The very array of magic circles linked around the altar alone held a sea of information. Qian Jing slowly circulated his Qian Jin, desperately trying to comprehend it, before looking up at Pan Hongji.

"We can go up and take a look at this," Pan Hongji generously gestured an invitation.

Qian Jing offered a grateful smile and stepped onto the sacrificial altar. Gazing at the state of the altar beneath his feet, he felt a surge of nausea and a throbbing headache; the surface of this altar was not flat, but also densely covered with interlocking magic circles.

At the very center of the altar was a Nine-Headed Serpent, each head connected to a magic circle, which in turn connected to two or more other magic circles. The eyes of every serpent head were inlaid with different magic crystals and demon cores.

The largest head among the nine, the main serpent head, did not have demon cores in its eyes, but two Demon Beast Crystal Cores! Cores from Super-Grade Demon Beasts!

When Qian Jing saw the crystallized cores of Super-Grade Demon Beasts, he nearly jumped up in shock. This second altar was far, far more formidable than he had imagined. Super-Grade Demon Beasts! They were the pinnacle of demon beasts, their power nearly equivalent to top-tier awakened bloodline warriors of the Heavenly Extreme realm.

Even Pan Hongji would not casually engage a Super-Grade Demon Beast in battle, striving to avoid unnecessary losses.

Pan Hongji smiled faintly as he watched the surprise on Qian Jing's face. As expected! The demon beast cores on this altar had indeed managed to startle him. However, he was impressed by the young man’s depth of knowledge; he recognized instantly that the inlays in the main serpent head’s eyes were genuine demon beast cores, not just some ordinary magic crystals.

Qian Jing worked hard to quell the astonishment in his heart, a faint smile playing on his lips. This inspection was not without its gains. Especially the engraved patterns of the Nine-Headed Serpent: each head linked to a magic circle, suggesting the altar could be roughly divided into nine major magic circle sections. These nine sections then evolved into countless other magic circles, which, through complex intersections, channeled and converged power back into those initial nine major arrays.

To grasp the entire theory of all the magic circles on the altar within an extremely short time, without arousing Pan Hongji's suspicion, remained an impossibility.

Even with the aid of memory potions, which greatly enhanced his recall, achieving such a feat in a short span was still unfeasible.

Record the nine overarching magic circles? Qian Jing’s smile widened—recording the general principles of the altar’s nine core magic circles was achievable.

Pan Hongji, looking at Qian Jing's smile, felt a vague unease, yet he could not pinpoint its source.

Duan Fengbuer stood quietly on the altar, reaching into the deerskin pouch at his waist and pulling out the demon core glowing with an earthy yellow hue: the Sand Python Demon Core. Wisps of sandy, earthy aura began to emanate from the core.

"That is... the Sand Python Demon Core?" Pan Hongji's pupils contracted sharply, his gaze fixed stiffly on the fist-sized core of a High-Grade Demon Beast in Duan Fengbuer's hand. Did these youngsters actually possess such a high-grade core? He had assumed the most they could boast would be the core of a Mid-Tier, Lower-Level Demon Beast, yet here was a High-Grade one!

In an instant, Pan Hongji was completely stunned. Many of the plans hidden in his mind were instantly thrown into disarray by this single core.

In this special Altar Number Two, the higher the grade of the demon core used, the greater the potential for ability extraction, and the more potent the initial ability gained would be.

Pan Hongji swallowed twice. He had intended to wait until Duan Fengbuer produced his core, and then present an extremely rare High-Grade core of his own, offering a favor to impress upon the young man that joining the Pan family promised a limitless future, where even the acquired cores were top-tier.

More bitter smiles gathered at the corners of Pan Hongji's mouth. Ever since learning of Duan Fengbuer's arrival in Infinite City, the meticulous strategies he had devised had been repeatedly overturned by these youths’ actions; even the scheme involving the demon core was now useless.

Hiss... hiss... hiss... The altar itself suddenly emitted a sound like ten thousand venomous snakes flickering their long tongues simultaneously. The runes of the usually dim Awakening Altar began to glow with an extremely faint, somber light. As time passed, these lights gradually intensified.

At the same moment, the Sand Python Demon Core in Duan Fengbuer's hand suddenly burst forth with an earthy yellow radiance, which also brightened steadily over time.

"Not good!" Pan Hongji’s usually calm expression suddenly shifted to alarm. "Qian Jing! Get down quickly! The Awakening Altar is resonating with the Sand Python Demon Core; it has sensed Duan Fengbuer's Nine-Headed Serpent bloodline! Come down! Otherwise..." Pan Hongji watched Qian Jing, who was already a few steps off the altar, breathe a sigh of relief, "Otherwise, the two of you are dead..." The colossal Awakening Altar, with Duan Fengbuer holding the Sand Python Demon Core—which now shone almost as brightly as the sun—illuminated the entire area surrounding the structure.

