Chapter 867: Immortal Palace’s Gate
Bi Linglong was stupefied. What the hell was this idiot doing?! If these soldiers had any intelligence, wouldn’t they only get even angrier that someone was impersonating their emperor?
But something shocking happened. Thoe soldiers didn’t charge at them and cut them to pieces; rather, they calmly looked at Zu An. Confusion could even be seen on their faces, as if they were hesitating.
Zu An was actually quite nervous. Even though the Tai’e Sword was King Qin’s personal sword, and the Primordial Origin Sutra King Qin’s cultivation method, the terracotta soldiers might not be able to recognize those things. If he really had no choice, he would just purify them all with the Primordial Origin Sutra.
That was why Zu An had never been scared at all. This wasn’t even his first time dealing with such things. His Primordial Origin Sutra’s second layer granted him the ability to restrain all kinds of deceased existences.
Mi Li slowly took form by Zu An’s side. She stared coldly at the soldiers with her dignified gaze.
At first, the soldiers had only been a bit confused, because while the man’s sword and aura resembled the Qin Emperor greatly, he didn’t look like him at all! They had been wondering if something was wrong with their memories, causing them to end up hesitating. However, when they saw the past empress standing at his side, their confusion was instantly dispelled. They lowered their weapons and knelt down, bowing respectfully to the two of them.
Zu An gave the cool and elegant Mi Li a look. Having her pose as his wife really did make him feel pretty good. But he quickly focused and said, “Pass on this emperor’s orders. You must take down that fat bastard who was shining with yellow light, no matter the cost!” He was worried that the soldiers might not know who Zhao Ruizhi was, so he gave them more details about the emperor’s appearance.
The soldiers couldn't speak, but they all saluted with their fists in front of their chests, offering their respect to Zu An’s group again. Then, they rushed in the direction Zhao Ruizhi had disappeared toward with their weapons in hand.
When she saw the ferocious clay soldiers all leave, Bi Linglong’s mouth fell open in shock. “How did you do that?”
Zu An proudly replied, “Didn’t you hear what I said? I am the Qin Emperor’s reincarnation!”
But he screamed miserably a second later. “Ah! Let go, it hurts, it hurts…”
Mi Li twisted his ear. “Damn brat, you dare to even take advantage of your master?”
Bi Linglong gave the elegant red-clothed woman a look of shock when she saw the two of them bicker. Don’t tell me she…
Their group continued toward the bridge of light, but they didn’t run into anything else dangerous along the way. They even encountered other clay soldiers many times; but not only did the soldiers not show them hostility, they even greeted the group respectfully.
…
As He Li was being chased miserably, he saw them from a distance. He began to question life. “Why are they only chasing me and not them?!”
“Is it just because he was born with a handsome face?”
“Save meeee!”
He wanted to run toward Zu An’s side, but they were already far from each other. There was no way he could close the distance, so he could only continue to run in a panic.
…
Meanwhile, Zu An and Bi Linglong had safely arrived at the edge of the bridge of light. They continued toward the third sacred mountain. Now that they were looking at the majestic palace up close, Bi Linglong couldn't help but say with a sigh, “As expected of the home of an immortal. This palace is far grander than even our imperial palace!”
They had only been able to see the palace from far away. Only now that they were up close did they discover that there were three platforms beneath it. Each one was incredibly broad and wide, likely able to hold ten thousand people at the very least. Between the platform levels were white marble stairs, and past over a hundred flights of steps was the palace gate.
“Look at you bumpkins,” Mi Li said. Despite that, there was a grin on her lips. The praise was actually to her liking. She took large strides with her long legs and walked up the stairs. However, she was actually becoming a bit emotional. Just how long had it been since she had last walked similar steps…?
Zu An couldn't help but ask, “Gorgeous master, are you familiar with this palace?”
“How can I not be?” Mi Li sighed. “This place is practically identical to the past Qin Imperial Palace. There are even many influences from the Epang Palace.”
The Qin Imperial Palace was the palace of the Great Qin Dynasty. Later on, there had been new additions made after the first emperor unified the world, one of which was the Epang Palace. Unfortunately, the Epang Palace was too large of a project, and so it had never been finished even when he passed on.
Bi Linglong asked Zu An quietly, “Just what kind of country is this Qin State you’re both talking about? Why haven’t I ever heard of it before?”
Zu An replied, “It’s a country from ancient times. A lot of ancient records were lost over time, so it’s natural that the people of this age don’t know about them.”
