74: Chapter 74 The Vanished Maya: Just a Bunch of Stay-at-Home Gods

Pei Fei led the trio only a short distance into the cavern.

"We're here," Pei Fei stopped walking.

The end of the corridor ahead was blocked by a transparent thin film, its surface rippling like water waves.

"A spatial boundary wall!"

Xu Mo reminded him almost instinctively.

"This is a God Realm-level spatial boundary wall! A defensive mechanism of S-rank or above. Without a specific token or brute force with divine power, touching it will result in—"

"Riiip."

A crisp sound, like tearing plastic wrap, mercilessly interrupted Xu Mo's words.

Pei Fei casually extended a single finger, poked a hole in the boundary wall rumored to be 'fatal upon contact,' and then, like pulling back a curtain, casually ripped the fissure open with both hands.

"Alright, stop analyzing. Let's go in." Pei Fei continued walking forward.

Xu Mo stared at the large hole violently torn open, his Adam's apple bobbing with difficulty. He felt that all the theological knowledge he had crammed by staying up late these past two days had been wasted.

The three of them nervously filed through the rift.

The expected stench of decay and the eerie ghostly aura were completely absent.

A warm breeze, mixed with the rich aroma of tequila and a strange orchid fragrance, rushed toward them.

The feeling was like stepping from the minus thirty-degree Northeast snow plain directly into the lobby of a five-star hotel in Sanya.

Immediately following, dazzling dark gold light stung their eyes, which had adjusted to the darkness.

"This... this is..."

When their vision refocused, the [Cain's Refuge] in Xu Mo's hand clattered to the ground.

The dagger in Lin Sa's hand froze mid-air, and an expression of 'stupefaction' appeared on her usually icy face.

Before them was a magnificent city state built deep underground.

A giant stepped pyramid soared into the sky, but it wasn't stacked from cold stone; instead, it was entwined with countless colorful ribbons woven from exotic feathers and luminous crystals.

Tens of thousands of floating fireballs, like lanterns for a festive celebration, illuminated the underworld as if it were daytime.

This was a capital city of unending luxury!

The bullet comments in the live stream, after a brief moment of freezing, exploded instantly.

[ (IP: Dragon Country) Holy crap?! Am I blind? Is this Xibalba? This looks like Disneyland! ]

[ (IP: Mexico) Impossible! In our myths and legends, this is a terrifying realm of death, full of traps and trials! How could it have this style?! ]

"Clang, clang, clang—"

A series of hurried yet cheerful stone drumbeats broke the silence.

The streets were surging with crowds.

The sturdy, dark-skinned maya residents had their faces painted with colorful war paint and wore towering feather headdresses.

Their muscles were knotted; every one of them looked capable of tearing a tiger or leopard apart with their bare hands.

But at this moment, what they held were not obsidian killing knives, nor soul-snatching chains.

They were carrying huge oak barrels, the rich scent of alcohol overflowing as they swayed. Some held exaggeratedly shaped bone flutes and stone drums, playing cheerful melodies as they walked.

"Ah! What is he doing?!" Pei Duo suddenly cried out in alarm.

She pointed at a stall by the roadside.

An old man with a brutish face was frantically carving at a large human thigh bone with a sharp bone knife, bone chips flying everywhere.

"Is this... bone stripping punishment?" Pei Duo shrank back behind Pei Fei in fright.

Pei Fei shook his head helplessly, walked over, took the already formed bone object from the old man's hand, and gently blew on it.

"Hooo—"

A crisp and pleasant bird whistle sounded.

Pei Fei casually tossed the exquisite bone whistle to a nearby child who was watching, then turned to Pei Duo and said, "What punishment? This is a toy whistle made for children. Duo Duo, can we please stop looking at people through colored glasses?"

The child caught the bone whistle, made a face at Pei Duo, and skipped away happily.

Pei Duo's face flushed.

"Brother, what is going on?" Pei Duo looked at the bustling, lively city, feeling her brain couldn't keep up.

