233: Ancient temples and broken stone tablets

The seven survivors stood on the other side of the stone bridge, looking back at the invisible barrier that held the Corrupted army firmly at bay, their hearts filled with relief.

On the other side of the barrier, the Corrupted Wolf King was still frantically slamming and roaring, but it was all in vain.

"That was close! I almost got my butt scratched by that tumor-ridden guy!" Zhao Iron Pillar patted his chest, still shaken. Several shallow scratches were left on the armor on his back, the "masterpiece" of the Wolf King's sharp claws.

Wang Wu quickly counted the heads and checked for injuries, confirming that aside from excessive Qi consumption and a few minor injuries, there were no casualties, which made him breathe a sigh of relief.

Wen Youyi withdrew his gaze from the barrier and cast it toward the ancient ruins behind them, which they had reached after immense hardship.

Stepping onto this land felt completely different. The sickening, sweet, fishy smell and the omnipresent mental whispers in the air seemed to have been largely cut off; although it was still oppressive, it now carried an ancient silence.

Beneath their feet were polished, giant stone slabs covered in thick dust. Looking out, there was an endless expanse of collapsed and dilapidated megalithic structures. Broken stone pillars, like the ribs of a giant, slanted toward the gray sky; the crumbling palaces were reduced to mere ruins, recounting past glories and present desolation.

The architectural style here was bold and archaic, completely different from the exquisite and elegant pavilions of the current Immortal Realm, filled with a sense of power and an indescribable vicissitude.

"Is this... the ruin left behind by the ancient rebels?" Mu Wanqing sighed softly. As an Alchemist, she had an instinctive awe and curiosity for this ancient civilization that spanned such a long time.

"It should be." Wen Youyi nodded. He could feel the star core fragment in his embrace emitting faint but clear resonances, as if responding to some homologous power sleeping deep within this land. "Everyone, be careful. Although we are safe for now, there may still be other dangers here."

The seven rested for a while, took Medicinal Pills to recover their Qi, and then maintained a defensive formation, beginning to carefully explore the ruins.

They proceeded along a relatively intact central avenue paved with giant stone slabs. Scattered on both sides of the road were various strange metal and stone debris, some of which could vaguely be identified as parts of some machinery, similar in style to the ancient starship fragments found in the base.

"It seems that the civilization that left these ruins belongs to the same era as the starship we found in the Starry Sky Debris, and may even be the same civilization," Wen Youyi analyzed.

After traveling for about a mile, a relatively well-preserved, huge hall appeared at the end of the road. Although the outer walls of this hall were damaged in many places and most of the dome had collapsed, the main structure still stood. The giant stone gate, over ten zhang high, was half-open, as if inviting them in, and yet also as if issuing a warning.

At the entrance of the hall stood two huge stone statues. The statues were not human, but some kind of humanoid creature clad in heavy armor and holding strange weapons. Their appearance was majestic and solemn, filled with a sense of power, but their heads were missing, and the broken surfaces were as smooth as mirrors, as if they had been instantly severed by some Sharp Weapon.

"This carving... is truly masterful." A team member touched the cold armor patterns of the stone statue and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

"Don't touch anything!" Wen Youyi immediately stopped him. "Everything here might hide unknown Restrictions."

He signaled everyone to be on high alert, then stepped through the half-open door into the ancient hall, which had been silent for countless years.

The interior of the hall was exceptionally spacious and tall. Light shone down from the gaps in the collapsed dome, forming hazy beams of light that illuminated the dust floating in the air. The supporting stone pillars inside were even thicker, covered with incomprehensible murals and runes similar to those on the stone bridge, seemingly recounting the history and glory of this civilization.

And in the deepest part of the hall, in the most conspicuous position, stood a huge stele, three zhang high, made entirely of some kind of polished black crystal!

The stele was relatively well-preserved, its surface as smooth as a mirror, but at this moment, this huge black crystal stele had a shocking crack down the middle, almost splitting the stele in two! The edges of the crack were jagged, as if it had suffered an unimaginable impact of great force.

Everyone's gaze was instantly drawn to this broken stele. It radiated an indescribable aura of ancient, sorrowful, and majestic power.

Wen Youyi slowly walked forward, his gaze falling on the surface of the stele. It was covered with dense characters, homologous to the runes outside, none of which he recognized. But in the very center of the stele, at the edge of the crack, there were a few exceptionally large characters that seemed to have been carved with all their strength; even after the passage of time, they remained clearly visible.

He reached out and gently touched those large characters. The moment his fingertips made contact—

"Hum!"

The star core fragment in his embrace suddenly shook violently! A vast and sorrowful stream of information, like a bursting flood, forcibly surged into his mind! It was no longer fragmented knowledge, but broken yet incredibly clear images and thoughts!

[...High-dimensional harvesting... Civilization Ranch... Unyielding... Resistance...]

[...Gathering the last strength... Building the 'ark'... Seeking a way to survive...]

[...Traitors! The 'Observers' have betrayed us! The passage is locked...]

[...Initiating 'Return to Void' protocol... Slumber... Waiting... The final 'Kindling'...]

[...Latecomers... If you can see this... Inherit our will... Break this eternal cage...]

The stream of information stopped abruptly.

Wen Youyi's face turned pale, and he staggered back a step, supported by Zhao Iron Pillar.

"Boss, what's wrong?"

Wen Youyi took a few deep breaths, suppressing the turmoil in his mind, his eyes filled with shock and realization.

He looked at the broken stele, his voice slightly hoarse, yet clearly conveyed to everyone present:

"This place is not 'Return to Void'."

"This is... the place where the 'ark' set sail, and also... the final resting place of the resisters."

"And we..."

He swept his gaze over everyone and said, word by word:

"Are the 'Kindling' they were waiting for."

(End of chapter)