The secret chamber of national destiny, the design of the ancestral home, you're building the Z

Seeing that Zhang Qilin had thoughtfully prepared three hints before starting the escape room exploration, netizens couldn't help but get excited.

[Haha, this is definitely the most novice-level behavior I've ever seen.]

[I must say, Zhang Qilin is actually quite considerate.]

Hey, don't laugh. It's only their first time, so it's understandable that they lack experience.

[Heh, even if you haven't eaten pork, you've seen pigs run, right? I think this Qilin might be a spy from Japan, right?]

……

The people of Great Xia were experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions. The excitement that had just been fueled by the "nightmare-level" events cooled instantly upon seeing the three almost explicit warnings, replaced by a sense of frustration and anxiety.

The designers at Da Xia were all heartbroken.

An elderly designer with white hair clutched his chest, his voice trembling: "Comrade Zhang! You...you've been foolish! The power of a nightmare-level attack lies half in its unfathomable unknown and terrifying nature! Your hint has essentially weakened the psychological pressure of the locked room, giving the enemy a clear direction for analysis and deciphering! This...this is tantamount to crippling yourself!"

Another middle-aged designer was so anxious he was stamping his feet, wishing he could rush up and tutor Zhang Qilin immediately: "Brother Zhang! Come here, let me tell you what 'feigning indifference' and 'subtle hints' mean! Hints should be given in a seemingly ambiguous way, in a desperate situation, so that the challenger can 'figure it out' on their own—that's superior design! Yours... sigh!"

Zhang Qilin ignored them, a confident smile always on his lips.

Just kidding, he's lived two lives, how could he not understand this principle?

He dared to do this, so he must have his reasons.

……

After analyzing the situation, Koheko and the others realized that they all had an extra backpack.

After opening the backpack, I found several items inside.

Each person received a set of diving equipment, a gas mask, a pistol and a dagger, and even some food.

The food contained a bottle of bright red blood and a packet of white powder.

The white powder was assumed to be table salt, so no one paid it much attention.

However, it was the bottle of bright red blood that piqued everyone's curiosity.

"Why is there another bottle of blood? Could it be for some purpose?" Koe Saburo asked.

Koei Erlang said, "Heh, it's just blood. What use could it be? I heard that the people of Daxia like to eat pig's blood and duck's blood. It's probably just food prepared for us!"

Seeing this, Koei Ichiro couldn't help but sneer, his tone full of mockery: "Wow! This Zhang Qilin is really 'thoughtful'! From diving to gas protection, from weapons to food, he even prepared 'specialty foods' for us? If I didn't know this was a life-or-death gamble, I would have thought he invited us on an 'in-depth historical and cultural experience tour'!"

"Hahaha!" Koejiro laughed along, weighing the gun in his hand. "Big brother is right! This preparation is so thorough that I'm almost embarrassed to go all out and dismantle his secret room."

Gu Huihe checked her equipment, her eyes sharp: "Enough, enough joking. More complete equipment sometimes means harsher conditions. Don't be fooled by appearances. Our goal has never changed—to find the dragon-patterned stone box as quickly as possible, destroy this secret chamber, and extinguish the last hope of Great Xia!"

"Hey!" The three of them turned serious.

"As planned, Ichiro and Jiro, you two go into the water first to explore the ancient village at the bottom of the lake, focusing on searching the 'Zhang Family Mansion' building and any traces left by predecessors. Saburo and I will conduct preliminary terrain surveys and hazard assessments on the shore and in the surrounding area, paying particular attention to any signs related to 'Miluotuo'. Keep communication open, and report any discoveries immediately!" Koeko decisively gave the order.

"clear!"

Koei Ichiro and Koei Jiro nodded, and the two immediately put on their diving equipment and went into the water.

Koheko watched them go into the water, without feeling too much worry.

She had absolute confidence in the abilities of these two team members, both of whom were elites who had undergone numerous nightmare-level escape room challenges.

Moreover, according to common sense, even if this is a nightmare-level escape room, the opening phase is usually focused on exploration and information gathering, so you won't immediately encounter a fatal crisis that you can't handle.

Koeichiro and Kojiro went into the water and went downstream.

The lake was much deeper than they had expected.

They dived dozens of meters down but still couldn't see the bottom, and the surrounding water pressure was already quite high, making them somewhat uncomfortable.

After exchanging a hand signal, the two descended again.

This time, after diving down another ten meters, they discovered a building at the bottom of the valley.

In the dim light of the flashlight, one could vaguely make out the ruins of an ancient village.

The two perked up and swam faster.

When they swam up to the top of the ancient village and looked down, despite being mentally prepared, the scene before them still brought a sense of shock, as if time and space had been displaced.

The entire village is remarkably well-preserved, as if it were frozen in time at the bottom of the lake. Water plants cling to it like ghostly veils, swaying gently with the ripples, exuding an indescribable eeriness amidst the deathly silence.

In the center of this ancient village in the Yao ethnic style, a Hui-style building with white walls and black tiles stands out like an incongruous anomaly!

It stands out so conspicuously in this underwater environment, like a deliberately placed bait.

Without hesitation, Koei Ichiro and Koei Jiro swam straight toward the building. Soon, they arrived at the main entrance.

The beam of the powerful light clearly illuminated the black plaque hanging above the door.

The four large gilded characters above are powerful and vigorous, yet appear slightly distorted due to the refraction of the water.

[Zhang Family Head]

"The Zhang family...the head of the mansion?" A muffled, incredulous sound came from behind Koei Ichiro's mask. If he hadn't been biting his breathing valve, he probably would have burst out laughing.

Everyone was a little stunned when they saw these four big characters.

Zhou Xingbang looked at those four words with some surprise. What was going on?

They found it as soon as they went into the water?

The representatives from Japan burst into loud laughter.

"Hahaha, Zhang Sang, this is the Zhang Family Ancient Building you set up? You just put it here so openly? While underwater movement might be difficult, this is far too simplistic!"

Park Guk-chang, the representative from South Korea, was filled with envy and jealousy. He said sourly to Yamamoto Ichiro beside him, "Brother Yamamoto, your Japan really... had incredible luck this time! You actually stumbled upon such a 'superficially strong but internally weak' nightmare-level secret chamber! I think the difficulty rating is probably just because the background setting of the 'Zhang family' and 'immortality secret technique' is intimidating. The actual content is probably not even as good as a normal 'hard' level!"

At this moment, the last trace of doubt in Yamamoto Ichiro's heart vanished, replaced by an extreme sense of pride and arrogance.

He smiled reservedly, feigning nonchalance, and said, "Park-san, you can't say that. After all, this is a 'Nightmare-level' mission certified by the Mystic God. Perhaps there's something more to it about the underwater operation itself, or the interior of that building."

But the joy in his eyes was impossible to hide.

Hey……

Zhou Xingbang sighed, "It seems that the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment..."

He looked helplessly at Zhang Qilin. He had thought Zhang Qilin was a minister who would restore the Great Xia Dynasty, but now it seemed that this was not the case. However, when he looked over, he found that Zhang Qilin was standing there with his hands behind his back. Not only did he not show any fear on his face, but he also had a hint of amusement on his face, as if he was waiting to see some good show.

……