n

n

nChapter 245: 7-Star Treasure, Mysterious Palace

nTranslator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

nAfter briefly identifying the direction, Ji Chen and his group headed towards the location marked on the map.

nTwo days later, at noon, the group arrived at a seemingly ordinary desert. The surroundings were filled with rolling sand dunes, with nothing else noteworthy.

nJi Chen looked at the map and rubbed his chin, confirming that this was the designated spot. He spoke loudly, “Spread out and search this area!”

nUpon his command, the hundreds of Crown of the Ocean’s soldiers dispersed in all directions, initiating a thorough search.

nTwo hours later, the troops searching in the southeast discovered something unusual.

nIt was a stone platform mostly buried under gravel, with a rectangular indentation on top.

nAfter pondering for a moment, Ji Chen inserted the Sword of Warlords into the crevice. The blade seamlessly fit, creating a perfect match.

nA rumbling sound reverberated as the ground shook intensely, creating whirlpools on the gravel surface, sucking in the surrounding debris.

nJi Chen’s expression changed slightly. He attempted to pull out the Sword of Warlords, but it was as if the blade had been glued in place, not budging at all.

nHe had no choice but to temporarily lead the troops away from the area.

nJust as they retreated to a safe distance, the ground’s shaking reached its peak. The surface was filled with countless sand whirlpools, as if gigantic beasts were turning their bodies underground.

nAmidst the group’s astonishment, towering spires and halls emerged from the ground. Gravel flowed down the angled roofs and gaps, creating colossal sandwaterfalls that descended from the sky.

nHalf an hour later, the commotion around gradually subsided.

nBefore them stood a colossal palace crafted from rock, with towering spires and halls casting expansive shadows, reaching hundreds of meters high.

nTall, brown stone columns lined both sides, extending all the way to the grand entrance of the palace, adorned with exquisite stone carvings on the columns, gates, and outer walls. Bas-reliefs and sculptures depicted the extraordinary nature of this palace.

nIt resembled a palace that a titan giant would inhabit.

nThere was such a grand structure hidden beneath this desert?

nWith just a glance, Ji Chen knew that this had no connection with the Skeleton King Solin or the skeleton race.

nIf someone possessed the ability to construct such a palace, how could their strength be so meager!?

n“Don’t stand there staring, quickly go over and examine this palace.”

nJi Chen’s voice snapped the group of heroes out of their daze. Seeing him already walking forward, they quickly followed suit.

nAscending a pathway paved with rocks, towering stone columns stood on either side, adorned with diverse and grotesque statues.

nThe only similarity was that these statues were all bound by chains, as if they were forcefully imprisoned here.

nThe statues depicted various races—humans, dwarves, elves, orcs, and other less recognizable beings, such as winged serpents with multiple tails, nightmarish insects with hundreds of legs, and even one-legged bovine creatures treading on lightning.

nNone of these seemed ordinary.

nGazing upon the statues, each revealing expressions of resentment, anger, despair, or numbness, Ji Chen contemplated silently.

nThe group arrived in front of the massive gate.

nOn the left side of the gate, there was a stone platform where the Sword of Warlords had been placed. Ji Chen gently removed it, freeing the sword.

nObserving this, Ji Chen’s curiosity heightened even further.

nUtilizing a 7-star treasure as the means to unlock this palace—what a remarkable display.

nDidn’t this indicate that there might be even more precious items inside?

nWithin this grand creation, there might be immense surprises that he couldn’t even fathom.

nHowever, the towering gate, dozens of meters high before him, resembled an insurmountable obstacle. How could they possibly open it?

nCreak-

nJust as Ji Chen raised his head to contemplate, the gate slowly swung open on its own, revealing pitch-black darkness within.

nLogically speaking, since the Sword of Warlords was a key, there shouldn’t be any danger for those who opened it with the key.

nMoreover, Solin, the previous bearer of the sword, must have known about the existence of this palace. If he could live up until a few days ago, there should be no issue.

