Chapter 864: Coffin

Bi Linglong's face was pale, but she clung tightly to her sword. The emperor had always been an invincible figure in her mind, and she had never dared to entertain thoughts of resistance. However, spending time with Zu An and being influenced by him, she gradually realized that the emperor wasn't as terrifying as she had imagined. He could get angry, fly into a rage yet be powerless, and even get injured and bleed.

It was only then that she fully grasped that the emperor was, after all, just a man. She wondered how Zu An would react to him, though she was certain he wouldn't be afraid.

Zu An, standing nearby, didn't disappoint her. Holding the Tai'a Sword, he seemed eager for a fight. "You're heavily injured yourself now," he challenged, "Your condition is probably less than half of your usual strength, isn't it?"

Zhao Ruizhi snorted. "Impressive courage," he scoffed, "But even with half my strength, killing you would be effortless." Just then, his brow furrowed. "Who is that woman in red behind you?" he asked. "Is she a fairy from this immortal palace?"

He had initially been disappointed, believing this was merely a human emperor's palace, but the moment he saw Mi Li, his resolve wavered. Her exquisite beauty and noble demeanor, especially the disdainful gaze in her eyes that viewed all living beings as insignificant, perfectly appealed to him. His eyes suddenly gleamed with fervor; *this* was the woman most fit to be his empress. Regardless of whether she was an immortal, he was determined to possess her.

At that moment, Mi Li let out a soft laugh. "Fine," she said, "Given your flattering words, I'll spare your life for today." With that, she reached out and twisted a dragon head on the nearby throne. The ground suddenly opened, and the three of them plummeted down.

Zhao Ruizhi was startled. He instantly darted forward, but the floor had already sealed itself shut. He swiftly struck downwards with his palm. With his power, not even a mountain, let alone a mere floor, could withstand his full force. Alas, as his palm connected, the floor shimmered with light. He distinctly felt his power being dispersed by the floor, spreading outwards, and the entire palace began to hum.

"Oh?" He instantly realized that the palace had been integrated into a single entity through various runic formations, making it almost impossible to break the mechanism by brute force. He also grew wary. This was no ordinary palace; otherwise, even if it were integrated, he could easily destroy it. Yet, his recent strike hadn't left so much as a dent.

He mimicked Mi Li's earlier action, fiddling with the dragon head on the chair, but to no avail. His expression darkened. He waved his sleeve, motioning for He Li and the others to scour the area for mechanisms, insisting they find Zu An.

What worried him more was something else entirely: the beautiful woman in red possessed a strange aura that was utterly unlike a living person. Could she truly be from this immortal palace? If Zu An had gained her approval and found the elixir of immortality before him, it would be disastrous. Although he rationally concluded that the chances of finding the elixir of immortality here were slim, he couldn't allow anyone else, no matter how small the probability, to obtain eternal life.

While they frantically searched for mechanisms, Zu An and the others slid down a long, secret passage, emerging into an entirely new room. Mi Li walked to a wall and twisted something resembling a lamp fixture, and the room instantly illuminated.

"You were all talk just now, so boastful," Zu An couldn't help but quip, "but then you fled in an instant. That's quite a blow to your reputation."

Mi Li replied softly, "Wasn't it for your own good? Though he is heavily injured, he's certainly not someone you can handle. And while I could defeat him right now, it would deplete too much of my soul power. If we truly fought, the Xiangfei Red Tear poison that I've painstakingly suppressed would likely flare up again. So why bother fighting him?"

Bi Linglong's eyes widened in astonishment. From Mi Li's tone, it sounded as though she could defeat the emperor, but was simply unwilling to act due to the immense cost. Could she truly be that powerful?

"Haha, master, you are truly wise!" Zu An exclaimed. "Hey, are these luminous pearls?" He eyed the softly glowing orbs embedded in the wall with a hint of covetousness, reaching out to pry one loose, but Mi Li gently slapped his hand away.

