead and has become an empty shell, or its slumber is extremely deep and cannot be easily awakened.

After a brief deliberation, Liang Jin decided to risk approaching to investigate.

He gestured for the two children to wait where they were, then took a deep breath and stepped into the mysterious and dangerous area shrouded in eerie green light.

He walked extremely slowly and cautiously, each step landing silently, as if he were walking on cotton.

His senses were elevated to the extreme; he not only observed with his eyes, but also listened with his ears, and even used his skin to feel any subtle energy fluctuations and changes in airflow.

His internal energy was in a state of being drawn up but not released, ready to deal with any possible emergencies at any time.

As he approached, the oppressive feeling emanating from the enormous tortoise shell grew stronger.

Finally, he slowly approached the tortoise shell, which resembled a mountain wall, and looked up to see the top of the shell, which was nearly six stories high.

Only at such close range did some details that had been obscured by the stalagmites and shadows piled up on the ground become clearly visible to him.

The plastron of common turtles usually has only two large openings, one at the front and one at the back, for the head, limbs, and tail to extend and retract.

However, along the edge of the plastron of this divine tortoise, there were a total of fourteen openings of different sizes!
This scene instantly reminded Liang Jin of the legend that Gao Hongzhe had once told him—an ancient divine tortoise with twelve legs!
"Could it be... that each of these feet corresponds to an independent entry and exit hole?"

This thought sent a chill down his spine.

What a bizarre and magnificent life form that must be!
However, most of these holes in the feet are covered and blocked by layers of stalactites and stalagmites, making it impossible for an adult to crawl through them.

The largest opening is naturally located at the front, corresponding to the hole in the head of the divine turtle.

Liang Jin moved to the head position.

The hole was unusually wide and dark, like a cave with its mouth wide open, large enough for several adults to walk in side by side.

However, strangely enough, although the cave was filled with a ghostly green light, the inside of the tortoise shell seemed to be a separate dark realm. When the green light shone on the cave entrance, it was as if it were being swallowed by a giant mouth.

Inside was a pure, unsettling, thick darkness that seemed to devour all light.

Liang Jin stood at the cave entrance, and even though he held up a torch with a burning flame for illumination, his superhuman night vision was completely ineffective at this moment!

He stared wide-eyed, but could not penetrate the deep darkness to see whether it was the enormous, still-vibrant body of the divine tortoise retracted into its shell, or a lifeless cavity long since decayed with the years, leaving only stark white bones.

This absolute darkness, which defies common sense, is clearly extremely unusual!
Just as Liang Jin was concentrating his energy, trying to unravel the mystery of that darkness, a sudden change occurred!

In the depths of that impenetrable darkness, something seemed to begin to writhe and change.

In the dim light, a graceful and charming figure seemed to emerge!

The figure lay on its side on the ground, its curves undulating gracefully, its waist slender, and its legs long. Although it was only a blurry outline, it already exuded a breathtaking and captivating charm.

She appeared extremely weak, curled up slightly, giving off a sense of fragility, helplessness, and an urgent need for rescue.

A strong urge to rush in and protect her, to hold her in his arms, inexplicably arose in Liang Jin's heart.

"Someone's there? This...how is this possible?!"

Alarm bells rang in Liang Jin's mind:

"Could it be... a monster? But in this world, besides divine beasts and ghosts, could there really be other monsters like mountain spirits and wild creatures?"

The scene before him was too bizarre, completely beyond his comprehension, making him increasingly hesitant about whether he should step into this unknown and dangerous place.

Reason told him that this was most likely a trap, but the alluring, frail figure that appeared and disappeared in the darkness was like an invisible hand gently plucking at his heartstrings.

"Even a kid like Ah Shi went in and came out safely... Am I not even as good as a kid?"

After a moment of hesitation and struggle, a sense of unwillingness and a desire to explore ultimately overcame caution.

He gritted his teeth, a resolute glint in his eyes, and lifted his foot, about to step into the dark cave entrance.

suddenly!

A child's urgent voice suddenly rang out behind him, exploding like thunder in the silent cave:
"Sir! Don't go in!!!"

It's Ah Shi!
Liang Jin abruptly stopped his already raised foot.

He turned around abruptly, his questioning yet sharp gaze instantly locking onto Ashi, who was standing at the entrance of the cave, his little face pale with fright, waving his little hands vigorously.

Ah Shi looked terrified, his small hands tightly gripping the hem of his clothes, his lips trembling, as if he wanted to say something extremely terrible, yet he was filled with fear and hesitation.

A-Luo, standing to the side, looked at her younger brother with a blank and surprised expression, clearly not understanding why he would suddenly be so agitated in stopping Liang Jin.

Liang Jin frowned, his doubts reaching their peak.

