While examining the area, Chen Chuan noticed a detail.
Apart from the first portrait, which depicted the Grand Ancestor of the Chang dynasty, the other two portraits appeared to depict figures of imperial clan descent.
Yet both wore imperial robes and stood alongside the founder under the title of emperor. He could roughly deduce that the two were very likely upper-tier powers of the Chang dynasty, meaning their imperial status had probably been posthumously conferred by later generations.
Placing these portraits here was not solely for ancestral worship or to demonstrate rank; it likely also served to intimidate and deter outsiders.
Tampering with portraits of upper-tier powers would undoubtedly draw their attention. Most people would naturally feel wary, making this without question the most effective form of protection.
However, setting aside whether the Chang dynasty's upper-tier powers were still around, even if they truly still walked this world, this was now the era of the Republic of Great Shun, and they might not necessarily dare show their faces.
With a shift of his thought, all three portraits above floated up and landed to the side. Nothing happened in the process.
With the obstruction gone, three gilt-lacquered wooden boxes were revealed inside the alcoves behind.
His eyes glinted slightly, and the three boxes floated out, drifting slowly before him. The lids opened on their own.
Inside were platters covered with cloths of different colors—white, red, and cyan from left to right.
After removing the cloths, three white jade slips were revealed beneath, bearing the same densely intricate patterns, identical to the Heavenly Being secret diagram he had seen not long ago.
Yet whether it was these three before him or the ones he had just received from Mi Zhuzi, their dimensions and appearance were virtually identical, and both sets happened to number three.
Was this a coincidence? Or was there a specific reason?
Yet there were differences as well: these three had no fissures on their surfaces, making them very close to the photographs of the secret diagrams Gao Xinjian had once shown him.
In addition, these three were actually slightly smaller than the ones Mi Zhuzi had given him. An ordinary person might have trouble telling the difference, but to his eyes, it was glaringly obvious.
What was the reason behind this?
Did the crux lie with the fractures?
If so, could these cracks be related to obtaining the secret diagram bloodline?
The count of three, at least, corresponded exactly to the three individuals he knew of: Emperor Wenguang, Prince Lin, and Prince Yong.
Likewise, he could not sense anything extraordinary from them for now, but now that they were in his hands, he could take his time studying them later.
Unlike the three diagrams Mi Zhuzi had handed over, these belonged to Senior Cao; there would be no need whatsoever to turn them in afterward.
He also realized then that Empress Cao's explicit designation of Senior Cao to inherit this vault meant she had likely known, consciously or otherwise, what was hidden here.
Come to think of it, if an ordinary person could acquire the secret diagram bloodline through this, they might very well soar to prominence overnight.
He glanced around a few more times. Seeing that nothing had been overlooked, he stowed away all the jade slips.
Just as he turned to leave, the three imperial portraits set aside suddenly spontaneously combusted, swiftly reducing to flying ash.
Chen Chuan raised an eyebrow. Was this a deliberate demonstration of presence? It seemed the upper-tier powers of the Chang dynasty had not vanished entirely, though it was hard to say how much of them remained.
Without another look, he left directly. As for the rest of the items, they could remain here for now until he had time to deal with them in the future.
***
At that very moment, on the other side of the convergence zone, three airships bearing the crest of the Gai clan were speeding toward the ocean.
Gai Shuhe stood on his airship with a grim countenance, having remained motionless in place for a long time.
At this point, a valiant-looking young woman in her twenties came up behind him, glanced at him, and spoke:
"Father, the puppet dynasty's momentum is overwhelming, and even Youdu has fallen. Our Gai family held off the Great Shun army alone for ten days, and nine-tenths of our Gai clan troops have perished. We have more than fulfilled our duty to His Majesty. Clans like the Wangs and Gengs could hardly wait to surrender to the puppet regime the moment they heard the news."
Gai Shuhe gave a cold snort and remarked mockingly, "The puppet dynasty is unlike any dynasty before it. It will never truly accept them; they are merely clinging to a fleeting survival."
He tilted his head up slightly. "However, that is not what I am thinking about."
The young woman asked in confusion, "Then Father is..."
Gai Shuhe sighed. "Our Gai clan has flourished for over five hundred years, ever since Lord Lü. It must not fall into ruin in my generation. Our journey to the Ying Continent convergence zone is vast and fraught with unpredictable peril. I truly lack the confidence to overcome this trial."
The young woman said, "Father, with Brother and me to aid you, we will surely break through these ten thousand li of waves and allow our Gai clan to branch out and thrive across the Ying Continent."
Gai Shuhe said, "In the next generation, only you, Ying'er, hold any hope of becoming a Xuanji martial artist. As for your elder brothers, I never counted on them—so long as they don't cause trouble for me, that's enough."
Just then, they spotted a white floating line appearing over the surface of the sea ahead, stretching into the distance seemingly without end.
His spirits lifted. "We are almost at the White Glow Path. Have everyone get ready, and let your Uncle Sheng's airship take the lead."
"Yes, Father."
Gai Shuhe stepped forward a few paces, gazing fixedly at that white line.
Attempting to cross from the East Continent to the Ying Continent within the convergence zone was virtually an impossible feat, as an immeasurable ocean separated the two continents.
In truth, if it were merely distance, that would still be manageable. The boundless waters were not devoid of islands; at worst, one could seek refuge on one for a while.
