The Third Stone Artifact: Three Sovereigns Mirror

The Ancestral Dragon Ship really is that!" Little Defiant Dragon's expression turned grave as he made that judgment.

"How can that be?!" Sha Polang cried out.

The few from the Nine Provinces all showed disbelief. Little Defiant Dragon was a War Ancestor of the Dragon Clan; his intuition could not be wrong.

"Ya ya, it really is it," Keke blinked her long lashes and also made that judgment. The little one possessed not only the bloodline of the Heaven-Defying Clan but was also a natural-born Ancestral Dragon. Her sensitivity to Ancestral Dragon qi was no less than Little Defiant Dragon's.

Everyone exchanged bewildered looks, finding it hard to believe.

Over a hundred thousand years ago, the Ancestral Dragon Ship, in order to preserve the inheritance of the Nine Provinces, had carried those paragons through the great world barrier, never to return. That was a flame of hope, bearing the heavy weight of heritage, a spiritual pillar of the people. How could it appear in Xiao Shihuang's tomb?

"What Ancestral Dragon Ship?" The Stone Crow and the Old Bone, being living fossils, naturally knew nothing of the Ancestral Dragon Ship's story. Seeing everyone's reaction, they felt deeply puzzled.

Now was not the time for explanations. Xiao Chen, Keke, Little Defiant Dragon, and the others rushed forward, wanting to see the truth.

"Don't charge recklessly!" the Stone Crow warned from behind. "Xiao Shihuang was most cunning. Leaving so many traps and machinations after his death—this great tomb must be fraught with danger!"

Even without his warning, those who had entered first had already lost all trace, and everyone knew that this place was sinister and no good land.

The great tomb was truly vast, seemingly boundless. Beneath their feet was not void space but tangible tomb passages, all built from enormous stone blocks. It was hard to imagine how such a colossal project had been completed.

"Oooh—" A great roaring grew clearer, as if right in their ears. Xiao Chen and the others could even sense the Ancestral Dragon Ship sailing through.

Unfathomable! At that moment, the tomb passage suddenly narrowed, and everyone's divine sense finally touched the walls on both sides. Of course, 'narrow' was only relative; it was still several times wider than an ordinary grand tomb.

Ahead, a cross-shaped intersection appeared. The vast crossroads could match a great plain in size. Here, they could sense the intersecting walls all around.

"Eh—" Little Defiant Dragon showed surprise.

This so-called cross-shaped zone turned out to be a void space, as if forming a world of its own, vast and boundless. The sound of the Ancestral Dragon's roar was coming through from within.

"Madman! Xiao Shihuang was indeed a madman!" At that moment, the Stone Crow let out such a lament, unsure whether in admiration or jealousy. "Just for a burial chamber, he spent a great divine ability to construct a massive field here, filled with his own laws and orders—the most dangerous kind, practically comparable to a world."

"You're wrong," the Old Bone said. "It's not a field but a real world that he trapped here, using most of its power, borrowing a whole world to cut off this crossroads."

At the same time, Xiao Chen and the others saw the Ancestral Dragon Ship sailing through that void world. There was no mistaking that familiar dragon qi.

"It is it. It's the Ancestral Dragon Ship!"

The bodies of Tianwaitian, Renwairen, and the others, now controlling the Great Might Nether King's form, trembled with excitement, almost rushing over.

"Don't charge over!" the Old Bone urgently stopped them. "That is a true great world. Entering is easy, but leaving is difficult."

Xiao Chen and the others all changed color. The Ancestral Dragon Ship was sailing through a great world. Had it happened to pass by here, allowing them to see it?

At that moment, within that void world, a low growl sounded. A black shadow caught up from behind the Ancestral Dragon Ship, raising a beam of light.

At the same time, the Ancestral Dragon Ship blazed with light, radiating even more powerful aura. The divine dragon turned its head and spat out a mighty dragon breath, within which was wrapped a dragon pearl, sweeping toward the rear.

The Ancestral Dragon Ship seemed alive, like a living creature, radiating ten-thousand-zhang radiance to block the black shadow behind.

"Shua—"

At that moment, a blazing light shot out, charging out from the void world toward Xiao Chen and the others. It was the combined power of the Ancestral Dragon Ship and the black shadow.

"Not good! Fall back!"

Everyone retreated far away, but even so, they suffered a not-insignificant impact, thrown back over a thousand zhang. However, with beings like the Stone Crow present, no one was injured.

"Oooh—" At that moment, the Ancestral Dragon Ship in the void world shook off the black shadow, traversed the great world barrier, and vanished into the darkness.

"What was that? What happened?" Little Defiant Dragon asked in confusion.

"Why did it happen?" Xiao Chen was also puzzled. Just now, he had used his Truth-Seeking Eyes to see the essence: it seemed to be power that had pierced through from untold ages past, and the scene they had just witnessed was merely a transmission of an image, not something happening in the present.

At this moment, the Stone Crow and the Old Bone exchanged glances, then both showed excitement. The two old fossils' bodies trembled slightly.

