The two walked slowly through the passage, as if traversing another dimension.
In the boundless darkness, they couldn’t feel the passage of time, as if they were in an eternal place.
Before long, Leo realized that their path was blocked, and his Divine Awareness couldn’t penetrate through. It seemed to be obstructed by some mysterious force.
This discovery startled Leo, and he stopped in his tracks.
“What’s wrong?” Sophia noticed Leo’s unusual behavior.
Although filled with doubts, Leo didn’t want to make Sophia too anxious or scared. He shook his head and replied, “Nothing, let’s keep going.”
After a short while, the flashlight on Leo’s phone flickered and then went out.
Sophia pressed the power button several times, but the screen wouldn’t light up. She quickly took out her own phone from her bag, but it too wouldn’t turn on, as if it had run out of battery.
Sophia clearly remembered that she had fully charged her phone before coming to the Imperial Palace. How could it suddenly shut down?
Feeling helpless, Sophia put her phone back and gripped Leo’s hand tightly, growing more nervous.
Their soft footsteps echoed in the passage, creating a haunting sound that made their hearts race.
Fortunately, the passage wasn’t long. Soon, a soft white glow appeared before them.
The danger they had been constantly wary of didn’t materialize, which made Leo feel uneasy.
Logically, the underground passages beneath the Imperial Palace, especially in the Dragon Vein area, should have been filled with traps.
But why had there been no danger since the first attack in the initial stone chamber?
Sometimes, safety and silence can be terrifying.
After walking through the passage, they entered another stone chamber.
This chamber was much larger than the previous two combined.
The ceiling was embedded with some kind of glowing stones.
In the center of the chamber, instead of a statue, there was a circular depression.
The layout was strange and eerie, and Leo couldn’t make sense of it.
Even here, he couldn’t sense any Dragon Vein aura.
Could the Dragon Vein beneath the Imperial Palace have disappeared?
Leo began to doubt his initial assumptions.
Approaching the edge of the large circular depression, they found nothing. It seemed like a dead end with no way forward.
“Ah!!”
Suddenly, Sophia screamed.
For some reason, she had fallen into the depression.
In a panic, Leo jumped in after her without thinking.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Leo asked worriedly as he helped Sophia up from the ground.
Sophia shook her head. “I’m fine. It felt like a strong force pulled me down.”
“A force?” Leo frowned. He suddenly noticed a peculiar smell and thought to himself, “This isn’t good!”
He was about to lead Sophia out of the depression when their surroundings changed completely.
They were no longer in the depression but standing on a magnificent golden road.
Looking ahead, at the end of the golden road was a stepped platform with a golden chair on top.
It was… the Dragon Throne!
The Dragon Throne symbolized supreme imperial power. To “sit on the Dragon Throne” meant to become an emperor.
The throne’s design was meticulous, adorned with majestic dragons and gold lacquer to signify the emperor’s noble status.
Despite its appearance, Leo still couldn’t sense any Dragon Vein aura from the throne.
Could it all be an illusion?
But why did everything look so real to both their eyes and Divine Awareness?
The golden road led directly to the throne on the platform. What did it signify?
After a brief moment of contemplation, Leo took Sophia’s hand.
They exchanged a glance without speaking but understood each other perfectly.
They began walking step by step towards the platform ahead.
When they both reached the ninth step simultaneously, a powerful wave erupted in the stone chamber.
The wave centered around Leo and Sophia, enveloping them completely.