Pillar of Yita

Third level, Ritual Area—

The second level of the Trial Grounds also had twelve exits, and Fang Hong chose the third one again, but passing through there, they still hadn’t encountered anyone from the Silver Weslan, and the Guarding Golems were also lifeless, remaining in an unactivated state.

He found it a bit strange, as theoretically, people from Silver Weslan should have entered the Trial Grounds earlier than them, unless the other party really didn’t want to activate the Guarding Golems, which wouldn’t be upright and forthright but rather somewhat pedantic.

The architecture of the third level of the ruins was dominated by a heavy red hue, like the blood that tens of thousands of skeletons had shed in life, and at the center of this level, there was indeed a blood pool, containing the souls of tens of thousands of slaves.

But now, that blood pool had long since dried up, and the fresh blood had turned to dust and ashes, bones filled the field, presenting a scene of filthy darkness and gloom.

From this level onward, the strength of the enemies had noticeably increased. The Blood God Priests and Howling Specters were both level-twelve undead, the latter being even more troublesome, resembling a bloated floating corpse with a pale face and pitch-black eyes, its appearance vile beyond imagination.

Legend had it that the ritualists of Xinsas had used vile spells to shackle their enemies’ souls under an eternal curse, thus creating such monsters. Of course, these spells had long been lost, and what Fang Hong and his team saw were merely phantoms created by Toragotos.

The Howling Specters, being incorporeal, though bloated were swift in movement, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. You could never tell when a hollow, lifeless face might emerge from the floor, ceiling panels, or walls, attacking the team and catching them off guard.

Consequently, the group’s pace inevitably slowed down.

In the long blood-colored corridor, Tainaric, swinging his tail, made a mighty throw. The spear in his hand whistled through the air, pinning a Blood God Priest to the wall.

The latter hissed ferociously, but its pale eyeballs quickly dulled and darkened, its knotted muscles shriveled, and the blood flowing down the spear shaft evaporated into dust, rustling as it hit the ground, leaving nothing behind.

Xiangzi walked over and pinched a layer of dust from the ground with his fingers, appearing somewhat surprised.

Tainaric forcefully pulled back his spear, as if he found such enemies a bit boring. He turned around and asked, ”This is already the third level, how much longer before we catch up with the people ahead?”

”From the third level onward, the rules of the trials are different,” Fang Hong recalled the rules and replied, ”There are keys corresponding to the ten exits on this level, hidden with the ten lord monsters of this level. The identities of those in the lead and those following blur on this level, as the pioneers must find ways to open the doors, while the others can enjoy the conveniences they bring.”

”Of course, the rules for the Guarding Golems still exist.”

”So what do we do?”

”The best choice, naturally, is for the mantis to catch the cicada, with the oriole behind. If the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team and the people from the Blood Oath Alliance are killing the lord monsters on this level, and we could snatch a key from them, that would be perfect,” Fang Hong thought for a moment and answered. ”But that’s too ideal. They might have already passed this level, and we might not even encounter them.”

”Lord monsters only have a general range of activity, but learning from previous mistakes, the information we bought might not be reliable. However, the exit locations are fixed. I have an idea. We could first go to the first exit, nearby that is the activity area of the lord monster holding the key for the third exit. Assuming the people from the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team haven’t passed through the first exit, we can loop back to ambush them in the first lord’s area.”

He paused, seemingly to clarify his thoughts: ”But if the first exit has already been opened, we might try to pass through directly to shorten the journey. But if that’s not feasible, we’ll go look for trouble with the third lord.”

Having finished speaking, Fang Hong realized that the three people were all silently staring at him, making him feel perplexed and prompting him to ask, ”What’s wrong, did I say something incorrect?”

”How did you think of all that all of a sudden?” the Papalarians widened their eyes—though they still looked like two black beans: ”It was almost like... like...”

”A bit like our troupe’s event analyst.”

”Exactly, exactly,” Parker exclaimed loudly, ”just like that, the last time in Dolifen too, you were exactly like those analysts I’ve seen on TV.”

”A bit like Ta-Kuca,” Tainaric replied. ”It is our clan’s spirit medium, or in your human words, a seer and magician.”

Fang Hong scratched his head, as he was merely analyzing based on the existing clues. He hadn’t thought he was anything special.

”Then let’s do that,” the Lizardman Prince glanced at him, nodding, ”We’ll still do as you say, my human brother, just as in our clan, the opinions of spirit mediums and prophets always carry authority.”

”Besides, you are also Dragon Chosen—”

Fang Hong froze for a moment, then opened his mouth.

