"Anyone who enters the immortal sect's magic-sealing grounds without permission shall be executed?" Upon hearing this, Xia Shu's love was suddenly startled, turning to her three colleagues and whispering, "Then it seems the ancient tomb is a seal of an immortal sect, and the bronze sculptures serve as guards. Have any of you noticed how this resembles the world view within the quest? The three of you—Hua Yu, He De Zai Wu, and the Saint of Fire—now look serious, as if the final line of the video has deeply impacted them. The graceful and charming Hua Yu, furrowing her brows, said, "Many quests involving transcendent and saintly realms can be found in real-world archaeological sites or historical records—yet they seem more like real-world references and inspirations for the quests. 'Why then are elements from the quests appearing in reality? What's going on here?' He De Zai Wu, maintaining a composed expression while remaining alert to her surroundings, sighed softly, "Regardless of the facts, this situation is too extraordinary. We must report it to the elders." "As befits sages, the intelligence and information they possess surpass even that of extraordinary cultivators. The concept of 'xian men' is frequently mentioned within the sage-level realms, forming part of the world's background narrative—yet they never imagined that the very idea of 'realms' had materialized in reality. Guan Ya and Jiang Jingwei were utterly bewildered, the red-haired young woman exclaiming, 'What are you talking about? I don't understand!' Having never experienced sage-level realms, and only just beginning to study the guidebooks, they had little grasp of what xian men entailed. The Sage of Fire spoke calmly, 'Princess, since you've only recently ascended to the sage rank, your knowledge is still limited. Explaining these matters will be quite involved—let's discuss them later.' The several officers from Hangzhou Branch simply didn't see fit to treat the three sages from Songhai Branch as primary discussion participants, as they simply lacked the time to elaborate extensively. The three newly ascended sages merely needed to focus on supporting them. Summer Tree of the Lovers didn't visit the three elders of Yuan Shi Tian Zun. With a serious expression, she said to her companions: "Let's set aside the matter of the quest for now. If the bronze sculpture is the guardian of the ancient tomb, then according to the statement in the video, there must be a formidable entity sealed within the tomb. When the archaeological team opened the tomb, might they have released this magic?" Hua Yu's face turned pale: "The severity of the ancient tomb incident is likely to escalate—perhaps to at least the level of Sovereign." "No, not yet!" Zhang Yuanqing replied. Summer Tree of the Lovers and her companions turned to him, and the Fire Saint frowned: "Master Yuan Shi Tian Zun, you don't grasp the seriousness of this matter. It has the potential to completely overturn everyone's understanding of the spiritual realm." Hua Yu nodded, agreeing with the Fire Saint. Zhang Yuanqing didn’t respond to the crude remarks from the Fire Master, and continued: “Based on the information from the news, experts have assessed that the manufacturing technique of the bronze sculpture dates back to the Song Dynasty, which corresponds to the Saint Realm quest. During that era, the immortal gates faced a severe shortage of talent, with few great masters emerging. “Therefore, the ‘mages’ sealed within the ancient tomb were not particularly strong. Furthermore, after the great upheaval of the world, most of the senior figures from the major immortal gates passed away naturally, with only a few managing to survive into the Ming Dynasty—yet even they could not escape the natural cycle of birth, aging, illness, and death. Only figures like the Night Wandering God, with exceptional vitality, could enter deep sleep through secret methods to sustain their life force; all other professions ultimately faded away. “In summary, I believe the ‘mages’ inside the tomb have mostly passed away. The bronze sculptures resemble props, puppets, or shadow corpses—they are not genuine spirits capable of enchanting and influencing. Thus, they have been able to function continuously to the present day.” The air suddenly grew still. Xia Shu Zhi Lian, Hua Yu They kept studying Yuan Shi Tian Zun. From the information he had shared, they were certain he knew many secrets—far from pretending ignorance. In fact, based on his confident tone, he seemed to know even more than they did. Jiang Jingwei and Guan Ya stood a little distance away, calmly observing the surroundings with the steady presence of "Thick Virtue Bears All," alert to potential dangers hidden within the thick fog, listening intently. Zhang Yuanqing spoke slowly: "All the quests within the Spiritual Realm originate from reality!" A few seconds later, Xia Shu-zhi-lan's eyes