Just like Bai Ning Bing had surmised, things were not going well on the other front. The Jun and the Zhu clans definitely had their animosities towards each other, but with how blatantly obvious Bai Ning Bing's persuasion was, they weren't about to show any sign of this.
Everyone involved was getting frustrated at the lack of progress made with the Thought Ruler Demon Lord's inheritance. What had seemed like a project that might take a few days or up to a few weeks at most now seemed like it might take a year or more to fully unravel.
But that was all the more reason that they couldn't let word get out.
It was Xiang Xie's turn to try and explore the inheritance now.
The Thought Ruler Demon Lord's inheritance had been found, like many other inheritances, by accident. It wasn't like the locals didn't know where it was located. It was just that nothing important seemed to happen there.
There was a place near the two villages which was called Dog Suicide Bridge by the locals. It was nicknamed this because, for whatever reason, whenever dogs seemed to wander near it, they would immediately go to the top of the bridge and jump off, crashing down to their deaths.
There were even reported instances where dogs had survived the initial fall and would immediately then get back up and go to the top of the bridge to try again. The bridge also seemed to have a haunting, melancholic feel to it, which is why the locals tended to avoid it.
However, a shepherd's dog once wandered near it, and naturally, knowing the rumor, the mortal shepherd ran after the dog, only to stumble upon something near one of the bridge's entrances: a vast network of insects crawling around.
Screaming, he went back to the village, but not before one of the insects in question managed to enter his skull. He told the story of what was going on to the other mortals, but not being a Gu Master, no one really paid attention to him.
A few weeks later, both he and his dog killed themselves.
Finding this to be slightly strange, the local Gu Master had decided to take a look at the body and found a hole near the skull where it looked like something had burrowed in. He then tore open the mortal's skull and saw a Gu Worm nesting within his brain, something he recognized as a Rank 1 Depression Millipede.
The Thought Ruler Demon Lord was rumored to have used Depression Millipedes as well during his schemes. However, it was hard to prove this by the mere nature of how the Depression Millipede worked.
Through this, the village began to learn of the site and went there to explore it. Deeper within, beyond the Depression Millipedes, they found a location: a tablet inscribed with words from the Thought Ruler Demon Lord, stating that what lay beyond was his inheritance for any who were brave enough to venture deeper into the cave.
This had been discovered by the Jun Clan. However, because of the resultant confusion and noise while they were exploring, it had caused the Zhu Clan to also become aware of what lay beyond.
Xiang Xie treaded through the opening of this cave carefully before happening upon the slab upon which the Thought Ruler Demon Lord had inscribed a message for whoever wanted to obtain his inheritance.
There was the usual babble that demonic cultivators tended to leave, stating that their tests would likely result in death for any who dared to venture beyond, but that if someone was not even willing to take that kind of risk, they were not worthy of said inheritance.
What was interesting, however, and what still caught his attention even though this wasn't his first time exploring the ruins, was the short paragraph the Thought Ruler Demon Lord left regarding his biography. There was one line in particular that stood out, and it was the reason why they absolutely could not let word of this inheritance slip out to the outside world.
The Thought Ruler Demon Lord had originally come from the Northern Plains and then made it to the Southern Border; this was a rumor regarding his legacy but had never been proven. However, the man had admitted so himself on the slab he had left behind.
The Thought Ruler Demon Lord was part of the Huang Jin Family - the name given to Giant Sun Immortal Venerable's descendants. During the Imperial Court contest, he had managed to find himself on the winning side, and once invited within the Imperial Court blessed land, had stumbled upon an inheritance as well as an 80 Years Lifespan Gu.
That explained how he had lived for as long as he did.
He took the entire inheritance with him.
While doing so, he had betrayed several of his clan members, which is why he knew he could no longer stay within the Northern Plains. Otherwise, he would have been hunted by the other members of the Huang Jin family, and so he had to flee to the Southern Border.
Although it was not explicitly said in this biography, there was a rumor circulating around from one of his victims who had managed to survive that this had been no ordinary inheritance.
It was said that this inheritance that the Thought Ruler Demon Lord had stumbled upon was from Giant Sun Immortal Venerable himself!
Even if it was just a partial mortal inheritance left behind by Giant Sun, it would explain as to why the Thought Ruler Demon Lord had been forced to flee the Northern Plains. Stealing an ordinary inheritance was bad enough. However, stealing something that belonged to Giant Sun Immortal Venerable himself was without a doubt a death sentence.
Anything related to the Venerables was held in high regard, whether it be their philosophy, teachings, or above all, their inheritances.
Even if this was not necessarily something left behind by Giant Sun Immortal Venerable himself but by one of his concubines, it must have been a high-ranking inheritance, possibly from an Immortal. And because of this, this inheritance was worth more than an ordinary Rank 5 inheritance would be.
If word of this got out to the outside world, the entire Southern Border would be drawn here. It would end up becoming an event equal to, or perhaps even greater than The Three King's Inheritance which was set to begin a little over a year later.
And naturally, they could not have that.
Hence why they restrained Bai Ning Bing, despite the inherent dangers.
Granted, there was another reason that they had treated Bai Ning Bing like this. Being from the Northern Plains, the Thought Ruler Demon Lord had considered women unworthy of obtaining his inheritance and one of his few requirements listed was that the inheritor had to be a man. There was no point in trying to negotiate with Bai Ning Bing and allowing her to take part.
Beyond the entrance to the inheritance was a large field of Cranium Mushrooms.
It was here that many of the Depression Millipedes grew, which as it turned out were the reason for the phenomenon that surrounded Dog Suicide Bridge. The millipedes could attack not just humans, but animals as well.
Beyond this was a room they were still having trouble getting past. It was filled from top to bottom with a large number of mortal Regret Gu which scurried on about. If one was not careful, they would fall prey to these gu worms and then become overwhelmed with regret. The Zhu clan head had fallen victim once and had to rest for four days and four nights before he could stop wailing.
The room also didn't seem to have an exit. There was without a doubt something that they needed to do in order to get past it, they just didn't know what. They had no Wisdom Path methods themselves which would've been helpful in getting past this location.
The only hint for those entering was an inscription left near the mouth of the cavern by the Thought Ruler Demon Lord - "The one who will take my inheritance - will be someone whose heart has no regrets!"