Chapter 286: Chapter 286: Mysterious Temple (6)

Li Feng stepped closer and when he saw the scene, his eyes widened in disbelief.

“… What the”

Up ahead, the tunnel suddenly opened into a wide chamber.

But that wasn’t what stunned him… what stunned him was the massive statue standing in the center.

It was a colossal stone statue easily several dozen meters tall as it towered over the chamber.

Time seem to had worn away parts of it, yet its imposing presence still dominated the entire space.

The statue depicted a tall man clad in ancient robes, his long sleeves flowing as if caught in an invisible wind.

One hand rested behind his back, while the other extended forward, a sword in hand as it … pointing directly at them.

However, the most striking feature was the face.

Half of it had crumbled away with time but the remaining half, however, was carved with terrifying precision, as he could see that the gaze of this statue seeming to pierce into the distance.

Li Feng and the others could feel the majesty and strength radiating from the statue and a strange sense of authority that made their chests tighten just from looking at it.

At the base of the statue stood a large stone platform covered in ancient inscriptions, and seem to be carved in the same style Li Feng had seen along the tunnel walls.

Meanwhile, Shui Ruo crouched several meters away, clutching her head as she stared up at the giant figure with wide, ocean-blue eyes.

“I-I thought it was just looking at me .!” she exclaimed defensively when she noticed everyone staring at her with that pitiful gaze.

Liu Yanyue crossed her arms calmly.

“It didn’t.”

Shui Ruo immediately pointed at the statue.

“I swear it did! The head wasn’t like that before!”

Jian Ruyi also tilted her head slightly, studying the statue.

“… It’s just a statue.”

They both couldn’t help but look at Shui Ruo with pitiful eyes, as if they were looking at someone who had finally lost her mind from these long solitude.

“Hey ! Don’t look at me like that !”

Shui Ruo jumped angrily but even as she said it, her gaze lingered on the stone face, which now appeared like a normal statue.

Seeing that the gaze wasn’t directed at her, Shui Ruo couldn’t help but pull at her hair as she began to doubt herself.

’A-Am I really losing my mind ?’

Li Feng stepped forward slowly, his eyes carefully scanning the entire chamber.

The air here felt different but he didn’t sense any immediate danger.

Yue Lan walked beside him, her golden eye quietly observing the statue.

“…Those inscriptions” she murmured softly.

Li Feng nodded.

“They are the same as the ones on the wall.”

He approached the stone platform and brushed away some of the dust covering it.

Ancient characters slowly revealed themselves.

Most were too eroded to read clearly but a few lines remained intact.

Li Feng narrowed his eyes as he read them aloud:

“Praise to the Great Immortal…”

“The Lord of Azure Heaven…”

“Guardian of the Great World…”

At his words, the chamber fell silent.

Even Shui Ruo stopped talking.

Liu Yanyue frowned slightly, as if she had heard that name somewhere before..

“That title again.” Li Feng rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

“Yeah… looks like whoever this ’Lord of Azure Heaven’ is, this place was built for him. But… something feels off, as if something doesn’t fit.”

Shui Ruo slowly stepped closer, still eyeing the statue nervously.

“So… this is like a temple or something?”

Li Feng shook his head.

“… No.”

His gaze moved toward the statue’s extended hand, as he look at the sword pointing at them.

Something about it felt strange.

He slowly looked up, then stepped back a few paces to view it from a different angle.

That’s when he noticed that the tip of the sword wasn’t pointing at them at all…. it seemed aimed directly at the entrance they had come through, as if to deter any approaching threat.

’No wonder Shui Ruo got so startled. Even though it’s just a statue, the aura and majesty of this person seem to have lingered through time… I can’t even imagine how strong he must have been.’

Li Feng quietly thought to himself.

Even with half of the statue’s face destroyed, the remaining expression still carried an indescribable sense of dominance as if the figure had once truly stood above countless beings.

For a moment, Li Feng felt an inexplicable pressure in his chest.

It wasn’t fear.

But more like the instinctive respect one would feel when standing before something ancient and unfathomably powerful.

Meanwhile, Yue Lan’s golden eye quietly studied the statue as well.

Her gaze lingered on the sword pointed toward the entrance for a long moment before she spoke softly.

“… It feels like he was guarding against something.”

Li Feng turn toward her.

“Guarding?”

Yue Lan nodded faintly.

“If the sword is pointed at the entrance, then perhaps this statue wasn’t meant to welcome visitors.”

Her gaze shifted toward the dark tunnel behind them.

“…but to stop or warn something from entering.”

