“Carried away… the flesh and blood of the dead? “
As the stubbly, burly man narrated, the others also looked at the stone tablets, trying to read the document of which they could barely understand half the words.
With this, some of the ancient tales about this place were also unveiled.
“The inscription records that approximately in the fifty-fifth year after the vanguard arrived, the world was afflicted by the low temperatures and cold winds that a great gale brought. “
As this sentence slowly left his lips, Sword Thirteen already felt a tingling numbness creeping across his scalp.
King Christ opened his eyes wide, gazing at the text at the bottom of the stone tablet before him, and said, his voice choked with disbelief:
“Over the decades… the population that had multiplied was devoured by the evil nightmare summoned from the depths by this sudden, piercing wind… destroying fifteen cities. “
The sparse words on the black stone tablet plunged the hearts of all present into an abyss, as great as mountains piled upon them.
The culprit that summoned the iron vines from the depths was born of the frigid wind.
As they ultimately strained to reach the underworld, beginning to touch upon the gathering point of the apocalyptic demons.
In that same moment, the icy wind equally followed, arriving alongside them into the mortal realm.
…
A rumble of metallic vines passed by in the distance, converging deep into the earth.
“There should be other stele. Let’s go take a look. “
“They must be behind other doors. “
Having finished viewing this first stele, Captain Horne glanced back at the expressionless, lava-toned faces and the twisted ladder patterns beside them as he left the passage.
“A miracle that grants the possibility of resurrection? “
He murmured, following the others as they departed.
The team walked along the slanted, metallic, gridded wall base, bathed in orange light, arriving at the doorway on the next barren wall.
“This stele introduces the records of this survey team, chronicling their departure to trace the origins of the Iron Vines. Of these fifty men, only nine remain upon reaching this point. Only a few of the fifty-some made it back safely to the surface; the rest were lost. But they did find some safe routes. “
The stele’s main carving was an underground network map.
Compared to the diagram Yang Zicang had extracted from the ore—which was filled with many fine cracks and branches—this one appeared much cleaner.
Some of its winding passages were marked along the way with dashed lines. These were the routes the men had marked as relatively safe for travel.
“This truly is a treasure. “
“I should have brought a bouquet of flowers. “
“Let’s head to the next door. “
The team departed, stepping from the dark wall’s shadow into the slanted crystal lattice area, which was bathed in orange light. They followed the wall base to the dilapidated entrance of the next shadowy chamber.
The third stone stele here was densely covered with tiny script.
Sword Thirteen’s expression tightened; written upon it was crucial information.
“In the ancient times of this continent, there was a civilization capable of storing humanity’s ‘Life Stairs’. “
Kevin and Paige cast a silent glance at Sword Thirteen beside them.
Their gazes then shifted to Yang Zicang, the president of thisWorld Ark, who merely stroked his chin absently with a finger, ignoring their questioning looks.
“This… what does this mean? “
Jim Kleist crouched down in astonishment, running his hand over the script on the stone slab and meticulously pointing at the rows of fine characters to examine them.
“This stele says that, according to the survey team’s multiple explorations… what does this word mean? “
“It probably refers to moving metal. “
Just as the group was reading,
suddenly from outside, from the vast, shell-like rock hall, came the clash of metal.
Sword Thirteen’s brow twitched and he turned his head to look outside.
“The metal vines are back?! ” Kevin exclaimed nervously.
“I’ll go and look. ” Paige immediately rushed to the outer passageway. In truth, the distance to the doorway was not great from where they stood; he was already at the entrance almost before finishing his sentence. Then his face went pale with shock.
“Quick, find a way to close the door! ” he shouted immediately. “Lots of strange orange-eyed metal monsters are surging in through those holes. “
“Are these theGuardians of Melted Lavamentioned on this stele? ” Jim Kleist asked, pointing at a word found among the bottom rows of text. It seemed to be a name the survey team had coined.
It seemed this tablet might be the first one, and that they had ultimately transferred down their findings after multiple surface expeditions where they had recorded simplified accounts.
Yang Zicang glanced outside, then turned back with a tense, furrowed brow:
“What’s going on? Doesn’t the stele say that as long as we didn’t break any storage transport warning vines along the way to get here, we wouldn’t be attacked? “
The sound of numerous tiny, fragmented metals striking the ground came in a torrential rush, converging toward their location.
“I’ll go, ” Sword Thirteen said, launching forward with a kick of his foot and a whoosh as he shot out of the passage.
