Under the guidance of Long Er and Xiao Hu, Zi Linling and Shen Liuxing reached the final challenge in just two hours, with the majority of that time spent on travel.
From the second challenge onwards, Zi Linling had left a deep saber mark outside the safest path. This mark contained her unique aura, serving as a landmark. Thus, as long as Xuanyuan Xun, Rong Guang, and Shangguan Yulin successfully passed the first challenge, they could follow the trail without hindrance.
This final challenge was different from the previous eight. The earlier ones offered a slim chance of survival, while this one offered none. This meant that all nine paths in the final challenge were guarded by demonic beasts. To reach the final treasure trove, a true battle was inevitable.
However, for Zi Linling, who possessed four divine beasts, this was as good as a formality. Under the divine beast pressure exerted by Long Er and Xiao Hu, the guarding demonic beasts dared not act rashly. They all remained hidden in their lairs, too terrified to emerge.
Zi Linling proceeded without any obstruction, arriving directly before the entrance to the treasure vault. The moment the vault door opened, both Zi Linling and Shen Liuxing were utterly astonished. Long Er and Xiao Hu, who always loved shiny things, began to roll around joyfully amidst the treasures.
"Sister Zi, did this Ancient Blood Demon perhaps rob the entire Divine Remnant Continent? This treasure vault is so vast and brimming with riches, surely it contained more than just the wealth of the Crimson Source Blood Domain?" Shen Liuxing exclaimed, his eyes wide with disbelief.
It was no wonder he spoke so, for the Ancient Blood Demon's treasure vault was incredibly abundant. It held tens of thousands of herbs, all of the highest Heavenly grade, with even several dozen of the Saintly Heavenly grade. All the weapons were of Pseudo-divine grade or higher, and their quantity was enough to equip a million elite soldiers. As for elixirs, there were countless more.
The Divine Remnant Continent was the continent where the legacy of alchemists was most completely preserved among the three continents. Therefore, high-level alchemists were not uncommon, and elixirs were not a scarce commodity. Yet, within the Ancient Blood Demon's treasure hoard, there were over a thousand Divine grade elixirs, more than ten thousand Emperor grade elixirs, and Master grade elixirs were casually strewn about like rubbish.
Furthermore, there were various cultivation manuals and secret arts, all of which were of the highest Heavenly grade or above. There were even formations, rune diagrams, alchemy notes, and artifact forging secrets that had been lost for ages in the Heavenly Origin Continent. Although the quantity of these secret treasures did not match that of elixirs and weapons, they were still comparable to the entire Heavenly Origin Continent's hidden caches. Thus, even Shen Liuxing, who was accustomed to seeing treasures, couldn't help but sigh in awe.
Zi Linling, while sifting through the treasures and discarding the less valuable items, replied to Shen Liuxing with sparkling eyes, "Whether the Ancient Blood Demon robbed the entire Divine Remnant Continent, I cannot say for sure. But I can definitively state that if all these treasures were brought back to the Heavenly Origin Continent and the Blessed Continent, we would have at least a fifty percent chance of survival, even in the face of the world-ending calamity!"
Shen Liuxing, shocked, asked, "Sister Zi, do we truly have a fifty percent chance?"
Zi Linling nodded, smiling, "Fifty percent is a conservative estimate, but it's still a very good outcome!"
Shen Liuxing raised an eyebrow and asked, "Then, in your opinion, if we didn't have these provisions, what would be the chances for the Heavenly Origin Continent and the Blessed Continent to survive the world-ending calamity?"
Zi Linling sighed and held up a single finger.
"Ten percent?" Shen Liuxing asked, astonished.
Zi Linling shook her head, "Less than that!"
"Less than ten percent?" Shen Liuxing asked incredulously.
Zi Linling nodded, "Indeed, less than ten percent! Both the Heavenly Origin Continent and the Blessed Continent have too many broken lineages. Especially the loss of alchemy and cultivation manual legacies has resulted in extremely weak cultivators on both continents, creating a vast disparity with the extraterrestrial invaders. To be blunt, without external aid and the reincarnation of the Nine Guardians, if the two continents were to rely solely on their own strength to confront the world-ending calamity, the inevitable outcome would be utter defeat!"
Shen Liuxing carefully considered Zi Linling's words and realized they were not an exaggeration but a stark reality. He nodded and suddenly said, "If that's the case, what are we waiting for? Let's hurry and pack! If we empty this place, won't the Heavenly Origin Continent and the Blessed Continent be saved?"
As he spoke, Shen Liuxing produced a spatial ring and began to collect the treasures. Although spatial rings were rare, for Shen Liuxing, the owner of the Linxian Restaurant and Linxian Auction House, obtaining them was a simple matter.
Zi Linling, however, was not in a hurry. She called over Long Er and Xiao Hu, who were playfully rummaging through the treasures, and instructed, "Long Er, Xiao Hu, search here carefully and see if you can find the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone!"
"Master, what does the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone look like?" Long Er scratched the back of his head, asking with confusion.
Xiao Hu also looked at Zi Linling with his big, simple eyes, awaiting her description.
Zi Linling shook her head helplessly, "I don't know what the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone looks like, but it is a finger bone of an Ancestral God. It should possess divine energy and emit divine light!"
"Moreover, if my guess is correct, the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone is the most precious item here. So, you must search meticulously. Do not be careless, understand?"
"Yes, Master!" Long Er responded and, with Xiao Hu, dove into the piles of treasures.
Shen Liuxing, who was happily collecting treasures, suddenly heard the words "Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone." He immediately stopped collecting other treasures and quickly flashed to Zi Linling's side, saying, "Sister Zi, is the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone you mentioned the legendary finger bone that the Ancestral God broke off and threw onto the Azure Star to suppress its destiny?"
Zi Linling nodded, "That's right! This Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone is extremely important to me, so we must find it!"
Shen Liuxing thought for a moment and said, "Sister Zi, I once obtained an ancient painting that depicts the Blood Vein Spiritual Coral Bone. I will now share its shape with you through soul projection!" He then released his divine sense and said, "Sister Zi, come."
To open one's divine sense and allow another to invade is extremely dangerous, only to be done with someone of absolute trust. This is because if the divine sense is attacked, the soul power will be harmed, which is exceedingly perilous. Yet, Shen Liuxing, without a moment's hesitation, fully opened his divine sense, demonstrating the immense trust he placed in Zi Linling. Zi Linling paused for a moment, then condensed her divine sense into a wisp and cautiously entered Shen Liuxing's forehead. It must be said that her actions were also extremely dangerous.