Chapter 838 - 273: Spring of Future, Calamity? (First Update)
In the Nine Springs Cave, the path was rugged and intricate, crisscrossing like a spider’s web, making it impossible to distinguish directions.
Even the Spiritual Sense had lost its ability to probe here.
Mu Qingge could only rely on her instincts, constantly choosing the branching paths that led upward, hoping to quickly reach the surface.
"About half of those who entered are still here. Also, I haven’t seen that masked man. It seems he left half of his people above, waiting for me." Mu Qingge calculated in her heart as she walked.
In the Nine Springs Cave, monsters were lurking.
Outside the Nine Springs Cave, pursuers were lying in wait.
It had been a long time since she found herself in such a dilemma, yet Mu Qingge was never one to hesitate. In her mind, those on the surface were much easier to deal with than the monsters hidden in the Nine Springs Cave.
So, now she needed to find a way out.
"Is it that high?" Mu Qingge looked up at the never-ending branching path. She felt that it wasn’t this high when she jumped down. How could it be that she walked for so long and still couldn’t see the end?
Suddenly, she felt the ground beneath her feet give way.
Before she could react, the ground beneath her feet collapsed like quicksand, revealing a black hole, into which Mu Qingge fell rapidly.
The moment she fell, Mu Qingge’s mind had only one thought, ’Damn it! All that climbing for nothing!’
Below the black hole seemed to be an endless space with nothing to hold onto.
Mu Qingge felt herself rapidly falling, as if returning to the depths of the earth, with nothing but emptiness to grasp.
Bang—!
Mu Qingge fell into a very damp place. As she landed, she rolled with the momentum, dissipating the inertia and stood up unharmed.
However, as soon as she steadied herself, she was enveloped by endless white mist, making her stand still, not daring to move.
’Everything here is so eerily strange. It’s best not to act rashly.’ Mu Qingge’s eyes darted left and right as she thought to herself. She couldn’t be sure if there was some kind of monster hidden in the mist.
The white mist wrapped around her tightly, as if examining her for danger.
Moments later, it receded a bit, seeming to have concluded its inspection.
Mu Qingge’s eyes scanned the surroundings as she wondered, where is this place? Exactly where did she fall? And how does she get out?
Suddenly, she seemed to faintly hear the sound of flowing water.
’Water!’ Mu Qingge’s heart tightened. Reacting quickly, ’Could it be one of the Nine Springs?’
This conjecture made her take a tentative step forward.
As she moved, the white mist retreated a step, revealing a step of her view.
In sight were glistening stones, layers upon layers like lotus leaves, seemingly formed by water flow over millennia.
Mu Qingge took another step, and the mist retreated another step.
Thus, as Mu Qingge walked, the mist retreated. With every step forward, the space behind her was quickly filled by the mist, allowing her to see only a step ahead.
Mu Qingge took over ten steps, gradually approaching the sound of water.
In those ten steps, nothing dangerous happened, prompting Mu Qingge to quicken her pace toward the sound.
She got continually closer to the water sound and, when it seemed just within reach, she reached out a hand into the mist. The mist she touched with her fingertips shyly retreated, allowing her to see the scene ahead.
An ancient spring appeared no more than five steps away.
The spring water trickled slowly, producing the sound of flowing water. And the white mist was emanating from this spring, permeating the space.
"It really is one of the Nine Springs!" Mu Qingge was slightly delighted.
She had heard the legends of the Nine Springs but hadn’t expected that her desperate journey would actually lead her to one.
"It’s said that each of the Nine Springs has a different effect. Some can heal wounds, some grant eternal youth, some are toxic, while others cure all diseases. Some springs reportedly allow you to see the past and future, predicting fortune. I wonder what effect this spring before me has?" Mu Qingge quickly approached the spring, leaning her head toward it.
Originally, the flowing spring water suddenly stilled.
In the spring, the reflection of Mu Qingge appeared, her features gradually becoming clear, the water still as a mirror, clear and transparent.
In that instant, Mu Qingge couldn’t discern whether the person in the mirror was truly herself or if the person standing beside the spring was her.
Just as she was filled with wonder, the image in the spring beneath her feet changed.
The person in the reflection was still her.
However, she was now dressed as a woman, surrounded by the chaos of war.
Mu Qingge’s eyes widened, filled with amazement. She thought to herself, ’Could the legend be true? The spring among the Nine Springs that reveals the future—did I really come across it by such fortune?’
Yet, before she could revel in this joy, her expression turned cold.
