Chapter 185: Lava Immortal Palace.
The second transfer hall, the second Dao Gate.
“Wa hahaha!” Meng Chong laughed heartily, hands on his hips, head raised, showing extreme joy.
Behind him stood seven or eight puppets, each one damaged.
Although they looked disheveled and broken, every one of them was unusually excited, cheering loudly.
“We’ve cleared the stage, we cleared it again!”
“A new record, this is a brand new record.”
“We’re still in first place, and the closest to us is the Ning family’s Ning Zhuo team. But they’ve only just reached the first Dao Gate. Our lead is too great.”
“Truly worthy of celestial talent!”
The City Lord’s Mansion’s remodeling team looked at Meng Chong, filled with admiration.
They knew very well: Meng Chong’s contribution to this achievement was immense, truly indispensable.
Although Meng Chong’s temperament was childish, and his simple-mindedness made many cultivators look down on him, everyone had to admire his celestial talent.
**Wild Sprint Thunderclap**—its applicability was broad, its power immense, doing what others could not!
Lava Immortal Palace’s main hall.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit lay on the throne, its gaze penetrating through layers of walls and floor tiles, witnessing this scene of celebration.
It snorted angrily.
The City Lord’s people had already entered the second transfer hall, but until now, not a single person had noticed anything strange—if there was only one gate, why set up such a transfer hall?
Yet this strange point hadn’t been detected by anyone.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit understood the reason very well.
It was because in the transfer hall, Yuan Dasheng often appeared, leading to people making wrong assumptions.
“The Mechanical Ape didn’t appear this time.”
“Great!”
“I heard that the team formed by the three families suffered heavy losses because their numbers were too large. They were attacked by both the Mechanical Ape and the Slave Soul Puppets.”
“How come I heard they almost won? It was just that Ning Xiaohui wanted to settle a personal grudge and missed the opportunity at the most critical moment, delaying the battle.”
“Despicable.” Meng Chong clenched his fist, his face full of regret.
In his understanding, this kind of transfer hall was usually guarded by either a Mechanical Ape or a Slave Ghost Puppet.
Meng Chong had been eagerly looking forward to another big fight with Yuan Dasheng.
But recently, he had encountered the Mechanical Ape far too infrequently, leaving him impatient with anticipation.
Without Yuan Dasheng guarding it, the transfer hall seemed empty.
Meng Chong stepped forward, intending to push open the second Dao Gate.
The cultivators of the remodeling team hurried to stop him.
“Young Master Meng Chong, you shouldn’t always charge ahead like that.”
“Let us open the door. We’ll do it.”
“Yes, if there’s a trap behind the door and you get seriously injured, our exploration will surely come to a halt.”
“After passing the first transfer hall, we haven’t found any resting rooms. Young Master Meng Chong, please be cautious!”
It had to be said, the various traps and mechanisms left behind by Ning Zhuo had made a very deep impression on everyone.
“You’re worrying too much!”
Meng Chong brushed everyone aside and once again stepped to the door: “If there really is a trap, I’m the one most capable of breaking through it.”
“All of you stay behind, watch me clear this stage!”
“Hahaha.”
Meng Chong laughed heartily, filled with energy.
But as soon as he pushed the door, he let out a sound of surprise: “Hmm?”
“What is it?” The other cultivators became very nervous.
The next moment, Meng Chong burst into laughter, louder and more joyful than before: “I found it, I found the follow-up cultivation technique!”
“Just by touching this door, we can obtain crucial information. It’s the fourth to sixth layers of the **Five Elements Qi Regulation Art**.”
Meng Chong’s words greatly excited the group.
They had been at the third layer peak for quite some time, feeling frustrated.
Now, finally obtaining the follow-up cultivation technique meant their stalled cultivation could once again progress smoothly.
“The door won’t open; we need to cultivate to the peak of the sixth layer to unlock it.” Meng Chong felt some regret.
But the others were overjoyed.
