434: Chapter 369: Discovery of Ruins, Ancient Sect Ruins Appear

On the seventh day after the establishment of the Fire of Civilization outpost, the exploration team brought back shocking news.

Xu hovered before the conference table in the command tower, the Order runes around its body flickering with nervous light: "Master, about five hundred kilometers to the southeast, I have sensed a massive area of rule anomaly. It is not a Chaos vortex, nor is it a Chaos Beast nest, but a kind of... rule structure I have never seen before. It is very old, very stable, and even still 'operating'."

"Operating?" Lin Zhou frowned.

"Yes," Xu nodded, "Like a machine forgotten for millions of years, yet still working. At its core, there is a mass of energy originating from the same source as the Fire of Civilization—although faint, it is indeed of the same source."

Lin Zhou's pupils contracted sharply.

The same source. Originating from the same source as the Fire of Civilization.

This meant that the ruins were very likely related to the civilization of the previous Universe—perhaps even related to The Transcendent themselves.

"Assemble the team, prepare to depart." Lin Zhou stood up, "Wang Meng, Tie Xiong, Wen Yuan, Qin Shuang, each of you lead fifty elites. Xu will lead the way, Shou will guard the rear."

"Yes!"

An hour later, the two-hundred-person exploration team left the Fire of Civilization outpost and headed southeast.

Xu floated at the front of the team, its runes illuminating the grey-white mist. Shou followed at the rear, its massive body like a mobile fortress, blocking the Chaos Beast outside. Lin Zhou walked in the center of the team, the river of civilization flowing around him, shielding everyone.

[Exploration Team · Status]

- Number of People: 200

- Average Divine Rank: LV250

- Equipment: rune armor · Upgraded Version

- Supplies Carried: Enough for seven days

- Xu's Scouting Range: 100 km radius

- Shou's Alert Range: 10 km radius

Five hundred kilometers in the Chaos Star Domain was like five hundred light-years.

Space folding, time distortion, Chaos Beast attacks... every kilometer was filled with unknown danger. But under Xu's guidance and Shou's protection, the team's travel speed was much faster than expected.

[Travel Data · First 300 km]

- Time Taken: About six hours

- Space Folding Encountered: 12 times (all bypassed)

- Time Distortion Zones Encountered: 5 times (detoured)

- Chaos Beast Encountered: 7 times (all killed, no casualties)

- chaos crystal Obtained: About 200

When they were only one hundred kilometers from the target, Xu suddenly stopped.

"Master, there is a large gathering of Rule Fragments ahead. It was not formed naturally, but rather... 'arranged' by some power."

"Arranged?" Lin Zhou walked to the front of the team and looked in the direction Xu was pointing.

In the grey-white mist, one could vaguely see some regular, geometric outlines. Not the disordered distortion of Chaos energy, but straight lines, right angles, circular arcs—features only found in man-made objects.

"Speed up." Lin Zhou ordered.

The team accelerated.

One hundred kilometers... fifty kilometers... twenty kilometers...

The mist gradually thinned, and the scene before them made everyone hold their breath.

It was a mountain.

Not the ruins commonly seen in the Chaos Star Domain, eroded into grey-white by Chaos energy, but a complete, blue-black mountain. The mountain towered into the clouds, with clouds and mist swirling around its waist—not Chaos mist, but real clouds. The outline of buildings was vaguely visible on the summit, with flying eaves and upturned corners, ancient and magnificent.

[Ancient Sect Ruins · Preliminary Data]

- Type: Mountain Gate + Building Complex

- Height: About 3,000 meters

- Coverage: About 10 km in diameter

- Number of Buildings: About 100 (partially collapsed)

- Preservation Status: Poor (but main structure still exists)

- Rule Stability: 75% (far higher than the Chaos Star Domain average)

- Chaos Energy Concentration: 30 times that of the outside (far lower than the surroundings)

"This... this is..." Wen Yuan pushed up his glasses, his voice trembling.

