Courtyard Check-in: Starting with a Small World of Cultivation

At 4 a.m. on March 2, Hong Kong was still asleep.

The Sai Wan Pier was shrouded in thick sea fog, with only a few dim streetlights casting blurry halos of light through the mist. Chen Yu stood by the pier, watching the fishing boat named "Chaoshan" slowly approach the shore. The captain was a dark-skinned man in his fifties, wearing a faded sailor shirt, a cigarette dangling from his lips, his eyes sharp as an eagle's.

"Boss Chen, right?" the captain greeted in Cantonese with a heavy Chaoshan accent. "My name is Chen Afu, you can just call me Uncle Afu."

"Uncle Afu, thank you for your help." Chen Yu nodded and handed over an envelope. "This is the deposit. You can pay the rest when you come back."

Uncle Fu squeezed the thickness of the envelope, grinned, and said, "No problem, no problem. And this is..." He looked behind Chen Yu.

Su Man and Taoist Jingxu also arrived. Su Man was wearing a neat pair of work pants and a jacket, with her hair tied in a ponytail; Jingxu was still wearing a Taoist robe, but now had a yellow cloth bundle on his back.

"He's my friend; we're going out to sea together on business," Chen Yu briefly introduced.

"Alright, let's get on the boat. It's foggy, so we have to go slowly." Uncle Fu didn't ask any more questions and turned to call the boatman to prepare.

The "Chaoshan" is a well-maintained 20-meter-long wooden fishing boat. Fishing nets and buoys are piled on the deck, emitting a fishy smell. There is a small cabin at the bow, which contains the bridge and simple living space.

The diving equipment Chen Yu brought had already been loaded onto the ship and piled up in a corner of the deck. Su Man checked the equipment list, while Jing Xu took out an ancient bronze compass from her package. The compass was engraved with the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches and the Twenty-Eight Mansions, and the pointer trembled slightly in the mist.

"The weather forecast says the sea conditions are good today, with a level 3 wind and half a meter high waves." Su Man closed her notebook. "But the currents in this area are complicated, so we have to be careful."

"My compass can sense unusual spiritual energy underwater." Jingxu sat cross-legged, placing the compass flat on his lap. "Let's go."

The fishing boat slowly departed the dock through the thick fog. The roar of the diesel engine carried far across the silent sea. Chen Yu stood at the bow, activating his Spiritual Eye Technique to pierce through the fog and observe the sea ahead. The water elemental energy contained in the fog was denser than on land, making him feel that breathing was much easier.

"System, check-in for today," he thought to himself.

[Ding! Japanese visa successfully obtained]

[Received: HKD 180, Basic Marine Biology Knowledge (Small), 1964 South China Sea Shipwreck Distribution Map, Water-Repelling Bead Duration Extended to Two Hours, Spiritual Pearl x3]

Marine biology knowledge flooded my mind: coral reef ecology, fish habits, marine plant distribution... The shipwreck distribution map marked the locations of dozens of known shipwrecks in the South China Sea, including seven near Hong Kong. Most special were three spiritual pearls, each the size of a pigeon egg, shimmering with a faint pinkish luster, and containing a subtle water-based spiritual energy.

"It can be used to refine water-attribute pills or magical artifacts." Chen Yu carefully put the pearl away.

After about two hours of sailing, the sky gradually brightened, and the fog began to dissipate. The rising sun painted the eastern sky golden red. The sea was as calm as a mirror, with only the white contrails left by fishing boats stretching behind them.

"We've reached this area of ​​water." Uncle Fu poked his head out of the cockpit. "What's the exact location?"

The Taoist priest Jingxu stood up and slowly walked across the deck, compass in hand. The compass needle began to vibrate violently, pointing southeast. "Sailing another nautical mile that way."

The fishing boat adjusted its course. Chen Yu noticed that the water in this area was slightly darker than the surrounding waters, and there were ripples indicating undercurrents beneath the surface.

After driving for about twenty more minutes, Jingxu suddenly shouted, "This is it!"

The fishing boat's engine was off, and it swayed gently on the waves. Jingxu's compass needle spun wildly, finally pointing directly downwards. He bent down and scooped up a handful of water from the sea, closing his eyes to sense: "The spiritual energy fluctuations are indeed coming from underwater... but not from just one place."