Watching their reactions, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit anxiously scratched the throne’s backrest with its claws.
It desperately wanted to tell the celebrating crowd that besides the Dao Gate, there were also the Demon Gate and the Buddha Gate.
Unfortunately, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit’s authority was limited, and it couldn’t intervene in this matter.
While it was feeling helpless and fuming with frustration, the culprit behind all this, Ning Zhuo, was busy summoning the trial disciple imprint.
“It’s coming.”
“I see it!”
In Ning Zhuo’s vision, he saw a strand of **Life Hanging by a Thread** descend from the sky, falling toward the top of his head.
**Divine Ability—Life Hanging by a Thread!**
The next moment, Ning Zhuo fully activated the divine ability.
The Life Hanging by a Thread from the Lava Immortal Palace was severely disrupted, like a willow branch swaying violently in a storm, unable to land on Ning Zhuo’s head.
“Hmm?!!” Sensing the abnormality, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit immediately focused its attention.
When it saw this scene, it couldn’t help but blink repeatedly, feeling like it was dreaming!
Is this real?
Ning Zhuo toyed with the Lava Immortal Palace’s Life Hanging by a Thread, smiling slightly.
He stopped the interference, allowing the Life Hanging by a Thread to attach itself to the back of his head.
The next moment, Ning Zhuo once again manipulated the Life Hanging by a Thread, letting it draw out his soul and hasten his entry into the Immortal Palace.
This strange feeling again?!
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit couldn’t help but feel suspicious and instinctively stood up, its dragon eyes widening to an unprecedented degree!
Room No. 1.
Ning Zhuo quickly assembled his puppet body, leaping several times down from a pile of mechanical parts stacked into a small mountain.
By now, he was quite familiar with his puppet body. His movements were nimble, no longer as stiff as before.
In Room No. 1, Ning Zhuo was not alone.
“Ning Zhuo?” The remodeling team from the Zhou family saw a big-headed puppet approaching, immediately recognizing Ning Zhuo.
“Ning Zhuo.” Leading this small remodeling team was one of the Zhou family’s talents, Zhou Zhu.
Ning Zhuo had a closer relationship with Zhou Zhenshen, but his interactions with Zhou Zhu were relatively few.
Moreover, Zhou Zhu was a taciturn person, not many were close to him.
Though Zhou Zhu knew Ning Zhuo’s strength well, even as a man of few words, he took the initiative to propose cooperation at this moment.
Ning Zhuo politely declined: “After all, I am from the Ning family. I’m sorry, fellow Daoists of the Zhou family.”
A puppet beside Zhou Zhu immediately spoke up: “Young Master Ning Zhuo, we all know that you were forced by the Ning family’s main branch to admit that Ning Xiaohui’s attack on you was just an accident.”
“But all of us, everyone who participated in that event knows this was no accident.”
“It was deliberate, intentional. Fortunately, this is a trial checkpoint, and we are all puppet bodies.”
“If this were outside the Immortal Palace, she would be your murderer!”
The Zhou family members were outraged on Ning Zhuo’s behalf, unaware that Ning Zhuo had orchestrated the whole situation.
Ning Zhuo sighed deeply but said nothing. He cupped his hands to thank them, then pushed open the door and entered Room No. 2.
He hid among the remodeling team. Given his current status and reputation, exploring the Immortal Palace alone would not raise any suspicion.
Using his spell techniques, Ning Zhuo expertly avoided all the traps in Room No. 2 and quickly arrived at the second Dao Gate.
The Zhou family cultivators followed closely behind him into Room No. 2.
They witnessed the entire process of Ning Zhuo passing through the room alone.
“Incredible.”
“I didn’t expect Young Master Ning Zhuo to be so skilled in spellcasting, it’s like second nature to him.”
“No wonder he hosts an exchange meeting every few days, actively sharing his insights on spellcasting. Each time, the Ning family’s remodeling team benefits greatly!”
