Chapter 399: Key

　　Accompanying this loud sound, the ground surrounding the throne actually started to crack!

　　With the throne as the center, the cracks expanded in all directions. Then, something seemed to be flowing out of the cracks.

　　Chu Liuyue focused on it and realized that it was actually… golden sand!

　　Countless particles of sparkling gold sand kept flowing out like fountain water, but the sand didn’t flow outward in all directions. Instead, the sand gradually accumulated upward!

　　Chu Liuyue then realized that it wasn’t actual sand but crushed crystal pieces!

　　Those tiny crushed crystals gradually gathered together and presented a strange, heptagon-shaped, and thin, nail-sized crystal.

　　Those thin heptagonal crystals connected to each other and formed layers in an upward manner.

　　The thin crystals on top weren’t all tightly connected. On the other hand, most of them had gaps in between, like they were arranged together by some sort of magical mechanism.

　　Very quickly, a crystal wall—shaped like a golden fence—appeared in front of Chu Liuyue.

　　Not only one! The same thing was happening for the surrounding cracks.

　　Chu Liuyue knew that she couldn’t just sit and watch. If she did so, it would be impossible for her to get out once the walls of golden crystals were built.

　　She immediately stood up and planned to leave the throne, but the moment she stood up, everything suddenly stopped.

　　It was as if someone pressed the ‘pause’ button and stopped everything here.

　　Chu Liuyue paused, and she looked serious. Then, she carefully took one step forward.

　　Buzz!

　　A soft buzzing noise was heard.

　　Ripples suddenly swirled in the empty space in front of her.

　　The golden lines gently expanded like water embroidery before disappearing into thin air.

　　But Chu Liuyue was stunned. There’s actually an extra barrier here?! Moreover, with my previous attempt, this barrier is definitely not something I can currently solve!

　　She looked at the side and tried twice.

　　As expected, the entire throne was covered by a locked barrier.

　　Chu Liuyue sat back down on the throne.

　　Everything in her surroundings immediately returned to normal.

　　The soft moving noise could be heard, and the bright, golden lights illuminated the entire space. However, Chu Liuyue’s heart gradually sank to the bottom.

　　The walls made from golden crystals were the height of a person. Looking at it as a whole, it almost turned into a contorted maze!

　　And Chu Liuyue was stuck right in the middle of the maze!

　　Bang!

　　Tuan Zi suddenly jumped out and rushed straight for the barrier.

　　Following a low sound, Tuan Zi bounced back.

　　Chu Liuyue agilely caught it.

　　Tuan Zi rubbed its head. It hurts!

　　“Tuan Zi, are you okay?” Chu Liuyue asked worriedly.

　　Tuan Zi stood up. It refused to give up and flew toward the barrier again. At the same time, it opened its mouth and bit down harshly.

　　Golou!

　　Chu Liuyue’s eyelids twitched. Why… does this sound amiss?

　　Seeing that Tuan Zi seemed to be glued to the barrier motionless, Chu Liuyue couldn’t help but yell, “Tuan Zi?”

　　Tuan Zi didn’t react much, but Chu Liuyue saw that its tail had moved slightly.

　　She became increasingly worried as she directly reached out and grabbed Tuan Zi.

　　Tuan Zi immediately used its claws to cover its face.

　　Chu Liuyue pried its claws apart.

　　“What happened to…” Her voice trailed off.

　　The human and the fiend stared at each other.

　　To alleviate the awkwardness, Tuan Zi bared its teeth.

　　Chu Liuyue momentarily stayed silent when she saw Tuan Zi’s white teeth that were stained red. “You cracked your teeth?”

　　Tuan Zi hurriedly covered its mouth and shook its head with all its might. No! No! I just bit with too much strength, and my teeth are slightly loose, so it started bleeding.

　　Chu Liuyue was speechless. She sighed helplessly and lightly patted Tuan Zi’s forehead before looking at the glowing barrier.

　　She knew how incredible Tuan Zi’s teeth were, but even Tuan Zi couldn’t do anything about the barrier…

　　With my current abilities, how am I supposed to go out? Chu Liuyue knitted her brows and thought for quite some time as she subconsciously leaned backward.

　　There was something poking her from behind.

　　Oh, yes. I almost forgot about the words on the back—Hang on! Chu Liuyue’s eyes brightened up. What did it write?

　　“East of the drowning water, gold also.”

　　Gold… When heaven and earth mixed, they gave birth to the five elements—gold, wood, water, fire, and earth! Could this ‘gold’ be referring to the five elements?

　　The five elements counteracted each other. Amongst them, fire could counteract gold!

　　Chu Liuyue placed Tuan Zi on her shoulders before she took out the Heavenly Square Cauldron again.

　　The transparent karmic fire burnt silently within.

　　After taking it out, Chu Liuyue gathered all her focus and injected all her strength into the Heavenly Square Cauldron.

　　The fire moved according to what her heart desired.

　　Hong!

　　The transparent karmic fire immediately rose up and lunged for the barrier!

　　Huala!

　　The two met with each other and let out a screeching sound.

　　The golden barrier actually started to burn!

　　…

　　Just when Chu Liuyue was facing all sorts of situations in the imperial mausoleum, it was perfectly quiet outside Golden Inheritance Peak.

　　Zhong Qi and the rest stood at the mountain peak, and they stared at the slowly moving circular plate with grave faces.

　　Ever since the duo disappeared, there were no more sounds.

　　They couldn’t enter the imperial mausoleum through this circular plate, so they could only watch it move from the side. They couldn’t do anything else.

　　Nobody knew what the imperial mausoleum was like now.

　　The calmer it was, the more uneasy they became.

　　Suddenly, a sound broke through the air.

　　Zhong Qi immediately looked up and enthusiastically went forward when he saw the incoming person. “Elder Ye.”

　　The incoming person was Ye Zhiting. He was originally repairing Jiuyou Tower in the academy when he suddenly saw the warning fireworks. He then knew that the imperial mausoleum was in trouble, so he rushed over.

　　Ye Zhiting was about to speak when he saw the circular plate slowly moving at the mountain peak. He couldn’t help but be shocked. “The imperial mausoleum has been activated?”

　　Zhong Qi’s lips moved, and he hung his head low. “Elder Ye, forgive us for our incompetence, which allowed the two of them to take advantage of us!”

　　Ye Zhiting’s expression was solemn. “Two of them? Did you confirm their identities?”

　　Zhong Qi looked ashamed. “…We couldn’t; they were too fast. When we discovered them, they had already reached the mountain peak. They then directly activated the imperial mausoleum, so we couldn’t…”

　　Ye Zhiting was increasingly confused. “How can that be? One can’t open Golden Inheritance Peak’s barrier without the key, so how did they go in silently?”

　　Zhong Qi and the rest became silent.

　　Ye Zhiting suddenly paused. Could it be that… those two people had the key to Golden Inheritance Peak’s barrier? But there is only one such key, and it’s with His Majesty!

　　“Someone stole His Majesty’s key!”