Chapter 33: Another Piece of Scrap Metal

Chapter 33: Another Piece of Scrappy Copper

"Do not panic, benefactor. No powerful enemies have descended upon the Abyssal Poison Pit!" Seeing Chen Ping'an's expression change, the woman in green robes hurriedly explained.

"Heh-heh..."

A bizarre laughter rose again, echoing through the surrounding space. Even as bold as Chen Ping'an was, the hair on his arms stood on end. The laughter was frantic, filled with a hysterical tone, like that of a severely mentally ill patient.

Bang!

The woman in green lightly stomped her foot. The ground beneath them suddenly shifted, revealing an incredibly deep tunnel.

"Heh-heh..."

After the tunnel appeared, the laughter grew even louder. Seeing that the woman in green was not panicked—merely appearing slightly embarrassed—Chen Ping'an felt his own tension ease.

"Benefactor, please follow me."

The woman in green smiled and turned to walk into the tunnel. Being constantly called "benefactor" felt a bit awkward to Chen Ping'an. He hesitated for a moment.

"Since you are Xiao Qing's cousin, stop calling me benefactor. Just call me... Brother Xu, like he does!"

Xu Xian. It was one of the pseudonyms he had used in the past. After all, no one in this Profound Heaven Realm had ever read the Legend of the White Snake; when that girl had called herself Xiao Qing back then, he had used the alias Xu Xian.

"Alright, Brother Xu."

The woman in green gave a sweet smile, her mood brightening as she said with great familiarity, "Brother Xu, my cousin's name contains the character 'Qing' (Green), and my name contains the character 'Bai' (White), so you can just call me Xiao Bai."

"Alright, Xiao Bai."

Chen Ping'an smiled, his expression tinged with curiosity. This was truly a real-life Legend of the White Snake. Only the roles were reversed—Xiao Qing had become the protagonist, imprisoned within the Celestial Dungeon.

The tunnel was deep and winding, twisting as it descended. Neither of them used their movement techniques, choosing to walk slowly instead. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, they finally reached the end of the tunnel.

At the end stood an ancient bronze gate. Xiao Bai gently pushed it open, and they walked through one after the other. Beyond the gate lay a vast, profound starry sky, with stars twinkling in the pitch-black night.

"Truly a world within a world..." Chen Ping'an sighed.

"Brother Xu, this secret starry realm is extraordinary. It contains the corpse of a Ruyi Jade Spider..." Xiao Bai pointed toward a certain direction, and Chen Ping'an felt his heart skip a beat as he hurriedly looked over.

Deep in the distant starry sky, there was a faint halo of light.

Because the distance was too great, Chen Ping'an could not see what was inside the halo.

"What kind of demonic beast is a Ruyi Jade Spider?" Chen Ping'an asked.

Xiao Bai's expression turned grave. "The Ruyi Jade Spider is ranked first on the Profound Heaven Realm's list of poisonous insects. It is said that this creature carries over 130 million types of virulent toxins..."

130 million types?

Chen Ping'an was shocked. Compared to this Ruyi Jade Spider, the Seven-Star Soul-Breaking Poison was merely like an ant.

"Even my Dark Blood Green Wood Dragon clan, always known for our toxins, pales in comparison to the Ruyi Jade Spider..." Xiao Bai sighed.

After speaking, Xiao Bai flew forward, and Chen Ping'an quickly followed. He also wanted to see what a Ruyi Jade Spider with 130 million toxins actually looked like.

"Heh-heh..."

The strange laughter grew more intense. Chen Ping'an realized the source of the sound was indeed that halo of light. After flying for half an hour, they finally arrived outside the halo.

Inside the white light, a crystal spider the size of a millstone floated silently. The spider was transparent from the inside out, looking exactly like a perfect work of art carved from pure crystal. Chen Ping'an found it hard to believe that such a transparent creature could contain over 100 million types of deadly toxins.

The Ruyi Jade Spider's body was not intact; it appeared to have endured a great battle, covered in holes, with some of its antennae missing.

"Scrappy copper?"

Chen Ping'an suddenly stared, dumbfounded, because he discovered that the Ruyi Jade Spider was clutching a piece of scrap metal the size of a fist in its crystalline jaws. This piece of scrap metal was remarkably similar to the one he had received as a system reward. And the bizarre laughter was coming from within that copper.

"Xiao Bai, can the scrap metal in the Ruyi Jade Spider's mouth laugh?" Chen Ping'an asked in shock.

"Yes, Brother Xu. This piece of copper is extremely eerie. It lets out a cackling laugh from time to time, which is very chilling, so for all these years, I haven't dared to touch it..." As she spoke, Xiao Bai's expression revealed a trace of terror.

Chen Ping'an's face was grim, his eyes filled with immense surprise. His own piece of scrap metal was still in the system's storage; because it looked so ragged, he had never taken it out.

With a thought, Chen Ping'an made his piece of scrap metal appear in his palm.

"Heh-heh..."

The moment the metal appeared in his hand, it also began to emit the same bizarre laughter. Chen Ping'an's expression changed drastically. His hand shook, and he nearly threw the metal away.

"Brother Xu, how do you have one too?" Xiao Bai widened her eyes, looking at Chen Ping'an in disbelief.

"I... I picked it up by accident a long time ago," Chen Ping'an said awkwardly.

"Heh-heh..."

Both pieces of scrap metal laughed simultaneously, creating a peculiar vibration in the starry sky that made both Chen Ping'an and Xiao Bai shudder.

"System, what exactly is going on with this scrap metal?" Chen Ping'an asked secretly.

The system remained silent. Seeing the system playing dead again, Chen Ping'an was helpless; it seemed he would have to wait until the future to uncover the origins of this copper.

Whoosh!

The metal in his hand flew out of his grip. The piece in the Ruyi Jade Spider's mouth also flew out. Bang! The two pieces collided in mid-air and suddenly fused tightly together.

After the fusion, the scrap metal stopped laughing and floated quietly in the starry sky. Chen Ping'an and Xiao Bai looked at each other, neither daring to move.

"Brother Xu, the origin of this copper is not simple..." After a long silence, Xiao Bai finally spoke.

"Indeed, it is not." Chen Ping'an nodded, reached out, and grabbed the metal. He turned it over and over, but gained no further insight. At this moment, other than doubling in size, the metal showed no abnormalities; it remained as ragged as ever.

Finding nothing, Chen Ping'an looked back at the battle-worn Ruyi Jade Spider within the white halo.

"How could such a powerful beast die here?"

"Although this secret starry realm is a small world of its own, it seems to be connected to the outside world..." Xiao Bai gazed into the depths of the starry sky, voicing a theory she had held for a long time.

"Are you saying the Ruyi Jade Spider crossed the vast starry sky just to reach this place?" Chen Ping'an widened his eyes. This deep secret realm, the dead spider, and the scrap metal all hinted at a massive secret.

"Yes." Xiao Bai looked intently at the metal in Chen Ping'an's hand, swallowed hard, and whispered, "Brother Xu, I have a feeling that the Ruyi Jade Spider crossed such a vast distance just to deliver this piece of scrap metal!"

Delivering the scrap metal?

Chen Ping'an was deeply shocked. This piece of metal looked so unremarkable, yet the Ruyi Jade Spider had carried it in its jaws. This meant that the significance of this scrap metal was monumental.