bioinnovel Chapter 135 The Breath of Life
Chapter 135 The Breath of Life
Behind the door was a wider jade passageway.
On either side stood ancient lamps that had long since gone out, and the ground was covered with a layer of dust.
At the end of the passageway, a more open space can be vaguely seen, with faint light shining through.
The two exchanged a glance, became more alert, and slowly stepped inside.
After walking through the hundred-meter-long passageway, a bright and open space suddenly appeared before me.
This is an extremely magnificent underground palace!
The hall is several tens of feet high, and its dome is inlaid with countless luminous pearls and crystals, simulating the movement of the stars in the sky.
Although most of them have faded.
But a few stubbornly emitted a faint light, casting a hazy glow over the main hall.
Giant pillars, each requiring ten people to encircle, support the dome. The pillars are carved with lifelike images of the sun, moon, stars, mythical beasts, and immortal herbs.
Although covered in dust, one can still feel the incredible craftsmanship of that time.
The floor of the main hall is paved with black and white jade, forming a huge Tai Chi Bagua diagram.
At the center is a more detailed star chart.
Around the main hall, several pavilions and corridors were built against the walls, with carved railings, jade steps, flying eaves and brackets.
That was where the core disciples of the sect used to cultivate, discuss matters, and store ancient books and treasures.
Today, however, most of them have collapsed and fallen into disrepair, with rotten beaded curtains and broken jade railings, leaving a scene of utter chaos.
What's even more chilling is that there are many skeletons scattered throughout the main hall.
Some remained seated cross-legged, as if they had suddenly passed away during their cultivation.
Some collapsed and struggled, with broken magical artifacts beside them.
Some even huddled together in groups of three or five, as if they were still fighting side by side against the enemy at the last moment...
Dead silence, ruin, desolation.
This is the final scene left to visitors thousands of years later by the ancient Xuanji Pavilion.
Fairy Yaoguang's delicate body trembled violently, her pearly teeth biting her lower lip so hard it almost bled.
She walked step by step to the center of the hall, her gaze sweeping over the skeletons and ruins.
Her once beautiful and aloof face was now devoid of color, revealing only deep sorrow.
Qin Xiao silently followed beside her, offering no words of comfort.
Some wounds need to be faced directly and released.
Fairy Yaoguang finally stopped in front of the star chart in the center of the main hall, slowly knelt down, and bowed deeply to the empty and dilapidated hall and to the silent remains.
"Your unworthy disciple Yaoguang... is late in returning..."
Her voice choked with sobs, echoing eerily in the deathly silent hall, adding to the desolation.
After a long while, she finally stood up again and wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes.
"His Majesty……"
Yao Guang turned to Qin Xiao and said, "According to the sect rules, the core forbidden area's books and inheritances should be stored in the 'Scripture Cave' and 'Secret Treasure Room' at the back of the hall. However, the incident happened suddenly back then, and the evacuation was hasty. We don't know if there was time to move them, or if they were completely looted by the Tianluo Sect."
He paused, then pointed to a huge jade wall behind the main hall that appeared to be intact and was carved with a pattern of the sun and moon shining together.
"The entrance to the Scripture Cave and the Treasure Chamber is behind this jade wall. It requires the token of the sect leader or a core elder, along with a specific incantation, to open. The jade pendant in my hand is a core disciple's token, and my authority is insufficient, but I can try to sense the internal situation or find other clues to open it."
Qin Xiao nodded: "Let's investigate first, it's better to be cautious."
The two walked toward the jade wall.
Fairy Yaoguang pressed the jade pendant close to the jade wall, closed her eyes, concentrated, and focused all her energy on sensing it.
Qin Xiao also used his divine sense to explore the structure of the jade wall and discovered that there were indeed extremely complex and powerful restrictions inside.
Although it has been mostly dormant due to its age and depletion of spiritual energy.
But the core remains solid.
