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墨書 Inktalez
The river water of Azure Clear flowed joyfully, and suddenly a slender figure appeared on the surface with a swoosh.
Dressed in a bright yellow silk shirt and a large red skirt, with a colorful ribbon tied around her waist, she had several pink silk bows adorning her bun. Her entire outfit was vibrant, resembling a butterfly fluttering among flowers, and indeed, she was an alluring butterfly.
The clear blue waves reflected her beautiful face: her eyebrows arched gracefully, her thick black hair cascading down, a straight and elegant nose, and large bright eyes. When she smiled, deep dimples appeared on her cheeks, revealing a row of pearly white teeth.
Although her skin was as white as milk, she muttered to herself, "The sun in Southern Wilderness is really fierce; I've gotten tanned after all this time. How annoying!" She kicked off her white silk shoes and stepped into the cool river water with her delicate bare feet, letting out a comfortable sigh. "Still can't find anyone; could it be that I'm going the wrong way?"
Her thick eyebrows furrowed slightly, but after a moment, she gently stroked her forehead as if trying to smooth out non-existent wrinkles, mumbling, "I can't frown; it will leave wrinkles. I, Yan Luo, am the smartest and most beautiful girl in all of Qixia Palace. How could I possibly not find him? Hmph! Once I do find him, he'll be in for it!"
She bared her teeth at her reflection in the water, making a fierce face. However, secretly she raised her eyebrows playfully while intentionally giving a seductive glance filled with allure. In her heart, she thought that after sixteen years, she had grown up into a true beauty. Her cultivation had reached the mid-stage of Refining the Heart, making her one of the top disciples in Qixia Palace. That annoying fellow would fall into her hands; first, she'd entice him to the brink of madness before dealing with him properly. Hmph!
While thinking these thoughts, Yan Luo's face showed no signs of embarrassment; to her, this was perfectly natural. Since childhood, her master had taught her this way, and all the senior sisters did the same. She had long since become accustomed to treating seduction as part of her cultivation.
She recalled what Master Dai Yunzi had advised her before leaving.
"Ruo'er," he had said, "our Qixia Palace is a very special sect. We are affiliated with the Nine Major Sects of the Immortal Sect. Each generation has disciples who marry outstanding disciples from the Nine Major Sects. This time around, you are quite exceptional, and among the Nine Major Sects, the one with great potential is that Chu Hong from Nine Li Sect whom you met in Heavenly Grain. I believe you have a connection with him. During your trip to Southern Wilderness, besides finding out what our sect leader sent him for, you must also win him over. Your future depends on him; don't let it slip away like I did back in my day!"
Thinking about this lifelong commitment made Yan Luo's face finally flush with heat. However, deep down she felt quite dissatisfied; that guy was arrogant and inconsiderate, always teasing her while being close to Chu Xi. Once she captured his heart, she'd show him how to behave!
Yan Luo smiled proudly and never once considered that she might fail. The word "failure" did not exist in her creed.
Her snowy white feet splashed joyfully in the water, sending up refreshing droplets when something floating on the river caught Yan Luo's attention.
It was a burnt short wooden stick.
Yan Luo picked up the stick and examined it closely for a moment before hurriedly putting on her shoes and flying upstream.
Chu Xi's cheeks flushed with excitement as she exclaimed, "I remember where I've seen this!"
She eagerly tugged at Li Hong's sleeve, saying, "Quick, take out the Ancient Marvelous Skills!"
Upon hearing "Ancient Marvelous Skills," Li Hong suddenly shouted, "That's right! How could I have forgotten? You're so clever!" Unable to contain his laughter, he suddenly lifted Chu Xi by her legs and spun her around in the air while she squealed in surprise, finally setting her down after a while.
Chu Xi's face was still red as she playfully scolded, "What are you doing? You scared me!"
Li Hong, filled with excitement, almost wanted to kiss her but knew he couldn't be too forward. He looked at the blushing beauty trying to suppress her own feelings and took out the Ancient Marvelous Skills from his Cosmic Bag.
The three of them leaned in together.
Indeed, Chu Xi's memory was astonishing; she had only glanced at it for a short time years ago and yet still remembered it after all this time.
The Ancient Marvelous Skills was drawn on an ancient piece of animal skin and was incomplete, merely a part of a map with jagged edges as if it had been torn. The concentric wavy lines depicted a triangular area near one of its corners, filled with numerous marked symbols.
Back then, she had been utterly confused by the meaning of these waves and symbols. But now, comparing it to the terrain here, she was increasingly amazed; the location depicted on the map was indeed this place!
The wavy lines clearly represented the geographical features of mountains and rivers, perfectly aligning with the nearby mountain ranges. The marked symbols were unmistakably descriptions of mechanisms on the sixty platforms, matching their quantity. It could be concluded that the marked points indicated hidden mechanisms, while the crossed points did not.
Now they needed to figure out what mechanisms were present on the platforms marked with points and what to do if there were any.
Chu Xi confidently stated, "Let's find a platform with mechanisms first. Once we see it, I'm sure we'll understand."
Li Hong immediately took action. He first cleared away the Mugwort from one edge of a platform and carefully reached into the murky water to feel around.
The dark green water continued to flow slowly as Li Hong meticulously felt his way across the platform inch by inch. When he reached the center, he straightened up and exclaimed loudly, "I found it!"