Pei Fei took a bite of a spirit fruit, the juice overflowing. He tossed the rest of the fruit to the trio, chewing and saying vaguely, "Haven't human historians always been researching the 'mystery of the collective disappearance of the maya civilization in the 9th century AD'?"

Pei Fei pointed at the celebrating crowd filling the city and said lightly, "They just thought the surface world was too noisy and collectively moved."

"Moved?" Xu Mo felt his throat go dry.

"Yes, ascended as a nation."

Pei Fei swallowed the fruit pulp, his tone as flat as if he were talking about a neighbor moving to the next apartment complex.

"These maya people perfected their spiritual cultivation a long time ago. They discovered that physical desires are a bottomless pit, and the wars and plunder on the surface were too bothersome. So, they simply took all their treasures and technology and moved their entire clan into the underworld."

"Here, they achieved a form of agelessness, unable to die."

"This is also why Aztec mythology later became mainstream in Mexico and other places."

A trace of profoundness flashed in Pei Fei's eyes, "The maya stopped caring. They gave up all earthly faith and offerings. Within their God Realm, they are self-sufficient—that is their arrogance."

The live stream comments went completely wild.

[ (IP: Sun Never Sets) Good heavens! This is the truth? The maya civilization disappeared because they collectively retired? ]

[ (IP: Dragon Country) Wow! This is the true ancestor of 'lying flat'! The outside world is fighting to the death, and they're having a party underground? ]

[ (IP: Japan) Seriously... No wonder the Aztec gods are so arrogant; it turns out the tigers aren't around! But these tigers couldn't be bothered to come down the mountain! ]

Pei Fei turned around and looked at the top of the giant pyramid. A beam of light stretching straight up to the underground firmament was slowly converging there.

"Moreover, you are quite lucky."

A smile played on Pei Fei's lips, but his eyes held the coldness and loneliness unique to a deity, "Today happens to be their once-every-five-hundred-years 'Ascension Anniversary'."

"For them, nothing is more important than a festival. So, they are currently covered by their 'Carnival Rules' here."

He patted Pei Duo's shoulder and pointed at the singing and dancing crowd.

"Duo Duo, look closely, enjoy yourself. A civilization that exists purely for happiness is truly one of a kind."

At that moment, Pei Duo looked at her brother's profile.

Amidst the swirling colored feathers and joyful music, although her brother was smiling, his figure seemed somewhat out of place.

It was the loneliness belonging to a sovereign.

Just then, the crowd at the end of the street suddenly parted.

"Roar—!!"

Two deafening beast roars echoed.

Two mechanical leopards, cast entirely in gold and inlaid with rubies at their joints, pulled an extremely luxurious feathered chariot and stopped steadily before the four of them amidst flashes of firelight.

Several attendants clad in vibrant macaw feather robes jumped down from the chariot.

They walked straight up to Pei Fei, knelt on one knee, crossed their hands over their chests, and performed an ancient and noble gesture.

"Honored Eastern Sovereign."

The leading attendant's voice was resonant, carrying a strange rhythm, "The High Priest has prepared the 'Wine of the Gods.' Xibalba's carnival welcomes your arrival."

Pei Fei raised an eyebrow, then turned to look at the petrified Xu Mo and Lin Sa.

"What are you waiting for? Get in the carriage."

Pei Fei stepped onto the chariot, waving his Coke bottle like a tour guide.

"Stop thinking about defensive formations. Tonight, the only mission is—to drink until we drop."

Xu Mo looked at the glittering leopard-drawn carriage, casting all his calculations and vigilance aside. He followed Lin Sa and Pei Duo onto the chariot leading to the peak of the revelry.

With a long cry from the golden leopards, the chariot transformed into a streak of light and rushed toward the most dazzling pyramid.

And the billion viewers in the live stream felt that their instant noodles in front of the screen no longer tasted as good.

Was this a Thriller Game?

This was clearly a party thrown by a super-rich tycoon!