Chapter 61: Leaked Whereabouts; Exploding Protagonist!
As soon as Gu Changge appeared, Ye Liuli and her group noticed his presence even though they were busy fighting the beasts and corpses.
‘Gu Changge?! Why is he here? And how did he arrive here so fast?"
His sudden appearance surprised Ye Liuli, and her complexion paled as various thoughts went through her mind. Although Gu Changge claimed that he didn"t intend to kill Ye Chen, nor could he be bothered by his existence, those were just words. Who could guarantee the words that he uttered weren"t all lies?
When she had thought about the matter after leaving the Moon-facing Ancient City, she had felt that there was something wrong about the entire thing. Gu Changge definitely had something to gain from her Brother Ye Chen, or he would have never kept him alive.
As for what he wanted to gain through him? Ye Liuli couldn"t figure it out at that time.
But now, she guessed that he was after something that existed in this Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm. A mere inheritance left behind by a Quasi-Supreme wasn"t enough to move someone with Gu Changge"s background and ident.i.ty, to the point that he would descend to the Lower Realm. So he could only be here for something else hidden in the Ancient Secret Heavenly Realm!
‘That"s not right! According to Brother Ye Chen, only he has the map, so how did Gu Changge find this place so quickly? And why does his group appear as if they arrived here without facing any trouble? Did they not encounter beasts and traps along the way?"
This realization shocked the puzzled Ye Liuli, and her heart sank.
‘He must have followed behind us, or left something on Brother Ye Chen to track him — that was his plan all along!"
Ye Liuli was indeed the little princess of the Ancient Immortal Ye Clan. Her keen mind was quick to think, and she immediately figured out the nuances of the matter.
Her heart turned cold as she put the pieces together.
Gu Changge was terrifying!
How could he plan so far ahead? She had thought for a long time, and only now did she figure out the reason behind him not killing off her Brother Ye Chen right away.
"Looks like we got here right on time."
Gu Changge walked into the corridor, and swept his gaze upon the underground ancient city with a playful smile on his face.
A calm expression showed on his face. His trip to this place had gone smoothly, and they only ran into a few troublesome beasts.
The Great-Transcendent Realm people from the Ancient Lin Family, on the other hand, felt even more reverence for Gu Changge, and he was already a G.o.d in their hearts. After all, he easily found a safe route for their pa.s.sage in a place as terrifying as this Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm.
Of course, if Gu Changge heard their thoughts, he would ask them to thank Ye Chen for going in first. After all, he was merely following in the path cleared by Ye Chen.
"Gu Changge, why are you here?"
Ye Liuli glared at Gu Changge, and asked in a loud voice. At the same time, she stopped fighting the beast in front of her and stepped back.
Naturally, she already knew the answer to her question; she was merely trying to delay Gu Changge to buy time for Ye Chen.
"Why am I here? I am here because you helped clear the path for me. Speaking of which, I must thank you all!"
Gu Changge responded with a smile.
"Thank us? What don"t I understand what you are talking about? Just what are you trying to do?"
Ye Liuli asked aloud once more. By now, she was already sure of her guess: ‘Her Brother Ye Chen was playing in Gu Changge"s hands, and Gu Changge had always known his whereabouts!"
Gu Changge fixed his gaze upon Ye Liuli"s face, and said with a faint smile, "It"s alright even if you don"t understand. By the way, don"t even think about delaying me here! Your mind is like an open book in front of me."
[Boom!]
As soon as Gu Changge finished his words, his Great-Transcendent Realm followers took action and started to blast away any beast that walked near Gu Changge.
Immediately, the path in front of Gu Changge was cleared.
Nothing could block his steps!
If they compared numbers, then Gu Changge had brought a lot more people than Ye Liuli, and there was even a figure as mighty as Old Ming among his ranks. Even if his cultivation base was suppressed, ordinary cultivators couldn"t compare to him.
"Gu Changge…"
Ye Liuli"s face paled.
