236: Martial arts with illustrations, that's awesome!

As the door was slowly pushed open by Shen Bei.

In the blink of an eye, dark clouds obscured the moon. Shen Bei's body tensed, adopting a combat-ready stance. But what was strange was that even though the clouds had covered the moon, the scene inside this building became even clearer.

A night wind suddenly arose, and the dark clouds obscuring the moon were slowly pushed away. As the faint light of the crescent moon appeared, Shen Bei suddenly raised his arms.

The moment he entered the hall, the instant Shen Bei looked up, a chill abruptly rose in his heart. He only felt his scalp tingle.

In that hall, countless pairs of glowing green eyes stared at him. Those eyes were arranged in neat rows, from front to back.

They stared intently at Shen Bei, the uninvited guest.

However, when Shen Bei activated his night vision and looked intently, he realized that they were merely copper statues of strange beings.

And on the ground were many stone statues, similar to sand foxes. They had triangular eyes and maintained strange, motionless postures.

“You scared the hell out of me.”

Shen Bei lit a simple torch he had made outside.

The copper statues flickered in and out of the firelight, appearing even more ferocious and terrifying. The reflections of knives, forks, bronze mirrors, and halberds danced wildly on the walls, like candle flames swaying madly in a strong wind.

The taller copper statues were angels with feathered wings on their shoulder blades, their gazes pale.

And the tallest were copper statues of strange beings. They held knives and axes, their eyes like blades, their demeanor majestic. The weapons in their hands seemed as if they could fall at any moment, severing heads.

Shen Bei looked on curiously, unable to make sense of it.

He tapped it casually, producing a hollow, clanging sound.

“This craftsmanship…” Shen Bei gave a rating: “Only 6 points, it doesn’t match my aesthetic.”

Shen Bei drew his twin sabers and gestured at the weapons on the copper statues.

Swish…

He chopped down with one saber.

The weapon on the copper statue immediately broke into pieces, falling to the ground with a clang.

Shen Bei waved his hand, dispersing the stirred-up dust.

“Not good stuff.”

Although Shen Bei did not know what material the weapons in the hands of the copper statues were made of.

The simplest comparison was to chop it with his own weapon.

If it couldn’t be cut, then it was good stuff, valuable.

If it broke with one chop, then there was no need to carry it back to sell for money; it wasn't worth the trouble.

Shen Bei bypassed these copper statues of unknown significance and continued deeper.

Shen Bei hoped to find some surprise here.

Soon.

The first floor had no further path, so Shen Bei quietly went up to the second floor via the stairs.

What met his eyes was a scene of dazzling splendor, carved railings and jade pillars. Looking around, it was simply blinding. Everything, without exception, was made from top-grade Materials. Even the most inconspicuous black stone slabs on the ground were seamlessly integrated with everything around them.

However, this place did not give off a nouveau riche feeling; only deep, quiet, deathly still, ancient, and restrained.

“Tap, tap-tap, tap-tap…”

As Shen Bei entered.

Looking around, the second floor was completely empty, as if it had been plundered, utterly bare and impoverished.

The already vast space had no furnishings whatsoever, making it appear extremely desolate.

“Damn it…”

Shen Bei sniffed: “Could all the good stuff have been taken away by the strange beings?”

Thinking this way was understandable.

How many days had Shen Bei been in the catacombs?

And would the strange beings of the catacombs not know about this place?

Shen Bei felt a bit disappointed, feeling like he had come for nothing.

However.

Just then, an anomaly occurred.

On the huge wall in front of Shen Bei, it seemed to automatically activate because of his entry.

Suddenly, golden lines exploded like sparks on the wall, igniting like fuses, like countless fireworks blooming before his eyes.

One by one, golden, strange strange being totems slowly outlined and revealed themselves on the wall. Shen Bei couldn't help but hold his breath, watching this shocking scene.

The slowly outlined golden lines had no Impurities, burning hot like molten metal, sacred and ancient, like a strange being military banner slowly rising before a myriad of armies. A huge painting slowly unfurled, depicting heavenly winds, divine Dragons, strange being Vicious Beasts, flood Dragons traversing rivers, and God Kings in their prime.

Countless strange beings appeared like totems amidst mountains and rivers, from top to bottom, from the vast and boundless clouds of the Nine Heavens to the surging waves of the four seas.

Wherever his gaze passed, only the hot golden lines were etched, their sharpness fully revealed.

Shen Bei's figure stood before that colossal painting, appearing humble and tiny.

“What is this thing…” Shen Bei was utterly shocked, staring intently.

In just the blink of an eye, everything around Shen Bei receded.

Golden lines swirled between heaven and earth, and the dazzling light receded like a tide in his pupils.

Martial Gods from the heavens fell like rain.

Shen Bei was utterly bewildered, discovering that he had entered the mural!

“What kind of Move is this? It’s a bit beyond the scope!”

Shen Bei exclaimed.

However, Shen Bei was not flustered; instead, he was somewhat calm.

One must know that humanity's overall exploration of the catacombs is less than 20%.

Within the catacombs, many inconceivable things have yet to be unearthed.

Although he had entered the painting, Shen Bei immediately thought that this might be a kind of mental invasion.

That is, entering an illusion.

This Martial Skill is not unfamiliar to human Martial Artists; they even encounter this Move when fighting strange beings.

There are even rumors that a Nine-Rank Martial Artist in China has mastered this Martial Skill.

Therefore, Shen Bei was not flustered at all.

His mental resistance attribute was no joke.

It wouldn't take long for him to break free.

There was nothing to worry about.

