Ye Chen started, examining the woman closely. Her ears were sharply pointed, like an elf's, and her eyes were a jade green, resembling a pool of autumn water. Perhaps due to the environment, her long, dark hair was unkempt, looking somewhat dry and messy, clinging to slightly pale cheeks. The hint of her lips showed teeth stained faintly murky...

"Who are you?" The woman was utterly astonished, never expecting another human to be here.

Hearing the footsteps of the mummies approaching from behind, Ye Chen had no time to speak more. He narrowed his focus, peering through the crack in the door into the room. Though the interior was dim, he could vaguely make out that there was no immediate danger. He swiftly urged, "Get inside!"

The woman seemed to grasp the tenacity of the mummies. Without further ado, she spared Ye Chen two more glances before ushering him into the room. Then, she turned toward the pursuing horde of mummies, her gaze flickering with a hidden, mysterious quality, and slammed the door shut... Clack!

The sound of the door meeting its frame echoed in the deathly silence of the tower's peak.

Ye Chen stepped inside, using the faint light to survey his surroundings. It appeared to be a dwelling, containing a main hall and a kitchen. The furniture and decorations were highly unusual, exuding a strange aura.

Ye Chen’s nose twitched; he detected a faint, faint smell of putrefaction lingering in the air, causing his eyes to flash and his brow to furrow slightly.

At that moment, the woman secured the door and turned to face him, looking at Ye Chen with discernible wonder. "You are human?"

Ye Chen nodded, glanced at the iron door behind her, and frowned. "Those mummies shouldn't be able to breach this door, right?" The girl smiled and nodded. "This iron door is forged from rare cosmic metal; it is incredibly heavy, not something these soulless puppets can open." Puppets? Ye Chen's brow twitched, but he asked no more. Judging by the woman’s appearance, she was clearly not a human from a sophisticated civilization, but a remnant of prehistoric humanity. Therefore, the specific nomenclature for the mummies was irrelevant; different civilizations had different terms.

Ye Chen surveyed the room calmly, noting, "You’ve lived here all this time?" The woman’s delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly as she regarded him. "I know what you're thinking. Yes, I have resided here continuously. Let me tell you from the beginning: I am Xifiel. During the prehistoric cataclysm, the Great Flood submerged the globe. Many warriors from our homeland took a portion of the populace onto starships, venturing into the unknown expanse of space. A segment of us, however, chose to remain."

"Because this is our ancestral home."

"Even if it means death, our roots are here. We will never abandon them!"

The candlelight flickered, casting a soft amber glow upon her face, tinged with melancholy and chill. She sighed faintly, moving to lean against a strangely shaped, bowl-like chair in the main hall. With a hint of reminiscence, she slowly recounted, "But against the celestial disaster, everyone perished. I stumbled into this place and narrowly escaped, only to be caught in a vortex and eternally imprisoned here."

Ye Chen’s expression shifted subtly. He asked, his voice low, "How old are you then?" The woman paused her thoughts, looked up at him, and gave a wry smile. "How old? I've lost count. In this place, there is no sun, no moon, no concept of time—only waiting, waiting, waiting... eternally waiting." She looked back at Ye Chen, suddenly flashing a grin. "You must be deeply curious why I haven't died. It's quite normal, actually. After years of painstaking searching, I discovered that this Divine Palace is a relic left by my ancestors—it is a weapon, containing immense power, used to suppress a primeval, monstrous beast!" "And this weapon is miraculous; it possesses a unique function. Through its structure, it can fold the special cosmic rays emanating from the universe around us, causing the flow of time within to diverge completely from the outside world. Here, one day passes, while an entire year passes outside!"

(Note: Scientific evaluation indicates that the pyramid structure can absorb special cosmic rays, providing preservation effects and promoting well-being; an early company successfully applied for and received a patent for the pyramid design.)

A year? Ye Chen’s face changed. If he lingered here for just a few more days, years would pass in the outside world?

He quickly looked up at the woman. "Is there any way to leave?" The woman regarded him, her gaze holding a hint of mockery. "There is a way to leave, but it's tantamount to having no way. If I could get out, I wouldn't have been stuck here for so long."

Ye Chen declared firmly, "Whatever the method, we must try it!" The woman scrutinized him carefully, then, after a moment, said with sudden interest, "Since you insist, there is no harm in telling you. This Divine Palace (the Black Pyramid) is divided into three levels. We are currently on the highest. This level was once the sleeping quarters of a Puppet Master. Later, this Master was wounded by the monstrous beast and sealed on the second level."

