Around the flower bed was a circular canal, clearly man-made, and its material was gold, glittering brightly.

One could discern that an unknown liquid was gently rippling within the canal, flowing along. This liquid was also very special, resembling quicksilver with a unique sheen and texture. The liquid emitted a faint glow, not from reflecting external sunlight, but from itself, a light that was different from sunlight – soft, viscous, and vaguely tinged with purple.

Notably, the source of the liquid in the canal was droplets from the mouths of the densely packed skulls forming the flower bed. To deepen the understanding, one could consider it the saliva, excrement, sweat, or similar substances of the Stairway to the Sun.

Directly in front of the flower bed was a path paved with equally pale white skulls. Within half a meter of the skulls, not a single blade of grass grew, distinctly isolating it from the other green vines and plants in the cave.

Once one stepped onto that path, whether intentionally designed by the builders or not, the mouths of the skulls grimly faced upwards. The hollow feeling underfoot gave one the unsettling sensation of being bitten by the dead at any moment. Those with weak nerves would tremble uncontrollably! It must be noted that ninety-nine percent of the humans entering here were barefoot... Simply this environment alone could inspire fear, trepidation, and, consequently, boundless piety…

Fang Senyan stood at the end of that skull path, appearing to be just outside the Sun Altar. In other words, his ultimate goal in coming to this world was within reach – well, a little beyond reach, to be precise, thirty-three point five two meters. For Fang Senyan, rushing over there at top speed and even running back would only take a few seconds.

But he didn't move, standing calmly in place, his eyes extremely alert and cautious, as if the skull path before him didn't lead to his ultimate goal, but directly into the Yellow Springs Road of the underworld! One wrong step, and he would regret it for eternity!

The sunlight gradually intensified, but Fang Senyan still showed no sign of moving. It was as if an insurmountable transparent wall was blocking him. Fang Senyan stood there like a statue. At this moment, there was no hole in the ceiling above the cave chamber where he was, which was about the size of a classroom.

Although the entire cave was mostly sealed, with the only exit relying on the rising and falling stone slab, and it was difficult for wind to enter, being inside didn't feel stuffy or cramped at all. Although the surrounding environment was also very humid, there wasn't the rotten smell that should be present in any humid cave. Everything here intertwined to create a mysterious and strangely clean atmosphere.

Strangely, despite being only half a step away from the Sun Altar, no plants grew here, contrasting sharply with the vigorous growth and vitality of the plants inside the Sun Altar. Fang Senyan continued to wait quietly. Gradually, as the temperature in the chamber increased, a unique, indescribable, and fishy fragrance arose.

Upon closer inspection, the green plants around the Sun Altar began to bloom, rapidly opening into beautiful flowers. The fragrance initially smelled sweet, but after a few more whiffs, it became somewhat dizzying, even nauseating.

The sweet fragrance became noticeably stronger. Fang Senyan retreated a few steps, nodded, and then backed out of the chamber, leaving the skull path and reaching the place not far behind where the stone slab had come down.

Overall, the area occupied by the entire cave wasn't very large. Even including the Sun Altar, it was only five chambers. However, the environment here was exceptionally peculiar – warm but not dry, cool but not cold, moist but not waterlogged, ventilated but without wind, with sufficient sunlight but without excessive exposure. It could be described as the work of nature's miraculous craftsmanship. Only such a strange environment could possibly nurture such a mysterious plant as the Stairway to the Sun.

Suddenly, Fang Senyan's thick black eyebrows twitched! An ant crawled out of a crack beside the cave wall and appeared in his line of sight. This was a very large ant, as thick as a human thumb. In the ant world, it was almost like a Tibetan mastiff among dogs.

The ant first crawled around, seemingly scouting something, then its antennae swayed, and immediately it headed towards the Sun Altar.

It crawled over very resolutely.

Fang Senyan's gaze remained fixed on the ant. His expression was very serious, even solemn. He didn't seem to be looking at an ant at all, but rather at the gains and losses, even the success or failure, of his long-term planning since entering this world!

