Young master, why not become a corpse immortal?

Chapter 139 Entering the Cave
Gao Xuan's words were true; Yumai Town is only a little over a hundred miles from the capital.

We sped along the official road from the north gate, and before the sound of hooves had even ceased, we could see the town's entrance with its blue stone walls.

The two fast horses ran for only one hour.

When they arrived at Yumai Town, there was no sign of any disaster. Merchants on the street were soliciting customers, and pedestrians were hurrying along the road.

It was still a lively and bustling scene.

Most of the buildings on the street are similar in style to those in the capital, and the town is paved with bluestone slabs. At first glance, the road is full of miners wearing coarse linen clothes, their faces and bodies covered in black soot.

There are significantly more taverns along the streets of the town compared to teahouses in the capital.

Lin Jiang even saw a perfume shop in this town, but it was completely different from the one in the capital where there were many novelties. This perfume shop looked like it was prepared for miners, and it was already considered good if it could provide some cold water to wash their bodies.

At first glance, Lin Jiang seemed to smell the coal and iron on these miners.

This is the mining town.

Daxing was a highly developed producer of ironware, producing iron kitchen knives, iron cookware, iron weapons, and iron armor, all of which were made possible by the diligent mining efforts of the miners.

Lin Jiang suppressed his emotions and, together with Gong Xuan, stopped a few miners to ask for directions before heading straight for the town government office.

When they arrived at the entrance of the yamen, Lin Jiang took out the field token given to him by the Dali Temple, dismounted, and walked inside.

The constables were about to stop him, but when they saw the token in Lin Jiang's hand, their faces turned pale with fright, and they hurriedly ran inside.

The registrar hurried out to greet him.

In the towns near the capital, there were only registrars, not county magistrates.

"Your Excellencies," the registrar bowed respectfully.
"Are you two here regarding the mine shaft case?"

“The Six Doors sent someone before, but she has now disappeared. It’s up to the two of us to find her.”

Lin Jiang didn't stand on ceremony with the registrar and directly stated why he had come. After hearing this, the registrar's face became noticeably pale.

The disappearances of the Ministry of Justice official and key figures from the Six Doors (a government agency) are so serious that not only is his official position at risk, but his life is also in grave danger.

How could he not be under pressure?
"That sir went into the mine and has been missing ever since." The clerk wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief, then looked nervously at Lin Jiang and his companion: "Sirs, are you two also going into that cave?"

Lin Jiang nodded: "If we're going to find someone, of course we need to go into that cave."

"You mustn't go!" The registrar panicked, tears welling up in his eyes. "None of the two people who went into the cave in the past two days have come out. If anything happens to you two inside, I can't bear the responsibility."

"What good ideas do you have to get us out of here?" Lin Jiang asked. "If you have a safer method, we don't need to take any risks."

The registrar held it in for most of the day, his face turning from white to red, and then back to white.

That was a bit too much of a challenge for him.

He was just a clerk; he was so skilled in Taoist arts that he never even entered the inner hall.

“Then we need to go in and take a look,” Lin Jiang said after a moment of contemplation. “Which mine did the disappearance occur in specifically?”

"This……"

"Speak frankly."

Gong Xuan really disliked this person's procrastination. With lives at stake, he was still making excuses and deserved to be scolded.

The registrar's throat bobbed a few times before he managed to squeeze out a sound:
“The vein was excavated from the outside in, with three tunnels extending from the main tunnel. No. 1 is an old mine, No. 2 has run out of reserves, and just last month we started digging deeper into the ground in No. 3… The disappearances all happened in the No. 3 area.”

"Give me the map of the ore tunnel."

The constable quickly brought over the yellowed blueprints, and the registrar's fingertips trembled slightly as he bowed and handed them over.

By comparing the topographic map left by Jiang Jinyue, the two quickly located the route leading to Pit No. 3.

Lin Jiang rolled up the blueprints. The constables, leading the way, frequently looked back, while the registrar trailed at the back of the procession, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitating.

Upon reaching the entrance of the mine, the guards on duty outside were about to stop them, but upon seeing the clerk's ashen face, they retreated.

Upon hearing that the two were going to enter the cave, he turned deathly pale with fright.

They stood guard at the entrance of the cave, sometimes feeling terrified, fearing that some terrifying evil spirit would suddenly jump out of the cave. Even so, some people still went into the cave without hesitation.

These constables simply couldn't understand it.

How much money are these nobles in the capital paying them to work so hard?

Before going in, Lin Jiang glanced at the registrar behind him:

"If the two of us go in and do not return by Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow, please go to Dali Temple."

The registrar nodded repeatedly.

Upon entering the cave, Lin Jiang was surprised to find a layer of bluish-gray light floating on the rock walls.

Looking up closely, several pieces of ore embedded at the top were emitting a cool, fluorescent glow.

These stones illuminated the path throughout the mine.

“The luminous stones are refined using the stone-boiling technique,” ​​Gong Xuan explained. “This method is commonly used in mines.”

"This method is so convenient, why don't you see it used in every household in the capital?" Lin Jiang reached out and touched the cold light.

"Actually, it's not very convenient," Gong Xuan said. "The refined stones are stiff, cold, and glaring, and they're stuck in place and can't be moved. If you want to extinguish the light at night, you have to wrap it in three layers of oilcloth, which is much easier than blowing out a candle."