"In a semi-enclosed space like this, using lamp oil or similar illuminants would be impractical. Luminous pearls are naturally superior," Mi Li explained, walking slowly forward.

Zu An quickly followed. "You're so familiar with all the mechanisms here?" he asked. Bi Linglong also stared at her, utterly stunned. This woman was indeed from ancient times; could she have originated from this very place? She had so many questions, but it wasn't the right moment to ask. She could only follow silently beside Zu An, feeling an inexplicable sense of security whenever he was near.

Mi Li replied calmly, "As I told you before, the layout here is almost identical to that of the Qin Imperial Palace. The First Emperor, to guard against assassins and rebels, specifically had those mechanisms and secret passages built around the throne."

"This seems more like an underground tomb," Zu An couldn't help but chuckle. "Aren't you worried they wouldn't have built the same mechanisms here? After all, everyone's dead; what need is there to fear assassinations?"

"You are still too young; you haven't experienced the sensation of death drawing near," Mi Li said wistfully. "In truth, both emperors and common folk adhere to the principle of serving the dead as they serve the living. They desire the same life in death as they had in life, for they all believe in an afterlife where they can continue to exist in another form. It's simply difficult for common folk to achieve this, but emperors are different. They truly can replicate everything from their former lives—their armies, their palaces. Given this, how could they possibly omit the mechanisms from the earthly imperial palace? Remember, for those who cherish life, even after death, they would still worry about assassination."

Zu An couldn't help but scoff, "Wasn't the First Emperor incredibly powerful? How little confidence did he have in his own cultivation to still worry about assassination?"

Mi Li glanced back at him. "Though the probability was minuscule," she explained, "he still had to leave a contingency for himself. People like him never overlook even the slightest possibility. Take Zhao Ruizhi outside, for instance. He rationally knows there's likely no secret to immortality here, yet he worries that by giving up, he might, by some extremely slim chance, miss out and allow you or someone else to obtain it. That's why he's been following your lead all along."

Zu An couldn't help but quip, "Your words are truly... enlightening."

Bi Linglong, following beside them, struggled to suppress a laugh. Mi Li merely rolled her eyes, having grown accustomed to his wild and unpredictable manner of speaking over these past days.

Just then, a series of tremendous roars echoed through the air, causing the three of them, who had just entered a new room, to nearly lose their balance.

"What's happening? An earthquake?" Zu An exclaimed, instinctively grabbing both Bi Linglong and Mi Li.

Mi Li immediately shrugged off his grip, floating effortlessly in the air. Her brows furrowed deeply. "I sense the surrounding terrain is shifting," she murmured. No sooner had she spoken than bricks, stones, and dust began to sift down from above. Immediately, the surrounding walls rapidly lowered, rose, or slid sideways. The entire room ceaselessly shifted, as if the whole palace were a rapidly transforming Rubik's Cube, with their room merely one small block within it.

"Your old imperial palace was this wild?" Zu An exclaimed, gripping a wall sconce to keep from falling as the entire room suddenly rotated vertically. He urgently looked towards Mi Li.

"I don't know what's happening," Mi Li replied, "The imperial palace certainly didn't have these features before." She, too, felt somewhat unstable. Fearing the constantly shifting rooms might separate them, she floated closer to Zu An.

The roaring and tremors continued for approximately fifteen minutes before the surroundings gradually settled. The group jumped down from what had been a wall—now, more accurately, the ceiling—and then exited through a newly revealed door.

Mi Li's brows instantly furrowed. "The layouts beyond this point have completely changed," she said. "I no longer recognize the way."

Zu An chuckled. "What's the big deal?" he said. "Let's just keep going forward. My luck has always been pretty good, anyway."

However, his smile quickly froze. The group hadn't walked far before they arrived in a vast, empty room. Suspended in the air within it was a magnificent bronze coffin, its entire body bound by enormous iron chains that stretched from every direction to the four surrounding walls.

Zu An's heart sank. "We haven't, by some coincidence, stumbled into the First Emperor's tomb, have we?"