The big black ant stretched out its six long legs and quickly crawled towards the chamber where the Sun Altar was located. Without the slightest hesitation, it climbed onto the skull path, crossing the boundary where Fang Senyan had previously hesitated to advance. It recklessly entered the sunny, vibrant, yet strangely sinister stone chamber.

Everything was quiet. Fang Senyan stared at the ant, his breathing clearly audible. The sun had risen high, and the sunlight still stubbornly occupied this place. The scent that permeated the air had turned into a pungent fishy smell, indescribably rich. This smell completely subverted people's usual perceptions, because it actually gave one a feeling of sweet and intoxicating pleasure.

The two antenna-like gray feelers on the ant's head were constantly swaying, locating its target and correcting its direction. From the frequency of the antennae's swing, one could see the ant's determination. Suddenly, the ant's sharp compound eyes noticed,

Something gray was falling from the air!

It was its own antennae!

Next, what was corroded from its body was its long legs, its head... until its fragmented body was completely separated on the damp ground. Even at this moment, the ant was still stubbornly struggling, trying to continue moving forward, but its body no longer allowed it.

One could clearly see its body cavity begin to swell, finally bursting like a water-filled balloon with a "bo" sound, emitting a faint blue mist which quickly dissipated into the air. That process was very much like the scene of people exhaling smoke from their lungs after smoking.

No wonder Fang Senyan dared not enter the Sun Altar chamber!

That stone chamber was actually filled with such a strong and corrosive, silent and invisible, deadly poison!

As everyone knows, plants usually have a process of photosynthesis, inhaling carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. The Stairway to the Sun is also a plant, but it's a rather special one. It inhales both oxygen and carbon dioxide, and what it releases is this terrifyingly poisonous gas! It is slightly heavier than air, invisible and odorless, so it settles in the chamber. If someone didn't know the inside story, rushing in would end no better than that ant.

However, after the big black ant died, it was like sounding the charge. A series of big black ants emerged from the cracks in the cave wall, lined up in a long row, and very decisively rushed towards the Sun Altar! These ants advanced with great determination! They continued to rush towards the Sun Altar as if they were facing death unflinchingly!

What followed was naturally a series of "pa pa pa pa pa" crisp sounds, like the sound of frying fat in an iron pot. This was naturally the sign of those ants suffering from the poison and dying one after another, but after they died, the formic acid in their bodies would also produce some strange chemical reaction, bursting out a wisp of faint blue smoke and dissipating into the air.

Fang Senyan gradually noticed a very crucial thing: those big black ants that rushed forward one after another were actually crawling deeper and deeper!

Initially, the first big black ant died directly after crawling only a few centimeters into the Sun Altar chamber, but now, after hundreds of ants had died, the ant crawling in the lead had advanced into the chamber by one meter before it began to struggle painfully, disintegrate, and explode. This was enough to illustrate one thing: the poison in the chamber was gradually being diluted!

At this time, Fang Senyan understood that Mbenga's previous instructions were definitely not deliberately mystifying. What he had lit with a lighter before was the special medicine placed next to the cave wall by the previously entered Dubaiya High Priest, used to prevent these big black ants from invading.

After that medicine was removed, these big black ants could use the gas produced by their own corpses to neutralize the poison around the Sun Altar. Only in this way could one safely enter the chamber where the Sun Altar was located and obtain the Stairway to the Sun!

Mbenga definitely knew the phenomenon but not the reason behind it. Coupled with his slurred speech after being drunk, what he said sounded confusing, and most people would have taken it as drunken talk. Fortunately, Fang Senyan knew what was meant by "great wisdom may appear as foolishness, and great skill may appear as clumsiness." Even though he had some doubts in his heart, he still followed Mbenga's instructions, and sure enough, it worked!

Fang Senyan silently watched those big black ants. These small insects were showing very powerful courage, rushing into the Sun Altar chamber one after another as if they were endless. They had even rushed in five or six meters, and were about to reach the end of the skull path. Obviously, it wouldn't be long before the poisonous gas inside was completely neutralized. At that time, it would be the moment when Fang Senyan's wish would be fulfilled, but Fang Senyan's face became exceptionally heavy instead.