"Having a good figure doesn't mean you have a pretty face."

Gu Jianlin said with deep meaning.

Moon Princess was silent for a second, then coldly replied, "If you've seen my face, you have to marry me."

Gu Jianlin raised an eyebrow, "What era are we in? Are you trying to start a Renaissance?"

Moon Princess snorted softly, "Hurry in, you're walking in front."

After speaking, she stepped back half a step and tugged the boy's clothes.

Gu Jianlin winced, "What are you doing?"

Moon Princess said righteously, "It's too dark; I'm scared. You lead the way. You Divine people have Life Perception and can heal yourselves. I'm the damage dealer; shouldn't I stay behind?"

Gu Jianlin thought to himself, "Only a fool would believe that."

You just killed a Fourth Rank Overlord Path ruler in a second earlier, and now you're claiming you're afraid of the dark.

But he couldn't argue, especially since she had just saved him once.

"Stay behind me, and don't move unnecessarily."

Gu Jianlin took a deep breath and activated Life Perception.

Numerous chaotic Life Rhythms flooded into his senses, fortunately all small creatures like bats and rats—nothing that could pose a threat.

He was very weak at the moment. The Blue Blood was already consumed, leaving only the Breathing Technique for slowly regenerating his spirituality.

During a previous life-or-death chase, he had grasped the Breathing Technique's essence—its advanced application.

This advanced Breathing Technique seemed capable of creating a domain, cleansing supernatural forces within a range, allowing him to come out entirely unscathed even within the explosion's zone, completely avoiding harm.

However, the cost was exhausting all of his spirituality in one go.

And now, being under the oppressive range of the Heavenly Person Realm rendered his Ancient God abilities nearly useless.

So caution was paramount.

"Don't carry the Heavenly Evil Spirit with you."

Moon Princess instructed, "Leave it here."

Gu Jianlin froze and left the dark metal umbrella behind in the cavern before venturing deeper into the cave.

The two simultaneously pulled out their phones and turned on the flashlight apps to search around.

Cold and damp.

Gu Jianlin examined the cave walls, noticing the evident passage of time and numerous scratches left by human hands.

It seemed as though traces of people passing through here years ago still lingered.

"This cave is a secret passage leading deep underground. Before the 1930s, your Gu Family guarded this area. It was considered a secret base of the Gu Family."

Moon Princess hesitated before adding, "Back then, your family was a prominent clan. But after the 1930s..."

Gu Jianlin said expressionlessly, "Most of my family members died, didn't they?"

Moon Princess confirmed with a slight hum, "At that time, your family could no longer guard this place. But as long as we don't venture too deeply, it should be fine. Currently, there aren't many Forbidden Zones appearing within Peak City. Black Cloud City is the closest to the entrance to Qilin Immortal Palace, so the contamination is severe."

She paused and added, "If my guess is correct, there should also be an entrance beneath West Port."

Gu Jianlin frowned; this certainly made things trickier.

The Great Ruins within Black Cloud City had areas with deeper Calamity Ruins at its core, containing higher-level threats.

"Could the secret entrance mentioned by Mr. Liu be this one?"

Gu Jianlin casually asked.

Moon Princess replied indifferently, "Probably. But I'm not too familiar with him; I'm just someone paid to do a job. The You Ying Group is murky territory, filled with shady individuals not worthy of your trust."

Gu Jianlin nodded slightly and silently continued forward.

"Left."

Moon Princess directed from behind.

Following her instructions, Gu Jianlin explored the cave and turned left.

The corner of his shirt was gripped tightly; this girl truly seemed to be afraid of the dark.

"You know my sister, don't you?"

Gu Jianlin suddenly spoke.

"Nope."

Moon Princess continued giving directions, "Keep going forward, and take a right at the fork."

Gu Jianlin said nothing further. By the flashlight's beam, he observed construction marks everywhere in the tunnel, and an eerie wind surged through the cave, resembling the cries of ghosts.

He followed the girl's directions, moving deeper, where faint mist hung in the air ahead.

The flashlight revealed a Stone Gate up ahead.