"To escape, one must reach the lowest, third level, where the exit passage lies. However, that exit is situated right beside the beast's maw. Setting aside the difficulty of escaping, simply entering the second level is already extremely challenging!" "Why?" Ye Chen pressed quickly.

The woman stated plainly, "You must have seen the three sarcophagi outside. Those are the three most powerful substitutes created by that Puppet Master. They already possess rudimentary consciousness. Once the energy within the Sacred Artifact nestled between them is depleted, the three sarcophagi will open, which will create a path to the second level, and the Puppet Master will resurrect..."

Ye Chen's eyes flickered. "And what of that?"

A slight smile curved the woman's lips. "That Puppet Master is no good sort. You can tell from the ordinary puppets that pursued you; the crafting of these puppets is utterly barbaric. Just creating the twenty Demigod-level puppets consumed the blood of tens of millions of people!" "And each of the three Pseudo-God realm puppets was refined using the essence blood and bones of ten million people, then tempered with countless herbs, metals, and crystals, making them hard as iron, and eternally incorruptible!"

Ye Chen was shaken. To slaughter so many people for mere puppets—this Puppet Master truly was a wicked individual...

Seeing the shock in Ye Chen's eyes, the woman smiled faintly. "If the Puppet Master is allowed to revive, the first ones he'll kill will likely be the two of us. Though I have no proof, I suspect this Puppet Master is probably one of the most renowned Puppet Masters among my Xifiel people. He had a strange nature, and it is likely the elders who sealed the beast away joined forces to confine him here, perhaps over a dispute for the Divine Palace."

Ye Chen frowned. "So, how do we reach the second level?"

The woman calmly replied, "The passage to the second level lies directly beneath those three sarcophagi. To enter, those three must be moved. The moment they are disturbed, the delicate balance is broken, causing the puppets within to emerge. At that point, neither of us will have a place left to hide. Therefore, for you to enter the second level, you must first possess the strength to defeat those three puppets."

Ye Chen clenched his fists, his face turning ashen. "Is there really no other way?"

The woman shook her head. "Essentially, no."

Ye Chen gritted his teeth, abruptly turning and walking toward the iron door.

The woman started in alarm. "What are you doing?"

"Going to defeat those three puppets," Ye Chen replied without turning back, his voice chillingly cold.

The woman’s face paled. "You can’t beat them. You couldn't even scratch those Demigod-level puppets, let alone those three..."

Ye Chen clenched his fist. "If I don't try, I'm just waiting to die. In this place, with energy so sparse, even if ten thousand years passed, I wouldn't be able to defeat those three puppets!"

One day here is one year outside. If he stayed a few more days, who knew what state the outside world would be in when he returned?

The Ice Age ended in a year and a half. The Volcanic Age would follow, and no living creature could escape. With massive volcanic eruptions, the air would become severely polluted, oxygen scarce, leading to the extinction of all life!

The woman quickly interjected, "Wait, there is another way!"

Ye Chen stopped dead, suddenly turning, fixing his gaze directly on her. "What?"

The woman sighed softly. "Actually, training here isn't impossible. If the beast beneath the Divine Palace were to awaken and unleash its fury, it would stir the surrounding energy, fully charging the entire Palace. However, that would also charge the puppets, allowing them to unleash super-strong combat power."

Ye Chen frowned upon hearing this. "That method won't work; it's too slow!" Who knew when that beast would awaken?

The woman pondered for a moment. "How about this: let's plan long-term. Let's think of a way to move those three sarcophagi without waking the puppets inside."

Ye Chen's expression was impassive. If there were a viable method, given this woman's experience, she would have figured it out long ago; she wouldn't need to wait for him.

Seeing Ye Chen determined, the woman stamped her foot and huffed, "Fine, go and seek death if you must. I won't stop you, as long as you can open the door by yourself!"

Ye Chen startled, turning to look at the pitch-black iron door, and frowned. With his strength, he still had a considerable distance to go to pull that door open, unless he activated Ant-Man Mode—which was currently frozen. As for Lightning-Man Mode, it only increased speed. The impact force generated by speed might only barely manage to crack open such a heavy, thick door. However, the Lightning Mode was his final fail-safe, not to be used lightly.

Ye Chen remained silent for a long time, glancing at the woman. She held her head high, looking smug, clearly indicating she wouldn't help him open the door; begging would only bring shame.

Seeing Ye Chen stuck, the woman chuckled. "Rest easy here. I'm so bored; why don't you keep me company and chat?"

Ye Chen remained silent, walking to a corner and sitting down. Suddenly, his nose twitched, catching a whiff of something metallic and bloody. His eyes flashed, and he discreetly glanced at the floor, instantly spotting dark red spots, like dried bloodstains.