Chapter 417: An Underground Palace

Chapter 417: Chapter 417: An Underground Palace

Though he knew the cruelty of war, it wasn’t until Ji Chen experienced it firsthand that he understood what kind of feeling it truly was.

In just a few short days, one hundred thousand people were dead!

"Over in the Yu Realm, they seem to still be gathering troops; they could launch a second attack at any moment."

Qin Xuan spoke, his brows furrowed. As the defender of Longnan City, it was the first time he felt a sense of powerlessness and helplessness.

Should the Yu Realm gather its forces and strike, the remaining thirty thousand soldiers of Longnan City would almost certainly be unable to resist. The city would fall, and its people would perish.

"The Venerable Supremes of Divine River City have already issued orders, suggesting that we withdraw from Longnan City, abandon its defense, preserve our forces, and return to defend Divine River City."

"Abandon the city?"

Ji Chen heard this and couldn’t help but frown.

Logically, this was indeed the best course of action.

The defense force in Longnan City was too weak. Situated in a perilous location, if the Yu Realm mounted a large-scale attack, Longnan City would be the first to fall; holding out stubbornly would be meaningless and would only result in the pointless loss of thirty thousand lives.

It would be better to retreat and reinforce Divine River City, where the final battle would take place and where reinforcements were urgently needed.

"When do we retreat?" Ji Chen inquired.

"Tomorrow morning," Qin Xuan replied.

"Then... you can return to defend Divine River City; I’ll stay and guard Longnan City by myself."

After a moment of contemplation, Ji Chen suddenly spoke.

Qin Xuan was shocked to hear this and asked in confusion, "Stubbornly defending is meaningless; with the Yu Realm’s army pressing down, the city will surely fall. Why would you stay?"

"There are still things I need to do here," Ji Chen stated.

The Celestial Saint Venerable had mentioned that Longnan City possibly held clues about the Immortal Road, and Ji Chen didn’t want to leave without finding these clues.

The Immortal Ascension Road was something he must seek to save Qu Luoning with an Immortal Elixir.

Previously, in the Forbidden Mountain, he obtained many rare herbs and elixirs and had them sent to the Lingyun Sacred Land for help. However, news soon arrived that those elixirs couldn’t aid Qu Luoning’s recovery significantly.

The Immortal Elixir was Ji Chen’s last hope.

"The terrain of Longnan City is treacherous; staying here alone will be certain death. Ji Chen, please come with us," Qin Xuan urged, trying to dissuade him.

But Ji Chen’s mind was clearly made up.

Eventually, he left the watchtower and returned to his Celestial Residence to recuperate.

Having just broken through to the Nirvana Realm Ninth Layer, Ji Chen’s strength still hadn’t completely stabilized and required some time to adjust.

Gradually, time passed.

In the blink of an eye, it was early the next morning.

"Boom!"

Within Longnan City, the sound of a war drum echoed, not signaling an expedition, but a gathering; today, everyone would be withdrawing from the city.

In just a short moment, the remaining thirty thousand people converged in one of the city’s squares.

Qin Xuan gave a speech.

Meanwhile, Ji Chen sat alone on one side of the square, never uttering a word.

"Is it true? I heard Ji Chen is going to stay and guard Longnan City by himself?"

"This is so risky; with the Yu Realm’s army pressing fiercely, how can he possibly resist?"

Many were discussing, having evidently heard the news.

But ultimately, as Qin Xuan’s words came to a close, the troops began to depart, vanishing into the sky like a cloud, rushing back towards Divine River City.

"Ji Chen, be very careful. If there’s danger, remember to retreat at the first opportunity."

High overhead, Qin Xuan cast one last glance in Ji Chen’s direction in the city, leaving those words before leading the troops away without looking back.

Ji Chen watched them leave until every silhouette faded into the distant void. Only then did he withdraw his gaze.

Without tarrying long, Ji Chen immediately began to wander around Longnan City.

He circled the towering city walls multiple times, not out of leisure, but strengthening the City Defense Array using the Cen Ling Array Manual.

Around three hours later, the array enhancement completed, Ji Chen returned to the city to start his quest for clues about the Immortal Ascension Road.

Alas, despite searching every corner of Longnan City throughout the day, he gained nothing of value.

He extended his Divine Thought, enveloping the ancient city, even probing the depths beneath, reaching dozens of miles down.

"Hmm?"

Finally, Ji Chen made a discovery.

As his Divine Thought reached nearly three hundred miles beneath the earth, he could distinctly sense a special presence.

That presence was exceedingly faint yet astonishingly formidable, as though a Power of the Dao lingered, blocking something.

Ji Chen attempted to force a deep probe but nearly suffered severe backlash from this force, compelling him to retract his Divine Thought.

"What on earth is that?"

Standing atop one of the city’s squares, Ji Chen furrowed his brow deeply.

What he had detected was very peculiar, as if something terrifyingly unknown lay dormant beneath Longnan City’s ground.

"Buzz!"

After a moment’s reflection, he flipped his hand and brought forth the Purple Ink Halberd.

To ascertain its nature, he realized he must venture down to investigate directly.

"Swoosh!"

Black light gleamed; Ji Chen pointed the Emperor’s Halberd at the ground beneath him, his Spiritual Sea trembled slightly, unleashing a torrent of Spiritual Power that struck the ground, creating a deep pit.

"Boom!"

Ji Chen struck repeatedly, digging downward. After about an hour, he had dug nearly two hundred miles, with one-third of the distance remaining before reaching the unknown entity underground.

"What a formidable presence..."

The deeper he went, the more that presence elicited alarm in Ji Chen.

It seemed as if a Great Emperor from ancient times lay dormant beneath, with just the residual pressure causing his heart to tremble involuntarily.

"Buzz!"

Finally, another half-hour elapsed.

Having dug three hundred miles deep, an unmatched, blinding light appeared. There stood an Underground Palace nestled within the strata here.

The Underground Palace wasn’t very large, appearing like a regal building.

A Stone Gate tightly sealed obstructed Ji Chen’s path.

He could sense that the peculiar aura he felt earlier originated from beyond that Stone Gate.

After a few silent breaths, Ji Chen approached the Stone Gate.

He extended his hands to push it open, but found the gate unusually solid; despite exerting great effort, he only managed to create a crack.