As Roy surveyed this world, he suddenly heard a soft murmur beside him. Turning quickly, he saw Yu Ji standing there with an agitated expression, stomping her feet in frustration.
"What's wrong, Yu Meiren?"
Startled, Roy immediately grasped Yu Ji's fair, jade-like hand, holding it tightly in his palm as he spoke with concern.
Yu Ji suppressed her agitation, biting her lip before shaking her head at Roy. "...My lord need not worry. This concubine... This concubine cannot sense the presence of external magical energy here. I might..."
Her face was filled with panic.
Only then did Roy realize—Yu Ji was a spirit born of the world, capable of harnessing the planet's natural energy, converting the Greater Source into her own power, thus appearing to possess infinite magical energy.
But this Reality Marble, constructed within the Imaginary Number Space, not only blocked the Counter Force but also severed the connection to the Greater Source. Had this space been naturally formed, Yu Ji, as a celestial maiden, could have quickly established a link to regain external support, allowing her to continue wielding earth-shaking, star-shifting power.
However, this space was undeniably under the First Emperor's control. Under his dominion, it was unlikely Yu Ji could wrest control from him.
Now, she had lost access to the Greater Source.
Had Yu Ji been at her peak, this would not have been an issue—her maximum output would still be terrifying. But under the influence of her "Bloodsucking Impulse," her current strength was less than twenty percent of its full potential. Without the Greater Source's reinforcement, she was now at her weakest.
"I understand your concerns, my dear, but there's no need to worry. I alone am more than enough to face the First Emperor... Tamamo, can you reopen this mystic lock and send Yu Meiren out?"
Though Yu Ji's immortality remained, making her difficult to kill, she was now severely weakened. Roy did not want her to face danger here.
"My lord, you must not do this! Though this concubine has little strength left and may be of little help... still—"
But if she wished, she could lift the restrictions on her power at any time, converting the majority of her strength that suppressed the bloodlust into pure combat ability. As an elf who had lived for tens of thousands of years, if Yu Ji were to unleash her full power, she would undoubtedly rival those ancient deities.
Yu Ji felt both restless and furious, angered by the constraints imposed by this environment. What troubled her wasn't the potential danger she might face here, but the possibility of being unable to assist Roy. The mere thought of it deepened her sorrow.
Roy covered Yu Ji's mouth with his hand, his tone stern as he said, "...No matter how great the danger, you must never release your bloodlust. I have my own means to handle things—there's no need for you to sacrifice yourself!"
Roy wielded numerous Authorities, among them even the power of resurrection. Even if a situation demanded sacrifice, he could choose to sacrifice himself. But if Yu Ji lifted the restrictions on her bloodlust, while it would grant her incomparable strength for a short time, once consumed by the bloodlust, she would become a mindless monster driven only by the thirst for blood. For an immortal, for a True Ancestor, this would be tantamount to death.
Moreover, Roy didn't believe the First Emperor could possibly be that powerful—at the very least, he couldn't compare to Rama from the Campione world when he activated the 'Oath of the Covenant.' The First Emperor was a master of schemes, having orchestrated these miracles throughout his lifetime, but in the end, he had been nothing more than an ordinary mortal. Even if he had once wandered Kunlun and Penglai, only a few years had passed since his death. He might have gained formidable power, but it shouldn't be too exaggerated.
Given another hundred or thousand years, the First Emperor might have become an extremely dangerous figure. But as he was now, Roy didn't think his personal strength was anything extraordinary. Instead, it was the environment of the Mausoleum that made Roy more wary.
"But, Your Majesty—"
Seeing that Roy truly intended to send her out of the mausoleum, Yu Ji grew anxious and tried to refuse. However, before she could speak, Tamamo-no-Mae's words eased her worries.
"I can't reopen this labyrinth from the inside either, mikon~ If we want to leave, we'll have to meet the master of this place."
Tamamo-no-Mae clasped her hands together demurely, her demeanor as gentle as a maiden from the Jiangnan water towns. Yet beneath her enchanting fox-like beauty, there was a trace of solemnity.
Had she still been in her nine-tailed state, she wouldn't have cared about this bounded field constructed in imaginary space. But now, missing a tail, the mysteries of this place made her sense danger.
"Since we can't send Yu Ji out, let's proceed further inside and meet the master of this place."
Roy took Yu Ji's hand in his left and Tamamo-no-Mae's in his right as he walked forward, explaining, "...Who knows if this space has the ability to invert or displace us, separating us to be picked off one by one? Holding onto you like this ensures our 'bond' remains connected, rendering such grand magecraft ineffective."
Yu Ji and Roy had already shared everything—holding hands was nothing to them. Tamamo-no-Mae, however, blinked her bewitching fox eyes as she felt Roy's grip on her slender wrist, their palms touching. Outwardly, she showed no reaction, but inwardly, her thoughts were in turmoil.
"Mmm, Xiaoyu is holding hands with a man!!"
She wanted to break free, feeling that her hand should only be held by her future husband. Yet, she also thought Roy's reasoning made sense—if this space had the power to distort and separate them, they would fall right into a trap...
Lost in her chaotic thoughts, she allowed Roy to keep holding her hand as they moved toward the distant silhouette of the city.
The three of them moved swiftly. Though this space resembled the outside world, like a miniature realm, it was eerily devoid of any living creatures, silent and unsettling. On their way to 'Xianyang,' they encountered numerous massive pits, each filled with rows upon rows of terracotta warriors.
"Those are living people!"
Yu Meiren only needed a single glance to sense the life force within these terracotta figures.
"Not long after the First Emperor unified the six states, he passed away. I always wondered why the once-invincible Qin army vanished without a trace. The soldiers led by Zhang Han were merely convicts—utterly illogical. Now it seems the First Emperor used some special method to 'freeze' the very army that fought across the land for Qin, waiting to 'thaw' them upon his resurrection to conquer the world once more."
Each pit contained thousands of terracotta warriors, and these pits sprawled densely outside 'Xianyang.' Roy roughly estimated their numbers—at least 200,000 in total.
No wonder the First Emperor paid no heed to the turmoil of the outside world. Once he revived and obtained a 'true human' body like Yu Meiren's, and once these hundreds of thousands of terracotta warriors were unfrozen, reuniting the world under his rule would be as effortless as eating or drinking.
Even disregarding the First Emperor's own power, these terracotta warriors were Qin's elite soldiers, tempered through countless battles, fierce and formidable.
As Roy and the others passed these pits of terracotta warriors, they entered 'Xianyang.'
Within this bounded field, 'Xianyang' was empty, filled only with endless yellow sand. Where the 'Xianyang Palace' should have stood, there was no palace—only the First Emperor's coffin!
At the sight of it, Roy froze. The coffin was nothing like what people imagined—it was a massive bronze alchemy furnace, towering over a hundred meters tall, still emitting wisps of steam.
"Don't tell me the First Emperor tried to refine himself into an elixir!"
Roy couldn't help but quip at the sight of this enormous, steaming furnace.
Just then, from behind one of the furnace's massive legs, emerged an elderly man. His hair was white as a crane's feathers, his face youthful, dressed in the robes of an alchemist—exuding the aura of a charlatan.
"Xu Fu!"
At first glance, Roy knew exactly who he was.