"In other words, you can't solve it?"
Seeing the dejected look on his face, Luo Qiqi couldn't help but ask.
"If I say that I can decipher it, will you allow me to continue?" Wu Zhen asked.
Everyone shook their heads in unison.
Xing Yuan gritted his teeth. "If you dare try to decipher it again, I'll kill you right now!"
What a joke! Even though he wanted to open the real underground chamber, he didn't want to die here!
This was especially so for him, who had been pierced by the thin needles to the point that his face was beyond recognition. His face was already red and swollen. The other party had only broken through three times, yet he was already in such a state. If this were to continue, he would probably die before the mechanism could be opened!
"Then what should we do?"
He knew that there was a mechanism, but he couldn't open it. He couldn't just stand here and wait!
"Let me try!"
Seeing the worried looks on everyone's faces, Zhang Xuan walked out.
When he touched the stone tablet earlier, a book had already formed in his mind. It wasn't that he didn't care about Wu Zhen and allowed everyone to fall for his tricks, but the Art of Heavenly Works was too profound. With just a single glance, he was captivated by the intricacies within it. By the time he realized what was going on, Xing Yuan's face was already filled with silver needles.
"You?"
Upon seeing Zhang Xuan walk out, Wu Zhen frowned and asked, "You... have studied the Celestial Designer Occupation as well?"
This fellow was proficient in pill forging and formations, so it couldn't be that he was a celestial designer as well, right?
Even though the art of Celestial Designer was not as famous as the art of formations and pill forging, it was much more complicated and difficult to learn, especially when it came to the various details. The slightest mistake could lead to a huge error, so it was impossible to make a single mistake.
In this occupation, he could be considered as a one-in-a-million prodigy, but despite studying for so long, he was only a 5-star master teacher. Yet, he was still unable to decipher it. Yet, that fellow actually appeared out of nowhere … Could it be that the other party was even stronger than him?
Impossible!
"I know a little!" Zhang Xuan smiled.
"Some?"
Wu Zhen shook his head. "If I only know a little, I won't be able to decipher it. You've seen how I cracked it just now. The slightest deviation could have triggered the mechanism and shot out the needles! The first few times, the needles weren't poisonous. Even if they were shot, they would recover from their injuries. However, if the needles were to be poisoned … I'm afraid that no one would be able to escape! "
"Forget it, it's better if you don't try. Without full confidence, I'm afraid we'll both die here …"
"No one is completely confident. Aren't you the same?"
On the other hand, Zhang Xuan shook his head.
Didn't you try three times in a row because you weren't confident? Not a big deal? Ask Xing Yuan if that's what he thinks.
If you say that to him, do you believe that he will beat you to death on the spot?
"Hmph, how can I be the same? I was born in a clan of celestial designers, and at the age of three, I was able to create an automatic spring. By the time I was seventeen, I was already a 4-star celestial designer. After entering Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, I studied under the only 6-star celestial designer in the entire empire, learning many skills and knowledge... "
Flinging his sleeves, Wu Zhen raised his head confidently and said, "Even though I have failed three times in a row, it doesn't mean that I'm not confident. Even if this is a trap of a 6-star master teacher, as long as I try a few more times, I should be able to decipher it eventually..."
"How about this? Since you wish to give it a try, I have no right to stop you. I will ask you two basic questions, and if you are able to answer them, it will mean that you have some understanding of celestial designers.
Wu Zhen asked.
"Oh?" Zhang Xuan stopped.
"Who is the most famous celestial designer in Hongyuan Empire in the past ten thousand years?" Wu Zhen asked.
"This …" Zhang Xuan scratched his head in confusion.
He had barely read any books regarding celestial designers, so how could he possibly know who the most famous celestial designer in Hongyuan Empire was?
Putting aside him, he didn't even know the name of the emperor of Hongyuan Empire or the principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy.
"You don't even know this?"
Seeing the awkward look on Zhang Xuan's face, Wu Zhen frowned. "If that's the case, I'm sure that you don't know who started the Art of Traps?"
"I don't know!"
Zhang Xuan shook his head. "I only want to decipher the stone tablets, what does this have to do with me knowing this?"
"Of course it does!"
Hearing those words, Wu Zhen's eyes were filled with disappointment. "This is the most basic requirement for a celestial designer. If you don't even know this, it means that you know nothing about the occupation. How can you find the node and decipher the traps? I won't deny that you have a unique understanding of pill forging and formations, but the art of traps is different from those two. You can't decipher them just because you feel good about them...
"How about this, I'll tell you about the origin and complexity of celestial designers, as well as the principles behind traps. You can consider it carefully and see if you want to continue..."
Seeing that the other party was speaking so much that calluses were starting to form in his ears, Zhang Xuan couldn't be bothered to continue listening to him. Walking up to the stone tablet, he flicked his wrist and took out the Glacier Rain Sword.
"What are you doing? This is a trap, not some other thing. Using a sword will only trigger more attacks... "
Just as Wu Zhen was speaking nonstop, he saw the fellow taking out a sword, and he nearly fainted from anger.
Are you here to joke around?
Even with the Thousand Trickery Stab, you have to accurately pinpoint the exact location of the trap without the slightest deviation. Yet, you actually took out a sword? Are you for real?
