The continuous notifications surprised Xia De even more. The “Emerald Blessing” was probably a power left behind by Tree Father, who, seeing the strong death aura on Xia De, gave him a slight “cleansing.”
And the subsequent enlightenment of so many Ling Runes also showed just how powerful the Ancient Gods were. A simple blessing alone almost allowed Xia De to gain eight more Ling Runes.
“Is this a loss or a gain?”
He shook his head, because the half-hour countdown started the moment the door opened, so he couldn’t delay too long. Feeling the surging and abundant vitality within him, Xia De took a step forward.
The white mist dispersed, and the surrounding light immediately dimmed. As the cold wind blew, Xia De looked up at the night sky above the Dead Silence Valley, gazing at the blood-red moon that seemed as if it would fall at any moment.
It wasn’t a blizzard, nor was it black snow with an instant-death curse; what was drifting in the night now was crimson Red Dragon. The ground was completely dyed red, and large red snowflakes continued to increase the thickness of the snow underfoot.
The blood-red night was quiet and eerie. Even the most terrifying stories couldn’t describe such a dreadful scene. No matter where he looked, he could see the dazzling red, and there was even a faint smell of blood in the air.
This scene, enough to drive even the most determined ordinary person mad, was the “Red Dragon” among the four snowing stages in Dead Silence Valley. In this weather, the valley would uncommonly enter night, and during this period, some strange guests would visit. Perhaps it was a humanoid relic, or an Evil Spirit, or even something more terrifying.
“Aside from the safest light snow, I’ve experienced all the weather here.”
Red Dragon itself had no curse; it only stained clothes, so this time Xia De was not immediately attacked. And in the night of this silent valley, the bonfire light at the entrance of the Library could be seen more clearly in the distance.
Because he had hastily activated the key, he was still wearing relatively thin autumn clothes. Coldness surged into his body with the strong wind, but his abundant vitality made Xia De not feel very cold.
He held one hand in front of his face, bent over, and walked forward against the snow.
He didn’t know how many terrifying things were hidden in this night. The whisper element was more concentrated than ever around him, even more terrifying than a riotous Gap. Xia De dared not light the light of the silver moon and have the Witches pick him up; he was afraid that something else would greet him.
Stepping deep and shallow in the crimson snow, a rustling sound came from the raging snowflakes. Xia De felt as if he was being watched by something, but he dared not look around.
After walking about ten more steps, a hoarse voice came from his side:
“Young man, save me.”
From the corner of his eye, he saw an old woman with white hair, a face full of wrinkles, and tattered clothes, lying in the snow, reaching out to Xia De. She looked even older than Grandma Cassandra, and her hoarse voice and tired expression practically wrote “about to die” all over her face.
【relic.】
“She” reminded him softly. Xia De nodded and continued walking without heeding the voice. But the old woman relentlessly pursued him. She grabbed Xia De’s ankle, and the heavy force almost made Xia De think his right foot had sunk into the ground.
“Young man, save me.”
Xia De kept his mouth shut, giving no answer. He suddenly pulled his right foot, extracting it from his boot, and then, with one foot bare, he ran forward:
“Save me, save me~”
The hoarse voice followed closely, as if the disheveled old woman was floating behind him. Xia De didn’t know what kind of relic this was, nor could he guess its characteristics, so he didn’t even dare to turn his head to see what was behind him.
He quickly ran half the distance, and the bonfire light in the sky-filling Red Dragon grew closer. But another figure appeared in the snow ahead. It was a standing figure. Only when Xia De got closer did he see that it was a gentleman with a stiff face, melancholic eyes, wearing a proper black suit and holding a cane. On his chest hung a silver badge that looked like a compass:
“Do you need... help?”
There was no emotion in his tone, and this was actually the demonic language that Schneider had used. Xia De was startled, and at the same time, he regretted that the doctor was not by his side.
He changed his direction to bypass the strange man, and the persistent pleading voice behind him disappeared after Xia De saw the man.
In the very short distance that followed, Xia De successively encountered a merchant carrying a basket, a woman hidden in the shadows, and a headless little girl. The human head balloon in the girl’s hand looked like her own head.
Xia De could only confirm that the merchant was a relic, but he couldn’t distinguish what the latter two were. It seemed they were fearful and cautious; those strange “people” did not actively attack Xia De but tried to communicate with him in various ways, all of which Xia De evaded.
It was clearly only a few minutes’ walk, but when Xia De passed through the alert ritual set up by the Witches at the entrance and entered the large hall of the Gaddis Library, illuminated by the bonfire, he felt that this journey was more strenuous than his crossing of Middlesburg in the Gap.
“Finally back again, huh?”
When the bonfire’s light illuminated Xia De, he didn’t hear any welcoming voices. The Red Dragon Witch was still in Sleep in the ice coffin by the wall, and the shrine on the pile of old books was enveloped in firelight, but Miss Olanorde and Miss Peggy Samuel of the Zaras Society were nowhere to be seen by the bright bonfire.
The grand hall of the Library had become even more dilapidated than the last time Xia De visited. Not only that, but there were even some sword marks and obvious impact marks from heavy objects on the walls. A section of the ceiling’s stone bricks was missing, revealing the recessed rock wall behind, and the floor was covered in stones and gravel, as if a fierce battle had taken place here.
