The moment their hands touched these treasures, the previously damaged gate suddenly reappeared. This new gate was ten times stronger than the previous metal one, and its barrier formations were also ten times more potent.
They were completely sealed in. The wealth before their eyes then vanished completely. All of it had been an illusion, an extremely powerful hallucination.
The Lord's smile froze on his face. He looked around in utter bewilderment and disbelief, exclaiming, "How could this happen?"
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!!!"
Suddenly, a terrifying rain of arrows descended. Countless people were shot and fell, screaming.
Then, a storm of destruction tore through them. Flames erupted from the ground, incinerating them. A terrifying poisonous gas instantly corroded their corpses...
They continuously attacked the gate behind them, trying to escape. However, the gate was too strong, too terrifying, and they simply didn't have enough time to open it.
The Lord finally understood why the previous person had left so decisively.
So that's how it was.
The other person had seen through this trap long ago.
"Fuck your ancestors!"
The Lord uttered his final words before dying.
"Lord, that was a trap, wasn't it?" Liu Li finally couldn't help but ask.
"You're getting smarter," Zhou Yan chuckled.
"It's just that, knowing you, Lord, how could you possibly leave so much wealth for others? That's completely out of character for you."
Liu Li immediately voiced her opinion.
"Hahaha!!!" Diao Chan and the others burst into laughter. They strongly agreed with Liu Li's statement.
Zhou Yan was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "Then, in your eyes, what kind of person am I?"
Liu Li thought for a moment and replied, "The kind of person who absolutely cannot afford to lose!"
An Tian nodded in agreement.
"You understand me quite well," Zhou Yan smiled.
"Lord, where do we go next?" An Tian looked at Zhou Yan, who didn't seem inclined to leave.
"Of course, I'm taking you to the real treasure trove. I just didn't expect that they almost tricked me too. It seems the person who set up this formation must be a master."
Zhou Yan thought about the traps and mechanisms, which were linked one after another. They even had people specifically guarding the outside. A normal person would have been deceived.
"Does the Lord know where it is?" An Tian asked.
"I unfolded the Tai Chi Diagram earlier and have already pinpointed the location of the true treasury. Although they hid it very well, unfortunately, my Tai Chi Diagram can find any formation and also break any formation."
"It's just that, depending on the complexity of the formation, the more advanced the formation, the more time it takes to decipher it," Zhou Yan said with great confidence.
His Tai Chi Diagram was born from the primordial chaos, representing the initial form of everything in the heavens and earth. Any evolution or change in formations required starting from the most basic principles.
As long as Zhou Yan encountered any formation, he could directly evolve and analyze it. Breaking formations was thus much simpler for him.
This auction house had many underground passages. Zhou Yan led the group to a wall and stopped.
Wei Zifu asked curiously, "Lord, the real passage isn't this wall, is it?"
"If you observe carefully, you'll notice that this wall is subtly different from others, and there are obvious signs of frequent passage here."
"Auction houses often need to store treasures. Over time, differences will still form. This is a doorway. The mechanism must be nearby..."
Zhou Yan looked around and said, "See if there's anything obvious."
"There's a gem here, could it be a mechanism?" Diao Chan pointed to a wall behind them.
"Press it," Zhou Yan said.
"Rumble, rumble, rumble!!!"
After Diao Chan pressed the mechanism, the stone door before them slowly rose, revealing another passage. Beside it was a metal gate, also bearing a barrier.
"What is this auction house storing? Why is it set up so secretly? Ordinary people wouldn't be able to find this place, would they?" Cai Yan asked curiously.
"The more concealed it is, the better the items stored must be. Judging by these mechanisms, formations, and traps, it's likely the treasury for all the years this auction house has been in operation," Zhou Yan speculated.
"Why were the attackers during the auction indifferent to this treasury? They didn't even send people down to search. Was their goal to destroy the auction house, not its wealth?"
Liu Li was still puzzled by the attackers. She couldn't figure out their true objective. If it was for wealth, they would have been searching everywhere for it.
Moreover, the attackers seemed well-prepared, drawing away all the auction house's experts. Otherwise, the entire auction wouldn't have been thrown into chaos so easily.
The distance from the gate to the metal door involved no less than five types of mechanisms, but Zhou Yan found the switches for all of them and proceeded to disable them.
Upon reaching the metal door, they found it covered in puzzles. This was a form of combination lock with countless possible variations. Only by finding the correct puzzle pieces could the door be opened.
But!
Zhou Yan could take an alternative route, entering without damaging the exterior.
In this world, there was also something called an item.
"Come closer," Zhou Yan produced a black scroll that emanated a peculiar energy, then motioned for everyone to gather around.
The group approached Zhou Yan. He channeled his spiritual energy, activating the energy on the scroll. A wave of energy enveloped them, and then they all vanished from their original spot. When they reappeared, they were already inside the true treasury.
"What kind of method was that?" Wei Zifu asked curiously.
"A time scroll, capable of directly traversing time, though not over long distances. I had no use for it, so I decided to use it," Zhou Yan replied.
This place was protected by spatial restrictions and even contained items specifically designed against spatial mages to prevent others from using spatial abilities to teleport.
However, they hadn't been able to seal time. It was likely that the creators hadn't considered this, which is why Zhou Yan could easily overcome the obstacle.
If they were to try and solve the puzzle on the door, it would have taken far too long. Using an item was much faster.
"This must be the auction house's treasury. Everything is stored in exquisite boxes."
They looked around the entire treasury, filled with boxes of various sizes and shapes.
An Tian curiously picked up one of the exquisite treasure boxes and exclaimed, "This box must have the function of storing treasures. It seems these items are all valuable."
"Swish!"
Upon opening it, a divine light emanated, and a fragrant aroma drifted throughout the space.
"It smells so good, is this a spiritual medicine?" Wei Zifu asked in surprise.