Su Yao led her team cautiously toward the source of the energy fluctuations deep within the ruins. The further they went, the stronger the oppressive feeling of that mysterious power became, and the surrounding walls flickered with eerie light, as if warning those who came.
When they arrived at the core area, they saw a huge energy crystal floating in mid-air, seemingly sealing some kind of ancient creature within it. This creature resembled a Qilin, its body radiating intense flames, yet the flames also contained a trace of coolness, completely different from the pure heat of the surrounding apocalyptic world.
Su Yao's system quickly scanned and analyzed, "This is the Yanliang Sacred Qilin, a legendary auspicious divine beast. Its power may be able to change the pattern of the high-temperature apocalypse. However, it is sealed here. To release and control its power, it is necessary to break the surrounding five element seals and time shackles. The process is extremely dangerous, and the slightest mistake will result in being devoured by the power of the seal."
Su Yao showed no sign of backing down. She turned to her teammates and said, "We came here to find hope for saving humanity. Now that hope is right before our eyes. Even if it's fraught with danger, we must give it a try." The teammates nodded in unison, their eyes filled with determination.
Ling Yu stepped forward first, saying, "With my ice-type ability, I can try to suppress the high temperature around us and buy time to break the seal." After saying that, he formed a hand seal, and his ice-blue ability surged outwards like a tide, temporarily relieving some of the intense heat.
The earth-elemental ability user then used their power to transform the rocks on the ground into a sturdy shield, protecting the group from potential energy impacts. The other team members also performed their duties, either keeping watch or assisting Su Yao in studying the sealing runes.
Su Yao concentrated and began to break the Five Elements Seal. Her spatial ability transformed into countless tiny rune hands, carefully touching the sealing runes and dismantling them one by one according to the order and rhythm prompted by the system. Each rune she unlocked triggered an energy fluctuation that impacted everyone's defenses.
Just as the Five Elements Seal was about to be completely broken, the Time Shackles suddenly released a powerful temporal turbulence. Everyone felt as if they were in a vortex of time, their movements became sluggish, and their thoughts were greatly disturbed.
With the system's assistance, Su Yao forcibly stabilized her mental power and retrieved a Time Stabilizing Stone from her system space. She had obtained this by chance during a previous exploration of ruins and had kept it for future use. Su Yao placed the Time Stabilizing Stone in the center of the ground and chanted an ancient incantation. A golden light emanated from the stone, gradually counteracting the effects of the time turbulence.
Finally, the Five Elements Seal and the Time Shackles were completely lifted, and the Flame-Cold Sacred Qilin slowly awoke from the energy crystal. It opened its eyes, its majestic gaze sweeping over everyone, and let out a deafening roar.
Su Yao stepped forward and respectfully said, "Holy Qilin, the apocalypse of high temperatures has arrived, and humanity faces annihilation. We have no intention of offending you; we only wish to borrow your power to save all living beings." The Yanliang Holy Qilin seemed to understand her words. It lowered its head and gently touched Su Yao's forehead with the tip of its nose, and a surge of information flooded into Su Yao's mind.
It turns out that the Yanliang Sacred Qilin was originally a divine beast that protected the balance of this world, but it was severely injured in the ancient war and sealed here. It is willing to help humans, but it needs Su Yao and others to help it restore its full power. The key to restoring its power lies in collecting the five elemental sacred objects scattered throughout the high-temperature apocalypse.
Su Yao agreed without hesitation. She knew this was humanity's last hope. After bidding farewell to the Yanliang Sacred Qilin, Su Yao led her team back to the human settlement.
Upon returning to their settlement, Su Yao immediately informed everyone of her discoveries in the ruins and her agreement with the Sacred Qilin of Yanliang. Initially, some worried it was a scam, but Su Yao convinced everyone with her unwavering faith and by demonstrating a portion of the Sacred Qilin's power she had acquired in the ruins.
Subsequently, the alliance quickly formulated a plan to find the Five Elements Sacred Relics. The superhumans were divided into five groups, each heading towards the direction where the power of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—was strongest. Su Yao, meanwhile, was stationed at the command center, maintaining contact with each group through the system and ready to respond to any potential crises.
The first group heads to a metal mine in search of the Gold Relic, which is overrun by powerful mutated metal creatures; the second group ventures deep into an ancient forest in search of the Wood Relic, where deadly poisonous fog and mutated plants permeate the air; the third group explores the polar ice fields for the Water Relic, where ferocious ice-type behemoths roam; the fourth group heads deep into a volcano to collect the Fire Relic, where the high-temperature magma and fire spirits pose significant obstacles; and the fifth group digs for the Earth Relic in desert ruins, where various traps and sand-transformed monsters lurk.
Each team faces unprecedented danger, yet they all forge ahead with unwavering faith in saving humanity. Meanwhile, Su Yao closely monitors everything from the command center. She knows this is a life-or-death battle against time; if they successfully gather all five sacred artifacts, they might be able to use the power of the Flame and Cool Sacred Qilin to reverse the apocalyptic heatwave and bring a true glimmer of hope to humanity.
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