# 360
**Chapter 360: The Mysterious Bronze Gate**
In the dim cave, Lin Qiye moved forward at high speed.
Whether the Ant Queen had entered a final burst of strength or had begun to recover from her injuries, her crawling speed was increasing. In Lin Qiye’s mental perception, the distance between them was gradually widening…
Eventually, the Ant Queen completely vanished from his senses.
But Lin Qiye didn’t stop. First, this cave had only one path—there was no way she could’ve shaken him off. Second, traces of her blood still remained on the ground. As long as he followed the trail, he would find her.
After a few minutes of pursuit in the dark cave, the narrow rock walls on both sides suddenly disappeared, and the space around him opened up.
Lin Qiye paused, slowing his pace.
It was a vast, pitch-black underground space. Even with his mental perception stretched to its limit, he couldn’t detect its edges—meaning its diameter was at least five hundred meters.
He looked back. Embedded in the smooth wall behind him was a circular cave entrance several meters high—he had just emerged from there.
Furrowing his brow, Lin Qiye walked up to the wall and gently brushed his fingers across its surface.
Unlike the rough cave walls, this vast, flat wall was constructed from blocks of bluish-gray bricks. They felt cool to the touch, with no gaps between them—as if they had fused together. The craftsmanship was exquisite.
Scattered on the ground in front of the wall were fragments of broken bricks and soil—likely remnants from when worker ants had tunneled through it.
“Man-made?” Lin Qiye stared at the massive wall in awe.
This wasn’t just any place—it was the deepest part of a primeval forest, nearly a hundred meters underground. How could such a monumental, man-made structure exist here?
And judging by the quality and style of the bricks, this didn’t seem like a modern construction.
Lin Qiye withdrew his hand, thought for a moment, then continued following the blood trail.
Though the wall’s origin was suspicious, his priority was still to hunt down the gravely wounded Ant Queen. Still, he remained on high alert. In such a strange environment, he had pushed his perception to its limit, ready to respond to any danger.
The blood trail grew fainter, the clues more obscure. It seemed the Ant Queen wasn’t in a final burst—she was rapidly healing.
After all, she was a Sea Realm entity. Even if half her body had been blown off, she wouldn’t die so easily.
As Lin Qiye followed the trail, he suddenly froze.
He looked ahead into the deep darkness, his eyes filled with shock.
*"Wildfires cannot burn it all; spring winds bring it back to life."*
*Puff—!*
A faint flame ignited in Lin Qiye’s palm. By its light, he finally saw what lay ahead.
Another wall stood before him. But unlike the previous one, this wall was entirely black, emitting a strange dark luster that absorbed all light.
At its center stood a massive, ancient bronze gate—over thirty meters tall. Its surface was covered in dust and mottled with deep green patina. Under the firelight, it appeared a dark red. Stare too long, and that eerie red seemed to burn itself into your mind.
Lin Qiye quickly averted his gaze and looked up. The flame in his hand couldn’t illuminate the full gate, but even so, standing beneath it, he felt an inexplicable pressure bearing down on him.
Most critically—his mental perception couldn’t penetrate the bronze gate. Nor could it pass through the black stone walls flanking it. It was as if an invisible force was repelling his mind, forbidding any intrusion.
“What is this…” Lin Qiye’s brow furrowed, confusion deepening.
This was the northernmost part of Great Xia, deep beneath a primeval forest. Aside from Lin Qiye and his team, no one could’ve possibly reached this place. Yet here it was—a mysterious, man-made structure.
When had it appeared? Who built it? What was its purpose?
A flood of questions surged through his mind. He stood before the bronze gate, lost in thought…
Suddenly, as if struck by a realization, he began searching around the gate.
Judging by the dust, the gate hadn’t been opened in ages. That meant the Ant Queen hadn’t gone through it—so where had she gone?
Soon, he found the answer.
About fifty meters from the gate, at the base of the wall, was a large tunnel slanting into the ground—seven or eight meters wide, perfectly sized for the Ant Queen. The angle suggested she had tunneled beneath the black wall to bypass the gate…
No—wait.
Lin Qiye examined the scattered soil more closely, his frown deepening.
The edges of the tunnel weren’t curled inward, but cracked outward. And the soil felt old—this tunnel had been dug long ago.
In other words… this tunnel had been dug *from the inside out*, and had existed for a long time.
Lin Qiye slowly stood, his gaze turning grave.
He had assumed the Ant Queen was a mysterious being that had emerged from a rift, and that this tunnel was merely an escape route she had carved.
But now, it seemed otherwise.
The Ant Queen… had *escaped from behind the bronze gate*.
Lin Qiye looked at the faint blood traces near the tunnel and sighed helplessly.
Everything had exceeded his expectations. Whether it was the gate itself or the unknown dangers beyond it, everything seemed to warn him not to proceed further.
He did want to kill the Ant Queen—but rationally, this was no longer the time to continue the chase.
This mission had to end here.
Lin Qiye turned to leave—then froze again.
In the flickering firelight, pale paper figures had silently surrounded him.
Their hollow eyes stared straight at him. Crimson-painted mouths curved into eerie smiles.