The sword on his back, as he ran and drew it, slid free from its scabbard, and then he threw it forward.
As this azure sword left his hand, five faint, hair-thin halos of light flickered to life within Sword Thirteen’s pupils in an instant. Then, one of those halos suddenly trembled and emitted a ring of scorching radiance.
Yang Zicang followed, rushing out after him.
Dozens of half-man-tall metal things of various shapes, but with structures resembling spiders or crabs, rushing out from beside the locomotive and beneath the tracks, accompanied by dense clusters of smaller metal creatures.
As he had just drawn out “Night Rose” and raised it to aim at a pig-sized metal construct, a ring of air burst was suddenly thrown open in the gloomy space.
“Hah!“
The man shot forward at high speed. Sword shadows converged over his head, and a dozen or so ethereal sword aura projections slammed toward the orange-eyed metal constructs crawling up from the ground.
Boom-boom-boom-crash!
With a flash of the man’s figure, the azure sword handle finally drawn from its sheath in his hand blasted the orange-eyed metal monsters rushing before him—with their glowing sharp front prongs thrusting forward—into fragments in two blows.
“What a domineering sword strike. ” Kevin applauded, and then his expression changed.
A “Boom ” was heard as a huge orange-eyed lava guard, like a millstone, leaped onto the black locomotive, crushing its center into a depression while the sides of the car gave a slight lift.
“Ah?! ” Jin Crimsonfeet screamed as she ran over.
“Our car is done for. ” Without a second thought, Kevin pulled a dull-colored handgun from his waist.
He ran outside the door, half-crouching on the ground, and aimed at the small palm-sized lava guards at Sword Thirteen’s feet.
Bang! Bang!
Amidst the gunfire, several small guards raising their pincer-like arms toppled backward with a crack, kicking their dense little legs as they were crawled over by other guards charging forward.
Sword aura ran rampant in all directions.
Rocks on the ground exploded into dust; more pouncing guards were knocked over.
The rare orange eyes of the shattered guards transformed upon hitting the ground into even smaller gleaming beads, scattering like mercury spilling down and penetrating the gaps in the ground’s metallic structure laid bare after the thick dust was swept away.
Yang Zicang aimed his gun at the millstone-sized lava guard several times, then finally put it away with a sigh.
“Everyone! ” he shouted, “We are not attackers! We are not here to destroy this containment! Is there a misunderstanding here! “
Bang!
“Hmm? ” Kevin looked up beside him, speaking as he clenched his right fist, its tip slightly disappearing into the sleeve of Chairman Yang Buchen.
Sword Thirteen, who was swinging his sword, cast a sidelong glance.
Creak, creak. The molten guards on the vehicle’s hood actually seemed capable of understanding sound, lifting their heads to turn two eyes, clearly not formed naturally, towards Yang Zicang.
Seeing this incoming batch of metallic creations, the speed of their attacks slowed slightly.
Yang Zicang and the secretly delighted Kevin and the others breathed a sigh of relief for a moment.
Suddenly, several muffled roars sounded.
A large group of metal vines and some larger molten guards rolled in from a large hole above the dark wall, crashing into the ground with a resounding rumble.
With a creaking sound, the large guard on the vehicle’s hood turned, disassembling and reassembling its body into limbs.
Boom!
A blazing cannon shot out from within the massive iron vines that had rolled in, flipping the large guard’s massive form over.
“Wait! Don’t attack! ” Yang Zicang shouted, “Who are you! “
“Yeah! Who are you people, recklessly following us and intervening! “
“We’re not with them! ” Kim Christian shouted harshly, breathing heavily after removing his mask, “Please stop! This doesn’t match our earlier estimates; the real disaster isn’t this thing! “
Suddenly, the iron vines and the molten guardians that had been charging all came to an abrupt halt in their tracks. As if drained of energy, all the orange radiance extinguished, turning them into a heap of lifeless objects.
“Cough, cough. “
“Princess Desige zu Hone, please be careful. “
A cacophony of mingled, fine voices emerged from within the large mass of rolled-in metal vines, as if several people were crammed inside something almost the size of half a train engine.
“Just as we guessed, these things that were attacking us have indeed stopped. ” Said a speaker, quickly using a cutting and grinding machine to sever the few iron vines trapping the door outside.
“Is it the White Violet Heroes? ” A crisp, youthful maiden’s voice rang out.