"It is... that thing!"

"It must be it! Who would have thought it was buried here!"

The two old fossils had completely lost their composure, shaking with excitement, muttering to themselves.

"What is it?" Little Defiant Dragon pressed.

The Old Bone sighed. "I never imagined Xiao Shihuang's collection was so terrifying. But if he had mastered this thing, how could he have fallen?"

"Ya ya, what is it? Don't talk in riddles!" Keke was very unhappy, not at all intimidated by the two old fossils, waving her little fist angrily.

"Everything just now was caused by a stone mirror—known as the third stone artifact in history. Holding it, one could practically be invincible under heaven!"

Hearing the Old Bone say this, everyone was even more puzzled. Xiao Chen asked doubtfully, "The third stone artifact? A stone mirror? What origin does it have to cause the phenomenon we just saw?"

"The peerless war treasures of all heavens and myriad worlds each have their strengths and weaknesses; it's hard to compare which is stronger. But this stone mirror is indisputably ranked third. Its mirror surface blocks all attacks, and it can replicate and project the same divine techniques and laws. What we just saw were images captured by that stone mirror in the distant past, now projected..."

Xiao Chen and the others drew in cold breaths. This stone mirror was heaven-defying—both offensive and defensive. Its mirror emitted attacks, and it could project across time and space. The mere thought was terrifying. With such a war treasure, one stood invincible from the start, because all the enemy's means could be replicated! This stone mirror truly seized the wonders of creation. Such an unheard-of treasure made one marvel at its terror.

"How does my Divine Diagram compare?" Xiao Chen suddenly asked.

"Strictly speaking, the Divine Diagram is not a weapon; it contains the great principles of the Dao and is not included in rankings. The third stone artifact I speak of is called the Three Sovereigns Mirror, a rank fixed a billion years ago. At that time, the Divine Diagram had not yet been conceived."

The crowd fell silent. The heavens and myriad worlds held too many secrets, far beyond what they could know.

Understanding that the Ancestral Dragon Ship was not truly inside Xiao Shihuang's tomb brought a sense of relief. Otherwise, the thought of the Nine Provinces' paragons hiding in a grave was unacceptable.

"How do we pass through this cross-shaped intersection?"

"To cross a great world barrier, only a Stone Man King can tread it as if on level ground, because some worlds are very solid," the Old Bone said.

Xiao Chen profoundly understood this, having experienced the Death World himself.

But the present situation still didn't stump them. Two half-ruined Stone Man Kings and Xiao Chen's many war treasures made crossing possible.

The only thing to watch for was not to be harmed by the projections from that void world. After all, this great tomb was suppressed by the ancient third stone artifact, which might project terrifying attacks at any time.

"Hehehe..." At that moment, a cold, sneering laugh came from behind, making people's hair stand on end, like a weeping ghost. A withered corpse shadow emerged in the distance. The Stone Corpse revealed a ferocious face and said, "So it's two old cripples—no wonder you knew about the Three Sovereigns Mirror. Before I claim the third stone artifact, I'll refine you first."

"Wuwu..."

A gust of yin wind swept toward the crowd. The Stone Corpse emitted a heart-palpitating fluctuation, advancing step by step.

"As if I'm afraid of you!" The Stone Crow was half-ruined, but with Xiao Chen by his side wielding many war treasures, he wasn't too worried. Instead, he shouted, "Refine this old corpse!"

"Weng—"

Xiao Chen immediately offered up the Divine Diagram. With the help of the Stone Crow and the Old Bone, it turned into a radiant light, spinning and slicing toward the Stone Corpse.

The Stone Corpse drew in a cold breath and instantly fled far away, leaving a chilling voice: "So the boy from the Nine Provinces is also here. Perfect timing—everything on you will be mine." With that, he vanished.

Xiao Chen frowned. His greatest fear had come to pass: the Celestial Realm giants now knew he had returned. The sacred relics on him would surely be coveted.

"Let's go!" The Stone Crow moved first. Facing a Stone Man King-level old corpse lurking in the shadows, he too felt uneasy.

The crowd safely crossed this cross-shaped intersection, passing through the world space, and emerged in the tomb passage ahead.

Then they were astonished to find that similar cross-shaped intersections were not alone—there were many.

This was shocking! It was truly a heaven-defying great tomb, using worlds as nodes to form each intersection. Such means were extremely unnatural. They wondered why Xiao Shihuang had expended such effort.

"What is Xiao Shihuang trying to do..." The Stone Crow again grabbed the old Daoist priest. Since entering this tomb, he had never let him stray far, maintaining high vigilance and ready to kill at any moment.

"Master, you need not suspect me. If I were Xiao Shihuang, would I still fear you..." The old Daoist was naturally gifted with a transcendent demeanor, always calm and composed.

"Oooh—" A heaven-shaking roar came from beside them as the massive tomb wall shattered with a boom, and two tall figures rushed out, locked in fierce battle.

