Ant Lord in the Star Realm

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid didn’t waste words, straining to unleash their Dual Wind and Thunder Power, flickering forward along the route.

Ahead, a point of white light gradually brightened, blazing.

Above Purple Cicada’s head hung a sphere formed from gathered abilities, continuously releasing light and heat, illuminating the passageway.

At the end of the passage stood a massive double-leaf metal gate about thirty meters tall and over fifty meters wide, carved with strange patterns of plants and animals.

Framed by the majestic, heavy gate, the figures of Upright Lotus, Chickpea, and Purple Cicada, the three spiders, looked tiny and fragile.

"Can the door be opened?"

"Don’t know."

"And the Overlord Realm remains?"

"Put away?"

"The door isn’t open? The remains have been put away?"

"Something’s off. Same as the intel we got before: an Alien Clan Beast Clan, wolf-like in appearance, with a single horn on its forehead. The corpse stands at the door."

Dragon Cypress’s tentacles twitched; he halted and backed away.

Kansui and Giant Taro were slightly startled.

Ink Orchid stopped as well, asking in puzzlement, "An Overlord Realm powerhouse guarding the Treasury gate?"

Dragon Cypress asked, "Why not guard inside the Treasury?"

Ink Orchid said, "An outsider? A Beast Clan not belonging to this Technology Civilization? Or perhaps it coexisted with the Technology Civilization, but with relatively low status, not qualified to enter the Treasury?"

Dragon Cypress said, "Ink Orchid, smart!"

Dragon Cypress said, "An Overlord Realm guarding the door. Doesn’t that mean that behind the door..."

Ink Orchid said, "There’s an even stronger Overlord Realm? And maybe even stronger Twisted Primordial Energy Beings..."

In this entire ruin, all the metal elsewhere had lost its Primordial Energy properties, becoming ordinary metal, and the Haimeng Ship’s scouting system could also scan and see through the interior.

Only the six metal walls forming the central Treasury still retained Primordial Energy properties and could simultaneously block scouting.

As Ink Orchid spoke, he suddenly jolted in fright; his spiritual power swept in all directions, clearing away the nearby ordinary Primordial Energy Bodies, then retreated with Dragon Cypress.

"You two, enough. Stop scaring yourselves."

Kansui barked, then asked, "Upright Lotus, what exactly is the situation?"

Upright Lotus said, "The Primordial Energy Metal used to forge the Treasury and the gate has lost its attached Primordial Energy enhancements, so we can forcefully break the door and enter. However, whether there is danger beyond the door... we’re not sure yet."

"Kansui, Giant Taro, protect Dragon Cypress Ant King and Ink Orchid, you two retreat to twenty kilometers away. Once the gate opens, Dragon Cypress Ant King will use his Soul-Setting Ability to probe, and Kansui will then transmit the information to us with his spiritual power."

"Got it—"

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid had already fallen back five kilometers and now sped up to pull back another fifteen.

"..."

Kansui and Giant Taro followed.

The withdrawal was completed swiftly.

The Zhen Beast switched to Death State, transforming into a hundred-meter stretch of black water, shrouded in black mist.

"Ink Orchid, sweep away the nearby ordinary Primordial Energy Bodies; whatever you do, don’t use your Soul-Setting Ability to sense around randomly!"

"Oh—"

"What’s the situation now?"

"Chickpea seems to have some special method to get that gate open..."

Dragon Cypress used his Soul-Setting Ability to perceive.

In his perception, Chickpea was sprawled against the door, working on it.

Upright Lotus and Purple Cicada stood guard in front of the gate.

Kansui and Giant Taro, protecting Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid, were likewise using their spiritual power to spy.

Soon,

the great door was pulled open a crack.

Kansui and Giant Taro hastily withdrew their spiritual power, carefully concealing their auras, fully on guard.

Dragon Cypress’s Soul-Setting Ability passed through the crack in the door, sweeping once across the Treasury beyond.

"Well?"

Kansui asked.

Dragon Cypress said, "No Twisted Primordial Energy Beings. I didn’t sense anything unusual."

Kansui immediately transmitted the message with his spiritual power: "Safe!"

Up ahead,

the gate was pulled fully open.

Upright Lotus, Purple Cicada, and Chickpea entered.

Behind,

the pitch-black Dead Water carried Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid, leaping forward.

They advanced ten kilometers.

Dragon Cypress’s spiritual power swept ahead to inspect the situation.

Behind the gate,

there was a wide, straight main corridor.

Orderly branch corridors lined both sides of the main corridor.

On either side of each branch corridor were neat rows of storage rooms.

The great Treasury inside was partitioned into countless small vaults.

Chickpea lifted his leg and violently kicked open a vault door.

No danger.

A white-hot Fireball flared to life.

Light and heat spread through the narrow room, and the frozen, solidified air quickly vaporized, turning into air currents that rolled out through the doorway.

A room twenty to thirty meters long, about fifteen or sixteen meters wide, and over ten meters high.

Row upon row of metal standing cabinets.

Chickpea controlled a silver-white liquid metal with extremely strong corrosive destructive power against metal, letting it seep in along the cabinet gaps.

After just two or three seconds,

the internal mechanisms of the cabinet doors were damaged, and Metal Ability controlled them to open.

Inside the cabinet, on specially made metal brackets, stood a brown-edged frame, within which a transparent substance sealed... a painting?

In the picture: a flat grassland, a towering Alien Clan tree laden with fruit. In the distance, a river wound past, and a few strange beasts had their heads down grazing.

"..."

Dragon Cypress’s heart stirred; he drew back his spiritual power and glanced toward the ground just behind the majestic Treasury gate.

On the ground, clearly added later, was a line of universal cosmic characters carved by Sharp Edge:

[Technology development has an end, Force Evolution has a limit, artistic creation is never-ending]

"Have you found the treasure?"

"Should we go up and take a look?"

Ink Orchid’s spiritual power couldn’t reach that far, and his tentacles twitched anxiously.

Dragon Cypress said, "Looks like... they found it..."

Ink Orchid asked, "What good stuff did they find?"

Dragon Cypress said gravely, "If I’m not mistaken, that’s an artwork..."

Dragon Cypress said, "Barring surprises, the vast space behind that gate is filled with the artworks of a high-level Civilization."

—Artworks?

Ink Orchid was puzzled.

Kansui and Giant Taro were left speechless.

Kansui asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, the vault rooms have air holes, so your Soul-Setting Ability can sense what’s behind the doors, right?"

Dragon Cypress said, "Yes. Relax. It’s safe."

Kansui’s spiritual power surged out; he waved his claw and called, "Let’s go! Take a look!"

...

The Wind and Thunder Power flickered as they advanced, and they soon caught up and entered the Treasury.