"Hmm?"
Just as Tang San finished absorbing his second Soul Ring and prepared to leave, a faint glimmer suddenly appeared in the distance.
Activating his Purple Demon Eyes immediately, Tang San spotted something reflecting light amidst a pile of fallen leaves not far away. Had he not cultivated his Purple Demon Eyes to the peak of the Panoramic level, nearing the Microscopic stage, he might have missed this subtle reflection.
With Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track enhancing his movements, Tang San's feet seemed to glide across the ground as he flashed several times to reach the leaf pile. With a sweeping motion of his hand, he generated a gust of wind that scattered the leaves, revealing a massive stone slab beneath.
Seeing this enormous slab hidden beneath the foliage, Tang San suddenly realized—this must be the Mountain Moving Goblin's cave that those Soul Masters had mentioned earlier. He hadn't known about this creature's habits before. Truly, in the world of Soul Masters, fortune and misfortune often came hand in hand.
"How interesting. There happens to be a piece of ore that fell nearby." Tang San bent down to pick up the small reflective fragment. He guessed it must have chipped off when the Mountain Moving Goblin was transporting ores back to its den.
Although Tang San had access to the Clear Sky Sect's substantial resources, there was no reason to leave potential treasure behind when discovered. Even capitalists needed to stockpile when opportunities arose.
With a low shout, Tang San gripped the edge of the slab and exerted force. After obtaining his second Soul Ring, his physical strength had multiplied several times over, allowing him to flip the massive stone slab over effortlessly.
After sensing the cavern beneath, Tang San retrieved what appeared to be a flashlight-like Soul Guidance Device from his Storage Ring Soul Guidance Device. Channeling Soul Power into it caused it to emit a bright light.
By the illumination of this Flashlight Soul Tool, Tang San finally got a clear look at the cavern entrance up close.
The opening was surprisingly spacious, exuding an air of mysterious depth. Around the entrance were numerous scratch marks—some fresh, likely left by the Mountain Moving Goblin during ore transportation, while others appeared ancient, almost as if deliberately carved by human hands.
"These marks are orderly yet chaotic, as if someone was practicing something here," Tang San mused as he walked, studying the crude markings on the walls. He couldn't shake the feeling that he'd seen similar patterns somewhere before.
As Tang San's fingers traced the cave walls, his Purple Demon Eyes suddenly contracted sharply in the darkness. He realized why the patterns seemed familiar—what he had mistaken for natural grooves in the rock bore striking resemblance to circuitry patterns found on Soul Guidance Devices.
"This isn't just a Spirit Beast's den. Could there be something related to Soul Guidance Devices in this cave?" Tang San's heart began pounding wildly. Soul Guidance Devices had always been an enigma—their history seemed deliberately erased, with even the Heaven Dou Imperial Family and Spirit Hall knowing nothing about their origins or manufacturing methods.
What puzzled Tang San most was that not a single offensive Soul Guidance Device had ever been discovered across the entire Douluo Continent. All existing devices were completely non-destructive, which seemed inconceivable to a Hidden Weapons craftsman like himself.
How could tools capable of absorbing and converting Soul Power lack any offensive capabilities? And if offensive Soul Guidance Devices had existed, where had they all disappeared to?
Tang San channeled his Soul Power, attempting to infuse it into the scratches on the wall. However, the Soul Tool Inscriptions were clearly incomplete, making it impossible for the Soul Power to conduct through them.
"There must be something more inside. I hope the Mountain Moving Goblin hasn't destroyed it," Tang San thought, quickening his pace as he ventured deeper into the cave.
What Tang San feared most was that the Mountain Moving Goblin, while transporting the ores, might have accidentally damaged whatever lay hidden within the cave. That would truly be a great loss.
Yet, to his dismay, he was already too late.
The scene deep inside the cave left Tang San breathless. Embedded in the rocky wall was a shattered, unknown Soul Guidance Device. From the opened stone box on the ground, it was evident that the device had once been stored inside before being violently hurled against the wall by the Mountain Moving Goblin, resulting in its destruction.
The surface of the unknown Soul Guidance Device was now covered in dense vines of Blue Silver Grass, indicating that it had been broken for some time. Its metal casing bore ghastly gashes from the Mountain Moving Goblin's claws, revealing an intricate internal structure so complex it was breathtaking.
Tang San approached the shattered stone box, running his fingers over its surface. His Profound Jade Hand detected uneven patterns etched into the stone.
"These patterns... they resemble the Nine Palaces Plum Blossom Lock used by the Tang Sect in ancient times, as depicted in the Soul Guidance Device's imagery," Tang San murmured, his expression turning grave. He lightly tapped the stone box with his Profound Jade Hand, producing a peculiar sound.
There was a hidden compartment in the bottom of the stone box!
The intricate Nine Palaces Plum Blossom Lock mechanism had originally been used by the Tang Sect to safeguard their most classified secrets. Back when he—no, when the Tang San from the Soul Guidance Device's records—had stolen (or rather, borrowed) the Wrath of Buddha Tang Lotus blueprints from the Tang Sect, he had cracked this very mechanism. This memory had been recorded within the Lotus Soul Guidance Device, allowing Tang San to know a thing or two about it.
With a series of creaking sounds, the hidden mechanism began to turn as Tang San carefully manipulated it. With a click, the bottom of the stone box popped open, revealing a yellowed blueprint inside.
Time had taken its toll—the moment the blueprint was exposed, it rapidly oxidized. The characters had long since faded, leaving only fragmented traces of what had once been written.
"Energy circuits modified using Soul Tool Inscriptions... What does this mean? And this lotus pattern—it looks somewhat like the Tang Sect's Wrath of Buddha Tang Lotus..."
Tang San's breathing grew heavy as he examined the blueprint. His Purple Demon Eyes scanned every inch, leaving no detail unnoticed. Unfortunately, the blueprint had existed for far too long. Upon contact with the air, the paper quickly disintegrated into dust.
"Such a shame... It's been too long," Tang San sighed helplessly. There was no way to prevent such natural oxidation, even with Soul Power.
Picking up his illuminating Soul Guidance Device, Tang San approached the wreckage of the device destroyed by the Mountain Moving Goblin. Now was clearly not the time for thorough examination. Channeling his Soul Power, he activated his Storage Ring Soul Guidance Device and packed away the entire device, along with its scattered fragments, the broken stones, and even the stone box itself, intending to study them later.
"I'll take these ores as well."
With a glance at the ores the Mountain Moving Goblin had hauled in, Tang San decided to take everything. By the time he left, the cave had been thoroughly stripped bare—after all, he had conquered this place himself, so of course he would claim it all.
Tang San's gains this time were truly bountiful. Not only had he obtained his second Soul Ring, but his second Martial Soul was also on the verge of awakening completely. Additionally, he had acquired a broken ancient Soul Guidance Device—an absolute windfall.
Several days later, Tang San smoothly returned to Clear Sky City. Upon his return, instead of heading to the auction house or the Soul Duel Arena, he went straight back to the Clear Sky Sect.
In fact, the moment Tang San left the Sunset Forest, members of the Min Clan had already spotted him and sent word back. By the time he entered Clear Sky City, the news had long since reached the sect.
"My son, how did it go? Everything go smoothly?" Seeing his son return safely, Tang Hao burst into laughter. Even without asking, he knew Tang San's soul ring hunt must have been successful.
(End of Chapter)