Chapter 74: The Underground City


    Han Ming approached the stone coffin and peered inside. To his astonishment, he found numerous colorful, spherical orbs glowing within.


    "This...!!"


    Han Ming was overwhelmed with joy, unable to contain his excitement as he exclaimed aloud.


    There were about seven or eight of these orbs, each similar in size but varying in color. They were exactly what he had been desperately seeking—the cores of magical beasts!


    This discovery thrilled Han Ming beyond measure.


    He knew the immense value of a single core. To find so many at once was an unimaginable fortune.


    The woman had indeed not deceived him.


    With gleaming eyes, Han Ming quickly collected each core, storing them in his pouch.


    There were two water-attribute cores, two wood-attribute cores, one wind-attribute core, and one earth-attribute core—six magical beast cores in total.


    Although there was no fire-attribute core, which he urgently needed, this haul was still a pleasant surprise.


    After collecting the cores, a pale blue sword was revealed beneath them, shimmering faintly under the dim light. It was clearly no ordinary weapon. Without time to examine its power, Han Ming casually tossed it into his pouch.


    Beside where the sword had lain was an ancient-looking book, its cover slightly worn. On it were three small black characters. Han Ming picked it up and scrutinized it closely.


    "Transmutation Art!"


    Wasn''t this the demonic technique Li Xiaotian had mentioned? A method to steal others'' essence to enhance one''s own power, which had fallen into the hands of the demoness. How did it end up here?


    Han Ming was at a loss. Should he burn this harmful technique, or...


    After much hesitation, he decided to keep the Transmutation Art in his pouch. He reasoned that as long as he didn''t practice it or let others do so, it couldn''t cause harm. There was no need to destroy it.


    One pleasant surprise followed another. When Han Ming looked back into the coffin, he found a Flamegrass plant!


    It seemed luck was truly on his side.


    Han Ming was ecstatic.


    With the Flamegrass he had previously collected, he now had two. If he exchanged the six magical beast cores for fire-attribute ones, excluding the two useless water-attribute cores, the remaining four could likely be traded for two fire-attribute cores. Including the two water-attribute cores, he might even get three fire-attribute cores. Thus, out of the five fire-attribute cores he needed, he now effectively had three.


    He was getting closer to gathering all the materials needed to hunt the Mystic Ice Silkworm.


    The coffin was now empty.


    Han Ming replaced the lid and, carrying the woman, headed towards the other end of the secret passage.


    His spirits were high. Having trained with Li Xiaotian and Bai Kai in the cave for a year, plus the previous few months, he had about seven months left before the two-year deadline. Time was pressing, but the treasures he had found alleviated some of his stress.


    The passage was far longer than Han Ming had anticipated. Carrying the woman, it took them half a day to reach the end.


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    At the end of the passage, a torch hung on the stone wall.


    Han Ming guessed it was the mechanism to open the stone door.


    Twisting the torch, the door rumbled open, and bright light streamed in, stinging Han Ming''s eyes.


    Squinting, he shielded the woman''s eyes with one hand.


    Looking out, he found himself at the foot of a large mountain.


    "Do you know where we are?" Han Ming asked the woman.


    He was unfamiliar with the area but guessed it was near the Secret Sect''s mountain. However, he had been captured and brought here unconscious by Bai Kai and others.


    "This is a mountain outside the Underground City, already beneath the Wild Forest. About two days'' journey west will take you to the Underground City," the woman replied.


    Han Ming nodded, surveying the area. The vegetation here was slightly different from that in the Wild Forest—mostly low plants, with a few towering ones piercing the sky. Looking up, Han Ming saw no blue sky but a vast expanse of stone and earth, resembling a ceiling.


    This must be the roof of the underground world where the Underground City was located. The towering plants penetrated this ceiling, reaching upwards.


    Han Ming was amazed to see numerous lantern-like objects floating in the air above.


    The woman explained they were called Sky Lanterns.


