The transmission room within the Shuyu Pavilion isn’t large.
The floor, walls, and ceiling are engraved with complex array patterns.
Sun Lingtong stepped out of the array and approached the only door.
He didn’t immediately push the door open, but cautiously employed stealing techniques to detect the world beyond the door.
After performing five different detection methods consecutively, he confirmed that the door was safe.
He took a deep breath and transmitted a thought to Ning Zhuo: "Little Zhuo, I’m going to push the door open."
Sun Lingtong and Ning Zhuo were always connected through the Life Hanging Thread.
Ning Zhuo nodded inwardly in response: "I am ready."
The big-headed youth was in the cave mansion at Vinebrace Cliff, wholly focused.
The Shuyu Pavilion was his mother’s former cave mansion, and Ning Zhuo naturally hoped he could explore it himself. But reason led him to make a more sensible arrangement.
Sun Lingtong had a higher cultivation level and mastered many stealing techniques, all factors making him the better candidate for the adventure.
During the battle at Wangchuan Underworld, Sun Lingtong even infiltrated the enemy’s territory to a nation’s capital, caused massive chaos, and then left triumphantly. This achievement had a huge impact on the Altar Battlefield.
Although he relied on the senior fellow disciple Zeng Jide, putting Ning Zhuo in Sun Lingtong’s place at that time would certainly not have achieved the same performance as Sun Lingtong.
Sun Lingtong was suitable for adventure at the forefront, while Ning Zhuo was more suitable for covering the rear.
There was no one more suitable than them!
Ning Zhuo mastered the Divine Power Life Thread, combined with the Spirit Communication Realm, making the rescue of Sun Lingtong a matter of a thought. In the past, even in the White Paper Immortal City, not even the dojo could stop Ning Zhuo from aiding Sun Lingtong.
Of course, within the Shuyu Pavilion, separated by arrays and magic prohibitions, whether this out-field rescue technique would still be effective was a question.
But such arrangements were already the greatest insurance.
Exploring Shuyu Pavilion came with risks.
In the message jade slip, Buddhist Doctor Meng Yaoyin did not disclose further details. She reached a limit in her state and could only choose the most important matters to instruct Ning Zhuo.
She only instructed Ning Zhuo that there were many defensive means within Shuyu Pavilion and lacked bloodline identification means, advising Ning Zhuo to be careful.
After all, she didn’t foresee having a son when she left the Myriad Images Sect.
Sun Lingtong pushed open the door and entered a secret chamber.
In the center of the secret chamber was a millstone-like array plate, resting on the ground, slowly rotating.
The plate was carved from a whole piece of Lake Jade Marrow, inlaid with three hundred and sixty Water Pattern Steel Beads, whose bead tracks interlinked, faintly revealing the tracks of flowing water.
From the bottom of the plate, dozens of array patterns extended outwards, some thick, some thin, resembling crystalline water veins, akin to living roots penetrating the walls.
Sun Lingtong’s eyes flashed with brilliance: "This is the Array Core Room controlling the entire Shuyu Pavilion cave mansion!"
Ning Zhuo exclaimed happily: "Thus, as long as we control this place, we can stabilize all the defensive means within Shuyu Pavilion. No wonder mother didn’t elaborate in the jade slip."
Sun Lingtong didn’t reply, feeling a sense of unease from within.
He paid great attention to such feelings of unease.
With his rich experience in theft, whenever he felt uneasy in the process of stealing, it meant he already discerned some ominous information but hadn’t fully grasped it.
Thus, Sun Lingtong didn’t rush into action but carefully observed.
He directly activated his innate Spiritual Eyes, observed for a while, and was startled into a cold sweat.
"These Water Pattern Steel Beads are actually Water Element Yin Thunder condensed into form and, once triggered, the array patterns will lockdown the entire room, sealing off space."
"At that time, the intruder will die without a grave. No, the whole Shuyu Pavilion will be destroyed in an instant."
Ning Zhuo was appalled.
Sun Lingtong wiped the sweat off his forehead, sighed and said: "Aunt set up the transmission array in the Array Core Room, how could it not be safeguarded?"
"That’s where I felt something was amiss!"
"If it were me, having set up a secret passage, connected to the external world, I would also guard against the enemies’ transmission into Shuyu Pavilion through the secret passage."
"This array plate has identification functions. Unless I crack this aspect and achieve disguise, I must not touch it!"
Sun Lingtong made a judgment.
His gaze scanned around: "Next, I need to choose one among these six doors."
The Array Core Room was set up with the array plate of the entire cave mansion. One was an obviously additional small room, containing only the teleportation array.
Apart from this, there were six doors distributed on four walls.
Sun Lingtong maintained the detection spell constantly and started walking cautiously within the Array Core Room.
Every two to three steps, he would pause, use a round of stealing techniques, examine the surrounding array patterns, then take out various talismans, releasing them consecutively.
His hand techniques dazzled Ning Zhuo.
Ning Zhuo couldn’t help but hold his breath, feeling tense in both body and mind.
He was naturally quite familiar with Sun Lingtong. He knew that Sun Lingtong was already exerting his full strength. Such exploration with full commitment had definitely occurred no more than five times in their decade-long acquaintance.
Sun Lingtong, giving his all, would walk and stop, sometimes even retrace steps and detour. A half-cup of tea’s time passed before he reached one door.
From when he started moving to where he stopped now, the straight distance was merely over twenty steps.
Sun Lingtong informed Ning Zhuo, received a response, and then pushed open the door.
The light from outside flooded in, causing Sun Lingtong’s pupils to contract.
What appeared before him was a curved corridor. The hallway was supported by twelve ice crystal jade pillars, with invisible forces holding back the lake water from the outside.