Chapter 201.2: Danger in the Ancestral Land? That's It?

Qi Yuan peered deeper into the Ancestral Land. The ground wasn't soil at all, but multicolored metal alloys stretching as far as the eye could see. Some of these metals were familiar to Qi Yuan. To low-level cultivators, they would be precious materials. To True Gods, they were little more than baubles.

Metal fragments littered the landscape. They were shattered constructs, broken remnants of some ancient creation. In the distance, a colossal, metallic foot jutted skyward, its eighteen toes strikingly clear. Each toenail was painted in bright, garish colors, and adorned with strange animal patterns Qi Yuan had never seen before.

Staring at the massive foot, the younger twin said softly, "Legend says that our ancestors came from beyond this realm. The entire Ancestral Land was once a single divine artifact. Through it, our ancestors arrived in the Mortal Heart World. The artifact shattered upon descent, leaving behind many treasures."

At the mention of treasures, the True Gods felt their hearts stir.

The realm was famous for its bizarre yet powerful artifacts. Last time, Old Snake had found a rare immortal liquid here. After drinking it, he opened two divine apertures in one go. There were also items that could expand divine spiritual energy reserves or strengthen a cultivator’s foundation. Hence, it was no wonder ancient gods kept coming despite the danger.

"This place may be full of treasures, but it also conceals terrifying danger. A single careless step, and you'll die without even realizing how," the older twin said coolly, her voice sharp and restrained.

Then, she added gravely, "All kinds of puppet gods roam within. They have no fixed form—some may be a drop of liquid, some a stone, others a wisp of mist. Yet every one of them is powerful. The weakest are First Step True Gods, while the strongest are on par with Great Venerables. If you accidentally wander into their territory, you are done for. Moreover, they don’t stay in one place. They drift through the realm, moving and sleeping at random. That’s why past experience is useless. A dormant puppet god could be hiding in any location."

Following that, she gestured toward the enormous metal foot ahead of them. "That metal foot may very well be housing one right now. Touch it, and the puppet god will awaken."

At the mention of puppet gods, the True Gods present all grew solemn, fear flickering across their faces.

"So where are the treasures?" Qi Yuan asked calmly.

The younger twin couldn't help but reply, "The deeper you go, the more numerous and precious the treasures become. But the danger increases just as sharply. By our reckoning, the Ancestral Land has seven floors. Those at First Step usually remain in the first floor. Second Step cultivators can reach the second floor, and so on. In the first floor, a First Step True God has about a fifty-fifty chance of surviving whatever they encounter. It's still manageable, but once you enter the second floor, you may run out of luck."

She paused, then eyed Qi Yuan suspiciously. "Don't tell me you don't know any of this. You didn't even bring a map?"

"I don't have one," Qi Yuan said honestly.

The younger twin flicked her wrist, and a sheepskin map fluttered into Qi Yuan's hands. "Here. Take this."

Qi Yuan glanced at it once, committing it to memory, then frowned slightly. "This division feels a bit crude. So if I just keep moving forward and go as deep as possible, I'll reach the seventh floor?"

The map felt underwhelming. He'd been expecting something more complex, requiring careful navigation. The goal turned out to be straight ahead. Qi Yuan’s destination was the seventh floor, where Aoshi had broken through to the True God realm. Of course, he wasn’t about to pass up the treasures he stumbled across along the way. They would be perfect for strengthening his subordinates.

The younger twin nodded. "That's right."

Qi Yuan said casually, "In that case, farewell, everyone. May you have good luck."

With that, he started walking forward. In the next moment, his gaze locked onto a towering structure in the distance. "There's good stuff over there. Let's go."

The older twin's expression changed dramatically. "Fellow Daoist, be careful! There’s an extremely powerful puppet god in there! If you're not careful, you will awaken it. Three ancient gods have already fallen in that tower!"

The others hurriedly echoed her warning. The realm was dotted with many such towers, piercing the clouds. They contained the most treasures, but were also the deadliest. In fact, the tower could very well be hiding a Great Venerable puppet god. Even ancient gods steered clear of the towers despite the promise of treasures. They still treasured their lives.

Qi Yuan said cheerfully, "It’s fine. My left eyebrow's been twitching nonstop. The treasure is beckoning for me!"

With a grand wave of his hand, he led all his citizens straight toward the tower. The remaining ancient gods exchanged glances, stunned.

The older twin gritted her teeth. "That Daoist saved our lives! We can’t just abandon him like this?!"

They hurried after him, landing right outside the towering structure. Unfortunately, they were too little, too late. Qi Yuan’s group had disappeared inside.