He hesitated for a moment, then decisively turned around and returned to the two children in a few steps. Under the fearful gaze of the siblings, Liang Jin crouched down, bringing his tall frame to A-Shi's level. He stared into A-Shi's terrified black eyes and asked in as calm a tone as possible:

Tell me, why can't I go in?

Ah Shi suddenly lowered his head and shut his mouth tightly, refusing to say a single word.

Liang Jin looked at the terrified brother and sister, paused for a moment, and then spoke, his voice carrying an undeniable promise:

"Helping me is also helping yourselves."

"I told you, if you help me get through this trip smoothly, I can give you whatever you want when we get back."

Upon hearing this, Ashi raised his head and quickly glanced at Liang Jin, but still bit his lower lip tightly, refusing to speak.

In the end, it was A-Luo who reached out her cold little hand and gently tugged at her younger brother's arm, her voice as weak as a mosquito's buzz as she advised:

"Brother, this old man doesn't look like... a bad person."

"You'd better... tell the old man... otherwise, the old man will get angry."

Clearly, A-Luo had no confidence in her own judgment, and her voice grew softer and softer.

But she knew even more clearly that, faced with a powerful figure like Liang Jin, she and her brother had no means of resistance or concealment.

When Ashi heard his sister say that, he secretly glanced at Liang Jin's calm yet imposing gaze and finally seemed to have made up his mind.

He pointed a trembling finger at the enormous, mountain-like tortoise shell and said to Liang Jin in a tearful, extremely earnest tone:
"There's a ghost in there."

ghost?
Upon hearing this, Liang Jin was slightly taken aback, his surprise growing even more.

Ah Shi, as if afraid Liang Jin wouldn't believe him, nodded vigorously and continued in his childish but fearful voice:
“I went down there last time and crawled inside.”

"The ghost inside even crawled into my stomach. It said it doesn't eat children. It said I was too stupid and told me to find an adult to eat."

"Then it left, and I ran out."

Listening to A-Shi's incoherent, childlike, and frightening description, Liang Jin initially found it somewhat absurd, even resembling a bedtime story told by an old man to scare a child.

But then, his brows furrowed deeply.

As the saying goes, children speak without restraint, but what children say is often a mixture of truth and falsehood. They mix their fears, imaginations and real experiences together, so their words need to be carefully discerned.

Liang Jin patiently asked about the details several times, and even A Luo, who was standing next to him, felt that her brother's words were too bizarre and asked a few more questions on his behalf.

However, no matter how Liang Jin and A Luo questioned him, A Shi insisted on this statement, and the fear on his face did not seem fake.

Finally, he looked up at me with an extremely serious expression, his little face filled with a childlike worry, and advised me:
"Grandpa, you really shouldn't go in! You're an adult, if you go in, the ghosts inside will eat you up!"

"It...it's just waiting to eat adults!"

Seeing Ah Shi's incredibly earnest, even pleading, eyes, Liang Jin's contempt completely vanished.

Although Ah Shi's words sounded mysterious and illogical, Liang Jin was certain of one thing: there must be some unknown, conscious being inside that tortoise shell that could communicate with people!

Was that the alluring woman from the darkness just now?

Or something else?
This completely dispelled Liang Jin's idea of ​​rushing in.

Unknown dangers, especially those involving the spiritual realm, are often more terrifying than visible swords and blades.

He stood up and turned his gaze back to the enormous tortoise shell.

This time, he became even more cautious.

Instead of trying to enter, he began to slowly stroll around the "turtle shell mountain" to make a more detailed external observation.

Just as Ah Shi had said, behind the tortoise shell, there was indeed a cave passage that continued deeper into the cave.

However, that was clearly not the core area. There were no spirit ore stones emitting light in the passage; it was pitch black and extremely narrow, only wide enough for a stream to pass through, making it difficult for humans to venture deep inside.

Liang Jin walked around the entire tortoise shell, but apart from the fourteen holes and absolute darkness, he could not find any other obvious abnormalities or other ways to enter the interior.

Clearly, the only way to find out the truth inside the tortoise shell seems to be to risk entering through the largest opening in the head.

Standing before the deep, dark cave entrance, Liang Jin struggled internally.

He even considered whether to send a skeleton puppet in to investigate.

These lifeless, fearless puppets may be the best choice for exploring the unknown.

However, just as his thoughts were turning, he subconsciously looked towards the darkness again.

"Huh? Where's that woman from earlier?"

Liang Jin suddenly realized that the alluring figure of the woman who had been looming in the darkness, enticing him to enter, had completely vanished!
Just as he was intently searching, the thick darkness began to surge and change once again!
In the depths of darkness, a faint, soft, and sacred golden light appeared!

The golden light was hazy, as if seen through a thin veil.

As Liang Jin subconsciously focused his gaze, his vision seemed to pierce through the haze, revealing the source of the golden light—

That was actually a divine sword!
The sword's blade appeared to be crafted from the purest gold, its entire surface radiating a warm and noble luster.

