Bai Zihe immediately stopped.
He dared not disobey Long Bai’s advice.
"Senior Long, are there any mechanisms or the like on these treasures?"
"Yes."
Long Bai said solemnly, "The Sand Dune Emperor was treacherous and cunning, full of schemes, and extremely harsh even towards his own people."
"These treasures in the vault..."
"According to his demands on his subjects, each person could only take a maximum of three items, based on their status."
"Cultivators below the Tribulation Crossing stage could only take one item, those at the Tribulation Crossing stage could take two, and Immortals could take three."
"It's a pity..."
"By the time the Sand Dune Emperor died, only one Immortal had appeared under his command, so only that one person took three treasures."
"And that Immortal was used as cannon fodder by the Sand Dune Emperor when his enemies attacked, dying on the spot."
Bai Zihe fell silent.
Cultivating immortality...
That person cultivated for his entire life, expecting to enter a new realm after attaining enlightenment, only to be used as cannon fodder by the Sand Dune Emperor.
He perished before he could ever enjoy freedom.
The path of an immortal cultivator, so stifling.
Pathetic, lamentable.
Bai Zihe did not dwell on this matter but asked the question that concerned him greatly, "Senior Long, the Sand Dune Emperor has been dead for a long time now, is there a way to break this?"
"In my prime, I could."
Long Bai said without exaggeration.
Yes.
His strength was not much different from the Sand Dune Emperor's.
Now that the Sand Dune Emperor was long dead, as long as he recovered his peak strength, breaking this would not be difficult.
"Prime..."
Bai Zihe could not imagine Long Bai’s prime.
However, he would not see it in this ancient ruin, as it was only open for 30 days...
And ten days had already been wasted.
Twenty days for a Sword Immortal to go from having no physical body to peak condition...
As difficult as ascending to heaven.
"Swish..."
"Clatter..."
Just then, several auras appeared behind Bai Zihe.
They were the cultivators who had followed.
Upon seeing the treasury before them, everyone's face showed a look of thirst and greed, clearly having lost their minds to these treasures.
"Mine, mine, all mine!"
In the eyes of one cultivator, Bai Zihe and the others had long vanished. All that remained in his heart were the treasures, and he desired to claim them all.
"Don't!"
Seeing that person actually attempt to collect all the treasures on a storage cabinet, Bai Zihe immediately shouted a warning, "You will die!"
His shout.
Many were shaken, and a few more concerns arose in their hearts.
Yes.
Bai Zihe had been here for so long without touching the treasures, indicating that there were likely mechanisms, just like in the main hall.
If they touched it, they might die.
Although the cultivators were greedy, they were not entirely irrational. For a moment, many began to release their divine senses, trying to comprehend the mysteries within.
The first cultivator, whom Bai Zihe had stopped, said disdainfully after a brief probe, "Bai Zihe, there's nothing wrong with these treasures."
"You're just trying to stop us from touching them so you can take them all for yourself!"
"I won't fall for your trick."
With that said.
The next moment, he collected all the treasures on the storage platform into his own storage ring.
Then...
He had only collected the fourth one when he froze, as if under a spell, motionless.
What followed was a very familiar scene.
The cultivator's body began to petrify, then finally turned into countless grains of sand, dissipating in the wind, as if he had never existed.
From beginning to end, he didn't even utter a cry, nor could he struggle for even a moment.
"This..."
"Such a terrifying thing."
"A hundred times more terrifying than in the main hall!"
"What in the world is this?"
The cultivators were stunned.
In the main hall, at least they could sever the petrification process by cutting off their arms and could move and resist.
But here...
Once touched, there was no chance of survival.
"I truly meant well for you."
Bai Zihe shook his head and explained, "Although there are many treasures in this vault, each person can only take a maximum of three items."
He had observed carefully just now.
According to Long Bai's explanation, cultivators at the Tribulation Crossing stage could only take a maximum of two items.
And the cultivator who just died began to petrify only after touching the fourth item, meaning he was allowed to take three.
As for the reason...
Bai Zihe speculated that some restriction here might have weakened significantly during the Sand Dune Emperor's time.
"Three items?"
"Bai Zihe, do you think we'll believe you?"
"Bai Zihe, have you already discovered the secret within, and you're deliberately saying each person can take three items so that we'll die while you take it all for yourself?"
"Bai Zihe, do you think we're fools?"
The fact that Bai Zihe openly stated it made the cultivators even more suspicious.
After all...
Why would Bai Zihe be so kind as to tell them this?
It was inherently suspicious.
"I truly mean well for you."
Bai Zihe repeated his words earnestly and set an example, "If you don't believe me, I'll take one, and you can watch."
With that, Bai Zihe picked up the Earth Spirit Pearl.
If he could only choose three items, this was definitely one he had to pick, as it was of utmost importance to him.
"Hmm?"
"This..."
"It seems..."
"He's really fine?"
As Bai Zihe made his move, every cultivator stared intently at him, their divine senses unleashed to their fullest.
It seemed...
Bai Zihe hadn't done anything fancy, nor had he touched any mechanisms, and he had obtained the seemingly extraordinary pearl.
"See..."
Bai Zihe spread his hands, deliberately displaying the Earth Spirit Pearl to everyone, indicating that he had no other tricks and had simply obtained the treasure.
Then, he placed it into the Haotian Tower.
"This..."
"Can it really be possible?"
"No, how could Bai Zihe be so kind? I strongly suspect he must have discovered something before we arrived and made a decision."
"This is highly probable!"
The more Bai Zihe acted like this, the more suspicious the cultivators became.
This truly frustrated Bai Zihe.
"I..."
Bai Zihe looked at these cultivators and said speechlessly, "I truly mean well for you, why don't you believe me?"
Long Bai, who was beside him...
At first, he didn't understand why Bai Zihe would tell these cultivators the truth.
But now, after Bai Zihe's demonstration, he gradually understood. This young man was quite cunning!
Even though he was speaking the truth now, this thought...
Tsk tsk.
Long Bai admired this young fellow.
If he had been this cunning back then, perhaps he wouldn't have been imprisoned for so long?
However...
Without his imprisonment, there would have been that world-ending battle, and he might have perished long ago, ceasing to exist.
Fortune and misfortune are intertwined; how can one know what is good or bad.
"What he says is true."
After comprehending Bai Zihe's intentions, Long Bai also told the cultivators, "This was the rule set by the Sand Dune Emperor back then."