nAfter realizing this, Ji Chen felt more reassured. He led the troops inside.

nOnce all the soldiers had entered, the gate behind them closed automatically, as if isolating the space. The outside winds, which had been whispering, vanished completely, leaving the surroundings in utter silence, where only the sound of one’s own breath could be heard.

nAs Ji Chen was about to take out some torches for illumination, a burst of light suddenly illuminated the surroundings, making it as bright as day.

nIt was a spacious circular hall with towering walls forming a ring around it. Colorful paintings adorned the walls, and above was a circular dome that reached several hundred meters high, revealing a vast expanse of stars.

nJi Chen gazed at the colorful paintings for a while before realizing the true nature of this palace.

nThis was… a prison!

nA prison for incarcerating powerful individuals from various races!

nThis matched with the exterior stone columns; the statues of different races on the columns were bound by chains, implying imprisonment.

nThis conclusion left Ji Chen even more astonished.

nSuch a grand palace turned out to be a prison.

nAt this moment, a question arose in his mind: who was responsible for constructing this prison?

nHowever, the paintings within the hall didn’t reveal any information about the prison’s owner. Ji Chen temporarily set aside this question and looked around.

nThis hall had only one passage connecting to it.

nWithout pausing, Ji Chen led the group into the passage.

nThough it was called a passage, it was dozens of meters high and several dozen meters wide, as if designed for some colossal being to traverse.

nAfter walking through the passage for a while and seeing that there was no end in sight, Ji Chen furrowed his brows. He raised his hand to signal the troops to halt and turned to question a few of the heroes.

n“How far have we walked along this passage?”

n“Reporting, my lord, we’ve covered about three to four kilometers.”

nSeven to eight kilometers?

nThe furrow between Ji Chen’s brows deepened.

nAlthough the palace was grand and immense, it shouldn’t be as long as seven or eight kilometers.

nCould it be… similar to the high tower in the ancient land of the divine realm on King Kong Island?

nIn fact, as soon as they entered the hall earlier, they had stepped into a different space. Therefore, they couldn’t use the exterior to gauge the space’s size.

nThe interior might be of normal size, or it could be several times larger than its exterior, perhaps even a hundred times larger.

nThe person who built this prison clearly possessed a power as vast as the cosmos.

nContinuing through the passage, they arrived at the end after more than ten minutes.

nThis space was even more towering and massive than the previous hall, with a dome of stars stretching hundreds of meters high.

nAs Ji Chen’s gaze shifted to the interior, his pupils contracted, and his heart started pounding wildly.

nThe scene before his eyes left everyone in a state of stupor.

nWithin this space, near the walls, stood over a hundred birdcage-like metal enclosures, varying in size from large to small. Some reached up to a hundred meters, connecting the heavens and the earth, while others were only a few meters tall.

nAnd within these metal enclosures were dozens of “prisoners”.

nAs Ji Chen’s vision focused on these prisoners, his astonishment deepened.

nAren’t these the same races as the statues outside?

nHumans, dwarves, elves, orcs…

nThe winged serpents with multiple tails…

nThe nightmarish insects with hundreds of legs…

nThe one-legged bovine creatures treading on lightning…

nSome were of normal size, but others were enormous, resembling hills or even canyons.

nFor example, the nightmarish insect looked like a centipede but had numerous legs extending in all directions, reaching hundreds of meters in length.

nAnd the one-legged bovine creature, unintentionally flashing with lightning, had a leg that seemed to support the sky itself, bearing a hill-sized body. It was the largest among these “prisoners”.

nWhat the heck!

nCould this be real?

nDoes this world really have such bizarre races?

nPerhaps sensing their presence, two prisoners within cages slowly opened their eyes, awakening from a slumber that had lasted for who knew how many years.

nUpon seeing Ji Chen’s group, they too fell into a stupor.

nHowever, their faces soon displayed a hint of wild joy.

nIt was the expression of those who saw hope—a chance to be rescued and to gain freedom..

n