Chapter 1162: Each Has Its Gains

They needed to return outside and enter a different passage to retrieve the treasures, and the Wang family's advantage was their ample number of cultivators.

Over twenty second-tier puppet beasts cast spells to attack the restriction, and multicolored spiritual light engulfed it. A golden light flashed, and a golden blade aura, several zhang long, shot forth, striking a third-tier puppet beast with a muffled clang. They spent a short while, using third-tier talismans, to finally break through the restriction.

Upon returning to the main hall, they discovered that the entrance to the Five Dragon Palace was sealed by two light screens, one green and one yellow. The surfaces of these screens were covered with rice-grain-sized runes, emanating a powerful spiritual aura. The ape puppet beast's right fist struck the outermost yellow light screen, which immediately dented inward before quickly returning to normal, flinging the ape puppet beast backward.

"This is the Earthlight Restriction," Wang Jiyu said with a frown. "Even several Core Formation cultivators wouldn't be able to break these two restrictions quickly. Those two old fellows are truly cunning; even if someone manages to retrieve treasures ahead of us, they'll be trapped here by the restrictions. By the time we break through, they've probably already taken all the treasures." He added that the other four entrances were all sealed by formations.

"This arrangement works out for us," Wang Youwei continued. "Let's work together, attack all three passages, and choose the weakest one to enter." Wang Youwei and the others controlled their puppet beasts, attacking the restrictions in all three passages.

Reverend Golden Blade and Madam Azure Flame had taken control of three passages. They would surely act separately, with the most logical approach being for each to guard one passage and then assign a few cultivators to enter the third. The passages guarded by Reverend Golden Blade and Madam Azure Flame would certainly have very strong restrictions, primarily to prevent others from trailing behind and taking advantage. Consequently, the restriction in the passage not guarded by Madam Azure Flame or Reverend Golden Blade would be comparatively weaker, which was Wang Youwei's target.

As expected, they found one restriction that was weaker and forcefully broke through it.

"Are all of you going in?" Wang Youwei asked in a deep voice. "If we bet wrong, the trouble will be immense." He was unsure if Madam Azure Flame or Reverend Golden Blade might be in this passage. If he guessed incorrectly, they would be in serious trouble.

"It's more dangerous if we split up," Wang Xianfen said solemnly. "If we chose the previous passage, we'd just be fish on a chopping block. Let's treat this as a high-stakes gamble! After all, we have no other choice." The Golden Blade Sect and Rogue Cultivator Alliance had sealed off the passage they had chosen, clearly intending to trap them, and sealing the exit of the Five Dragon Palace unmistakably showed their ill intentions.

"I agree," Wang Jiyu stated. "They leveraged their superior strength and initially wanted to use us as cannon fodder. If the Lu family hadn't been trying to counterbalance them, we would probably be cannon fodder by now. In fact, if not for Uncle Youwei's ability to control Core Formation stage talisman soldiers, the Lu family would definitely use us as cannon fodder. They're all cut from the same cloth; none of them have good intentions." Wang Jiyu expressed his agreement, noting that if they had entered the previous passage to search for treasures, any treasures they found would only end up benefiting others.

"Alright then," Wang Youwei said with determination. "Let's make this a high-stakes gamble. At worst, we'll all go down together." With a resolute expression, Wang Youwei set up a series of warning talismans and a restriction in the original passage, sealing its entrance to mislead others. They, meanwhile, entered a different passage to search for treasures.

This passage was similar to the previous one. Before long, they stopped, finding a quiet courtyard ahead. The ground was paved with numerous pale white stone slabs, with a pile of crushed stones scattered on them, from which they could faintly discern a stone door. Wang Youwei and Ouyang Mingyue's divine sense temporarily reached the Core Formation stage level, and they detected subtle restriction fluctuations ahead.

"These people are quite cautious!" Wang Xianfen said with some surprise. "They actually set up a warning array." The Wang family had few formation masters, and their abilities were generally weaker, making it impossible to send them into the Five Dragon Secret Realm to search for treasures.

