Chapter 82: Chapter 81: Voice Control
Qin Li had thought for a long time before deciding how to handle the Black Water Kui Ox’s Inner Core.
Frankly, Qin Li had never considered himself a good person. It was too exhausting to be one; the standards were too high, and he simply didn’t measure up. A "good person" could do a hundred things right, but if they did just one thing that displeased someone, they’d end up offending a whole crowd. Besides, the old saying, "the kind are easily bullied," was just too true. Qin Li genuinely admired the ancient sages who had come up with it. Thus, Qin Li hadn’t been a good person in his past life, and he had no intention of trying to be one in this life either!
He just wanted to be unfettered, to follow his own heart, and to live by his own sense of right and wrong!
Qin Li was also tempted to swallow the Inner Core and refine it on the spot. He was confident Chen Yihan wouldn’t have the nerve to return here anytime soon.
While the Inner Core of a Celestial Level Spirit Beast was priceless, the Ancient Ruins in the lake still held countless other unknown treasures waiting to be discovered and claimed. More importantly, the sole reason these Royal Martial Artists had come all this way—even imposing a blockade that risked antagonizing the entire country’s heroes—was for that one legendary prize... the Celestial Profound Pill Formula!
Therefore, Qin Li deduced that Chen Yihan and his people wouldn’t waste much time getting bogged down by this.
Besides, in the eyes of Chen Yihan and his group, these few weak Adventurers had just gotten a stroke of dumb luck, somehow earning the favor of a Spirit Beast capable of Transformation. Without that powerful Spirit Beast, they wouldn’t even be able to cross Phoenix Mountain!
’So, for now, the Black Water Kui Ox is just being temporarily held in their care. When the time comes, all I have to do is offer those Adventurers a high enough price. In the end, that Spirit Beast... will still be mine!’
The reason Qin Li chose to enter the ruins instead of consuming the Spirit Beast Inner Core was simple: he, too, had his eyes on the Celestial Profound Pill Formula!
’Who wouldn’t want something like that? Especially since I want to help Watermelon become a proper powerhouse, not just watch him die eighteen months after his third Nirvana and have to collect his body!’
Qin Li was certain that the vast majority of Martial Artists who had come here were after the Celestial Profound Pill Formula. Anyone with half a brain knew what this Ancient Pill Formula meant to a kingdom or a powerful faction.
Qin Li had a sudden thought. ’This place is about to get very lively. Royal families and great clans, from this kingdom and its neighbors... they’ll all be showing up soon enough.’
It was only natural for Qin Li to have such thoughts. The Celestial Essence Continent was immense, and kingdoms like the Cyan Dragon Kingdom were a dime a dozen.
In fact, after learning just how massive this planet was, Qin Li found it hard to believe. Its sheer size was utterly beyond his previous understanding.
The Cyan Dragon Kingdom was by no means a small nation; its territory spanned three to four million square kilometers. Yet, on this magical continent, countries of its size were... a dime a dozen!
Just how large was the Cyan Dragon Continent? It was believed that even the most accomplished travelers could not give a definitive answer, for the simple reason that it was just too vast.
Because of this, any powerful and ambitious family would never be content with simply being aristocrats. They would secretly build their own power base, and the moment a suitable opportunity arose, they would spring into action to establish their own regime.
The Cyan Dragon Kingdom itself had been founded under similar circumstances. To prevent history from repeating itself, the Royal Family was naturally being exceedingly cautious, using their immense power to seal off Phoenix Lake. Their goal was simply to deny anyone else the same kind of opportunity.
None of this, however, had much to do with Qin Li. He had already slipped through the large hole blasted open by Chen Yihan’s group and entered the structure.
On the outskirts of the complex, Qin Li felt the energy fluctuations and was filled with immense admiration for the skills of the ancients from the Celestial Essence Continent. ’To think they could create a barrier that only repels water... it’s truly unheard of!’
The place Qin Li entered was, indeed, a great hall. It was pitch-black and utterly silent inside. He took out a torch he had prepared and lit it. The flame immediately illuminated his surroundings for a dozen meters in every direction.
It was completely empty, with nothing in sight.
Qin Li continued deeper into the hall, a faint, rank odor hitting his nose. He noticed what looked like an impression on the floor, as if something had been lying there for a long time. Walking over, he saw a few palm-sized black scales on the ground and knew they must have been left by the Black Water Kui Ox.
Without lingering, Qin Li walked to the far end of the hall. He found a doorway that was over three meters high but had no door. He didn’t rush in. Instead, he carefully circled the hall and found another doorway. Before he even got close to it, a wave of damp air washed over him.
Qin Li stepped through the doorway and found himself on an outdoor platform. It was like a massive balcony. He suddenly realized that holding a lit torch out in the open was a bad idea and quickly retreated back into the great hall. Since this balcony faced away from the Royal Martial Artists’ position, Qin Li turned and headed for the other doorway.
He passed through it into a small, foyer-like chamber. This room was also empty, but in one corner, a spiral staircase led down into the darkness. The flickering torchlight cast long shadows, making the descent look mysterious.
Qin Li released his Innate Purple Qi, scanning a hundred-meter radius around him. Sensing no danger, he started down the stairs with confidence.
The stairs were made of some unknown material. Despite the passage of countless years, they felt solid and stable under his feet, making not a single sound.
Suddenly, Qin Li’s gaze sharpened. He slowly crouched and ran a hand over the stairs. In the light of the torch, he saw that the pad of his finger had picked up only the faintest trace of dust.
A chill went through Qin Li as a strange feeling surfaced in his mind. He had felt something was off back in the main hall but couldn’t put his finger on it. Now, he finally understood. An ancient structure submerged at the bottom of a lake for thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands of years, shouldn’t be much different from an ancient tomb.
No matter how immaculate the building had been in its time, it was impossible for it to have remained this clean after so many years. It was unnervingly clean. To call it spotless would be no exaggeration.
’So... who has been keeping this place so clean for all these countless years?’
At this thought, Qin Li hesitated, a cold chill running up his spine. It was one thing to be brave, but the only people who feared nothing were idiots.
Every human being has things they hold in awe; the only difference is what those things are.
"ROAR!"
Qin Li suddenly let out a roar. In the silent, empty space, his voice echoed back at him, but nothing else happened.
But to Qin Li’s utter astonishment, as his roar faded, the room he was in—along with many connected chambers—simultaneously... lit up.
Qin Li stared, dumbfounded, at the scene, a look of shock and speechlessness on his face. After a long moment, he finally mumbled, "Holy shit... it’s voice-activated..."
At the same time, Qin Li’s eyes fell upon a painting hanging on the far wall of the room. He took one look and found he couldn’t tear his gaze away.
