If I let you practice martial arts, you'll compress your vital energy ten thousand times?

The Starbreaker continued to accelerate.

The silver-gray hull tore through the sea of ​​clouds and sped toward the Central Plains.

The Extreme Star Gate has been closed.

Deep within Lin Yuan's consciousness, the dark gold star chain connecting the Zero Ancient Gate continued to vibrate.

Each vibration.

A dark, etched pattern will always erode outwards along the star chain.

The Extreme Star Domain operates on its own.

locking.

peel off.

Crush.

All permissions attempting to climb out of Gate Zero were revoked.

No problems for now.

However, this suppression cannot be maintained indefinitely.

Three days.

This is the limit set by Ji Guichen.

Three days later.

Either sever the Starlink and allow the Zero Gate to open completely.

You either need to enter the underground of Zhongzhou, find the core of the gate hidden deep within the ancient gate, and destroy it completely.

There is no third way.

……

Broken Star Boat Quiet Room.

Ji Guichen lay in the center of a temporary star array.

Zhou Xuanheng sat cross-legged outside the formation.

Hundreds of thin, silver-black star-like lines extended from his fingertips, piercing Ji Guichen's chest, brow, and limbs.

Seventy-six years of pressure from the door had long since eroded Ji Guichen's body, leaving it almost a hollow shell.

Each time the heart beats...

A dull sound, like a hinge turning, can be heard coming from inside the body.

Click.

Click.

It was as if within his flesh and blood lay an ancient door that might be reopened at any moment.

Qin Zhu stood to the side.

He held a black and gold candle in his palm.

The lamplight traveled along Ji Guichen's entire body, slowly burning away the remaining door patterns.

A full half hour later.

Zhou Xuanheng then withdrew his hand.

"His life has been saved."

"But his cultivation level..."

Ji Guichen opened his eyes.

"Once it's gone, it's gone."

His voice was still hoarse.

But it seemed to have a more human presence than when it was first rescued.

Zhou Xuanheng said:

"Your stargate access is still active."

"And the level is very high."

"As long as a portion of the physical body is restored, it's not impossible..."

"No need to try."

Ji Guichen interrupted calmly.

"My access has been entangled with the Zero Gate for seventy-six years."

"The door locks have now been replaced with Starlink."

"If I reactivate the old permissions, it will only make Pei Xuanmen follow my lead and touch Star Chain again."

Zhou Xuanheng remained silent.

There is no possibility that Ji Guichen will recover immediately without being rescued.

He is alive.

This is already an extremely rare result.

the other side.

Gu Changye leaned against the wall.

The wound on his chest had been covered with a black and gold medicated film.

The black notebook remained on his lap.

Even after being rescued from the twelfth anchor, he did not stop recording.

Ji Guichen.

The first generation of the Chief Array Master of the Gate Guard.

The third survivor of Operation Zero's sealing of the door.

He used himself as the lock core and sealed the door for seventy-six years.

After finishing writing, Gu Changye looked up.

What lies beneath the innermost part of the Zero Ancient Gate?

Ji Guichen glanced at him.

"You asked too quickly."

Gu Changye said:

"Only three days left."

"We have to hurry."

Ji Guichen remained silent for a moment.

"The Zero Gate was not built by humans."

"It was already there when it was discovered."

"The door frame, lock, and core are all intact."

"The sealing operation seventy-six years ago was not the first time it was initiated."

Zhou Xuanheng's eyes darkened slightly.

According to the General Archives, the last time the Zero Gate was opened was 76 years before the spiritual energy revival.

"The file was written by Pei Xuanmen."

Ji Guichen said slowly:

"He established the Town Gate Guard."

"I also personally compiled the first batch of records for the ancient gate."

"What he wanted future generations to know, that's what's in the archives."

Gu Changye asked:

"When was the first true activation?"

"have no idea."

"But it predates the existing history of human stargates."

Ji Guichen looked at Lin Xiaoya.

"The child said he saw someone behind the door."

"It's not actually a person."

Lin Xiaoya sat beside Lin Yuan, the lines on her forehead shimmering slightly.

"I saw that he was wrapped in a lot of black lines."

"Wasn't it you?"

"It wasn't me."

Ji Guichen shook his head.

"What you see is the shape reflected in the center of the door."

"The core of the Zero Ancient Gate will mimic the people it has swallowed."

"It doesn't have its own shape."

"So it looks like someone trapped behind a door."

Gu Changye's eyes flickered slightly.

"Is the door hinged?"

"More troublesome than ordinary life."

Ji Guichen said:

"It can learn."

"Each person swallowed."

