"Alright, stop being so touched. We've finished paying respects to our ancestors. Shouldn't we leave this rather gloomy place first?"
"Brother Ye, I still wanted to say a few more words to our ancestors. It seems you're a bit scared of this place, so I won't say any more. Let's leave first."
It wasn't just Ye Tiancheng who doted on Hou Mingzhu; Hou Mingzhu was also very obedient to Ye Tiancheng and genuinely cared for him.
"Okay, I'll take you out of here then."
Ye Tiancheng couldn't openly search for the fragments of the Fuxi Qin in front of Hou Mingzhu, so he could only have her leave first.
His current plan was to send Hou Mingzhu away and then sneak back alone.
After they agreed, they left. Ye Tiancheng said he felt a bit stuffy and wanted to go out for some fresh air, so he asked Hou Mingzhu to stay home and play on her phone. Hou Mingzhu readily agreed, also reminding Ye Tiancheng not to overthink things and to just go for a walk if he felt unhappy.
Ye Tiancheng wasn't out for a casual stroll. Instead, he followed the path Hou Mingzhu had revealed earlier and returned to the Hou family ancestral hall.
This time, upon arriving at the Hou family ancestral hall, Ye Tiancheng began to search frantically. With no one else around, Ye Tiancheng could search for what he wanted without restraint.
He wondered where the fragments of the Fuxi Qin might be hidden. Ye Tiancheng was very curious, assuming it must be in an extremely concealed location.
Ye Tiancheng searched everywhere he could think of. Perhaps it was due to the dim lighting in the ancestral hall, but he found no clues at all, making Ye Tiancheng feel despair.
Just then, as Ye Tiancheng accidentally stepped backward, he felt like he had stepped on something.
Ye Tiancheng crouched down to examine it carefully and discovered that the dust in one area seemed less than elsewhere, suggesting some unspeakable secret.
Ye Tiancheng tapped it and found it was hollow underneath. He then carefully took out his dagger and pried up the wooden board, quickly discovering a mechanism beneath the wooden plank, and a cleverly designed one at that.
Although Ye Tiancheng was quite capable, he lacked experience in disarming such mechanisms and had no idea how to proceed. Therefore, he had to swallow his pride and ask for help.
"Stinky Stone, Big Green Snake, you two are usually the most talkative. Why aren't you coming out now to tell me how to disarm this mechanism? You're all so quiet."
"This mechanism should be quite easy to solve, but I don't understand it either. Ask Big Green Snake. That stinky snake should know."
Nuwa Stone promptly shifted the responsibility to Big Green Snake. Big Green Snake was naturally confused and felt innocent.
"I don't know either. Why don't you use your true qi, Ye Tiancheng? Your true qi is very strong now. It should be able to solve most problems. You don't need to use your brain and hands; just solve it directly."
These two fellows said what amounted to nothing. No matter how Ye Tiancheng asked, they wouldn't answer, which greatly angered Ye Tiancheng. It seemed he had to rely on himself to solve it.
Ye Tiancheng sat cross-legged on the ground and used his true qi, trying to unlock the mechanism. However, not only did it fail to unlock, but it caused the entire ancestral hall to tremble, as if a very powerful force within was resisting Ye Tiancheng's true qi.
"It seems the owner of this Fuxi Qin fragment has some ability, daring to resist me. In that case, I won't be polite either. Let's just go all out."
Ye Tiancheng mobilized his true qi again, with Big Green Snake and the Divine Stone acting as his guardians. With a click, the intricate mechanism was opened.
Then, the two Fuxi Qin fragments on Ye Tiancheng began to vibrate wildly. They must have sensed another fragment beneath the mechanism. Ye Tiancheng was overjoyed.
"You good fellow, you can't escape my grasp. If I want to get you, you can't run away."
After Ye Tiancheng spoke, he descended into the underground secret chamber from where the mechanism had been opened. The chamber was dim. At this moment, Nuwa Stone began to glow, appearing as if the light was emanating from Ye Tiancheng himself, instantly illuminating the entire dark chamber.
"Stinky Stone, you're reliable in critical moments. When did you learn this skill? I never knew you had a flashlight function before."
"Don't look down on me, Ye Tiancheng. You're constantly getting stronger, don't I get to learn? I'm also very powerful, you know?"
Nuwa Stone suddenly became conceited because of its flashlight function. Ye Tiancheng dared not say more, lest Nuwa Stone become even more arrogant. It was better to leave it some room for improvement.
Now that his eyes could see clearly, Ye Tiancheng could follow the path ahead. It seemed no one had been here for a long time, and the dust was thick. Ye Tiancheng quickly took out a cloth and covered his nose and mouth. Not only could he not breathe properly, but his eyes were also watering from the dust.
As Ye Tiancheng walked, the space suddenly opened up considerably, and a large iron gate appeared. This iron gate was clearly the only way to the next mechanism.
Ye Tiancheng approached the large iron gate and saw the inscription on the mechanism, which contained characters Ye Tiancheng didn't recognize. They were likely from ancient times.
"This became an ancestral hall later. Who knows what it was before? It seems there are some unspeakable secrets hidden here."
There was a mechanism on this large iron gate, but asking Ye Tiancheng to use his brain was less effective than using brute force. Ye Tiancheng's solution to mechanisms was rather simple: directly break through the large iron gate with his true qi.
