The entrance to the underground cave is dozens of meters high, easily accommodating a large aircraft.
The descending steps are also exceptionally wide, each one three meters across.
This entrance seems made for a giant over twenty meters tall.
Moreover, the cave appeared before everyone without any warning. The scene was quite shocking.
Even Wang Hong'en, who was prepared, was momentarily stunned, but soon his eyes revealed a look of ecstasy.
He couldn't wait to say, "This must be an ancient civilization ruins, let's go in and take a look."
However, Xu Yin hesitated, "I don't know if there's any danger inside. It feels too unsafe to rush in."
"Let's use a small drone to scout the environment first."
Wang Hong'en was well-prepared; he took out several palm-sized dual-wing drones to probe and scan the internal environment of the underground passage.
The drones quickly scanned all the images and data, which were relayed back in real-time. With artificial intelligence programming, they operated completely autonomously.
"Temperature is 24 degrees, normal air content, normal humidity, no harmful substances detected, no abnormal energy radiation..."
The data scanned by the drones indicated the environment was very suitable for human habitation.
On the virtual display, the images captured by the drones could be seen clearly.
The underground passage stretched for over a dozen kilometers, entirely flat and clean, with no visible dangers.
The end of the passage was a strangely styled grand palace. Inside was empty, except for a high platform in the middle.
Xu Yin breathed a sigh of relief. The inside of these ruins was very simple, without any dangers.
She then turned to excitement; any ancient ruins held significant value.
Just this discovery alone could spawn dozens of research papers.
The group of students were too excited to think about all this. The underground palace before them was beyond their imagination.
Young people are always full of vibrant curiosity.
Even Yun Qingshang showed a face full of inquiry.
Wang Hong'en was very satisfied with everyone's reaction. Controlling his excitement, he said in a low voice, "There's no danger. Let's go in and take a look together."
With Wang Hong'en's words, the impatient students dashed into the cave first.
Gao Xuan followed behind Wang Hong'en with a cheerful expression, keeping a suitable distance.
He wasn't sure where the danger inside might be; in any case, staying close to Wang Hong'en would make it easier to handle should there be any troubles.
Yun Qingshang naturally had to follow closely behind Gao Xuan.
Wei Zhenzhen wanted to rush in to see the excitement but found herself more interested in Gao Xuan.
Compared to the mysterious underground palace, the exceptionally handsome Brother Xuan was more attractive.
Embarrassed to follow Gao Xuan by herself, Wei Zhenzhen pulled Xu Yin along.
Xu Yin was especially interested in the underground palace but felt she shouldn't appear too eager.
After all, the underground palace wasn't going anywhere, so she didn't need to rush.
Wang Hong'en remained silent, not speaking the whole way. His eyes gleamed with unclear thoughts.
Gao Xuan was quite curious about what Wang Hong'en intended to do.
The palace was empty, and the Celestial Dragon Eye was evidently not here.
Gao Xuan really wanted to snatch whatever Wang Hong'en was holding, but since he knew nothing about it, there was no guarantee he could use it effectively.
Marvels were all strange, mysterious things that couldn't be speculated with common logic.
Just like the Godslaying Sword—without knowing its taboo, it couldn't be controlled.
Gao Xuan decided to wait.
No matter how cunning Wang Hong'en was, he would never expect someone to be waiting here in advance.
As the sparrow hiding behind, Gao Xuan didn't need to hurry.
The underground passage was over ten kilometers long, taking Wang Hong'en and the others half an hour to traverse.
By the time they arrived, the students were already there. They had placed lights around, illuminating the grand hall completely.
The great hall was constructed with enormous stones, the style primitive yet magnificent.
The dome of the hall was as high as two hundred meters, making people standing inside seem particularly small. The stone platform in the center was carved from a single massive rock.
Around the stone platform, many images were etched; the lines were simple and rough. But it was apparent that the scenes depicted battles.
A group of giant beings wielding weapons battled variously shaped monsters. In the end, the giants emerged victorious.
Xu Yin was particularly interested in these images, recording them with her smartwatch while examining them closely.
Wang Hong'en circled the stone platform halfway, coming to a spot with his back to Xu Yin. He pressed the Dragon Tooth Key onto the platform and quickly chanted a few incantations in strange phonetics.
He had studied the Dragon Tooth Key for nearly twenty years and had understood it thoroughly.
The simple incantation was actually designed to activate the sacrificial altar.
Indeed, this platform was used by the ancient and wise Dragon Race to sacrifice prisoners of war.
To obtain the treasures left by the Dragon Race, one must first sacrifice flesh and blood, especially pure young boys and girls.
Wang Hong'en insisted on leading the group in because he had eyes on these young students.
After the Dragon Tooth Key resonated with the sacrificial altar, the enormous altar swiftly sank.
The entire process was accompanied by tremendous rumbling sounds, causing the whole hall to tremble.
The sudden change shocked everyone.
A group of students looked terrified, not knowing how to respond.
Xu Yin was also startled; if the palace collapsed, they would have no chance of survival.
The underground passage stretches for more than ten kilometers, and there's no time to run now.
Fortunately, the rumbling stopped quickly. The high platform disappeared, and the place turned into a large deep pit. It looked at least tens of meters deep.
The group leaned over to look into the pit, wanting to see what was inside.