The faces of those outside darkened.

"He's already inside. What do we do now?"

"It's over. If the puppet god inside wakes up, they're doomed."

No one dared to step over the threshold. Even the slightest breeze could awaken a puppet god.

"All we can do is pray they get lucky and don't trigger it."

"That’s just asking for the impossible. There are more than ten of them, some of which are Core Formation cultivators! Even a sleeping pig would wake up from that!"

Their expressions were grim. There was nothing they could do besides wait outside. If the worst came, they would intervene if possible. Qi Yuan could probably survive, but the others likely would not.

***

Inside the tower, Qi Yuan looked around with open curiosity. He stood atop a slab of alloy resembling marble, studying the bizarre objects scattered throughout the tower.

[Hart Titanium Goblet. A strange wine cup. Pour water in, wine comes out.]

[Puppet God(Dormant). Second Step to Heaven. Will awaken if the tower's alarm is activated.]

[Universal Alchemy Furnace. Special-grade pill furnace.]

[Golden Veil. An intimate undergarment dropped on the floor.]

A flood of information poured into Qi Yuan's vision. He also spotted the dormant puppet gods hidden throughout the tower. Their forms were truly bizarre. One appeared like drifting dust, floating lazily in the air. Another resembled an alloy, six-spotted ladybug. There was also a literal brick.

"I can already find fifty-seven puppet gods at a glance. I can see why this tower is considered deadly," Qi Yuan muttered.

Nothing was hidden from him. All fifty-seven puppet gods lay clearly within his sight.

"So, they won’t wake up as long as I don't trigger the tower's alarm...?" he murmured.

According to other ancient gods, almost anything could awaken a puppet god.

Qi Yuan grew ecstatic. "This is where my eyebrows shine."

All he had to do was let his eyebrows react and map out a route that wouldn’t trigger the tower’s alarm. Thus, he focused his thoughts, boldly envisioning a path forward.

His right eyebrow twitched.

Dead end.

He adjusted his path and his right eyebrow twitched again. Another adjustment. Still twitching. He kept trying. After a while, Qi Yuan's eyes lit up.

Zhu Zhuangshi stared in confusion. "Lord God, is there something wrong with your eyebrows? They're twitching so fast, I can barely see them."

Yulei and Shen Tu also watched in amazement. The twitching was intense and felt unnatural.

"Didn't I tell you?" Qi Yuan smirked. "My eyebrows can tell fortunes. I’ve already identified the first safe route."

The villagers felt chills run down their spines. As expected of their god. Still as absurd as ever. He was navigating what was essentially a hellscape of danger by twitching his eyebrows. Same old guardian god.

Still, they trusted him without hesitation. Their god had brought forth countless miracles, time and again. Besides, what was there to fear? Their god was personally risking his life!

"Come on," Qi Yuan said cheerfully. "Left hand, right hand, let's go slowly."

He stepped forward, his walking posture strange, almost like dancing.

Without hesitation, the villagers followed, mimicking his bizarre movements exactly. To minimize disturbance, some even cast spells to make themselves appear nearly identical to Qi Yuan. The group advanced as if performing some odd ritual dance.

Qi Yuan stopped. Everyone halted at once, standing on a perfectly safe node he had already foreseen. He closed his eyes again, calculating the next step.

The villagers whispered among themselves.

"Look! Lord God's eyebrows are twitching like crazy again!"

"So he really is divining?"

"Maybe he is just really sleepy?"

"If I say I find Lord God kind of funny right now, will you guys hit me?"

"Show respect! We're professionals! Professional followers, professional citizens. We mustn't laugh at Lord God."

"But he's just too funny..."

Qi Yuan opened his eyes. "Follow me. Same movements as before."

He led them forward again, weaving through the tower with effortless ease. In just a few moments, he guided everyone through the strangest possible path to the very top.

A faint, moldy fragrance drifted through the air, as if it had lingered for countless ages. The villagers' eyes went wide at the sight of the immortal liquid before them, shimmering with ethereal light.

"Linmu Immortal Liquid!" Yulei cried out, eyes blazing with fanatic excitement.

"It's really it! Just one sip increases the rate of divine aperture condensation fivefold!"

"And there's this much?!"

"How many tens of thousands of jin is this?!"

Everyone's eyes turned red. Even True Gods coveted it!

Qi Yuan stared at it with a strange expression. "...You can drink this stuff?"

[Linmu Immortal Liquid. Bathwater infused with the Water Treasure Clan’s special cleansing solution.]