Chapter 875: Longspring Five-Colored Flower

Zu An and his party hurriedly left the room to search for the triggered mechanism. In fact, they didn't need to search; just now, in the water element room, various visible halos had been continuously drifting in one direction, clearly indicating that a large amount of water spirit energy was being absorbed.

Similar scenes were likely unfolding in the other rooms as well.

Zu An couldn't help but ask, "Is it possible that the First Emperor is absorbing the power of the five elements and is about to be resurrected?"

Mi Li's expression was grim. "It's possible, but I've never heard of a five-element formation having the power of resurrection."

Seeing her troubled look, Zu An said earnestly, "Master, don't worry. Even if the First Emperor is truly resurrected, you won't be alone. I'll face him with you."

Seeing his rare seriousness, Mi Li felt a warmth in her heart. But verbally, she showed no appreciation. "Hmph, if Ying Zheng truly revives, your meager cultivation won't even be enough to be cannon fodder, let alone face him with me."

Zu An was speechless.

Beside them, Bi Linglong couldn't help but chuckle. *This guy always takes the initiative when he teases me; it's rare to see him subdued.*

Perhaps the water room they had just been in was very close to the center of the grand formation. It wasn't long before the group arrived at a vast, open platform.

The platform was immense, roughly the size of several football fields. However, it was entirely circular.

"Lan Chi, Shang Tiantai, Ji Ditan..." Mi Li murmured to herself as she scanned the entire area.

Zu An inquired, "What do Lan Chi, Shang Tiantai, and Ji Ditan mean?"

Mi Li explained, "Lan Chi was the scenic pond in the imperial garden of the Xianyang Palace back then. Shang Tiantai was the place for worshipping heaven, and Ji Ditan was for worshipping the gods of land and grain. This place now incorporates features from all these locations; you can see many familiar elements."

'She' referred to the nation, and 'Ji' to the god of grain. Favorable weather and abundant harvests were the most crucial matters for ancient states.

Zu An surveyed the platform before them. He saw winding waterways all around, reminiscent of a massive pond.

In the center stood a towering pagoda, clearly a place for worshipping heaven and earth.

Beside the pagoda stood an enormous ancient tree, but it was bare, appearing to have been dead for a very long time.

Just then, several strands of colorful light drifted in from various directions. These were clearly the elemental energies from the Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth rooms. As these elemental energies arrived, formation patterns suddenly lit up in five directions across the platform. Flashing lines of yellow, green, blue, red, and brown appeared, quickly extending into the ancient tree in the center.

Immediately, the ancient tree radiated a crystalline light. Then, it rapidly rejuvenated at a visible pace, sprouting branches and leaves. What had been bare moments before became lush and verdant in the blink of an eye.

Even more astonishing was that its leaves were not green. Well, rather, they weren't *just* green.

Approximately one-fifth were green, while the remaining four-fifths were various shades of yellow, blue, red, and brown, clearly representing the elements of Metal, Water, Fire, and Earth.

"Look, the tree has bloomed!" Bi Linglong exclaimed, pointing to the center.

Above the tree's canopy, a colossal flower slowly formed. Resembling a hydrange, its petals also displayed five colors, glowing with vibrant radiance. A rich life essence could be felt from afar; clearly, it was no ordinary flora.

"Evergreen Five-Colored Flower..." Mi Li was usually calm no matter what she encountered, but at this moment, even she seemed momentarily stunned.

Zu An's heart skipped a beat. "Is this the Evergreen Five-Colored Flower, one of the materials needed to reshape your body?"

She had mentioned before that this flower took a thousand years to branch out and grow leaves, and several thousand years to finally bloom. He had thought it might be impossible to find in this lifetime, yet here it was, right before them.

Mi Li hummed in affirmation. Zu An was about to leap forward to pluck the flower, but she held him back firmly.

"What's wrong?" Zu An asked, perplexed. Such a precious material was right before them; if they missed it, who knew if they would ever get another chance.

Mi Li's chest rose and fell, clearly agitated. But she calmly said, "You must understand, the more beautiful something is in this world, the more easily it can deceive people. Look at what's under the tree."

Zu An turned his head. Only then did he notice a massive coffin beneath the ancient tree. Previously, with the tree bare and the surroundings dim, no one had noticed it. Now that the tree had bloomed and was radiating light, illuminating the surrounding area, the coffin's presence was revealed.

The entire coffin's outer layer was made of heavy bronze. Its surface was intricately carved with various five-clawed golden dragon patterns. Both in size and grandeur, it far surpassed the coffins found in the five elemental rooms (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth).