One of them was Lishi Beast, half-man and half-beast, with two horns on his head, body covered in scales, and an alligator-like stone tail. He was fighting Danfu. Both of them had drops of Stone Man essence blood on them.

Clearly, the five Stone Man Kings who had entered together had fallen into infighting, now battling separately. They must have discovered that the great tomb held heavy treasures and all wanted to monopolize them.

Treasures like the Three Sovereigns Mirror would make anyone's heart race. Besides, there must be other secret treasures, enough to drive people mad.

"Boom!"

Two kings clashed, their power vast beyond imagination. Xiao Chen and the others were thrown into another tomb passage, smashing large sections of stone walls.

The Stone Crow suppressed his fury, enduring, and concealed his aura, not revealing his identity.

Inside this mysterious tomb, they did their best to avoid conflict with the Stone Man Kings, not only because more than one king was present but also because the tomb itself was too sinister; who knew what terrible things might happen during battle?

The shattered tomb walls, before the stunned eyes of the crowd, quickly repaired themselves, as if alive—they could even see the walls writhing.

A pungent smell of blood came from ahead. Xiao Chen and the others finally saw a large number of cultivators, all now dead. Lying on the passage ahead, corpses covered the ground—blood still flowing, blood mist surging. Thirty or more had been killed.

"It was done by a Stone Man King."

Hearing the Old Bone's words, everyone became even more cautious. They could imagine that in other parts of the tomb, similar scenes of death were unfolding.

When they reached another cross-shaped intersection, a deafening explosion came from the world node ahead, followed by blinding radiance as two tall figures emerged.

"Run!" the Old Bone cried out.

Inside were Lu Zhan and another unidentified Stone Man King, locked in struggle. Their terrifying Stone Man King power was replicated and projected by the Three Sovereigns Mirror, creating a double Stone Man King attack. If Sha Polang and the others hadn't already entered Paradise Lost, they would surely have died.

Like a monstrous wave, the Stone Man King battle force instantly shattered the passage, scattering Xiao Chen and the others completely. The Old Bone, the Stone Crow, and the old Daoist priest were nowhere to be seen.

"Ya ya..." Fortunately, Keke was unharmed, breathing in relief as she came to Xiao Chen's side.

Now, the Pangu Stone Token was his greatest talisman, concealing his and Keke's auras. They carefully crossed several world nodes, seeking an exit.

But even the little one felt the danger, no longer wanting to risk exploring the tomb.

However, they could not find the way back. This huge tomb was like a maze, with no passage leading out.

Unwittingly, Xiao Chen and Keke had advanced dozens of li, carefully alert. Along the way, they found more corpses, their blood staining the tomb passages red.

"Cough, cough..."

Suddenly, a coughing sound came, and a figure stumbled around the corner. It was the old Daoist priest, unharmed. But the Stone Crow and the Old Bone who had captured him were nowhere to be seen.

"Where are they?" Xiao Chen asked. By now, he had also begun to be wary of this old Daoist priest. The Stone Crow's suspicions were not without reason.

The old Daoist seemed injured: "I don't know. They were thrown somewhere else by the impact, and I fled all the way here and met you..."

"You're hurt."

"It's nothing, just a light injury. In another passage, someone found a secret chamber, and many were fighting. I was accidentally caught in the crossfire."

Then, led by the old Daoist, Xiao Chen and the others for the first time discovered a chamber in a side passage. This area was littered with many dead, not a single survivor.

Xiao Chen tried several times and finally opened the chamber, retrieving a corner of a map. It had only a few simple route lines, seeming to point toward some important site.

"If I'm not mistaken, this should be a path leading to Xiao Shihuang's main tomb," the old Daoist said, leaning in.

Xiao Chen frowned. He had not wanted to take any more risks, but he could not find a way back. Finally, he decided to go and have a look.

The old Daoist seemed knowledgeable about this tomb—perhaps due to some records in his family—and soon found the route indicated on that corner map.

The world nodes grew fewer, and the path became clearer. In the darkness, it gradually fell silent, with only the occasional distant cry of agony.

This was a very special area. The tomb passage connected to a vast pitch-black patch of mud, no longer paved with stone. Faint floral fragrances wafted from ahead.

But when Xiao Chen and the others came closer, they drew in cold breaths. The fragrance was pleasant, but the flowers and plants were terrifying—they grew from corpses.

All were corpse flowers! "Over the billions of years, cultivators who accidentally entered the tomb were gathered here by the mysterious force of the tomb..." the old Daoist explained.

After passing through this garden of corpse flowers, the darkness ahead grew deeper. A black Nether River flowed horizontally, and on the opposite bank stood a giant stone stele.

"We are finally close to the true tomb of Xiao Shihuang. The area ahead is very dangerous."

Hearing the old Daoist's words, Xiao Chen frowned. This old Daoist seemed not unfamiliar with this place.

"Tap... Tap... Tap..."

The black Nether River flowed silently and still, but suddenly from the opposite bank came the sound of footsteps, as if an emperor were strolling.