He wanted to say that the Dragon Chosen you’re thinking of is actually Miss Tata living in my head. If Tainaric knew she was just a Little Fairy, he wondered what he would think.

Of course, Fang Hong wouldn’t do something as foolish as saying that out loud.

This was their first time choosing the first exit. It was located on the central axis of the third-level Ritual Area, near the dried-up blood pool, where, after thousands of years, the musty air still seemed to be permeated with the illusion of a bloody scent.

Along the way, Fang Hong keenly noticed a detail: although the path to Exit 1 was the shortest, the monsters on this path were clearly a notch stronger. It seemed that the requirement for strength was always the first priority in the trials, consistent with the choice of Toragotos.

After battling countless Blood God Priests and Howling Specters, the four of them finally reached their destination. The monsters formed by illusions were refreshed in real time, so there was no question of taking advantage of the work of those who came before.

The layout of Exit 1 was similar to that of the previous levels, still a round hall with a teleportation altar, somewhat similar to the one Fang Hong had seen beneath the Elf Ruins.

As Fang Hong had expected, the teleportation altar was already activated; the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team had taken a step ahead.

But just as they were about to step onto the altar, a rustling noise suddenly came from the darkness.

Before Fang Hong could react, Tainaric reached out from behind and pulled him into a crevice in the wall. Apart from him, Parker and Xiangzi, who were both agile professionals, also reacted quickly, darting into hiding and disappearing into the shadows.

From beneath his towering collar, the teen pulled out a dark, heavy crystal and tossed it in front of everyone. The crystal did not fall to the ground but hovered a few inches above it.

The crystal flickered with a dark light, forming a shadow screen that silently enveloped them all.

Although Fang Hong’s response was not as quick, he recognized that it was a Shadow Crystal—a type of Smoke Crystal whose main function was to shield sound and light. In the hands of a Magic Guided Conductor, it was a much more powerful magic-guided spell.

Not only could it absorb sound from within, but it could also amplify sound from outside.

Sure enough, clear and erratic footsteps came from the shadow wall. ”Seven people,” Parker whispered, listening intently and drawing a conclusion. The teen was only a moment behind him and looked at the Papalarians in surprise.

Seeing this, Parker was about to boast about his glorious history, but Fang Hong, familiar with this routine, quickly stuffed a compressed biscuit into the man’s mouth. The Papalarian immediately puffed up his cheeks, leaving only muffled sounds.

Fortunately, the shadow wall absorbed the noise neatly.

In the darkness, the group emerged, striking in their white robes and silver armor, wielding long halberds or carrying swords and shields with ornate winged helmets.

Such distinctive equipment style made it easy to recognize their affiliation—Silver Weslan.

Seeing this, Fang Hong felt a bit puzzled. How had they encountered each other here if they’d just missed each other before?

As the people from Silver Weslan approached, the four instinctively held their breaths, even the usually unruly Papalarian, who dared not act out. The shadow wall was not omnipotent, especially given the extraordinary origins of the others.

The group from Silver Weslan stopped not far from the shadow wall. Fang Hong discreetly glanced in that direction. The Silver Weslan people seemed to be examining the altar, and then a familiar voice spoke:

”Jiefulite Red Cloak Team has already passed,” Fang Hong recognized the voice as belonging to the Princess of Silver Weslan, who said, ”We’re a step behind. We must figure out a way; we can’t let them reach the next Obelisk.”

Fang Hong’s heart chilled.

He had previously been worried about the Black Obelisk matter.

But indeed, none of the Grand Guilds were easy to deal with. These people were also here for the Obelisk. Recalling Sophie’s behavior in the hall, he inwardly cursed, ”Sly.”

Who said Silver Weslan didn’t deceive?

Although they indeed had not lied, at the time, that woman had clearly been misleading them, almost making him truly believe they were participating in the trial just for the substantial rewards.

Luckily, they had arrived at this place first. However, Fang Hong’s curiosity about what secret lay behind the Obelisk deepened, driving these grand Guilds to such obsession.

The disappearance of the high-ranking Rain Listeners now seemed undoubtedly connected to this matter.

But just at that moment, Sophie drew her longsword, looking with some confusion in the direction of Fang Hong and his companions. This scared him to the point of almost freezing on the spot, but a muffled sound in the darkness redirected everyone’s attention.

”Golem Guards,” Sophie looked in the direction of the sound, immediately judging the source, and commanded, ”Prepare for combat!”

Simultaneously, there was a chorus of swords being drawn from sheaths.

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