"Ruins of an ancient civilization." Lin Zhou said, "And, bigger and more complete than the academy we discovered earlier."

He stepped toward the mountain gate.

The mountain gate was a massive stone archway, about thirty meters high and twenty meters wide. The pillars of the archway were carved with complex reliefs—not in the style of this era, but with more ancient, more elegant lines. There were cranes, auspicious clouds, long swords, and Daoist robes.

On the crossbeam of the archway, two large characters were carved.

Although eroded by Chaos energy for millions of years, the two characters were still clearly legible—[Shushan].

[Shushan · Text Analysis]

- Font: Ancient Seal Script (originates from the same source as Huaxia Civilization)

- Meaning: Shu, place name; Shan, mountain range. Shushan means "Mountain of the Shu region".

- Civilization Connection: Clear Legacy relationship exists with Lin Zhou's Huaxia Civilization

- Sanctuary Resonance: Strong (river of civilization level + 1%)

"Shushan..." Lin Zhou murmured.

These two characters stirred a strange feeling in his heart. Not unfamiliar, but—familiar. As if he had seen them somewhere, heard them somewhere, dreamed of them somewhere.

"Captain, do you recognize these characters?" Wang Meng asked.

"I do." Lin Zhou nodded, "These are characters from the ancient Huaxia Civilization. Shushan is the legendary Sect of Sword Cultivators."

"Sword Cultivator?" Tie Xiong scratched his head, "What is that?"

"Practitioners who enter the Dao through the sword, and defend the Dao with the sword." Lin Zhou raised his hand, a wisp of Fire of Civilization condensing in his palm, "Their Dao has commonalities with my Way of Civilization."

He stepped into the mountain gate.

The moment his footsteps landed, the entire mountain vibrated.

Not an earthquake, but—resonance.

From deep within the mountain came a low hum, like an ancient bell tolling. It was the sound of some mechanism forgotten for millions of years being reactivated.

[Shushan · Mechanism Activation]

- Trigger Condition: Fire of Civilization sensing

- Activation Range: Entire mountain (10 km diameter)

- Activation Effect:

1. Chaos energy on the mountain surface is pushed away

2. Buildings begin to "self-heal" (slow repair)

3. Defensive Formation at the mountain gate restarts

4. A beam of light lights up at the summit (Sword Intent condensing)

"Careful!" Wang Meng raised his battle axe, watching his surroundings vigilantly.

"Don't be nervous." Lin Zhou said, "This is not an attack, it is... a welcome."

He walked up the mountain along the stone steps.

The stone steps were very long, extending from the mountain gate to the summit, about thirty thousand steps. On both sides of the stone steps, every hundred paces there was a stone statue—not an ordinary stone statue, but a statue of a Sword Cultivator wearing a Daoist robe and holding a long sword. The eyes of the statues were inlaid with some kind of crystal, which glowed faintly under the illumination of the Fire of Civilization.

[Stone Statue · Data]

- Quantity: About 300

- Material: Unknown stone (extremely high hardness)

- Status: Mostly intact

- Function: Suspected "Guardian", but not activated

- Danger Rank: Unknown

"Will these stone statues suddenly come to life?" Tie Xiong asked.

"I don't know." Lin Zhou shook his head, "But, try not to touch them."

The team moved up along the stone steps.

After walking for about an hour, they reached the mountainside.

On the mountainside was a plaza. The ground of the plaza was paved with bluestone slabs, and each slab was carved with sword marks—not random carvings, but regular sword move trajectories like a copybook.

[Plaza · Sword Marks]

- Quantity: About 1,000

- Type: Basic sword moves (thrust, hack, lift, sweep, point, etc.)

- Sword Intent Contained: Faint (but perceivable)

- Effect: Practitioners can increase sword technique proficiency

"Wen Yuan, record these sword marks." Lin Zhou said, "Perhaps they will be useful for our civilization's Sword Cultivators."