"We understand how to create misleading arrays, and they're certainly not foolish," Wang Jiyu said with a frown. "If we force our way through, we'll definitely trigger the array, which would be like warning them."

"If it's just a warning array, I do have a way to get past it," Ouyang Mingyue offered. She summoned a crimson spherical bead, which emitted a vast expanse of crimson misty light that enveloped their entire bodies. The Ouyang family, being one of the ten great immortal cultivation families in the South Sea, possessed profound heritage. When Ouyang Mingyue married Wang Youwei, the Ouyang family provided a substantial dowry, and this Crimson Moon Pearl was among the items. Enveloped in the crimson misty light, Wang Youwei and the others walked forward, and the warning array showed no reaction.

After passing through the courtyard, a vast, dark forest appeared before them. Several broken magical artifacts lay scattered on the ground, along with several large pits and over a dozen fallen trees, indicating that a fierce battle had clearly taken place here. Two ape puppet beasts led the way, while Wang Jiyu released over a hundred crimson spirit bees to scout the surroundings, finding nothing unusual. They cautiously advanced and disappeared into the dense forest.

In another passage, Reverend Yanshui and other Lu family cultivators were engaged in a fierce battle with a lifelike blue flood dragon. Behind the blue flood dragon stood a blue stone door, approximately one zhang high, covered by a faint blue light screen. Reverend Yanshui frowned slightly, then performed a hand seal. A misty blue flying sword glowed intensely, transforming into a long blue rainbow that shot directly towards the blue flood dragon. The others were not idle either, some casting powerful spells, others summoning talismans. After a series of booming sounds, the blue flood dragon dissolved into specks of blue light and vanished, and the blue light screen simultaneously dissipated.

Upon opening the stone door, a stone chamber over ten zhang in size appeared before them. In the center of the chamber was a blue stone platform, one zhang high, with a blue flying sword embedded in it, its blue light constantly fluctuating. The hilt of the sword was engraved with five lifelike miniature flood dragons, and a faint blue light screen enveloped the blade. On the stone platform lay five blue jade slips, presumably cultivation manuals or ancient texts. The stone walls were embedded with numerous blue crystals, emitting faint wisps of water vapor.

"Is this the Five Dragon Sword, the Five Dragon Palace's most treasured artifact?" Reverend Yanshui muttered to himself, his eyes burning with fervor. "No, the Five Dragon Sword was clearly acquired by the Ten Thousand Swords Sect. There's no reason for the Five Dragon Palace to hide its sect's treasure here. It must be a replica, but even as a replica, its quality should still be exceptional."

In yet another passage, Reverend Golden Blade and his companions stood on a red plaza. The floor was paved with a type of red jade, and in the center of the plaza lay a colossal flood dragon skeleton, its surface enveloped in a milky-white spiritual light. Nearby, on a red stone platform, rested a fist-sized red spherical bead and five jade slips. The red bead bore a miniature flood dragon pattern.

"Such an enormous size," Reverend Golden Blade muttered to himself, his eyes gleaming with fervor. "Could this be the skeleton of a fourth-tier flood dragon?" A fourth-tier flood dragon's skeleton could be refined into a corpse puppet; having such a treasure would be equivalent to possessing an additional Nascent Soul stage puppet beast.

In still another passage, Madam Azure Flame and her group stood in a yellow desert. Madam Azure Flame held a palm-sized yellow seal, engraved with a lifelike yellow flood dragon, though a corner of it was missing. "It's the Yellow Dragon Seal," Madam Azure Flame murmured to herself, "one of the Five Dragon Palace's most prized treasures. It's a shame it's damaged; its power is greatly reduced. If it were repaired, who knows how formidable it would become." After murmuring to herself, Madam Azure Flame put away the yellow seal and said, "Let's go, we need to leave quickly. The Wang family might find something even better." With that, she led her sect members and disciples out of the yellow desert.