"Look quickly, there seems to be something on top of that stone pillar!"
The group hastened their steps and walked over. The distant stone pillars stood in a triangle, tall and imposing, quite extraordinary.
Zhang Xiaoman suppressed the excitement in his heart and followed the others to the side of the stone pillar. From this position, he could already see what was at the center of the stone pillars.
It was a cylindrical stone platform, not very large, about the height of an adult’s waist. On it was an engraving, a pattern that was all too familiar to Zhang Xiaoman.
Because on the palm of his right hand, he also had an identical mark!
"The insides and outsides of these three stone pillars are engraved with a seven-pointed Star, a shield, and an eye, respectively, and then there’s a complete pattern on this platform in the middle... Brother Man, what exactly is this place?"
Yang Yangyang started asking. In the brief time just now, he had already run a circle around the stone pillars.
A smile appeared on Zhang Xiaoman’s face as he said, "If I’m not mistaken, this should be the place I’ve been looking for..."
Seeing him hold back information, Xun You grew impatient and said:
"Brother Man, what exactly is this place for? It looks to me like an altar. What do you intend to do by finding it? Could there be mechanisms inside it?"
Zhang Xiaoman shook his head somewhat helplessly in response, saying:
"According to the records, this was once the site of an alliance between the Three Great Sanctuaries, hidden with strong space fluctuations. My purpose for coming here was to try and see if I could activate it and find that anomaly in space that our predecessors could never find..."
By this time, he was no longer deliberately concealing anything, boldly stating his speculation.
Because he could feel, as he got closer to that stone platform, that a faint sense of warmth had already begun to rise in the palm of his hand.
"Anomaly in space... activating... Brother Man, you’re not suggesting that you and your organization are not ordinary people, are you..."
Xun You said with a strange expression, feeling that the guy introduced by Boss Xiao seemed to have an even more severe case of ’chuunibyou’ than himself.
"When the gods fell, the maiden was praying... The gate to the Original Realm shall open... Courage and wisdom shall form the bridge, the Engraving in the hands of the chosen one will become the key to unlock the Final Gate..."
Yang Yangyang, however, silently recited the riddle Zhang Xiaoman had mentioned before. The more he spoke, the more shocked he became on his face, until at last, he couldn’t help but cry out:
"Original Realm... Engraving... Ah... Could this be the Final Gate! You are the chosen one!!?"
The others were startled by his suddenly raised voice, and when they came to their senses, they all looked confused.
"Could it be, Yang Yang also has an outbreak of ’chuunibyou’ like him?"
But Zhang Xiaoman looked at him with some surprise, not expecting this guy to have guessed the same thing as him.
Indeed, according to the riddle, he too suspected that this would be the place where the Final Gate could be opened.
He still remembered that on the front of the Sect Establishment Order, there was an engraving of the character "Original."
"Original," in this context, naturally refers to the "Original Realm!"
"You’re right... and I think I’ve found the place..."
At this moment, Zhang Xiaoman had already arrived at the edge of the stone platform, his hand beginning to emanate a white light gradually.
"This mark is called the ’Eye of the Starry Sky,’ and this is my destination..."
"Yang Yangyang, Xun You, Ji Xiaoqi, and Lord Bear, thank you all for accompanying me here. I’m sorry, there are some things I’ve been keeping from you..."
"But please forgive my caution, the aggregation of the Star Alliance is crucial, I had to do this..."
Zhang Xiaoman’s right hand slowly approached the Seven-pointed Star Array above the stone platform. As it drew nearer, the glow from his palm grew more intense, accompanied by an unbearable burning sensation.
The others were still wondering what Zhang Xiaoman had just said when a blinding white light caught the corner of their eyes, drawing their attention. They all looked towards Zhang Xiaoman’s right hand with shocked faces.
"Darkness is about to invade, and the Three Great Sanctuaries that protect the world shall reappear! The efforts of our predecessors will not vanish! Today, I must restore the inheritance! From now on... no one will ever fight alone!"
Zhang Xiaoman didn’t stop moving, a strong burning sensation causing him to sweat profusely.
Enduring the pain, he struggled to press his right hand toward the Seven-pointed Star Array above the altar, and the words from his mouth grew increasingly impassioned, as if this would lessen the pain he was enduring.
"This, this... must be a joke... Brother Man, you really are not an ordinary person... I was just talking casually before!"
Xun You stared blankly at everything happening, mumbling something to himself.
Yang Yangyang, Ji Xiaoqi, and Bell were even more horrified at this moment.
At this instant, their worldviews were completely shattered. Faced with this extraordinary scene, their chests began to heave violently.
"Extraordinary Power... there really exists Extraordinary Power in this world! I, I have finally seen a real Transcendent! It seems my previous pursuits all had meaning!"
Yang Yangyang clenched his fists. Instead of being even slightly afraid, he was now even more excited.
The others felt similar; after all, they were youths with common interests. They too had long yearned for this Extraordinary Power, which existed only in legends.
In the past they had engaged in archaeological adventures, but that was because everyone knew that such strange things didn’t exist in the world, so they buried their expectations deep in their hearts, finding solace in exploring those legendary relics.
But now, as real Extraordinary Power was displayed before their eyes, all their hidden desires were awakened, and at this moment their blood seemed to began to boil.
Zhang Xiaoman didn’t pay attention to the statuses of those behind him. He was fully focused on activating the gang, the pain in his hand a hundred times more intense than anything he’d felt before.
Under the starry sky.
Within the Stone Pillar.
White light now filled the surrounding space, illuminating this small area.
A strong gust of wind spread outward from Zhang Xiaoman as the center, stirring up the sand and dust from the ground and causing several onlooking youths to squint against the blowing debris.
"Everyone, back away!"
Zhang Xiaoman shouted. Unsure of what would happen next, he managed to warn the others.
At that moment, a strange feeling arose in Zhang Xiaoman’s heart.
As if from the depths of the Endless Void, countless gazes peered at him, filled with greed, cunning, and malice.
Simultaneously, countless voices rose around him, shouting in anger, resentment, and roaring.
Their might, as if galaxies were collapsing, Sun and Moon without light; their force, akin to the sky falling and the earth flipping, vast and boundless.
At that moment, a sense of helplessness swelled in his heart.
"Ah! All of you, get lost!!!"
Zhang Xiaoman’s face twisted fiercely, his eyes bloodshot, as he frantically pressed his right hand down onto the altar.
The next moment, as his palm made contact with the altar, a huge noise erupted, sending a shockwave from him outwards.
The entire sky over the Pacific Ocean turned into daylight at that moment, with countless thunderbolts surging above. In an instant, the area surrounding the Stone Array was filled with flying sand and rocks, as if the end of the world had come.