Shi Lang looked at the water jets rushing at him and narrowed his eyes. Then he took a deep breath and took out his sword. The young man slapped the side of his sword on the water jet, and the pressure pushed him off into the distance. He flipped into the void and then landed on the ground.
Given the old habits, the young man did not waste time and rushed off again. Shi Lang did not have the time to think about anyone else. His speed was not slow, but neither were the traps. They caught up to his pace quickly. However, Shi Lang did not wait to let them get better of his body.
He moved like a ghost, but still, he could not avoid the traps completely. When Shi Lang was avoiding the flying projectiles in the second part of the staircase, one of the needles exploded, and a chain reaction began. All the needles in the void exploded one after the other. It was as if the needles had eyes, and the explosions followed his trail.
After he cleared this section, his back was filled with shrapnel. His extraordinary physique was the only thing that saved him from becoming a sieve. The young man had no idea how to explain this. He had forgotten the feeling of pain ever since he arrived in the upper realm.
His realm was low, but he was strong enough. Now these traps have shown him the reality he would not mind ignoring. He left behind a trail of blood seeping out of his wounds.
The terran could not control the blood flow because doing so would leave his muscles without oxygen and reduce his output, and the other option was to bypass the damaged blood vessels, which was what he did. However, the process took effect slowly, and his blood had already spilled.
The traps lying ahead were not getting easier, and Shi Lang was doing his best, and so were the other two.
…
Bo Qingtan was leaning in a corner, taking deep breaths. He regretted when he asked Shi Lang to let him go alone. He had just crossed the first section and felt he was already on his limit. The sound of traps clicking was constantly ringing in his ears.
He knew that someone was still charging forward amidst all this turmoil. Picking up the morale and mustering up the courage, Bo Qingtan rushed ahead. He used his sword to fend off the projectiles, but one blade could not defend every direction. His back resembled a porcupine’s, but he did not want to stop.
On the other hand, Yun Xue was running with all her might. Her long hair turned into a defensive shawl that protected her from the projectiles at her back. The young lady was quick and flexible. Let alone the projectiles, she handled even the bigger traps with elegance.
She was not unharmed, and there was a graze wound on her cheek and other than that, her hanfu was also torn at different places. However, her face was calm as a lake under the moonlight.
She had just crossed the second floor when her heart picked up pace. Looking around, she found a room with a snowflake engraved on it. She could not help why, but she felt like this door was special. On the way to the top, she found many such doors. However, none of them held any appeal to her.
Yet this door was special. The snowflake engraved on the door was too realistic. She could not help but succumb to the charm and her curiosity and approached the door. The door seemed to be alive and opened after it sensed her approach.
Yun Xue was not a fool, and she would not enter just any door that opened on its own. However, looking inside, she found that this room was akin to a different world. She wanted to stay away when a calm voice entered her ears, “Come in, Child.”
Yun Xue was dazed; the next moment, she entered the room with small steps.
…
Shi Lang knew nothing about this because he was at the end of a corridor and doubted his fate. In the corridor stood statues wielding weapons. They were guardian statues guarding the door to the central room. Shi Lang had to get through twelve guards to open the door. 𝗈𝒱𝓁xt.𝗇𝓔t
He was sure he could avoid the weapon attacks, but what if the door still did not open and needed him to break the statues? However, when Shi Lang scanned the surface of the statues, he was at a loss. These things were too strong to be broken with his physique only.
Shi Lang not only used his probes but also his ability. The density of different substances was different; thus, he could see the strength of these puppets. Shi Lang did not take out his sword and was not confident that he could face off with these guys. On the contrary, he decided to make a run for it.
He took a deep breath, skipped in one place, flexed his body, and then rushed forward with all his might. The palace floor was so strong that nothing left a mark on it, but the young man managed to leave a faint skid mark. He moved through the corridor, and the guardian statues came to life.
These gigantic statues reacted quicker than Shi Lang had expected them to. They did not waste time and swung their swords at him. However, using the advantage of a smaller size, the Terran passed through them and made his way to face the other statues.
He moved to the side, getting closer to one of the statues. However, the statues were not simple. The statue raised its foot to stomp Shi Lang into meat paste. The terran general was sweating from the pressure. He dove forward and rolled on his back to evade the stomp.
The next thing Shi Lang did was release his entire potential and use his muscles to the limits. The third pair of guards had also attacked him with blades. Shi Lang escaped them with a quick shuffle of steps. His troubles did not end there, and he sensed an arrow shooting at his head.
Shi Lang squad on his knees to avoid the arrow and then rolled on the ground to avoid the second arrow. Then he used his hands to push himself off the floor to avoid a whip heading his way. While airborne, the guards he had passed earlier came at him.
They stabbed him with the spearhead of the halberd. However, Shi Lang turned this tragedy into an opportunity, pushed himself off the weapon, and landed on the end of the corridor. Suddenly, all the statues froze. Shi Lang took a couple of steps back and leaned against the door.
The door opened up abruptly, and he fell on the floor. He could not believe it and stood up again to check the situation when he froze and saw a middle-aged man smiling at him. The person nodded and replied, “Good reflexes.”
Shi Lang gulped and bowed with his hands cupped in the man’s direction. He said, “Greetings, senior.”
The person nodded and said, “I am Shadow Saber, and you are?”
The terran reported his name, and the phantom figure asked, “Who sent you here?”
Shi Lang replied calmly, “Senior Mystery Blade.”
The middle-aged man smiled and nodded. He said, “You have passed the traps, very good. However, the next thing is both easy and difficult. Would you be able to do it?”
Shi Lang took a deep breath. The words of Shadow Blade made him nervous from the core. He nodded and asked, “Senior, please tell me what I should do?”
The phantom nodded and said, “You will have to take a martial oath that after you have refined the palace, you will not use it for your gains. The inheritances left behind by my brothers and sisters must find a worthy successor. You can proceed if you are willing to help them fulfill this wish. However, you must not monopolize this fact. Agreed?”
Shi Lang took a deep breath and said, “If that is all, I, Shi Lang, swear upon my martial dao that I will help the seniors of the Inheritance palace to find a worthy successor. I will neither monopolize the palace for my gains nor allow anyone else to do so. If I fail to uphold my words, let heaven smite me.”
Nothing happened inside the palace, but the Phantom raised his head to look at the ceiling and smiled. He said, “The heavens have accepted your vow. You should come here and refine the palace.”
Shi Lang nodded and looked around for the first time. His attention was focused on the phantom, and he did not see what the room looked like, but now he saw a blob of golden light levitating in the void behind the phantom.
The phantom said, “This is the source of this palace. You must refine this core to gain control of the palace completely.”
The terran nodded and approached the palace.