Upon reaching Tunnel No. 3, several pickaxes were scattered at the entrance, their blades still covered with fresh rock fragments.
The moment Lin Jiang stepped in, he suddenly felt a burning pain in his wrist.

The talisman that warded off disaster in the sleeve spontaneously combusted without wind, and the cinnabar runes curled up into ash.

Lin Jiang looked down at his cuff.

The talisman was burning brightly.

His expression was somewhat subtle.

"Master, how long can your talisman last?"

“Burn one talisman for each block.” Gong Xuan also lowered his head, his expression somewhat subtle. The burning sensation from his palm had not yet subsided when a second talisman sparked from Gong Xuan’s lapel.

"It seems that whatever is inside this cave is constantly releasing magical energy outwards..."

“If it were an ordinary cultivator, even if they used magic techniques, they would definitely use them one at a time…”

Before they finished speaking, wisps of green smoke rose from their waists at the same time, and in the blink of an eye, their talisman pouches were more than half empty.

The first line of defense they had painstakingly prepared simply vanished.

Left with no other choice, Lin Jiang had to take out the beads.

"Brother Zhuzi, I'm sorry to trouble you."

"Okay."

The bead hovered above their heads, and a dim yellow halo emanating from it enveloped the two of them like an eggshell.

The surface of the shield rippled with spiderweb-like vibrations, as if an unseen hand was slapping against it.

"It's alright, this method isn't too overpowered, I can still handle it."

The embers of the talisman still held warmth as Gong Xuan held the ashes in his hand, lost in thought:

"What could be in that cave? Could it be some kind of 'star' going crazy here?"

"If he really is a star, then his taste in choosing accommodations is quite peculiar."

Lin Jiang made a joke to Gong Xuan, and Gong Xuan's expression softened.

"That's true, what kind of company would hide in such a dark and secluded place?"

Under the shimmering light emanating from the beads, they slowly walked deeper into the cave.

The amount of light stones boiled in Cave No. 3 was obviously not large. The deeper you went, the darker the light became, and it was blurry and unclear. There was water underfoot, which was very slippery. Lin Jiang was fine because he had a stable footing and would not fall, but Gong Xuan had to be careful.

Lin Jiang took out his own lamp from his bosom, and the lamp emitted a soft glow, illuminating the surroundings.

The damp rock strata exuded a cold dew, which I felt carefully as I ran my fingertips over them.

It is a mixture of ice crystals and wet mud.

"There should be groundwater near the cave," Lin Jiang muttered, rubbing his fingertips together.

Lin Jiang brought his damp fingertips close to his nose, and a strong aroma of alcohol suddenly filled his nostrils.

His brow furrowed, and he placed his finger directly in front of Gong Xuan.

After smelling the aroma, Gong Xuan's expression also became extremely strange.

"The taste of this wine is indeed excellent; even the finest wines in the capital cannot compare."

"This cave can turn spring water into wine, doesn't that add a lot of value for nothing?"

“It’s not a good thing.” Gong Xuan shook his head repeatedly: “There is a method in the Qimen arts I practice that is very similar to the scenery of this cave.”

"This technique is called 'Deception,' which can make clear water taste like fine wine and stubborn rocks like delicacies. If the method is used properly, it is not difficult to disrupt the minds of others, enough to drown gluttons, make them swallow gold, iron, and stones, or even swallow long knives and take their lives."

"Is there such a method in this water?"

"Probably." Gongxuan nodded. "Moreover, judging from the effects presented in this cave, this kind of magic can probably be spread through these water stains."

Lin Jiang immediately wiped the water clean.

Continuing along the stone path, the two soon arrived at an empty room. There were noticeably more bright stones here, making the surroundings transparent.

In the cold light of the stone-boiling technique, the stone chair's surface bore the oil stains from long-term wear, the scattered pickaxe blades were curled up, and a few dice lay beside the pile of charcoal ash.

The leaf-shaped cards and the carved stone figurines on the table must have been toys for these miners.

In the middle of this empty room, there was a large pot.

"Cooking over a fire inside the mine? Aren't you afraid of getting smoked out?" Gong Xuan muttered to himself.

"This pot looks like it was brought in later."

Lin Jiang walked slowly to the large pot and bent down to stare at the bottom of the pot.

The large pot, which should have been empty, suddenly emitted a strange aroma of meat.

It was a pot of soup, and even though there was no fire, boiling water was bubbling out of the soup.

The murky soup churned like mud in the fireless iron pot, with clumps of foam appearing and disappearing intermittently.

suddenly,

Several faces emerged from the boiling liquid, raised their heads, and stared at Lin Jiang with empty eyes.

Lin Jiang pondered for a moment, then took out the book "Cong Zhong Qu" from his pocket. He flipped through the book and found the page on dealing with vengeful spirits.

Then, while referring to the finger techniques above, use the Qi throughout your body.

Aim at the large pot, press down on your ring finger with your left thumb, and apply slight pressure.

bomb.

With a crisp, metallic clang, Lin Jiang's ring finger struck the pot, splitting it in two along the middle, and a heart-wrenching, agonizing scream emanated from within.

Gong Xuan was startled by the sudden scream, which made the talisman slip from his hand and fall to the ground. Turning his head, he saw Lin Jiang's five fingers holding three strands of gray mist twisted into a rope shape.

Gong Xuan: "?"

Gong Xuan did not see what martial arts Lin Jiang chose at the time.

Only now, upon seeing it, did he realize how truly amazing this world is.

(End of this chapter)