Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Night.
Sky Water River, downstream of Qinghe City.
The section of the river corresponding to Rooster Mountain.
On the northern riverbank, Su Jingxing waited for the moon to slowly move as the night breeze blew.
The weather was excellent tonight. There were no clouds in the sky, and the moonlight had long since poured down and covered the land.
But he still had to wait for the timing, angle, and time needed to reveal the entrance to the Mausoleum of Prince Qin.
After a month of waiting, Su Jingxing’s nervousness and anticipation had dissipated. Now, he was indescribably calm.
He enjoyed the breeze by the river and admired the full moon.
Time flew by. When it was about one in the morning, a ray of moonlight finally shone on the comb of Rooster Mountain and its shadow was projected clearly onto the river waters near the southern bank of the Sky Water River.
The next second, a magical scene happened.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The silver light beams in the river suddenly began refracting non-stop. Even though there were no mirrors, smooth walls, or special items to block the light beams, they continued to refract downwards through the water.
Through the waters, the refractions created a Z-shaped route.
Even though the letter “Z’s kept appearing, they also disappeared quickly.
In less than a second after the second “Z” was formed, the first “2” had disappeared.
The letter “Z”s appeared in an orderly manner, moving downstream along the Sky Water River.
More than 500 meters away, the last “Z” character stopped in the waters for three seconds before completely disappearing.
Whoosh!
Su Jingxing, who was chasing after the letters, leaped into the air with a tap of his toes and flew to the spot where the last letter “Z” had vanished.
Plop!
He wrapped his body with true energy and immersed himself in the river.
His powerful perception spread and sensed the movement of the waters below him.
Moments later, he found his target.
An underground spring hidden between two large stone slabs.
He channeled his true energy into the soles of his feet to support his body. Standing on the riverbed, he first scattered the sand, mud, and debris with a punch. Then, he bent down and grabbed a stone slab in each hand. With all his might, he lifted it up.
“Ugh!”
The thick stone slabs were lifted forcefully.
At first, it was 30 degrees, then 45, and finally 90 degrees. Finally, they fell back and lay at the bottom of the river, stirring up the water.
Large gushes of underground water gushed out from the spring on the riverbed, cleansing the murky water and producing bubbles on the water surface.
The bubbles stood out in the moonlight, but they didn’t last long, disappearing within three minutes.
On the riverbed, Su Jingxing had already burrowed into the underground spring.
Had he not made the trip personally and seen it with his own eyes,
Su Jingxing never would have thought that the shadow of the crown of Rooster Mountain found in the light map projected from the four ancient books wasn’t the entrance to the Mausoleum of Prince Qin.
The location where the shadow of the crown was projected was merely the starting point.
It made sense.
The night of the full moon only happened once a month, and sometimes, the moon would be covered by dark clouds during rainy days.
However, the Mausoleum of Prince Qin had existed for more than 400 years. During such a long period of time, there would always be a few instances where the moonlight would shine on the crown of Rooster Mountain and project the location of the entrance.
If the entrance would appear so easily, it would have been discovered long ago.
The only way to avoid detection was by using the letter “2” refraction route, which appeared and disappeared quickly.
Even if someone happened to see it from the riverbank, it would be futile if they couldn’t catch up to the letter “Z’s.
Even if the most coincidental thing took place whereby a person happened to be standing on the riverbank where the final “Z” appeared, saw the letter “2” disappear after three seconds, feel puzzled and jump into the river to check the situation, he still might not necessarily find the underground spring.
The spring, which was blocked by two large stone slabs, was located at the edge of the letter
not within the range it covered.
Even if the spring was found, no one would associate it to the entrance of the Mausoleum of Prince Qin.
Therefore, to rely on chance, coincidence, and luck to locate the Mausoleum of Prince Qin, the probability was pathetically low, almost incalculable.
And when Su Jingxing followed the tunnel of the underground spring, moving downwards, turned left, and then down again, he found himself standing before a stone door after a ten-minute journey. The stone doors, which had been in the water for more than 400 years, were tightly sealed.
Water plants were hanging on the stone door, through which small shrimps and small fishes darted.
Having seen the light map projected by the four ancient books, Su Jingxing knew that this stone door could not be opened with brute force.
Forcefully breaking through the door would cause the internal space to collapse.
The only way to unlock it was to enter the correct mechanism passwords on a disc above the door.
On the light map, the passwords were a string of numbers.
Su Jingxing had learned it by heart after seeing it.
At this moment.
He controlled his body to float up to the top of the stone door, where the disc was situated.
