Chapter 102: Misfortune and Blessing Intertwined

“Be careful when entering the Immortal Pool Ruins. The Immortal Pool Ruins are different from the Ancient Chiyou Cave. The latter has no repelling effect, but the former exhibits a slight one. If you experience this phenomenon upon entry, do not panic—you can still force your way in.”

Ye Zifei stood beside Ou Xinlai, offering him advice.

Since it was Ou Xinlai’s first time venturing into the Immortal Pool Ruins, he listened intently to Ye Zifei’s words. It was clear Ye Zifei must have visited the Immortal Pool Ruins before. For others, the expedition to the Ancient Chiyou Cave was priceless, but to Ye Zifei, it likely held little value.

That was why Ye Zifei had not joined the last journey to the Ancient Chiyou Cave.

Before long, at midday, the sun shone fiercely, blinding everyone. Suddenly, a streak of spectral light flickered across the sky. Ye Zifei had already warned Ou Xinlai in advance, so he knew this spectral glow signaled the grand opening of the Immortal Pool Ruins.

At once, not only Ou Xinlai but all who were aware of the event surged toward the radiant glow.

Sure enough, those who were slightly slower, like Ou Xinlai—just barely able to keep their eyes open—saw many people flying straight toward the light. Yet, in the blink of an eye, those individuals seemingly vanished into the light only to reappear back at their starting points.

Naturally, they refused to be repelled by the Immortal Pool Ruins and tried again, flying toward the glow repeatedly. This resulted in two outcomes: some managed to enter, while others were repelled once more.

The grand opening of the Immortal Pool Ruins was limited in duration, and Ou Xinlai had no time to watch others’ antics. Mounting his flying sword, he too sped toward the spectral light.

Although many were repelled, the majority managed to enter. However, luck was not on Ou Xinlai’s side. As he approached the glow, its brilliance intensified until it was blinding, turning his vision into a white haze.

When his eyesight gradually cleared, he found himself back at the starting point, watching the same spectral light that marked the Ruins’ opening.

Seeing this, the little white snake chuckled, “Young lady, looks like your luck isn’t good. Hurry up—the gates of the Immortal Pool Ruins won’t stay open much longer.”

Ou Xinlai rolled her eyes. “If my luck is bad, how’s your snake luck any better? If I can’t get in, I’m not the only one losing out.” She reminded the little white snake that perhaps the Ruins held something it sought.

The little white snake agreed; if Ou Xinlai couldn’t enter, how would it gather the missing treasures it needed? After all, it was still years away from completing its collection.

Ou Xinlai made another attempt, but was repelled again. She tried three times in total, failing each time.

This wasn’t unique to her; a few others shared the same fate.

The spectral glow gradually shrank, and with it, the chances of entering the Immortal Pool Ruins diminished. Many grew discouraged and stopped trying.

Yet, Ou Xinlai fixed her gaze on the fading light, gritted her teeth, and made one last desperate dash. If she failed now, it would mean she was truly barred from the Immortal Pool Ruins.

“Miss, stop trying—it’s useless,” some who had given up said irritably. Every time the Ruins opened, this happened. They couldn’t understand why she persisted instead of accepting her fate like the rest.

Ignoring them, Ou Xinlai charged toward the glowing spot. At that moment, the little white snake emitted a streak of purple lightning that enveloped her entirely.

For anyone else, this purple lightning would be fatal, but the little white snake had long said Ou Xinlai was the ideal heir to this power, so she suffered no harm.

Those waiting to see her fail watched in astonishment as the purple lightning surrounded her. Then, just like the spectral glow, Ou Xinlai transformed into a single point of light and vanished along with it.

The men who had been prepared to watch her disgrace gaped in shock, their jaws dropped so wide their uvulas were visible. “Who... who exactly is she?” one exclaimed. Never before had anyone entered the Immortal Pool Ruins at the very last second before closing—especially not accompanied by such mysterious lightning.

“Damn, where did this woman come from?!” they grumbled bitterly.

Once inside, Ou Xinlai found no one else—it was as if she had completely separated from the others who had entered before.

