I walk sideways in the game world

"Lin'er," he turned his head, a gleam in his eyes, "I heard that an ancient tomb appeared deep in southern Xinjiang. It may contain a treasure that can enhance your power."

Upon hearing this, Xia Lin's beautiful eyes lit up, "Oh? What kind of treasure makes you, Xiaoyao, care so much about it?" She knew Ren Xiaoyao, and if it wasn't a really good thing, he would never care so much about it.

"I don't know exactly what it is, but there are rumors that this treasure seems to be related to ancient secrets and is very beneficial for cultivation." Ren Xiaoyao explained, "I plan to go and find out."

"Of course I'll go with you!" Charlene said without hesitation. "How can you explore an ancient tomb without a capable assistant like me?"

Ren Xiaoyao smiled and scratched her nose, "You are so sweet!"

"Wait, I'll go with you two!" An old but loud voice came from behind.

The two turned around and saw Master Gu walking briskly towards them, leaning on a cane. "How can you young people go on an adventure without an old man like me?" Master Gu said with a smile, "I may be old, but my ability to decipher traps has not faded!"

Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin exchanged a glance, each seeing the joy in the other's eyes. With Master Gu, the master of mechanical devices, joining them, this trip would surely be twice as effective with half the effort.

After the three of them had made their decision, they immediately set off, heading deep into southern Xinjiang.

A few days later, they arrived at their destination. They saw an ancient stone gate standing deep in the dense jungle, carved with bizarre patterns, exuding a mysterious atmosphere.

"It seems this is the entrance to the ancient tomb." Ren Xiaoyao carefully observed the patterns on the stone door. "These patterns should be some kind of ancient formation. We must proceed with caution."

"Let me try." Master Gu stepped forward, carefully observing the pattern on the stone gate, muttering to himself.

Suddenly, the pattern on the stone door began to emit a faint light, and then the stone door slowly opened, revealing a deep passage.

"It seems my speculation was correct," Master Gu stroked his beard, "This is indeed a trap door, but I have already broken its restriction."

The three of them filed into the passage, which was completely dark. Xia Lin took out her night-shining pearl and illuminated the path ahead.

"Be careful," Ren Xiaoyao warned, "There are many traps in the ancient tomb. We must be careful with every step we take."

As soon as he finished speaking, countless sharp arrows suddenly shot out from the walls on both sides of the passage. The sound of the arrows breaking through the air was creepy.

Ren Xiaoyao reacted quickly, swinging his sword to shoot down the arrows one by one, while protecting Xia Lin and Master Gu.

"It seems that the owner of this ancient tomb does not welcome us." Xia Lin chuckled and swung the long whip in her hand, knocking away a few fish that had escaped the net.

"Don't let your guard down," Master Gu warned. "This is just the first trap. There are more dangerous things waiting for us."

Ren Xiaoyao nodded, and the three of them continued forward. The passage twisted and turned, and it was unclear where it led. They took every step carefully, fearing that they would trigger any trap.

After walking for an unknown amount of time, a stone gate appeared in front of them. There were even more complicated patterns carved on the stone gate, and it exuded a heart-pounding aura.

"It seems we have reached a critical point." Ren Xiaoyao said in a deep voice, looking at the stone gate in front of him.

Master Gu walked to the stone gate and carefully observed the pattern on it with a frown.

"This mechanism..." Master Gu pondered for a moment. "It's even more complex than I imagined..." He took a deep breath, pulled out several small flags from his pocket, and began to arrange them in front of the stone gate. Master Gu, with a focused expression, inserted the small flags into the cracks in front of the stone gate according to specific directions, muttering to himself as if performing some ancient ritual. As he moved, the patterns on the stone gate gradually illuminated, emitting a dazzling golden light.

"Open!" Master Gu shouted softly, and slapped the stone gate in the center with his last palm.

There was a loud bang, and the stone door slowly opened. An ancient and mysterious atmosphere blew in, which was awe-inspiring.

"What a wonderful mechanical device!" Ren Xiaoyao couldn't help but admire.

