deltrittennovels #446 - College of Cardinals (2 in 1 order)
#446 - College of Cardinals (2 in 1 order)
Just then, Princess Tana suddenly let out a painful scream.
She clutched her lower abdomen, her face contorted in agony, her delicate body writhing on the ground.
A thick black mist slowly emanated from her body, quickly enveloping her entirely.
The eerie black mist resembled a grotesque claw, tightly gripping Tana, her body twisting painfully within it.
Zhong Wu Ye was startled and rushed forward.
At this moment, Tana's makeup had completely faded, and her once ethereal porcelain-skinned face was twisted into an expression of immense suffering.
Her eyes were filled with fear, and her petite body trembled incessantly, her hands flailing wildly in the air, like a person on the verge of death.
Zhong Wu Ye was dumbfounded as the black mist thickened, making it even harder for Tana to breathe.
Zhong Wu Ye tried to help her, but was blocked by an invisible force.
Just as she was about to suffocate to death, Qin Huan suddenly strode forward, chanting incantations, quickly dispelling the black mist and temporarily saving Tana.
"This is an ancient array restriction. This girl has been subjected to such a powerful formation; it's truly terrifying!" Qin Huan wiped away cold sweat, his expression grave.
Zhong Wu Ye quickly helped Tana up, asking with concern, "What exactly is going on? Who did such a wicked thing to her?"
Qin Huan said, "We are isolated and without help! Now that Princess Tana is trapped in such a heavy formation, we are truly helpless.
Perhaps we should first seek advice from the Cardinal Academy; it is the supreme royal academy, with students all over the Nine Provinces, and they might have a solution."
Zhong Wu Ye listened and nodded in agreement.
The Cardinal Academy, as the empire's highest institution of science, gathers countless talented individuals and might indeed have a way to break this formation.
Thus, the three of them quickly set off towards the Cardinal Academy.
...
The Cardinal Academy was located in the center of the imperial city, occupying several mountain peaks.
Along the way, all that could be seen were magnificent and imposing buildings, as if the mountain peaks had been sculpted into a vast "Celestial Workshop."
From afar, the thousands of towering pavilions were all built with plain white tiles, shining brightly under the sun, reflecting rainbow-like rays of light.
Most striking was a building located on the summit of the main peak, shaped like a giant spaceship, with a telescope several feet high on its top, looking majestic yet elegant.
Surprisingly, the Cardinal Academy was surrounded by a plain several kilometers wide, covered with strange-looking instruments and devices.
Some resembled fire lances, with slender barrels pointing towards the sky; others looked like small spacecraft, but their wings were firmly fixed to the ground; and there were also some large instruments that could not be clearly seen even when looking at them from a distance.
All of this demonstrated the profound knowledge and technological strength of the Cardinal Academy.
Arriving directly at the main gate of the Cardinal Academy, the stone gate was dozens of feet high, as thick as three people could embrace.
The gate was also carved with auspicious cloud patterns and lion hooves, reflecting the exquisite carving skills of the artisans.
On each side stood a colossal statue: one was a giant lion, roaring towards the sky, heroic and spirited; the other was a divine flying lion, a mix of dragon and dog, as if a true dragon were soaring in the sky.
Both "beasts" glared fiercely, their imposing presence and majestic forms inspiring awe.
...
Pushing open the Cardinal Academy's imposing gate, a straight and wide bluestone road came into view.
Just then, a young man dressed in black came over, bowed to them, and said, "Are you the guests who wish to see the Dean?
Three trials have been set up here; only by passing them can you earn the right to meet the Dean."
With that, the young man led them forward, and soon they arrived before a gate composed of heavy stone doors.
Zhong Wu Ye looked at the towering stone door, hesitated, and asked, "What trials? Are they difficult?"
The young man shook his head, smiled mysteriously, and said, "Not difficult, not difficult.
But you must still be careful and remember not to be careless." With that, he stepped aside and pointed to the stone door.
Seeing this, Zhong Wu Ye had no choice but to brace herself and step forward, pushing open the layers upon layers of stone doors.
Inside was a pitch-black hall, with nothing else.
Just as Zhong Wu Ye stepped inside, hesitating, the stone door slammed shut with a "bang."
She quickly turned to look, but the door was surrounded by countless shocking hidden weapons, some of which had already extended their tips, ready to fire at any moment.
In this critical moment, Qin Huan decisively took out a folding fan and gently waved it.
A strong gust of air suddenly surged out, scattering all the hidden weapons.
Tana, too, was alert, taking out a strange pearl from her bosom, which emitted strands of dark red light, particularly striking in the darkness.
Soon, the entire hall gradually lit up, an eerie red light illuminating the entire space, and Zhong Wu Ye was shocked: it turned out that the hall was full of hidden eaves, mechanisms, and hidden weapons, forming an extremely complex maze, with a vast formation, countless paths, and hidden routes.
It seemed that passing this level would be no easy task.
