They rested by the lake overnight. The next morning, they set out, starting from the largest peak.

Dragon Cypress parked the Dominating Throne at the mountaintop. He and Ink Orchid then began searching downwards, one taking the south side and the other the north.

Insect Clan Warriors were accustomed to carving out caves beneath steep cliffs. They specifically went to those steep areas, searching with their spiritual power.

Nothing, nothing, nothing...

Dragon Cypress completed the search as quickly as possible, rushing back to the Throne to urgently replenish his Primordial Energy.

"'I didn't find anything...'" Ink Orchid said, following him back. It rested for a good while to regain its strength before asking, "Dragon Cypress, should we search the east and west sides as well?"

"Let's take a look," Dragon Cypress replied. He twisted open a can of Origin Force Ant Honey, dipped a bit to eat, and handed it to Ink Orchid.

Most Insect Clan Warriors habitually excavated caves on the south or north sides of mountain peaks. However, this didn't exclude some contrarian Insects who insisted on building their caves on the east or west faces.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid recovered their Primordial Energy, rested well, and then set off again.

Still, there were no discoveries.

Half a day passed.

After a brief rest, the Dominating Throne took off and parked beside a smaller peak.

They continued searching.

By noon, there were still no results.

They continued searching through the afternoon and late into the night.

The next day, they continued, still to no avail.

On the third day, there was still nothing.

Four days passed without a single find. They had searched 11 of the 17 peaks.

「Late that night, they ate by the lakeside to replenish their Physical Strength.」

Dragon Cypress began to analyze the situation. "Too much time has passed," he said. "The geography has changed, and the caves once excavated by Insect Clan Warriors have long since collapsed. If Xinghu Lake has a treasury like the one on Huagi Mountain, the entrance tunnel must have collapsed. It might also be due to landslides or the movement of earth and rock, which would have buried the entrance."

"'Yes—'" Ink Orchid agreed.

In the vast, mountainous woodland, an environment void of Origin Force, merely searching for cave entrances on steep cliff slopes with spiritual power was exhausting enough. Looking for entrances buried under rocks, soil, trees, and shrubbery was even more arduous. Even if they invested an entire winter, there was no guarantee of discovery.

Ink Orchid asked, "Dragon Cypress, have you thought of a good method?"

"I haven't found a good method," Dragon Cypress replied, "but I have thought of a clumsy one."

"How clumsy?" Ink Orchid inquired.

Dragon Cypress explained, "We choose a suitable spot and dig a tunnel directly into the mountain. Referencing Huagi Mountain, if Insect Clan Warriors built a treasury inside a mountain, they would likely have used their Earth System Abilities to harden and reinforce it. After digging a certain distance, we should encounter it."

"That method isn't very smart..." Ink Orchid said, then sighed. "But I can't think of a smarter one either."

Dragon Cypress stated, "I'll dig, and you haul the dirt."

Ink Orchid suggested, "We should hunt a wild boar and make a pigskin bag."

Dragon Cypress continued, "Insect Clan Warriors living in colonies usually have their Leaders residing in the tallest mountain peak to highlight their leadership status. We'll still start from the largest peak. We'll find a suitable cliff and begin digging from a spot a bit below the mountainside."

"Okay!" Ink Orchid agreed.

「The next morning, they went up the mountain.」

Dragon Cypress chose a spot, cleared the surrounding vegetation, and parked the Dominating Throne nearby before starting to dig with his claws. The tunnel didn't need to be too big—a diameter of about 40 centimeters was sufficient, as long as they could squeeze through. After digging for a while, he would back out, return to the Throne to rest and replenish his energy.

This continued off and on for two days. When they had dug fifty to sixty meters deep into the mountain's belly, the brownish-red shale suddenly turned dark brown and became exceptionally hard.

"'Dragon Cypress?'" Ink Orchid, who was following behind, noticed at once.

"'We've hit it!'" Dragon Cypress exclaimed, retracting his six legs and backing up.

Ink Orchid pushed Dragon Cypress back with a claw, urging, "Why are you backing up? Hurry and dig in!"

Dragon Cypress was speechless for a moment. He then explained, "Those are King-Level Earth System Abilities. It's permanently hardened—ten thousand times harder than my claws."

"'Oh—'" Ink Orchid exclaimed. "You come out. My turn!"

Dragon Cypress exited the tunnel. He went back to the Dominating Throne to rest.

Ink Orchid crawled in alone but quickly came back out. "'The Insect King's Ability is indeed powerful,' it said, 'nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine times harder than my claws. I can't dig through it either.'"

Ink Orchid pondered aloud, "What do we do now? Look for the entrance? There must be one. If it exists, we can definitely find it. But this mountain is huge. How should we even start looking?"

Ink Orchid, its enthusiasm soaring, vigorously started brainstorming.

Seeing that Ink Orchid couldn't come up with anything after a while, Dragon Cypress slowly said, "Inherited Memory guides Insect Clan Warriors to build caves beneath cliffs to avoid wind, rain, and natural enemies, and to facilitate the dry storage of seeds. This principle is immutable. Regardless of how a mountainside might slide, it's unlikely for cliffs to become gentle slopes. Therefore, we should continue looking below the cliffs. We'll have to dig test spots. Dig down close to the cliffs, each hole about four to five meters deep. That should suffice."