“Ancient times…” Bi Linglong’s eyes lit up. From what she knew, many dungeons were remains from the ancient era. They were filled with all sorts of powerful inheritances and opportunities. Even if they didn’t contain methods of immortality, they were definitely extremely valuable.
The three of them quickly crossed the steps, arriving in front of a massive palace gate. Zu An thought there might be some mechanism he would have to solve, but Mi Li simply walked over and opened it. Stuffy air rushed out, reflecting the passage of time.
Zu An was a bit puzzled. “Hm? Even though the air is a bit stuffy, there’s still oxygen.”
Mi Li said, “The palace’s construction is special, with ventilation openings in many hidden places. Those inside obviously wouldn’t suffocate to death.” She took the initiative to walk in after speaking/. Revisiting a place that brought so many memories filled her with emotions. She began eagerly looking all around her.
Zu An and Bi Linglong followed behind her, but the two of them suddenly felt a great force. They were pulled to the palace door! Zu An reacted right away, quickly struggling free from the door and pulling Bi Linglong away too.
He examined the surroundings vigilantly, but he didn’t see any mechanisms or abnormalities at all. But even so, the two of them still felt waves of suction force pulling them toward the main entrance.
Mi Li chuckled. “There’s no need to be nervous. The door was made using magnetite. The Qin Emperor ordered the palace door to be made out of a massive piece of magnetite. Anyone who entered with metal weapons would be pulled toward the door.”
Zu An thought, So that was it. He and Bi Linglong both had swords and artifacts on them, many of them made of metal. That was why they had been pulled over.
He said mockingly, “The Qin Emperor really had no sense of security. He used a Mirror of Souls to check his subjects, and he even created a door like this.”
Mi Li sighed. “The various countries were in conflict. For the sake of victory, they committed every crime imaginable. He obviously had no choice but to increase his precautions.”
The three of them had already entered through the palace gate while they were chatting. They arrived at the main hall, which was decorated splendidly. On a high platform in the distance was an imperial dragon throne that flickered with golden light.
Mi Li walked forward. She caressed the dragon throne, looking behind a pearl curtain that hung behind the throne. “Back then, I would sit behind this place during grand celebrations.”
Bi Linglong was extremely shocked. Mi Li was someone from the ancient era? How had she managed to live for that long? Was there really an elixir of immortality in this world?
For some reason, Zu An felt annoyed. He just didn’t feel great when he saw Mi Li reminiscing fondly about her past. But he soon laughed in self-mockery. Being homesick was something natural. Why the hell was he getting jealous over that?
Suddenly, a roar of laughter filled the air. A voice exclaimed, “I still managed to enter the palace in the end!”
Zu An turned around with a grave expression, and saw Zhao Ruizhi standing by the main entrance.
The emperor wasn’t in the best state. His body was covered in blood, and his chest had a massive wound on it. There were vague wisps of black smoke coming out of it; Zu An could already tell it was a wound inflicted by Bai Qi. The emperor’s aura was extremely unstable as well. He Li and three deathsworn soldiers were by his side; they were all wounded as well, and looked even more miserable than Zhao Ruizhi.
“This immortal palace doesn’t seem all that different from an emperor’s palace, hm?” Zhao Ruizhi frowned. Even though the aura of the place was grand, it didn’t go beyond the level of what was achievable by mortals. He was a bit disappointed.
Zu An asked, “Why are you the only ones here? Where are the others?” He was extremely disappointed. He had ordered the soldiers to kill Zhao Ruizhi no matter the cost, but it seemed they had failed.
“They’re all dead. They were killed by those weird clay things,” He Li said. He couldn't help but give Zhao Ruizhi a look.
The others had all been running toward the bridge, and they had just happened to meet up together. They had thought that with the emperor on their side, they were safe for sure; and yet the emperor had snatched a few of them and thrown them into the enemy as cannon fodder to hold up the two terrifying generals. Only then were they able to escape onto the bridge of light.
The terracotta warriors seemed to have some kind of restriction placed on them. They couldn't continue onto the bridge and chase after the cultivators. That was why the group had been able to barely survive.
Even though the soldiers had known that the emperor only kept them alive to use them, they were still upset when they witnessed that scene. Unfortunately, no matter how much resentment they carried, they didn’t dare to show it at all. They could only focus on staying alive for as long as possible.
Zhao Ruizhi began to laugh madly. “What immortal palace? What immortality? Judging from everything we’ve seen and experienced, this is clearly just the grave of an emperor! Since it’s a tomb, how could there possibly be any elixirs of immortality?”
He suddenly turned toward Zu An. “Since there’s no elixir of immortality, there’s no value in keeping you alive any longer. Die!”