Xiao Hua looked around and chose the path directly in the middle. The gateways on both sides of this broad road were even grander, and the numbers upon them were all below one hundred. As Xiao Hua went deeper, the numbers gradually decreased.
"It's here!" Seeing the large "Thirteen" above a gateway to his left, Xiao Hua stopped and examined it from top to bottom, then turned to look at the nearby gateways. These neighboring gateways all looked alike: towering slabs of bluish stone, layered with rippling patterns like waves, while specks of talismans between those patterns resembled scattered jeweled blossoms!
Xiao Hua extended his hand and laid the token given by the city guards flat upon his palm. The moment he opened his hand, the number above the gateway immediately changed. It twisted strangely, transforming into a rune Xiao Hua found quite familiar. Then the rune emitted rings of light that rippled from the center of the gateway toward its edges. At the same time, the wave-like patterns surged, and the talismans between them gave off flickering illusions.
With a "whoosh," a powerful suction force came from the gateway, instantly drawing the token from Xiao Hua's hand inside!
Like a stone falling into a lake, a fist-sized rune "splashed" out from the restriction upon the gateway. When the rune drifted down in a most bizarre manner, milky-white radiance flashed from where it landed and split into two, rapidly spreading toward both sides of the gateway!
It truly was like a single stone striking half the sky—the gateway suddenly turned transparent, revealing a great door.
"This is actually quite interesting!" Xiao Hua chuckled. Sweeping it with his divine sense and confirming that the restriction had opened, he stepped through the door. Beyond it, the token floated in midair once more.