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Chapter 1371: Ritual
They couldn't help but be surprised. They had come for the Unknown Region this time, and every single Unknown Region was a place countless people yearned for. If news of that got out, all of the world’s powerful cultivators would swarm over.
Wu Liang looked at them strangely. He didn’t understand why they had such a huge reaction.  He said, “There are many funerary objects in the Imperial Tomb, and all of them are extremely precious. What else would it be but a treasury?”
They were all speechless.
Zu An didn’t know whether Wu Liang was telling the truth or lying, but he didn’t have the time to think about all of that at the moment. He just took the party in the other direction.
The map he had gotten from Lord Sui’s Tomb only gave him a rough idea of where the Unknown Region was. As for where its actual location was, it didn’t mark that. Still, that made sense. The map had already existed far earlier than the fiend races’ Imperial Tomb. Back then, the place hadn’t been the Imperial Tomb, so the surrounding terrain had already completely changed. That had made the map lose much of its meaning. They had to look for the rest themselves.
The group looked around along the way to see if there were any special places. Meanwhile, Wu Liang was like a fish in water. He took all of the funerary objects in the rooms without any restraint. Most of them were gold or jade ornaments, but there were also some high-level ki stone treasures.
When they saw his greedy appearance, Zu An and the others sighed inwardly, thinking that they had overthought the situation.
Yan Xuehen was skilled in formation runes. She constantly looked around, but even though she found some hidden mechanisms, none of them had anything to do with the Unknown Region.
Suddenly, the view before their eyes changed. The space in front of them gave way to a wide open area. They were all surprised. At that instant, they almost thought they had already left the Imperial Tomb. There was a sun, moon, and stars above them, while beneath those were rivers and lakes.
“This is…” Yun Jianyue trailed off, her mouth hanging open in shock.
Yu Yanluo was shocked too, but she explained, “This is a miniature version of the world.”
She specialized in art, and her treasure was the World Painting. She was extremely familiar with the lands and waters of the world, so she immediately recognized the scene before her.
“On top of that, it’s a depiction of when the fiend races were at their peak,” Yun Jianyue said with a sneer. “Right now, most of the mountains and rivers have already been seized by the human race. The fiend races seem to still be living in their own fantasies.”
Wu Liang looked at her with a strange expression and asked, “Is this lady a human or a fiend? Your views seem to be a bit unusual.”
Yun Jianyue gave him a cold look. Wu Liang’s entire body trembled, and he didn’t dare to ask any more questions.
Zu An couldn't help but sigh in amazement. He had read about the tomb of the first emperor being a city that contained a sun, moon, and stars, as well as mountains, lakes, and seas. He hadn’t expected to experience the same thing in the fiend races' Imperial Tomb too.
Wu Liang looked at the heavens above and was eager to try inspecting them, saying, “Those must be at least heaven-grade ki stones, maybe even immortal-grade! They’re also so big. Ah, how great would it be if I could pluck one out?”
Yan Xuehen said coldly, “Judging from how these treasures have been placed into the sun, moon, and stars, this is a huge formation. Forcefully removing them would definitely trigger the Imperial Tomb’s alarm. In that case, no one would survive.”
“I know, I know. Am I not allowed to just talk to myself…” Wu Liang muttered, feeling a bit wronged. He looked broken-hearted, as if he had come across a mountain of treasure he couldn’t touch.
“There’s a large lake here,” Yu Yanluo said. She exclaimed in alarm, “Huh? The water is real!”
Normally, in order to preserve models of lakes and rivers in tombs, the architects would use substitutes like mercury; then, they wouldn’t decay for a long, long time. They could also release poison that protected the tomb.
The others were also a bit surprised. They walked over and checked for themselves. Sure enough, it really was water!
“I understand what’s going on. The flow of wind and water matters a lot to tombs, so water is actually extremely important. It’s just that an ordinary person can’t be as bold as the Fiend Emperors in their designs, to find an unending water source here,” Wu Liang explained. “The Golden Crow royal family is of the fire attribute, the most dominant of the yang forces. We all know the saying that yang alone can’t produce life, while yin alone can have no growth. There must be a harmony of yin and yang. This water source is used to balance the yin and yang of this Imperial Tomb. Tsk tsk, the one who designed this Imperial Tomb in the past really was a genius…”
Wu Liang continued to talk non-stop. Zu An and the others were in admiration as they listened. This fella had some tricks after all! The Pangolin race really were the true specialists of tomb raiding.
Yun Jianyue moved over to Zu An’s side and whispered, “Little An, do you think the Unknown Region is inside this lake?”
Zu An nodded and said, “That’s what I think too. How about this? I’ll head down and take a look. You guys keep an eye on Wu Liang.” He had the Blue Mallard ability that granted him a natural affinity with water. As such, he was the most suitable candidate.
