The deeper they went, the colder it got. It felt as if they had entered a graveyard filled with ghosts.
It was fortunate that they were only surrounded by the walls of an ordinary underground chamber. There weren't any traps or formations, so they heaved a sigh of relief.
After descending for several hundred meters, they came to a vast underground chamber.
Xing Yuan took out the Night Illumination Pearl and flicked it lightly.
Hula!
The pearl fell to the ground, and a faint glow appeared in the room.
The light wasn't too strong, but the group was strong enough to see the surroundings clearly.
Not too far away from the stone steps was a small bridge, and water trickled down from it. The underground chamber, which had been sealed for countless years, didn't feel stifling at all. On the contrary, the air was fresh, just like the outside.
Even though they had prepared themselves beforehand, they didn't expect such a sight.
Before descending, everyone thought that this was an underground chamber that had been sealed for countless years, and there was bound to be a foul stench and miasma lingering in the air. Who could have thought that it would be no different from the surface?
"Everyone, be careful. This underground chamber was probably built for many people to live in. Otherwise, it would be impossible for it to have such good ventilation!" Wu Zhen said.
"Live in?"
Everyone frowned.
"Indeed. If there aren't many people, there's no need to spend so much effort to bring in a river, and there's no need to make a cavern so comfortable. Without proper ventilation, it wouldn't be able to sustain the breathing of so many people!" Wu Zhen explained.
He was an expert in traps, so he knew how troublesome it was to bring in a river. More importantly, he knew how much effort it took to create such good ventilation.
If it was just a temporary residence for a few people, such a spacious area wouldn't be stifling at all. There was no need to waste so much effort on it. However, if there were too many people living here, without proper ventilation, one could easily suffocate.
Hearing Wu Zhen's explanation, Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement.
The soul oracle tomb he had been to previously was clearly a little stifling, and the ventilation was far inferior to this one.
"Could it be that the culprit behind the kidnapping of Grandmaster Wu Yangzi wasn't just a single person but many?"
Luo Qiqi blinked her eyes in confusion.
Based on her investigations, this underground chamber was related to Wu Yangzi. In fact, there was a high chance that the grandmaster had been kidnapped and brought here... An environment where many people lived, not just one or two...
Could it be that this Great Grandmaster wasn't kidnapped by one person, but by a group of people?
"I have no idea..."
Wu Zhen shook his head, "There's a stone tablet over there, let's go take a look."
There was a small stone tablet in front of the bridge. Under the dim light, one could vaguely see what was written on it.
When he walked up to it, he saw three large words.
"Homeward Viewing Residence?"
Luo Qiqi frowned.
An underground palace was usually either a tomb or a secret base of a faction or a place where they lived in seclusion. What was the meaning of these three words?
"These words are a little strange!"
Ye Qian frowned.
"Oh?" Hearing his interjection, everyone turned to look at him.
Even though the crown prince was only a half 5-star master teacher, his mastery of painting had already reached the level of a 5-star master teacher. As such, he was naturally sensitive to such matters.
"Words can sometimes represent a person's mental state and thoughts. These three words have reached the third level of [Infused Meaning]. One can clearly feel the mental state of the person who left the words! There's a feeling of being incompatible with this place and wanting to stay away from the hustle and bustle of the world! "
Ye Qian said.
Zhang Xuan nodded. He had also felt what he had said.
Homeward Viewing Residence. Not only did the words evoke a feeling of being far away from one's homeland, one could also feel the artistic conception of the words.
Zhang Xuan had done some research on painting, so even without the Library of Heaven's Path, he could still discern it with his eyes.
"Homesickness? It seems like … this is indeed the underground palace where Grandmaster Wu Yangzi resided! "
Luo Qiqi's eyes lit up. "Most likely, he was kidnapped, and his longing for the Hongyuan Empire led him to leave behind these words. However, he didn't return until his death!"
"If that's the case, it does seem possible!" Xing Yuan and the others nodded.
It was already bizarre for an underground palace to be called Homeward Viewing Residence. If he had been kidnapped and brought here, it would make sense.
It was highly likely that these words were left behind by Wu Yangzi to express his longing for his hometown.
"Something's amiss. Not only do these words carry a sense of homesickness, they also carry an aura of bloodthirst …" Ye Qian frowned. "Grandmaster Wu Yangzi has always been kind to others, so it's unlikely that he would have such a violent killing intent!"
As a grandmaster blacksmith, Wu Yangzi had spent his entire life with weapons. Even though the weapons he forged were meant to kill, he didn't carry an aura of bloodthirst.
However, the three words in front of them carried a strong killing intent, causing them to be suspicious.
"Hehe, I think that he is the one who left behind the killing intent!"
Xing Yuan chuckled. "For a 6-star blacksmith, a grandmaster of his generation, to be kidnapped and locked up in such a dark place, it would be weird if he didn't harbor any killing intent!"
"That's true …"
Ye Qian was taken aback.
That was to be expected. For a person of his standing to be imprisoned in the darkness, there was no way he would be willing to give up. It was only natural for him to harbor killing intent.
"Grandmaster Wu Yangzi is a 6-star pinnacle blacksmith, and his cultivation has already reached Saint. Even though he is unwilling to give up, he isn't allowed to leave … Everyone, be careful. I fear that there might be more to this place than meets the eye!"
