Chapter 99: Entering the Palace

Chapter 99: Entering the Palace

Ancient dust fell from the gate’s surface. Darkness appeared beyond the entrance.

Not ordinary darkness.

The light surrounding the palace seemed to vanish inside it. Even the sunlight above the land became dull as it reached the open gates.

Professor Sy stared in disbelief.

"The gates opened by themselves..."

Lothe, hidden near the outer edge of the base, watched the palace carefully.

His [Qi Sight] activated.

The Ancient Palace’s outer formation had shifted.

The energy that had previously sealed the gates was now flowing inward, forming a long path through the darkness.

But Lothe noticed something else.

The formation wasn’t opening because the humans had solved it.

It was opening because something inside had activated it.

Or perhaps—

It was inviting them in.

Seana stood beside him, her expression serious.

"Do you feel that?"

Lothe nodded.

"The palace is drawing Qi from everyone around it."

The moment the gates opened, every cultivator in the area felt their Qi Core tremble.

It was subtle, but impossible to miss.

The palace was absorbing their energy.

Not enough to injure them.

Just enough to establish a connection.

Seana’s fingers tightened around her sleeve.

"It’s testing us."

"Or marking us."

Lothe’s gaze became colder.

He didn’t like either possibility.

Inside the command base, General Ashford stepped forward.

"The gates are open."

Lemo Drackar smiled.

"Finally."

General Ashford raised his hand.

"Before we enter, everyone must understand the conditions."

The younger cultivators gathered around the central table.

The holographic array activated again, displaying a detailed image of the Ancient Palace.

"We don’t know how large the interior is," General Ashford said. "We don’t know whether time passes normally inside. We don’t know what kind of creatures or formations are waiting beyond the entrance."

He paused.

"And most importantly, we don’t know whether the gate will remain open after we enter."

Jules folded his arms.

"Then we should move quickly."

General Ashford’s gaze hardened.

"We will enter in groups."

Lemo frowned.

"Groups?"

"The core team will enter first. The support teams will follow after we confirm that the entrance is stable."

"That gives the first group an advantage."

"It also gives them the highest risk," General Ashford replied.

Lemo looked dissatisfied, but he didn’t argue.

General Ashford continued. "Nyren, Oren, Adrian, Asher, Justin, Jules, the Argon sisters, Elowen, Caelis, Morran, Selia, Kaelis, Daniel, Diego, and the remaining selected cultivators will form the first expedition group."

Professor Sy stepped forward.

"I will be entering as well."

Lucan looked at him. He had separated from Lothe and Seana during the earlier outbreak.

"Professor, you don’t have to."

"I’m the only person who has studied the formation long enough to recognize certain structures," Professor Sy replied. "If an ancient mechanism activates inside, you’ll need someone who understands its design."

Lucan sighed.

"Then I’m coming with you."

General Ashford looked at him.

"Your ability will be useful for scouting."

Lucan nodded.

The General looked toward the rest of the expedition members.

"Each group will maintain communication using the resonance stones."

He handed several small black stones to the younger cultivators.

"They are connected to the base. If the connection is broken, assume the group has entered an isolated zone."

Nyren took one of the stones.

The moment her fingers touched it, the stone glowed faintly with icy light.

Oren placed his stone into his pocket.

Adrian looked at the palace.

"How long are we waiting?"

General Ashford looked toward the gates.

"Ten minutes."

Lemo immediately objected.

"Why?"

"Because we need to observe the entrance."

General Ashford raised his hand.

Several drones flew toward the Ancient Palace, carrying arrays designed to measure energy fluctuations.

The drones crossed the outer boundary.

For a few seconds, nothing happened.

Then—

The first drone disappeared.

No explosion.

No warning.

It simply vanished from the projection.

The second drone followed.

Then the third.

Professor Sy’s expression tightened.

"The palace is destroying anything without a compatible energy signature."

Lemo’s gaze became cold.

"Then we use cultivators."

General Ashford looked at the younger generation.

"Everyone prepare."

The expedition members activated their abilities.

Nyren’s Ice Qi spread around her body.

Oren lifted his hand, causing several loose stones to rise from the ground.

Adrian’s metal weapons floated behind him.

Asher drew his sword halfway from its sheath.

Purple lightning danced around Justin’s arms.

The Argon sisters were surrounded by gentle currents of wind.

Elowen’s hair fluttered even though there was no breeze.

Caelis’ sleeves shifted as thin green vines curled around his wrists.