gleamed with sudden clarity. As if synthesizing the information she already knew, she seemed to have finally grasped something, and sighed, "What a remarkable secret. I now understand many things I couldn't make sense of before. Thank you for sharing this. Master Yuan-Shi, your deep understanding of the Spiritual Realm is truly impressive. Once the ancient tomb matter is settled, I'd like to invite you for a cup of tea—to chat further about the Spiritual Realm." With that, the cold, elegant lines of her face softened into a smile. If you were someone in the realm of passion and desire, I'd definitely have declined... Zhang Yuanqing turned to Guan Ya, noticing her expression was calm and composed. This confirmed that the female officer was genuinely interested in conversation, not merely making an implication. —If it had been an implication, Guan Ya's keen perception would surely have shown otherwise! Zhang Yuanqing immediately replied, "That bronze sculpture doesn't seem to be here either. We shouldn't delay—let's move quickly and report the matter to the senior monks, so that they can take charge." "He's playing smart—leveraging the hidden secrets within the event to elevate its significance and directly summoning the elders. While the bronze sculpture itself hasn't yet reached the level where a Master needs to intervene, given its current demonstrated strength, it's certainly at a minimum of Level 5, possibly even Level 6. Though it still falls short of the caliber of the Lord of Lust, it poses a substantial threat to the present attendees. A misstep could see someone fall here. The thick mist is the domain of the Mist Lord; for any orderly profession of equivalent level, once caught within it without a strategic advantage, they are utterly outmatched. Moreover, the bronze sculpture's level clearly surpasses that of the current attendees. Xia Shu Zhi Lian gazes at him for several seconds, then says, 'Excellent!' The Saint of Fire intends to engage directly, but upon observing that several colleagues have suddenly taken the Lord of Origins' stance seriously, without any objections, he finds himself unable to dissent. Hua Yu, her eyes bright and attentive, turns to the Lord of Origins, asking, 'Have you examined our facial expressions?' Both the Saint of Fire and the One of Great Virtue and Bearing also look over. Zhang Yuanqing said, "Black clouds pressing down, blood-colored light enveloping everything—each person faces a major crisis, possibly death or serious injury." Xia Shu Zhi Lan nodded, "This is quite normal; it aligns with our assessment of bronze sculptures. A widespread blood disaster isn't necessary." Before entering the thick fog, everyone had already known that the fog's intensity was exceptionally high, and their movements carried inherent risks. The severity of this incident itself guaranteed danger—what task, after all, is without risk? At this moment, Gu Ya, who had remained vigilant throughout, spoke urgently, issuing a warning: "Be alert—something is approaching!" Everyone stiffened, quickly scanning the surroundings and assuming combat posture. Yet, the thick fog around them flowed gently, showing no signs of disturbance. Only Xia Shu Zhi Lan, as a fellow scout, cast a sharp gaze toward the left front, stating firmly, "There's something unusual over there." Upon hearing this, the Fire Saint immediately formed a ball of fire and launched it toward the direction Xia Shu Zhi Lan indicated. The ball of fire plunged into the thick mist, as if it had struck something—explosively detonating with a thunderous "boom." The mist trembled violently, and in that instant, everyone clearly saw the enemy hidden within. It was a bronze statue, two meters tall, clad in armor and holding a long bronze sword, its face expressionless. The mist swiftly closed in, engulfing the statue. Everyone tensed, drawing out their props, prepared for action. At that moment, Guan Ya shouted to Huayu, the steward, "Watch behind you!" The very next second, disturbances rippled through the mist behind Huayu, and a bronze sword cleaved through the fog, cutting down with force. When Guan Ya issued the warning, Huayu had already turned, raising her right hand toward the sky. The wooden ring on her index finger surged, sending out a vine that curled and spiraled into a circular wooden shield. Crashing! The bronze sword, unyielding, cleaved the wooden shield in two, its momentum unbroken, and severed Huayu's right arm. The bloodied arm landed with a soft "plink" on the ground. Hua Yu, the steward, paled and was about to retreat, when suddenly the bronze sculpture's eyes flared with a vivid crimson glow, and two twisted, eerie incantations materialized. Her mind shook, her thoughts instantly scattered, leaving her stunned in place. The bronze sculpture's arm creaked loudly, emitting a sound that was painful to the teeth, and it raised its bronze sword once more, delivering