The cover bore no name and was about a finger thick. Li Tianjue felt it immediately; it was made from the hide of a rare, humanoid water monster, a 'Jiaoren.' Every inch was as precious as gold, and it was the only way it could have been preserved for so long.
He opened it and scanned its contents, his eyes narrowing. "This is the diary of the Palace Master!"
Su Luo and Tang Xiaoguo quickly moved to Li Tianjue's side, crowding to look at the booklet. The others wanted to see but dared not approach, their curiosity like several cats scratching at their insides.
"February 8th, Sunny. The Butterfly Immortal Orchid I planted a month ago has bloomed. Time has been shortened by three times. I truly am a genius! It's those two idiots, A-Mao and A-Gou, who stole and ate the Six-Winged Dragon Whale I painstakingly captured again. Damn them to hell..."
Huh? The three of them uttered sounds of confusion simultaneously.
Su Luo was even more astonished. Could this truly be written by the Great Emperor Haotian? How could it be so vulgar!
But the Divine Eye Mirror wouldn't be wrong; this was indeed written by the Great Emperor Haotian.
"February 27th, Rainy. Damn it, that old turtle, the Ghost Emperor of Shanyin, actually sent people to drug me, attempting to kidnap me! I've told him eight hundred times that I don't like his sister, she's so annoying! And have you seen how ugly his sister is? He insists I marry her and become his brother-in-law, even though a horse doesn't know the length of its face!"
"March 5th, Rainy. Eight-Eyed Wolf Kui is holding his Thousand Longevity Birthday next month and invited me for a drink. What should I give him? Wait, last year when he took a concubine, I gifted him a bottle of Phoenix Marrow Pill. The year before, when his son was born, he also asked me to give a gift, and the year before that... Damn it! That turtle invites guests every year. I get it, he just wants to bleed me dry of my treasures... This son of a turtle is too black-hearted..."
Li Tianjue's face darkened. He could finally stand it no longer and threw the booklet aside.
"What a mess!"
Even if the Palace Master was an eccentric hermit and a powerful expert, Li Tianjue could no longer bear to read it. Rather than suffer the spiritual torment of these vulgar words, he'd rather look for other clues or something valuable.
Tang Xiaoguo also couldn't bear to look, chuckling dryly, "This senior, speaks quite... unrestrainedly."
Su Luo picked up the booklet and asked, "Senior Brother, this was written by the Palace Master. Perhaps it has some value. If you don't want it, may I keep it?"
Although the diary's language was crude, it was, after all, written by the Great Emperor Haotian. It might record his secrets and valuable information. She planned to study it slowly when she had time and discard it only if it proved useless.
Li Tianjue said indifferently, "As you wish."
He continued to search for other items, hoping to find information about this palace, especially maps.
If he could find a spiritual medicine to heal their fifth junior brother, that would be even better.
Many books were scattered on the ground, their covers blue. They seemed to be various cultivation manuals and secret techniques collected by the Palace Master, including rare ancient texts, medical books, and treatises on mechanics. Everyone eagerly picked them up, but upon touching them, they crumbled into dust, impossible to hold.
Not every book was made of Jiaoren hide; they couldn't possibly have lasted so long.
Just then, Tang Xiaoguo called out, "Senior Brother, Sister Su, come look at this..."
Su Luo turned to see Tang Xiaoguo squatting in a corner of the palace, a piece of paper seemingly on the ground before her. She and Li Tianjue quickly walked over to look and found an unfolded letter.
"To the fated one: If you can read this letter, it means my attempt to become a god has failed, and I have perished. Do not be surprised; I am the master of this Jade Firmament Palace, known as the Great Emperor Haotian! Next, I have a few things to entrust..."
Li Tianjue's eyes sharpened. "It's actually the Great Emperor Haotian!"