Those words made the others fall silent.

Shui Ruo instinctively hugged her arms.

“Why do you have to say it like that… it sounds even scarier !”

After all, they had just come from that dark tunnel.

Not to mention, she herself had been staying at the far end of that dark chamber for quite some time…and the thought of something lurking there all along with her sent a chill down her spine

Liu Yanyue, however, narrowed her eyes as she looked at the statue again.

“If that’s the case… then what exactly was he guarding?”

Li Feng glanced around the chamber once more.

The hall was vast, yet strangely empty.

No treasure.

No coffin.

No altar.

Only the giant statue, standing in the center like an eternal sentinel.

“…That’s exactly the strange part” Li Feng muttered.

His gaze slowly swept across the floor, the walls, and the ceiling.

“But it definitely feels like this place… is keeping something important.”

Jian Ruyi crossed her arms.

“Then maybe we just haven’t found it yet.”

Li Feng smiled faintly.

“That’s what I’m thinking too.”

He stepped closer to the stone platform beneath the statue and carefully examined the remaining inscriptions, still buried beneath a thin layer of dust.

After brushing some of it away, another fragment of text slowly revealed itself.

“…When the black ocean devours the heavens…”

“…When the deep tides surge through the Daos…”

“…The Great World shall fall into ruin.”

His voice trailed off as the rest of the sentence had long since been completely erased.

Shui Ruo blinked.

“That doesn’t sound like praise anymore.”

Li Feng’s smile faded slightly.

“…Yeah.”

He ran his fingers across the damaged characters, feeling the rough surface beneath his fingertips.

“It sounds more like a warning.”

The others fell silent again.

For a moment, only the faint echoes of their breathing filled the massive chamber.

’Strange… I thought this realm was where the phoenix fell, but judging by what I’ve seen so far, it says otherwise.’

Li Feng thought to himself.

’Or maybe it’s just a coincidence that the phoenix happened to fall where this ’Lord of Azure Heaven’ once lived?’

Just as he was lost in thought, a sudden noise interrupted him.

Rumble…

A low vibration suddenly spread through the stone floor.

Everyone immediately froze.

“Hm ?”

Li Feng’s head snapped toward the wall beside the platform.

Slowly, ancient stone began to grind against stone.

Grrrrrr…

A section of the wall trembled before slowly sliding inward, revealing a narrow passage leading deeper into darkness.

Dust fell from the ceiling as the hidden entrance fully opened.

Li Feng blinked at the sudden sight.

“…What?”

Liu Yanyue walked over to his side and asked softly.

“Did you open it, Junior Li ?”

Li Feng slowly shook his head.

“… No.”

His voice carried a hint of hesitation.

He hadn’t sensed any formation activating.

There was no fluctuation of spiritual qi either.

It was as if the wall had simply… opened on its own.

His eyes instinctively drifted toward the towering statue again.

The massive figure still stood there silently, its ancient sword pointing toward the entrance they had originally come from.

For a brief moment, Li Feng couldn’t help but felt a strange sensation in his chest.

An odd feeling…

As if someone unseen was watching over them.

Or perhaps… protecting them.

But the feeling quickly faded.

Li Feng shook his head slightly before looking back at the newly opened passage.

“…Well.” he said after a moment.

“It seems we don’t really have a choice.”

He had already examined the chamber earlier.

There were no other exits.

No hidden mechanisms.

No formations he could detect.

This newly opened passage was the only path forward.

Jian Ruyi nodded calmly as she already on alert with her hand on her sword hilt.

“Then we should move.”

Shui Ruo, however, looked far less confident.

“…Why do I suddenly feel like this place is getting creepier…?”

Li Feng chuckled lightly.

“Relax. If something wanted to kill us, it probably would’ve done it already.”

His casual words didn’t help Shui Ruo feel any better.

Still, the group eventually gathered themselves.

Li Feng stepped forward first so he could react if any danger appeared.

He had no intention of letting any of these fairies behind him get hurt.

So he wasn’t playing around anymore.

Without hesitation, he walked into the dark passage first.

The others followed closely behind him.

_

_

_

Soon, their figures disappeared into the darkness of the newly revealed tunnel.

And the chamber slowly fell silent once again.

Only the towering statue remained, motionless and ancient.

But the statue’s broken face, its single remaining eye that gazed endlessly into the distance… had now turned slightly toward the dark entrance where Li Feng’s group had come from.

And its long stone sword continued to point firmly toward the old entrance…

As if eternally guarding the darkness beyond it.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep