Chapter 3046: The Heavenly Demon's Plan

Two palace guards also sat down again, about to continue, but saw Pan Xincheng still standing where he was, eyes glazed, as if staring blankly at the staircase entrance. "Old Pan, what's wrong with you?"

Is there something off about those few people?

When they shouted at him, Pan Xincheng finally withdrew his gaze and slowly shook his head: "Nothing, I just feel like I've seen these few people somewhere before." He also sat down, resumed eating and chatting, but the conversation wasn't as lively as before.

After a short while like this, lunch was finished, Pan Xincheng took out money to pay the bill, and then said to the two: "You go back first, I still have some errands to run outside the palace."

The two had no objections.

After parting with them at the restaurant entrance, Pan Xincheng looked left and right, only to see the drunkard who had bumped into him earlier waving his hand at the street corner. He strode over, and the two entered the same inn and the same room, one after the other.

There was another person in the room, who stood up upon seeing him.

Pan Xincheng's expression shifted, and he blurted out: "Wei Jiashe."

"Xinrong Shen." Wei Jiashe shouted out his true name, then introduced the drunkard beside him.

"This is Duanmu Heng, sent by the Holy Venerable to Ju City to carry out a major mission, requiring your full cooperation, so we have awakened your doppelgänger." Earlier, Duanmu Heng had been muttering to Pan Xincheng, but in fact was reciting incantations—the very words to awaken him. Others couldn't understand, but Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger could be instantly roused.

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Twenty-two years. Basically since the Nine Abysses Great Emperor founded the state." Xinrong Shen laughed, "Your other doppelgänger was still carrying out an important mission in the Hall of the Vaulted Sky in Lingxu City not long ago; now it's your turn."

Duanmu Heng beside him was secretly startled. Pan Xincheng is only twenty-three or twenty-four years old, yet Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger had already taken residence in his sea of consciousness twenty-two years ago.

This is what I've heard of—the doppelgänger of a heavenly god that can remain in the mortal realm the longest. The heavenly gods' abilities are truly strange and varied. He couldn't help but ask: "Can Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger only take residence when the host is young?"

"Yes. Only this way can I absorb their memories and, in their state of complete non-resistance, devour and replace their original soul." "Then why do you need to be awakened?"

"Because for these twenty-two years, I have lain dormant in the deepest part of his sea of consciousness, undetectable by any soul-probing magical artifact." Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger smiled, "Pan Xincheng himself has always been alive, behaving normally—even his parents noticed nothing amiss. Until you used the specific incantation to awaken me." "I see." Duanmu Heng was utterly convinced. The Holy Venerable truly plans far ahead, laying this move over twenty years ago. "Nine Abysses unified and established Cangyan, the Holy Venerable already knew this calamity had grown into a threat, would sooner or later block our path, so he ordered me to lie low in his subordinate's unit, preparing in advance. Pan Xincheng's father once followed General Qiu Hu in campaigns against Flash Gold, founding Cangyan with meritorious service; he himself is also talented, so entering the palace was natural—thus I took advantage of his youth to attach myself to him."

Xinrong Shen then asked: "Do you have any plans?"

"We need you to lead the way, guiding us into the palace to find a treasure."

"Enter the Chixiao Golden Hall?"

Regarding this request, Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger was not surprised. Otherwise, how would the Holy Venerable have activated him when needed?

"The palace gates are not easy to enter. No matter which gate you enter from, there will be a bright mirror hanging above. That is the Nine Abysses Great Emperor's supreme treasure, the Wu Yuan Golden Mirror. It has countless copies, each capable of guarding a gate."

Xinrong Shen's doppelgänger spoke solemnly: "This Wu Yuan Golden Mirror is integrated with the entire palace. Any outsider, whether controlled by divine arts, harboring a parasitic demon within, or using spells and masks to alter appearance, will be revealed in this mirror. Once the Wu Yuan Golden Mirror sounds the alarm, countless guards will swarm forth."

Wei Jiashe said: "We've long heard that Ju City's palace is hard to enter, which is why we came to seek your help."

"Moreover, the palace's internal structure is intricate. I only tell you this: it is roughly divided into outer hall and inner residence, and merely holding a token does not grant access to the entire palace."

Duanmu Heng asked: "I've heard that the palace has a total of six levels of tokens."

"Correct. The red token in my hand already allows passage through most areas, but if one wishes to enter confidential zones, a higher-level gold token is required."

Wei Jiashe asked: "Who can we get the gold token from? Du Shan?"

"No." This idea was outright rejected by Xinrong Shen: "To pass through forbidden zones, it's not just about the token—one must also match the face. If we used Du Shan's gold token to pass, we would be discovered immediately."

Duanmu Heng interjected: "The thing we're looking for may not necessarily be in the forbidden zone."

"What treasure is it?"

"The pivot of the Chixiao Golden Hall."

Xinrong Shen was startled, thought for a moment, then shook his head: "Having served in the palace for so long, I've never heard of this thing."

"No one knows of its existence, which is itself the best protection." Duanmu Heng analyzed: "The Nine Abysses Great Emperor resides in the palace, so this treasure must certainly be near him. But if he is absent, before leaving, he would need to find a secure place to hide this treasure."

Xinrong Shen asked: "Then, in your view, where is this thing hidden? The Chixiao Golden Hall is too vast to search every corner thoroughly." Wei Jiashe continued: "No need to speculate or guess. The God of Departure has also descended to the lower realm and is now hurrying here. As soon as he acts, finding the treasure's true location will not be difficult."

"Oh, the God of Departure has also come." Xinrong Shen said two words of approval before asking Duanmu Heng: "How do you determine that our target will not be located in the forbidden zone?"

"Are there many forbidden zones in the palace?"

Xinrong Shen shook his head: "Not many. Places truly requiring a gold token to enter. Just about six or seven."

For a palace occupying such a vast area, this number is already quite small.

These all match the information Duanmu Heng previously gathered; he spoke solemnly: "I cannot be certain, for the true situation is known only to the Nine Abysses himself—this person's city mansion is very deep."

Then Duanmu Heng added a "but": "I have studied this person, Nine Abysses, deeply. He prefers to act unexpectedly. If I were him, I would not place the true treasure in any forbidden zone, for that would certainly be the place all thieves most desire to ransack."

Being called thieves, the two heavenly gods were not angry at all.

"The palace guards are so strict—if not in the forbidden zone, where would they put it?"

Wei Jiashe further asked: "The palace is crowded and chaotic; if not placed in the forbidden zone, aren't they afraid of being discovered by others?"