"Yes!"

Wen Yuan took out the recorder and began scanning each sword mark.

Lin Zhou continued upward.

After walking for about half an hour, they reached the summit.

At the summit was a grand hall.

The scale of the grand hall was even more magnificent than the mountain gate, about fifty meters high and one hundred meters wide. The roof of the hall was a hip-and-gable roof, covered with glazed tiles—although most were broken, the remaining tiles were still glowing. On the steps in front of the hall stood two larger stone statues, ten meters high, holding long swords with the tips pointing to the sky.

On the lintel of the hall, four large characters were carved—[Shushan Sword Pavilion].

[Shushan Sword Pavilion · Data]

- Type: Core Building

- Function: Collection of Sword Cultivator Legacy

- Preservation Status: Poor (roof collapsed, walls cracked)

- Interior: Residual Sword Intent, suspected to have a guardian

- Danger Rank: High

Lin Zhou pushed open the hall doors.

The door hinges made a harsh sound, but the doors still opened.

Inside the hall, it was dim.

But, the moment Lin Zhou stepped in, the lamps on the hall walls lit up automatically—not fire, but light condensed from Sword Intent. The light illuminated the grand hall, and also the scene inside.

In the center of the grand hall was a sword platform.

On the sword platform was a sword.

The sword body was about three feet long, entirely blue-black, with a pale golden crystal inlaid at the sword guard. On the sword body, two small characters were carved—[Qingping].

[Qingping Sword · Data]

- Type: Flying Sword (Ancient Relic)

- Quality: Epic (Damaged)

- Attack Power: Full-force strike of Mid-Tier Divine Power (after damage)

- Characteristics:

1. Sword Intent Resonance: Can resonate with the Fire of Civilization, increasing power

2. Sword Heart Clarity: Wearer's sword technique proficiency + 50%

3. Damaged: Sword body has cracks, needs repair

- Repair Materials: chaos crystal + Fire of Civilization

Lin Zhou walked to the sword platform and reached out to grasp the hilt.

The hilt was cold, but the moment he grasped it, a warm power came from the sword body—that was Sword Intent, the conviction of the sword-maker from millions of years ago.

"Good sword." Lin Zhou murmured.

He drew the sword from the sword platform.

The moment the sword left the platform, the entire grand hall vibrated.

The lights on the hall walls flared, and the floor in the center of the hall cracked open, revealing a passage leading downward.

[Passage · Data]

- Location: Center of the grand hall

- Depth: Unknown

- Width: Can accommodate two people side by side

- Interior: Faint Sword Intent light

- Danger Rank: Unknown

"There is something else below." Lin Zhou said.

He carried the Qingping sword and entered the passage.

The passage was long and winding downwards, taking about ten minutes to reach the bottom.

At the bottom was a secret chamber.

The secret chamber was not large, about one hundred square meters. The walls of the secret chamber were carved with characters and patterns—those were the Mind-Cultivation Techniques, sword moves, and the history of Shushan.

[Shushan · Historical Records (Partial)]

- "Shushan established the Sect for three thousand years, defending the Dao with the sword, saving the world with chivalry."

- "Chaos Star Domain eroded, Shushan bore the brunt. Disciples fought to the death without retreating, less than one in ten survived."

- "The Sect Head used his lifelong cultivation to forge the Qingping sword, leaving it for those who follow."

- "The return to nothingness is imminent. Although Shushan has perished, the Sword Heart does not perish."

- "Later generations, if you see this text, please hold Qingping and continue our Shushan Sword Dao."

Lin Zhou looked at those words and remained silent for a long time.

"Shushan... Defend the Dao with the sword, save the world with chivalry." He murmured, "How similar to my Way of Civilization."

He turned and looked at the center of the secret chamber.

There sat a skeleton cross-legged.

