Leo did not fall; instead, he floated effortlessly above the purple mist.
“Come on up, it’s safe. You won’t fall,” Leo said, turning back.
Sophia tentatively extended her right foot. Indeed, stepping on the purple mist felt as solid as stepping on the ground.
Gaining confidence, Sophia took a second step and stood firmly on the purple mist.
This magical phenomenon and sensation were unlike anything Sophia had ever experienced, filling her with a small thrill.
The two continued forward together until they reached the five-clawed golden dragon statue.
They stood at the tail of the statue, which seemed to be made of pure gold.
“Place your hand on the statue with me. I’ll use my left hand, you use your right,” Leo instructed.
Sophia followed Leo’s lead, placing her right palm against the statue.
Suddenly, the purple mist beneath their feet began to rotate clockwise around the golden dragon statue, forming a giant purple vortex.
Despite this, Leo and Sophia remained suspended in mid-air, unaffected by the change.
The mist rotated clockwise nine times, then counterclockwise nine times.
Then, a peculiar warm current flowed from the statue into their bodies through their arms.
The enormous five-clawed golden dragon statue began to blur and transform into a dragon-shaped golden mist, which then spiraled above Leo and Sophia’s heads.
From a distance, Leo and Sophia appeared to be floating above a purple halo with a golden halo above their heads. The two halos rotated and gradually moved closer together.
Soon, their lower bodies were enveloped by the purple halo and their upper bodies by the golden halo.
An intensely comfortable sensation, like an electric current, spread through their bodies.
Unconsciously, Leo and Sophia opened their arms and emptied their minds, fully immersed in the mystical feeling.
The golden and purple halos merged into a purple-gold mist that slowly entered their bodies.
Heavenly fortune was bestowed upon them!
This trip to the Imperial Palace had been incredibly rewarding; receiving heavenly fortune was an immense benefit.
Thirty seconds later, the purple-gold mist was completely absorbed by Leo and Sophia.
When the phenomenon disappeared, they found themselves standing on the ground in the middle of the stone chamber.
The groove and the five-clawed golden dragon were gone, leaving the stone chamber empty.
“Leo, was that wonderful feeling the heavenly fortune?” Sophia asked as she came back to her senses.
Leo nodded. “Yes.”
“What benefits does heavenly fortune bring?” Sophia was curious.
“In simple terms, it means your future luck will be very good,” Leo explained.
Sophia blinked playfully. “Do you think if I buy a lottery ticket tomorrow, I could win five million dollars?”
Leo couldn’t help but laugh. “Five million is unlikely, but fifty thousand or a hundred thousand is very possible.”
“Why?”
“Winning five million isn’t just about luck. So… you get it.”
Leo suddenly stared at Sophia as if a flower had bloomed on her face.
“What’s wrong? Why are you staring at me?” Sophia instinctively touched her face.
Leo’s unusual behavior was because he noticed a change in Sophia’s aura. She seemed more noble-like a royal princess from ancient times.
Realizing it was due to the heavenly fortune, Leo grinned mischievously. “I just realized you’re even more beautiful.”
“You’re so unserious!”
Sophia playfully punched Leo’s chest but was pulled into his embrace. “Let’s go.”
With heavenly fortune bestowed upon them, their previously blocked path was now clear.
Returning to the second level, they found no dragon statue in the stone chamber.
The same was true for the first level stone chamber.
They walked all the way to the well’s bottom without encountering anything unusual.
“How do we get up?” Sophia asked.
Leo took out a talisman. “No problem. Watch this.”
As he activated the talisman, Sophia felt a buoyant force lifting her and Leo towards the well’s opening.
Back at the well’s edge, Sophia checked her phone and exclaimed in surprise.
“What’s wrong?” Leo asked.
“It’s strange. We’ve only been inside for three minutes!” Sophia said incredulously.
“You mean we were only inside for three minutes?” Leo confirmed.
Sophia nodded. “I checked the time when we entered and now it’s only three minutes later.”
After a moment’s thought, Leo understood. “We must have entered a temporal barrier.”
“A temporal barrier?” Sophia was puzzled.
“A temporal barrier is independent of real-world time. We might spend a long time inside but only a short time passes outside.”
“I see.” Sophia nodded thoughtfully.
Leo looked at Concubine Pearl Well, knowing that the underground stone chambers likely no longer existed.
Seeing the sky darken as if it might rain, Sophia suggested, “It looks like it’s going to rain. Let’s head back to the open area.”
Leo agreed, and they retraced their steps from memory.
The sky grew increasingly overcast, and the air became oppressively heavy as if it could rain any moment.
After walking for most of the day, they still hadn’t found the iron gate they had entered through.
The palace paths were labyrinthine, with dilapidated buildings and desolate gardens blending into one another endlessly.
“Are we lost?” Leo wondered aloud.
It didn’t make sense; he had used Divine Awareness to navigate. Could it be that Divine Awareness didn’t work in the Imperial Palace?
“We seem to be lost,” Sophia said uneasily in the oppressive air.