Time passed little by little.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Fairy Yaoguang's forehead, clearly indicating that she was not feeling relaxed.
Suddenly, her delicate body trembled, and her beautiful eyes opened, a hint of surprise and uncertainty flashing across them.
"Your Majesty... I sense that behind the jade wall, the Scripture Cave and the Treasure Chamber do indeed exist, and the core restrictions are basically intact! But..."
Her voice was filled with disbelief, "There seems to be an extremely faint sign of life inside?"
Upon hearing this, Qin Xiao's pupils contracted sharply!
Thousands of years have passed, and the spiritual energy of the Xuanji Pavilion ruins has long since dried up. It is a miracle that the core restrictions have been able to remain intact.
How could there still be any signs of life?
Could it be that there are still survivors among the ruins of this ancient sect?!
Or something else?
Qin Xiao's expression turned solemn as he pondered, "Are you sure, Fairy, that it's a life force, or some kind of formation or spiritual object's unusual activity?"
Fairy Yaoguang closed her eyes again and carefully sensed for a moment before firmly shaking her head: "It is definitely not a formation simulation. The aura is extremely weak, like a candle flickering in the wind, but it is indeed the fluctuation of a living soul, and it faintly resonates with my Xuanji Pavilion's techniques. However, how is this possible? When we evacuated back then, there should have been no one left to guard this place..."
She frowned, trying hard to remember.
However, due to injuries sustained and a deep sleep in the past, his memory is fragmented, making it difficult to determine the cause.
"We must go in and investigate, no matter what."
Qin Xiao made a decision: "Could the fairy find a safe way to open it? If not, I will try to use the power of space to open a temporary passage without touching the core restrictions."
Forcing the door open is too risky.
However, if there are any orphans of the Xuanji Pavilion or important items inside, they should not be missed.
Fairy Yaoguang pondered for a moment and said, "Although I do not have the highest authority, I can try to use the jade pendant as a guide, in conjunction with the 'Star Key Unsealing' secret technique recorded in the 'Taiyin Star Spin Technique,' to simulate part of the sect leader's aura. This might be able to deceive the restriction and open a temporary gap. However, this method consumes a great deal of mental and spiritual energy and can only be maintained for a very short time."
"It's alright, I will protect you and be ready to assist you at any time."
Qin Xiao said in a deep voice, "Once it is opened, I will go in first to investigate, while the fairy will provide support from the outside."
Fairy Yaoguang hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded.
She knew that Qin Xiao was stronger and possessed spatial abilities, making him more capable of handling unexpected situations.
The two did not linger any longer and sat down cross-legged three zhang in front of the jade wall.
Fairy Yaoguang hung the jade pendant in front of her chest, formed complicated hand seals, and chanted incantations.
The moonlight's spiritual power surged from her body and poured into the jade pendant, causing it to shine brightly with azure light, projecting a hazy glow that resonated mysteriously with the sun and moon patterns on the jade wall.
At the same time, following the secret technique of "Star Key Unsealing", she adjusted the frequency of her own soul, simulating a trace of the Daoist aura of her sect leader in her memory, and integrated it into her spiritual power.
The restrictions on the jade disc were gradually awakened, emitting a low hum, and the sun and moon patterns shone with light, as if they had come to life.
Fairy Yaoguang's face quickly turned pale, and her delicate body trembled slightly.
This method places an extremely heavy burden on the body.
Qin Xiao placed one palm on her back, continuously channeling the five elements of spiritual energy into her to help stabilize her breathing and support the secret technique.
The vibrations of the jade disc became increasingly noticeable.
At the center, where the sun and moon patterns meet, a vortex-like phantom gradually emerges, slowly rotating and expanding.
Finally, when the vortex expanded to the size of a washbasin, an aura of vicissitudes leaked out from it!
"It's open!" Fairy Yaoguang exclaimed softly, her voice weary yet filled with joy.
"Hold on, I'll be right back!"