Chapter 99: The Enigma

One was the long whip held by the stone statue. Beside the whip lay a book, presumably the “prized skill” that the ancient sect disciple had mentioned.

Shang Lu couldn’t help but feel excited and quickly stepped forward to grab the book first.

But just as his hand touched it, something unexpected happened.

The spot on the book where Shang Lu made contact immediately crumbled into powder.

Damn! Shang Lu was startled and quickly withdrew his hand.

At the same time, he felt relieved that he had only touched the edge of the book.

Otherwise, the entire book might have turned to dust, which would have been a complete loss.

Frowning deeply, Shang Lu wondered why this had happened.

Was it because the book had decayed over time—appearing intact but disintegrating upon touch?

If so, how could he possibly learn the knowledge contained within?

As Shang Lu was troubled by this, he suddenly noticed the incense sticks still burning in front of the statue’s crushed remains.

The flickering flame sparked an idea in his mind.

He took out a fire striker, opened the lid and blew gently to rekindle the ember. Once the faint flame was alive again, he held it close to the already decayed book and set it ablaze.

Soon enough, the entire book was reduced to ashes.

Shang Lu put away the fire striker and turned to San Niang.

In her hands, there actually appeared a book identical to the one just burned.

There was even a notch in the lower right corner of the book—the exact place where Shang Lu had damaged it.

Fortunately, the damaged spot did not affect any of the text inside.

Though Shang Lu couldn’t directly touch this book, it didn’t matter since San Niang could help him turn the pages.

The pleasure of reading with a lady by one’s side—this was the dream of many scholars.

However, when Shang Lu approached and saw the characters on the book’s cover, he was dumbfounded.

The characters were not the script used by the Ba Kingdom.

There were three characters on the cover, but Shang Lu could barely recognize the first character, “Bai.”

The other two characters were completely unfamiliar.

When San Niang opened the book, Shang Lu was even more bewildered.

Most of the characters inside were unrecognizable to him.

And those he did recognize, he dared not be sure if their meanings were the same.

He didn’t dare guess recklessly; if he misinterpreted and practiced incorrectly, he might fall into demonic cultivation and destroy himself.

“Only after leaving this secret realm and finding someone who understands ancient script can I get help translating…” Shang Lu thought to himself.

If this secret realm was related to ancient sects or relics, then there must be many people proficient in ancient language.

Perhaps even the Witch Academy taught such knowledge.

Telling San Niang to keep the book safe, Shang Lu then tried to grab the soft whip again.

Compared to the book, the soft whip was much sturdier.

He grasped it and flicked it; it didn’t crumble to powder but instead made a crisp “snap” sound.

Its power seemed undiminished from former times.

Shang Lu was pleasantly surprised and examined the whip carefully.

The outer layer was wrapped in what appeared to be several types of animal leather, while inside was a crystal-clear, tendon-like core.

Shang Lu couldn’t tell exactly what beasts’ tendons or leather were used to make this whip, but it was certainly no ordinary material.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t have remained intact and powerful even now.

“Looks like I’ll have to learn some whip techniques in the future,” he thought.

He intended to put the whip away but then decided to wrap it around his waist instead.

Having gained these treasures, Shang Lu was in no rush to leave.

He dug a small pit on the spot and collected the fragments and powder from the shattered statue, burying them carefully.

Since this predecessor had passed down his cultivation method and weapon, it was only right to give a proper burial.

After burying the remains, Shang Lu lit a pair of candles and three incense sticks before leaving with San Niang.

They twisted and turned through the passage for about a hundred meters before Shang Lu spotted a gigantic stalactite ahead.

This enormous stalactite hung from the cave ceiling like a sharp sword, blocking most of the path.

Judging by its size, it would take several people holding hands to wrap around it.

Besides its size, there was also a carved relief on the stalactite.

The carving depicted a bizarre creature:

Its body resembled a snake, but its head was a horned tiger’s, and its four hooves looked like those of oxen or horses…

A truly strange chimera.

Beneath its feet, it was stepping on something indistinct—whether flames or auspicious clouds, Shang Lu couldn’t tell.

To his astonishment, as he studied the stalactite and the carving, the chimera’s eyes moved, turning to look directly at him.

The carving could move?

Shang Lu immediately felt a chill and hastily used the Ape Walk technique to hide behind a nearby rock.

But at that moment, a voice echoed in his mind:

“You little worm, where do you think you’re going, not obediently staying within the beast enclosure? This is no place for you to roam or trespass.”

Worm?

This strange chimera was mistaking him for a worm raised in the beast enclosure?

Shang Lu thought that maybe this chimera was nearsighted, unable to tell if he was a person or a bug.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Shang Lu felt a force envelop him.

Suddenly, his body began to change.

The surroundings instantly grew larger, and he found himself no longer standing on solid ground but suspended in midair, rapidly falling.

At this moment, Shang Lu realized he had truly been transformed into a worm!

A plump, pale creature resembling a silkworm or maggot.

Damn! Shang Lu was horrified.

What kind of spell could turn a person directly into a maggot?!

Even the livestock-creating techniques he had heard the elders mention weren’t this powerful!

Could this be the terrible and strange nature of the secret realm?

Panicked, Shang Lu desperately tried to revert to human form.

But he had no idea how to dispel this spell and transform back.

Just as he was about to call for San Niang’s help, the chimera in the carving noticed the clothes and whip that had fallen when he transformed.

The chimera showed no interest in the clothes but was drawn to the whip.

“Chu Yun’s beast whip? So you are not a little worm raised in the beast enclosure, but a disciple of our sect—Senior Brother Chu’s newly accepted apprentice,” a voice said in Shang Lu’s mind.

With the voice’s sound, his body changed once more, returning from maggot to human.

Back in human form, Shang Lu gasped heavily, sweat soaking through his clothes.

His clothes had magically settled back onto his body.

This left him puzzled, uncertain whether what had just happened was an illusion or reality.

At the same time, Shang Lu felt grateful that he had offered incense to Chu Yun, which had earned him the beast whip.

Otherwise, whether illusion or not, he might still be a maggot now, unable to recover.

Though the chimera in the carving could send its voice directly into Shang Lu’s mind, it could not read his thoughts.

At this moment, it was murmuring to itself in Shang Lu’s mind:

“It’s been so many years since new disciples have appeared. Unexpectedly, recently there have been three in succession…”

That remark instantly brought Shang Lu’s thoughts back.

Three new disciples?

One is me; who are the other two?