Creak... creak... creak... The enormous altar groaned with a sound like the grinding of giant beast teeth. Three golden rays of light shot out from the side of the immense altar, which resembled a massive millstone, seemingly slicing the structure into sections.

The bottom layer of the altar began to rotate from right to left. The middle layer rotated from left to right. The top layer spun from right to left, creating a sound like grinding beans in a stone mill.

Countless intricate magic circles shot out light beams of varying colors, soaring into the air to form a massive sphere composed entirely of complex arrays, spinning rapidly around the sacrificial altar.

A desolate roar, like a beast crying out from primordial antiquity, erupted from the immense altar and shot toward the heavens!

An image of a Nine-Headed Serpent, black as ink, sprang high from the gigantic altar. Standing a hundred zhang tall, it directed its nine heads toward different directions, emitting a series of ferocious roars from its mouths.

Their heads quickly turned to focus on Duan Fengbuer, standing in the center of the altar. The eighteen eyes, shining with various colors, simultaneously shot out gazes filled with hatred, locking onto Duan Fengbuer within the altar.

Hate! Eyes filled with endless malice—a chilling sensation that suggested Duan Fengbuer was not inheriting their bloodline power, but was rather their mortal enemy.

As the eighteen hateful eyes fired beams of light, they pierced through Duan Fengbuer and the demon core in his hand. From the Sand Python, a hundred-meter-long, huge, earthy-yellow phantom serpent emerged, roaring angrily at the Nine-Headed Serpent.

It was like a slumbering Sand Python enraged by an uninvited guest disturbing it, or perhaps like the King of Serpents challenging another sovereign for the throne.

The Sand Python Demon Core rapidly disintegrated. Its power converged, continuously reinforcing the phantom serpent's form until it was nearly solid. Only a single, brightest point of light remained in Duan Fengbuer's hand.

That was the essence of the Sand Python Demon Core! Or, perhaps, it was the very innermost core of the demon core, just beginning to crystallize! The moment the entire core completely crystallized, the Sand Python would advance to become a legendary Super-Grade Demon Beast!

Pan Hongji stared blankly at the flickering speck of crystallization in Duan Fengbuer’s hand, his eyes filled with infinite confusion. This was not a simple Sand Python! Its core was already showing signs of crystallization? Even if Qian Jing possessed the Dou Xin mentality and was gifted a Saint Artifact, he could not possibly defeat such a ferocious High-Grade Sand Python; he wouldn't even have a chance to escape.

How did they obtain this Sand Python Demon Core? Pan Hongji frowned deeply. Could it be... Could it be... Fabredis! I heard that one of the 'Three Heroes of the War Hall' from back then has actually achieved Sainthood! Did he truly succeed in ascending to Sainthood?

The True Strategy Dynasty, the Demon Race, or even the Barbarian Tribes! Pan Hongji’s pupils contracted to pinpricks, repeatedly blooming with shock. No ordinary warrior had ever achieved Sainthood! He had previously thought the rumors were false; now it seemed the event was likely real!

If Fabredis had attained Sainthood... Pan Hongji’s eyes shifted slightly. Then the appearance of this demon core could theoretically be explained. However, securing the aid of a Saint-level powerhouse would demand a colossal price!

Qian Jing focused his entire attention on the rotating three-tiered altar. So! This altar held one last great secret: through its rotation, the pre-arranged magic circles could be manipulated to form even more complex arrays!

Difficult! Difficult! Difficult! Qian Jing softly shook his head. Rumor had it that this artifact was crafted by an apprentice Runesmith from the Nine-Headed Serpent bloodline family? That was absolutely false! Impossible!

The complex combination of stationary magic circles was already high-level runecraft; allowing the magic circles to rearrange themselves while in motion increased the difficulty by more than a hundredfold instantly!

The three layers of magic circles, rotating in different directions and at different speeds to create new formations, amplified the difficulty by another thousandfold compared to two layers.

This thing was the work of a Runesmith Apprentice? Hmph! Qian Jing glared fiercely at the altar. A Runesmith Master!

This was unequivocally the masterpiece of a Tenth-Level Runesmith! And not just any Tenth-Level Runesmith could create it!

The cooperation between these magic circles was exceptionally seamless, yet there were flaws.

Those flaws were not manufacturing defects, but technical imperfections—the work of two Runesmiths with very similar skill levels who had collaborated for an extended period!

Qian Jing secretly glanced at the contemplative Pan Hongji. Indeed! Every noble and powerful family harbored its own deep secrets. Only someone versed in runecraft could truly appreciate the immense difficulty in the creation of this altar.

"It seems... I'll have to cheat..." Qian Jing sighed. If he could find the right materials, the only way to genuinely decipher the mechanism of this altar would be to explain the principles to Rune Teacher Aknash, that seven or eight-year-old girl, and seek her guidance on the exact methodology.