Chapter 446

Chapter 446: River God?

Seeing that he had found nothing more, Ji Yang stopped dwelling on it and turned to leave the balcony.

Outside the balcony, beside the original gazebo, a new unknown path appeared. Looking around, there were no other routes, and even the blue stone path he had entered from had vanished.

It seemed that once he entered this place, he could only move forward, not backward.

Ji Yang’s face remained calm as he lightly walked toward the path beside the gazebo.

Just right, he still wanted to collect more essence, and he also wanted to see where this path might lead him in the end.

…

"Where am I?"

The young man looked at the stone bridge that suddenly appeared ahead, a look of caution on his face.

After he chose a path, he arrived at this location, and the unknown surroundings made him feel a bit of panic.

But as a Void Refinement stage cultivator, even though he was only at the Void Refinement Stage, he quickly calmed down and carefully surveyed everything around him, especially the bridge not far ahead.

After a moment of observation, he found no differences or dangers, which reassured him considerably.

After hesitating for a moment, the young man slowly stepped onto the stone bridge. Below the bridge was a flowing river.

The water was clear, and the surroundings were silent, with only the sound of the flowing water.

The young man walked cautiously on the stone bridge while paying attention to the river below.

To prevent being caught off guard, he summoned his life-bound treasure.

It was a glowing lamp, capable of offense and defense, a perfect combination of offense and defense.

With the young man’s guidance, the lamp emitted a faint white shield that enveloped him, providing a sense of safety.

But just as the young man activated his treasure, it suddenly vanished from his hand, and even the connection between his primordial spirit and the treasure disappeared without a trace.

Watching the glowing lamp disappear, the young man’s expression changed drastically.

Although it was just an ordinary mid-level treasure, it was his life-bound treasure, one that had cost him many spiritual stones and a great deal of effort to obtain. Now it had simply vanished?

The young man felt a chaotic rush in his heart as he searched everywhere on the bridge, but found nothing at all.

Just when he didn’t know what to do, a whirlpool gradually formed in the river below.

Realizing something was wrong, the young man immediately wanted to retreat!

Although his treasure was important, it could be refined again; his life was only one, and he could not afford to lose it.

As the young man hurriedly stepped back, a gentle voice suddenly came from behind him:

“Oh lost cultivator, did you drop this lamp of treasure level? Or this lamp of spiritual treasure level, or perhaps this lamp of Heavenly Communication Artifact level?”

Hearing the voice behind him, the young man immediately showed a cautious expression. When he turned quickly, he saw a plump figure hovering above the river.

This figure was formed entirely from flowing water, tall with several arms, and its feet were in the river, appearing quite strange.

It wore a smiling expression, but the young man felt a deep sense of fear.

Facing an unknown opponent, the young man’s face darkened as he demanded,

“Who are you?”

"Hehehe, I am the River God, governing this water area. However, I am bound by the rules here and cannot take action; I can only pick up things occasionally."

Listening to the explanation, the young man felt a slight shock in his heart.

River God? What is that?

But looking at the familiar treasure in the River God’s hand, the young man’s eyes flickered because there, in his left hand, lay the glowing lamp that had just vanished.

Linking it to what the River God had just said, the young man felt half-believing and half-doubting.

However, since this "River God" had not chosen to attack, perhaps he could really get his treasure back.

After all, that treasure was something he had worked hard to acquire, and he could not easily give it up.

"So, did you drop this glowing lamp of treasure level? Or this glowing lamp of spiritual treasure level, or perhaps this glowing lamp of Heavenly Communication Artifact level?"

The River God asked again while raising the three treasures in his hand.

The young man now focused on the three treasures held by the River God. The leftmost one was the glowing lamp of treasure level, which had a small chip on it—a mark from when he fought a ferocious beast at Mid Void Refinement.

Clearly, this was his treasure.

But when the young man looked at the glowing lamp in the River God’s other hand, his gaze immediately froze, for the aura emanating from this lamp had already reached the level of a spiritual treasure, and it was filled with an intriguing essence of the Way, a special essence that came with spiritual treasures.

If he could obtain this spiritual treasure, even though he was only at the Void Refinement Stage, he would have a place in this secret realm.

The young man silently swallowed, then shifted his gaze to the treasure in the River God’s right hand.

That was also a glowing lamp, but this one far surpassed the might of any spiritual treasure. Just looking at it, he could see endless flames burning within, its power sufficient to create cracks in the surrounding space without even needing to be activated.

Upon closer inspection, the lamp appeared to hold a world of its own! It was immensely profound!

"Heavenly Communication Artifact?"

"Is this really a Heavenly Communication Artifact?"