Zhong Wu Ye reached into her bosom and took out her weapon: a strangely shaped sword, wide and round, thick and heavy, gray-green and crystal clear, more than a foot long.
She took a deep breath and raised the sword high, and immediately a wisp of green smoke seeped out of the sword, lingering and extremely spiritual, coiling and moving within the hall.
Zhong Wu Ye circulated a sword technique, and the green smoke became even thicker, as if it had turned into tangible vines, coiling towards every hidden weapon, mechanism, and eave in the hall.
The ubiquitous vines were quickly laid down, covering the entire maze, and these hidden weapons and eaves could not move at all.
Seeing this, Zhong Wu Ye's spirits lifted, and she immediately jumped into it, the sword in her hand whistling past shadows, the vines were cut off, and the rolling eaves and hidden weapons were brushed aside.
Zhong Wu Ye was agile, and with the cooperation of this Spirit Serpent Sword, she was as free as a cloud, rushing straight towards the abrupt platform in the hall.
Seeing this, Tana and Qin Huan were eager to follow.
Qin Huan's folding fan turned into an invisible storm, protecting Zhong Wu Ye from the front and back, countless hidden weapons were blown away, and eaves fell rustling, unable to cause any harm.
Tana's pearl was even more magical; as long as it emitted light, all the hidden weapons turned into phantoms and disappeared.
The three of them fought side by side, forcibly cutting a bloody path through the surging maze, and soon rushed to the winding stone platform.
At this moment, a loud noise came, and countless stone doors opened simultaneously in all directions, and thousands of hidden weapons, eaves, and arrows shot towards them.
Even more shocking were the strange black shadows that rushed out of each door, with no regular shape, like monsters from hell.
Zhong Wu Ye was stunned, and Qin Huan and Tana had already stood in front of her, their movements exquisite, their moves superb, fighting against the constant stream of sharp weapons and demon shadows.
In this back-and-forth entanglement, after an unknown amount of time, Zhong Wu Ye suddenly saw a figure at the top of the steps.
Wasn't this the young man who had led them here?
...
"Very good, very good.
I knew you would be able to pass the first level," the young man said, his face full of praise.
Then, he waved his sleeve, and suddenly all the hidden weapons and demon shadows stopped, Tana and Qin Huan also stopped their offense and defense, and Zhong Wu Ye was even more surprised to find that these hidden weapons and demon shadows were all composed of countless phantoms, with no substance!
It turned out that the focus of this level was only to test martial arts moves and the manipulation of power, to see if they could use their inner strength to drive their treasures to display the wonderful use of hand-eye communication and omnipotence.
Although Zhong Wu Ye did not play a big role in the first half of the journey, in the later rounds of cooperation with her teammates, she did show her strength, and her coordination and reaction were also good.
When they entered the second level, they felt even more puzzled.
All they saw were complex positions and astronomical diagrams, as well as some seemingly ancient inscriptions, emerging in an endless stream, overlapping and intertwined.
The young man told them that the focus of this level was to explore a certain mystery in Yin-Yang metaphysics, as well as astronomical theorems related to time and space.
Such difficult and incomprehensible knowledge really made Zhong Wu Ye feel an immense challenge.
Fortunately, Qin Huan usually had a wide range of interests and had some knowledge of astrology and celestial phenomena, and Tana was also proficient in ancient books, so with the help of the two of them, they finally barely passed the second level.
By the time they reached the third level, they were exhausted and almost desperate.
Passing through an old gold-inlaid copper door, they entered a strangely decorated hall, full of mutually reflecting mirrors, which was dizzying.
Before long, their reflections appeared in the mirrors, mirroring their actions.
Zhong Wu Ye concentrated and prepared, drawing her sword and waving away several tentative mirror images.
She did not know if these shadows would cause harm, but she would never be careless.
Suddenly, the mirror images launched an attack at the same time, using swords, shurikens, ropes, and sharp weapons, doing everything possible to attack them.
Zhong Wu Ye immediately used the Spirit Serpent Sword Technique, and the sword in her hand sprayed green smoke, turning into several spirit snakes that wandered and shuttled, wrapping around the weapons of each mirror image.
Qin Huan and Tana also kept waving the objects in their hands, protecting Zhong Wu Ye from the left and right, dissolving all the splashing hidden weapons.
At this critical moment, the hall showed its strangeness: the mirrors slid open on their own, revealing an extremely large mirror in the center of the hall.
Zhong Wu Ye faintly saw her infinitely magnified figure on it, and behind her, there was an incomparably huge and terrifying demon!
The demon was like a sky-supporting giant, brandishing its claws, ferocious and terrifying.
Zhong Wu Ye's heart suddenly tightened, and she increased her strength, the green smoke in the Spirit Serpent Sword becoming more and more intense, turning into ten thousand snakes surging wildly, roaring and tearing at the terrifying demon shadow.
Finally, with the full cooperation of Tana and Qin Huan, the demon shadow burst into flying ash under the tearing of the snake formation.