Master Gu waved his hand and said, "This ancient tomb is very old, and the mechanisms are designed with ingenuity. I have only scratched the surface. Let's go in and see what treasures the tomb owner left behind!"

The three of them stepped through the stone gate, and their view suddenly opened up. A spacious tomb appeared before them. In the center of the tomb, a huge bronze coffin lay quietly. Around the coffin, countless night pearls dotted the area, illuminating the entire tomb like daylight.

"Be careful!" Ren Xiaoyao suddenly noticed something strange, shouted softly, and protected Xia Lin and Master Gu behind him.

Almost at the same time, dozens of hideous-looking gargoyles suddenly jumped out from the stone walls on both sides of the tomb, holding swords and roaring as they pounced on the three people.

"These gargoyles are the guardians of the tomb. Be careful, they are invulnerable to swords and guns!" Master Gu reminded loudly.

Ren Xiaoyao's eyes were as sharp as a torch, and he drew his sword with a flash of light, slashing the gargoyles that rushed towards him into pieces. Xia Lin was not to be outdone, and her long whip danced like a spirit snake, whipping the gargoyles away one by one.

However, these gargoyles seemed endless, and after being shattered, they would regroup and attack the three people one after another. Although Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin were highly skilled in martial arts, they gradually felt exhausted in the face of such a large number of gargoyles.

"Xiaoyao, this is not a solution. We will be exhausted to death!" Xia Lin said anxiously while waving a whip.

Ren Xiaoyao also realized the seriousness of the problem. He looked around, trying to find a solution. Suddenly, his eyes fell on the bronze coffin in the center of the tomb.

"Lin'er, Master Gu, let's go to the coffin!" Ren Xiaoyao made a prompt decision and approached the bronze coffin while resisting the attack of the gargoyle.

The three of them fought and retreated until they finally arrived in front of the bronze coffin. Ren Xiaoyao carefully observed the coffin and found some strange patterns carved on the surface of the coffin. These patterns seemed familiar, but he could not remember where he had seen them before.

"Could it be... these patterns are the solution?" Ren Xiaoyao's mind moved, and his eyes were fixed on the patterns on the coffin...

Ren Xiaoyao's mind raced through various formations and runes he'd seen in ancient texts, trying to find clues that matched the pattern on the coffin. As time passed, the gargoyle's attacks grew more and more fierce, leaving Xia Lin and Master Gu wounded.

"Found it!" Ren Xiaoyao suddenly shouted, pointing to a pattern on the coffin and saying, "This is the core of the ancient magic formation 'Nine Palaces and Eight Diagrams Formation'!"

It turned out that the pattern on the coffin wasn't just decoration, but the key to unlocking the treasure. Following the rules of the Nine Palaces and Eight Diagrams formation, Ren Xiaoyao injected his true energy into the specific pattern on the coffin. With a violent vibration, the coffin slowly opened.

Inside the coffin, there lies a golden bead emitting dazzling light, surrounded by rich spiritual energy, which makes people feel relaxed and happy.

"This is the legendary 'Spirit Gathering Pearl'!" Master Gu's voice trembled with excitement. "It is said that this Spirit Gathering Pearl can gather the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and has the power to bring the dead back to life!"

However, just as Ren Xiaoyao reached out to take the Spirit Gathering Pearl, a burst of laughter suddenly came from the entrance of the tomb.

"Hahaha, I never thought there was actually a Spirit Gathering Pearl hidden in this ancient tomb. It's like searching for something without any effort, but now it's finally found!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a group of people dressed in black and holding sharp blades walking in. The leader was a man with a burly figure, a stern face, and greed flashing in his eyes.

"Who are you?" Charlene asked warily.

"We are from Black Wind Village," the leading black-clad man sneered, "If you know what's good for you, hand over the Spirit Gathering Pearl obediently, otherwise, don't blame us for being rude!"

"If you want to gather the spirit beads, it depends on whether you have the ability to do so!" Ren Xiaoyao was not afraid at all. He waved the sword in his hand and pointed it at the man in black.