The Black Jade Platform had a small indentation the size of a fingernail in the center, which was clearly loose and could be pressed down.
"Check the one next to it; there's a cross drawn there. See if it has a mechanism," Chu Xi said with a smile, her eyes sparkling like black jewels.
Li Hong moved to the adjacent small platform, pulled out the Mugwort, and felt towards the center. Here, there was also a small indentation button.
Chu Xi smiled confidently and said, "I understand! They all have mechanisms, but only pressing the correct one will open the passage."
Li Hong nodded repeatedly, and together with Chuxiong, they jumped onto each platform, first pulling out all the Mugwort and clearing away the mud. Next, Li Hong jumped back to the edge platform and watched Chu Xi intently.
Holding the map, Chu Xi called out, "Now we begin; press down!"
Li Hong focused his awareness through his fingertips and pressed down hard. With a click, a faint buzzing sound echoed from within the platform.
The mechanism was activated!
Chu Xi shouted, "Now the second slot on the left; continue to find the mechanism and press down! Then the third slot on the right!"
Under Chu Xi's command, Chuxiong darted around while Li Hong pressed each button one after another. In just a short time, all platforms marked with "points" had their buttons pressed by Li Hong.
The entire assembly within the platform began to hum, intertwining sounds rising and falling together.
Suddenly, a loud cracking noise erupted as the entire Black Jade Platform that hadn't sunk into the murky water began to rotate continuously around each small platform, disassembling and reassembling at such speed that it was almost impossible to see. Yet no matter how it rotated or combined, it remained in a rectangular shape. The overall structure did not change but left some confusion about why.
The sounds of the mechanisms finally quieted down as the dark green murky water in the swamp suddenly dropped sharply.
Chu Xi exclaimed in delight, "Look! The passageway has opened!"
One whirlpool after another appeared throughout the swamp, growing larger and deeper. There were gaps below. The murky water of the swamp quickly drained through the gaps, slowly revealing the entire Black Jade Platform.
As far as the eye could see, it resembled Talin, with the elongated trapezoidal Black Jade Platforms lined up neatly all the way to the back of the Rift Valley.
The three of them hovered in mid-air, overlooking the magnificent Black Jade Platform. They were all stunned to find that there were a total of six openings from front to back, with an average of one opening for every ten trapezoidal platforms.
Thick green murky water flowed into the openings, now reduced to a trickle. All these openings looked identical, square-shaped, just wide enough for a person to walk down, with steps leading deep inside.
"Damn it! Which one should we take? Quickly check the map for any hints!" Chuxiong shouted while gripping his scalp in frustration.
At that moment, a crackling sound echoed beneath the Black Jade Platform. The three of them in mid-air could clearly see that all six openings were gradually closing.
"It's actually time-limited!" Chuxiong exclaimed anxiously, scratching his head.
Chu Xi was no longer in a hurry; her bright eyes turned to Li Hong. "I'm sure there are no hints on the map about which opening to take. Now it's all up to you; which one do you think we should go for?"
"Hurry up and say something! We're all listening to you!" Chuxiong chimed in, his face turning red with urgency.
Li Hong closed his eyes and released his Divine Consciousness, but below was like a deep abyss; he couldn't discern anything in such a short time.
He snatched the map from Chu Xi's hands and took a quick glance. After reflecting on his feelings once more, Li Hong pointed to the northernmost opening and said, "The first one!"
Without hesitation, he jumped in first.
Behind him, Chu Xi and Chuxiong swiftly slid into the opening like fish. With a crackling sound, the opening closed, and buzzing and crackling noises echoed above them.
The platform returned to its original state and would soon be submerged in the swamp once again.
The endless, thick darkness enveloped them.
A faint glow emerged from Chu Xi's delicate hand, growing brighter until it revealed a crystal-clear Crystal Bottle. The center of the Crystal Bottle emitted a soft white light, resembling a bright lantern.
Chu Xi asked, "Why choose this entrance?"
Li Hong pondered aloud, "First of all, we are on a Spiritual Vein. If I were an Ancient God, I would definitely choose to build my Celestial Mansion Map on a Spiritual Vein for easier maintenance. This entrance is the closest to the true north direction of the Spiritual Vein. Secondly, although the Ancient Marvelous Skills are incomplete, it is evident that this area has a triangular terrain, and we are at one of its corners. Generally speaking, the most important location is at the center, which means there are three paths leading to the central Celestial Mansion Map. Even if we enter this Rift Valley, we are merely on one of those paths. I can confidently say that at least three of these six entrances lead to the central Ancient God temple, while the other three might be dead ends. In other words, we currently have a fifty percent chance of survival."
At this point, Li Hong looked at Chu Xi and Chuxiong with a smile and said, "Do you still regret giving me the decision-making power?"
"No regrets!" both replied in unison.
Chu Xi calmly added, "Actually, you forgot to mention a third reason. Your cultivation of the Six Spirit Salty Ritual has a special sensitivity to the Ancient God's territory. Honestly, isn't that your third reason?"
Li Hong laughed heartily, "Nothing escapes your notice!"
No longer hiding it, he boldly took Chu Xi's delicate hand in front of Chuxiong and said casually, "Let's go!"
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