another strike. At that moment, the sturdy, earthy bull charged straight toward the sculpture, bending its right arm and lifting it high above its head, using its own flesh and bones to absorb the blow on behalf of Hua Yu. Xia Shu's love stepped forward, grasping Hua Yu's shoulder and pulling her back. "Hooomph!" A thick, earthy golden aura emerged, only to shatter, leaving a deep gash in the bronze sword's blade where it had cut through the bull's arm. Even the adept defender, the earth creature, could not withstand the sword's edge. Fortunately, he wasn't alone—flames burned fiercely in the fire saint's eyes, his muscles swelling, and a surge of intense heat erupted across his body. His legs, as if equipped with propulsion engines, transformed "Duang!" A burst of flame sent a wave of heat rushing toward the crowd, propelling the two-meter-tall bronze figure backward into the mist, where it vanished. All that remained was the thunderous sound of shattering glass from the display case. The Flame Saint roared and charged into the mist. Jiang Jingwei also roared, eager to follow, but Guan Ya held him firmly in place. Xia Shu Zhi Lian quickly shouted, "Flame Saint, don't go!" As soon as the words fell, cries of agony came from deep within the mist. Xia Shu Zhi Lian's expression tightened, and she immediately turned to Zhang Yuanqing, who nodded in understanding. Together, they plunged into the mist. Seeing the situation, Xia Shu Zhi Lian immediately summoned a short sword, her long legs clad in military boots, sprinting forward with determined strides and swinging the blade infused with sword energy. Ping! The short sword, which should have cut through steel like silk, only scored a faint white line. Fortunately, the force carried by the blade caused the bronze sculpture to wobble slightly. At that moment, Zhang Yuanqing grasped the fire saint's shoulders and pulled him clear from the edge of the blade. "Retreat!" He carried the fire saint back along the same path. Xia Shu Zhi Lian, a composed swordsman, followed promptly. The bronze sculpture, unable to keep up, silently watched them with its rough, weathered face. Upon returning to Guan Ya's side, Zhang Yuanqing just happened to see Huayu's arm already connected, her palms pressed gently against Hou De Zai Wu's arm, radiating a soft green light as she healed him. "Take care of him too—otherwise he won't make it past five minutes." Zhang Yuanqing handed the fire saint over to Huayu. "You damn fool, don't you ever lighten up?" The Saint of Fire clutched his chest, his face etched with pain. "When you were ascending, didn't you realize you'd end up as a skewered lamb?," Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself, muttering under his breath. Hua Yu hurried over, pressing her palm against the Saint of Fire's chest to treat his life-threatening wound. After taking several deep breaths, the Saint's complexion began to stabilize, and he spoke in a steady tone, "I've noticed something—this bronze sculpture has no item information. It doesn't belong to the Spirit Realm. It must have been crafted by ancient immortal sects. Therefore, can we assume that the item attributes were added by the Spirit Realm to help the Realm's travelers master the usage of tools more quickly? 'So, all these tools are essentially artifacts?' Hua Yu asked, frowning. 'Just hold your peace—this will give you more time to live.' At that moment, Xia Shu Zhi Lian returned and glanced at the Saint of Fire's condition, her expression growing serious. Like most of the tools used by the Enchanting Beasts, the bronze sword possesses a bleeding function. This means Hua Yu must continuously treat the Saint of Fire to keep Then the two of them became easy targets. In the thick fog, the enemies appeared and vanished at will, making their resistance already difficult—even the defensive mountain deity could not withstand the sword's edge. How could they possibly protect these two? The Saint of Fire exhaled, saying, "I'm done. You'd better leave me behind. Yuan Shi Tian Zun, take them and go outside to inform the elders. I still have one breath left—I can at least shield you a little." This bold Saint of Fire proves to be quite noble in spirit. Thick Deity of Bearing, in a steady tone, said, "Give me some time to stabilize the museum. With that, we can win." The Saint of Fire chuckled sadly, "You know it will take time. I don't doubt you'll manage it, but perhaps you'll have to lose one or two lives along the way. That would be a pity. Besides, if Yuan Shi Tian Zun dies here, it wouldn't be worth it." The group fell silent. Thick Deity of Bearing moved his lips, then also remained silent, his expression weighed down with gravity. The language of flowers turned to summer's love. After a moment's hesitation, the latter struggled to make up his mind and said, "Let's go." Zhang Yuanqing suddenly added, "I have a plan—we can try it out."