The skeleton was wearing a Daoist robe, with both hands resting on its knees, palms facing up. In front of it were a bamboo scroll and a jade pendant.

[Bamboo Scroll · Shushan Sword Canon (Fragment)]

- Content: Basic Mind-Cultivation Technique for Shushan Sword Cultivators, advanced sword moves, principles of sword Formation

- Completeness: 60%

- Learnable: Civilization Sword Cultivators can change class to "Shushan Sword Immortal"

- Class Change Condition: Sword technique proficiency A-Rank or higher, recognized by the Fire of Civilization

[Jade Pendant · Sect Head's Token]

- Function: Can activate the defensive Formation of the Shushan Sword Pavilion

- Effect: Sword technique power for friendly units within range + 50%

- Consumption: None (Passive)

Lin Zhou put away the bamboo scroll and the jade pendant and bowed deeply to the skeleton.

"Senior, I will carry on your Sword Dao."

The skeleton seemed to sense something; the Sword Intent light in its palms flickered slightly and then extinguished.

As if to say: It is in your hands now.

Lin Zhou exited the secret chamber and returned to the grand hall.

"Captain, what is down there?" Wang Meng asked.

"The Legacy of Shushan." Lin Zhou raised the Qingping sword, "And this sword."

He stored the Qingping sword into his God Kingdom Core and placed it in the Temple of Civilization.

The river of civilization in the hall brightened slightly, resonating with the Sword Intent.

[Temple of Civilization · New Collection]

- Qingping Sword (Epic / Damaged)

- Shushan Sword Canon (Fragment)

- Sect Head's Token

- Effect: river of civilization level + 5%, sword technique skill effect + 20%

"Wen Yuan, are you done recording?" Lin Zhou asked.

"Finished recording." Wen Yuan nodded, "One thousand sword marks, all scanned and archived."

"Good. Continue exploring to see if there are any other buildings."

The team dispersed to explore every building in Shushan.

Scripture Pavilion, pill room, sword forge, martial arts arena... there were gains in every place.

[Exploration Gains · Summary]

- Shushan Sword Canon (Fragment): 1 scroll

- Sword Cultivator Mind-Cultivation Technique: 3 pieces

- Sword Formation Diagram: 2 pieces

- Medicinal Pill (Expired): Several (components can be researched)

- Flying Sword Wreckage: About 100 (can be reforged)

- chaos crystal: About 5,000 (in building ruins)

- Rule Fragment: About 300

"Legion Commander, these things are enough for us to train a Sword Cultivator legion." Wen Yuan said excitedly.

Lin Zhou nodded.

"But, it is not enough." He looked at the Sword Pavilion on the summit, "The core Legacy of Shushan should be deeper inside the Sword Pavilion. There is not enough time today, let's go back first and come again tomorrow."

The team went down the mountain and returned to the Fire of Civilization outpost.

On the way back, Lin Zhou kept holding the Qingping sword.

The cracks on the sword body seemed to have shrunk a little under the nourishment of the Fire of Civilization.

[Qingping Sword · Repair Progress]

- Repair Speed: 1% per day (nourished by Fire of Civilization)

- Estimated Complete Repair: About 100 days

- Quality After Repair: Epic → Legendary

"Captain, what are you thinking about?" Qin Qing walked to his side.

"Thinking that the Sword Dao of Shushan is really very similar to my Way of Civilization." Lin Zhou said, "They defend the Dao with the sword, and I defend the Dao with civilization. Different paths to the same destination."

"Perhaps, this is fate." Qin Qing said, "You found Shushan, and Shushan also found you."

Lin Zhou was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

"Perhaps."

He looked up at the distant Fire of Civilization outpost.

The Fire of Civilization on top of the tower was like a lighthouse in the grey-white mist, illuminating the way home.

"Tomorrow, continue exploring."

Behind him, the outline of Shushan gradually blurred in the mist.

But Lin Zhou knew it would always be there.

Waiting for him to uncover more secrets.