"More than one place?" Su Man frowned.

"There are multiple sources of spiritual energy underwater. One of them matches the fluctuations of the Seven Star Key. The others..." Jingxu opened her eyes, "may be other cargo from the sunken ship, or they may be... something else."

Chen Yu walked to the ship's side and activated his Spiritual Eye Technique at full power. Thirty meters below the surface, a blurry outline could be vaguely seen—the wreckage of a wooden sailboat, leaning precariously in the seabed mud. The hull was severely damaged, the mast was broken, and boxes and debris were scattered on the deck.

Around the shipwreck, there are three faint sources of spiritual energy: one near the bow, one inside the cabin, and one in a coral reef fifty meters behind the shipwreck.

"Uncle Afu, anchor here," Chen Yu instructed.

The anchor sank into the sea, stabilizing the fishing boat. Chen Yu began to put on his diving gear—even though he wouldn't need it, he had to make a show of it.

"Mr. Chen, I'll go down with you," Su Man suddenly said.

"Can you dive?"

"I learned that when I was studying in the US." Su Man had already taken off her coat, revealing a close-fitting wetsuit underneath. "It's safer if two people can look out for each other."

Taoist Jingxu shook his head: "I am not good at swimming, so I will use a compass to guide the way from the boat."

Chen Yu glanced at Su Man and nodded: "Okay. But you'll follow my commands underwater."

"certainly."

The two men were fully equipped: heavy diving suits, bronze helmets, lead weights, and a long snorkel connected to the ship's manual air pump. The equipment was cumbersome, but it was standard equipment in 1964. Chen Yu secretly concealed a water-repelling bead inside his helmet and quietly activated a water-escape talisman affixed to his chest—double protection.

"Prepare to dive." Chen Yu finished checking his equipment and gestured to the boatman.

The boatman started cranking the air pump, and compressed air was pumped into the helmets through rubber hoses. Chen Yu and Su Man flipped over the gunwale one after the other and sank into the sea.

The moment he entered the water, the water-repelling bead activated, forming an invisible waterproof membrane on Chen Yu's body. The seawater was repelled, and he could barely feel the water pressure. He activated his Spiritual Eye Technique, and the underwater world became clearly visible: sunlight pierced through the seawater, forming beams of light; various fish swam among the coral reefs; and seashells and starfish were scattered on the fine sand of the seabed.

Su Man followed behind him, her movements skillful, clearly indicating she had received formal training. The two slowly descended along the anchor cable.

The deeper you go, the dimmer the light becomes. At a depth of fifteen meters, the surroundings turn a deep blue. The outline of the shipwreck gradually becomes clear—it's a three-masted sailing ship, about forty meters long, its hull covered in seaweed and coral, with small fish swimming in and out of the breaches in the hull.

Chen Yu gestured for Su Man to stop above the sunken ship, while he approached to investigate first. He swam to the source of spiritual energy at the bow and found a wooden box half-buried in the mud and sand. The box was rotten, revealing fragments of porcelain inside. The fluctuations in spiritual energy came from a blue-and-white porcelain bowl among the fragments—although broken, there was a faint trace of spiritual energy remaining at the bottom of the bowl.

"It's not the Seven Star Key, it's just an ancient porcelain piece, but it's been soaked in spiritual energy at the spiritual vein node for many years," Chen Yu judged.

He turned and swam towards the cabin. The hatch was broken, and it was pitch black inside. Chen Yu took a waterproof flashlight from his waist and shone the beam into the cabin.

The scene inside the cabin was shocking: scattered porcelain, rusted bronzes, rotting wooden crates... and several skeletons, entangled in seaweed, preserved in their dying poses. This was a merchant ship laden with Chinese antiques, which had sunk here for unknown reasons.

The source of spiritual energy that Chen Yu sensed was deep within the ship's cabin. He carefully swam in, avoiding the fallen wooden beams and broken porcelain shards. At the far end of the cabin, a tin box was half-buried in the mud. The box was rusted, but the pattern of the Big Dipper was faintly visible on the lock!

that's it!

Chen Yu swam over and tried to move the box. But the box was too heavy and sank deep into the mud. He thought for a moment, then took out a water escape talisman and activated his spiritual power. The talisman burned, and the surrounding seawater was pushed aside, forming a temporary waterless space.

