114: Chapter 106 Obtaining a Mandate from Heaven

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva opened his hand.

The warm yellow light of the Ever-burning Lamp quietly illuminated the object in his palm.

It was a fragmented corner of a seal.

Made of top-grade mutton-fat white jade, its edges were inlaid with a heavy circle of dark gold. The fracture was jagged, and two large characters in ancient seal script were carved in reverse on the bottom—

Mandate.

Xu Mo's hand, which was adjusting his glasses, froze mid-air.

His eyelids twitched wildly, and the historical knowledge in his brain set off frantic alarms, pointing directly to the supreme symbol of imperial power with the most mythological color in Chinese history.

The imperial seal of china!

Lin Sa didn't understand history, but she understood what lethal pressure felt like.

This seal corner just lay there quietly, yet the pressure it emitted made her hair stand on end and her palms break out in a cold sweat. The rank of this thing was more terrifying than all the S-rank items they had ever seen combined.

“The corner that was broken when Wang Mang usurped the Han, later repaired with gold...” Xu Mo felt his throat go dry. “How could this thing be in the Eighteenth Layer of Hell?”

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva slowly handed the seal corner toward Pei Duo.

“Years ago, he found this old monk with this item,” Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva said in a calm tone. “He said the black jade pendant is the shell, hiding the last wisp of providence of that Emperor of the Ages. But this seal corner is the spark that ignites that providence.”

Pei Duo reached out her right hand and pinched the seal corner.

The moment they touched, a desolate and heavy aura rushed straight into her mind along her fingertips.

Without any hesitation, she slapped the seal corner together with the black jade pendant in her left hand.

They fit perfectly.

On the surface of the dusty black jade pendant, the years of grime instantly vanished. From the interlocking cracks, a blinding black-gold light suddenly erupted.

The jade's quality turned from dark to bright, and dark golden patterns roamed frantically inside, faintly outlining nine coiling black dragons.

The two forces converged, forming a visible shockwave that arrogantly swept across the entire stone chamber. The flame of the Ever-burning Lamp flickered violently, nearly extinguished.

Diting, who had been lying in the corner, suddenly stood up.

Its white fur puffed out instantly, its golden eyes narrowed to pinpoints, and a low growl was suppressed in its throat. But it wasn't looking at the fused jade pendant; instead, it stared fixedly outside the stone chamber.

From the deepest depths of the Eighteenth Layer of Hell came a strange sound.

The roar of the magma stopped.

Immediately after, there was a grating sound of shattering; the laws of the seal at the bottom were being forcibly torn open by a brute force.

A cold, tyrannical aura rushed up from below. Within that aura was an extreme hatred for imperial power.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva fingered his prayer beads, his speed suddenly increasing.

“Back then, the First Emperor swept through the Six Kingdoms and suppressed countless unwilling malevolent gods,” Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva explained in a deep voice. “The leakage of this seal corner's aura has disturbed the one suppressed at the very bottom. It is a remnant of the ancient gods from the Pre-Qin period, and it is irreconcilable with the providence of Great Qin.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the magma waterfall outside the stone chamber actually began to flow backward.

A thick, crimson arm covered in barbs broke through the magma and gripped the edge of the stone steps tightly.

The dark brown stone walls crumbled inch by inch. A huge, hideous head with a single horn poked out. It had no facial features, only a bloody maw full of fangs.

A scorching heatwave mixed with a strong stench frantically poured into the stone chamber.

Lin Sa backhandedly drew her S-rank dagger and held it across her chest. Xu Mo gritted his teeth and summoned his underworld emissary token, but the shield had just lit up when it flickered under the pressure of that aura.

Above S-rank. An Ancient God-level monster!

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stood up, preparing to chant sutras to suppress it. This was his domain; he couldn't let this thing hurt anyone.

“Bodhisattva, wait.”

Pei Duo spoke up.

Her voice wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear amidst the deafening roars of the malevolent creature.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stopped his movements.

Pei Duo lowered her head, her thumb gently stroking the fully fused jade pendant in her hand. The black-and-gold interwoven jade flipped casually twice between her fingers.

Facing the heatwave, she took a step forward.

Xu Mo was startled and subconsciously reached out to grab her shoulder, but he missed.

Pei Duo's steps were surprisingly steady. She bypassed the desk, stepped out of the stone door, and stood directly at the very edge of the passage.

Below was the boiling magma and that ancient evil climbing up.

The creature felt the imperial aura of the seal corner and suddenly opened its huge mouth, letting out a roar that shook the entire Eighteenth Layer. The sound wave turned into a physical gale, blowing Pei Duo's hair wildly back.

She didn't even blink.

For these seven days and nights, she had measured this Eighteenth Layer of Purgatory step by step with her feet, seeing all the cruelty and hearing all the wails.

She finally understood her brother's expression when he walked down here.

No matter how strong your trump cards are, they are ultimately given by others. Even in the dust, sparks can be hidden. The blade of Great Qin must be held firmly by oneself to be considered having slain all the injustice in the world!

Pei Duo raised her right hand and coldly held up the black-gold jade pendant.

There were no complicated incantations, nor did she call upon the Underworld Son of Heaven's name. She just looked down at the creature, her gaze full of disdain.

“Kneel.”

The two words dropped lightly.

Pei Duo's will poured into the jade pendant without reservation. The nine black dragons inside the jade pendant instantly came to life.

This time, no phantom of the First Emperor of Qin descended, nor did the army of a hundred thousand Terracotta Warriors appear. The complete laws of Great Qin were directly and thoroughly bound to Pei Duo's will.

