"Big Brother, they really didn’t spot us," Xue Shitian chortled, his icy gaze fixed on the rippling surface of the lake.

Xue Yan sneered. "Ten thousand years ago, we of the Blood Python Family devoured the Ninghun Family’s Primordial Qi until only a trace remained. A full ten thousand years have passed since then. I’m sure their Spiritual Power has completely atrophied by now. Without the support of the Forest of Myriad Manifestations, they have absolutely no chance of getting revenge, no matter how much they want it."

Xue Lie scoffed, "Revenge? After what happened ten thousand years ago, they probably turn pale at the mere mention of snakes. How could they possibly dare seek revenge? They must have entered the Senluo Ruins this time to obtain the Forest of Myriad Manifestations and rebuild their Noble Family’s strength. Unfortunately for them, they’re destined to fail this year, because the ones who entered the ruins are the four of us brothers."

Xue Nie asked, "Big Brother, should we go after them now?"

Xue Yan said in a low voice, "How foolish. While our Blood Python Family is known as a family of serpents, we are land creatures. In the water, not only would our strength not be amplified, it would actually be weakened by the lake."

"Then what do we do? Are we just going to stand by and watch them brazenly enter the Senluo Tomb?" Xue Shitian growled.

Xue Yan patted Xue Shitian on the head. "Little Brother, don’t be so impulsive. The entrance to the Senluo Tomb isn’t at the bottom of this lake. It’s up there..." As he spoke, Xue Yan pointed to the dark sky directly above the lake’s surface. "According to the blueprints we seized from the Ninghun Family ten thousand years ago, the final gate opens in a mirror image of the lake’s reflection in the sky. They’ll have to come out eventually. What we need to do is attack from all sides the instant they surface and completely annihilate them."

The four Blood Family brothers answered in unison and found concealed spots to hide themselves. At the same time, Mu Chen and Feng Shanshan had already reached the bottom of the dead lake. Judging from the two Seven-Star Rocks they had just activated, the final one had to be the One-Star Rock!

"I remember from the scrolls I saw back home that this particular Star Rock is the easiest to recognize. But how come I can’t find it after searching the entire lakebed?" Feng Shanshan scanned her surroundings in surprise. A Star Rock was just an inanimate object. Furthermore, since she had only ever seen it depicted in her family’s scrolls, it was impossible for her to detect it with her Spiritual Power.

Mu Chen frowned, looking down at the lakebed. He asked softly, "Do you know its general location?"

Feng Shanshan nodded. "Yes, its general location is in the center of this lake. The gate to the Senluo Tomb is directly above this lake. Once the final Senluo Seven-Star Rock is activated, the lake water will transform into a curtain of water and rush into the Azure Sky, forming a mirror-like entrance in the air. On the other side of that entrance is the Senluo Tomb, the final resting place of my ancestor, the Senluo Saint."

Mu Chen was taken aback. "You’re saying the entrance isn’t at the bottom of the lake, but outside in the open air?"

"It’s in the air. What’s wrong?" Feng Shanshan replied.

Mu Chen frowned. "That complicates things. Now I finally understand why those four from the Blood Python Family didn’t just dive in and chase us."

"Why?" asked Feng Shanshan.

Mu Chen gave a wry smile. "Don’t you know that while Shadow Concealing Dust isn’t harmed by water, being coated in liquid reveals our silhouettes? And if they set up an ambush outside, even if we use the dust in the water, the ripples we make when we surface will give away our exact positions. If they all attack us at once, it will be nearly impossible for us to enter the Senluo Tomb."

Feng Shanshan floated in the water, a worried look on her face. "Then what do we do? Is there no solution at all?"

Mu Chen gazed at the blackened algae on the lakebed, pondering for a moment before speaking decisively. "There is a way, but it’s extremely dangerous, and I’m not very confident I can pull it off."

Feng Shanshan’s face lit up. "What is it?"

Mu Chen reached back and drew out the Profound Jade Box. With a flick of his wrist, a long, narrow, and utterly black Giant Fan appeared before Feng Shanshan. She stared blankly for a moment, then heard Mu Chen say, "Go activate the last Seven-Star Rock first. Leave the rest to me." As he spoke, with a casual flick of his knuckles, the Nine Spirits Profound Jade Fan snapped fully open with a SWISH, its one-hundred-and-sixty-degree surface glinting with a cold, faint light in the clear lake water.

Feng Shanshan glanced at the strange fan. "But I still haven’t found the One-Star Rock." 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Mu Chen smiled. "Try digging deep in the central area. All these years, the Blood Python Family has sent people in every twenty years to test the activation sequence of the Seven-Star Rocks. Since the One-Star Rock is so easy to recognize, I suspect they’ve probably buried it under the sand and silt at the bottom of the lake."

