15 Chapter 15

For the next few days, the atmosphere in the town was cheerful as everyone saw the expedition into the underground as an opportunity.

Even if this was a quest that the whole town would benefit from in various ways, that doesn't mean that those who participated wouldn't benefit from it individually.

Some cultivators decided to participate to search for new materials for their weapons or ingredients for new medicine. Others thought about this as an opportunity to get the inspiration to create a new technique that would ease their next breakthrough and make their cultivation journey smoother.

When the day of the expedition finally arrived, the whole town met at the entrance of the village early in the morning to say goodbye to the cultivators. The atmosphere was cheerful and the villagers wished them luck and safety, as they knew all the benefits that the expedition could bring to the village.

When they were just about to leave, Aiden saw his father talking with a few of the cultivators that would participate in the expedition. After talking with them, he approached Aiden.

"Be safe, my son. I hope you perform well in this quest and find the inspiration necessary to continue with your cultivation. And remember, if you need anything, you can always rely on the other people from our village. I'm sure they would do anything possible to help you. " His father said this with a smile on his face.

"Thank you, father. I will do my best." Aiden replied.

Since the voice of heaven was heard by all the villagers, his father's attitude towards him has changed drastically. Usually, this would make Aiden happy, but he couldn't help himself to think that this was only because everyone thought that he had been chosen by the heavens.

Trying to not think about that, Aiden left his father and joined the rest of the cultivators, as their journey was about to begin.

The journey was short as the forest was near the village. They arrived in just a few hours, and that time passed fast as Aiden spent that time chatting with the other cultivators about their training routines and exchanging tips about how to use his training time and what he should focus on from now onward. Every other cultivator agreed that when he finished polishing his martial arts, he should focus on increasing his dantian size. After all, techniques were useless if one didn't have the energy necessary to use them.

Aiden took note of everything the others said, as their experience could make him have fewer problems in the future and have a better foundation.

When the sun was higher in the sky, they reached their destination. Before entering the cave, they rested for a few hours in the settlement built around it, so they would be in the best condition when they entered the underground.

After that time, the expedition to the underground began.

At first, the cave was small, so no more than a single person could advance at a time, but after the first hundred meters, the tunnel began to widen, reaching a width of tens of meters.

Not only that, but the height also increased, creating a great cavern that could house tens of people at the same time without much problem. At that point, no natural light reached Aiden's eyes, so they had to light up some torches to continue their exploration.

Just when they were about to light them up, they saw a small ball of light floating in the air not far from them.

"What the hell is that?" Asked one of the cultivators.

"Don't you worry, it's harmless." Another cultivator replied.

The cultivator who replied was Galey, one of the few people that entered the cave before the expedition started. Galey was one of the family heads of one of the most important families in Yuoko village. Even though he already had white hair, thanks to his cultivation, he was as good as a twenty-year-old man, so he was the one that was leading the journey. Thanks to his experience and strength, everyone on the expedition followed his orders and advice.

"We have already found some of those the first time we entered the cave. We still don't know exactly what they are, but they appear to be some kind of energy being. They just float around for a while before totally dissipating in the air. " Galey explained to calm his companions.

When he finished his explanation, they lit the torches and continued with their journey. While they advanced, their followers, who were carrying their luggage and rations, walked behind them, marking the way toward the exit so they wouldn't lose their way out.

A few kilometers later, they found a few blue-glow mushrooms that they didn't hesitate to pick up and store in a few glass bottles to study them later in the village. With the discovery of those glowing mushrooms, they also found a few new pathways that separated them from the main cavern that they were exploring.

A doubt assaulted Aiden's mind after seeing this.

"This is pretty big. How are we going to know where to meet the other tribes? " He asked. We only know that we need to meet them at the "sacred archway," but how do we know where that is?"

At that moment, every member of the expedition looked toward Aiden with a pensive look on their faces, as if they had never thought about that matter.

"Well, we shouldn't think about that a lot. As we explore the underground, we will surely find traces of the other tribes or someplace that looks like some kind of sacred archway. After all, we are here because the voice of heaven has told us to come. I'm sure that in no time we will find the indicated place." Said one of the cultivators, and most of the others supported his theory.

Aiden wasn't very convinced, but he decided to stay quiet as he didn't want to lower the group's morale.

They continued exploring for a while until they saw something shining some distance away from them. At first, it looked like a mass of small dark blue crystals moving on their own, but after a closer look, they saw that the crystals were attached to the back of a lizard.