Its design is simple and solemn, with mysterious runes engraved on the hilt. The blade appears to be without edge, yet it seems to contain the sharpness of creation!

It floated silently in the darkness, emanating a terrifying aura of energy as vast as the sea and as boundless as the stars!
Liang Jin could almost feel the earth-shattering power of holding it simply by "looking" at it!
He had a strong intuition—if he could hold this divine sword in his hand, he was even confident that he could split mountains and cut rivers in half with a single stroke!
This goes far beyond the ordinary category of "divine weapons"; it can be described as a divine artifact that only exists in myths and legends!
It is a supreme treasure that any martial artist would dream of and go crazy for!

An uncontrollable desire and greed ignited in Liang Jin's heart like wildfire!

His breathing became heavy involuntarily, his eyes were fixed on the golden divine sword in the darkness, and his feet even began to move forward uncontrollably again...

"uncle!"

"Grandpa! What are you doing?!"

A series of urgent calls, like ice water poured over Liang Jin's head, instantly jolted him out of his near-mad state!

It's A-Luo!
Liang Jin suddenly jolted awake, shook his head violently, and instantly regained his senses.

He quickly focused his gaze again on the darkness inside the tortoise shell—

Where is the golden light now?
Where is the divine sword now?
All that remained before me was that thick, pure darkness that could devour all light!
It all seemed like a hallucination to him.

Liang Jin quickly retreated a few steps, returning to the entrance of the cave. His expression grave, he looked at A Luo and asked in a deep voice:

"What happened to me just now?"

A-Luo looked at him timidly and answered in a trembling voice:
“You…you were standing there, motionless, staring inside…and then, and then you suddenly…smiled.”

"His laugh... was very strange... I've never seen the old man laugh before... I... I felt something was wrong, I was scared, so I called you..."

Laughed?

Liang Jin's heart sank. He had absolutely no recollection of his smile just now!

As expected, a problem arose!

He had been staring at the darkness for a little too long, and the darkness had "responded" to him!
It conjures up images that most easily arouse people's inner desires—first beauty, then power, and exerts an extremely subtle yet powerful hypnotic or seductive effect on him!

If it weren't for A Luo, an observer with a relatively simple mind, noticing his abnormality and waking him up in time.

No one knows whether he will eventually be bewitched and involuntarily walk into that darkness, and then... the consequences will be unimaginable!
The so-called weak woman and supreme divine sword are probably nothing more than carefully woven bait to lure the prey into walking into the trap!

It's an invisible attack targeting human weaknesses!

Without hesitation, Liang Jin immediately took out the [Si Mask] and put it on his face. He then activated his "Fire Eye" ability again and looked at the dark cave entrance.

However, even from the perspective of "Fire Eyes," the dark area inside the tortoise shell was still like a lump of thick ink that could not be dissolved, and it was impossible to see through it at all!

This level of shielding and interference far exceeded anything he had ever encountered before.

At this point, Liang Jin completely abandoned his plan to send the Yin Bone Puppet in to investigate.

This divine turtle shell is too strange and unpredictable!

It clearly contains some powerful will or force that can influence or even manipulate the mind.

Liang Jin knew almost nothing about it, putting him at a complete disadvantage due to information asymmetry.

If we rashly let the Yin Bone Puppet in, no one knows what will happen.

Ah Shi was able to go in and come out unscathed, perhaps just as that "thing" said, because it thought he was "too small" and "too stupid," not meeting the standards of a "prey."

But this absolutely does not mean that Liang Jin will be safe and sound once he enters!
He clearly remembered what Mi Lanyue had said—that a powerful person like him, with great fortune and strength, could even be sensed by the divine turtle if he died close enough to it!

Who knows if this divine tortoise needs a "high-quality sacrifice" like him to die beside it, or even be devoured by it, in order to accelerate its revival, or to achieve some unknown purpose?

Facing a legendary divine beast that once defeated a nation's army and caused the destruction of an ancient kingdom, whether it is dead or alive, dormant or only a remnant remains, its wisdom and power are by no means ordinary.

To rashly enter its shell is tantamount to a lamb entering a tiger's den!

Since this tortoise shell has been quietly lying dormant underground for nearly a thousand years, the best course of action is to let it remain dormant!
Never venture into this forbidden territory without sufficient confidence and a thorough understanding!
"Don't stay here for long!"

Liang Jin made a decision instantly.

He turned to the two children, who were now even more frightened by the recent turn of events, and spoke as calmly as possible:
"There's nothing more to see here. We should head out."

As he spoke, he prepared to leave with his two children.

However, just as he was about to reach the entrance of the cave, his gaze inadvertently swept across a rock wall on the side, and he seemed to catch something unusual out of the corner of his eye!

This made him suddenly stop in his tracks:
"and many more!"

(End of this chapter)