Chapter 878: West Desert Ancient Dynasty

"It seems you still refuse to tell me the true secret of this place. If so, I'm afraid this game has lost its appeal for me, and I can end it now."

Xu Yang decisively took the initiative, attempting to channel his primal power from his palm into the mummified corpse.

However, Xu Yang was soon shocked to discover that his power was being absorbed ravenously by the mummy.

The mummy's body seemed like a powerful, bottomless abyss. Even with his spiritual power locked onto its core, he couldn't reach the limits of the space within it in a short amount of time.

"How can this be? This mummy is very strange; it's more like a vast spatial container. My power goes in, but I get no feedback at all!" Xu Yang was slightly surprised, and his expression was perfectly caught by the Queen of Spades, who revealed a cunning smile in her eyes.

"I know, Sir Ayang, your strength is boundless, but you will never learn the secret of this mummified corpse unless I tell you."

Suddenly, an idea struck Xu Yang. He locked his palm onto the Queen of Spades' body once more, using the same trick to draw her physical form before him.

"Since you don't want to speak, I'll force you to!"

As soon as he spoke, Xu Yang tightly embraced the Queen of Spades' waist, pulling her with him as he attempted to merge with the mummy's aura.

In an instant, Xu Yang and the Queen of Spades vanished from their spot in the void.

In reality, they had entered the mummy's interior.

The group brought by the grey-robed elder, who stood behind them, exchanged bewildered glances, completely baffled by how they had achieved such a feat.

"How did that happen? Those two just vanished! Could it be related to this colossal mummified Western Emperor in front of us?" the armed middle-aged man asked the grey robe.

Awkwardly, the grey-robed elder, unsure of what to do, quickly stepped forward and replicated Xu Yang's previous action. He attempted to channel his aura into the mummy, but just like a stone sinking into the sea, there was no feedback, not even an echo.

However, just as the elder was about to withdraw his hand from the mummy's space, he seemed to receive a powerful spiritual guidance from the unknown. Two dazzling lights instantly gleamed in his eyes, and in a flash, he too vanished from his spot, entering the mummy's inner space.

The miracle, however, ended with the grey-robed elder.

All the others he had brought, including the Twin Emissaries of Wind and Cloud, successively tried the same method before the mummy, but none received any response. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't enter the mysterious space Xu Yang and the others had entered.

"Never mind," the Twin Emissaries of Wind and Cloud mused, "it must be that our cultivation levels aren't up to par. If my judgment is correct, the mysterious space Master and the others entered must be inside this mummy." Watching such an immense opportunity laid out before them, yet being unqualified to enter, filled them with immense frustration.

Meanwhile, Xu Yang and the others, having successively entered this mysterious inner space, quickly regained their senses. They soon discovered that this hidden realm appeared to be the ruins of an ancient kingdom, filled with broken walls and crumbling structures—a legacy left behind by an ancient civilization.

The grey-robed elder had not yet appeared in Xu Yang and the Queen of Spades' sight. Only the two of them advanced with determined gazes, observing the surrounding ruins of civilization with profound astonishment.

"Now that it's just the two of us, can you finally tell me what you know? I want to know everything about the Western Emperor's secret."

The Queen of Spades sighed helplessly. "Actually, just like the grey-robed lineage, I originally intended to use your power to open these ancient tombs and claim the shattered ancient jade. Legend has it that a century ago, the Western Emperor was gravely wounded by a mysterious direct descendant of the imperial family, who drained all his life force. However, the Western Emperor's lineage is very unique; he seems to possess a power that grants him immortality. Even with all his life force depleted, the Western Emperor continues to exist in this mummified state. Because of this, this mummy is regarded throughout the Eastern Domain as a divine treasure that can unlock supreme secrets."

"Because the mysterious prince who fought him never reappeared after entering an unknown realm. Some bandits from the Western Emperor's lineage claim that shortly after that battle ended, they heard the Western Emperor's screams, and not long after, a giant dragon's soul soared into the sky from above the Western Emperor's wooden dome and departed. According to them, that ascending dragon soul was the prince, and he was able to ascend and transform into a dragon precisely because he had gained the Western Emperor's power."

Xu Yang finally nodded in realization. "I see. If what you're saying is true, then the source of the Western Emperor's immortal power should be hidden within this inner space where we are now. If my judgment is correct, this ancient civilization must be the origin of the Western Emperor's lineage. Let's search carefully here and see if we can find any crucial clues."

As he spoke, Xu Yang led the Queen of Spades forward along a longer path.

They observed the various forms of broken walls and crumbling ruins around them. Every damaged structure exuded an ancient and mysterious aura of civilization, and the intricate inscriptions etched upon them were incomprehensible even to Xu Yang and the Queen of Spades. Their spiritual power felt incompatible with the essence these inscriptions conveyed.

The two traveled for an unknown period. As the sky gradually darkened, a swirling onslaught of yellow sand soon assaulted them, subjecting them to immense pressure.

Then, a hideous, cursed roar echoed through the air. A massive saber-toothed tiger suddenly appeared, its size comparable to the Winter Goddess's wild boar they had encountered earlier.

The difference was that this saber-toothed tiger exuded an ancient and weathered aura, and its bloodthirsty eyes appeared truly terrifying.

What shocked Xu Yang and the Queen of Spades the most was that this saber-toothed tiger could actually speak human language.

"The Ancient Kingdom of Xihuang does not welcome outsiders!"

The name "Ancient Kingdom of Xihuang" was completely unknown to both Xu Yang and the Queen of Spades.

The two instinctively exchanged a glance before returning their attention to the saber-toothed tiger in front of them.

"The Ancient Kingdom of Xihuang you speak of, that must be the name of this ancient civilization's ruins, right? We entered here with no ill intent; we merely wish to understand the truth behind this lost civilization."