At the end of the path was a small cave entrance, only big enough for about three people to pass through, shrouded in a thick, hazy fog.

A pair of sharp dragon horns on Egg Pancake’s head glowed with a brilliant red light as it hovered above the White Bone Forest. Its thick dragon claws pointed toward the bottom of the tunnel. "Cheep cheep~"

At such a close distance, Han Ning’s Spiritual Perception could faintly detect a dilapidated and sinister aura seeping slowly out from the pitch-black mouth of the cave.

He closed his eyes and focused his senses for a moment, then said to the Soul Beasts around him, "Egg Pancake, you head back to the Soul Beast Space first. Yin Yi will scout the path."

"Cheep~"

The passage was too small, so Egg Pancake let out a dejected cry as its master recalled it into the Soul Beast Space.

Yin Yi rustled its leaves, the light shimmering from its body growing a shade brighter as it took the lead and entered the passage.

Suddenly, dozens of head-sized "black crows" with drooling mouths, pitch-black wings, and scarlet eyes burst out from the underground passage with a great rustle of wings, blocking their way.

"CAW!"

A cold light glinted in the flock of crows’ eyes. It was clear they did not welcome the newcomers.

Han Ning took a closer look and saw that leading them were three large crows wreathed in black mist, their Spiritual Energy fluctuations far from weak.

"Night Nether Crows? Yin Yi, they’re all yours."

Yin Yi floated slightly off the ground as thick vines began to sprout from its body.

In the blink of an eye, it grew from a height of just over 1.8 meters to a five-meter-tall behemoth.

It clapped its hands together, whipping out numerous long, thick, black vines, each dozens of meters in length, and shot them toward the flock of Night Nether Crows.

At the same time, the air beside Han Ning rippled slightly. Space suddenly tore open, revealing a pair of crimson Dragon Eyes.

The flock of Night Nether Crows had just begun to react to Yin Yi’s attack when they felt an irresistible, immense pressure bearing down on their bodies.

"CAW!!"

Before the dozens of Night Nether Crows could even fight back, they were struck by thick Vine Whips and sent crashing heavily to the ground.

Immediately after, Emerald Flower Thorns streaked through the air like a violent storm.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

A series of dull thuds echoed through the quiet tunnel. One after another, the Night Nether Crows’ feathers were torn, and blood splattered. It was clear they wouldn’t survive.

After dealing with the obstructing Soul Beasts cleanly and efficiently, Han Ning collected the Crystal Stones from their bodies and continued deeper into the tunnel.

As he squeezed into the pitch-black entrance, the pungent stench of rot instantly assaulted him.

The first thing he saw was a floor covered in mangled corpses, their original forms unrecognizable.

Large, small, insect, beast—all sorts of long-decayed Soul Beast carcasses were piled together, a thick stench permeating the empty cavern.

Hundreds of Night Nether Crows of all sizes surrounded the corpses, happily pecking at the slimy flesh on the ground.

’...So many corpses. The sinister energy is indeed dense...’

Han Ning covered his nose and scanned the area. All he saw was filth and chaos. There was no sign of the Dark Spring he had imagined; instead, he had stumbled into the Night Nether Crows’ nest.

Their arrival had undoubtedly disturbed even more of the Night Nether Crows.

In an instant, countless ghastly gazes swiveled to focus on him and his Soul Beasts.

"S-Sorry to disturb..."

Han Ning cursed inwardly, just about to turn and leave.

But just then, Fei Lin, who was in his arms, suddenly chirped, pointing toward the center of the pile of corpses while staring at him with expectant eyes.

"What is it?" Han Ning gestured for Yin Yi and the several Puppet Soul Beasts to block the front as he asked Fei Lin what she meant.

"Eee~ Eeee!" Fei Lin didn’t know how to explain, so she just kept sucking her thumb, making a gesture as if something was delicious.

’...I get it.’

He nodded, keeping the Soul Beast Space open, and said to Egg Pancake, whose head was poking out, "Egg Pancake! Stop them!"

Keeping the Soul Beast Space open continuously drained his Spiritual Power, but it allowed Egg Pancake to join the battle. This was a method he had discovered for Egg Pancake to fight in cramped spaces.

"Cheep cheep!"

The two feelers on Yuanbao’s forehead instantly ignited with seething crimson flames.