After removing the seaweed covering the disc, a basin-sized circular stone disc was revealed.
Acircle of the exact timings of an ancient day was engraved on it.
There were a total of twelve vertical lines, as well as their corresponding hours.
The password required to open the stone door was to grab hold of the stone plate and turn clockwise to the corresponding position of the first, then anti-clockwise to the corresponding position of the second password.
There were a total of six passwords. After alternating between moving clockwise, anti-clockwise three times in quick succession while turning to the corresponding positions —
Crack!
Astrange sound.
The stone door, which had been sealed for more than 400 years, slowly opened with a light shake.
Rumble!
Two stone doors that were five meters tall each moved to the sides.
A spacious, brightly lit, and tall passageway was revealed.
Yes, there was light in the passageway!
Su Jingxing quickly scanned his surroundings and discovered that the source of light was pieces of rocks that were embedded into the ceiling of the passage.
Luminous Stones? Illumination Stones?
Amidst his amazement, Su Jingxing stepped through the door and walked into the passage.
Pop!
Astrange sound.
His body had passed through a thin film.
The thin film isolated the underground water outside the door.
The passage was incredibly dry.
Su Jingxing tried to resume his breathing and discovered that there was oxygen in the passage.
Amazing!
Su Jingxing could tell that this passage that isolated the water outside was created using an array formation.
The glowing stones above his head were probably also sustained using an array formation.
This was what Su Jingxing realized after walking down the passageway for a few minutes.
It was because the deeper he went, the denser the worldly energy in the air.
‘When Su Jingxing stood before an extremely thick and tightly sealed stone door that had two black wyrms engraved on it, he could sense that the density of worldly energy was five times that of it in the valley where the big white goose resided.
Energy field?
Su Jingxing was shocked.
At the end of the passage was another stone door, as he had expected.
Besides, this stone door was different from the one outside.
The black wyrms engraved on it weren’t actually wyrms, but horned dragons.
‘A powerful Mutated Beast.
Su Jingxing had done some research on the events in the life of the Rising Dragon Saber King, Liu Chenglong. He discovered that the Martial Art True Intent of this first-grade powerhouse was a horned dragon, the Sishui Horned Dragon!
According to the light map, to open the stone door before him, he would have to place his hands on the claws of each Sishui Horned Dragon and infuse his internal energy into the stone door.
As for the exact amount to infuse, it wasn’t specified.
Having come this far, Su Jingxing naturally wouldn’t give up.
Immediately, he stood before the stone door and spread open his arms to find the spots. He held down a claw of a Sishui Horned Dragon in each hand.
His dantian stirred, and large amounts of Heaven Trampling True Energy surged from his palm into the stone door.
At first, there was no reaction from the stone door.
After infusing 30 years of cultivation of Heaven Trampling True Energy, the tips of the tails of the two Sishui Horned Dragons on the stone door suddenly lit up.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
The glows continued to move upwards, following the tails and extending towards the heads of the Sishui Horned Dragons.
By the time they reached the necks, Su Jingxing had already injected 100 years of cultivation of Heaven Trampling True Energy into the stone door!
I knew it wouldn’t be easy to enter the Mausoleum of Prince Qin!
Su Jingxing thought inwardly.
Passwords unlocked the first stone door, and true energy unlocked the second.
‘The amount of true energy required was more than a hundred years of cultivation.
Fortunately, though Su Jingxing was not rich in anything else, he had sufficient true energy.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
His dantian spun rapidly as he channeled large amounts of Heaven Trampling True Energy into the stone doors.
By the time he had channeled in another 80 years of cultivation of true energy, making a total of 180 years of cultivation
Swish! Swish!
The eyes of the two Sishui Horned Dragons lit up as if they had come alive. A ray of light shot out from them and into the empty air three meters away from the stone door.
At the same time, an invisible repelling force emanated from the stone door, knocking Su Jingxing backward.
Da! Da! Da!
Su Jingxing took a few steps back to neutralize the impact. He stood on the ground and gazed at the distorted shadows in the air.
The shadows twisted, contracted and expanded.
At the end of the transformation, a tall figure materialized in the air.
He was dressed in armor, had a golden crown on his head, and a treasure sword hanging from his waist. His eyebrows were sharp, and his eyes were bright. He had a grecian nose.
His pair of gentle eyes holding starlight were indescribably deep.
He looked around before his gaze fell on Su Jingxing. Smiling, he said calmly, “Hello, lucky descendant.”
“Hello.”
