Gu Wanchang was ecstatic. This location was remote, yet it possessed abundant Spiritual Qi and fertile soil. With the nourishment of the river, a little development could turn it into a valuable clan asset.

He was already planning: spirit fish and other aquatic creatures in the river, spirit rice on both banks, and medicinal herbs near the source, where Spiritual Qi was richest.

Gu Wanhao and the others, however, had their attention fixed on the row of seven or eight wooden cabins.

Developing the land would benefit the clan. But each of them would receive a personal share of what lay inside the cabins.

Gu Shiwen walked straight toward the source of the river. The formation disk was most likely located there!

Sure enough, he spotted a formation disk with a broken edge lying on the ground.

He drew the formation disk into his hand, stroking it repeatedly as if it were a priceless treasure.

"Shiwen, put the formation disk away for now! Let's check the cabins first," Gu Wanhao said.

As the group approached the wooden cabins, they realized what material had been used to build them and could not help marveling at the sheer extravagance.

The timber used for the cabins was Second-Tier Low Grade Jade-Core Wood. This type of spirit wood was exceptionally hard, making it ideal for shields or the main load-bearing beams of a building.

Some of the Gu Clan's own buildings used this wood for their main beams, but all seven cabins here were constructed entirely of Jade-Core Wood. Putting everything else aside, selling just this Jade-Core Wood in the market would fetch over ten thousand Spirit Stones.

The owner must have been very wealthy.

The group eagerly pushed open the door to the first cabin.

This appeared to be the owner's living quarters. Inside were a bed, a small bookshelf, some everyday items, and a landscape painting hanging on the wall.

Living quarters seldom held much of value. This room contained only a few first-tier spiritual items, or so it seemed.

Gu Changhuan walked through the whole room, watching the Tongxian Map within himself so he would not miss anything valuable.

Sure enough, he spotted a missed item: a palm-sized Purple-Gold Incense Burner.

The burner did not look like any remarkable treasure. It had been left casually beside the bed, completely devoid of incense blocks or even ash.

Yet this seemingly abandoned burner was actually a Fifth-Tier Low Grade Magical Artifact!

"Oh? This looks like the owner's journal." Gu Shixin found a booklet beneath the pillow.

Perhaps due to the passage of time, the journal's pages had turned slightly yellow.

Attracted by the discovery, the others gathered around as Gu Shixin handed the journal to Gu Wanchang.

It was only a few pages long. The owner did not seem to have been talkative: each entry was just a line or two, noting major events such as a breakthrough, a treasure found, or his chance discovery of this underground river.

The owner had reached the ninth layer of Purple Mansion and possessed water and wood Spirit Roots. He had been the young clan leader of a Purple Mansion family in Lanzhou. When word got out that his family owned a priceless treasure, mysterious cultivators wiped them out. He alone survived.

Following the tragedy, he concealed his identity and traveled to Qingzhou, just as the human and demon factions there were locked in fierce conflict.

Relying on his knowledge and methods, he slew numerous Demon Beasts before accidentally stumbling upon the underground hidden river and establishing his cave abode there.

After reaching Purple Mansion, he had searched both openly and in secret for his clan's killers. But he had few clues, and years had passed. There was nowhere to begin.

In the end, he let it go.

The final line of the journal noted that he had accepted a friend's invitation to journey out in search of treasure together.

Purple Mansion Ninth Layer!

One layer above the Gu Clan's founding ancestor! The journal did not mention the founding of the Gu Clan or the other three clans in the Nine Perches Mountains. Its owner had probably never returned from that trip. Most likely, some mishap on the treasure hunt had cost him his life.

All of them wondered the same thing. Had the young clan leader escaped with the treasure that had brought disaster on his family? And if so, was it here?

Gu Changhuan harbored a private suspicion: the treasure the cultivator spoke of was likely the unassuming Purple-Gold Incense Burner.

A Purple Mansion clan could rarely protect a Fifth-Tier Low Grade Dharma Treasure.

Gu Changhuan thought of the high-tier treasures piled in his Storage Ring. Here was a warning. He must never let anyone learn how much he had.

He simply wondered what use the Purple-Gold Incense Burner might have.

It appeared to be an auxiliary Dharma Treasure.

As they searched the room again, Gu Wanchang gave Gu Changhuan a seemingly casual glance. Gu Changhuan nodded and looked at the Purple-Gold Incense Burner.

A flash of satisfaction crossed Gu Wanchang's eyes. Seizing a quiet moment, he stored the Purple-Gold Incense Burner inside his Storage Bag.

Finding nothing else in the first room, the group moved on to explore the remaining cabins.

The second cabin was a meditation room containing only a single straw cushion.

The third cabin held several racks lined with various formation disks. This was hardly surprising, as the journal had noted the owner was a Third-Tier Middle Grade formation master.

Gu Shiwen was practically drooling.

The fourth cabin was an alchemy room. Apart from a low-grade third-tier furnace, there was little of value. The few bottles of Pills were over three hundred years old; all their Spiritual Qi had dissipated, leaving them useless.

The fifth cabin was a storeroom filled with artifacts, jade slips, jars, and bottles. Here was the richest haul: two middle-grade third-tier artifacts, five low-grade third-tier artifacts, and thirty-one high-grade second-tier artifacts; three cultivation arts that reached early Golden Core, and seven that reached late Purple Mansion. The jars and bottles contained medicinal herbs and spirit seeds. Stored where Spiritual Qi was present, seeds could last nearly a thousand years, and many were still viable.

Many of the spirit seeds were unfamiliar to Gu Wanhao, which only heightened his delight. His inability to recognize them proved their rarity and confirmed that the Gu Clan did not yet possess them.

Several inheritance journals were also found among the items, forming a precious asset for the clan.

The sixth and seventh cabins appeared to have housed Spirit Beasts. There were signs that beasts had lived there, but both rooms were empty now.

This was probably only part of a thousand-year-old Purple Mansion clan's inheritance, but it would do the Gu Clan a world of good. And that was without counting the fifth-tier artifact in Gu Wanchang's bag, whose purpose remained unknown.

With all the cabins searched, the group sat down to divide the spoils on the spot.