The fear gripping Jia Lingyi's heart surged through her entire soul like a mountain flood or a tsunami.
Jia Lingyi was not a cowardly woman. Raised with adoration and possessing no small amount of talent herself, very few things in this world had ever managed to frighten her.
Yet the brief exchange of gazes with Chu Feng had filled her with genuine, bone-deep terror.
Before meeting Chu Feng, she had heard some of his deeds, but she had never taken him seriously.
A junior, no matter how gifted, was nothing more than an ant she could crush at will — so long as he had not yet fully grown.
But in that moment of eye contact, the killing intent she had sensed from Chu Feng's eyes was nothing short of annihilating.
In that instant, she had almost seen a vision of the Dan Dao Immortal Sect — corpses strewn everywhere, rivers of blood flowing through the streets.
This boy had to be eliminated. Otherwise, the consequences would be endless.
"Young friend Chu Feng, you may enter now."
The moment the Formation Painting Master finished speaking, Chu Feng leaped forward and plunged straight into the Gate of All Beings.
At the same time, the others also darted in one after another.
That included Jia Lingyi, who had already returned to the warship, as well as those who had previously confronted the Formation Painting Master — none of them were willing to let this opportunity pass.
Though the Gate of All Beings appeared to be an enormous painting, it was in fact a formation gate.
Passing through the formation gate, Chu Feng entered a world steeped in an aura of antiquity.
Within this world, there were certain clues to be found. Chu Feng surmised that following these clues should lead him to the fortune contained in this world.
He searched along the way and soon arrived at an ancient city.
The city was completely devoid of people, yet the traces left behind spoke of a former glory.
"This place… carries that person's aura," Chu Feng suddenly said.
"Which person?" the Queen asked.
"Egg — it's the one inside the coffin," Chu Feng said.
"You mean the one in that painting the Formation Painting Master showed you earlier?" the Queen asked.
Earlier, once the Formation Painting Master had learned that Chu Feng could control those sealing formations, he had immediately produced a painting, hoping Chu Feng could help him break the formation within it and uncover its secrets.
Chu Feng had indeed been able to perceive things others could not. However, after he caught sight of the coffin hidden within the painting, his vision had gone no further.
"Yes, that one," Chu Feng said.
"You said earlier that you couldn't see what was inside that coffin, didn't you?" the Queen asked.
"I truly can't see inside. But I can sense that there is a person within, and traces of that person's aura exist here as well," Chu Feng said.
"Then why didn't you tell the Formation Painting Master?" the Queen asked.
"I kept silent because, while I was staring intently at the coffin, I sensed a dangerous aura," Chu Feng said.
"Dangerous? What kind of danger?" the Queen asked.
"A danger in the nature of a threat," Chu Feng said.
"You mean the existence inside that coffin was threatening you — warning you not to reveal anything about it to the Formation Painting Master?" the Queen asked.
"More than that. If I had continued looking, I actually would have had a fair chance of seeing the situation inside the coffin."
"But that dangerous aura made me stop."
"It wasn't that I was afraid. Rather, I felt that the existence within the coffin is very much still alive, and it released that aura as a warning to me."
"And since it did not wish for me to glimpse its true face, I should accord it that respect," Chu Feng said.
"That's fair enough," the Queen agreed, though curiosity quickly got the better of her.
"But if that's the case, doesn't it mean there's a living being inside that coffin? Who could it be? Another sealed entity?"
"I don't think it's sealed. The one inside that coffin might very well be the true master of the Hall of All Beings Equal," Chu Feng said.
"That mad scholar from the chaotic era?" the Queen asked, somewhat surprised.
"Mm, I think it's highly likely. The painting gives off a very distinct feeling — the same aura as the Hall of All Beings Equal."
"But… the formation within that painting is extraordinary. It felt unfathomably deep to me, as though it were a true world condensed into form."
"It didn't feel like the painting was a part of the Hall of All Beings Equal."
"Rather, it was the other way around — the Hall of All Beings Equal was merely a part of that painting," Chu Feng said.
"In other words, the master of the Hall of All Beings Equal is still alive? Then someone truly remarkable survived all the way from that ancient era?"
"These old monsters — whatever immortal elixirs they've been taking, they really do know how to live," the Queen remarked with a laugh.