Chapter 1740 - 314:

Even so, upon entering, it was still necessary to continuously proceed according to specific directions; the array formation restrictions inside were too numerous to possibly shut down all at once.

The space inside the storeroom was much larger than it appeared from the outside. As Zhao Yi advanced, he could see many valuable items piled up.

If Li were to come in, he would probably clap his hands and jump for joy, wouldn't he?

Though Zhao Yi tried his best, he still couldn't imagine Li doing such a move.

But that didn't stop Zhao Yi from letting a smile play on his lips first.

He can now sense that the sedan of the second house is still parked at the fork in the road.

This means that Li is helping him hold people back.

To say he wasn't touched would be a lie.

He knew very well that, given Li's character, making such a choice surely involved some past feelings.

When someone is willing to give you what they lack, it weighs even more.

Before that, what Zhao Yi hoped for most was... that Li would just stand by.

Actually, normally, Li should help those people, swarm up like a tide, open up the Zhao Family Ancestral Mansion, and seize greater benefits amidst the chaos.

"Li, do you think if I don't repay you, it will worsen your condition?"

After a pause,

Zhao Yi continued in his heart:

"I really want to see your expression when your deductions fail and you're let down."

Reaching the deepest part of the storeroom, what presented before Zhao Yi was a long ice platform, on which sat a lamp.

This lamp was the one that the ancestor Zhao Wuyang lit when he was traveling the Jiang.

In the Zhao family, this lamp not only possesses the highest spiritual attribute but also, due to its deep causal bond with the ancestor, is imbued with a certain mystery.

The value of an artifact depends not only on its material and craftsmanship but also on who has used it.

While Zhao Yi stared at this lamp, a human face began to gradually appear on the surface of the ice.

This face, though covered in frost, still retained a sense of vitality.

Like a... frozen ribbonfish.

Ah, it must be from eating too much braised ribbonfish back in Nantong.

Zhao Yi was unsure why he would describe this ancestor from many generations ago in such a malicious way in his heart.

But he simply couldn't control this thought.

Deadmen, Evil, he had seen plenty; no matter how bad or filthy their image, he wouldn't find it disgusting.

But, oddly enough, when such things had the Zhao surname, that repulsive feeling inexplicably surged forth wildly.

Even living like this, devoid of dignity or self, they still refused to die.

Zhao Yi bowed down.

The stitches on his back popped due to the large movement.

The human face slowly opened its eyes, first looking at Zhao Yi, then rolling its eyes upward to gaze at the lamp.

It was without consciousness, or rather, its consciousness was still asleep, leaving only the most basic instincts.

Whoever came to see this lamp, it would open its eyes.

It feared that the lamp would be stolen.

Truly like a... food-guarding dog.

Zhao Yi reached out, wanting to touch the lamp.

The eyes below opened wider and wider.

Just before Zhao Yi's hand touched the lamp, he stopped.

The eyes below had also opened to their widest.

Zhao Yi looked thoughtful, and his fingertips moved, using his nails to carve a birthdate onto the icy surface before the lamp.

After finishing, Zhao Yi withdrew his hand, turned around, and walked out, leaving the place.

The eyes within the ice gradually closed, and the face slowly vanished.

Upon leaving the treasury, Zhao Yi arrived at the back courtyard.

The Great Elder held a transcendent status within the ancestral mansion, and the courtyard he resided in was the one the patriarch should reside in outside.

Upon entering the courtyard and walking into the hall, Zhao Yi reached out to pick up a lantern, giving it a gentle shake to light it, casting a red glow.

Carrying the lantern, he proceeded towards the bedroom.

The bed was right ahead, yet as you walk, you can never reach it, and the surrounding furnishings are gradually consumed by darkness.

The red glow of the lantern was first suppressed to a dark red, then gradually devoured until eventually... it was completely extinguished.

At that moment, Zhao Yi stopped walking, crouched down; this action caused cracking sounds throughout his body, and the clothes that had fused with his skin began to tear extensively.

His fingers touched a pull ring, and Zhao Yi grasped it and pulled it up.

"Ka-cha..."

A lid below revealed an opening, and the once-extinguished lantern glowed once again.

It was like a grave that had been opened with a robbery hole from above.

Zhao Yi saw an elderly man sitting on a chair below, next to a coffin.

Even before descending, just opening the lid, a strong, suffocating moldy odor assaulted the senses.

Even if a hundred dying old men were placed here, they wouldn't emit such a smell.

Zhao Yi leapt down.

It was high, and upon landing, Zhao Yi had to lower his center of gravity. When he stood straight again, a crack appeared on his face, starting from his forehead, extending along his nose, down to his chin.

Zhao Yi tried to pinch the cracks on his face with his fingers, wanting to pinch them back together; unfortunately, his face was not made of clay.

Unable to do anything, he could only look at his family's Great Elder in such an improper manner.

He was sitting on the chair with eyes closed, as if also in slumber.

But Zhao Yi knew he was awake.

Because he could see the vitality circulating through a person's body, the almost dried-up vitality on the Great Elder's body was noticeably flowing at a speed much faster than that of the three truly slumbering elders outside.

He had no idea how he could still extract it, not even Ah You scraped the pot bottom as clean as he did when she was not full.