The real issue was that these waters teemed with powerful aberrants, some of which were true large aberrants. He had witnessed them several times in the past—they truly blotted out the sky and obscured the sun, far beyond what ordinary Xuanji martial artists could contend with. Thus, once entering the boundless sea, one had to find land to survive.
Fortunately, within this ocean slumbered "Duke Nightglow," a creature that slept for a millennium at a time and liked to rest spanning two continents. In theory, so long as one followed its length, one could reach the opposite shore. That land was very likely the Ying Continent, and even if not, it would still be a massive continent.
When the Gai clan initially entered the convergence zone, looking at the present through the lessons of past dynasties, they had judged that the Ding dynasty would most likely be annihilated by Great Shun. Unwilling to be buried alongside the regime, they had continually plotted an escape route.
During an exploratory foray out to sea, they had by chance discovered this aberrant. Overjoyed, they had quietly formulated their grand plan.
While Duke Nightglow slumbered, large aberrants did not dare approach recklessly. And so long as Xuanji martial artists were present, smaller aberrants were easy enough to handle, making the path quite safe overall.
However, over all these years, not a single Gai clan member sent to explore had ever reached its end. The journey could prove exceedingly long, yet only by traveling this way did they stand any chance of throwing off pursuers and escaping with their lives.
At that moment, one of the three airships accelerated forward, quickly pulling away from the lead craft. Yet just as it drew close to the white line, machine-gun fire abruptly erupted, and several martial artists of the Gai clan leaped down onto the sea surface, clashing with unidentified figures.
After a short while, the fighting subsided.
Gai Shuhe tapped his boundary credential and asked in a low voice, "Who was that?"
Each of the three main airships was equipped with field creatures to transmit signals—the most advanced field equipment the Gai clan had purchased from the West Continent. Hearing his inquiry, the operator replied immediately: "Patriarch, we checked. They appear to be remnants of the previous dynasty."
"Chang dynasty remnants?"
Gai Shuhe relaxed; so long as they were not Great Shun forces, it was fine. But right then, he heard a cold sneer from the other side: "Are you not in the exact same boat as us?"
He frowned—not because of what the speaker called them, but because he sensed an underlying meaning in those words.
A sudden wave of unease washed over him again. He immediately instructed the airship pilot, "Do not stay behind. Speed up and enter the White Glow Path as quickly as possible."
"Yes, sir!"
Yet as the airships sped forward, the unease in his heart did not dissipate; rather, it grew progressively deeper.
Several minutes later, he suddenly sensed something and snapped his head around. Something seemed to flash in midair, followed by a deafening boom. The airship trailing at the rear erupted into a giant fireball in midair, sending an air current laden with heatwaves and debris blasting toward them.
His expression shifted drastically. "Go on ahead!" he yelled to the others. Then, bathed in the glow of the fire of spirituality, he leaped from the airship and landed on the ground with a heavy thud.
A streak of light flickered several times before arriving directly in front of him. A man wearing a playful smirk and sporting a streak of bleached white hair at his forehead materialized before his eyes.
His peaked cap was tipped askew, the uniform jacket unbuttoned at his chest, and a long cigarette dangled from his lips. Flipping open a lighter with one hand, he lit it with a sharp click, took a drag, and slowly blew out a puff of white smoke.
Then he said, "Gai Shuhe?"
He nodded to himself, straightened his peaked cap, cleared his throat, and said, "I can't let you slip away. You're a man Commander Chen specifically asked for."
"Commander Chen?"
Gai Shuhe's heart sank, knowing he must be referring to Chen Chuan. A surge of shock and fury followed—that was a Cave Mystery View master!
He had never imagined that as a mere General Subduing the Nation, he would attract the personal attention of a Cave Mystery View combatant.
Along with his disbelief, he felt a sense of aggrieved indignation.
Was that really necessary?
Could it be because he had slipped away back in Jibei Dao?
Utterly mystified, he could not help asking, "Why?"
"You're asking me?"
The man shrugged. "How should I know? In any case, the higher-ups specifically asked for you. Why not go back and ask Commander Chen yourself? Hmm, are you going to come back with me quietly, or do I have to make a move?
"Oh, let me introduce myself. Yours truly is Huo Zhuifeng, Chief Inspector of the Central Police Bureau. I happen to be Great Shun's finest tracking expert—in all of Great Shun, nobody is better at finding people than me."
He pointed his cigarette-holding fingers at Gai Shuhe. "In front of me, don't even dream of getting away..."
Mid-sentence, his voice came from behind Gai Shuhe: "...and don't think about using those pets of yours to escape either."
Gai Shuhe started in shock, for the Huo Zhuifeng in front of him had vanished. His pupils constricted sharply. "This speed... Longevity View?!"
Gritting his teeth, his fire of spirituality flared violently as he shot into the air in an instant.
Huo Zhuifeng felt a touch of wistfulness and sighed. "Why bother? I told you that you couldn't get away. Why wouldn't you believe me? Hmm, twelve anchors, and another one in the sea.
"Oh? That one's been buried for a good hundred or eighty years, hasn't it? Is that the shell of an ancestor? No wonder you refuse to admit defeat. Ah, this is going to take a bit of time then... Three seconds, let's say."
With those words, his body dispersed into wisps of divine essence, streaking outward in all directions.
Chapter 1468