Of course, this method had always worked. With a loud bang, a man-sized hole appeared in the middle of the large iron gate.
"Ye Tiancheng, you are truly formidable. I don't need walls to support me; I only admire you. You've been breaking through violently all the way. Your true qi's power is even greater than a bomb. Even with the most potent explosives, you might not be able to blow open this large iron gate, but you succeeded."
"If there were such effective explosives, that would be fine. The problem is I don't have any explosives, so I can only rely on strength. I'm also very tired."
After the man-sized hole appeared in the large iron gate, Ye Tiancheng didn't hesitate and walked into the hole. Ahead, he heard the sound of dripping water, and the path became narrower, not even wide enough for two people to pass. It was likely only for one person.
"What kind of place is this? It's so slimy and sticky."
Ye Tiancheng couldn't help but complain because there was a babbling stream at his feet. In the stream, there were also some unidentifiable creatures, similar to frogs but more disgusting. This was because a frog wouldn't have more than a dozen legs, which made one's scalp tingle.
"This indicates that the water is abnormal. Ye Tiancheng, be careful. This water can mutate animals. If a person comes into contact with it, they might also be poisoned."
"Do you think I'm an idiot? Of course, I know. I've been using my true qi to isolate myself from this water. Otherwise, my legs would probably have been corroded. How malicious was the person who designed this ancestral hall to do something like this? It's as if they didn't want anyone to reach the center of the ancestral hall intact."
Ye Tiancheng now realized that the true mechanisms were never on the surface but were hidden, causing one to suffer silently. This was the brilliance of these mechanism designers.
As Ye Tiancheng walked, he tried his best to avoid the disgusting creatures in the water. It was truly unbearable.
The eyes of those frogs seemed to be bulging out. Just looking at them for a moment felt like losing several years of life. The scene was too revolting.
"Ye Tiancheng, be careful. Do you hear anything?"
Ye Tiancheng had been distracted by the unidentified creatures in the water. With Big Green Snake's reminder, he closed his eyes and listened carefully. Indeed, there were some rustling sounds. Although not loud, they seemed numerous, and the sounds were growing louder, as if a swarm of attackers was rapidly approaching them.
"What the heck? Big Green Snake, quickly sense what those are. I feel like they're reptiles. I'm really traumatized by things with too many legs right now. Can you help me eliminate these attackers? I don't want to see those disgusting things anymore. My eyes are going to get infected."
"I'll try my best, but I've already eliminated the first wave of these guys, and they're still coming in endless supply. It's really troublesome. How can they be killed? If I hadn't intervened, those big worms would have probably crawled onto you."
Just as Big Green Snake finished speaking, Ye Tiancheng felt something on his shoulder. He turned his head and saw the corpse of a dead insect. Ye Tiancheng's hair stood on end instantly.
This insect corpse appeared suddenly and fell onto his shoulder from above. Ye Tiancheng felt a chill. Big Green Snake seemed to be telling the truth. It had already acted, otherwise, where would this insect corpse have come from? It must have been killed by Big Green Snake.
"Let's speed up and move forward quickly. I really can't stand this place anymore. It's either monsters or insects. How perverse was the designer of this Hou family ancestral hall to constantly come up with disgusting things that are simply not presentable."
"Let's quicken our pace. Big Green Snake and I will protect you. Those insects should not be able to approach you for now."
Ye Tiancheng quickened his pace, but he felt like there was always something under his feet, making him walk with a sinking step. However, he didn't have time to look. When he finally crossed the narrow waterway and looked back, he realized that what he had been stepping on were all skulls.
Those skulls were already quite dilapidated, indicating a high degree of decomposition. The water had some corrosive properties, and the insects had eaten all the flesh, leaving only some scattered bones.
No wonder Ye Tiancheng had smelled a foul odor as he walked. This foul odor must have come from these bones. It was truly disgusting.
It seemed that many people who had come to the Hou family ancestral hall before had died here. This ancestral hall not only enshrined the ancestors of the Hou family but also a large number of lonely souls and wild ghosts who could not fulfill their wishes.
No wonder Ye Tiancheng could hear some wailing sounds. These wails must have come from those who had died tragically here, including some cultivators.
Those cultivators were probably here for the Fuxi Qin fragments. This fragment might not be a good thing for the Hou family; instead, it might make them a target.
No wonder the Hou family was such a prosperous clan, yet only Hou Mingzhu's family was truly wealthy. The others were in the village. It was likely that anyone with some ability had been wiped out.
At the end of the narrow waterway was another large iron gate. Without a word, Ye Tiancheng used his true qi to break through the large iron gate.
Having endured so much disgust this time, Ye Tiancheng had accumulated a lot of resentment. When he broke open the large iron gate, he used even more true qi. Previously, only a man-high hole had appeared, but this time was different. Ye Tiancheng was furious and directly shattered the large iron gate.
"Ye Tiancheng, this Hou family ancestral hall is completely ruined because of you. Before, after the door was broken, the mechanism would open and close again. At least now, after encountering you, all of that is gone. It's estimated that anyone who comes later will be able to pass through unimpeded."
"It's probably fine for anyone who comes later. After I take the Fuxi Qin fragments, there won't be anything particularly valuable left in the Hou family ancestral hall. In the future, only the descendants of the Hou family will come to pay respects; others probably won't."