By rights, the ultimate stone door should require certain conditions to open.
For instance, the Ghost Jade Seal.
But now...
The next moment, Zhang Tian froze when he saw what Zhang Qilin held in his hand.
Wasn't that the Qilin Stepping on Ghosts Jade Seal?
"It seems he was prepared in advance."
Zhang Tian murmured, his surprise gradually fading.
The stone door opened, revealing another door.
This was a bronze door.
There were many carvings on it. Zhang Qilin didn't hesitate; the Ghost Jade Seal landed directly on the door. As the seal fell,
A terrifying force began to gather on the bronze door.
The wails of malevolent ghosts and countless tragic sounds emanated.
The Ghost Jade Seal was actually summoning minor ghosts to push open the door!
As more and more black shadows appeared, the bronze door began to shake.
"Boss, isn't that the jade seal we found before? We used it in the Jingjue Ancient City, why is it still effective?"
Fatty exclaimed, looking at the scene before him.
"That one isn't a single-use item; it can be reused for a long time."
Zhang Tian rolled his eyes at Fatty.
At this moment, the bronze door was slowly being pushed open.
A dense aura seeped out from behind the stone door.
That aura was potent.
Even with Zhang Tian's current strength, his heart pounded upon sensing it.
It felt like lying in a coffin, buried underground. You're alive, yet you can't resist.
The bronze door slowly opened.
Simultaneously, a dark figure appeared before Zhang Tian.
"Look, what is that."
Shirley Yang said.
She pointed to a shadowy figure to the side.
As the figure became clearer, Zhang Tian's eyes widened.
The shadow gradually took on the appearance of an old woman.
The old woman sat on a rock, her legs crossed. Her entire body was as slender as firewood.
Her face was so thin that only bones remained.
The oppressive aura emanating from the old figure made it difficult for Zhang Tian to breathe.
"That... couldn't be the Queen Mother of the West, could it?"
Hu Bayi spoke.
Everyone stared at the unfolding scene in shock.
Zhang Tian and the others stood frozen, their gazes fixed on the woman before them, their thoughts unreadable.
After a long while, Zhang Tian was the first to react.
"This is bad. If she's here, then who was in the main hall?"
"Miss Yang, if your prophecy was that we would die in the main hall, then what is happening here?"
"Has the future changed?"
Zhang Tian's heart sank. For some reason, the prickly Zhang Tian had a bad feeling.
Shirley Yang was also bewildered.
How could she be here?
Or was the one outside merely a clone?
Countless questions arose in her mind.
Suddenly, Hu Bayi seemed to recall something and spoke.
"The first time we discovered a symbiotic system was on a small turtle, wasn't it?"
"The symbiotic system of the small turtle was two things united to achieve eternal life."
"So if the Queen Mother of the West followed this logic, she must have united her本体 (běntǐ - main body) with something to achieve it."
As Hu Bayi spoke, Zhang Tian understood his meaning.
The logic was simple: Hu Bayi suspected that what Shirley Yang had predicted might have only been a clone.
And this was the main body.
The main body was hidden here, allowing the clone to go out, which in a way achieved eternal life.
But if a connection was needed, with whom would the Queen Mother of the West link?
Despite having questions, it was clearly not the time to ponder them.
The bronze door, once opened, showed no signs of closing.
Unless a specific person entered to close it, it seemed others couldn't.
Zhang Qilin looked at the scene, countless memories flooding his mind.
A subtle glow appeared in his eyes.
His footsteps seemed to become quieter.
"Boss, what's wrong with Second Brother?"
Fatty asked, his concern evident as he watched Zhang Qilin.
Zhang Tian also frowned slightly.
Based on the situation, Zhang Tian guessed that Zhang Qilin had likely regained his memories.
But he wasn't sure to what extent.
Zhang Qilin slowly walked towards the door.
"Do we go in?"
Shirley Yang asked Zhang Tian.
Zhang Tian took a deep breath.
"The heart of the formation is inside. Without entering, it will be difficult to break the Kunlun formation."
"But going in is too dangerous."
Zhang Tian murmured, caught in a dilemma.
If they didn't go in, it would be hard to escape Kunlun.
But if they did, he wasn't sure if he could handle the old woman inside.
If the old woman had no offensive capabilities, Zhang Tian would have gone straight past her.
But clearly, that was impossible. The old woman was likely an older version of the Queen Mother of the West.
Therefore, the possibility of her being dangerous was quite high.
"Boss, how about we just take the surrounding items and leave?"
Fatty suggested.
Zhang Tian considered it. It wasn't a bad idea, but how would they get out of this cave?
Outside, there was a stone statue formation. Given the meticulousness here, that formation was likely formidable.
"My prophecy said we wouldn't die. Maybe we should try it."
Shirley Yang said softly from the side.
Zhang Tian's gaze fell on Zhang Qilin behind the bronze door.
Zhang Qilin slowly turned around.
His eyes met Zhang Tian's.
It was unclear what emotion flickered in his gaze.
However, Zhang Tian seemed to catch a hint of reluctance.
"Boom, boom."
The bronze door began to close.
Zhang Tian's heart sank.
He understood!
Zhang Qilin had regained his memories and knew that he was the guardian here and could not leave.
Unless someone else took his place. According to the agreement, the Wu family should have taken over, but Wu Tianzhen was currently in Zhang Tian's spatial dimension.
Zhang Qilin was likely planning to sacrifice himself for the safety of Zhang Tian and the others.
"Damn it, Qilin, can you stop being so selfish?"
Zhang Tian shouted. He no longer hesitated and charged in with his companions.
"We're brothers. If I go back and you don't, Mom will scold me."
Zhang Tian cursed, already rushing inside.
Fatty and Hu Bayi, seeing this, didn't hesitate and followed Zhang Tian.
"Second Brother, you're too wicked, planning to abandon your most beloved Fatty. Fatty is heartbroken."
Fatty yelled as he entered the bronze door.
The four entered one after another.
Upon entering, a strange sensation washed over them.
Inside the bronze door was like a world of the underworld.
The entire space was filled with a chilling coldness.
It felt as if they had fallen into an ice cave.
"The yin energy here is so heavy..."
Hu Bayi remarked.
No wonder Little Brother liked to stay in places with heavy yin energy and always wore a hat; he was accustomed to being in such environments.
He would feel uncomfortable seeing the sun.
It was like Zhao Wuyan in the Legend of Sword and Fairy, accustomed to communicating with ghosts, he couldn't communicate with people.
It was pitch black all around, and Zhang Tian couldn't see Zhang Qilin's figure.
However, based on Zhang Tian's sense, Zhang Qilin was standing right in front of him!