stjorthotic Chapter 92 The New Life Secret Realm: Kunlun Forbidden Zone
Chapter 92 The New Life Secret Realm: Kunlun Forbidden Zone
The waves of the Atlantic have not yet subsided, but on the other side of the world, in China, the dragon vein of the west, the Kunlun Mountains, are responding to this ever-changing era in a completely different way.
The first to notice the anomaly were not satellites or geological monitoring stations, but a border patrol team that had been stationed year-round in the uninhabited area on the outskirts of the Kunlun Mountains.
Their mission is to stop any explorers and poachers who attempt to venture into this forbidden zone.
"Captain, look what that is!"
A young soldier, codenamed "Lynx," points to the sky above the snow line in the distance.
There, where the sky should have been a clear, cloudless blue, now appeared as if someone had dipped a brush in light ink, creating faint ripples.
Captain "Old Wolf" raised his military binoculars, zooming in as wide as possible. He saw that the space was distorting in a way that defied the laws of physics, like the surface of a lake tossed with pebbles.
"Something's not right." Old Wolf put down his binoculars, his brow furrowed, picked up the communicator, and said in a deep voice, "Eagle's Nest, Eagle's Nest, this is Wolf's Den Number Three, coordinates 1-turn cave, turn 3-5, abnormal spatial fluctuations detected, requesting instructions."
A burst of static came through the communicator, followed by a response from the Western Theater Command of the Zhenguo Dragon Guard: "Wolf's Den No. 3, stand by, maintain observation distance, and do not approach. The reconnaissance drone will arrive in three minutes."
Three minutes later, a "Falcon" drone with a wingspan of nearly two meters silently swept over the snow-capped mountain and headed straight for that unusual airspace.
The atmosphere at the Longwei Western Theater Command Command Center was somber.
The live footage transmitted by the drone appeared on the large screen. As the drone approached the distorted space, a blurry outline began to emerge.
That was a door.
A colossal gate, cast entirely in bronze, stands over a hundred meters tall and is suspended above a sheer cliff.
The door is carved with intricate cloud patterns and ferocious beasts, exuding a desolate, ancient, and primordial aura that can be felt even through a screen.
"Energy level detection... S-level."
"The spatial structure is stable and a fixed entrance has been formed."
"Preliminary assessment...a new S-rank secret realm."
A collective gasp filled the command center.
"Report this to headquarters immediately!"
One day later.
The Ninth Squad of the National Guard, codenamed "Mountain Ghost," became the first team to enter this colossal bronze gate.
The team leader's name was Chen Mo, a man as taciturn as his name suggested, and a rare array master. His team's equipment was not luxurious; they had no S-grade gear, only standard A-grade suits—a typical reconnaissance squad setup.
The moment you pass through the portal of light, there is no dizziness, only a gentle pushing force.
Beneath my feet was a solid white jade floor, and above me was a chaotic void, devoid of sun, moon, and stars.
A strange fragrance filled the air; taking a breath of it actually lessened some of the fatigue from days of travel.
They were standing in a huge square, at the end of which was a seemingly endless white jade staircase that stretched upwards and disappeared into the chaotic void.
"This is... the Heavenly Ladder?" The vice-captain, "Monkey," was a scout with a carefree personality. At this moment, he also put away his playful smile and looked shocked.
Around the square stood twelve enormous stone pillars. Each pillar was carved with a lifelike mythical beast.
"Rat, Ox, Tiger..." Chen Mo's gaze swept over the stone pillars one by one, his voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible excitement, "They are the twelve zodiac animals."
The mythical beasts on the stone pillars were no ordinary creatures; they varied in form, some fierce, some agile, all emanating a faint aura of power. This aura held no malice towards the group, but rather served as a form of protection.
"Captain, here..." A team member pointed to a stone tablet at the edge of the square.
The stone tablet was half buried in the ground, with three large characters engraved on it in an ancient seal script.
Kunlun Ruins.
Chen Mo slowly uttered these three words, his heart trembling.
Kunlun Ruins! Not Kunlun Mountain, but Kunlun Ruins!
In the ancient Chinese classic, the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Kunlun Ruins is the capital of the Heavenly Emperor in the mortal world, the home of all gods, and a sacred mountain connecting heaven and earth!
An absurd and unbelievable thought arose in everyone's mind: Could this be the legendary... mythical world?
"Stay alert, three people per group, scout in a fan shape. Monkey, you come with me to explore the Heavenly Ladder." Chen Mo quickly issued the order.