Taking this opportunity, Chen Yu quickly cleared the mud around the box and discovered that the bottom of the box was connected to an iron chain, with the other end of the chain nailed to the keel of the ship.

"We need tools." Chen Yu swam out of the cabin, gestured to Su Man, and pointed to the grappling hook on the ship.

Working together, the two lowered the grappling hook and steel cable from the boat. Chen Yu secured the grappling hook to the box, then swam back to the side of the boat and signaled. The boatmen on board began to wind the steel cable.

"Crunch—" The rusted iron chains made a grating sound. The box was slowly dragged out of the mud, stirring up a lot of silt and making the seawater murky.

Suddenly, something strange happened!

The moment the crate was dragged out, a deep rumble echoed from deep within the ship's hold. The entire wreck began to shake violently, its structure groaning under the strain!

"Back off quickly!" Chen Yu shouted to Su Man—although his voice was difficult to carry in the water, his gestures were clear enough.

The two quickly surfaced. But just then, the currents around the shipwreck suddenly became violent! The once calm seabed surged with undercurrents, churning up silt and debris, forming whirlpools!

"An underwater earthquake? Or..." Chen Yu's heart skipped a beat, and he activated his spiritual eye technique to its fullest extent. He saw it—a crack had appeared in the seabed beneath the sunken ship, and dense spiritual energy was surging out from it! Deep within that crack, the outline of a building was faintly visible!

"It's not just a simple shipwreck... there are underwater ruins below!" Chen Yu instantly understood. The reason this ship sank here was probably because there was a spiritual vein node below, which affected the ship's compass navigation.

The undercurrent grew stronger, and Su Man was swept around unsteadily. Her breathing tube was being pulled by the turbulence, and the rubber tube made a "crunching" sound, as if it was about to break!

Chen Yu acted decisively, swimming over to grab Su Man's hand while simultaneously activating his water-walking technique. Their bodies instantly became light, moving with the agility of fish in the water. He pulled Su Man away from the turbulent currents and swam upwards.

But the current was too strong, and the two were swept towards the coral reef behind the shipwreck. Chen Yu remembered that there was a source of spiritual energy there...

As he approached the coral reef, he saw it—a stone tablet half-buried among the coral! The tablet was about one meter high, with ancient seal script engraved on its surface, radiating a strong spiritual energy!

Chen Yu didn't have time to examine it closely, because Su Man's breathing tube finally snapped! Bubbles gushed out from the break, and she began to struggle—the oxygen supply had been cut off!

In a critical moment, Chen Yu ripped off his own breathing tube and connected the two helmets together. Sharing a single air source would shorten their survival time, but at least it would buy them some time.

He grabbed Su Man with one hand and paddled with the other, swimming towards the surface with all his might. Pushing their water-walking technique to its limit, the two were three times faster than ordinary divers!

Twenty meters, fifteen meters, ten meters... the light on the sea surface became clearer and clearer.

Suddenly, Chen Yu felt something wrap around his ankle! Looking down, he saw a wisp of black seaweed, but the seaweed was mixed with fine metal wires—it looked like some kind of mechanism!

"A trap?!" Alarm bells rang in Chen Yu's mind. He activated his spiritual power to shatter the seaweed, but even more seaweed surged out from the coral reef, wrapping around the two of them as if it were alive!

The water-repelling membrane of the water-repelling bead began to fluctuate, unable to withstand the entanglement. Chen Yu gritted his teeth, took out the last Qi-Nourishing Pill and swallowed it, causing his spiritual power to surge!

"Break!" he shouted, and a pale blue spiritual light erupted from his body. The entangled seaweed was shattered, and the two used the force to propel themselves upwards!

Five meters, three meters, one meter—

"Splash!" The two burst through the sea!

The people on the ship had been waiting for a long time and hurriedly pulled them onto the deck. Chen Yu took off his helmet and took a deep breath of fresh air. Su Man was pale, but conscious.

"Are you alright?" Chen Yu asked.

Su Man shook her head, her eyes still showing lingering fear: "Underwater...there's something underwater!"

Taoist Jingxu strode over, his face grave: "I sensed that the balance of spiritual energy on the seabed was disrupted after the box was dragged out. That area of ​​the sea is now...very dangerous."