Tang Xiaoguo's eyes lit up. Su Luo, however, let out a sigh of relief. At least she didn't have to find an excuse or weave a lie to tell them that this was the Jade Firmament Palace of the Great Emperor Haotian.
Li Tianjue carefully picked up the letter. Fortunately, it wasn't damaged. Just as he was about to continue reading...
Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed.
BOOM!
One of the walls in the main hall suddenly exploded.
Noisy sounds, footsteps, and exclamations followed. In an instant, several figures burst through the hole.
They were disheveled, their clothes stained with blood. One of them, a man in white, saw Li Tianjue and the others and exclaimed with surprise and joy, "Brother Li, you are here! That's great! Quick, come help!"
Immediately after, Du Wei rushed in like a headless fly, shouting frantically, "Young Master, flee quickly! Many ten-thousand-year-old Chi Longs are chasing us!"
Su Luo saw the hole behind them and indeed, a pack of ten-thousand-year-old Chi Longs. She was so angry she wanted to curse.
After finally finding a moment's peace and discovering something valuable, before they could even finish searching, this detestable Young Master Shang Xie had brought a horde of ten-thousand-year-old Chi Longs to disrupt everything!
"Xiaoguo, be careful."
Su Luo pulled Tang Xiaoguo and ducked behind Li Tianjue.
Li Tianjue also immediately put away the letter and struck at the pursuing Chi Long iron puppets with a palm.
Spiritual light flashed, and with a thunderous roar, the Chi Long iron puppet at the forefront couldn't withstand Li Tianjue's attack and had its head completely flattened. But as soon as it fell, two more charged forward.
Li Tianjue leaped back, both blocking the charging Chi Long iron puppets and telling Su Luo behind him, "I'll hold them off. You immediately take Xiaoguo and find a way out of here."
Shang Xie Shaoqing and Du Wei also attacked these Chi Long iron puppets without stopping, not daring to hold back.
Other cultivators attacked while dodging, suffering greatly from the pursuit of the Chi Long iron puppets. With a slight mistake, they would be ripped apart. In just a moment, several more cultivators were trampled to death, while others were swallowed into the hollow bellies of the Chi Long iron puppets.
"An exit, where is the exit?"
Su Luo finally started to panic. Trapped in the palace with so many Chi Long iron puppets, even if she wanted to escape, the entrance was surrounded by a pack of Chi Long iron puppets, over ten of them, making it impossible to get out!
Tang Xiaoguo stood beside Su Luo, her little face pale with fright.
"I'm not afraid of you, not afraid..." Her hands and feet felt cold with nervousness, but she clenched her fists and struck a fighting pose, resolutely guarding Su Luo. If any Chi Long iron puppet charged forward, she would fight them to the death.
Su Luo quickly used the Divine Eye Mirror to examine the details of the entire palace.
It turned out this was the study of the Great Emperor Haotian. The densely packed explanatory texts made Su Luo dizzy.
Not only did she have to dodge the siege of the Chi Long iron puppets, but she was also disturbed by the madly rushing cultivators. She was so anxious that a layer of sweat beaded on her forehead.
Quickly!
Find it quickly...
Suddenly, Su Luo's eyes fixed on something.
Comparing it with the text displayed on the Divine Eye Mirror, Su Luo looked at a five-foot-square black floor tile in the center of the hall, then quickly glanced at the wall behind her, which was carved with countless mysterious and intricate patterns, seemingly as decoration.
"It's actually here!"
As expected of the Great Emperor Haotian, to devise such a bizarre mechanism.
Even though this was his own study, he had installed a super killing weapon that could destroy cities and states – the 'Dragon Fiend'! The reason for this, Su Luo didn't have time to examine closely. It was likely built to guard against sneak attacks, as the Great Emperor Haotian had too many enemies.
Su Luo quickly scanned her surroundings. Seeing an opportunity, she quickly channeled spiritual energy into the mysterious patterns on the wall behind her.
Instantly, a bright light coursed through the entire pattern.