In the spring, something seemed to flash, and as the image vanished, the water resumed its flow, leaving no trace. Backed by the revelation, Mu Qingge staggered, stepping back with a face as pale as a sheet.
’Why did this happen? Is this really the end?’ Mu Qingge seemed to have suffered a huge blow, her expression was dazed, and she kept murmuring to herself.
"No! I will never let this happen! Since I’ve learned this bit of divine insight, I will never let it reoccur!" Mu Qingge’s eyes regained their determination.
The path she cultivated was, after all, the Heaven-defying Dao.
What she wanted was to control her own fate! Whatever destiny, whatever predetermined conclusion, whatever future that can be predicted, all of it can be broken!
A tear fell from her eye, but she raised her hand and fiercely wiped it away.
She turned around, looked at that spring, took a deep breath, and said solemnly, "Thank you for letting me see that scene, but I will never let that happen!"
With that, she strode away.
The white mist, as before, constantly retreated and then filled in again.
Mu Qingge, in the white mist, couldn’t tell direction and could only walk by intuition. She didn’t know if she would encounter another spring...
’So what if I do?’ Mu Qingge thought to herself.
This journey, being able to encounter the spring that could predict the future, was already a great stroke of luck. At the very least, knowing the conclusion allowed her to think of ways to avoid and change it!
...
Mu Qingge walked in the white mist for an unknown length of time.
Gradually, the white mist thinned, though still present, it was no longer an obstacle to her vision, allowing her to see clearly within a ten-foot range.
This place was still a cave, with paths extending in all directions. However, those passages seemed very narrow, densely covering the cave walls.
Mu Qingge looked at those passages and felt something strange.
Because these passages all seemed identical, all circular, as if drilled by something.
"Ah——!"
Suddenly, a scream came from afar, making Mu Qingge quickly turn her gaze in the direction of the sound.
At this moment, a gust of chill wind mixed with a stench attacked from her other side.
Just as it was about to reach her cheek, Mu Qingge suddenly leaned back, using the Star Beginning Step under her feet, her body twisting in a difficult maneuver to avoid the sweep of that chill wind.
She spun on the ground, not yet steady, already feeling something trying to attack her.
Mu Qingge retreated to the side, creating distance, and this time she finally saw clearly what was ambushing her.
Tentacle!
’It’s that monster again!’ Seeing the tentacle standing before her, those suckers full of sharp teeth, Mu Qingge was no stranger. Her heart sank, not expecting to circle back and encounter it again.
Suddenly, Mu Qingge’s peripheral vision moved slightly to the circular hole on the cave wall behind the tentacle.
Previously, she was curious why all these holes were the same shape, as if drilled by something. Now, she understood at a glance, fearing these holes were all drilled by these tentacles!
"Did I actually end up in that monster’s lair!" Mu Qingge really admired her own Heaven-defying luck!
The tentacle gave Mu Qingge no more time, launching another attack on her. Mu Qingge, with her nimble body, kept dodging, trying to find a chance to leave.
Her opportunity lay in those holes in the wall, drilled by the tentacles!
Anyway, whichever hole it was, it must lead out of here, so she just needed to enter one at random.
As for the scream just now—
She wasn’t a savior; she couldn’t even protect herself right now, so why would she want to save someone else? Moreover, who else could be in this Nine Springs Cave besides her?
Mu Qingge’s target was clear, continuously making feints to find a chance to dash through the gap between the tentacles and reach the hole.
Just when she was only a step away from diving into the hole, another tentacle appeared from nowhere, blocking her path.
The suddenly appearing tentacle made Mu Qingge’s pupils contract as she quickly retreated.
Once touched by this tentacle, it’s hard to shake off. Mu Qingge retreated, and the tentacle behind her also pursued. In an instant, she was sandwiched between two tentacles, about to be entangled by them.
At the critical moment, Mu Qingge’s body moved like a fish, slipping out through a gap, while those two tentacles twisted together.
Mu Qingge didn’t have time to rejoice, capturing the opportunity to run toward the hole.
However, just as she leaped, she felt a tightness around her ankle. Looking down, she saw a third tentacle surging from below, wrapping its tip around her ankle.
Mu Qingge’s gaze turned cold, and her Linglong Spear appeared in her hand. As the tentacle pulled her down, she fiercely stabbed it.
Linglong was a Holy Artifact, naturally far sharper than ordinary weapons.
Puff!
Linglong pierced into the tentacle, which, pained, released Mu Qingge’s ankle.
Just then, another tentacle swept across, striking Mu Qingge’s abdomen. The powerful force rushed into her body, knocking her backward, blood spilling from her mouth.