The Science of Cultivation [Xianxia]
Chapter 293: Subterranean Crypt

In the end, Li Lang selected fourteen of the nineteen individuals to join Star Gem Academy. Half a dozen of them had ten or fewer spiritual roots. He had already notified both Wei Ping and Long Yi about what to look out for during their respective recruitment, so the number of individuals with extremely low spiritual roots would only increase once he got back. It would be enough to satisfy the experiments he had in mind for now.

With fourteen new people joining the party, Li Lang swiftly told them to return to their homes in order to prepare for their move-out. He had explained about Star Gem Academy’s unique position and how far they were located from Changjiao City. He gave them a full week, not because he was generous, but because he needed to prepare for their transport and complete the local investigation.

His lone vehicle would never fit so many people, and then there was also the matter of exploring the crypt left behind by some Violet Core elder.

That’s why he wisely used the time to purchase a new Skyrunner before heading out in an attempt to claim an expert’s inheritance.

“If you were going to buy an Earth-grade Skyrunner in the end anyway, you should’ve done so when we were at Beast Port!” Jun Ziyan said with a shake of her head. “It would’ve shortened our journey by a good third.”

“I wasn’t sure how much transport I would need back then, and I’d prefer to do it this way, where I surely wouldn’t waste any resources.”

“If efficiency was your concern, you should’ve bought a peak Mortal-grade one like yours. Your old Skyrunner won’t be able to keep up with an Earth-grade one, so the extra money you spent was paid in vain.”

“Now that’s where our perspective on what is wasteful differs,” Li Lang said with a shrug. “This Earth-grade vehicle is a long-term investment. I plan to leave it as the academy’s shared property so my students can use it when they need to travel. It’ll preemptively satisfy my academy’s future needs."

The two went back and forth as they flew closer toward a swampland that was obscured by a heavy fog. They only stopped when they finally spotted the outpost by the base of a mountain, flying flags with the symbol of the Radiant Wing Sect on them. As their name implied, it depicted a pair of white angel-like wings against the backdrop of the sun.

“Here we are. The nameless crypt of some great expert,” the female Sword Saint disciple commented.

“Acting spoiled like the princess you are, I see,” Li Lang chided.

It caused her to stare at him with wide eyes.

“Don’t think for a moment that I missed the fact that you have the same surname as the Sword Saint. It must be nice to be the descendant of such a powerful cultivator, but to most people in the world, an inheritance left behind by someone who has reached the Violet Core Realm is to be treasured.”

“My ancestry has nothing to do with my upbringing!”

“Yes, yes. I’m sure you worked hard and earned everyone’s appreciation before they funneled resources your way.”

His words earned him a hostile stare that would surely kill him if looks could kill.

Deep down, he knew he was being childish, provoking the only bodyguard he had at the moment. However, he couldn’t help it. It was likely because he couldn’t stand hearing her acting so arrogant, disregarding the fortune from a Violet Core Elder as measly.

On second glance, it was partly out of jealousy, as she had access to countless resources at her disposal from birth. Li Lang despised how easy she had it compared to regular folks who had to scrounge up every last piece of spirit crystal to get what they wanted. Someone so privileged, having the audacity to put down what many risked their lives for, was the height of arrogance. It irked him the wrong way, considering he dealt with so many disadvantaged people with low aptitude.

The little argument caused the two to shun each other. They soon landed at the outpost and were greeted by a small group of young men and women.

“Greetings, Headmaster of Star Gem Academy,” they yelled out in unison. “Our masters have instructed us to watch over you, so please feel free to ask us for assistance should the need arise.”

“Thank you for your sect’s generosity,” Li Lang replied in turn. “I’ll surely take you up on your offer. For now, can we begin with a quick overview of this crypt your sect has found and how to get there?”

The leading young woman nodded and took the lead as their guide, leading Li Lang to a nearby tent. Inside was a large table with two maps covering most of it. The first map depicted the surrounding lay of the land, filled with swampland and mountains. The second was of an underground network of tunnels that went quite deep.

“I take it your sect has the entrance locked down and has an understanding of what awaits in this oversized coffin?”

“Locked down is perhaps not quite the right word,” the woman defended. “We don’t bully people away or claim the entire inheritance for ourselves. We are known to be just and fair. The reputation fostered by our incorruptible spirit is the best proof of that.”

Li Lang doubted that, but didn’t bother arguing. Orthodox sects treated their reputation as their lives. It would be foolish to contest them on it.

Instead, he urged them to stay on track, providing an overview of the crypt they found and any other useful tidbits of information. The guide patiently answered every detail they knew, which consisted mostly of knowledge learned by their juniors who had returned after a preliminary survey.

After their info session, they were then led down a set of tunnels toward the location in question.

The steep and narrow caves proved no challenge for cultivators who could literally fly. They went hundreds of meters deep until they arrived before a small waterfall. It wasn’t rare for subterranean water networks to form such waterfalls, but the key lay in what was behind it. If any mortals were here, they wouldn’t have noticed anything, no matter how thoroughly they investigated the place. However, for cultivators, they could pick up on the minor disruption in the flow of Qi once they got close enough.

“There’s no use inspecting it,” the Radiant Wing Sect guide warned Jun Ziyan. “Only those with a bone age under thirty and in the Foundation Establishment Realm may go any further.”

The Sword Saint disciple ignored the warnings and proceeded with running her hand against the wall behind the stream of water. The only thing she felt was the rocky surface. No matter how hard she pushed and prodded, nothing changed.

I never asked for her age, but I should’ve assumed it was nowhere near mine, considering she reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment already. Still, she acts so immature for someone over thirty. Another proof that spending most of your time cultivating from childhood stunts psychosocial development.

“Well, it seems we’ll have to part ways for now,” Li Lang said. “Consider it a vacation while I’m gone.”

Instead of retorting, Jun Ziyan turned to their guide.

“Are you sure there’s nothing too dangerous on the other side?”

“From what our juniors have explored so far, yes. Anything beyond that, we cannot say.”

“Hey now. No need to heckle our hosts like this,” Li Lang chided. “As much as you’d like to think of me as a child who is a danger to himself, I’m perfectly capable of operating alone. Though I won’t exactly be alone, considering two dozen disciples of the Radiant Wing Sect are already in there. Just sit back and relax.”

Jun Ziyan scoffed at his words.

“I don’t tell you what to do, so please don’t tell me how to do my job.”

Despite her harsh words, her body language betrayed her acceptance of Li Lang venturing off by himself. Seeing how it wasn’t productive to prolong the conversation, he clasped his fist toward his guide and placed his hand through the waterfall.

Unlike Jun Ziyan’s attempt, there was no obstruction, allowing his arm to sink through. His body quickly followed as he crossed into the inheritance space, proper.

Just as briefed, Li Lang found the other side to be indistinguishable from the tunnels outside. If he hadn’t carefully examined the entrance, he could’ve easily mistaken the place as just another continuation of the caves.

The smell of blood was faintly in the air, likely from the advance team’s scuffles with whatever tested their mettle. Even without the information from his allies, it was common knowledge that inheritances couldn’t be gained so easily. Traps and tests were common in order to test the challengers. It was what most experts would do in order to ensure their legacies get passed to someone qualified. As a result of this purpose, the dangers of these traps were usually limited, especially when the inheritance was left behind by a member of the righteous sect. Even in death, they wanted to uphold their pristine image.

That very same line of thought caused Li Lang to be completely caught off guard when he stumbled upon several dead bodies wearing the robes of the Radiant Wing Sect.

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