si-mexico Chapter 684 The Stone Lock in the Emperor's Hand
Chapter 684 The Stone Lock in the Emperor's Hand
The memory that Ningguang experienced clearly came from the memories of the ancestors who lived in Guili Plain, and it also corresponds to the era in which this site was built.
"It seems that this relic truly embodies the hopes of our ancestors, and this desire to quell wars and ward off evil spirits has been preserved along with this stone lock. Perhaps every time we open a stone lock, we can learn more about that era."
Xu Ning had experience with exorcism in Inazuma, so he had a clear understanding of Ningguang's experience.
"It seems that to unlock the remaining stone locks, we still need to get those round jade stones first. Since the guest elder said that we should seek advice from the Emperor, let's set off. Which statue should we go to? Hmm, it seems that this place is about the same distance from Dihua Island, Qingyun Peak, and Dunyu Mausoleum, right?"
Each of the three locations has a statue of the Emperor for the Seven Heavens. Xu Ning is far less familiar with the environment of Liyue than Ning Guang, so he went directly to her for advice.
Ningguang smiled.
"There are eight known statues of the Emperor on this land of Liyue: the Rocky Abyss, the Jade Palace, the Cloud Sea, the Jade Field, the Cloud Peak, the Dihua Plain, and the Upper Valley and the Southern Hill in the Jade Valley. Which one do you think we should go to?"
Xu Ning didn't expect Ningguang to throw the question back at him, but after a slight surprise, he immediately understood.
"Exactly eight? Then we really are going to have to traverse all the beautiful landscapes of Liyue. Without further ado, shall we set off?"
"Hey, you big drunkards, have you been ignoring me all this time? You just left without even saying goodbye, and I helped you out quite a bit!"
Yes, yes, you've been a great help, you messenger who doesn't even remember the Emperor's instructions.
However, if Hu Tao hadn't called out to him, Xu Ning would have completely forgotten about the guy who had been carrying a shovel around the whole time.
"Ahem, how could I forget you? I haven't even had a chance to tell you yet. Your work is actually more important, isn't it, our Lord Tianquan?"
Xu Ning really didn't want to have a little tail following her around when she was with Ning Guang, but she didn't know how to get rid of her right away, so she could only hint to Ning Guang to find a reason to come out.
Ningguang seemed to have planned this all along, and directly instructed Hu Tao: "If our deduction is correct, in order to collect all the jade orbs, we will probably have to inquire about all the Emperor statues. For the rest of the days, we will just keep traveling and traveling..."
Hu Tao was quite interested in Xu Ning's special ability to teleport, but if they did nothing but travel back and forth, it would indeed be a bit boring.
"But there's still something I need you to do here. First, figure out what kind of elemental power each of the remaining eight stone locks requires. My suggestion is that you go back to the original Guili camp and have them help you send a message to Yelan. With her help, you should be able to finish this quickly. Then when we come back, we can start opening the ruins directly."
Upon hearing Ningguang's instructions, Hu Tao suddenly felt that the task seemed even more challenging, and readily agreed.
"As expected of Lord Tianquan, who is known for his perfect strategy, he thinks about things much more comprehensively than the average person."
As Xu Ning and Ningguang unfurled their Wind Wings and flew towards Luhua Pond, Xu Ning couldn't help but praise Ningguang's arrangements.
While on the solitary peak of Cuijue Slope, Xu Ning noticed an unactivated teleportation anchor point near Luhua Pond, which was basically the closest teleportation anchor point to him at the moment, so he flew over with Ningguang.
Adhering to the principle of starting from the farthest point and moving to the nearest, the two first teleported to the Seven Gods statues in the Layered Rock Abyss.
The statue of the deity in the Layered Rock Abyss is located near the Cinnabar Cliff. The statue of the emperor leans on the throne, facing the huge pit of the Layered Rock Abyss, but his gaze is fixed on a square stone in his hand.
Xu Ning and Ning Guang had been standing in front of the statue for a while.
From that moment on, Xu Ning disregarded whether he was facing a stone statue or not, respectfully bowed, and then briefly explained his purpose to the statue.
But the statue remained completely still.
"Does this mean I should kowtow to the Emperor to show my sincerity?"