Just as Wu Zhen was thinking that the other party was just messing around, the young man seemed to have heard his persuasion, and after a moment of hesitation, he sheathed the sword.
"That's more like it.
That's more like it … "Wu Zhen nodded. Just as he was thinking that the other party was willing to listen to his advice, the other party flicked his wrist and took out a massive hammer.
This metal hammer was even larger than the ones used by blacksmiths to forge weapons. It was similar to the ones used by blacksmiths in construction sites, and it was made of extremely inferior material.
"What are you doing..."
Wu Zhen stuttered in shock. In the next moment, the young man raised the metal hammer and smashed it against the stone pillar!
"The heck!"
Wu Zhen's vision darkened, and he nearly spurted a mouthful of blood.
He had used the Thousand Trickery Stab to decipher the stone tablet, but he had nearly been killed by the needles. Yet, you are using a metal hammer to smash it... Even if you are courting death, you shouldn't be doing this!
Flustered, Wu Zhen opened the Thousand Trickery Umbrella and hid behind it, not daring to move at all. Following which, a sound reminiscent of a huge bell echoed in the air, causing his scalp to go numb.
Kacha! Kacha!
A series of crisp sounds reminiscent of an egg being peeled, and then... silence.
"Alright, it's open!"
Just as Wu Zhen was perplexed as to why there were no more needles, he heard the young man's nonchalant voice. He discreetly peeked his head out from behind the Thousand Trickery Umbrella, and with just a single glance, he froze on the spot.
"This... This..."
His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, as though he had seen a ghost.
The stone tablet before him had already disappeared, and in its place was a towering door. A series of stone steps led downward, leading straight to the bottom of the underground river.
"It's open?"
He wasn't the only one. Luo Qiqi and Xing Yuan were stunned as well.
As a 5-star celestial designer, Wu Zhen was a renowned master engineer in the academy. Despite stabbing and stabbing, he had left the group in a sorry state. Yet, it was all for naught... That fellow, with just a smack of a metal hammer, he had managed to break it open!
Are you for real?
Is Wu Zhen a 5-star celestial designer or you?
"The true underground chamber is beneath the river. It's no wonder why the air here is so clear, but there's no ventilation. So this is the secret!"
Recovering from her shock, Luo Qiqi exclaimed.
As soon as they arrived, they had noticed that the air in the room was fresh and well-ventilated. However, they couldn't find any ventilation, and they couldn't find the source of the spiritual energy either. Only when the underground chamber was opened did they realize that the secret was beneath the river.
The fresh air in the underground chamber originated from the river.
"Since we've found the underground chamber, let's hurry down! This is a good opportunity to see if this place has anything to do with Elder Wu Yangzi! "Princess Yu Fei-er nodded.
Even though she didn't like Zhang Xuan, she had to admit that the other party did possess extraordinary capabilities.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to find the true underground chamber so quickly.
"The underground chamber is open, but I think it's best if we don't enter first!"
Zhang Xuan said.
"Why?" Princess Yu Fei-er asked.
Since this was a sealed underground chamber, the answer to the secret would surely be found within. Since they would know the answer soon, why shouldn't they enter?
"There are two stone tablets in front of the bridge and behind it. The first one is called Countryside Gazing Lodge, and the second one is called Burying Sorrows Lodge. Since it's called Lodge, I think that the other stone tablet should be a passageway as well. It's best if we take a look before entering! "
Zhang Xuan explained.
There was only one bridge and two stone tablets in this underground chamber. Since one of the stone tablets had been opened, there was a good chance that there was a similar underground chamber beneath the other one.
"That's right!"
The crowd nodded in agreement.
They had been too excited from the opening of the stone tablet that they hadn't considered this point. Speaking of which, there was a good chance that the other stone tablet was a passageway as well.
If that was the case, it would mean that there were two different locations and two choices.
Seeing that everyone had understood the situation, Zhang Xuan nodded. Just as he was about to continue speaking, he suddenly felt his grip loosening, and the metal hammer in his hand had been snatched away. "Un. The urgent matter at hand is to decipher that stone tablet before making a decision …"
Following which, an impassive voice sounded, "I'll go over there …"
Lifting his head, Zhang Xuan saw that Wu Zhen had already dashed across the bridge to the first stone tablet. Raising his metal hammer, he smashed it down.
This fellow was simply too eager to prove himself.
Despite being a 5-star celestial designer, he had failed three times in a row, only to have an outsider smash it open with a metal hammer. The stifling feeling in his heart couldn't be imagined.
Since there was another stone tablet to prove his capability, how could he allow the other party to steal the limelight? Thus, he picked up his metal hammer and dashed forward.
Recalling the direction and position of the young man's strike, as well as the strength behind it, he bellowed loudly. With a loud gust of wind, the metal hammer smashed down toward the stone tablet.
"You …"
Not expecting the other party to be so fast, to the point where he couldn't even react in time, Zhang Xuan was taken aback. However, before he could finish his words, a grinding sound reminiscent of a millstone suddenly sounded from the stone tablet on the other side of the river.
Following which, fine needles began piercing toward the fellow on the other side of the river.
Puhe! Puhe! Puhe!
Caught off guard, Wu Zhen didn't even have the time to open his Thousand Utility Umbrella before his vision darkened, turning into a cactus.
"… Careful!"
Only then did Zhang Xuan utter the last two words.
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