Chapter 867: Immortal Palace Main Gate

Bi Linglong was stunned, wondering what he was up to. If these terracotta warriors were sentient, wouldn't they be even more inclined to kill him for impersonating their emperor?

However, something that shocked her happened. The imagined scene of the terracotta warriors swarming them and cutting them to pieces did not occur. Instead, they silently watched Zu An; one could even see confusion on their faces, as if they were hesitating about something.

Zu An was also a little apprehensive. Although the Tai'a Sword was the Qin King's personal sword and the Primordial Chaos Sutra was his cultivation method, these terracotta warriors might not be sentient enough to recognize them.

If it really didn't work, he would just use the Primordial Chaos Sutra to purify them.

This was why Zu An hadn't been afraid from beginning to end. After all, this wasn't his first encounter with terracotta warriors; his second layer of the Primordial Chaos Sutra happened to restrain all kinds of undead creatures.

Just then, Mi Li slowly materialized beside Zu An. Her majestic phoenix eyes coldly surveyed the numerous terracotta warriors.

The terracotta warriors were originally just a bit confused. The man before them, with his sword and aura, was indeed very similar to the Qin King, but his appearance wasn't quite the same. They weren't sure if their memory was faulty, which was why they hesitated.

However, upon seeing their former Empress standing beside him, all doubt vanished in that instant. They all knelt on one knee, holding their weapons, and respectfully saluted the two.

Zu An looked at the cool and alluring Mi Li beside him. It was quite enjoyable having her pretend to be his wife.

He immediately composed himself and commanded, "By my imperial decree, kill that fat man glowing yellow by any means necessary!"

He was worried that these terracotta warriors wouldn't know who Zhao Ruizhi was, so he specifically described the other party's appearance in detail.

The terracotta warriors could not speak, but upon hearing this, they all clenched their fists to their chests, saluted the two again, then, holding their weapons, they marched in neat formation in the direction Zhao Ruizhi had disappeared.

Watching these murderous terracotta warriors retreat, Bi Linglong's crimson lips parted in astonishment, wide enough to fit an egg. "How did you do that?" she asked.

Zu An said proudly, "I told you, I am the reincarnation of the Qin Emperor!"

But the next second, he cried out in pain, "Gently, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts..."

Mi Li pinched his ear. "You brat, how dare you take advantage of your master?"

Seeing the two bickering, Bi Linglong gazed in surprise at the cool and alluring woman in the red dress. She wondered, "Could she possibly be...?"

The group then continued towards the light bridge. Along the way, they encountered no further danger; in fact, several times they encountered terracotta warriors, who would even salute them.

He Li, who was being frantically chased, saw this scene from afar and was utterly bewildered. "Why are you only chasing me and not them?" he cried.

"Is it because he's handsome?"

"Help!"

He wanted to run towards Zu An's side, but they were too far apart for him to get close. He could only continue to flee frantically forward.

Meanwhile, Zu An and Bi Linglong had successfully reached the light bridge and ascended to the third immortal island.

Looking closely at the magnificent palace before them, Bi Linglong couldn't help but exclaim, "This truly is where immortals reside! This palace is far more majestic than our imperial palace."

From a distance, they had only noticed the palace. Now that they were here, they discovered three incredibly vast platforms below the palace, each estimated to accommodate at least ten thousand people.

The platforms were connected by white marble steps. After hundreds of steps, they would arrive directly at the palace gate.

"Easily impressed," Mi Li said, but a slight smile played on her lips, clearly indicating that she appreciated the unintended compliment. She took long strides and directly ascended the steps.

Her expression was somewhat dazed. She had walked similar steps many years ago...

Zu An couldn't help but ask, "Beautiful Master, are you very familiar with this palace?"

"How could I not be?" Mi Li sighed. "This is almost an exact replica of Xianyang Palace from back then, and it also bears many resemblances to Efang Palace."

Xianyang Palace was the palace of the Great Qin. After Qin Shi Huang unified the world, he began to expand it and also built Efang Palace. Unfortunately, Efang Palace was too costly and was not completed even by the time of Qin Shi Huang's death.

Bi Linglong couldn't help but quietly ask Zu An, "What kind of country is this Qin you're talking about? Why have I never heard of it?"

Zu An replied, "It was a country from ancient times. Much of its historical data has been lost, so it's normal for people today not to know about it."

"From ancient times?" Bi Linglong's eyes lit up. According to research, many secret realms and ruins today are ancient sites, filled with powerful inheritances and serendipitous encounters. Even if there wasn't an elixir of immortality, they would still gain a great deal.