Luo Qiqi said grimly.
"Un!"
The others nodded nervously.
How could a person who could imprison a Saint in an underground chamber be ordinary? Even though three thousand years had passed, the means left behind by such a person was still not something that a bunch of Cosmos Bridge realm and Consonant Spirit realm cultivators like them could deal with.
"Let's go!"
After scanning through the stone tablet and confirming that there was nothing else useful, the group began walking forward.
Following behind the group, Zhang Xuan glanced at the words on the stone tablet once more, and a deep frown appeared on his forehead. Following which, he stroked the stone tablet lightly with his finger, and seemingly sensing something, his eyebrows shot up.
Passing by the stone tablet, they arrived at the bridge.
The bridge wasn't too long, but the flow of water beneath was swift. It was a refreshing sight to behold.
Wu Zhen placed the Thousand Utility Umbrella in front of him to scout the path ahead. Nodding to the group, he led the way forward, and the others followed closely behind.
Behind the bridge was a vast hall, and within it stood a massive stone tablet.
Holding the Night Illumination Pearl in his hand, Xing Yuan walked up to the stone tablet. Under its faint yellow glow, three words were written on it — Burying Sorrow Lodge.
"This …"
Seeing the words on the stone tablet, everyone blinked in shock.
Regardless of whether it was an underground palace or something else, it was impossible for a place to have two names!
Just a moment ago, it was Yearning Lodge, and now, it was Burying Sorrow Lodge. Just which was the name of this place?
"These three words are calm and upright, giving one a sense of serenity. Burying Sorrow means that there's something here that one desires, and that's the only reason why one would be at peace …"
Ye Qian analyzed the stone tablet. "If I'm not wrong, this should be left behind by those who imprisoned Grandmaster Wu Yangzi!"
"You're right. Since they imprisoned Grandmaster Wu Yangzi to forge an artifact for them, it's only natural for them to forget about their worries …"
Xing Yuan nodded.
Luo Qiqi and Princess Fei-er hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement.
That would explain everything.
Just that, they couldn't understand why there would be a name on this side of the bridge and another on the other side.
Walking past the stone tablet, the group arrived at the main hall. The room was several hundred square meters in size, and it was extremely spacious.
"Let me take a look!"
Wu Zhen walked along the wall and knocked on it for a moment before walking around it. After which, he shook his head and said, "There's … no mechanism here!"
"Could it be another Concealment Formation?"
Princess Fei-er also walked around the room with a formation plate in hand, and her complexion turned awful.
"I've taken a look, but there's no formation either!"
"It can't be that the underground palace is only this big?"
Everyone frowned.
After setting up such a formidable Concealment Formation outside, constructing a flight of several hundred meters downward, and ensuring that the air in the underground palace was clear, the other party only managed to create a spacious hall of several hundred square meters?
If that was the case, wasn't that too much of a scam?
But if that wasn't the case, other than the walls and mechanisms, there was nothing else in the surroundings. What in the world was going on?
"If it's just an empty hall, we won't be able to determine whether Wu Yangzi was here or not. That means that the mission wasn't completed …"
Luo Qiqi frowned.
She had complete trust in Wu Zhen and Princess Fei-er's discernment.
Since the duo said that there wasn't such a thing here, it should be true.
But … there was nothing here at all. If they couldn't determine whether Wu Yangzi was here or not, how was she going to explain this matter to them?
What was even more bizarre was that since there was nothing here, why would there be weapons wandering around for the past three thousand years? Furthermore, they were all forged using Grandmaster Wu Yangzi's unique forging methods?
"Indeed. I thought that I would be able to obtain something after so much effort, but it's just an empty hall!"
Xing Yuan shook his head.
They had thought that they could at least find some clues in the underground chamber, but other than two stone tablets and a small bridge, there was nothing at all. Were they really going to waste their time here?
"Teacher, did you … notice something?"
Just as everyone was feeling stifled, Luo Qiqi's voice suddenly sounded. Turning their gazes over, they saw that Zhang Xuan had unknowingly walked up to the second stone tablet and was touching it.
This stone tablet had 'Burying Sorrow Lodge' written on it. Most likely, it was left behind by Wu Yangzi's group.
"Oh, if I'm not mistaken, there's something strange about these two stone tablets!"
Zhang Xuan turned around.
"Strange?"
The crowd walked up to the stone tablets.
"Un. One is Burying Sorrow Lodge, and the other is Yearning Lodge … If I'm not mistaken, there should be two paths here. The words on the stone tablets are for the successor to choose!"
Zhang Xuan revealed his deduction.
"That does seem possible!"
Everyone was taken aback.
The most conspicuous objects in the underground chamber were these two stone tablets. Perhaps, there was some kind of mechanism hidden beneath them.
"Let me take a look!"
Hearing the explanation, Wu Zhen hesitated for a moment before walking forward.
Taking out a Night Illumination Pearl, he examined the stone tablets carefully, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
"It seems like … there's indeed a mechanism here!"
"A mechanism?"
"If there's a mechanism, there must be a passageway. It seems like this isn't the underground chamber at all. The real underground chamber hasn't appeared yet!"
Everyone's eyes lit up, and they hurriedly walked forward.
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