Reversing Falsehood and Preserving Truth: All Gods and Gods Are in My Hands

All eyes were focused on Chen Mo, and even the wind and snow seemed to slow down due to the stagnant atmosphere.

The insightful lines in Chen Mo's eyes shone with unprecedented brightness. He didn't answer immediately, but instead took a few steps forward, almost touching the cold energy map, his fingertips pointing to several key locations.

"Senior Han's 'domain' can cover more than 100 meters, which is our biggest advantage." Chen Mo said, his voice calm and without a ripple, yet carrying an undeniable certainty. "The enemy's advantages are firepower, terrain, and numbers, but they have a fatal weakness—information gap."

He spoke faster, his fingertips landing heavily on the shadowy areas on either side of the stone door, instantly revealing two red marks on the ice crystal structure diagram: "They knew we would call for reinforcements, but they never imagined that our predecessors could control such a large area of ​​the environment, let alone that we could accurately grasp the layout inside the cave. At this moment, they have most likely already set up crossfire points and explosives behind the door, attempting to use the narrow passage to launch an ambush."

Before he finished speaking, his finger slid down to the outline of a faint underground river below the structural diagram. The lines meandered like snakes, exuding an unknown chill: "This is a variable, but also a chance for survival. If Lu Yu hadn't been captured and taken into the stone gate, the underground river would have been his only way out."

He turned to Su Wan, his eyes sharp and earnest: "Su Wan, I trouble you to concentrate all your spiritual power and investigate in two directions: first, the gathering of life forms behind the stone gate, to pinpoint the command point and heavily fortified areas; second, extend downstream along the underground river, even the faintest life signal or emotional fluctuation could be Lu Yu's trail. Senior's path emphasizes environmental control, but sensing life still depends on you."

Su Wan nodded emphatically, immediately closed her eyes, and a silvery light, like fine spider silk, seeped from her fingertips, attempting to penetrate the thick rock walls of the cave and establish a connection with the residual energy within. As the silver light shifted, her face grew increasingly pale, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on her forehead, clearly indicating that she was overdrawing her own energy.

Chen Mo turned his gaze to Zhao Lei, his tone becoming more decisive: "Zhao Lei, your task is to 'break down the door,' but not by brute force. Once Senior Han has the situation under control, if we haven't opened the stone door, you'll need to create a breach in or around the stone door as quickly and violently as possible, large enough for all of us to break in simultaneously. Remember, avoid these two structural load-bearing points; if they collapse, we'll all be trapped inside."

"Understood! Leave it to me!" Zhao Lei pounded his chest, his eyes burning with fighting spirit.

"Senior Han," Chen Mo said, turning to Old Han with respect and determination, "the core of the plan lies with you. You need..."

……

Meanwhile, inside the Ji Gate, deep within the Shennong Relics, the scene was completely different from the tense atmosphere outside the cave.

A flat threshing floor stretched out before me, its dark brown ears of grain drooping like waves, exuding the sweet fragrance of new grain that was refreshing and invigorating. In the center of the threshing floor stood an ancient stone mortar, with a dark stone pestle lying diagonally beside it, its surface covered with the marks of time, conveying the weight of an ancient artifact.

"Shedding grains? This counts as a checkpoint?" Zhao Changfeng frowned, his tone full of confusion. "That's way too easy."

"We'll only know if we try; it won't be as simple as it seems on the surface." Shen Che stepped towards the stone mortar, the shadowy figure of Hunter Shadow appearing and disappearing beneath his feet, maintaining his utmost vigilance.

The moment he approached the stone mortar, the surrounding ears of grain suddenly fell off on their own, and dozens of grains flew into the mortar as if drawn by a force. Shen Che picked up the pestle, his wrist lightly sinking, and the pestle struck the grains with a dull thud.

The grains were hulled, revealing glistening rice grains, which fell into the stone mortar with a crisp sound, and other than that, there was no other unusual movement.

"Is it really that simple?" Lin Yue stepped forward, imitating Shen Che's manner, and picked up the stone pestle. The moment he exerted force, his expression changed drastically. "Something's wrong! This stone pestle is draining my power!"

He pounded the rice with difficulty, and more grains flew into the mortar. This time, the hulled grains didn't stay in the mortar; instead, they transformed into a stream of light and precisely shot into Lin Yue's body. Lin Yue trembled, his face instantly turning ashen, and he staggered back half a step.

As the rice grains settled in his palm, Lin Yue's body trembled, and his face suddenly turned pale.

"What's wrong?" Liu Jiaqi hurriedly stepped forward, her fingertips radiating a pale golden healing light, but Lin Yue raised his hand to stop her.

"It's not the power of the Great Dao, it's life force." Lin Yue's voice trembled, his eyes filled with horror. "It drained a portion of my life force, but in return, it gave me... the ability to perceive life. I can see your 'Flame of Life'."

He looked at the crowd, each of them with a flame above their head, varying in size and color.

Shen Che's color is dark gray, stable as a rock, but not particularly vigorous; Zhao Changfeng's color is cyan, pulsating intensely, exuding restless vitality.

Liu Jiaqi's color is milky white, warm and soft, but slightly weak; Sun Ruliang's color is light blue, steady and uniform, with a rational rhythm.

Lin Yue's own was emerald green, but it was dimmer than the others, clearly because its life force had just been drained.

"Does each pounding of grain require a expenditure of vital energy?" Sun Ruliang analyzed. "Then what if all the grains had to be pounded..."

As far as the eye can see, the ears of grain stretch out to the horizon.

"This is a trap, a trap where you have to trade your life force to pass through." Shen Che traced the ancient patterns on the edge of the stone mortar with his fingertips, a red light flashing in his eyes. "If my life force is exhausted, I'll probably perish here."

"But if we don't pass, we'll be trapped here and die too." Liu Jiaqi's voice carried a hint of despair. She looked at the boundless ears of grain, then at Lin Yue's dim flame of life. "Does someone really have to sacrifice themselves to pass this level?"

A deathly silence fell over the crowd. On one side were endless ears of grain that required a tremendous amount of life force to thresh, and on the other side was a hopeless situation with no way out. Despair surged into their hearts like a tide.

"I'll go." Shen Che spoke first, the shadowy figure of Hunter Shadow swirling around him. "My cultivation level is the highest here, and my life force reserves are also deeper than yours."

"No way!" Lin Yue immediately retorted, "Captain Shen, you're the captain, and you'll need to lead the team later. I'll do it! You've already absorbed my essence, so you might have some resistance and consume less energy."

Liu Jiaqi stepped forward as well: "I'm the most suitable one to do this. Even if I'm overexerted, my Dao power can recover some of it on its own."

Sun Ruliang pushed up his glasses and said firmly, "I didn't inherit the Great Dao, so my impact on the team's combat strength is the least. It's my turn."

"Stop arguing!" Zhao Changfeng suddenly roared, his voice filled with a suppressed rage that had been building up for years, his eyes red-rimmed. "My entire squad sacrificed themselves to protect me back then. I've lived on for so long; it's time for me to pay for this!"

He raised his hand to wipe his face, his rough palms wiping away tears that had seeped out without him noticing. His tone was resolute and left no room for argument: "I'll pound the grain. You all better get out of here alive!"

"Chang Feng!" Shen Che tried to stop him, but Zhao Changfeng pushed him away forcefully.

"Captain Shen, don't let me live all these years in vain!" Zhao Changfeng turned his head, a relieved smile on his face. "Being able to sacrifice myself for my teammates once, I can say I've done right by the brothers who died back then!"