Soon, the three had ascended the long staircase and arrived before a massive palace gate. Zu An initially expected to encounter some sort of mechanism, but Mi Li simply walked up and pushed it open.

A stale, heavy air greeted them, a trace of the ages.

Zu An found it a bit strange. "Hmm, although the air is a bit stale, it's not completely devoid of oxygen."

Mi Li explained, "The palace was cleverly built; many hidden areas have ventilation shafts, so naturally, no one would suffocate to death."

After speaking, she stepped in first. Clearly, revisiting this place stirred her emotions; she was already a bit impatient to look around.

Zu An and Bi Linglong followed her inside. Suddenly, both felt a powerful force pulling them directly against the side of the great door.

Zu An reacted instantly, immediately tearing himself free from the door and pulling Bi Linglong away as well.

He cautiously looked around, but found no mechanisms or anomalies.

Even so, they continued to feel a constant pulling force emanating from the great door.

Mi Li smiled. "No need to be nervous. The main reason is that this great door is made of lodestone. Back then, because of an assassination attempt, the Qin Emperor specifically had the palace gate crafted from massive lodestones. As a result, any minister carrying iron weapons would experience anomalies when passing through the gate."

Zu An realized, "So that's how it is." The swords, magical artifacts, and other items on him and Bi Linglong inevitably contained a lot of iron, which was why they were attracted.

He couldn't help but complain, "How insecure was the Qin Emperor? He used the Zhaodan Mirror to detect disloyalty among his ministers, and now he pulls stunts like this with the great door."

Mi Li sighed. "Back when the states were warring, each went to extreme lengths for victory. He naturally had to take extra precautions."

As they spoke, the three had already entered the palace gate and walked directly into a main hall. It was resplendent with gold and jade, and in the distance, on a high platform, there was a glittering golden dragon throne.

Mi Li walked forward, her fingers tracing the dragon throne. Her gaze drifted towards a beaded curtain behind the throne. "Back then," she said, "whenever there was a grand festival, I would sit behind here."

Hearing her words, Bi Linglong was extremely surprised. "Could this woman be a figure from ancient times?" she wondered. "How could she have lived so long? Is there really an elixir of immortality in the world?"

Zu An, however, felt a surge of irritation. He just felt uneasy seeing Mi Li reminisce about the past so much.

But he quickly gave a self-deprecating smile. It was natural for people to feel more timid when approaching their homeland; what was he jealous about?

Just then, a burst of laughter echoed: "I've finally made it into this palace after all."

Zu An's expression changed. He looked up to see Zhao Ruizhi already standing at the entrance of the main hall. However, his current condition was not good; he was covered in blood, and there was a massive wound on his chest, from which dark energy faintly emanated. There was no need to ask; it was clearly an injury from "Bai Qi's" scythe.

His aura was extremely unstable. Accompanying him were He Li and three deathsworn from the Qi King's Manor, all of whom were injured and looked much more disheveled than Zhao Ruizhi.

"An immortal palace is no different from a mortal emperor's palace," Zhao Ruizhi said with a frown. Although this place was more magnificent, it still didn't transcend the mortal realm, which truly disappointed him.

Zu An asked, "Why are there only a few of you? Where are the others?" He was deeply disappointed, as it seemed his command for the terracotta warriors to kill Zhao Ruizhi at all costs hadn't succeeded.

"They're all dead, killed by those terracotta monsters," He Li said, unable to resist a glance at Zhao Ruizhi. Earlier, the remaining people had all fled towards the light bridge, and by chance, they ended up together. Originally, seeing the emperor made them feel like they had a powerful backer. Who knew that this guy would directly grab some people and throw them out as cannon fodder to stall the two terrifying terracotta generals, which allowed them to successfully escape onto this light bridge.

Those terracotta figures seemed to have some kind of restriction on them; they stopped at the light bridge and couldn't pursue further. Only then did they barely manage to escape with their lives.

Although they knew the emperor's purpose in keeping them alive, witnessing it firsthand had been extremely chilling. Unfortunately, no matter how much resentment they harbored, they dared not show it. Now, they only wished to live for one more moment, then another.

At this point, Zhao Ruizhi began to laugh somewhat wildly. "What immortal palace? What immortality?" he declared. "Combining all the sights along the way, this is clearly the mausoleum of some emperor. Since it's a mausoleum, how could there be an elixir of immortality?"

He suddenly turned and looked at Zu An. "Since there's no elixir of immortality, you no longer have any value. Die!"