A black-gold ripple radiated from the jade pendant, sweeping across the magma, the stone steps, and directly crushing that overbearing remnant of an ancient god.

Words becoming law—an absolute dimensional strike.

The creature's roar stopped abruptly, like a duck being strangled by the neck. The massive, bone-spiked arm gripping the stone steps began to convulse violently.

Before the laws of imperial power, those who do not submit shall be executed!

The massive body began to collapse, barbs snapped, and flesh melted away rapidly as if splashed with strong acid. It didn't even have the qualification to struggle before being crushed into dust by this domineering power of rules.

The ashes fell into the magma without even causing a small ripple.

From the earth-shaking roar to being turned into ashes, it took less than three seconds.

Dead silence returned outside the stone chamber, leaving only the gurgling sound of the flowing magma.

Lin Sa swallowed hard and silently sheathed her dagger back into the scabbard on the outside of her thigh.

Xu Mo pushed his glasses, looking at Pei Duo's slender back, his eyelids twitching even more violently.

At this moment, one thing was crystal clear in his mind: this Eldest Princess had completely finished her apprenticeship. She didn't need anyone's protection now; she herself was the strongest support.

Pei Duo withdrew her hand.

The jade pendant lay quietly in her palm, its black-gold light receding, turning back into a warm and low-key top-grade black jade. The fragmented seal corner had completely merged with it.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva stood in the stone chamber, looking at Pei Duo's back. On that withered old face, a very faint smile finally appeared.

“That child waited for two years,” the old monk said, fingering his prayer beads. “At least it wasn't in vain.”

Pei Duo turned and walked back into the stone chamber.

“Thank you, Bodhisattva.” She bowed slightly.

This thanks was not only for him keeping her trump card for two years, but even more for him hardening his heart and forcing her to walk this path of purgatory herself.

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva waved his hand.

“It's time to go back,” his voice was profound. “Things are no longer peaceful in the real world.”

Pei Duo suddenly looked up.

The moment the jade pendant fused, something was forced into her mind. It was a direct connection to the Thriller Game system's backend.

The server-wide red alert originally generated by the collapse of the Japanese God System was intercepted the moment the Imperial Seal was reassembled, and a private message was shoved directly into her vision.

[Detected activation of highest authority code (First Emperor's Imperial Seal).]

[Hidden territory unlocked.]

[SSS-rank Taboo Dungeon 'Chang'an Curfew' is now open to the holder.]

[Countdown: Forced teleportation in thirty seconds.]

Xu Mo also heard the system announcement, and his face instantly turned pale.

“An SSS-rank Taboo Dungeon?” Xu Mo gritted his teeth. “Is the system desperate? Since the launch of the Thriller Game, there has been no record of anyone clearing a dungeon of this level!”

Pei Duo did not panic.

She calmly hung the jade pendant back around her neck and tucked it into her collar.

“It seems the people in the backend really can't sit still,” Pei Duo's tone was frighteningly calm. “The Japanese God System is broken, and the system wants to take advantage of my brother's absence to use its highest authority to wipe me out inside.”

Lin Sa put her hand back on her dagger hilt, her muscles tensed: “Thirty seconds left. Prepare for a hard fight.”

Pei Duo looked at the blood-red countdown ticking on her retina.

[20 seconds.]

She knew in her heart that her brother must be dealing with the aftermath on the ruins of Takamagahara, tying up most of the system's regulatory energy.

This time, she would have to forge this path herself.

“Xu Mo, Lin Sa,” Pei Duo spoke.

The two of them looked at her together.

“Once we're in the dungeon, don't worry about anything else, just stay alive.” Pei Duo pressed the jade pendant on her chest through her clothes. “Chang'an City... this is our Chinese ancestors' territory. I want to see just how much of a wave the Thriller System can make on our own home turf!”

[10 seconds.]

Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva pressed his palms together and lowered his eyes: “Eldest Princess, be careful in all things on this journey.”

[5 seconds.]

Diting let out a low whimper and swept its tail on the ground.

The countdown hit zero.

Three beams of dazzling white light shot up from the center of the stone chamber, directly tearing through the dark ceiling of the Eighteenth Layer of Hell and instantly disappearing without a trace.

In the empty stone chamber, the flame of the Ever-burning Lamp remained steady. Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva picked up the cup of cold tea on the table and drank it in one gulp.

...

The white light dissipated. Pei Duo opened her eyes.

Before her eyes, there was no prosperous capital city of 'ten thousand nations bowing to the imperial crown' as she had imagined.

There were only towering black city walls, like a crouching giant beast. In the sky, a lone, blood-dripping full moon hung.

The streets were deserted, the gates of the wards on both sides were tightly shut, and not even a sliver of light leaked out. A gust of cold wind scraped along the ground, swirling up pale yellow spirit money.

Pei Duo looked down.

In her hand, at some point, a lantern made of white paper had appeared. On the surface of the lantern, a large character for 'Night' was written in dripping blood.

In her ears came the sound of a hollow water clock ticking.

Then, a cold, sharp voice that seemed capable of piercing eardrums echoed eerily from the mist at the end of the long street, instantly spreading through the entire dead city of Chang'an.

“Heaven and earth are dry, be careful with fire and candles—”

“The curfew has arrived, the living must avoid—”

Pei Duo raised her head, her eyes narrowing as she looked at the giant black shadow at the end of the long street, holding a broken copper gong and slowly approaching.

The jade pendant against her skin grew slightly hot.

“Dang—”

The Night Watchman struck the first life-threatening chime of the copper gong.