Chen Yu looked at the sea. The once calm sea was now churning with white waves, and a whirlpool tens of meters in diameter had formed at the site of the sunken ship, with seawater pouring down into it!

"Where's the box?" he asked.

The sailors had already hauled the iron box onto the deck. The box was heavily rusted, but the Big Dipper pattern was clearly visible. There was a seven-pointed star groove at the latch—the very slot for the Big Dipper key!

"Get out of here!" Uncle Fu shouted, "The vortex is expanding!"

The fishing boat started and sped away. Everyone looked back and saw the whirlpool growing larger and larger, with the outline of a building vaguely visible at its center...

"That's not a shipwreck..." the Taoist priest Jingxu murmured, "That's... the entrance to an underwater cave!"

Chen Yu's heart skipped a beat. He recalled the seal script on the stone tablet; though he had only glanced at it, he recognized a few characters: "Mysterious...True...Forbidden..."

The Forbidden Land of Xuanzhen? Could it be that the area beneath the sunken ship is one of the entrances to the Xuanzhen Cave?

The whirlpool gradually subsided three miles after the fishing boat sailed out. The sea returned to calm, as if nothing had happened.

But everyone knew that what had just happened was anything but ordinary.

On the deck, Chen Yu looked at the iron box, then recalled the stone tablet in the coral reef and Suman's broken ventilation pipe...

"The underwater mechanism we just saw didn't seem to be naturally formed," he suddenly said.

Su Man looked up: "You mean... someone set a trap?"

"Or perhaps it's a protective barrier around the cave," Daoist Jingxu said in a deep voice. "Senior Xuanzhenzi's cave couldn't possibly be undefended. We've triggered his arrangements."

Chen Yu remained silent. He recalled the three sources of spiritual energy he had sensed underwater: the porcelain, the iron box, and the stone tablet... Now that he thought about it, they might have been a triple test or a warning.

"Let's open the box first," Su Man said.

The box was rusted shut, and the boatmen barely managed to open it with a crowbar. Inside, there was a moisture-proof tarpaulin, and beneath the tarpaulin was a sandalwood box. The box was well-preserved, and its surface was engraved with a star chart of the sixth star of the Big Dipper, "Kaiyang".

Upon opening the wooden box, one finds a bronze key, similar in shape to the four keys in Chen Yu's hand, but darker in color, exuding an ancient and weathered aura.

"The sixth key, Kaiyang." Taoist Jingxu let out a long breath. "There's only one key left, Yaoguang."

Chen Yu picked up the bronze key; it felt slightly cool to the touch. A faint fluctuation of spiritual energy emanated from within the key, resonating with the other keys in his hand.

"Now we have six keys," Su Man said, her eyes gleaming with excitement. "Only the one for Macau is missing..."

Before the words were even finished, the sound of a motor came from the distant sea. A speedboat was heading towards them!

"Who goes there?" Uncle Fu asked warily, picking up the harpoon.

The speedboat approached, revealing three people on board: two burly men in black suits and a middle-aged man in sunglasses in the middle. The middle-aged man had a scar on his left cheek—he was the same man who had sneaked into Chen Yu's room earlier, claiming to have been sent by Boss Li!

"Mr. Chen, we meet again." Scarface took off his sunglasses, revealing a sinister grin. "Boss Li asked me to give him his regards. Also... Boss Li is very interested in what you just retrieved from the sea."

Chen Yu's eyes turned cold. What were Boss Li's men doing here? Were they following him, or...?

He suddenly remembered that when they set off that morning, besides them, there were several other fishing boats preparing to go to sea at the dock. The people on one of those boats seemed to have been observing them, intentionally or unintentionally...

They've been targeted.

"We found the item ourselves; it has nothing to do with Boss Li," Chen Yu said calmly.

"Whether it's relevant or not, it's up to Boss Li to decide." The scarred man pulled a pistol from his pocket. "Mr. Chen, if you know what's good for you, hand over the box. Boss Li said that as long as you cooperate, everything that happened before can be wiped clean."

The Taoist priest quietly placed his hand on the compass. Su Man, meanwhile, silently retreated behind Chen Yu, reaching for her waist—where a dagger was hidden.

On the sea, two ships are facing each other.

The wind picked up, and the waves crashed against the hull of the ship.

The Kaiyang Key in Chen Yu's hand was slightly warm.