Wang Hong'en quietly took out a piece of Dragon Soul Vine from his pocket, lit it with a lighter, and threw it on the ground.
The Dragon Soul Vine emitted a spicy aroma, somewhat like fried chili peppers, with an extremely pungent smell.
Because the air in the hall was clean, everyone had long since taken off their filter masks.
The sudden spicy aroma made the group cough violently.
Gao Xuan saw everything clearly from the side; it was Wang Hong'en who was causing trouble.
Xu Yin also saw it, and she asked in amazement, "Cough cough, Professor Wang, what are you doing?"
"This is Cornelian Cherry used in ancient times for warding off evil and blessing rituals. I saw records of such ceremonies, so I thought I'd try it."
Wang Hong'en answered casually, very calm and composed.
Xu Yin didn't think too much of it but felt that Wang Hong'en doing this without a word was a bit careless.
Gao Xuan, however, sensed something was wrong. The Six-winged Celestial Cicada in his mental space had already started to vibrate its wings loudly, warning him that great danger was imminent.
Gao Xuan could still leave now, but he wasn't willing to leave just like that.
He whispered to Yun Qingshang, "Take him down."
Yun Qingshang understood and immediately channeled her power to rush towards Wang Hong'en.
With the blessing of the Crimson Heart, Yun Qingshang was confident she could capture Wang Hong'en within three moves. If she wanted to kill him, one move would suffice.
Although Wang Hong'en had Fifth-Level Source Power, his combat experience was obviously lacking.
Yun Qingshang was extremely fast; in a blink, she was already in front of Wang Hong'en.
Wang Hong'en was horrified. Not only was Yun Qingshang fast, but her simple palm blade strike also carried an aura of piercing through everything.
Especially with Yun Qingshang's thick and pure Source Power surging within her, it was actually twofold stronger than his.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Wang Hong'en would never have believed Yun Qingshang was so formidable at such a young age. He, with little combat experience, was somewhat panicked facing Yun Qingshang's fierce attacks.
The surrounding people were also shocked, not understanding why Yun Qingshang was attacking Wang Hong'en.
Xu Yin was still loudly stopping her: "Stop!"
Yun Qingshang didn't care what Xu Yin shouted, she only listened to Gao Xuan.
Wang Hong'en, after all, was a person who does big things; he calmed down in the crisis. He knew he couldn't retreat any further and steadied his footing, setting up a cross boxing formation.
He had practiced boxing for years, refining this defensive stance to perfection. Facing Yun Qingshang's palm blade, he naturally used the various changes of the boxing stance.
Wang Hong'en found his rhythm, his fist technique becoming more composed and skillful.
Yun Qingshang was a bit surprised that such a move would lead to a tangled situation, making it difficult to take Wang Hong'en down in a short time.
She didn't care to hide her martial arts anymore, her suddenly thrust palm blade twisted like a snake, slipping through the gaps in Wang Hong'en's boxing stance.
This Snake Palm Saber was exquisitely ingenious and mysterious. Wang Hong'en could only watch as it entered, unable to dodge, and was directly poked in the chest by Yun Qingshang's fingertips.
Yun Qingshang feared piercing Wang Hong'en to death, so she withdrew half of her power. But she immediately realized something was wrong; the spot she poked was tough and thick, definitely not the human body.
"He's wearing armor too."
Yun Qingshang immediately changed her thrust to a grab, her five fingers like hooks tearing violently.
With a ripping sound, Wang Hong'en's climbing clothes were torn open, revealing the blue-gray Protective Armor inside.
This Protective Armor was enough to resist small-caliber pistols, Yun Qingshang's palm blade had no effect on him.
Yun Qingshang was not discouraged by missing a move; she continued her assault without hesitation.
Although Wang Hong'en had Protective Armor, his combat skills were far inferior to Yun Qingshang. He could only guard his head while continuously retreating.
Yun Qingshang's attacks felt like a swift and raging storm, giving Wang Hong'en no respite and beating him into a desperate state.
The students around were baffled; they didn't know why Yun Qingshang was fighting Wang Hong'en.
Yun Qingshang's swift and fierce attacks frightened them. No one dared to intervene, much less help Wang Hong'en.
Xu Yin watched as Wang Hong'en was about to be beaten to death. Gritting her teeth, she was about to step in to help but was caught by Gao Xuan.
"Wang Hong'en is not a good person."
Xu Yin was stunned, "No matter what Wang Hong'en is like, you can't just attack him!"
Xu Yin was about to break free from Gao Xuan when a huge roar suddenly came from the deep pit.
The roar was like rolling thunder, like the raging sea, its force was majestic and grand, its power was mighty and surging, shaking one's spirit intensely, making it hard to remain calm.
Gao Xuan sensed the danger a step ahead, reaching out to grab Wei Zhenzhen beside him.
The Six-winged Celestial Cicada's wings vibrated at high speed, creating a high-frequency, silent mental tremor that formed an invisible shield, enveloping him, Xu Yin, and Wei Zhenzhen.
As the roar passed, the invisible shield fluctuated but barely held without breaking.
Even the weakest in cultivation, Wei Zhenzhen, was unharmed.
The others in the hall weren't so lucky; they bled from the seven orifices, falling to the ground instantly.