He hesitated for a moment, first walking to the ice coffin to confirm that Miss Fiona Drago was still in Sleep, then coming to the bonfire. The flames were still so warm, but the clear yellow moon that had been suspended above the flames was gone.
“Where did they go?”
The luggage by the bonfire and the supplies Xia De had brought last time were still there, but much had been consumed. In addition, there was a stone platform with five grooves, which should be the altar sealing the book of nameless sacrifices, but he found no notes or other clues left by the Witches.
In the shadow of the bonfire, Xia De unexpectedly found some trampled bloodstains. Instead of laboriously collecting them, he took out a wine bottle from his pocket:
“blood brew!”
The bloodstains automatically flew into the bottle’s mouth. Xia De quickly corked the bottle. After gently shaking it a few times, he found that there was very little liquid inside, but a faint scent of wine still wafted out when the cork was pulled.
Using sorcery, he drew the “blood brew” out drop by drop, tilting his head to let them drip into his eyes. Sure enough, very faint red traces appeared in the air, and those bright marks indicated that the Witches had gone deeper into the Library ruins.
Xia De hesitated for a moment, picked up a torch by the bonfire, lit it, and followed the trail with the torch held high.
He had originally worried that most of this half-hour would be spent searching for the Witches, but after leaving the hall and turning a corner along the damaged ruin corridor, he saw a faint firelight. He hurried over and found that the end of the corridor was a dead end due to a collapse; to continue forward, he could only go through the broken hole in the side wall.
In front of the collapse, Miss Samuel sat beside a glass bottle containing a small fireball, sweating profusely as she faced a gaunt figure in a black robe.
Miss Olanorde lay on the other side of the bottle, covered by her black cloak, with her eyes tightly closed and no movement at all.
Hearing footsteps, Miss Samuel immediately turned and saw Xia De approaching with a bonfire. She shook her head, signaling Xia De not to come closer. Xia De also realized that the figure in the black robe was a humanoid relic.
“Miss Olanorde is unconscious? What’s the situation now…”
He hesitated, stopping his steps, but then immediately walked forward again. Only when he got closer did he realize that between Miss Samuel and the black-robed man, there were three cards arranged in parallel. The cards were a bit larger than rhode cards and seemed to be face down, with all the patterns being earthy yellow question marks.
The black-robed man had a waxy yellow face and a bald head. After Xia De approached, he looked at Xia De:
“Do you also want to join the game?”
The other party’s voice was very strange, like a reptile’s belly rubbing against sand. Being stared at by him, mental pressure immediately appeared; the opponent’s level would not be lower than Sage-level.
“What are the rules?”
“I am a Fortune Teller. Three sets of cards, three cards per set. Choose one card to tell your fortune. This lady has reached the last set. If you wish, you can replace her.”
“Don’t replace me! If you choose incorrectly, you will be cursed by fate!”
Miss Samuel hurriedly tried to stop him, but Xia De still sat down; he didn’t have that much time to waste. There were many things to do this time: not only to unseal the book of nameless sacrifices and continue the story that was left unfinished last time, but also to learn the techniques from the Witches that would allow him to defeat Joey Barton.
“I’ll choose the last card for her, but I don’t think you’re a Fortune Teller. This is clearly a gambling game.”
He handed the torch to Miss Samuel. Under the firelight, the bespectacled Witch looked particularly haggard.
“One out of three, right?”
He confirmed.
“Yes, one out of three, but since you are choosing a card for someone else, if you choose the card that signifies misfortune, both of you will be cursed by misfortune.”
Xia De snorted, narrowing his eyes at the three cards in front of him. He opened his right hand and swept it over the three cards, looking very professional, but in fact, he felt nothing:
“This one.”
He pointed to the one on the left, and then, without waiting for the other party to react, he actively flipped it over. But there was nothing on that card; it was a blank card.
“What does this mean?”
Xia De asked. The black-robed Fortune Teller snatched the card back:
“You are lucky.”
He stood up and retreated into the shadows not illuminated by the firelight, disappearing from view.
“What’s going on?”
“The black snow weather turned into Red Dragon without any warning. Blainey and I have encountered this situation countless times already; it’s even more terrifying than what’s written in the Zaras Society’s data.”
Miss Samuel said softly. Seeing Xia De look at Miss Olanorde, she added:
“We encountered a demon. Although we temporarily repelled it, we no longer have the strength to fight again, so we had to temporarily leave the hall and hide here. But later, some other terrifying things came…”
She suddenly clutched her head:
“Sorry, I don’t even dare to recall what it was. Blainey is unconscious, but she has no injuries. I can’t wake her up.”
Xia De handed Miss Samuel some water, then reached out and took Miss Olanorde’s hand. Her palm was soft and still warm; “False Immortality” could not take effect:
“Can you feel anything?”
【Please wait… This half-elf’s soul is corrupting. She must be treated quickly.】
“Soul corruption? This is not a simple injury.”
Xia De told Miss Samuel the result, then suggested:
“Let’s go back to the bonfire first. The demon you mentioned has already left. When I came from the bonfire earlier, it was very safe there.”
He helped Miss Samuel to her feet. Seeing her poor condition, he bent down and voluntarily picked up the unconscious Miss Olanorde. This Witch with elven blood, although only slightly shorter than Xia De, was surprisingly light in weight.
Miss Samuel held the small bottle containing the flame, illuminating the way with the torch held high, and the two returned to the bonfire in the hall together.