Yang Zicang and the others present were all taken aback. Captain Horne came to his side and said in a low voice, “From the accent, I’d say it’s from near the Grand Duchy of Hone. “
“Let’s be careful. Brother Thirteen, come back quickly. “
“Wait a moment. ” Sword Thirteen used the green iron sword in his hand to score the bodies of several metal constructs on the ground that had lost their momentum; they were easily sliced open.
“I’m afraid we have a problem. ” Sword Thirteen said, turning back. “Right now, they’ve become brittle, but it seems their internal energy has been completely drained. “
Yang Zicang said, “I understand what you’re implying. But it should take some time for them to summon stronger guards. “
“Are we leaving? ” Kevin asked.
Yang Zicang looked at the dilapidated boxcar-style locomotive with its collapsed middle and potholed surface. Amid his thoughts, bang! The door within the tangled mass of metallic vines was pushed open with a slap, and a solemn middle-aged man in a brown coat jumped out, breathing heavily.
“Ah, we’re safe. “
Then a second person crawled out huffing from something made of an unidentified material.
No sooner had he, with an oval face, stood up on the scrap pile’s iron vines than his sleeve tore open at the cuff, caught on a shear-cut vine.
Yang Zicang rubbed his fingers together—that person looked a bit familiar. After a moment of thought, he quickly remembered having seen him in the Fogfolk rental district.
“Lady Horn. ” A dignified, mature woman of nearly fifty, with a graceful demeanor, was helped out by the gentleman who had emerged first. Steadying herself, she glanced far off at the few people nearby. “Let us descend cautiously, ” she said.
Another person jumped out—this time, a pointed-eared man radiating wisps of mist. Dressed in military garb, he immediately crouched down the moment he landed and reached toward the interior of the door.
“Dear princess, please come on up. “
A young girl’s crisp voice sounded from within, “Is hero Yang Buchen waiting for me? “
In the distance, Yang Zicang’s brow twitched slightly.
“Yes. ” The Grand Duchy Warrior bathed in demon blood, crouching on the iron vines, said calmly, “Take my hand now, Princess Dewdrop. “
“Alright. “
From inside the carriage, a fair-faced girl in a white Lace-edge dress was carried out by someone. The last to crawl out—a fat man with a somewhat round face—was also one Yangzicang had seen before. But compared to the last meeting, he now seemed a full size paler and weaker in both complexion and attening, as if he had suffered no small amount of spiritual torment.
“Quick, take a look!” Upon glimpsing the familiar tall, straight, and soldierly standing figure on the far side of the hall plagued with orange halo and dim light, that beloved son of Deputy Minister of Finance of the Grand Duchy turned about with glittering eyes and his hand already stretched out in front of the little girl’s feet., clicking and pointing:
“Our Peace Medal recipient, the honorable Mr. Yang Buchen hero, really up to expelling the demon of our world at depth underground.“
At that, all the little girl’s heart arrived in hers cavity—a two palms full lay released.— She bared sweet tooth in a laughter giving way of fresh sun between that smile just the break of brilliant surprise.
“In the name of Princess Dewdrop, let’s go down there too~ ” She said, staring directly at Yang Zicang’s figure.
“Yes. ” The Demon-Blood Warrior in military uniform was just about to pick her up when his pupils suddenly dilated and he turned his head sharply.
Above the dark cave, a dark black boulder, originally sliding slowly towards the cave entrance, suddenly surged downward.
“Watch out! ” The warrior, whose Stellar Yuan had compressed to his body’s surface, tossed the child towards Vanderloo, who had just stood up, and amidst the maiden’s panicked cries, threw a punch upward.
The few people who had just reached the area beneath the Ironvine Regiment turned around and looked back in surprise.
BOOM!
The dark figure descended straight down, and the ground exploded in an instant. The fierce gust of wind and the swirling iron filings scattered around like fragments from a shotgun blast and exploding cannonballs.
Crimson blood splattered onto the ground and the crystals.
Sword Thirteen had already charged forward, his figure disappearing into the dispersing mist. Yang Zicang had only taken a few steps when he saw Vanderloo, limping, carrying the stunned little girl in one arm, stumbling out from the smoke and dust.
A series of attack sounds rang out within the mist and dust.
“Are you alright? ” Sword Thirteen’s strained voice came through. Soon after, he dragged the body of the Demon-Blood Warrior out from the ground, but only after stepping away from the dissipating dust did he see that the person in his grasp was only left with an upper torso.
