"It might be a fever, it's nothing serious," Professor Li mumbled.
"Professor Li, are you alright? The flu is really bad these days. You haven't caught it, have you?" Xiao Guang asked, concerned.
Professor Li shot him a glare. He felt rather embarrassed, caught red-handed trying to sneakily learn some knowledge.
"I'm fine, fine, continue, you guys," Professor Li waved his hand, forcing a dry laugh.
Zhang Tian ignored Professor Li and focused his gaze on the layout before him. Besides the eight star pillars surrounding them, there was a massive stone door at the front of the palace. Two statues were carved onto the stone door, seemingly guardian deities.
Zhang Tian frowned slightly. He wondered if King Xian was like Huang Shuliang, one building the underworld and the other building the heavenly court? Eight star pillars, the Gate of Heaven, guarded by door gods at the entrance – wasn't this precisely the path to the heavens?
"Boss, the carvings on this door should be Tianji Xing and Tianqi Xing Shen from the constellations. This entire tomb seems to correspond to a vast star chart," Hu Bayi commented, looking at the carvings.
Zhang Tian gazed at the large door, his mind racing. He speculated that this King Xian had used celestial deities as door gods instead of the well-known Wei Chigong and Qin Qiong. The latter pair became popular door gods after the Yuan Dynasty, while the earliest recorded door god was named Qingcheng, now largely forgotten.
"How do we open this door?" Fatty asked curiously, looking at the nearly five-meter-high entrance. Professor Li and the others waited quietly for Zhang Tian's answer.
Zhang Qilin's gaze swept across the heavenly palace and the eight stone pillars, finally settling on one of them. "There's a mechanism here," Zhang Qilin said slowly.
Following his words, Zhang Tian's attention shifted to the stone pillar. "To open the door, we naturally have to break the formation," Zhang Tian stated. "These eight stone pillars are the only way to break it."
Hu Bayi had already approached a stone pillar. He took out his compass and made some calculations. "This position is where the 'Lonely Star' is located, and opposite it is the 'Heavenly Auspicious Star.' We just need to move the stone pillars to their corresponding positions," Hu Bayi explained.
He then began searching for the mechanisms on each stone pillar. The pillars were a towering six to seven meters high, making them incredibly difficult to move.
"Xiao Guang, quickly record all of this. These are all directions for our future research," Professor Li whispered. Xiao Guang, without hesitation, began taking notes with his pen. Zhang Tian, hearing this, did not intervene. What was the point of recording it? Without guidance or specific texts, truly understanding the intricacies would be nearly impossible. This was why Zhang Tian didn't stop them; even if they stole knowledge, they wouldn't be able to comprehend it.
As Hu Bayi found the corresponding mechanisms one by one, the stone pillars began to change their positions as he rotated them. With the realignment of the pillars, the tomb door itself started to tremble.
"This is a mechanism? But how did they achieve it?" Professor Li exclaimed, marveling at the moving stone pillars. He knew that these pillars not only represented mechanisms but also served as the load-bearing structure for the entire tomb. Such load-bearing columns should not be moved; doing so would cause the entire structure to collapse. Yet, here they were, not only movable but also not causing the tomb to crumble. This unique design left Professor Li in awe.
"There must be a conveyor belt within the wall above. As the mechanism is activated, the conveyor belt engages, so even if the pillars change position, the load-bearing area remains constant," Shirley Yang suggested, having quickly grasped the principle behind the mechanism.
"As expected of Comrade Yang, your knowledge is vast. I'm truly impressed," Professor Li said humbly. Shirley Yang smiled faintly and said no more.
As the stone pillars shifted, the massive stone door slowly began to open. A beam of golden light then emerged from the gap in the door, bathing everyone's faces in a serene glow.
"What is this light? I feel like my pneumonia has been cured," Professor Li exclaimed.
Zhang Tian also basked in the golden light, feeling it could be absorbed and was far more refined than the energy obtained during normal cultivation. His dan tian pulsed with joy.
[Light: Pure Spiritual Energy!]
[Light Ability: Easily absorbed by cultivators, several times faster than ordinary cultivation!]
[Light Description: Pure spiritual energy produced by a certain item!]
"This is spiritual energy!" Zhang Tian gasped inwardly, nearly shouting out loud. Normally, cultivators would absorb ambient energy for their use, also called spiritual energy. But that energy was incomparable to this. It was like comparing heaven and earth. Zhang Tian felt that each breath was a validation of his cultivation.
"Ah~ so comfortable~ so comfortable~" Fatty moaned beside him. Hu Bayi and the others also showed expressions of relief. Even Zhang Qilin, typically impassive, seemed to have a hint of warmth on his cold face beneath his black robe. The aura was intoxicating.
"This must be the aura produced by the 'Phoenix Gall,' the Yuan Chen Bead. I didn't expect that thing to have such an effect, cleansing evil energy?" Zhang Tian mused, his anticipation for the Yuan Chen Bead growing.
At the same time, a weight settled in Zhang Tian's heart. If the Yuan Chen Bead possessed such a potent effect, it meant King Xian was far from a saint. If this aura could even slightly affect him with his current cultivation, what would King Xian have become after years of being nourished by it? Would his cultivation have soared? And why, as Zhang Qilin and he had sensed corpse energy earlier, could they no longer feel it here? Had this light covered it up? The more Zhang Tian thought, the heavier his heart became. This King Xian's tomb was far more complex than he had imagined. It was only natural, with the Yuan Chen Bead, which pierced through the ghost lamp, being present.
Soon, everyone seemed to adapt to the golden light and recovered.
"Comrade Zhang, what is this light?" Professor Li asked excitedly. "It actually cured my years-long pneumonia." Spiritual energy could aid cultivation and naturally heal injuries. For ordinary people, it was even better than a divine elixir.
"You can think of it as pure air, ten thousand times better than the air down the mountain," Zhang Tian explained using the most accessible analogy. Professor Li looked a bit confused but nodded slowly.
"Boss, should we go in now? Fatty feels so comfortable," Fatty said eagerly. Zhang Tian noticed that the wooden pendant on Fatty's chest was frantically absorbing the surrounding energy. Clearly, the Princess also favored this aura.
"Wait, if even a small space can absorb this energy, why can't I swap the energy in my world for this pure spiritual energy?" Zhang Tian suddenly had an idea, his eyes brightening. It was a waste for this energy to simply remain here; it might as well be put to his own use. A slight smile crept onto Zhang Tian's lips. His illusory space would become a sacred land for cultivation. However, the one thing that frustrated Zhang Tian was that old scoundrel in his space!