The young man muttered, his eyes filled with longing for the last two treasures.

In contrast, his own treasure had long faded into dullness under the brilliance of the latter two treasures, losing its vibrant colors.

His eyes burned with desire, but upon seeing the smiling "River God" before him, his gaze gradually calmed down.

After deeper consideration, the young man pointed to the glowing lamp of treasure level in the River God’s left hand and spoke:

"This is the treasure I dropped."

He naturally wanted the last two treasures, but facing this unknown-strength "River God," he dared not act impulsively.

For now, he should first retrieve his own treasure and then make further plans.

Hearing the young man’s answer, the River God nodded repeatedly and smiled:

"You are truly an honest cultivator!"

The young man felt a trace of joy at the praise, but before he could respond, the River God continued:

"As a reward, use this treasure!"

"?"

Before the young man could react, the two other treasures in the River God’s hand disappeared, leaving only his glowing lamp behind.

But then, the glowing lamp brightened immensely and, without hesitation, launched an attack at the young man.

In the hands of the River God, the young man’s treasure was actually more powerful than when he used it himself.

Moments later, the young man’s figure vanished, and the river returned to calm. However, at the bottom of the clear water, a glowing lamp lay quietly in silence.

In the center of that glowing lamp, a terrified eye flickered and disappeared.

Not long after, another figure appeared in the distance.

As this figure emerged, the tranquil river began to flow slowly again, and the glowing lamp on the riverbed was gradually covered by sediment, making it impossible to see a trace of it.

Ji Yang, holding an iron pick, stared thoughtfully at the stone bridge ahead.

He had just sensed some magical fluctuations.

But as he approached, the magical fluctuations had already dissipated, leaving only the empty stone bridge before him.

However, the earlier magical fluctuations also informed Ji Yang that this place was not an isolated space; other cultivators could come here as well. He had simply arrived early, so he had not encountered anyone else yet.

It was likely that he would meet someone sooner or later, but now that his strength had returned, Ji Yang did not mind.

Holding the iron pick, Ji Yang quickened his pace, clearly unconcerned about the hidden dangers around him.

As he made his way here, he had not encountered a single essence of the Way, not even a single hair.

This made Ji Yang, who wanted to break through sooner, quicken his steps even more, eager to come across his second opportunity, especially after realizing that other cultivators could come here too. This feeling made his urgency even greater.

The essence of the Way was his; no one should snatch it away.

When Ji Yang reached the top of the stone bridge and looked down at the flowing water below, he momentarily thought about casting a line here.

He wondered what treasures he might catch by fishing in this spot.

Determined to do it, just as Ji Yang began to change the form of his iron pick, the object in his hand—including the causal fishing rod—vanished without a trace.

This sudden turn of events left Ji Yang slightly stunned, and he immediately followed his primordial spirit mark to search for his iron pick.

Though this iron pick was somewhat outdated now, it had accompanied him for a long time. This item was not only a treasure but also his tool for survival; how could he let it go missing?

Through his primordial spirit exploration, Ji Yang quickly sensed an invisible barrier separating his primordial spirit mark from his treasure, which prevented him from quickly locating his iron pick.

However, when Ji Yang fully activated the Huang Ting Dao Jing, that barrier quickly seemed unable to hold on and began to falter.

At that moment, Ji Yang sensed that his lost iron pick was indeed lying in the water below.

"Humph, such audacity!"

Looking at the river below, Ji Yang snorted coldly and prepared to reach out to retrieve his iron pick.

At that moment, a whirlpool suddenly emerged in the river!

The appearance of the whirlpool caused Ji Yang, who was about to act, to pause and look on with curiosity.

But as Ji Yang watched, a sense of long-lost excitement welled up in his heart, for it reminded him of the previous encounter with the old man.

This feeling signified that his opportunity was about to come.

This realization temporarily dissolved Ji Yang’s anger over losing his treasure, and he quietly observed the unusual happenings in the river.

After all, with the primordial spirit mark, he couldn’t permanently lose his iron pick.

Soon, a figure in the river began to materialize, and familiar words escaped its mouth:

"Oh, lost cultivator, did you lose this iron pick of treasure level… or this iron pick of spiritual treasure level? Or perhaps this iron pick of Heavenly Communication Artifact level?"

"Are you the River God?"

Looking at the figure made of flowing water in front of him, Ji Yang exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes, I am the River God."

"Essence of the Water Way, is it? It doesn’t seem like it, though. What a shame; it seems incompatible with my own essence of the Way."

As he gazed at the suddenly appearing River God, Ji Yang appeared to be pondering deeply.