Lin Manor, underground treasure vault.
This treasure vault had not actually been part of the Heavenly Court Real Estate Bureau's original design. Annie had simply carved it out inside a rocky mountain on one of the floating islands, using it to house the Treasure Bowl she had casually refined.
The secret chamber lay beyond a concealed restricted stone door behind Lin Manor's original treasure vault building, which itself required passing through three layers of spirit-light runes. From there, one had to descend roughly a hundred steps along a winding stone staircase to reach it.
This vault was located in the heart of the mountain. Its dome was exceedingly high, and it was sealed tight on all sides. An environmental simulation array overhead cast light synchronized with the outside world, making the place feel less stifling.
Other than the sole entrance Annie had created, there was no other way in or out. The entire vault was not particularly large either, merely the size of an ordinary small hall—at most thirty or forty square meters.
But its size did not matter!
What mattered was this: in the center of the vault, a Treasure Bowl roughly three feet square sat silently upon the white jade floor.
The bowl was dark gold all over. Ancient cloud patterns and unknown auspicious beasts biting rings were carved around its rim, while fine runes faintly flowed across its body, radiating a warm yet weighty spiritual glow. It continuously drew heaven and earth spiritual energy in from every direction, like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, silently gathering the misty energy within the bowl and compressing it without end.
As the spiritual energy within the bowl continued to gather and churn, once it reached a certain density—almost solid—a soft "ding" finally rang out. Then, an irregular yet