Ning Zhuo turned and looked back, seeing the Life Hanging by a Thread attached to the top of every Zhou family puppet. These were all set by him earlier.
Essentially, every cultivator in the three-family alliance team had been visited by Ning Zhuo, each with their own Life Hanging by a Thread!
At this moment, Ning Zhuo clearly noticed that the Life Hanging by a Thread on every Zhou family member was rapidly thickening.
“Everyone is starting to acknowledge me more deeply…”
Ning Zhuo waved goodbye to the Zhou family group, then pushed open the door and entered Room No. 3.
Ning Zhuo had become famous.
He was the master of the black market, pulling down his own clan’s young patriarch, at odds with the Ning family’s main branch. Everything that happened to him was full of controversy.
In the recent joint battle, although the group had ultimately failed, Ning Zhuo had performed the best, leaving a deep impression on everyone.
Although, upon review, people realized Ning Zhuo had fixated on the Smoke Cart throughout the battle, revealing some flaws in his command.
But those flaws didn’t overshadow his brilliance!
Now, even within the large team of the three-family alliance, Ning Zhuo was a heavyweight figure not to be underestimated.
Ning Zhuo moved alone, clearing several stages in a row until he reached Room No.
8.
There, he reunited with the **Golden-Blooded Battle Ape, Dasheng**.
Afterward, with Yuan Dasheng’s help, he swept through the obstacles effortlessly.
To prevent any unforeseen incidents from behind, Ning Zhuo even borrowed Qi Bai, placing him in Room No. 8.
Whenever anyone tried to catch up, Qi Bai would eliminate them.
Every time, Ning Zhuo let Yuan Dasheng open the doors first, meticulously paying attention to these details, making no mistakes.
Not long after, Ning Zhuo and Yuan Dasheng arrived at the second transfer hall.
Meng Chong and the others had already disappeared.
They were busy advancing their cultivation after finally obtaining the follow-up technique.
But just because they couldn’t push open the Dao Gate didn’t mean Ning Zhuo couldn’t.
Ning Zhuo pushed open the second **Buddha Gate**.
Seeing how effortlessly he did it, the Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit was grinding its teeth in rage.
Behind the second Buddha Gate, the first challenge was one Ning Zhuo was already familiar with.
Here, he had to choose nine materials, then use limited tools and time to arm Yuan Dasheng as much as possible.
After that, he had to rely on Yuan Dasheng to pass through the various trials.
During this period, Ning Zhuo couldn’t control Yuan Dasheng; he could only rely on its instinct.
“But now, I possess a divine ability.”
“Life Hanging by a Thread, let me see your power!”
Ning Zhuo fearlessly activated his divine ability.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit: !!!
It was utterly shocked.
At this moment, it finally confirmed that Ning Zhuo had mastered the complete divine ability, **Life Hanging by a Thread**!
The Immortal Palace shook once more.
Blinding flames and sky-high lava intertwined.
The Dragon Turtle Fire Spirit’s roar reached Meng Kui’s ears, and he furrowed his brow slightly—what was going on?
From the roar, he sensed a trace of fear.
**Life Hanging by a Thread** was effective!
Ning Zhuo didn’t even invoke the **Buddha Heart Demon Seal**, relying only on Life Hanging by a Thread to manipulate Yuan Dasheng and cheat his way through the trials with ease.
Though Yuan Dasheng had some intelligence, it retained its habit from life, disliking spellcasting and preferring close combat.
This flaw vanished with Ning Zhuo’s cooperation.
That day, Ning Zhuo passed three stages in a row, reaching the third transfer hall.
He touched the Buddha Gate, Dao Gate, and Demon Gate successively.
The seventh, eighth, and ninth layers of the **Mirror Platform Spirit Technique**, **Five Elements Qi Regulation Art**, and **Demonic Blood Tendon Technique** all fell into Ning Zhuo’s hands.
Before leaving, Ning Zhuo thoughtfully raised the stone walls of the Buddha Gate and Demon Gate.
Only one Dao Gate was left.