A mighty cultivator planning to seize a body and be reborn wouldn't possibly go through all that trouble without preparing some startup funds, right?
What, was she supposed to succeed in her possession, then start working odd jobs as a Qi Refining cultivator to earn spirit stones?
That'd be way too pathetic.
You You, still thrilled from meeting someone who practiced the same cultivation technique, froze when she heard Xie Zhaolin's question. Then a smug grin spread across her tiny face, the kind that said, Finally, you're asking the right question.
"Hehe, my master's really smart!" she said with a playful sparkle in her eyes, her tone full of pride. "Of course I've got something! You think I, You Ji, would ever be that poor?
For this rebirth, I moved everything I had! It's all hidden deep inside this cave mansion!"
She waved her small hand, introducing her treasures with great enthusiasm.
"There's soul-nourishing jade marrow and Mind Condensing Pills, all prepared to stabilize my newly formed Primordial Soul! There are high-grade spirit stones and enough pills to cultivate up to the Golden Core stage!
And a bunch of rare refining materials, a few spare spirit tools, and even a Guardian Puppet I personally refined—it's equivalent to a late-stage Golden Core cultivator!
Oh right, and the most important thing!" she added excitedly. "The core component of my Ten Thousand Puppets Codex! That's the heart that controls the entire cave mansion and every puppet left inside!"
She listed the treasures one after another like she was showing off precious gems, her eyes shining bright as if she could already see herself sweeping across the Cultivation Realm again after her rebirth.
But just as her excitement peaked, her tone shifted, and her expression suddenly fell.
"However… you know, Master, this secret realm's been running for thousands of years…" she muttered, her voice turning guilty. "To keep it operating, especially those three Nascent Soul puppet generals… I kinda burned through most of my reserves."
Xie Zhaolin arched a brow. "Oh? And then?"
"Then…" You You's face twisted in anguish. "Then, to keep the realm running, to power the five trials, and especially those Nascent Soul puppet generals…
After a few thousand years… it's all, well, it's all almost gone!"
Her voice trembled more and more, full of heartbreak. "Wuuuh, my top-grade spirit stones! My Ten-Thousand-Year Ironwood! My Star Core! Everything's gone!
You think maintaining an array strong enough to trap and kill Nascent Soul cultivators doesn't cost energy?!" she cried. "That was a killing formation, you know! I was just a fragment of soul with no way to replenish my spiritual energy. The fact I lasted this long is already a miracle!"
Xie Zhaolin stayed silent for a while. She focused her divine sense on the feedback from their soul contract, confirming that You You wasn't lying.
The result surprised her a little, but the more she thought about it, the more it made sense.
A secret realm that had been running on its own for thousands of years would've consumed a staggering amount of energy. The fact that it hadn't collapsed entirely was already proof of how immense You Ji Shàngrén's wealth must've been in her prime.
"So," Xie Zhaolin summed up, her tone calm and unreadable, "what you're saying is that aside from the knowledge in your head and those ruined trials and puppet remains outside, there's nothing of real value left in this cave mansion?"
"That's not… entirely true!" You You blurted out quickly, clearly unwilling to look poor. "A skinny camel's still bigger than a horse! There's still something left!"
Her tiny face stiffened with stubborn pride. "Master, come with me! I'll show you!"
Guided by her voice, Xie Zhaolin followed her through several tunnels until they arrived at a side hall deep within the cave mansion, covered by layers of dim, fading restrictions.
When Xie Zhaolin broke through the worn barriers following You You's directions, both of them froze at what they saw.
The hall was empty. Only a few pried-open chests and scattered fragments of low-grade spirit stones lay on the floor.
"Huh?! Where's my spirit stone vault?!" You You screamed. "I stored a hundred thousand high-grade spirit stones here!"
Expressionless, Xie Zhaolin moved to the next location—a stone chamber labeled Pill Room.
The stone door was slightly ajar, and inside was the same scene of emptiness. A few overturned jade bottles lay on the floor, and only a faint trace of medicinal fragrance lingered in the air.
"My pills! My Nascent Soul Pills! My Nine-Turn Rebirth Elixir!" You You's voice broke as she started to panic.
Their third stop was a storage hall for refining materials.
Its barriers had been violently shattered long ago. The room had been completely looted, leaving behind only worthless scraps and rusted bits of metal.
"My Star Sand! My Ten-Thousand-Year Ironwood! My Geng Metal Essence! Which bastard did this?!" You You's voice trembled with rage as her little face flushed bright red.
They checked several more locations, but every single one was the same—empty. Clearly, through the long passage of time, several groups of intruders had entered the cave mansion, stripping it of nearly everything valuable.
"Ugh… no wonder I sometimes felt the realm's energy replenishment was off…" You You muttered in despair, her voice trembling with fury. "So it wasn't just consumption… my whole fortune's been robbed by those damned little thieves!"
She was so angry she could barely speak. The thought that all her painstakingly gathered wealth had been plundered while she sat cluelessly inside the jade slip made her want to drag those thieves out of their graves and tear them apart.
Xie Zhaolin looked over the desolate ruins, her expression calm. It was exactly as she'd expected. A masterless cave mansion that had existed for thousands of years couldn't possibly still be intact.
The fact that its core inheritance and You You's remnant soul were still here was already a miracle.
"Looks like there's really nothing left," she said quietly, turning to leave.
"Wait!" You You suddenly shouted, her voice trembling with one last spark of hope. "There's one more place! The last one!"
Her tone turned urgent. "That's my true secret vault, where I kept my most precious possessions! And…"
She paused, her voice turning firm and confident. "The restrictions there are unique! Only my original Primordial Soul can open it. Any attempt to force it will trigger the self-destruct formation and destroy everything inside!
So, there's no way anyone could've opened it! Everything's definitely still there!"
At that, Xie Zhaolin stopped in her tracks and looked at the jade slip. "Lead the way."
Under You You's guidance, she moved through several narrow, hidden passages—some so concealed they required specialized movement arts to pass through.
At last, she stopped before what appeared to be a plain section of rock wall, seamlessly blended into the mountain itself. The wall looked completely ordinary, not a single fluctuation of spiritual energy. It was so well-hidden it could easily be mistaken for part of the natural cave.
"This is it!" You You's voice quivered with excitement and a trace of nervousness. "Master, relax the barrier around the jade slip. Let a strand of my original soul energy out…"
Xie Zhaolin did as instructed, though her divine sense stayed sharp, locking firmly onto You You's remnant soul. A thin thread of soul energy floated out of the jade slip and gently touched the rock wall like a key entering its lock.
Buzz—!
The surface of the wall rippled like water, then silently sank inward, revealing a narrow passage just wide enough for one person.
A faint, ancient aura wafted from the opening.
Xie Zhaolin stepped inside.
What she saw made her pause.
The stone chamber wasn't large, but unlike the previous empty storerooms, this one looked completely different.