    Since the Underground City had no sunlight, special lamps were created for its unique environment. Each Sky Lantern emitted a bright light, illuminating the mysterious underground world as if it were daytime.


    Marveling at the sight, Han Ming carried the woman into the forest, heading towards the Underground City.


    Over the next two days, Han Ming continuously cast healing spells on the woman.


    Since her essence had been drained, unlike an injury, Han Ming could only use healing spells to sustain her life.


    Initially, he planned to leave her at the first sign of civilization, but now that seemed impossible. Without his help, she wouldn''t survive three days.


    The journey drained Han Ming''s water-attribute crystals rapidly. Constantly casting healing spells and overusing them to infuse life into the Destruction Butterfly eggs left him exhausted. Following Li Xiaotian''s advice, he separated the seven eggs, focusing on infusing life into only one.


    After two days of travel, they finally arrived at the outskirts of an enormous city.


    The city''s most remarkable feature was its construction—almost entirely from vegetation. Towering trees served as pillars throughout the city.


    Two rows of guards stood at the city gate, meticulously inspecting everyone entering.


    Han Ming whispered instructions to the woman, set her down, and approached the gate to inquire about entry.


    A guard, unimpressed by Han Ming''s ordinary attire and slight build, disdainfully gestured towards a small wooden table where ten gold coins were required for entry.


    "Ten gold coins? That''s outrageous!" Han Ming was speechless.


    At the table, an elderly man asked, "How many?"


    "Two."


    "Twenty gold coins."


    Han Ming was furious. "This is daylight robbery! Twenty gold coins? You might as well steal it."


    The old man glanced at him indifferently. "Pay or leave."


    Han Ming was incensed but had no choice. His financial situation was tight. Although he had obtained several medium-sized crystals from the黑衣人, those were reserved for exchanging into smaller water-attribute crystals. He couldn''t afford to waste them on gold coins. Yet, he needed to enter the city to exchange for more small water-attribute crystals, as his supply was running low.


    The Underground City was likely the last city he would encounter in the Wild Forest. If he didn''t exchange here, he would have to leave the forest, which he couldn''t afford time-wise. Reluctantly, he handed over twenty gold coins.


    "Should''ve done that earlier," the old man muttered, handing Han Ming two wooden tokens. "Keep them safe. Lose them, and it''s ten gold coins each to replace."


    Han Ming rolled his eyes, snatched the tokens, and went back for the woman.


    However, where he had left her, a crowd had gathered, laughing and jeering.


    Pushing through, Han Ming was horrified to see several burly mercenaries urinating on the woman, whistling and mocking her.


    "Such an ugly woman!"


    "Ha! Looks like a ghost. Wonder where she crawled out from."


    One mercenary, laughing, twisted his waist, urinating on the woman''s head. "You''re so skinny, not even worth raping. Let me water you, maybe you''ll grow into a pretty girl, haha!"


    The crowd roared with laughter.


    The woman lay there, eyes wide, glaring at the mercenary.


    Suddenly, a figure appeared behind the mercenary.


    "Ah!"


    The mercenary screamed as a hand pierced through his chest, holding a still-beating heart.


    "Kill him!" the other mercenaries roared, pulling up their pants and drawing swords.


    Han Ming moved swiftly, easily breaking their legs with sharp kicks.


    Bones protruded grotesquely from their flesh.


    The onlookers, terrified by Han Ming''s ferocity, tried to scatter.


    "None of you are leaving. Each of you will urinate on these mercenaries'' heads, or die here," Han Ming declared coldly.


    The crowd, frightened, began to comply, urinating on the writhing mercenaries.


    "What about you?" Han Ming asked a hesitant man.


    The man, terrified, stammered, "I-I''m sorry. I didn''t mean to watch. But I can''t urinate right now."


    Han Ming nodded, then swiftly grabbed the man''s arm, twisting it sharply.


    A sickening crack echoed as the man''s arm broke, and he collapsed, wailing in pain.


    "You can go," Han Ming said indifferently, then turned to the crowd. "Anyone else can''t urinate?"