This is the first obstacle everyone encountered upon entering the ruins; we can't just return without success, that would be too shameful, especially since three great family clans are present.

"Let me give it a try." Ji Tao slowly stepped out from the crowd, circulating his Inner Strength on the spot. With just a few breaths, a black and a white gas hovered around Ji Tao's hands. Even from twenty meters away, Ye Shikai could feel the overpowering force of his Inner Strength. Indeed worthy of being the Family Head, Ye Shikai thought this should be the late stage of Divine Separation strength. Additionally, since Ji Tao was the Family Head, it was but a glimpse of his true prowess, not representing his peak ability. Perhaps, he had already broken through to the Body Integration Realm. For now, Ye Shikai only knew that Chen Yaogzu was in the mid-stage of Body Integration, but Chen Yaogzu is an "old monster" over a hundred years old, looking just sixty to seventy. Ji Tao was only middle-aged yet had such profound Inner Strength; it was truly terrifying.

The black and white gases formed a Tai Chi symbol on Ji Tao's chest, combining hardness with softness, truly awe-inspiring.

"Qian, I didn't expect your dad to be this powerful." Ye Shikai approached Ji Qian, joking lightly.

"The Ji Family excels at Qigong, and my father is an expert. He doesn't use any weapons; his hands are his best tools," Ji Qian said indifferently. Her aloof and icy nature rarely allowed for compliments.

Ye Shikai agreed wholeheartedly; the waters of Yanjing were deep enough, let alone among the great families.

Ji Tao slowly pushed out the Qi formed on his chest. Although the motion was slow, it contained immense power. Moreover, Ji Tao showed no signs of strain, not even a hint of redness on his face, suggesting the Ji Family's Qigong might also possess the ability to heal internal injuries.

The Tai Chi Qi mass slowly flew across the chasm, with everyone watching intently, not daring to relax even a bit. Just when it was halfway through, the "as stable as a mountain" Qi mass started trembling, then gradually fell into the chasm below, as everyone watched its disappearance with wide eyes.

Rumble.

Everyone felt a rush of oppressive Inner Strength; even though the Qi mass burst in the depths of the chasm, the energy it contained made those above shudder. However, even with such a powerful Qi mass, it couldn't cross the chasm.

Ji Tao's eyebrows twitched as he realized this chasm was not simple. The Qi mass he sent out earlier could even shatter the foundation of a building. How could such formidable power be so easily absorbed?

"What kind of place is this, so strange," Ji Feng muttered, glancing at Ji Qian with unease. He looked at his watch and phone, but in these ruins, electronic devices were useless and couldn't communicate.

"What, not even Family Head Ji can make it across?" Li Yueying slowly approached from the back, her words dripping with sarcasm.

"Ignorant girl, do you have a way, then?" Ji Feng retorted. Ji Tao waved a hand to calm him, as Li Yueying's approach had irked both the Ji and Chen families. Ji Tao was a renowned Qigong master, not only in Yanjing but throughout the area, vastly superior to Li Yueying in both power and seniority. Her remark seemed rather disrespectful.

"Hmph, if no one can find a way, we might as well call it quits." Li Yueying laughed, and everyone could only grow increasingly frustrated.

Ye Shikai surveyed the surroundings, hoping to find some clue. It seemed that brute force alone wouldn't suffice to cross this chasm, meaning there ought to be something like a mechanism nearby.

"What is this?" Ye Shikai discovered something on the side wall, noticing an iron ring embedded in the stone wall. When he reached out to grip the iron ring, a sudden turbulence in his Dantian made his Inner Strength disappear instantly, as if he had been drained. Shocked, he quickly pulled back his hand. As soon as he let go of the iron ring, his Inner Strength returned, leaving him shaken. After some experimentation, he was relieved to confirm his Inner Strength was still present.

"Kai, are you alright?" Chen Yuxin saw this and immediately approached him with concern.

"This is really strange. This iron ring seems to instantly absorb my Inner Strength, but once I let go, it's perfectly intact," Ye Shikai remarked, astonished, as everyone turned their attention this way.

"My lord, allow me to try." Nightmare stepped forward, reaching out to grip the iron ring. Sure enough, his Inner Strength vanished instantly, but following Ye Shikai's observations, he wasn't surprised and didn't let go. Instead, he pulled the iron ring, and to everyone's amazement, it turned out to be part of an iron chain that could be extended.

Click, click.

As the iron ring was pulled, an iron plate about three meters wide suddenly extended from the edge of the chasm, reaching towards the other side.

Nightmare released his grip, allowing his Inner Strength to return to his body, but the iron chain gradually retracted. As it did, the iron plate slowly pulled back as well, returning to its original position at the chasm's edge.

"I understand now. We need someone to pull the iron chain, so the iron plate extends, allowing passage. If you let go, the plate retracts," Ye Shikai exclaimed, leading everyone to a realization.

"Now that we know, let's quickly pull it," Ji Feng urged impatiently.

"This iron ring absorbs a person's Inner Strength, making the one pulling it no different from an ordinary person. However, this iron chain requires a force of over a hundred pounds to pull," Ye Shikai attempted the task, noting that if Nightmare hadn't exerted immense effort earlier, he wouldn't have managed. These cultivators were accustomed to relying on Inner Strength, so who among them had such brute strength? Without Inner Strength, the elders seemed no different from elderly men playing chess and sipping tea.

"No worries, there's strength in numbers. We can pull together." Demoness came forward to assist Ye Shikai. However, as soon as her hand touched it, an electric current forced her back. Without their Inner Strength as a buffer, the electricity's power was overwhelming. Startled, the Demoness retracted her hand, and once her Inner Strength returned, any harm caused by the current healed instantly.

"I've got it. The iron chain can only be pulled by one person." Ye Shikai's expression turned grave; he hadn't expected the mechanisms in these ruins to be so "people-centric" that it could differentiate the number of people.

"One must pull the iron chain here." Ye Shikai glanced around, disappointed that among the nearly two hundred individuals from the three clans, none appeared particularly robust.

"Is there anyone among you with the strength to pull this iron chain using sheer force?" Ye Shikai asked the crowd.

"Well..."

The group exchanged looks; it wasn't that no one dared volunteer, but the few who tried could only get the iron plate to extend about twenty meters, not even halfway, before they were utterly exhausted.

"Wild Wolf, give it a try," Ye Shikai turned to Wild Wolf. In the Netherworld Palace, Wild Wolf had a pair of "iron arms" that were notably stronger than an average person's.

"Yes, my lord."

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