Feng Shanshan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled. "Of course! Why didn’t I think of that?" With that, she shot toward the center of the lake. After slowly coming to a stop in the middle, she gently pressed her palm against the lakebed. Her gaze sharpened, and a faint ripple of Primordial Power spread out from her palm. The lakebed trembled slightly, and the surrounding sand and dust instantly billowed outward, turning the once-clear water incredibly murky in a flash.

Mu Chen was surprised for a second, then pleased. ’A happy accident,’ he thought. ’This will make it even easier to hide.’ He then called out to Feng Shanshan, "How’s it going? Did you find it?"

Feng Shanshan looked up but couldn’t see Mu Chen, though her Spiritual Power was locked firmly onto his position. Knowing he was still waiting nearby put her at ease. After searching her immediate surroundings, she quickly discovered a perfectly star-shaped rock. ’It really is easy to recognize,’ she thought. Then, she said to Mu Chen, "Found it! It’s right near me."

Mu Chen smiled faintly. "Then what are you waiting for? Activate it quickly, then get over here to me."

Feng Shanshan agreed and bit her finger open again. Since they were at the bottom of the lake, she couldn’t just let a drop of blood fall onto the Star Rock. Instead, she pressed her bleeding finger directly onto the rock’s peak. After a low HUM, the entire lakebed suddenly began to churn as if it were boiling.

Although Feng Shanshan knew the steps to open the Senluo Tomb in theory, the actual phenomenon of it opening still left the young woman stunned. Mu Chen waited to the side for several seconds, but when he didn’t see Feng Shanshan swim over, his heart clenched with anxiety. He shot toward her position like a sharp sword, only to find her staring blankly at her surroundings when he arrived.

Mu Chen was taken aback. "What’s wrong with you?"

Feng Shanshan snapped out of her daze when she heard Mu Chen’s voice. She patted her chest and said, "That scared me to death! The commotion this time seems several times greater than the last six."

Mu Chen was left speechless. Meanwhile, in the Outer Realm, the four from the Blood Python Family were also feeling the changes in the Water Moon Cave Heaven with utter astonishment. Xue Yan roared, "The Senluo Tomb is about to open! You three, keep your eyes glued to the lake’s surface. The moment anything emerges, attack to kill!"

Though Xue Yan spoke with authority, he had never actually seen what happens when the Senluo Tomb opens. At that moment, the One-Star Senluo Rock at the bottom of the lake was fully activated. A pillar of golden light, far brighter and more dazzling than the previous six, shot up to the ceiling of the dark space. With the appearance of this golden pillar, soft golden ripples began to spread across the sky, blanketing the darkness with a faint, golden curtain of light.

The curtain of light seemed to spread slowly, but in just a few short moments, it had enveloped the entire Senluo Ruins. At the same time, the golden pillar of light that had erupted from the One-Star Rock extended straight lines of light, connecting it to the six other golden pillars that were scattered across the region. Only then did everyone realize that the so-called most distant One-Star Rock was, in fact, at the very center of the Senluo Ruins.

"What’s happening over there?!" a participant traveling through the Senluo Ruins cried out, staring into the distance.

"Could a great treasure have appeared?!" Another person stopped in their tracks, turning their head to look at the sky from which the dazzling pillar of light emanated.

"It must be a great treasure! First come, first served!"

In that instant, the entire ruins erupted into a frenzy. Feng Shanshan watched the ever-brightening golden pillar of light and said with a slight tremble in her voice, "The Senluo Tomb... is about to open..."

Mu Chen’s expression turned grave as he looked up at the sky. Just then, streams of blue light suddenly emanated from the circular lakebed, broke through the surface of the water, and shot high into the air. These streams of light seemed scattered at first, but once they reached the sky, they instantly merged and reformed. An otherworldly, blue Bright Mirror appeared inverted in the sky, its top connected to the lake below, looking just like a tunnel to the Divine Realm.

"Is that the gate to the Senluo Tomb? It’s magnificent!" Mu Chen was too stunned to speak.

Seeing Mu Chen in a daze, Feng Shanshan urged him, "Mu Chen, how are we supposed to get in?"

Mu Chen snapped out of it. "The way to get in is simple, but... Miss Shanshan, you might have to put up with something a little awkward."

With that, Mu Chen told Feng Shanshan the method. She froze for a second, her face flushing, but when she thought about it, it was indeed the most viable option. She had no choice but to nod. "To get into the Senluo Tomb, this is no sacrifice at all. Let’s begin."

The moment she finished speaking, a deep blush appeared on Feng Shanshan’s face as she reached out and wrapped her arms tightly around Mu Chen’s waist. Mu Chen, in contrast, showed no change in expression. He gripped the ring of the Profound Jade Fan tightly in his left hand, his gaze sharpened, and he let out a low cry, "Nine Waves Technique, Branching Form: Whirl!"

With that low cry, Mu Chen’s entire body began to spin like a hurricane in the water. The next moment, the lake’s surface, which had just calmed, began to roil violently once more...