Su Jingxing blinked at the man who was clearly not a projection.
As he speculated, he ventured, “Senior, you are…”
“Lam Liu Chenglong,” answered the figure with a smile. “I once had a title—Rising Dragon Saber King. Have you heard of it, descendant?”
“..0-Of course… I have!”
Su Jingxing regulated his breathing and worked hard to calm his mind.
Liu Chenglong!
It is actually Liu Chenglong!
To think that Liu Chenglong, a first-grade martial artist who was given the title of “Prince Qin” after his death, the Rising Dragon Saber King has lived until now.
No. Su Jingxing carefully sensed his surroundings and realized that even though this “Liu Chenglong” was a soul, he was extremely unstable.
Rather than calling it a soul that stayed behind, it would be more accurate to call it a wisp of soul that was isolated!
This was also Su Jingxing’s newly acquired analytical ability after his soul power was boosted.
A wisp of Liu Chenglong’s remnant soul!
Liu Chenglong was also very frank. After waiting for Su Jingxing’s reply, he smiled again and said, “You must have realized that my current body is only a wisp of my remnant soul. Once manifested, it will dissipate completely in 15 minutes.”
“So, we don’t have much time to talk. Shall we get started quickly?”
“Sure,” said Su Jingxing, nodding. “I’m here because I want to get the treasure left behind by the Saber King, a treasure that can advance one to the third-grade.”
“As I expected.”
Liu Chenglong’s remnant soul smiled. “Let me tell you something. There is indeed such an item in the mausoleum. It’ll allow you to cultivate without having to work hard and spending decades nourishing your spirit with true essence and condensing Martial Art True Intent. With this item, you can skip
these steps immediately. You’ll advance to the third-grade first and finally the first-grade!”
Badump! Badump! Badump!
Su Jingxing’s heart raced.
Beyond third-grade?
What kind of treasure can push one beyond the third-grade to the first-grade?!
Even with Su Jingxing’s strong willpower, his heart was racing and his breathing was getting heavier.
First-grade.
Reaching the skies in a single bound and advancing to the first-grade!
That will save me so much time and energy.
He didn’t know about the others but Su Jingxing became tempted at this moment.
Sensing this, Liu Chenglong’s smile widened.
“The treasure is in the mausoleum. You just have to promise me one condition, and you’ll get it.”
A condition?
There is indeed no free lunch in this world.
Su Jingxing drew a deep breath to calm himself down. “May I ask what your condition is?”
“simple,” replied Liu Chenglong with a smile. “Swear on your heart and soul that you will protect the Yu Nation for a hundred years.”
Hmm?
What kind of condition is this?
Su Jingxing faltered. Then, as though remembering something, he asked, “What extent of protection does this refer to?”
Before Liu Chenglong’s remnant soul could reply, Su Jingxing continued, “You may not know, Saber King, but more than 400 years have passed since your death. All the nations in the world have been modernized.”
“Modernization refers to the flourish of technology. There are planes in the sky, cars on the ground, and boats in the water. All these technological products are made of metal, and they are even more ingenious than the ancient mechanisms.
“Ordinary people only need to meet the physical conditions and undergo certain training before they can drive these vehicles to fly in the sky, run on the ground, and swim in the water.
“Other than that, there are other appliances such as electric lamps, computers, televisions, and so on. They are all icons of modernity.
“Most of the imperial families and the rulers of the various nations from the ancient times no longer have any authority. They’ve only kept their statuses and are just symbols.
“For example, in our Yu Nation, the cabinet is in charge of making decisions. It comprises 13 cabinet members, led by the prime minister, and followed by two deputy prime ministers.”
“A policy concerning the nation can only be implemented after the approval of everyone in the cabinet and the final approval from the prime minister.”
“There are many similar cases. In short, modern times are very different from ancient times.
“Therefore, I have to clarify what you mean by “protect”.
“Is it the Yu Nation’s royal family? Or its citizens?”
His mouth was wide open, and his face was blank.
“Saber King? Saber King!” Su Jingxing called out.
After all, time was limited.
“I. I’m still here.”
Liu Chenglong’s remnant soul opened his mouth and exhaled. Slowly, his shocked expression returned to normal.
“Who would have thought… who would have thought that so much time had passed? It’s been over 4.00 years.
“The entire world has also moved from ancient times to modern times.”
He sighed with emotion.
“I don’t quite understand the modern world still, but I do get what you mean.”
Liu Chenglong’s expression turned serious.
“This of course refers to protecting the common people!”