Unlike the Ancient Chiyou Cave, the Immortal Pool Ruins was a vast place filled with a white luminous haze. Its name—Ruins—suggested remnants of broken walls and rubble. Seeing this, Ou Xinlai frowned. “Is this what the Immortal Pool Ruins really look like?”

With limited experience, she naturally turned to the little white snake.

The little white snake raised its head and shook it. “When I first took form, I came here—it was quite different from what we see now.”

“Then where am I?” Ou Xinlai wondered. Could it be she arrived at the Ruins’ tail end, and something had gone wrong?

“I’m not sure. Keep moving forward,” the little white snake encouraged, uncertain but hopeful.

With no village ahead and no refuge behind, Ou Xinlai had no choice but to press onward.

As she advanced, a lingering unease gnawed at her.

“Little white snake, sense again—could something be wrong?” Ou Xinlai suddenly stopped, feeling the emptiness of the Immortal Pool Ruins was too strange. Could it be some illusion? Maybe the place she was in wasn’t the same as where Ye Zifei and the others had gone.

“Don’t worry. This should be the Immortal Pool Ruins, even if it looks somewhat different from before,” the little white snake said, swaying its tail. “I definitely smell the unique aura of the Ruins here, so we haven’t gone astray.”

With the snake’s reassurance, Ou Xinlai stopped doubting.

“Do you hear anything?” Suddenly silent, Ou Xinlai’s ears sharpened, catching faint sounds.

“What sounds?” The little white snake raised its head, scanning carefully, but the surroundings were empty—no people, no vegetation, and no sound at all.

Ou Xinlai tilted her head. “Something’s wrong. I feel like I’m quite close to where Ye Zifei and Dan Ziyao are.”

She couldn’t explain why, but that was her instinct.

“Do you mean there’s a concealing illusion preventing us from seeing others?” The little white snake considered this possibility.

Ou Xinlai didn’t confirm but tapped her foot. As she moved, the mist around her feet parted slightly.

Squinting, Ou Xinlai was taken aback by what she saw.

Beneath her feet stretched a dark mass of people—Ye Zifei and Dan Ziyao among them—surrounded by ferocious beasts. These beasts had trapped all the cultivators who had entered the Immortal Pool Ruins. Before any treasure hunting could begin, the formidable monsters had already encircled them.

Each beast looked imposing and savage. To Ou Xinlai, they appeared to be mutated species. Judging by their size, she suspected they had been born shortly after the little white snake, living on this earth for perhaps five or six hundred years.

But the Immortal Pool Ruins only opened once every ten years.

If such dangerous beasts truly inhabited the Ruins, how had previous explorers never encountered them?

These beasts were extremely fierce. Because Ou Xinlai arrived late, she hadn’t been caught in the fray. Those who entered just before her suffered lighter injuries. In short, whoever was the first to charge into the Ruins this time had truly met misfortune, ambushed by these beasts.

Ou Xinlai noticed many wounded people bleeding heavily, clustered in the center nursing their injuries, while the more capable fought the beasts at the perimeter.

Dan Ziyao, under Ye Zifei’s protection, remained unharmed but looked pale and shaken, clearly frightened by the ordeal.

Seeing a dozen towering beasts circling nearby, Ou Xinlai raised an eyebrow. This wasn’t the Immortal Pool Ruins—it was a beast’s den.

“How could this be?” The little white snake was shocked, realizing they were somehow invisible to those below, as if existing in separate worlds. They could see the people beneath, but the people could not see them.

This gave the snake a new understanding of the Immortal Pool Ruins.

Hearing the name “Immortal Pool” naturally evoked the legendary Heavenly Court, where immortals freely observed the mortal world below. The mortals, however, could never glimpse the carefree lives of the immortals.

Was this not exactly Ou Xinlai’s current situation?

Could it be that all previous explorers had entered a false version of the Ruins, while Ou Xinlai’s was the true Immortal Pool Ruins?

Yet, the treasures found below in the other Ruins were genuine.

Ou Xinlai kept fanning away the mist, trying to get a clearer look at the scene below. Suddenly, she spotted a beast leaping toward Dan Ziyao!

Damn, an ambush!

Squinting, having cleared the vapor, Ou Xinlai saw the scene vividly, as if it unfolded before her eyes.

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