Emperor Kong Ming

Ye Ziyun felt a deep sense of frustration. As the little princess of the City Lord's Mansion and the granddaughter of the Legendary Demon Spirit Master Ye Mo, she had read countless secret tomes since childhood, giving her a much deeper understanding than her peers. She had always held a sliver of pride in her knowledge, but compared to Nie Li, this monstrous talent, she felt utterly ignorant.

It was no wonder Ye Ziyun felt this way; Nie Li couldn't be judged by ordinary standards.

Through the cracks in the stone walls and the way the floor tiles were laid, Nie Li easily identified where traps were hidden.

"Traps of this level are simply no challenge!" After walking a short distance, Nie Li picked up a stone from the ground and threw it five or six meters forward. With a snap, it hit one of the blue bricks.

Swish, swish, swish!

Thud, thud, thud!

Dense arrows flew wildly from the passage ahead, like a torrential downpour. The tips of the arrows gleamed with a dark green light.

They were all poisoned arrows. Ye Ziyun's pretty face turned slightly pale. She could imagine how tragic it would be if they continued walking and accidentally triggered the traps, being instantly riddled with arrows all over their bodies.

How did Nie Li manage to detect the trap from such a distance?

"Alright, we can go now!" Nie Li said with a slight smile, looking at Ye Ziyun.

Even though they were in a secret passage riddled with traps, Ye Ziyun had a feeling that as long as she followed Nie Li, she would be safe. No problem would be insurmountable!

Looking at Nie Li's retreating figure, though he was still a bit thin, he exuded a sense of steady reliability.

Ye Ziyun lowered her head, lost in thought. Perhaps, being with Nie Li wouldn't be so bad. But after a moment, she quickly shook her head, banishing the thought. What was she thinking! Ning'er seemed to be deeply infatuated with Nie Li, and it had only been a few days before Hu Yan Lanruo also expressed her intention to pursue Nie Li.

How many girls had this philanderer Nie Li entangled himself with?

She would never believe that Nie Li only liked her!

Ye Ziyun proudly lifted her head. She wouldn't be as shallow as those other girls.

The two figures moved forward, heading deeper into the passage.

Just as Nie Li and Ye Ziyun were exploring the passage together, in the jungle outside.

"What a bunch of trash, letting that Green Arm Giant Ape escape after severely injuring it!" Deacon Yun Hua cursed in frustration. Spirit Level demon beasts often possessed spirit beasts, and even a mere Silver Rank spirit beast could fetch at least hundreds of thousands of Spirit Coins!

As a result, six people were injured, and the Green Arm Giant Ape escaped. It was truly infuriating!

What angered them the most was Nie Li. If Nie Li hadn't lured the Spirit Level Green Arm Giant Ape over, they wouldn't have suffered such losses.

"Forget it, it's just a Green Arm Giant Ape. Those aristocratic disciples are definitely worth more! Search for them! Don't come back to me if you haven't caught anyone!" Deacon Yun Hua roared. A group of people dispersed and began to search the entire dense forest.

A faint firelight in the distance attracted their attention.

Firelight could scare away demon beasts at night, preventing them from approaching, but it also easily became a very conspicuous target in the darkness.

"Why are you grabbing me? Who are you people?"

Soon, several men in black dragged a person in front of Deacon Yun Hua.

Deacon Yun Hua laughed heartily. The person before him was dressed in luxurious clothing, indicating an important identity. "Tsk tsk, young master, you must have heard of our Dark Guild. We capture young masters like you. Tsk tsk, should I sell you for money, or should I kill you?"

This captured person was Shen Yue!

Upon hearing the words "Dark Guild," Shen Yue's face turned pale, and he stammered, "Don't kill me. I'm from the Sacred Family. My family can give you a lot of money!"

"From the Sacred Family?" Deacon Yun Hua was slightly taken aback. A hidden glint flashed in his eyes, and he muttered to himself, "I thought I could make a big profit, but it turns out he's one of the Vice Guild Leader's people. What bad luck!"

Deacon Yun Hua angrily shouted at his subordinates, "Keep searching!"

Shen Yue thought these Dark Guild members would trouble him, but he didn't expect them to completely ignore him, only assigning one person to watch him. Shen Yue breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the Dark Guild members still held some fear towards the Sacred Family!

He thought the name of the Sacred Family had intimidated these Dark Guild members, and his demeanor immediately became arrogant again, completely different from the person who had almost wet himself in fear just moments ago.

Nie Li led Ye Ziyun forward. After about five or six hours, they saw a magnificent hall in the distance.

"So Ancient Orchid City is built on top of this underground palace. The high-ranking officials of Ancient Orchid City must know about this palace below, so it's highly likely they've hidden all the valuable items somewhere in this underground palace!" Nie Li said. Based on their location, they were already underground the training grounds.