Although Aunt Xue was protecting her, she couldn"t go as deep into the underground city as Gu Changge. After all, there were hordes of beasts flooding around them tide after tide.
The beasts around Gu Changge, on the other hand, didn"t appear normal. She felt as if their auras weakened the closer they got to Gu Changge. Something seemed to be sucking away their life force, but she couldn"t figure out what it was.
Gu Changge casually clapped, and all the beasts around him turned into ash.
Ye Liuli"s heart palpitated with deep anxiety as she watched everything transpire in front of her!
She couldn"t help but worry about Ye Chen. How could Ye Chen survive when facing an enemy like Gu Changge?
"Old Ming, guard this place and make sure no one comes leaves here."
Gu Changge muttered his command, and then went in the direction Ye Chen had previously gone to.
As soon as Old Ming heard his command, he responded with a solemn vow, "My Lord, please rest a.s.sure! This old slave will make sure no one disturbs you today!"
[Boom!]
Old Ming revealed his majestic and terrifying aura. At the same time, a crimson weapon covered with splendid runes appeared in his hands, radiating an oppressive aura.
……
"I must enter the palace as soon as possible, and gain control over the Secret Realm"s core and formations to solve that beast tide! Liuli, wait for me — I will be there to help you right away!"
Ye Chen gritted his teeth and muttered to himself. He had left alone at his fastest speed, leaving behind brilliant rays of light as he heading towards the depths of the underground city.
Right now, the Key he had obtained previously glowed with a hazy light. It was the Key that could open the gate of the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm"s inheritance palace!
"I am here! My inheritance is here!"
Ye Chen finally stopped after rushing at his top speed for half an hour. His body was drowned in sweat, and he gasped for air as soon as he appeared outside a dilapidated bronze gate.
Excitement filled his heart as he saw the gate and realized that his efforts had finally paid off!
He stopped in his tracks and didn"t move forward anymore. In front of him stood a palace shrouded in gray fog. The surrounding air gave off a feeling of gloom and chills…the aura was too strange.
At the same time, he saw snow-white bones scattered on the ground, and that only increased the eeriness of this place. He also saw various ancient patterns engraved on aged, colorful stones. There were also fragments of rusted Mystical Weapons scattered around that looked like someone had dug them out from some greyish-red mud.
Some of the fragments radiated a delicate light showing their former majesty from times immemorial, while others had marks of dried blood on them without a shred of divinity left over.
"A lot of people must have died here back then, so the palace might not be as safe you think it is. Make sure you are thoroughly prepared before opening it."
Yan Ji, who had kept quiet throughout the journey, finally spoke up and advised Ye Chen. She had noticed the strangeness of their surroundings, and couldn"t help but feel uneasy.
It was precisely for this reason that she gave Ye Chen a reminder.
"I already prepared a lot of Pills to deal with the terrifying Devil Qi here, or the Devil Qi would have already corroded my mind…"
"Master, you don"t need to say anything — I came prepared!"
Ye Chen didn"t give much thought to her words, and took out the Key to open the gate of the inheritance palace. Now that things had come to this point, a word or two from Yan Ji wouldn"t be able to stop him.
What"s more? Ye Liuli and the others were in a critical situation and fighting against that tide of beasts, so he didn"t have the time to give too much thought to all these matters.
Yan Ji couldn"t help but sigh when she heard his words, and decided not to speak anymore.
Finished speaking, Ye Chen looked at the Key of the inheritance palace. The Key was an ancient, compa.s.s-like thing that appeared to be on the verge of collapse. He had casually bought it from a roadside stall for a few spirit stones at some time.
Ye Chen had never imagined that this broken toy would turn out to the Key to the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm"s inheritance!
[Hum!]
Right then, the compa.s.s-like key in his hand glowed, and a dazzling light erupted from it. Ye Chen felt something urge him forward, and he felt his head spin as stars pa.s.sed before his eyes.