On either side of the Stone Gate squatted two stone gargoyles.

For a fleeting moment, the gargoyles opened their eyes, blood-red glimmers slicing through the dark before they quivered slightly, shedding layers of ancient dust.

The commotion startled countless bats, which fled the cave in frantic waves.

"Trouble!"

Gu Jianlin was instantly alert, instinctively drawing the dagger left behind by his father.

Moon Princess remained composed and said, "Don't panic."

With a thunderous rumble, the two massive stone gargoyles unfurled their wings, unexpectedly refraining from attacking. Instead, blood-red feral patterns appeared all over their bodies, which began glowing intensely like heated iron.

They were preparing to explode!

It seemed someone had installed a mechanism here designed to obliterate everything should anyone trespass.

"You take the left; I'll take the right!"

Moon Princess suddenly stepped forward, slicing her palm and letting her blood drip onto the gargoyles. "Follow me!"

Gu Jianlin paused before imitating her, slicing his palm and pressing it against the gargoyle.

In an instant, the agitated gargoyles calmed down, the red-hot patterns fading away.

Their searing bodies began cooling.

"These are Alchemy Demons left behind by your Gu Family members."

Moon Princess explained, "To prevent unintended trespassing, they set up this mechanism."

Gu Jianlin glanced sideways at her and commented, "Blood alone can stop them from exploding? Clearly, it requires blood recognized by them. So stop pretending; you're my father's student, aren't you?"

Moon Princess continued denying, "Not at all."

With another thunderous sound, the Stone Gate swung open.

The hidden room suddenly became illuminated by scattered candlelight.

The chamber revealed itself to be a surprisingly well-decorated underground cavern. Wooden panels and wallpaper masked the rock walls. Furniture made of solid wood filled the area, including an immensely comfortable-looking bed draped with blue bedding, a large bookcase lining one wall, and a desk with a chair.

A massive portable power station occupied the desk along with a laptop.

Beyond that, the walls were adorned with various firearms, blades, and even numerous secret medicines!

Gu Jianlin immediately knew who this space belonged to.

Hanging on the wall was a photo of a flamboyant man in sunglasses posing on a beach, cradling a baby sucking a pacifier, with a bikini-clad woman lounging on a beach chair sipping juice nearby.

Damn.

Gu Jianlin nearly choked when he realized the baby in the photo was him—his bare bottom exposed.

How utterly mortifying.

God help him if the girl recognized him.

"That baby's you, isn't it? You were pretty adorable when you were a cub."

Moon Princess remarked, "Why are you so expressionless now?"

Gu Jianlin took a deep breath, choosing not to respond as he studied the room.

Old Gu sure was a cunning fellow.

Who knows how many secret bases he'd left behind?

The Black Cloud City's landfill didn't have much left.

But this place was entirely different.

"You brought me here deliberately, didn't you?"

Gu Jianlin traced the dust-covered desk, trying to boot up the laptop.

Surprisingly, it still had power and booted up without requiring a password.

Unfortunately, the computer held nothing significant—just tons of online games.

Gu Jianlin glanced at the ashtray on the desk, overflowing with cigarette butts.

Next to it were cans of Red Bull, bottles of Cola, and empty snack packages.

He could easily imagine the man sitting here, scratching his foot, puffing on a cigarette, and gaming.

"Not at all."

Moon Princess plopped onto the bed, looking rather leisurely. "I happened to stumble upon this place, suspected it to be a secret base left by your Gu Family, and thought I'd bring you here to see if we'd find anything worthwhile."

She claimed so, but she showed no interest in treasure hunting.

Gu Jianlin redirected his attention to the bookshelves, finding numerous files and documents.

From the pile, he uncovered a thick folder stamped with bold letters.

——Qilin Immortal Palace Investigation Report Summary.

"I, Gu Ci'an, the world's greatest archaeologist!"

"Today, I finally uncovered the origin of Qilin Immortal Palace!"

"Most importantly, I've discovered the secret of why Candle Dragon Venerable chose to execute Qilin Venerable and seal him here!"

[ps: First published on Qidian Reading App, next chapter at 11:30 PM.]