That system notification completely stunned Xu Lang.
[You have obtained 5 points of Qi Luck. A new fusion slot can now be activated. Activate?]
Five points of Qi Luck… could activate a fusion slot?!
Xu Lang had just been worrying about this problem earlier—
And now the solution dropped right into his hands.
With a new fusion slot, the number of exotic beasts and sinister entities inside Worm Valley meant he could finally act freely.
He could absorb and fuse without holding back.
Even if future fusion slots required double the Qi Luck, Xu Lang wasn't worried anymore.
A bronze seal from the late Yuan–early Ming dynasty alone yielded five Qi Luck points.
That meant the artifacts inside ancient tombs would provide huge amounts of Qi Luck.
Not to mention the fortune he could seize directly from the tombs themselves.
This… was a gold mine.
Only now did Xu Lang truly understand why it was called the Infinite Fusion System.
Every word in that name carried weight.
Of course, everything so far was still his own deduction.
Xu Lang had the Golden Silkworm Gu scan around again for anything useful.
After circling once, it returned directly to his arm.
Seems like there really was nothing else here.
These bandits who resisted the authorities…
In the end, they were pitiful people too.
The large skeleton he had just examined was likely their leader or commander.
Xu Lang gathered some loose stones and gave the skeleton a simple burial.
At that moment, Wang Pangzi's impatient voice came from ahead:
"Lang Ye, hurry up! Look ahead—there's an exit!"
Xu Lang, Hu Ba Yi, Shirley Yang, and Wang Pangzi climbed and walked forward with their gear for about twenty more minutes.
Finally—
They stepped out of the pitch-black cave.
Outside was the mountainside of Zhelong Mountain.
Ahead stretched an endless, untamed jungle.
Strange flowers, exotic plants, towering ancient trees—
Streams crisscrossed the land, forming a dense network of waterways.
Apart from a few larger ponds, everything was covered in thick vegetation.
They had crossed Zhelong Mountain.
This was the outer edge of Worm Valley.
Wang Pangzi shouted excitedly:
"Lang Ye! Look over there—so many butterflies! That cover identity you came up with? Perfect! This place is made for catching insects!"
Xu Lang looked ahead.
Near the forest edge was a patch of beautiful butterfly orchids.
Around them, butterflies of all shapes and dazzling colors fluttered through the air.
After spending half a day in the pitch-black horror beneath Zhelong Mountain, this lush and vibrant scenery felt like washing one's eyes.
Xu Lang finally relaxed a little.
Hu Ba Yi pulled out the human-skin map.
The markings were vague.
And after thousands of years, the terrain had naturally changed.
According to the map, they should follow the underground river—where the corpse beetles and human-skin puppets had been—and continue forward.
But due to the rainy season, rising water levels had merged multiple waterways.
Now it was difficult to determine which river was the original canal built during the construction of King Xian's tomb.
"I remember Chen Xiazi mentioned this. When he came to Worm Valley decades ago—what did he say again?" Xu Lang prompted.
Hu Ba Yi immediately recalled.
"That's right! Chen Xiazi followed the mountainside of Zhelong Mountain and found the Snake River, then moved downstream."
"He said there's a ruined stone wall downstream—probably a dam built during the tomb's construction."
"It was used to maintain the Feng Shui layout of the Water Dragon Vein."
"After the tomb was completed, the dam was dismantled, but remnants should still remain."
"If Chen Xiazi saw it just decades ago, it should still be there."
"Once we pass that stone wall—we'll reach Worm Valley."
With a landmark identified, their route became clear.
They had entered Zhelong Mountain via bamboo raft around 8 AM.
Now it was about 3 PM when they exited.
After resting briefly at the cave entrance, the group began moving north along the mountain's base.
They avoided entering the dense forest directly, instead searching for the Snake River.
Hu Ba Yi recalibrated his compass and took the lead.
But not long after—
They felt the true power of the subtropical jungle.
There was no path.
Even skirting the forest edge, vegetation was dense and wild.
Grass reached waist height.
Vines tangled everywhere.
To move forward, they had to hack through branches and cut through vines with machetes.
But that wasn't even the worst part.
The insects were.
Swarms of finger-length mosquitoes buzzed in the air.
Brightly colored spiders clung to branches.
Strange bugs crawled across tree trunks.
As for scorpions, centipedes, and ants—
They were likely everywhere on the ground, hidden beneath the dense growth.
For Xu Lang, however, it was a completely different experience.
After fusing with the Golden Silkworm Gu, he moved through the jungle with ease.
All insects fled several meters away before he even approached.
The aura of the Golden Silkworm Gu carried overwhelming dominance.
No insect dared to come near him.
Up ahead, Hu Ba Yi and Wang Pangzi were suffering miserably, swatting bugs and cursing nonstop.
But Shirley Yang, walking close to Xu Lang—
Didn't feel any of it.
She noticed the terrifying insects.
But none of them came near her.
After about an hour—
The sharp-minded Shirley Yang finally realized something.
It wasn't that the insects avoided her.
They were avoiding Xu Lang.
The way she looked at him grew more and more suspicious.
Hu Ba Yi's cousin…
Was far too extraordinary.
Calm, composed, almost unnaturally so.
Nothing like an ordinary university student.
Just then—
Xu Lang felt the Golden Silkworm Gu on his arm stir restlessly.
He immediately understood.
It was hungry.