Brilliant runes intertwined together and various ancient patterns floated around like clouds. One after another, multicolored rays of divine light blasted out from the compa.s.s and landed on the bronze gate in front of him, spreading into eight directions.
Soon, a huge noise rumbled around, and the bronze gate of the palace opened. At the same time, an ancient, mighty aura burst forth from the depths of the palace, and Ye Chen felt as if he was standing before the maw of an ancient devil.
Streams of Spiritual Qi from all over the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm rushed into the palace, and disappeared without a trace, just like a stone sinking into the sea.
The hymns of the Great Dao sounded from inside the palace, giving a fascinating makeover to the gloomy surroundings.
It was as if a supreme existence was preaching the Dao and chanting Heavenly scriptures inside the palace, desiring to help mortals ascend to Heaven.
At the same time, whimpers sounded from the void, accompanied by hoa.r.s.e cries.
"Hate! Hate! Hate!"
"I hate this! I hate this!"
"Slaughter them!"
"Kill them!"
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
An extremely monstrous Devil Qi flooded out from the palace.
Ye Chen"s face paled, and he almost lost his balance when he saw the scene in the palace. His head buzzed, and blood vessels all over his body popped out and squirmed around. It was as if he had come face to face with an ancient G.o.d, and the desire to kneel on the ground clawed at his heart!
A black halberd with an incomparably terrifying Devil Qi pierced through the body of a magnificent figure sitting on the throne inside the palace.
"Where"s the inheritance?"
……
Ye Chen reacted fast, and his eyes searched through the hall. It wasn"t easy for him to walk around, and he could feel his skin crack open with his every movement.
He wondered if this was the might left behind by the master of the Ancient Heavenly Secret Realm?
His heart palpitated. It was too terrifying! So much so that he felt that it could easily reach into the sky and destroy the stars with a single swat.
"The inheritance is inside the corpse."
The voice of a smiling young man fell into Ye Chen"s ears out of nowhere. He froze on his spot, dumbfounded and horrified.
This voice?!
How was it possible?
Ye Chen"s eyes widened and his limbs froze. He felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and the coldness chilled his heart and body.
What was going on?
Where did Gu Changge"s voice come from so suddenly? How come he hadn"t felt his presence in the slightest?
Ye Chen"s vague unease finally materialized, and he realized that the matter wasn"t as simple as he imagined.
"Gu Changge, why are you here…"
Ye Chen turned around and asked while staring at Gu Changge.
He tried his best to calm himself, for he knew that he couldn"t be impulsive at such an important juncture of his life.
"You really are stupid! I have been standing behind you since the beginning. It"s just that I decided not to disturb your focus since you were so busy opening that gate for me."
Gu Changge said with a faint smirk, like a cat who had played the mouse.
"As for why I am here? Why don"t you ask yourself?"
"By the way, thank you for clearing the path for me!"
He said playfully, and then his eyes full of satisfaction moved away from Ye Chen and landed on the terrifying, pitch-black halberd in the Hall.
It was the [Eight Desolate Demon Halberd]!
The ultimate reason behind his descent to the Lower Realm.
Just the aura of the halberd satisfied Gu Changge, and he felt as if it could pierce through the Heavens!
Ye Chen, on the other hand, showed an extremely ugly expression. His first thoughts were that Gu Changge had followed behind him from the beginning, and only showed himself now that he had opened the gate of the inheritance palace.
It"s just that he couldn"t figure out how Gu Changge could achieve something like that?
How could something like that be explained?
‘Someone must have leaked my whereabouts…"
‘Who around me knows my whereabouts like the back of their hand? The most likely culprit is…Master?"
Ye Chen suddenly thought of this, and his expression worsened. His fists clenched tighter, and his body shook.
Gu Changge, on the other hand, said with the same smile on his face, "Senior Yan Ji, we haven"t seen each other for a long time, so why don"t you show yourself?"
"Master, was it really you?!"
Ye Chen exploded in rage as soon as he heard his words, and, in his anger, took off the ring on his finger.