A great battle was about to break out. Ren Xiaoyao, relying on his superb martial arts and mastery of the Nine Palaces and Eight Diagrams Formation, engaged in a fierce battle with the Black Wind Village's insurgents. Xia Lin and Master Gu also fought valiantly, but the enemy was outnumbered and each possessed extraordinary skills, and they gradually fell behind.

At this moment, Ren Xiaoyao seized an opportunity, threw the Spirit Gathering Pearl in his hand to Xia Lin, and shouted loudly: "Lin'er, take the Spirit Gathering Pearl and go!"

Xia Lin took the spirit gathering bead and turned around and ran without hesitation.

"Want to run? Not that easy!" Seeing this, the leader of the men in black immediately chased after him with several of his men.

"Lin'er, be careful!" Ren Xiaoyao shouted anxiously, however, he was surrounded by the remaining men in black and could not escape.

"Hmph, it won't be too late to chase you after I've dealt with you!" The leader of the men in black sneered, waving the big knife in his hand and slashing at Ren Xiaoyao fiercely...

Ren Xiaoyao was forced back to the corner of the tomb, a glint of determination flashed in his eyes. He knew that a fierce battle was inevitable...

Ren Xiaoyao wielded his sword, his energy surging and scattering blood with each swing. Like a tiger descending from a mountain, he was unstoppable, forcing his way through the circle of men in black. However, the enemy was outnumbered, fearless, and continued to charge forward.

"Xiaoyao, be careful!" Xia Lin's anxious voice came from a distance. She had escaped from the pursuers and was rushing back to provide support.

Hearing Xia Lin's voice, Ren Xiaoyao felt a warm feeling in his heart, and his movements became more fierce. However, in the moment he was distracted, the leader of the men in black seized the opportunity and slashed at his back with a knife.

"Puff!" Blood splattered, Ren Xiaoyao groaned, staggered a few steps, and almost fell down.

"Xiaoyao!" Xia Lin exclaimed, flew over and stood in front of Ren Xiaoyao, dancing the long whip in her hand like a snake, forcing back the leader of the men in black.

"Lin'er, how are you?" Ren Xiaoyao asked anxiously. Looking at Xia Lin's pale face, he felt a surge of self-blame in his heart.

"I'm fine. How are you?" Charlene shook her head and asked with concern.

"I'm fine, just a minor injury." Ren Xiaoyao said, enduring the pain. He turned to look at Master Gu, only to find that Master Gu had fallen in a pool of blood, breathing weakly.

"Master Gu!" Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin exclaimed at the same time and hurried to Master Gu.

"Master Gu, how are you?" Ren Xiaoyao asked anxiously, checking Master Gu's injuries.

"This old man... This old man is dying..." Master Gu said with difficulty, a trace of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth, "You guys go quickly... Don't worry about me..."

"Master Gu, please hold on, I will definitely save you!" Ren Xiaoyao said, taking out a pill from his arms and giving it to Master Gu.

"It's useless... I'm seriously injured... You guys should leave quickly..." Master Gu shook his head. He knew that he was powerless to save the situation.

"No, we won't abandon you!" Charlene said firmly.

"Be obedient... leave quickly... otherwise... it will be too late..." Master Gu used up his last bit of strength, said this, and closed his eyes.

"Master Gu!" Ren Xiaoyao and Xia Lin were heartbroken, however, they also knew that now was not the time to be sad.

"Lin'er, let's go!" Ren Xiaoyao took Xia Lin's hand and said.

"But..." Xia Lin wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Ren Xiaoyao.

"No buts, we must leave here!" Ren Xiaoyao said, picked up Master Gu's body, and rushed out of the tomb with Xia Lin.

They ran all the way and finally escaped from the ancient tomb. However, they did not feel relieved because they knew that this was just the beginning.

"Xiaoyao, where are we going now?" Xia Lin asked.

Ren Xiaoyao pondered for a moment and said, "I heard that deep in the East China Sea, there is an underwater cave..."