After wandering and laying low for a period of time, Wujin Ji decided that it may be time to search around a bit better.
It couldn't be that the place that was known for lost relics & ancient knowledge was all dried up, could it?
So to accomplish this goal he had begun doing all sorts of strange things in front of Fang Wei and Lu Changsheng.
He found a large boulder and touched all around it..
He found a suspiciously shaped outline on a wall and bombarded it with qi but there was no space beyond and they had to flee the scene.
He even jumped off a strange cliff he found in hopes of finding a passageway, but there was nothing.
Lu Changsheng's eyes popped out when he saw this but luckily due to his body cultivation and qi manipulation, he landed unharmed.
The two weren't very happy about having to wait for Wujin Ji to climb his way back up..
"For a place this infamous and synonymous with ancient knowledge, there's a whole lot of nothing.." Wujin Ji grumbled.
Just as the words left his mouth, the ground beneath them began to pulse with a rhythmic heartbeat. The trees around them started swaying in unison, not from wind, but from some internal rhythm that seemed to emanate from deep within the earth itself.
Fang Wei's face went pale as he instinctively reached for his sword. "This isn't normal!" he yelled, his voice barely audible over the growing sound.
Lu Changsheng's hand trembled as he gripped his weapon. "What's happening?"
The three of them were then teleported once more.
"What happened, Fang Wei?" Wujin Ji asked with a pained expression, rubbing his head and getting up from the ground.
The other two were also on the ground, the force of the teleportation was much stronger than the last.
"It seems we've been moved, but this doesn't look like the Crimson Forest.." Fang Wei mumbled as he tried to make sense of the situation.
"Wujin Ji, what exactly did you do? How did you activate another teleportation?" Lu Changsheng asked, immediately thinking Wujin Ji must have been successful in whatever he was doing.
"I'm.. not sure? I don't think that I activated this." Wujin Ji was a bit upset.
He had been trying to achieve something like this the entire time and now it happened so easily?
"It seems we've entered a cave.." Wujin Ji noted as he began to survey the surroundings.
The cave was very large compared to any typical cave residences used by cultivators but there was furniture that was spread out throughout the area.
"Well, clearly wherever we are was at one point used as a dwelling, but the size of this room alone is dizzying. This place seems capable of easily holding 50 people.." Fang Wei remarked as he too grasped the surroundings.
"You don't think it's the demonic sect, do you?" Lu Changsheng asked nervously.
"Most likely not. They would not live with this many people in one room, nor would it be abandoned." Fang Wei shook his head and concluded.
"Lu Changsheng you really got to get rid of your fear over the demonic sect.." Wujin Ji scratched his cheek.
"Wujin Ji, we've known each other long enough, just call me Changsheng and I'll likewise call you Ji." Lu Changsheng began.
"Now let me explain. You would know to fear the demonic sect more if you knew more about them.." a pale face overtook Lu Changsheng's.
"Sure.. Changsheng. Your name is still a bit long, I'll call you Chang." Wujin Ji accepted his request regarding their names.
"I understand a great deal about the demonic sect, trust me. I just have faith in my foundation." Wujin Ji shrugged.
Fang Wei broke the conversation and pointed.
"There seems to be a door over here, let's check it out!"
Lu Changsheng and Wujin Ji stopped their conversation and began to walk with Fang Wei towards where he had pointed.
The door looked ancient. There was moss sprouting along the edges of it and the material began to wither away.
"Well, we won't be leaving if we don't see what's behind. Alright, door number one!" Wujin Ji opened the door and the three entered the room.
In front of them was a blue entity that was almost entirely transparent.
It was in a lotus position, the body of it flickered constantly, clearly in an unstable state.
"So you've come." The voice resounded throughout the entire area.
Fang Wei and Lu Changsheng instinctively began to shake. The power from the voice alone was shocking.
"I am the one who brought you here. As you can see, my state is abnormal. If I do not recuperate, I may entirely dissipate." The figure said.
"Why did you specifically bring us here, and what do you plan to do?" Wujin Ji, the only one maintaining his mental state asked.
"You have a similar qi strand to one I know. He has already ascended to a realm above." The figure revealed.
Chills erupted on the three's bodies as they digested the words slowly.
Not only did the figure casually reveal another realm beyond this one, but Wujin Ji had a similar qi to an ascended?
What did this mean?
"As for me, I am currently in a spirit state. My soul is tied to this ring." The spirit floated a ring in front of him.
"I intend to recuperate and teach you my inheritance in return. I will help you break through with ease!" The spirit said as it slowly began to dissipate.
"I have used too much of my remaining power to converse with you, I must go into hibernation." The spirit then got sucked into the ring and the ring fell with a clinking noise.
The three slowly thought about the situation and Fang Wei eagerly picked up the ring in front of them.
Lu Changsheng frowned at the decisive action Fang Wei made, not even discussing it beforehand.
"I'm willing to share the inheritance with you two." Fang Wei said with a smile, holding it in his palm.
Lu Changsheng's expression took a 180. "Thank you senior brother!"
Wujin Ji walked up to Fang Wei and grabbed the ring.
"If you wanted to look at it you could have just asked!" Fang Wei said.
Wujin Ji then threw the ring on the ground and smashed it, channeling qi into his foot.
…
Silence was in the air as Lu Changsheng and Fang Wei processed what had just happened in front of them.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Fang Wei shouted as he picked Wujin Ji up by the throat.
Wujin Ji's expression was unchanged.
"JI! YOU'VE RUINED OUR FORTUNE!" Lu Changsheng screamed as he collapsed to the ground, he attempted to piece the ring back together but the spirit of the ring shot out and then dissipated.
"What is the big deal? I've saved the two of you from the future of a ruined foundation. Easily break through? What nonsense is that! To do so is simply a shortcut and look how that left him!" Wujin Ji sneered.
Fang Wei punched Wujin Ji in the face and let him down.
"You arrogant fool. He held valuable information and if anything, we could have brought him back to the sect!" Fang Wei angrily shouted.
"Yeah? And if he contained danger or harbored ill will towards our sect? You think he's righteous when he's in a place like the Crimson forest? Don't make me laugh!" Wujin Ji shouted back, unwilling to be called a fool.
"And you Chang.. I thought I taught you better than to greed after a shortcut." Wujin Ji sighed, he felt genuine pity!
"I am reporting you to the sect after we return! Do not expect it to end with just this." Fang Wei yelled and began to look around the room.
"Ji, I know you mean well but.. I needed this. I really did." Lu Changsheng sighed and got up, fixing his appearance.
"As tempting as a seductress is, the poison received is often more fatal than the pleasure gained." Wujin Ji simply replied and walked away.
He truly felt as if he had saved them!
As Fang Wei looked for the exit, the area around them began to dissipate as well and they were sent out.
"It seems we've been put back to where we were.." Wujin Ji muttered.
Fang Wei was in no mood to reply to Wujin Ji and simply nodded.