Fang Hao felt his vision blur for a moment, his body seemingly passing through a layer of viscous water curtain, and then his feet touched solid ground as a dense and ancient Spiritual Qi rushed towards him.

He steadied himself and vigilantly looked around.

At this moment, he was standing at the entrance of a wide jade passage.

Moonstones were embedded in the walls on both sides of the passage, emitting a soft light that illuminated the deep path ahead.

Behind him was the five-colored light barrier, still flowing ceaselessly, isolating the inside from the outside into two separate worlds.

"I’m in..." Fang Hao felt a slight sense of relief in his heart, activated his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes, and carefully sensed his surroundings.

The passage was silent, and the air was filled with the smell of dust, clearly having been sealed for a long time.

He extended his Divine Sense, but it was suppressed by an invisible force, only able to extend about ten zhang.

"There is a Divine Sense Restriction here," Fang Hao thought to himself, becoming even more cautious.

He checked himself; the earlier simulation of the Formation fluctuations to pass through the light barrier had consumed a significant amount of energy, but he was not seriously harmed.

He cautiously moved forward along the passage.

The walls of the passage were carved with various patterns of Refining Cauldrons and Formation markings, archaic and profound, showcasing the extraordinary attainments of the owner of this place, the Tiangong Sect, in Artifact Refining and Formations.

After traveling over a hundred zhang, a huge hall appeared at the end of the passage.

In the center of the hall stood a massive three-legged bronze tripod; its body was carved with the sun, moon, stars, mountains, and rivers, exuding a majestic and heavy aura—it was actually a Magic Treasure of an extremely high grade.

Scattered around were some stone platforms and jade shelves that should have originally held items, but most were now empty, with only a few broken Magical Artifacts or Jade Slips remaining.

"It seems someone has already come in before me?" Fang Hao felt a chill in his heart.

But upon closer inspection, those traces seemed very ancient and did not look like recent actions.

Perhaps they were left behind when the Tiangong Sect evacuated in ancient times, or by earlier intruders.

He walked to a stone platform and picked up a dust-covered Jade Slip.

He probed it with his Divine Sense; the Jade Slip recorded an Artifact Refining technique called the "Thousand Refinements Art," which, although incomplete, was still incredibly exquisite.

"The Legacy of the Tiangong Sect is truly remarkable," Fang Hao exclaimed, putting away the Jade Slip.

Although he did not specialize in Artifact Refining, drawing inferences from this would also be beneficial for his Formations and cultivation.

He searched the hall again and found a few pieces of rare Artifact Refining Materials, "Star Iron" and "earth core jade marrow," as well as a bottle of unknown spirit liquid, rich in Spiritual Qi.

The harvest was good, but Fang Hao was not blinded by the immediate benefits.

He was more concerned with how to let Liang Ling, Lin Wan, and Chen Feng in as well.

Exploring alone might mean enjoying the harvest exclusively, but the risks were greater, and if there were stronger Restrictions or dangers deeper in the ruins, there was strength in numbers.

He turned back to the entrance of the passage, stood on the inside of the light barrier, and observed carefully.

Seen from the inside, the light barrier was still flowing, but the energy fluctuations seemed clearer.

"I was able to come in because I simulated the Formation fluctuations to deceive the Formation’s recognition.

So, can I temporarily open a gap from the inside, or guide them to find the correct ’frequency’?" Fang Hao pondered.

He sat cross-legged and once again activated the Chaos Evolution Dao Art and the Myriad Manifestations Array Interpretation, connecting his mind to the Formation of the light barrier.

This time, his perception from the inside was even clearer.

"So that’s how it is. This Formation is not a dead object; its core has a trace of weak sentience that maintains its operation and judges intruders.

My previous simulation was equivalent to making this trace of sentience mistake me for ’one of its own’," Fang Hao realized.

"Then, if I use Chaos Qi to simulate the aura of multiple ’kind’ and transmit this fluctuation signal to the outside, if Senior Sister Liang and the others sense it outside, could they also use this to adjust their own auras and thus enter?"

This was a bold conjecture.

It required him to have more precise control over Chaos Qi, and the coordination between the inside and outside had to be extremely tacit.

Fang Hao calmed his mind and focused, splitting a finer wisp of that Chaos Qi, carefully simulating it into fluctuations that were of the same origin as the Formation but carried a unique identifier, and then attempted to transmit it through the light barrier to the outside.

This process was extremely mentally taxing, like dancing on a tightrope.