Mi Li continued, "All the power of the five elements is surging towards that spot. Clearly, that's the core of this grand formation. Using the Evergreen Five-Colored Flower to lure people there is most likely a trap."

"Is that... the First Emperor's coffin?" Zu An was also startled.

"Yes, most likely him," Mi Li said with a complex expression. "There's nothing he wouldn't do for immortality. The formation here exudes an evil aura everywhere. I don't know where he learned such methods; he must be planning to use this grand formation for his resurrection."

Zu An pondered for a moment, then gave a faint smile. "The Evergreen Five-Colored Flower is incredibly rare; if we miss this chance, we might never find it again. A man of integrity keeps his word. Since I promised to help you find the materials to reshape your body, what kind of man would I be if I backed down just because of a potential danger?"

He quickly told Bi Linglong, who was standing nearby, "Wait for me here."

If there was indeed danger over there later, it would likely involve the First Emperor's revival or something similar. He would struggle to protect himself, naturally having no spare capacity to look after her. It was safer for her to remain here.

After speaking, he directly summoned Great Wind and charged towards the center.

Seeing his actions, Mi Li cursed under her breath. "This fool!"

Worried about his safety, she hurried after him.

Zu An arrived beside the ancient tree. The closer he got, the more he felt the immense pressure emanating from the huge bronze coffin. His heart pounded faster and faster.

However, he had no time to think of anything else. He leaped directly onto the Evergreen Five-Colored Tree, and a refreshing fragrance wafted towards him.

He wasn't sure if the flower was poisonous, nor did he know if his poison-immune body could withstand this rare wonder that bloomed only once every few millennia.

He gritted his teeth and plucked the solitary flower.

To his surprise, nothing happened.

There was no movement from the colossal bronze coffin beside them. No First Emperor resurrection, not even a sound.

Mi Li had been vigilantly watching the bronze coffin, guarding against anything emerging to ambush Zu An. Seeing this, she finally exhaled in relief.

However, this turn of events piqued her curiosity. "You should leave here first. I'll open the coffin and take a look."

Zu An smiled. "I'll stay with you. If anything happens, I can fight alongside you."

Mi Li opened her mouth but ultimately did not send him away. With his current cultivation, he indeed had the qualifications to fight alongside her.

Moreover, his body was exceptionally robust, giving him a certain degree of self-preservation.

Mi Li said nothing. She simply walked to the colossal bronze coffin and slowly pushed open its heavy lid.

As expected, the inner coffin was made of crystal, but it was much larger than Fusu's earlier one.

A man in a dragon robe lay quietly in the coffin. Even with his eyes closed, his sweeping eyebrows, high nose bridge, and distinctly protruding chest exuded a condescending majesty that made one dare not meet his gaze. He truly resembled the historical description of "bee-nosed, long-eyed, hawk-chested."

This wasn't the first time Zu An had seen him. He had encountered his remnant soul in the secret realm of Brightmoon City Academy before. It had to be said that the remnant soul then had given him a stronger sense of oppressive majesty. Now, this physical body, being merely a corpse, lacked much of that presence.

Mi Li couldn't help but let out a long sigh. "Imperial grand plans and ambitions, all for naught. You pursued immortality for so long, yet still couldn't escape death. And you didn't even live as long as I have. Fate truly plays cruel tricks."

Zu An looked at her with concern, but found no trace of love in her eyes. Even the intense hatred she had initially felt had significantly faded. Clearly, after such a long time, now seeing the other party's corpse, even the deepest hatred was bound to be diluted.

It was replaced by an extremely complex expression, an expression Zu An had never seen on anyone else. Clearly, it was a feeling that only vast stretches of time could cultivate.

Just then, a warning sign suddenly flashed in his mind. He quickly looked to the side. A chilling voice drifted from a distance: "Throw over the Immortality Flower in your hand, or I'll kill her."

Mi Li also turned to look, only to see Zhao Ruizhi already at the entrance. His hand was clamped on Bi Linglong's shoulder, and he was staring coldly at the two of them. With his cultivation, a slight release of energy from his hand would surely result in Bi Linglong's immediate demise.

At this moment, He Li and the remaining two Dead Soldiers from Prince Qi's Manor also arrived, panting. Their eyes lit up at the sight of the flower in Zu An's hand. It pulsed with vibrant, multicolored light and exuded a rich aura of life. It was hard not to associate it with words like "immortality."