He knew how significant this discovery was.
Chen Mo and the monkey climbed the white jade steps. The steps seemed endless, with surging seas of clouds on both sides. Within the clouds, the outlines of some ruined palaces could be vaguely seen, like the remnants of a celestial palace.
After walking for about half an hour, a half-collapsed South Heavenly Gate appeared ahead. The three characters "South Heavenly Gate" on the plaque were still faintly discernible, but they were covered with marks of being hacked and chopped.
Behind the door lay a scene of utter devastation.
Broken weapons and shattered armor lay scattered on the ground. Countless enormous skeletons lay on the ground, some resembling celestial soldiers, others bizarre demons.
"What level of combat is this?" The monkey crouched down and picked up a broken halberd. The halberd was cold to the touch, and a faint energy fluctuation remained on it. Their team's appraiser immediately analyzed it, and the data on the screen showed that the material grade of this broken halberd had actually reached Grade A.
This is just the weapon of an ordinary soldier on the battlefield.
Chen Mo remained silent as he walked to the enormous skeleton of a divine general. Even though the skeleton had been dead for countless millennia, it still exuded a chilling aura. A jet-black, strangely shaped spear pierced its chest, and lingering black energy still coiled around the spear.
"This aura... is somewhat similar to that of Ekadna, but it's purer and more ancient," Chen Mo murmured.
They continued their investigation.
The further you go, the more shocking the scene becomes. Collapsed palaces and pavilions, dried-up jade pools, peach trees cut in half... everything tells the story of an incredibly brutal war.
Finally, they stopped in front of the ruins of a building called "Lingxiao Palace".
The main hall had long since collapsed, leaving only ruins. But in the very center of the ruins, a huge mural had miraculously remained intact.
On the mural, countless Eastern deities, including the Three Pure Ones, the Four Emperors, the Five Elders of the Five Directions, and countless star lords, form an endless army, fighting against a vast army of evil gods from beyond the realm in a shattered starry sky.
In the center of the painting, a Taoist priest holding a spiral disc is engaged in a fierce battle with a goddess with snakes for hair and a human body, who is identical to the goddess in the murals of Atlantis.
The Taoist's figure was somewhat blurry, but his transcendent aura and the disc in his hand that seemed capable of devouring everything were crystal clear.
On the other side of the mural, the outcome of the battle is depicted.
The extraterrestrial evil gods' army was routed, but the Eastern pantheon also paid a heavy price. The Lingxiao Palace collapsed, the Heavenly Court fell, and countless gods perished.
At the end of the mural, the few remaining supreme gods joined forces to completely seal the remaining Eastern world, along with this Kunlun Ruins, separating it from the dimensions of Blue Star and turning it into a "Return to Ruins" that no one could find.
The Taoist priest holding the disc shattered it at the last moment, and the fragments scattered into unknown space and time.
"So that's how it is." The monkey stared in disbelief, muttering to itself, "It didn't disappear... it sealed itself away."
Our god wasn't defeated; rather, in order to protect the world behind him, he chose to perish together with the enemy, burying the entire mythological era!
Chen Mo didn't speak; he simply used a tactical recorder to record every detail of the entire mural.
"Captain, look there!" the monkey suddenly pointed to the corner of the mural.
In the corner, there was a line of small characters written in blood, the strokes were messy, but they conveyed an indomitable will.
"The plate is shattered, the spirit has vanished, awaiting future generations... to rebuild the divine court."
"Retreat." Chen Mo made a decisive decision.
The intelligence here is extremely important. Every minute, every second, must be transmitted back to China immediately.
When the report and video recording from the Ninth Squad were presented to Li Tianshan and the other high-ranking officers, the entire command center of the Longwei Base fell into a long, deathly silence.
Unlike Arthur's self-proclaimed "God Walker," and unlike the arrogance of the White Eagle's technological hegemony, this report from Kunlun Ruins brought a profound and tragic shock that came from the depths of one's blood.
"They didn't abandon us." Li Tianshan's voice was hoarse as he looked at the tragic battle between the gods depicted in the mural. "They chose to bury themselves to protect us."
"Finding clues to the disappearance of the Eastern pantheon is now the highest priority!"
"Assemble all top experts to decipher the information in the murals! Analyze the rules of Kunlun Ruins!"
"Notify Lu Yan... No, I'll go myself." Li Tianshan stood up. "If we can seek divine assistance, we can gain a greater advantage on the international battlefield."