This level was extremely difficult, requiring not only meticulous deduction, but also testing spiritual power cultivation.
Zhong Wu Ye and others had to pay a great price to break through the layers of illusionary formations with their divine power.
When they finally pushed open the door of the inner hall, the three of them were exhausted, almost panting.
...
A middle-aged man in a silver-white robe was sitting there, his eyes slightly closed, his expression indifferent.
When Zhong Wu Ye dragged the two of them in, the middle-aged man slowly opened his eyes, his gaze like a torch, watching them for a while, and smiled slightly.
Zhong Wu Ye felt that this gaze was very familiar, as if she had seen it before.
But soon the middle-aged man opened his mouth: "I didn't expect a group of juniors to not be stumped by the three trials of the Cardinal Academy; it's really remarkable.
Then I won't beat around the bush; I am Dean Cang Li.
Have you guessed the purpose of coming here?"
Zhong Wu Ye pondered in silence, and Cang Li said directly: "I had already expected that there would be such a group of people coming to the door, because I know better than anyone else the identity of Princess Tana.
You are using the case of the Grand Tutor's mansion as a cover, but you are actually here to investigate the details of the Blood Rose Gang, right?"
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Zhong Wu Ye was stunned and looked at Tana in surprise.
Cang Li smiled when he saw this and said: "Yes, the Tana beside you is the real princess.
As for the one in the Grand Tutor's mansion, it's just a carefully packaged substitute.
The Cardinal Academy has long grasped the movements of the Blood Rose, and the target of their attack this time is actually Princess Tana.
We are planning to take this opportunity to wipe them out in one fell swoop."
Cang Li sat there, his hands clasped together, as calm as an ancient well, as if he had already seen through their intentions.
Zhong Wu Ye's heart moved, and she saluted and said: "Dean, your vision is far-reaching, and you have long expected our intentions.
But I have a few questions, and I would like to ask the Dean for guidance."
Cang Li nodded, signaling her to continue.
Zhong Wu Ye said: "Since you have grasped the movements of the Blood Rose, why didn't you bring them to justice as soon as they entered the country?
Instead, you allowed them to wreak havoc in Chang'an City?"
Cang Li replied with a solemn expression: "The Blood Rose is an old opponent, with mysterious portals and branches all over several countries.
If we rashly capture the leaders, it will inevitably lead to greater disasters.
Therefore, we have to use a more clever game within a game, first let them stretch out their fangs, and expose all their hiding places and forces.
This is the plan to wipe them out in one fell swoop."
Zhong Wu Ye nodded, seemingly understanding.
She then asked: "Then what about the seal in Princess Tana's body?
As far as I know, the princess has suffered hardships since she was a child; could it be because of this seal?"
Cang Li's face became serious and said: "What is sealed in the princess's body is actually an ancient resentment that has been around for a long time.
When she was born, she was subjected to a mysterious force, and only by finding the source can we avoid the remaining disasters."
Zhong Wu Ye couldn't help feeling sad, and looked at Tana, who had a solemn expression on her face.
Although she was stubborn and unconvinced, she also vaguely revealed a sense of vicissitudes.
Zhong Wu Ye turned her gaze to Cang Li again and said: "Then what about the information about the Profound Sky Dragon Realm?"
Cang Li shook his head, interrupting her words:
"This matter is a long story.
In short, the Profound Sky Dragon Realm is a place with thousands of years of destiny, and the events related to it have traces to follow.
And you, Zhong Wu Ye, some of the traits in your blood are destined to be closely connected to it.
As long as you can help me, suppress the seal in the princess's body, I will definitely pass on this important information to you."
Zhong Wu Ye nodded thoughtfully, becoming even more curious about this Profound Sky Dragon Realm.
She did not know her background, but what connection would the traits in her blood have with that place?
It seemed that she could only help Cang Li first.
Just then, Tana suddenly spoke, her tone carrying a hint of stubbornness: "But once the seal's suppression fails, that vengeful spirit will reawaken, right? And over time, it will probably harm my cultivation. So, please, Dean, think twice."
Cang Li shook his head: "Don't worry, the Cardinal Academy has been studying this matter for years. The method of suppressing the seal will certainly not harm your cultivation. Moreover, even if that vengeful spirit temporarily awakens, it will never be as rampant as it once was, because it will also be subjected to our multiple suppressions. You should first suppress the seal within your body. Only then can we further investigate the origin of this vengeful spirit."
Tana pondered for a long time after hearing this, and finally nodded. Zhong Wuye and Qin Huan also felt that Cang Li's words were true, and since the matter was of great importance, they should play along. So, the four of them decided to first suppress the seal within Tana's body, clear Sima Ru's suspicion, and then deal with the Blood Rose and inquire about the whereabouts of the Profound Heaven Dragon Domain.
...
Thus, they decided to raid the Grand Tutor's mansion at night to obtain evidence of the Grand Tutor's attack on the delegation.