"You'll learn a kind of real-world authority."

"Each time a gatekeeper is swallowed."

"This way, you'll learn another way to open a door."

"For the past seventy-six years, Pei Xuan Sect has been sending people into the Folding Corridor, not just to refine Living Gate experts."

"He's also feeding the door."

The quiet room fell silent.

Seventy-six years.

High-ranking officials in the General Headquarters.

A former member of the town gate guard.

A powerful figure from the Star Gate City.

Countless people who were deemed missing or killed in battle were sent to the Zero Ancient Gate by Pei Xuanmen.

Their identities, permissions, and memories.

Ultimately, they all became part of the door's core.

Gu Changye lowered his head and wrote a line of text.

The core of the Zero Ancient Gate possesses seventy-six years of accumulated authority over human star gates.

I'm halfway through writing this.

He suddenly stopped.

"Why doesn't Pei Xuanmen just open it directly?"

"What is he waiting for?"

Ji Guichen looked at Lin Yuan.

"Waiting for someone who can eat the door."

Zhou Xuanheng's expression changed slightly.

Lin Xiaoya also subconsciously grabbed Lin Yuan's clothes.

Ji Guichen continued:

"The Menxin Society has too many permissions."

"It's getting heavier and heavier."

"Ordinary methods are no longer sufficient to bring it out from behind the door."

"Pei Xuanmen has forged himself into a door frame."

"Make Shen Guishan a person with closed-door access."

"They nailed me into a lock cylinder again."

"It's not about closing down permanently."

"This is to maintain the stability of the gate."

Until one day.

"Someone can swallow the door frame, door chain, and all the unnecessary permissions from the outside."

Gu Changye slowly raised his head.

"Lin Yuan cleaned its shell."

"right."

Ji Guichen's voice was deep.

"The bronze goalkeeper has been defeated."

"The second anchor has been swallowed up."

"The sect leader's authority has been partially reduced."

"Pei Xuanmen then knew that the Gate Devourer had appeared."

"From that moment on."

"The twelve live anchors are just the second option."

"The real first plan is to have Lin Yuan find the Zero Ancient Gate."

"Let him swallow it."

"Let him tear it down."

"Finally, reveal the door's core, which was hidden behind the door, completely."

Qin Guanlan frowned.

"So all the clues we had before were deliberately left behind."

"Maintenance costs for the No. 0 Ancient Gate".

"Coordinates of the abandoned archives."

"The folded corridor that Gu Changye found."

"Including Pei Xuanmen opening remote portals time and time again."

Gu Changye finished the sentence for him:

"Everyone is paving the way for Lin Yuan."

Ji Guichen nodded.

"Pei Xuanmen knows."

"Ordinary people cannot open the Zero Ancient Gate."

"Only those who devour the gate can eat away the layers of things that are wrapped around them."

The atmosphere in the quiet room became heavy.

They have been sabotaging Pei Xuanmen's plans.

They rescued Luo Xingshuang.

Capture Xu Chengan.

Destroy the main gate of the Third Ring Road.

They rescued Gu Changye and Ji Guichen.

They seized the Twelve Rings Formation.

They even stripped away most of the true form of Pei Xuanmen's gate frame.

We can look at it from another angle.

They have also been working to lighten the burden on the Zero Gate.

The number of outer gates is decreasing.

The door is getting closer and closer to reality.

Gu Changye looked at Lin Yuan.

Are you still planning to swallow the door open?

Lin Yuan remained calm.

"Before eating."

"Let's see what it is first."

Gu Changye smiled.

"Very cautious."

Ji Guichen shook his head.

"Wait until you see it."

"It will see you too."

"Too many gatekeepers have been swallowed up by the gate."

"Its greatest strength is not attacking."

"It's imitation."

"It might mimic the Blood Shadow."

"Imitation Stargate".

"even……"

His gaze fell on Lin Xiaoya.

"Imitate her lock."

Lin Xiaoya's white lock pattern on her forehead trembled slightly.

Lin Yuan looked up.

Ji Guichen did not continue looking at her.

"After entering the Zero Ancient Gate."

"Don't trust any door that closes on its own."

"And don't trust anyone standing inside the door."

"Including me."

Gu Changye asked:

"What if the door frame imitated your appearance?"

Ji Guichen said:

"kill."

"What if you imitate Lin Xiaoya?"

Lin Yuan glanced at Gu Changye.

Gu Changye nodded immediately.

"Never mind, I didn't ask."

……

Just then.

The entire Starbreaker suddenly trembled slightly.

No attack was encountered.

The speed did not decrease.

