Chapter 967: Chapter 961: Four Netherworld Artifacts

“Are these the statues of the Four Great Netherworld Emperors?”

Upon seeing the inscription in front of the four statues, Ao Wuxu and the others were taken aback, then quickly came to realize.

Rumors say that the Four Great Netherworld Emperors guard the Hell’s Gate.

“The Four Great Netherworld Emperors are all Martial Emperors.”

Kun Wanyu said solemnly.

“Luckily, it seems their true forms are not here; otherwise we’d be in danger.”

Huang Qinger breathed a sigh of relief.

“Is this really the Third Heaven? It’s rumored that the Third Heaven has many treasures, yet this place seems barren.”

Ao Wuxu felt disappointed, as everyone had come for the treasures rumored to be in the Third Heaven, but it appears this place is far different from what they had imagined.

There seem to be no treasures here at all, which left them very disappointed.

“Perhaps we can find something from this altar.”

Ye Xuan examined the four statues. From the statues alone, he couldn’t find any flaws or traces of mechanisms, hidden layers, or prohibitions.

However, the altar remained obscure to Ye Xuan.

“This altar? It doesn’t seem particularly special.”

The others also scrutinized the altar, yet found nothing unusual.

Ye Xuan ignored the others, focusing all his attention on the altar before him. Then, on the side of the altar, he found a groove that seemed fit for inserting a gemstone.

The groove was neither too big nor too small, just enough to fit a fist.

“Strange.”

After examining it, Ye Xuan couldn’t pinpoint the oddity. He furrowed his brows, reasoning that the altar should have some prohibition, as the entire space felt lifeless, with only faint traces of energy emanating from the altar.

“It seems the altar’s power is depleted; it needs power input to activate,” suddenly Huang Qinger’s voice came from beside him.

“Let’s try it.”

Ye Xuan nodded and then took out a fist-sized Spirit Crystal, embedding it into the groove. However, even after inserting the Spirit Crystal, the altar remained dull, showing no changes.

“That’s odd.”

Ye Xuan frowned.

“Ordinary Spirit Crystals won’t work on Netherworld objects, unless it’s a stone with Netherworld Power and enough energy to supply the altar. It needs exactly fist-sized ones, which is difficult. Even if there were some, they wouldn’t be obtainable by us,” Huang Qinger, seemingly well-versed about this altar, remarked.

“I see.”

Ye Xuan suddenly understood, and his eyes lit up. He flipped his palm, revealing a black stone—Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone.

Undoubtedly, all the characteristics Huang Qinger mentioned are met by this Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone.

Without hesitation, Ye Xuan placed the Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone into the altar’s groove.

The Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone seemed inconspicuous, so Huang Qinger and the others barely paid it any attention, glancing once and shaking their heads.

They thought it was unlikely to work.

Buzz!

However, just as they had that thought, the altar suddenly trembled. The Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone abruptly emitted a twisted black light. The next moment, the stone seemed to dissolve; ink-like liquid seeped out from inside, swiftly filling the groove, then flowed out from the sides to different parts of the altar. In an instant, the entire altar shook, and the ground cracked open.

“What?”

Ao Wuxu and Huang Qinger were startled, not expecting the stone from Ye Xuan to have such power, capable of reactivating the altar.

“Indeed, only the power of the Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone could do this.”

Ye Xuan wasn’t surprised. Since it relied on Netherworld Power, the Heavenly Emperor Netherworld Stone was undoubtedly capable. If it didn’t work, then nothing would be able to activate this altar.

As the altar trembled, dark light spread from beneath the altar, quickly shrouding the entire surrounding space in darkness.

Above the altar, a twisted gate of space appeared, like a black hole. At that moment, black beams shot out from the black hole—four in sequence, each like a black lightning bolt.

“What is this?”

The five people’s pupils shrank. After the black beams emerged, they quickly condensed, transforming into four items in front of them. These four items exuded a terrifying Netherworld aura, the powerful pressure enveloping the entire space as the black beams appeared.

“Four Netherworld Artifacts!”

Huang Qinger exclaimed.

The others were equally astounded; Netherworld Artifacts are second only to Divine Artifacts, beyond Holy Artifacts. The aura of these four Netherworld Artifacts was ancient, hinting at their long history, which might affect their potency, yet four Netherworld Artifacts are undeniably formidable treasures.

The four Netherworld Artifacts included a black long blade, a black heavy armor, a scythe-like weapon reminiscent of a death deity, and lastly a blood-red pearl. As the pearl appeared, it cast a blood-colored barrier around the area, encompassing all five of them.

Instantly, the five felt distressed, as if plunged into the eighteen levels of hell, their minds overwhelmed with bloodlust and negative emotions.

If their self-control were weak, they might instantly become a slaughter machine, a thrall to the blood pearl’s influence, and be enslaved and controlled by it.

“Heavenly Netherworld Blade, Earth Netherworld Armor, Reaper’s Scythe, Blood Nether Pearl.”

Ye Xuan used his soul power to sweep over the four Netherworld Artifacts, instantly learning their names. These four Netherworld Artifacts belonged to the masters of the four statues—the Four Great Netherworld Emperors.

“What good stuff! I’ll take this armor!”

Among the five, Ao Wuxu was excited. Four Netherworld Artifacts were undoubtedly a tremendous find, and the most valuable among them seemed to be the Earth Netherworld Armor. A Netherworld Armor, being extremely rare, was typically worth twice two offensive Netherworld Devices.

As he spoke, he immediately flashed to the four Netherworld Artifacts and reached to grab the armor.

Bang!

However, just as he touched the armor enthusiastically, a repulsion force suddenly emanated from the Earth Netherworld Armor, bouncing Ao Wuxu away with great force.

“Can’t take it?”

After his failure, Ao Wuxu’s expression turned grim. Unable to claim such a precious object before him was like placing a gourmet dish in front of a hungry man, with the dish laced with poison.

Ye Xuan was also a bit stunned. Although Netherworld Artifacts are powerful, they shouldn’t automatically repel an Intermediate Sealing Emperor Strong Person without control.