Ningguang laughed and immediately urged Xu Ning to kowtow.
“If we’re going to kowtow, let’s do it together, with the Emperor as our witness, as if we’ve bowed to Heaven and Earth.”
Xu Ning and Ning Guang laughed and joked for a while, then sat side by side on a large blue stone, quietly enjoying the rare moment of tranquility.
"Why is Your Majesty looking at that stone?"
The face of the emperor on the throne was hidden in the shadow of his hood, so his expression could not be seen, but his overall posture showed that he was carefully examining the stone in his hand.
"That's not a stone. It's a token of the covenant that the ancient Dust Demon God Gui Zhong gave to His Majesty. It's said to be a stone lock. If you can unlock it, you can obtain all the wisdom and technology of the Dust Demon God. But it seems that even after the Dust Demon God perished in Gui Li Yuan, His Majesty still couldn't solve this mystery."
Xu Ning hadn't expected there to be this reason behind it.
Helping Ningguang to her feet, Xu Ning looked at the stone and said, "Although it's not unlocked, I'm afraid the Emperor already knew what's inside. Is it that he can't unlock it, or that he dares not unlock it...? Wait, you said this is also a stone lock? Is it possible that..."
Before Xu Ning could finish speaking, he saw that the square stone in the Emperor's statue's hand suddenly had several protrusions, and then countless stone strips crisscrossed and fell, with a series of soft clicking sounds. As the intricate and exquisite steps were carried out, the stone lock was gradually opened.
A golden jade ball rolled out from the center of the stone lock and fell into Xu Ning's hand. Then the stone lock returned to its original simple and unadorned appearance.
But I never expected the jade ball to be hidden in this location!
Looking at the jade ball in his hand, Xu Ning suddenly had a sudden realization.
He knew where the memory that had made Ningguang so engrossed came from.
Those ancient war memories were deposited within this jade sphere. After it entered the stone lock and activated the mechanism, the hidden memories and thoughts inside were released and received by the person who unlocked it.
With a clue, the rest became much easier.
Xu Ning and Ning Guang bowed to the statue again and immediately began their journey through time, taking each jade ball into their hands.
The first six locations were fine, but Xu Ning had never been to the northernmost part of Liyue, Shenyu Valley, and no teleportation anchor points were activated. Xu Ning could only teleport to Mt. Aozang first, and then use the Wind Wings to fly towards Shenyu Valley.
The scenery of Shenyu Valley is beautiful, but it was shown to Xu Ning for nothing.
Xu Ning, whose only thought was to get the ball quickly, admired the scenery here as being more pleasant than other places, but he only glanced at it briefly before moving on to the next place to get the jade ball.
First, take Nanling, then go to Shanggu. With the jade balls of the local deities in hand, all eight jade balls will enter Xu Ning's Hidden Cave.
Several days had already passed by then.
"I wonder if that little rascal, Walnut, will be able to keep his patience?"
"As long as she is willing to go to Guiliyuan and pass the message to Yelan, Yelan will naturally complete the rest perfectly."
Compared to Xu Ning's worries, Ning Guang seemed to have more confidence in her capable assistant.
When the two of them came out of the teleportation point of Luhua Pond and rushed over to look for Hu Tao, they found that there were already several people standing in the small square in front of the ruins.
Needless to say, Ye Lan was present, and even the Jade Balance Star Lord Ke Qing, who still had her hair in a topknot, had condescended to come here.
Another child carrying a small basket followed behind Xiangling with remarkable composure, seemingly discussing something with her.
"It's so rare to meet so many good friends!"
Xu Ning laughed and greeted everyone, only to see Ke Qing respectfully bow and say "Hello, Instructor" to him.
"Oh dear, I stopped being an instructor a long time ago, and Miss Keqing, you are now a Liyue Seven Star, so I should call you Lady Keqing."
Upon hearing Xu Ning's words, Ke Qing blushed immediately and was momentarily at a loss for words, unsure how to continue the conversation.
Ningguang stepped forward, rolled her eyes at Xu Ning, and said, "You've never been so polite to me before. Call me 'sir'. Let's just call each other friends and use our names."
"I didn't expect so many holders of the Eye of God to come. It seems you've figured out the properties of these stone locks by now, haven't you?"