What sound could ancient artifacts make? Zhang Yuanqing shot forward with a sudden motion, followed closely by his teammates. They reached the display case to find the one speaking was a terracotta mask—bearded, with wrinkles—depicting a kindly elder. Yet its hollow eyes gave off a certain eerie atmosphere. "Can you speak? Did you just speak just now?" Zhang Yuanqing examined the mask closely. "I cannot speak. Are you perhaps hearing voices in your mind?" The mask's mouth opened and closed, smiling warmly in reply. Clever—definitely has a sharp wit. Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself. He had just been puzzled as to why there were no clues in Hall 2. The very purpose of the副本was to train the spiritual realm travelers, even though the mortality rate was high—there should always be some hints or clues. With his deep understanding of such scenarios, he now realized: clues had arrived! Zhang Yuanqing smiled and said, "I'm curious—where exactly is your vocal apparatus? By the way, what kind of artifact are you?" "Each time I can answer you only one question," the clay mask replied. "Would you like to hear about my voice, or my identity?" "My identity," the mask said, with a reflective tone. "I am a mask of a great being. I was born in the ancient times, when humanity first mastered the art of pottery. However, it was many years later that I came to possess consciousness." "Ah, my first owner—the Rain God of the Youxiong Dynasty, who oversaw rituals and rain-making ceremonies," the mask continued. Youxiong Dynasty? I haven't heard of it... As a top graduate from Songhai University, Zhang Yuanqing carefully reviewed his knowledge base, but couldn't recall who the Youxiong Dynasty specifically was. Yellow Taiyi narrowed his eyes, speaking with seriousness: "The Youxiong Dynasty is none other than the Yellow Emperor!" Huh? Isn't the Yellow Emperor associated with Gongsun or Xuanxuan? Even if you mentioned Ji, I'd understand. What on earth is a Youxiong Dynasty? Zhang Yuanqing thought to himself, mentally muttering, while at the same time showing deep respect. The provenance of this artifact is "Where is the second master?" asked Xiao Yuan cautiously. Only then did the clay mask speak: "After the Battle of Zhuolu, my master fell in battle. I wandered among various tribes, being enshrined on altars and used to communicate between heaven and earth—until the great upheaval of ancient times, when Mount Bu Zhou collapsed, and my power was sealed, transforming me into a mere mortal object." Zhang Yuanqing brightened and asked, "Please elaborate on that great upheaval of ancient times!" The clay mask smiled and said, "You, a wild cultivator without even a divine rank, shouldn't bother asking about the emperor-level secrets." Alysia, half-understanding, inquired, "Emperor-level? What does this classification mean? I've never heard of it." The clay mask always responded to every question with clarity, speaking slowly: "At the beginning of the Three Emperors—there were the Heavenly Emperor, the Earth Emperor, and the Nüwa Emperor. After the Three Emperors passed on, the Five Emperors governed the heavens and earth, overseeing the nine provinces. Below the Five Emperors were the four divine spirits. Mountains, rivers, lakes, and marshes each had their own Below the deities lie the chime, the feng, the wang, the liang, the ghosts, demons, and wild spirits—along with the folk practitioners. All of you present are wild practitioners. There's a clear sense of superiority here! This man appears to be a kind, elderly sage, yet his tone and manner are rather brusque. Zhang Yuanqing listened intently, his expression serious, sensing a wealth of information embedded in these words. The terracotta figure's words might well recount the historical record of ancient practitioners. He remembered the Palace Master once saying that the Nüwa Emperor was the only mythical figure verified as historically real, serving as a manager of the spiritual realm. If the terracotta figure's account is accurate, then the Three Emperors and Five Dynasties were also ancient practitioners. The Five Dynasties symbolize the Five Elements—Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth—corresponding in myth to the Emperors of the Flame, White, Red, Yellow, and Black. As for the Three Emperors, Zhang Yuanqing asked, "Who were the Heavenly Emperor and Earth Emperor? What powers or roles did they hold?" "I don't know!" replied the terr Zhang Yuanqing asked again. "Unknown," the clay mask replied. The Heavenly Emperor and Earth Emperor are so mysterious—indeed, their very existence is uncertain! Zhang Yuanqing began to draw connections, analyzing the possibilities of their existence and potential professions. These could all be inferred from the existing professions within the spiritual realm. Seeing Yuan Shi Tian Zun remain silent, Xiao Yuan took the initiative and asked questions related to the quest: "Where is the key to the Bronze Gate?" "It's among the four artifacts located in the four cardinal directions," the clay mask answered. Zhang Yuanqing and the others immediately raised their heads, scanning the surroundings and taking in each of the four artifacts in the east, south, west, and north. "How can we retrieve the key?" Zhang Yuanqing asked, driven by his eagerness to gather as many benefits as possible. The clay mask smiled, "Seize the artifacts." "How exactly?" Huang Tai Ji's gaze grew focused. The clay mask shook his beard and chuckled, "Have you seen the statue of Guanyin? Take the jade bottle off it—the key to the Bronze Gate is inside." Zhang Yuanqing exchanged glances with his teammates and said, "I'll go. Let the shade try." Taking the key inevitably came with danger. No one objected. Zhang Yuanqing produced the Little Red Cap, shook off a Grade-4 shade, and guided it toward the statue of Guanyin. The shade stopped before the towering sculpture, slightly bent its knees, leaped up, grasped the hands that held the jade jardinière, then used a final push to steady itself on the palm. The