Once numerous human powerhouses and magical beast experts had all entered the Gods' Grave, the Grand Priest finally spoke up.
"Lord Belute?" The Grand Priest looked at Belute. "If Bei Bei were to encounter the divine beast 'Python,' what then?"
Belute might not care about the life or death of others, but he would certainly care about Bei Bei's. Yet within the Gods' Grave, not even Belute could save them. The Grand Priest was understandably puzzled... why would Belute dare to do this!
Belute smiled. "There's no need to worry. Bei Bei won't encounter the Python. He's taking the right-hand passage."
"Lord Belute, what do you mean?" Hise's expression changed.
Belute nodded with a faint smile. "The moment the passages opened, I probed with my senses. That Python is in the left section, and below the fifth level... That's why I let the magical beast Saints enter from the right passage."
The Grand Priest, the Martial God, Di Lin, and Hise all sighed inwardly.
"And Lin Lei..." Hise said in a low voice.
Belute replied indifferently. "Let's hope his luck is a bit better. I can't protect them forever, and they entered the Gods' Grave willingly. Alright, let's go. We'll return in another ten years." With that, Belute turned and flew directly back towards the passage they came from.
The Grand Priest and the other three followed immediately.
Deep within the dark, gleaming passage, a group of human powerhouses advanced one after another. The deep-sea water could not penetrate this corridor. Faen and Lin Lei walked side by side.
"Lin Lei, remember, if you encounter any danger, the safest option is to retreat to the next level down," Faen advised, sharing his experience. "Every level here harbors a great number of terrifying creatures or undead, but they will only remain on their own level."
Lin Lei nodded slightly.
"Also, never release your soul power within the Gods' Grave," Faen said seriously. "If your soul power sweeps over certain creatures, they will immediately detect your presence."
"I understand." In such a dangerous place, actively releasing soul power was tantamount to announcing your existence to the creatures and undead on that level. It was simply courting death.
Lin Lei asked, "Faen, this Gods' Grave was constructed with these distinct levels, each containing various creatures... I can't shake the feeling that someone deliberately designed it this way." It was too strange. If gods had truly perished here, things should be chaotic.
But now it seemed more like an enormous, structured tomb.
"My teacher mentioned that Lord Belute once told him this Gods' Grave is actually a game of the Chief Gods," Faen said with a bitter smile.
"A Chief God's game?" Lin Lei was stunned.
Instantly, he understood. "Hodan once said that in the Higher Planes, there are countless divine-level experts, but for each System, there are only seven Chief Gods. The Chief Gods, from their lofty position, send their subordinates to build tombs for these deceased gods, and then deliberately allow Saint-level or divine-level experts to enter and seek treasures." Lin Lei felt a surge of helplessness.
The Chief Gods were exalted above all.
They, including the Grand Priest and the Martial God—these lower gods—were merely small chess pieces in their game.
"Perhaps the Chief Gods are watching us struggle down there with great interest," Faen sighed.
Lin Lei understood. The Chief Gods watched them fight for their lives from on high. Just like when he was a child, watching a group of ants on the ground.
This group of people, including the Grand Priest and the Martial God, were all 'ants' in the eyes of the Chief Gods. Perhaps even the seemingly powerful Belute was merely a stronger ant in the sight of those lofty deities.
"But no matter what, the chance of obtaining a Godhood here is far greater than going to the Higher Planes to find one," Faen said, taking a deep breath.
Lin Lei also took a deep breath.
It was time to give it his all.
"If I can obtain a Godhood, even if I don't use it myself, giving it to Dilia would be good." Lin Lei felt immense tenderness toward Dilia. He had been away for ten years, and she had never once uttered a word of complaint. To have a wife who thought only of him was his good fortune.
"Everyone, we've reached the end of the passage," a cold, turbaned man at the very front announced loudly. "Beyond this is the first level. Remember, don't be too greedy. It's fine if you die yourself, but don't drag others down with you."
After speaking, the turbaned man stepped out of the passage.
He was none other than one of the five Saint-level pinnacle powerhouses, the strongest in the Far East Great Grasslands, the Martial Saint 'Tuli Lei'.
Following him, one by one, the human Saint-level experts entered.
"I wonder what's on the first level. I hope we don't meet that terrifying divine-level magical beast, the 'Python,' right at the entrance," Lin Lei thought, gazing at the dark, gleaming end of the passage before stepping directly into it. Instantly, the world spun, and his surroundings transformed completely.
"Whoosh!" Gale-force winds howled, and yellow sand filled the sky.
This was a desolate desert world. The swirling sand kicked up by the fierce winds blotted out the heavens and earth, and the intense heat haze warped the very air.
"A magical beast over there." Lin Lei could clearly see in the distance a towering, grotesque creature with three horns on its head, roaring furiously. Its body was covered in scales with a metallic sheen, and sticky saliva dripped from its sharp fangs. "This beast looks formidable."
Lin Lei's heart sank with a shock. He immediately transformed into his Dragon Blood Warrior form.
In this place, he dared not let his guard down for a moment.
"Huh?" Lin Lei suddenly noticed that much of the swirling yellow sand was passing straight through the 'grotesque beast's' body. After a short while, the creature vanished entirely.
"An illusion?" Lin Lei began to understand.
Many Saint-level experts, upon entering, carefully observed their surroundings before quickly flying off to search for the passage leading to the second level.
"Where is Bark?" Lin Lei didn't see him. "This cursed place—sand everywhere, space warping, illusions appearing constantly—I can barely make out anyone." Lin Lei cursed inwardly. He could only clearly see the few Saint-level experts near him; those elsewhere were obscured from view.