However, the highest-level alarm in the main control room sounded three times in a row.

Qin Guanlan quickly stood up.

"A blockade signal has been sent from the direction of Central China."

Zhou Xuanheng frowned.

"Minimum privilege text communication?"

"right."

"No footage."

The group arrived at the main control room.

Above the star map.

The silver shipping routes that once traversed the Central Plains are gradually being extinguished.

It's not a damaged line.

Instead, Zhongzhou proactively closed all external pilotage permissions.

Star Harbor.

Spatial passage.

Star navigation route.

Even the backup landing coordinates in the wilderness were all deleted.

The entire ancient capital of Zhongzhou is disappearing from the human stargate network.

Qin Guanlan retrieved the text command he had just received.

It consists of only a few lines.

Pollution leaked from Gate Zero.

The old capital of Zhongzhou has entered the highest level of lockdown.

No foreign ships are allowed to approach within three thousand li of the old capital.

Those who disobey orders will be considered as carriers of contamination behind the door and will be destroyed on the spot.

Zhou Xuanheng said:

Who issued the order?

Qin Guanlan did not answer immediately.

He looked at Ji Guichen.

His expression turned extremely strange.

On the issuance column.

Not a current high-ranking official in the Central State Government.

He is not the current head of the Town Gate Division.

It was a name that had disappeared for seventy-six years.

The first generation of the Chief Array Master of the Gate Guard.

Ji Guichen.

The main control room fell silent.

All eyes fell on Ji Guichen at the same time.

Ji Guichen looked at the order.

There was no surprise on his face.

There was only coldness.

"My name is back."

"The permissions have been restored."

Zhou Xuanheng immediately understood.

Seventy-six years ago.

Ji Guichen voluntarily locked his name into the Zero Ancient Gate.

Now Lin Xiaoya has helped him find his name again.

This means that his identity within the old town's system has also been awakened.

However, Ji Guichen himself has not yet arrived in Zhongzhou.

However, the old permissions have already been acquired by the Zero Ancient Gate.

The door swallowed his lock.

I also remember his name.

just now.

It is impersonating Ji Guichen and issuing orders to the entire Central State.

Gu Changye watched as flight routes were continuously shut down.

"This is not an ordinary lockdown."

"It is using Ji Guichen's authority to turn Zhongzhou into an even bigger gate."

Zhou Xuanheng said in a deep voice:

"Seal off all entrances and exits."

"Cut off external communications."

"Trap everyone inside the city."

"The old capital of Zhongzhou itself will become the new shell of the gate."

Ji Guichen looked at the ancient mark at the bottom of the command.

"Lockdown Order Zero"

"When the first-generation Zhenmen Si was established, it was only used once."

"Once activated, all traditional gate formations in Zhongzhou will obey my authority."

Qin Guanlan asked:

How do I undo this?

"Enter the core town gate of the old capital."

"Reclaim authority by branding yourself with your true identity."

"otherwise."

Ji Guichen looked at the star map ahead.

"In the present Zhongzhou, only Ji Guichen from the sect is recognized."

The Starbreaker is still moving at full speed.

But when it was three thousand miles away from the Central Plains.

Suddenly, countless silvery-white spots of light appeared in the sea of ​​clouds ahead.

One.

Ten ships.

One hundred ships.

Three hundred Central Continent Star Patrol Warships slowly rose from behind the clouds.

Naval guns are being charged.

The Star Law Array was deployed.

All cannons simultaneously locked onto the Starbreaker.

Above the flagship.

An aura of a late-stage Marquis-level official rose into the sky.

The cold voice traveled through the lowest-level sound wave array, spreading throughout the sea of ​​clouds.

"The Starbreaker ahead must stop immediately."

"Hand over Lin Yuan and Lin Xiaoya, the sources of the disaster."

"Hand over the defectors Zhou Xuanheng and Gu Changye."

"The rest may enter Zhongzhou for investigation."

Zhou Xuanheng's gaze darkened completely.

Menxin not only misused Ji Guichen's permissions.

They were all listed as "disaster victims".

Qin Guanlan asked:

"What should we do?"

Lin Yuan walked to the bow of the ship.

Looking ahead at the three hundred human star-traveling warships.

"We can't fight."

Zhou Xuanheng looked at him.

"Then we'll have to stop the ship."

"Never stop."

"But the flight path has been blocked."

Lin Yuan raised his hand.

The Extreme Star Domain unfolded silently beneath my feet.

The outline of a dark gold star gate slowly appeared in front of the Starbreaker.

"It blocked the roads to Zhongzhou."

"It's not mine."