The moment the flames flared, all the densely packed, head-sized Night Nether Crows smaller than one meter suddenly burst into raging fire. They let out agonized shrieks as they fell where they stood, swiftly reduced to ashes.

"Egg Pancake, unleash your heat!"

"Dragon Breath!" Han Ning ordered in a low voice.

"Cheep cheep!"

Egg Pancake let out a resonant dragon’s roar and opened its mouth toward the Night Nether Crows before them.

In an instant, the dim cavern was engulfed in brilliant crimson flames. The dark red glow of the fire merged with the draconic power of its lifeblood, transforming into a terrifying stream of particles that rained down.

WHOOSH—

The terrifying Dragon Breath poured wantonly over the ground.

Whether it was a newly hatched Night Nether Crow or the two gigantic ones over five meters tall, all of them were coated in the thick, blood-colored blaze.

The agonized shrieks and the crackling sound of bursting limbs formed a symphony of death.

In an instant, the entire cavern had transformed into a blazing inferno of agony.

The Dragon Breath lasted only three seconds. The cavern, which had been deafeningly noisy just moments before, now fell into an eerie silence.

"Chee-woo..." Egg Pancake shook its head and ducked back into the Soul Beast Space.

Although breathing dragon fire looked cool, with Egg Pancake’s current Spiritual Energy reserves, it could only sustain the blast for three seconds. Compared to Yin Yi’s endurance, it still had a long way to go.

The piled-up rotten corpses had been scorched by the high-temperature flames into charred husks that emitted a strange, burnt stench.

A surging heat wave lingered in the cavern, raising the internal temperature by at least a dozen degrees Celsius.

At this moment, Fei Lin pointed again, this time at a spot beneath a pile of charred remains.

"Eeee~"

"You’re saying there’s something underground?"

"Eeee!"

Fei Lin nodded and began to swing her little snow-white feet restlessly.

Worried that there might still be unburnt Night Nether Crows that could attack her, Han Ning didn’t let go. Instead, he held the little one and walked over to the pile of charred remains under Yin Yi’s protection.

Tendrils shot out from his fingertips, clearing away the charred husks on the ground.

However... after the foul-smelling charred bodies were moved aside, nothing appeared. The ground was still just a stretch of scorched rock.

"Eeee?"

Fei Lin also seemed a bit bewildered. She tried to lean her head closer, her nose twitching constantly toward the ground.

This time, Han Ning let her go.

"Eeya~"

Xiao Fei Lin pattered across the blackened ground on her soft, pale feet. She pressed her body forward, taking big sniffs of something in the air.

Then, her eyes lit up. She pointed to an area beneath her feet and called out to Han Ning repeatedly.

"Eeee!"

"You’re saying... there’s something underground?"

"Eeya~" Fei Lin nodded emphatically. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

’I have to admit, Rock Type Soul Beasts are true masters of engineering. When it comes to finding things underground, the Rock-Breaking Ant is undoubtedly the most suitable.’

He immediately dismissed the scouting Ghost Bees and commanded the All-Encompassing Spiritual Silkworm to form a Rock-Breaking Ant, which then burrowed into the ground.

Through the Rock-Breaking Ant’s perspective, Han Ning could clearly see a pool of liquid of an indistinguishable color flowing just dozens of centimeters beneath the ground where they stood. It was about five to six meters square—not a large amount.

The ground trembled slightly. Before long, a ring of irregular cracks appeared around their feet.

He had to admit, Rock Type Soul Beasts were truly masters of engineering. Whether it was demolishing buildings, constructing them, or even mining... they were all incredibly useful.

Seeing this, Yin Yi shot out several thick, long vines. They extended down along the cracks, wrapped around the separated slab of rock, and heaved it upward with great effort.

Slabs of rock were lifted up and thrown heavily to the side, revealing a hole large enough for one person to enter.

Yin Yi was the first to enter the opening.

Han Ning followed close behind, peering inside through the opening.

The dark space was illuminated down to the last detail by the light of Spiritual Energy.

Below was a space resembling a karst cave. At the very bottom lay a pool of transparent liquid wreathed in a faint black mist.

Under the glow emanating from Yin Yi, the spring water rippled and glistened. Illusory faces seemed to appear on its surface, crying and wailing...

Han Ning took a deep breath. A dense, cold-scented mist washed over him, and for a moment, he had the strange sensation of being stripped of all human emotion.