“Don’t worry, it’s just a fat daoist priest. He won’t be able to get anywhere.” Yun Jianyue harrumphed. “You’re the one who needs to be careful down there.”
Zu An wanted to warn her that Wu Liang was different at first, but when he recalled that she was a grandmaster, he felt that his worries were a bit unfounded. Soon afterward, he jumped into the water and began to search the bottom of the lake.
The three women waited by the lakeside. Yun Jianyue looked as if she didn’t care on the outside, but she actually watched Wu Liang in secret. However, he remained extremely honest and didn’t do anything strange.
After an incense stick’s worth of time, the water's surface rippled. Then, Zu An emerged from the water.
“So?” the three women quickly asked.
Zu An shook his head, saying, “I looked around inside, and I even examined the bottom of the lake. There weren’t any hidden entrances or passages.”
“What are you all looking for?” Wu Liang asked curiously.
“None of your business,” Yun Jianyue snapped, shooting him a glare. Wu Liang snickered, looking completely unaffected.
“Then where would it be? We already searched a good amount of the Imperial Tomb,” Yun Jianyue said with a frown.
Wu Liang said ambiguously, “Even though I don’t know what you’re all looking for, there is another place you haven’t searched yet in this Imperial Tomb.”
Zu An and the others were startled. The only place left was where the Golden Crow Crown Prince was going to undergo the previous Fiend Emperors’ trial by fire. They hadn’t expected that after all this time, they still had to go through what they wanted to experience the least.
Wu Liang continued, “From what I know, the crown prince is probably inside the Imperial Tomb's main hall. There’s a fiend ancestor sculpture inside. The so-called trial of the previous Fiend Emperors is nothing more than a farce.”
Zu An’s expression was strange as he asked, “How do you know something that confidential?”
Wu Liang said with a chuckle, “We’re tomb raiders by trade after all, so we know more secrets than normal people.”
Zu An discussed things with the three women. In the end, they decided to enter the main hall and take a look in the end. Along the way, Zu An thought to himself, Could it be fate that I have to help the Second Empress this time?
…
They moved quickly. Along the way, with the master of tomb mechanisms Wu Liang and the rune formation expert Yan Xuehen at their side, they were able to avoid a lot of dangers ahead of time.
Soon afterward, they arrived at the corner of a corridor. A bright flame shone before them.
Wu Liang said quietly, “The underground palace is up ahead.”
Zu An nodded. He focused his mind and moved forward.
Inside was a grand palace. The most striking thing about it was a pitch-black sculpture that towered several meters into the air. It looked like both a person and a beast, and yet was neither. It had a human body with a bird head, and its hands were claws. Behind it was a pair of pitch-black wings, making it look as if it would spread its wings and fly away. Its sharp bird beak and the special pupils in its eyes gave off a unique air of violence and viciousness. Looking at it gave the impression of facing some great prehistoric beast.
Even though the sculpture was an inanimate object, there was a wisp of terrifying pressure spreading from it that was even greater than that of the current Fiend Emperor.
Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue were both shocked, exclaiming, “This sculpture is a bit strange!”
Yu Yanluo asked quietly, “Could it be that the Fiend Ancestor is still alive?”
“How could that be? The Fiend Ancestor was a being from tens of millions of years ago! How could he possibly survive until now?!” Yun Jianyue replied, shaking hear head. “But this sculpture does seem to carry a bit of the Fiend Ancestor’s aura.”
“Could it be that the previous Fiend Emperors’ heroic spirits all entrusted their soul fragments to this statue? But how is that possible?” Yan Xuehen muttered to herself. She seemed to have stumbled upon a difficult academic problem.
Meanwhile, Zu An was sizing up the palace surroundings. He saw someone dressed in a long golden robe, every part of his being exuding an insufferable air of arrogance. Who else could it be but the Golden Crow Crown Prince?
There were eighteen guards scattered around the hall. All of them were strong, yet reserved. The weakest of them was at the ninth rank, but none of them exceeded the Golden Crow Crown Prince’s cultivation. Anyone who could be brought inside by the Golden Crow Crown Prince was definitely one of his most trusted aides.
Just then, the Golden Crow Crown Prince walked up to the fiend ancestor statue step by step. His face was brimming with excitement and admiration.
“I am going to begin receiving the trial. You are all to guard the exits. Do not allow anyone to interrupt me,” the Golden Crow Crown Prince ordered.
“Understood!” the eighteen guards replied confidently, then began vigilantly watching the surroundings. One guard moved toward the passage Zu An’s group was in. The party was so alarmed they quickly moved backward. Fortunately, they all excelled in stealth skills, so they weren’t discovered.
The Golden Crow Crown Prince nodded in satisfaction when he saw that. Then, he spread his arms toward the fiend ancestor. After that, he began to chant cryptic syllables.
Suddenly, the fiend ancestor statue seemed to come alive. Its eyes shone.