The only thing that puzzled Shen Bei was that this abandoned building clearly had no living occupants, yet this Martial Skill, similar to entering an illusion, could still be activated.

It seems humans still have much to learn from strange beings.

At this moment, Shen Bei became leisurely. He was standing on a snow-white bridge that spanned heaven and earth, surrounded by a vast sea of clouds.

Martial Gods were fighting in the sky. He glanced at them intentionally or unintentionally, then turned his gaze to his feet. A vast sea of clouds rolled beneath him, ever-changing and unpredictable. Looking into the distance, a sense of grandeur arose in his heart.

Shen Bei clicked his tongue twice. This scene had the feel of a game CG.

Soon.

Shen Bei's spirit wavered for a moment, and he exited the mural.

The surroundings were still quiet.

Shen Bei went past the mural and looked behind it, but there was nothing.

“What’s the principle? It doesn’t require anyone to use a Martial Skill, yet it can still make people enter an illusion. This Move is impressive.”

Shen Bei shrugged, feeling it was like an automatic sensor light.

However, Shen Bei would not waste time on anything he couldn't figure out.

If he couldn't figure it out now, he wouldn't figure it out no matter how much time he spent.

The simplest method was to ask someone else.

Wasting those brain cells wasn't cost-effective.

Shen Bei once again followed the stairs to the third floor, which was also the top floor of this building.

Under the torchlight.

It was still completely empty.

However.

It gave Shen Bei a fright.

He saw that in the center of this empty room, there was a person sitting cross-legged!

Shen Bei's whole body stiffened.

Just imagine…

In an abandoned building, someone is sitting cross-legged with their back to you, just like the sound of knocking on a coffin lid coming from a tomb. Who wouldn't be confused by that!

Shen Bei dared not Move for a moment.

Throughout the room.

There was only the crackling sound of the burning torch.

However, when Shen Bei calmed himself and looked closely again, he breathed a sigh of relief: “A dead person…”

Shen Bei had been flustered just now and hadn't looked carefully. Now that he looked, the person's body was covered in layers of dust.

How could a living person allow themselves to be covered in dust?

He was probably sitting in meditation until death.

Shen Bei strode over to take a look.

Indeed.

This was a strange being in a purple gold long robe.

The long robe had already weathered, and with a light touch, it crumbled into pieces on the ground.

This strange being's entire body had dried up.

But his eyes were still lowered, his appearance ordinary, his demeanor peaceful. His most prominent feature was his sharp, defined features, suggesting he was a resolute person.

The first time Shen Bei saw this strange being, a thought spontaneously arose in his mind, like a deeply rooted truth, beyond refutation.

That is… this strange being was the owner of this building.

Which sounds like a truism.

No one else would bury themselves in someone else's grave, after all.

Shen Bei looked around. Even though this strange being had passed away in meditation, his tiger-like might remained, his Martial power immense.

Shen Bei used a stick to probe, but found no treasures on the strange being, which greatly disappointed him.

“Did I come for nothing?”

Shen Bei really wanted to kick the corpse away, but he held back.

Although strange beings are enemies of humanity.

Such a morally reprehensible act should not be done.

Giving up on examining the corpse, Shen Bei turned his attention to the wall.

There were many paintings on it.

Although the painting style was different from that of humans, he could more or less understand some of their meanings.

Some were worshipping.

Some were kneeling in reverence.

Some mysterious things.

Soon, Shen Bei arrived at the last painting.

It depicted three irregularly intersecting circles.

Each circle used different pigments.

The intersecting area was painted black.

This black paint had somewhat peeled off, revealing the stone blocks of the wall.

There were no text descriptions on it.

Even if there were, Shen Bei wouldn't understand them.

Just as Shen Bei was about to leave.

He suddenly turned back.

He discovered that the stone block behind the peeled black paint seemed different from the wall itself.

It was… red?

“I walked around the perimeter before coming in, and the wall Materials were all bluish-gray stones.”

Shen Bei curiously stood on tiptoe and poked the red stone block with his stick.

Click, click…

It actually shook a few times.

Shen Bei's face immediately lit up with surprise: “Something’s here! I knew I wouldn’t come for nothing!”

No need to think much, anything hidden within the wall must be good stuff!

Who would store rice in a safe, after all?

Shen Bei reached out and removed the movable brick.

He reached in.

And pulled out two items.

One was a small, palm-sized box.

This small box actually had two layers.

He opened the first layer.

A red Medicinal Pill was placed inside.

Although it had endured the test of time, it still looked to be in very good condition, and its medicinal effects were still present.

“So… what kind of Medicinal Pill is this?”

Shen Bei was puzzled and dared not eat it. He temporarily put it away for now.

The second layer of the small box contained a bronze key.

The key handle was carved with a strange beast head.

The prominent feature of the beast head was its three eyes.

Shen Bei shook his head, indicating he had never seen such a Vicious Beast.

Shen Bei searched around but didn't find a place to insert the key, so he put it away for now.

He wasn't in the mood to look for a place to insert it.

Because…

The second item…

Was a book!

Shen Bei opened it and looked. He couldn't understand the text, but he understood the illustrations.

It was a Martial Skill!

“I hit the jackpot!”

Shen Bei was incredibly excited: “A Martial Skill with illustrations, that’s pretty awesome!”

So far, Shen Bei had only seen two Martial Skills with illustrations.

One was Phantom Step, and its awesomeness goes without saying.

The other was the one in his hand.

Shen Bei put away the book, tucked the small box into his pocket, and leaped directly out of the third-floor window.

“Time to go home! To find Professor Gu Xinrou to translate the Martial Skill!”