The Demon-Blood Warrior took a few ragged breaths, then lost the light of life and fell to the ground.
Phoenix-Perching Tree slowly made its way from the passage to the doorway, glanced outside, and its gaze contracted.
“What the hell happened to you all?! ” Yang Zicang ran over, asking in a deep voice, at the same time taking the child Vanderloo was holding.
The little girl looked up blankly at the two figures.
Turning sideways, Vanderloo looked behind him at a streak of crimson blood on the ground, his lips trembling, “I, we… it was Princess Dewdrop who requested Crown Prince Leonhard to ask that engineer… “
At this point, Vanderloo flinched in shock.
“The construction engineer of Shadow Vine Fortress? ” Yang Zicang asked.
He immediately changed the subject, saying, “There are some things I don’t have the authority to know. Anyway, I was ordered to come here to protect—to protect Her Highness the Princess. “
He muttered quietly, his tone filled with suspicion.
“How did you find this place? ” Yang Zicang asked coldly.
“Sir Hero, ” Vanderloo said, his voice tinged with tears, “You must believe me. None of this is our doing. In short, Mr. Fox—that is, the engineer—said that as long as we follow the temperature in the soil, there’ll be no trouble. “
Phoenix-Perching Tree slowly looked up at Vanderloo.
“……“
“Is the little girl alright? “
Yang Zicang gazed quietly at the little girl and, ultimately, had no choice but to sigh softly. He crouched down and asked, “Whose child are you? “
“I, ” the little princess turned her head, “I am Princess Desige zu Hone. My brother is the Crown Prince… Leonhard, my father is Grand Duke Horne, my… mother… is… “
Two trails of tears flowed from her wide-open eyes.
“Stop asking. ” Kevin walked over and picked up the little girl. “We need to get ready to leave quickly. It’s too dangerous here. “
“There’s still the fourth stele, ” Captain Horne said, staring at Kevin, who kept insisting on leaving.
“Next time, ” Kevin replied with a wave of his hand. He frowned and looked toward the locomotive in the distance.
Everyone fell silent at once.
A buzzing tremor could be heard. Sword Thirteen, who was still searching for any leftover items inside the carriage, jumped out and rushed quickly over to the group.
Crackle, crackle, crackle…
At this moment, Yang Zicang and the others finally saw that above these four doorways in several round openings, the silhouettes of many metallic constructs with a retro design had appeared.
Kevin swallowed hard.
The dark, heavy things perched on the cave walls and the ceiling. A faint orange light was densely scattered across the pitch-black heights.
“From, surface humans. “
A figure, wrapped in a metallic structure and clad in dark, gloomy armor, entered.
The voice came, and only then did the group realize with a start that this person had, at some unknown moment, emerged from the dusty ground.
Then he stepped into the orange light radiating from the surroundings, and everyone saw that behind this figure, entirely encased in armor, closely followed a flat, crab-like molten guard.
“May I ask, are you from here? ” Hearing that the other’s voice and pronunciation sounded very stiff, Yang Zicang immediately stepped forward twice and asked.
The little girl, Daixijie, in Kevin’s arms, sobbed as she stared at the back of this man she had seen everywhere in different forms but had never truly laid eyes on. A sense of safety welling from her sorrowful heart.
The newcomer halted amidst a multitude of lifeless metallic constructs.
“I am the Equipment Maintainer, Sigurd. This name is borrowed from a male name of your world that the first one, who can no longer revive from this place, once used. “
His voice sounded mellow, but his words stirred an immediate restlessness within the hearts of the group.
“You just said, ‘can no longer revive’? “
“Our world? ” Captain Horne stepped forward and asked.
Sigurd raised an arm clad in dark, heavy armor, spreading his palm to point at the crystalline devices in the distance.
_”This was originally a Life Stairs storage device, meant to protect the people and creatures of our own homeland.
“But by the time I awoke, a new civilization had already emerged in this world. “
Yang Zicang, standing in the distance, instantly grasped the implication of those words.
“What, is this place… ” A few people beside him whispered half a sentence before naturally falling silent. There was no need for discussion; they glanced at Captain Horne and Jin Christie, whose emotions were hard to read.
“How could this be… ” Jin Christie murmured.
The “Life Stairs ” preserved here turned out to be a record left by a civilization from long ago to aid the people and life of their own continent.
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