Just as Nie Li predicted, the City Lord and the other high-ranking officials must have hidden all the good stuff beneath the training grounds!

Entering the hall, the scene before them deeply shocked both him and Ye Ziyun. The hall was filled with corpses everywhere, of adults and children alike, piled densely together. They appeared to have died after a painful struggle.

"What happened? How could this be?" Ye Ziyun's eyes reddened, and tears streamed down her cheeks. She saw many children curled up in corners. They must have been very cute in life, but they died silently here.

Nie Li sighed deeply. "This must have been a temporary shelter for Ancient Orchid City. They transferred the old, weak, women, and children here, probably intending to let them out after the war ended. But Ancient Orchid City was conquered, so these people were trapped here and starved to death!"

Ye Ziyun's mouth opened, revealing a pained expression.

Nie Li took a deep breath, his heart churning, unable to remain calm. Wasn't the City of Brilliance in his past life similar? Before the war broke out, they had also sent many people into shelters. Later, when the City of Brilliance was breached, they were forced to relocate. He didn't know what happened to those old and young, women and children; they had probably starved to death in the shelters.

The tragic scenes of the City of Brilliance being breached in his past life were still so vivid. Nie Li clenched his fists tightly. He would never let such a thing happen again!

"How about we leave?" Ye Ziyun said, unable to bear staying there any longer.

"No, we can't leave. Moreover, we must take all the treasures here!" Nie Li said resolutely. "The treasures here can enhance our strength. Only with strength can we protect the City of Brilliance, otherwise, the City of Brilliance will become the second Ancient Orchid City!"

Hearing Nie Li's words, Ye Ziyun was stunned. A thought flashed through her mind: Could the City of Brilliance become the second Ancient Orchid City? Although the City of Brilliance was relatively safe, demon beasts often lurked around, and sometimes even breached the city walls.

Ye Ziyun's expression became resolute. Yes, they had to improve their strength at all costs to protect the City of Brilliance. Although being a grave robber was shameful, what did it matter compared to the lives of so many people in the City of Brilliance?

Nie Li and Ye Ziyun began to search the entire hall.

"There's a piece of Bronze Armor here!"

"There are a few bottles of pills here, but they're all ruined!"

"Heavens, it's a Spirit Stone!" Ye Ziyun clasped her hands together, offered a silent prayer, and then took the Spirit Stone from a little girl's neck. The Spirit Stone was tied to a silver-white chain and was very exquisite. This child must have had a noble status in life.

However, since the person was already dead, if this Spirit Stone were given to a Gold Rank expert, it might help them advance their cultivation further.

Nie Li also had some gains, having collected dozens of Bronze Rank armors and War Blades alone. He also found a Silver Rank dagger that was still in very good condition, undamaged. In addition, there were many other valuable items such as Demon Crystals.

But he hadn't found the spiritual lamp he was looking for.

Nie Li's gaze fell upon the center of the hall. In the middle of the hall lay a massive Stone Coffin, about three meters long and one meter wide and high. The surface of the Stone Coffin was densely covered with mysterious runes. These runes seemed somewhat familiar, yet he couldn't quite recognize them.

What were these runes?

As Nie Li approached the Stone Coffin of Emperor Kong Ming, he felt a mysterious power wash over him. Nie Li felt as if standing beside the Stone Coffin was like standing in the middle of a raging sea, where he could be swept away at any moment. No wonder all those who had died were unwilling to stand near the Stone Coffin.

"Nie Li, what's going on with this Stone Coffin?" Ye Ziyun was about to walk over, but when she got within about three meters of the Stone Coffin, her face suddenly turned pale, and she stumbled back several steps.

"What's wrong?" Nie Li looked at Ye Ziyun in confusion.

"As soon as I walked here, I felt an unbearable headache!" Ye Ziyun said.

Hearing Ye Ziyun's words, Nie Li's eyebrows twitched slightly. This power felt very familiar. It was likely a restriction placed on the Stone Coffin by some powerful expert, which was why Ye Ziyun couldn't get close. But why was he standing only a step away from the Stone Coffin without experiencing anything?

Was the restriction only effective against females, not males? Or was it effective against others but not Nie Li?

Nie Li pondered this, then turned to Ye Ziyun and said, "You go somewhere else first. Leave this to me!"

"Okay." Ye Ziyun nodded and walked to the side.

Nie Li began to carefully examine the Stone Coffin before him. The Stone Coffin was completely sealed, and its mysterious patterns were unlike anything Nie Li, despite his vast knowledge, had ever seen.

Was this the Stone Coffin of Emperor Kong Ming? Why did the runes on it not look like they were from the Holy Empire era?