Chapter 2476 - 2476: Strange Mechanisms (Fourth Update)

Determined to venture inside, Ye Qing didn't hesitate and walked to the front of the stele, bowing three times and kowtowing nine times.

Just as he finished bowing, a slight sound emerged from behind the stele. Soon after, the stele slowly moved aside, revealing a pitch-black cave beneath, surprising Ye Qing. It must be said, this mechanism was truly ingenious. After bowing three times and kowtowing nine times, the stele moved away on its own. What could this principle be?

The cave under the stele was roughly two meters wide, but standing at the cave entrance and looking down, Ye Qing saw that the cave wasn't deep, only about as tall as a person, and could be easily jumped into.

For safety's sake, Ye Qing firmly grasped the scabbard of The Ancestor of Miao Dao before jumping into the cave. He was uncertain what might be inside Ancestor Chen Tuan's tomb, so for safety, he brought his weapon along. If there were any Tomb Guardian Beasts, Ye Qing could at least fight back.

Upon entering the cave, Ye Qing realized that the area below was merely a simple stone corridor. The stone corridor led to the cave's deeper end. Judging by the distance, this stone corridor seemed to extend into the mountain's belly. Could it be that Ancestor Chen Tuan was buried inside the mountain?

Standing in the stone corridor, Ye Qing took a deep breath, meticulously observing the surroundings as he slowly advanced. After walking less than thirty meters, a burst of blue light suddenly appeared in the darkness ahead, rushing straight towards Ye Qing. The blue light moved quickly and its range was wide, almost covering the entire space of the stone corridor. Except, there was a part of the blue light that had an empty area in the middle. Judging by the situation, unless one passed through this empty portion, they would inevitably come into contact with the blue light.

Ye Qing didn't know what this blue light was, but intuition told him that it was nothing good. If he touched the light, some bad things might happen. Therefore, Ye Qing dared not be careless, carefully examining the empty portion in the middle, preparing to pass through it.

The empty part was quite strange; from afar, it looked like someone sitting cross-legged on the ground, with the left hand raised and the right hand pressed against the ground. Between the right hand and the body was a small gap, precisely occupied by the blue light. In other words, unless Ye Qing assumed the posture depicted above, he couldn't pass through the blue light.

Having seen the arrangement of the empty portion, Ye Qing immediately sat cross-legged on the ground, raised his left hand, and carefully aligned with the empty section's position while pressing his right hand on the ground. While aligning his posture, Ye Qing felt a bit startled. After sitting down, he realized the posture was very familiar to him. Not only familiar, but he had practiced it countless times. It was the first diagram of the Innate Nine Diagrams he had learned at Mount Wendao, the starting stance!

The empty space was actually the starting posture of the Innate Nine Diagrams?

As he was pondering this, the blue light was already approaching. Ye Qing dared not think too much, resolutely adopting the first posture of the Innate Nine Diagrams, preparing for the blue light to approach.

As the blue light swiftly approached, Ye Qing could clearly sense a sharp aura from it up close. Ye Qing had no doubt that any contact with the blue light would likely result in destruction. The light's power seemed more potent than Fu Qingping's sword aura from before.

Could such powerful energy be left by Ancestor Chen Tuan?

The blue light came and went quickly. As the thought crossed Ye Qing's mind, the blue light had already rushed past him. Interestingly, by assuming the stance from the Innate Nine Diagrams, Ye Qing managed to pass through the empty portion and didn't touch the blue light at all. Though powerful, the blue light didn't make contact, so it couldn't harm Ye Qing.

This realization brought excitement to Ye Qing's heart, confirming that passing through the blue light indeed used the posture from the Innate Nine Diagrams. Considering the strange stance from earlier, it would have been difficult to replicate precisely without practice. Meaning, it would be nearly impossible for a random person to pass through the blue light without knowing the Innate Nine Diagrams.

Reflecting on the stele's inscriptions, Ye Qing made a new discovery: the individuals of the Taoist Sect could certainly gain entry to the tomb, but survival wasn't guaranteed. After all, some Taoist Sect members didn't understand the Innate Skill. This eliminated many people. Without knowledge of the Innate Nine Diagrams, passing the first mechanism was impossible, let alone proceeding further.

Ye Qing felt lucky to have passed the first mechanism, but his heart was more of concern than joy. Ancestor Chen Tuan's tomb mechanisms were likely even more perilous. If faced with another mechanism and posture, Ye Qing might be unable to pass through.

Ye Qing's sole reliance was on the three energies within his body. With them protecting him, even the blue light left by Ancestor Chen Tuan might fail to harm him. Thus, Ye Qing chose to continue forward, ready to try again. If he couldn't progress, retreating would still be an option.

Advancing another twenty meters, another blue light appeared. Much like earlier, it rushed towards Ye Qing, but this time, its shape differed from the previous blue light, forming another stance.

Ye Qing quickly adopted the stance resembling the empty shape. Immediately, recognizing that it was identical to the second posture of the Innate Nine Diagrams.

With previous experience, Ye Qing decisively assumed the posture from the Innate Nine Diagrams. As anticipated, the blue light passed by once more, yet didn't make contact with him.

"So that's how it is!" Ye Qing turned to look at the blue light, unable to suppress a gasp. It appeared these so-called mechanisms were tests to see if individuals knew the Innate Nine Diagrams.

Though he reached this understanding, Ye Qing still felt uncertain. Continuing forward, the third blue light approached, and again, Ye Qing discovered its shape closely resembled the posture from the third of the Innate Nine Diagrams. Without hesitation, he adopted the posture, easily passing through.

Three consecutive trials strengthened Ye Qing's hypothesis. Continuing onward, he encountered six more identical blue lights. These six lights corresponded to the other six postures of the Innate Nine Diagrams. In other words, nine consecutive blue lights were a test of whether one knew the Innate Nine Diagrams. An outsider, even passing one or two blue lights, couldn't possibly progress through all nine unless familiar with the diagrams.

Having determined this, Ye Qing recalled obtaining the Innate Nine Diagrams at Mount Wendao. It seemed Ancestor Chen Tuan purposefully left these diagrams there, with the tomb mechanisms similarly designed. Only those who had learned the Innate Nine Diagrams from Mount Wendao could enter his tomb. The sequence couldn't be disrupted; otherwise, entry to the tomb was impossible.

Yet, what exactly was hidden within Ancestor Chen Tuan's tomb? Why was it designed this way?

Overwhelmed by astonishment and doubt, Ye Qing continued moving forward. Despite passing the nine blue lights, his heart felt even more anxious. Not knowing what lay ahead, he feared encountering another blue light that tested different cultivation techniques. Apart from the Innate Nine Diagrams, Ye Qing hadn't practiced any others. Another test might leave him at a loss.

Fortunately, Ye Qing's worries were unnecessary. Moving forward a few steps, he exited the stone corridor, arriving in a spacious cave.

The cave wasn't large and lacked any decoration, except for the stone coffin placed in the center. The coffin sat on a stone platform about half a meter high, with two small stone stools beside it. This arrangement looked odd.

Undoubtedly, this was Ancestor Chen Tuan's tomb. Could the central stone coffin contain Ancestor Chen Tuan himself?

Ye Qing took a deep breath and walked cautiously to the coffin. All the while, he remained vigilant of his surroundings, guarding against any possible traps. Yet, it seemed this cave held no traps whatsoever; there was no danger along the way.

Standing by the coffin, Ye Qing observed carefully. The coffin wasn't sealed, meaning its lid could be opened.

Ye Qing found it perplexing; was Ancestor Chen Tuan's coffin too rudimentary? The lid could be lifted—who could have crafted such a coffin?