The entire Underground Palace was rumbling and trembling, with fine dust and debris falling from the ceiling.
Something dramatic seems to be happening inside the Underground Palace.
"Is the tomb about to collapse?!"
Bai Jinghong exclaimed in disbelief.
Everyone's expression changed instantly.
This Underground Palace was so vast and immeasurable that they had no idea how deep they were. If Underground Palace were to collapse, it would be even more terrifying than a mountain collapsing.
Being buried alive inside would likely leave even a fifth-realm External Scene Realm expert severely injured, let alone them.
"It shouldn't collapse."
Li Mo's expression was solemn, but he still shook his head.
In his Heavenly Mandate Divine Eye, he had never seen anyone die because of the collapse of the Underground Palace.
Ying Bing frowned, pondered for a moment, and then said softly:
"Someone has triggered a checkmate on the Chessboard."
Some people have no idea about the layout of this complex Underground Palace and are probably wandering around aimlessly, which will naturally lead them to their doom.
"Many powerful individuals ventured into the tomb; having triggered a deadly trap, they naturally wouldn't simply sit idly by and await their fate."
The meaning of "Tian Miao" is...
Those people were using brute force to overcome skill.
Unable to decipher the mysteries of the Underground Palace, some resort to physical methods, attempting to force their way in, which might come at a considerable cost and even have unpredictable consequences.
"We need to speed things up."
Li Mo and Ying Bing exchanged glances, then looked at Tian Miao.
At least Jiang Yu has a powerful expert at the Profound Mastery behind him, as well as the Heaven Patrol Guard. Tan Zhuyin has two Dharma Kings at the Dharma Body Realm behind him. If they both go to the main tomb chamber regardless of the cost, it's hard to say who will be faster.
Moreover, if the underground Underground Palace is damaged to a certain extent, the original method of breaking the curse may no longer work.
"Are you leaving?" Bai Jinghong asked hesitantly.
Li Mo nodded. "You should stay here and not move around. This Underground Palace is safe. If we go any further, I might not be able to protect you all."
"In case of any unforeseen circumstances, the innocent bystanders will be affected if the city gates catch fire..."
"..."
The Three Heroes of Cloud-Crossing were playing the role of minor characters for the first time, and their expressions were quite complicated.
But they also knew that Li Mo was right, so they decided to stay where they were.
"You can go, we can manage."
"Yeah, don't wander off. You've all read those stories, right? People with an overactive curiosity are often the first to get their comeuppance..."
Li Mo gave another instruction, and Ice Block had already turned the switch on the door.
The three figures disappeared into the darkness once more.
The swordsmen, who had been so defiant just moments before, suddenly felt an eeriness around them. The dark, empty environment made them feel as if a few more Tomb-Guarding Beast might suddenly leap out from somewhere...
"We can..."
"Ouch, I suddenly feel so cold..."
In the darkness, the swordsmen silently grew weak, helpless, and pitiful, trembling in the crumbling Underground Palace.
Who isn't a child at heart...?
Li Mo led the way, and the three of them returned to the correct path. As the Ice Block opened one Underground Palace door after another, they got closer and closer to the depths of the Underground Palace.
The thunderous roar remained at a distance that varied, sometimes near, sometimes far from them.
"How much longer until the Ice Block?"
Li Mo asked a question, but received no response for a long time.
But then they saw Ying Bing squatting in front of the stone gate, her eyes slightly dazed, as if she had been distracted for some unknown reason.
"Ice Block? Are you alright?"
Li Mo held her hand and called out softly, a hint of worry in his voice.
"The situation in the Underground Palace has changed. I was just calculating the final step. Everything will be fine."
Ying Bing pursed her lips and gently shook her head.
She then turned the numbers on the base to the correct positions.
"It's open."
This time, there was no sound of the Underground Palace shaking, only the heavy scraping sound of the stone door.
The soft glow of the Clam Pearl illuminated the darkness ahead, revealing a deep passageway. Judging from the marks on the stone walls, it was definitely carved by human hands.
Li Mo, possessing the strongest physical body, shielded Ying Bing behind him.
"I'll go first, you follow me."
"Um."
Footsteps echoed.
This long passageway also features murals, and these are even more complete, including the two we saw earlier.
Or, one could say, it's a sequel to the murals above.
The following content describes how, after the innate beings were transformed into totems by the Power of All Living Beings, the various tribes of the human race began to wage war against each other, until finally only two of the largest remained.
One was painted in red, and the other in black.
Behind each of them stood enormous figures, none other than the celestial beings descending from the heavens.
There were five immortals behind the black tribe, led by the Nine-Colored Primal Phoenix Woman, and among the remaining three was the Dream God.
There are four figures behind the white tribe, their identities unknown.
In the end, the black tribe won, and the white tribe was absorbed.
The two tribes merged, and the woman who was the incarnation of the Nine-Colored Primal Phoenix became a giant divine bird, sheltering the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths under her wings.
Another tall figure donned a crown and ascended the throne as emperor.
A nation has emerged.
"The Heavenly Dark Bird descended and gave birth to the Shang dynasty?"
After Li Mo finished speaking, he felt that the sentence sounded somewhat familiar.
"So the founding emperor of the Great Shang was actually an immortal from the Nine Heavens?"
"Perhaps." Even Tian Miao couldn't be sure about something from such a long time ago.
"But we need to hurry."
The three continued walking along the passageway.
The murals behind seem to depict the succession of emperors of the Great Shang, and the time is getting closer and closer to the completion of this Underground Palace.
In addition to paintings, some text began to appear on the walls of the passageway.
"These characters must be from a very ancient era..."
Tian Miao frowned, looked at it for a moment, and then shook her head.
Needless to say, Li Mo didn't recognize any of them; these weren't Chinese characters anyway.
"This is a diary," Ying Bing suddenly said.
"A diary? Who writes that kind of stuff...?"
Li Mo was curious about what this diary, which was separated by thousands of years, actually contained.
Ying Bing gazed at the words on the wall, then softly read them aloud:
"Today marks the fourteenth year I have overseen the construction of the Cloud Dream Palace, and the eighty-second year I have served as the God Summoning Cult."
"When I was building Cloud Dream Palace, I initially thought that I should just follow the steps. But in the process, I discovered that I could use the Nine-Deaths Chess Game to set up the layout. It was a dead end game that the Cloud Dream Ancestral God played against the heavens."
"Even if the Cloud Dream Ancestral God were to truly awaken, He would not be able to unravel this..."
"I'm increasingly aware of the changes in myself; every morning when I wake up, I feel like I'm becoming more and more of a stranger to myself."
"This chess game is truly difficult to set up; not a single wrong move can be made, or all our efforts will be in vain."
"If I were still an immortal, I could simply wave my hand and..."
The writing here has turned into graffiti, as if the writer was shocked and flustered, wondering why he suddenly had such an idea.
"Isn't he the leader? What do you mean by 'when he was an immortal'?"
Li Mo was also confused.
The handwriting that followed became very subdued and restrained.
"I am Qin Yuzhi, the God Summoning Cult, and I am building the Cloud Dream Underground Palace..."
"I need to hurry, or He will awaken from within me... and turn from a dream into reality..."
"At that time, my existence will be nothing more than a dream of His..."
"Am I still myself? I can't tell, I really can't..."
The murals end here, and the passageway is almost at its end as well.