Ink Orchid tapped its tentacle, sighing, "That method also seems a bit clumsy~"

"'Don't rush,' Dragon Cypress said. 'We'll take our time looking.'"

Dragon Cypress controlled the Dominating Throne, making it rise slowly into the air. He flew around the mountain, sizing things up for a while, before finally parking on the mountaintop. He observed and made silent calculations.

He led Ink Orchid to the southeast side of a cliff. After looking left and right, he picked a spot and signaled to start digging.

They began digging straight down. Ink Orchid stood outside, using a Spider Silk Rope to hoist out bags made of animal skin filled with soil and broken rocks.

Soon, the first hole reached a depth of four or five meters.

Nothing.

They switched to another location and continued.

Nothing.

This method was still time-consuming and laborious...

Dragon Cypress asked, "Ink Orchid, your turn?"

"'My turn?' Ink Orchid replied. 'Ants are better at digging holes.'"

"'I want you to pick a spot,' Dragon Cypress said. 'Where do you think we should start digging?'"

"'Oh—'" Ink Orchid took a few steps, thought for a moment, then its tentacle pointed. "Here!"

They started digging again.

Nothing.

Ink Orchid chose another spot.

They dug again.

Still nothing...

Beneath the forty to fifty-meter cliff, there was now a long row of eight vertical holes.

Just as Dragon Cypress was seriously doubting Ink Orchid's supposed intuitive Perception...

When the ninth vertical hole reached a depth of two or three meters, Dragon Cypress's head hit broken stones. Out of habit, he swept the cliff face with his spiritual power...

His tentacle shuddered.

"'Here! I found it!'" Dragon Cypress exclaimed.

"'Found it?'" Ink Orchid couldn't quite believe it at first, then burst into ecstatic cheers. "Dig quickly!"

Dragon Cypress clawed furiously at the earth. As he had suspected, the entrance had been blocked by weathered and fallen cliff rocks, along with soil moved by heavy rains over many years. Towards the cliff face, there was only a layer just over two meters thick that his spiritual power could penetrate, and he easily breached it.

Ahead was a semicircular passage, about 1.5 meters wide, with stone walls solidified by Earth System Abilities. The passage turned left, then right.

Another ten meters or so forward, they found a spacious, hemispherical cave. In its center was a square platform crafted from green jade. This was a living area. If distinguished guests visited, they would sit around the platform, with food placed on top.

The cave was filled with branches. Cypress branches. As the blocked passage was opened and fresh air flowed in, these branches quickly decayed, darkening and crumbling.

"'This is—'" one of them began.

"'It looks like—'" the other continued.

"'The remains of a Divine-Given Seed!'"

"'A Cypress Divine-Given Seed!'"

"'A Prolific Dragon Cypress Tree?'"

The map of Huagi Mountain recorded that Xinghu Lake had three Wild Divine-Given Seeds, one of which was a Prolific Dragon Cypress Tree.

Was it this one?

Dead—

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid stared at each other, their hearts sinking with sorrow. After the sadness passed, they couldn't suppress a burgeoning thrill of excitement.

Dragon Cypress led the way, quickly moving through the passage into an adjacent cave. Shattered Carapace remains of Insect Clan Warriors littered the ground. Neatly stacked Cypress branches. A sweep with spiritual power confirmed it: these were side branches from a tremendously large Cypress Divine-Given Seed.

The passage continued forward, leading to another cave after just four or five meters, also filled with branches.

Following the passage as it spiraled downward, they found chambers at regular intervals. Each one they inspected was filled with branches, roots, and tree trunks cut and broken into strips and blocks. They were in various states of decay and carbonization. The Primordial Energy within them had almost entirely depleted, but the inherent properties of what was once a Top-Level Divine-Given Seed were still present.

Knowledge newly acquired from the Huagi Mountain Knowledge Hall stated that the remnants of Divine-Given Seeds were the highest quality fertilizer. They were especially beneficial for the growth and development of Cypress Life Seeds, particularly Dragon Cypress Tree Life Seeds.

Ink Orchid asked excitedly, "Dragon Cypress, are we rich now?"

"...It seems we are," Dragon Cypress replied thoughtfully.

"These caves," Ink Orchid gestured, "were they originally used to store Source Stones?"

"Evidently," Dragon Cypress affirmed.

"'Then—'" Ink Orchid began, its excitement growing. It quickly rushed further down.

Dragon Cypress followed at a leisurely pace, unfazed. He mused, Ink Orchid has consumed plenty of Black Lotus Seeds, but its discernment hasn't improved much. With a little thought, it should be clear: if there were Source Stones, how could this Prolific Dragon Cypress Tree Divine-Given Seed have died?

Sure enough, Ink Orchid soon came running back. "'Xinghu Lake is much poorer than Huagi Mountain!' it exclaimed. 'The caves below are empty. No Source Stones! And no Outworld Civilization Artifacts either!'"

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