A slight error would not only lead to failure in transmission but might also disturb the sentience of the Formation and trigger an attack.

Once, twice... he kept trying.

Outside the light barrier, Liang Ling and the others were waiting anxiously.

Half an hour had passed, and there was no movement inside, while the Cultivators outside were becoming increasingly restless.

"Is that kid dead inside?"

"Maybe he hogged the Treasure Trove and ran out from another exit."

"People from the Azure Cloud Sect. What exactly is going on?"

Liang Ling’s face was as calm as water, and although she was worried, she still firmly said, "Junior Brother Ning must have a plan; let us wait patiently."

Lin Wan clenched her hands tightly, "Junior Brother Ning will definitely not abandon us!"

Chen Feng and Liu Yiyi also nodded, choosing to trust Fang Hao.

Just then, Liang Ling keenly felt that the five-colored light barrier in front seemed to produce a trace of an extremely weak and unusual fluctuation.

The fluctuation flashed and disappeared, but it carried a familiar sense of rhythm.

"It’s Junior Brother Ning." Liang Ling’s beautiful eyes brightened, "He is trying to contact us!"

She immediately sent a voice transmission to Lin Wan, Chen Feng, and Liu Yiyi, "Calm your minds, carefully sense the fluctuations of the light barrier, and try to imitate that rhythm!"

Although the four of them did not understand why, they did not hesitate to follow suit, sensing the faint, almost imperceptible fluctuation with all their might and adjusting their own auras.

Inside the light barrier, Fang Hao sensed that several auras outside were beginning to resonate with his guiding fluctuations, and he felt a surge of joy in his heart: "It works!"

He became even more focused, continuously outputting the guiding fluctuations, like lighting a lighthouse in the darkness.

After another half an incense stick of time, Liang Ling was the first to capture the pattern of that rhythm; she activated her Ice Heart Art, adjusting her own aura to a state highly synchronized with those fluctuations.

"I’ll try." Liang Ling took a deep breath and, imitating Fang Hao’s earlier manner, floated towards the light barrier.

In the nervous gaze of the crowd, Liang Ling’s figure also seemed to merge into water, silently passing through the light barrier!

"Another one went in."

"It’s that ice beauty."

"They really know the method."

The outside instantly exploded into chaos! Countless people rushed towards the light barrier with red eyes, imitating wildly, but were all bounced off by the light barrier, looking miserable.

Following that, Lin Wan, Chen Feng, and Liu Yiyi also successfully captured the rhythm one after another and passed into the light barrier!

After the four of them entered, inside the light barrier, the five of them were reunited, all filled with joy.

"Junior Brother Ning! It’s so good that you’re okay!" Lin Wan patted her chest, saying with lingering fear.

Liang Ling looked at Fang Hao, her eyes carrying praise and a trace of imperceptible softness, "You’ve worked hard."

Chen Feng cupped his hands, genuinely admiring, "Fellow Daoist Ning’s Formation skills are profound; this Chen is in awe!"

Liu Yiyi’s pretty face flushed slightly, and she said in a low voice, "Thank you, Senior Brother Ning."

Fang Hao smiled slightly, "It was a lucky success. This place is not suitable for a long stay; let’s explore as quickly as possible."

He briefly explained the situation inside the hall.

The five of them rested briefly, then formed a Formation, with Fang Hao and Liang Ling in the front and Chen Feng at the rear, heading towards the depths of the ruins to explore.

Passing through the central hall, behind it were more complex passages and rooms, some of which seemed to be Artifact Refining Rooms, others were libraries, but most had been emptied or destroyed, leaving only a few traces.

On the way, they triggered several remaining Restrictions, including fire traps and ice arrow ambushes, but with the combined efforts of the five, they passed through them without any danger.

Fang Hao’s attainments in Formations and Liang Ling’s calm command played a key role.

As they went deeper, the ruins were gradually better preserved, and some valuable harvests began to appear: complete Artifact Refining diagrams, detailed explanations of high-level Formations, and some rare Materials.

The five of them allocated them according to need, cooperating with tacit understanding.

However, they also found traces of fighting and a few long-decayed skeletons, reminding them that this place was not an easy path.

"It seems we are not the only ones in these ruins," Liang Ling said solemnly.

Fang Hao nodded, his Clear Spring Spirit Eyes looking towards the depths of the passage, where it was dark and deep, as if hiding greater secrets and dangers.

"Proceed with caution; while Opportunity is important, life is more important."