Morran Bale’s body turned slightly silver, his flesh becoming liquid metal.

Selia closed her eyes, listening to the air around them.

Kaelis opened his medical case and prepared several healing vials.

At the edge of the base, Lothe and Seana observed everything.

They had no intention of entering with the main group.

Not yet.

They needed to understand the palace’s first reaction.

General Ashford moved toward the entrance.

"I’ll accompany the first group to the outer threshold."

Lemo Drackar stepped beside him.

"So will I."

Estelle, Roan, and the other leaders followed.

The younger cultivators gathered behind them.

The entire group began walking toward the Ancient Palace.

The ground between the research base and the structure was covered in gray dust. No vegetation grew there, and the air carried a faint metallic smell.

The closer they got to the gates, the heavier the pressure became.

Nyren felt the temperature around her drop.

Oren felt the space surrounding his body resist his Telekinesis.

Adrian’s weapons trembled behind him.

Even the strongest cultivators began to feel their Qi circulation slow.

The Ancient Palace was suppressing them.

Not attacking.

Just reminding them that they were entering its territory.

They finally reached the gates.

The darkness beyond the entrance seemed to move.

It was impossible to see what lay inside.

General Ashford stopped.

"Everyone, remember the formation."

Professor Sy looked at the ground.

The ancient Runes beneath the dust had begun glowing.

"They’re selecting the entrance sequence," he whispered.

A faint light passed across the group.

One cultivator suddenly staggered.

His resonance stone cracked.

He was immediately pushed backward by an invisible force.

"Level 7 cultivation," Professor Sy said. "The palace is rejecting him."

The cultivator gritted his teeth but was forced away from the entrance.

General Ashford turned toward the younger cultivators.

"Only those below Level 7 can proceed."

One by one, the members of the first group stepped toward the gates.

The Ancient Palace responded differently to each person.

When Nyren approached, frost spread across the stone floor.

When Oren stepped forward, the air compressed around him.

When Adrian approached, the metal weapons on his back began humming.

When Asher crossed the boundary, a faint sword cry echoed from somewhere inside the palace.

The palace recognized their abilities.

Or perhaps it recognized their bloodlines.

Lothe noticed the change.

His eyes narrowed.

"That isn’t random."

Seana looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"The palace is responding to each person individually."

He watched Nyren enter.

Then Oren.

Then Adrian and Asher.

Every cultivator triggered a different reaction.

Some were accepted immediately.

Others were delayed for several seconds.

A few were rejected.

The palace was examining them.

Classifying them.

Choosing what to do with them.

Finally, Lothe felt the Jade Token in his Soul grow warm again.

This time, the pulse was stronger.

The gates seemed to turn toward him.

For a brief moment, the darkness inside the palace shifted.

A faint red glow appeared deep within the entrance.

Lothe immediately placed one hand against his chest, suppressing its energy.

The glow disappeared.

Seana noticed.

"What happened?"

"The palace sensed something in me."

"What is it? Should we enter?"

Lothe stared at the gates.

"Not yet."

The main expedition group had already crossed the threshold.

One after another, they disappeared into the darkness.

Nyren was one of the last to enter.

Just before crossing the boundary, she paused and looked back toward the research base.

Her gaze swept across the soldiers, the commanders, and the surrounding trees.

For one brief moment, it seemed as though her eyes passed over Lothe’s position.

The Veiled Identity Talisman concealed him perfectly.

Nyren looked away.

Then she stepped into the palace.

The darkness swallowed her.

The gates began closing.

General Ashford turned toward the remaining support team.

"Prepare to follow."

The enormous stone doors slowly moved inward.

Lothe watched from the edge of the forest.

"We’re running out of time," Seana whispered.

Lothe’s expression became focused.

"Then we enter separately."

He placed his hand on her waist.

The Jade Token in his soul pulsed once more.

The darkness beyond the gates suddenly opened like an eye.

Lothe and Seana vanished from the forest.

A silent spatial distortion carried them toward the Ancient Palace.

The gates were almost closed.

At the final moment, Lothe placed a Spatial Anchor inside the darkness beyond the threshold.

CLICK.

The anchor formed.

Then he and Seana stepped through the Void Step together.

The darkness swallowed them.

Behind them, the stone gates closed completely.

BOOOOOOM.

The ancient palace fell silent once more.

But deep within its depths, a hidden formation detected the arrival of a new energy signature.

A pair of invisible eyes opened in the darkness.

And this time, they were looking directly at Lothe and Seana.​