jade jardinière was as large as a bucket; though its mouth narrowed, it still accommodated an adult's arm. Zhang Yuanqing directed the shade to lower its head and gaze, but inside the mouth of the jardinière, the darkness remained impenetrable—even the night wanderer's keen vision could not pierce it. He simply bent down, extended his arm into the mouth, and reached inside. In the next instant, the shade was fully absorbed into the jardinière. Zhang Yuanqing's consciousness was "pushed" back to his body, and his head snapped backward as if struck by a staff. Xiao Yuan quickly steadied him, without even asking questions, she heard a booming sound—the statue of Guanyin trembled violently, its base and body colliding against the floor and walls, the rumbling sound intense and powerful. Immediately afterward, the spout of the jade pure water vessel erupted with black spring water, gushing loudly. The black water spread across the floor tiles. Black water… Zhang Yuan’s pupils contracted, his heart tightened—he had seen this black water in his celestial observations, the very water that had killed Qingzhu. But what truly startled him was that he now recognized it! Weak water! The same weak water existed in the Dog Elder’s zoo, the water capable of sinking all things. The celestial observation had been blurry, and he hadn’t recognized it then. Now, seeing the genuine black water, he realized it was indeed weak water. Qingzhu recalled the reminder from Yuan Shi Tian Zun, her expression tightened, and she lowered her head, asking, “What kind of water is this? What dangers does it pose?” The terracotta mask replied, “No danger!” No danger? Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. "No!" Zhang Yuanqing stared intently at the clay mask inside the display case, his voice cold. "This is the weak water—the water that can sink and overwhelm all things. You're deceiving us. How many of your words were true, and how many false?" At the very moment the clay mask declared, "There is no danger," Zhang Yuanqing realized he had been fooled. He no longer trusted this object. Perhaps the key wasn't even inside the jade pure vessel. Maybe the clay mask had deliberately led him to touch the jade pure vessel, in order to trigger a mechanism and thus kill them all. Huang Taiji, Qing Zhu, and Alysia all turned pale. ——The small round figure, shaped like a queen bee, typically lacked facial expressions or changes in expression. "Plush, plush..." The jade pure vessel began to pump out thick streams of black water, white foam pushing the weak water forward, spreading rapidly across half the exhibition hall. Soon, the water reached the feet of Zhang Yuanqing and the others. Five people hurriedly stepped back. Alysia produced a gust of wind, cutting a corner of her robe and tossing it toward the thin layer of weak water spreading over the tiled floor. The corner sank instantly and vanished—its destination unknown. Whether it had entered the Jade Pure Vessel or been dissolved, it no longer mattered. This confirmed Yuan Shi Tian Zun's judgment: they had been deceived by the terracotta masks, thus triggering the death mechanism. The terracotta masks within the display case smiled calmly. "Each of my statements is true, then false—when I say something true, I say it as false, and when I say something false, I say it as true." So that's its nature? Zhang Yuanqing thought as he stepped back, racing against the weak water. "What shall we do? What shall we do?" Qingzhú was the most anxious. Alysia remained composed. "Don't worry. I'll lift you all with the airflow." "Useless," Zhang Yuanqing explained to the foreign woman. "Weak water sinks everything—even flying creatures. Once it spreads throughout the entire exhibition hall, we will surely perish." "Unless there's Linnu wood—only Linnu wood can float on the weak water—this material is extremely rare, probably uncommon throughout the entire spiritual realm, let alone in the killing quest scenarios. The black weak water kept spreading, pushing Zhang Yuanqing and the others back step by step, until they reached the end, where a massive blank hanging painting stood behind them. Watching the surging weak water, Huang Taiji raised his foot and stamped down firmly. The tiles in front of the group shattered, and a thin layer of concrete rose up, attempting to halt the spread of the weak water. But as soon as the concrete emerged, it melted like ice and sank into the weak water. The hope in everyone's eyes faded. Even the strength of loess soil could not withstand the weak water. "Damn it!" Qingzhu gritted her teeth, "I'm going to smash that broken mask!" Suddenly, Xiao Yuan said, "Yuanshǐ, gather them." Zhang Yuanqing instantly understood his lover's meaning and promptly retrieved the Little Red Hat, activating its storage ability. The weak water continued to flow steadily forward, unchanged. "No, the Water of Weakness is too powerful—it cannot be contained by a Saint-level artifact," Zhang Yuanqing sighed, shaking his head regretfully. "What then?" Alicia looked worried, having never seen something like this and at a loss for how to resolve it. "It's reaching our feet! It's reaching our feet!!" Qingzhu cried out. Zhang Yuanqing glanced around, his mind racing, then suddenly had an idea and shouted, "Climb onto the display cases—quick!" Without needing further instructions, everyone swiftly climbed onto the display cases, one by one. In the next moment, the black Water of Weakness submerged their standing places, flooding the entire exhibition hall. The five of them sat on different display cases, breathing a sigh of relief. The Water of Weakness submerged all things, yet the display cases remained intact—this confirmed that they were doing the right thing. But their sense of ease did not last long, as the water continued to gush out of the bottle without cease, rising steadily, steadily, until it reached the level of ordinary people's knees. Given this trend, the weak water will eventually overflow onto the display cases, and they will still escape death.