Chapter 273 123. Abstract Dream
"It's the corridor and stairs again! There's no end to it!" Darkus yelled while thinking.
Each door leads to the same room, over and over again, as if the same scene is stuck, replaying itself in Darkus' mind. The only difference was that the footsteps chased him, seeming to get a little closer to him every time the sound sounded.
The thunderous footsteps were like the sound of a giant walking, and with his omniscience in dreams, Darkus knew that when the footsteps finally appeared around him, he would quack, not wake up.
It's just a matter of time!
After a while, the sound of chasing footsteps gradually disappeared, and a fog quickly appeared in the corridors and stairs. The fog became thicker and thicker, filling the surroundings of Darkus. The mist had no discernible shape, just a mass of moving, condensed air, moved by a strange wind.
"Ship!?" Darkus looked at the traces appearing in the mist with some surprise.
That's Dastan's ship!
That was the plunder ship that Darkus used to participate in the Haxiya trial voyage.
Darkus saw the pale and expressionless Darkus standing on the deck of the ship looking at him coldly. Other crew members and soldiers gradually appeared from the silhouette. When the ship passed by Darkus When time passed, he could see each Druchi looking at him as if they were dead, looking at him with cruel and malicious eyes, as if resenting that he was responsible for their deaths.
Dacus saw Dastan standing in front of the rudder with his back straightened numbly, turning a blind eye to everything around him, and still directing the direction of the ship. He saw Ren lying on the deck railing, Alyssa and Franais standing behind him, as well as pirate captain Naika, centurion Edmund and animal trainer Kalien, these Druchi's There was no longer the respect and restraint in his eyes, but there was only endless cruelty and resentment. They couldn't help but jump over and tear him into pieces, and put each piece into their mouths to chew.
"Is this how others see me? Or is it me before? Which one of me is the real me? This is in a dream, maybe everything is reversed? No! Why can I see them from so far away? Eyes? Is there any strange existence that wants to plant a seed of suspicion in my heart?" When Darkus saw the Druchi opposite, his heart seemed to be stung. He tried to raise his hand and wave to greet the Drukhi, but he could not lift his arm.
Darkus watched helplessly as his ghostly self gradually moved away from him, until he was swallowed up by the mist again. He looked around and found that he was also on a plundering ship. If his judgment was correct, this was also Dastan's ship, but there was no one on the ship at this time. He could not even sense whether the ship was sailing or moving. moored.
The last sail on the ship was furled silently, and Darkus could feel the ship slowing down against the wind and waves. The ship rose above the rough whitecaps, and then as it swooped over the crest of the waves he felt the ship speeding up as if it were a carriage parked on the top of a high mountain.
Darkus felt like his bile had been released, but no matter what movements the ship was making that defied physics, he still stood in place, and his body was fixed like a wax figure in a wax museum.
After a while, the ship began to fall rapidly, falling, falling, falling forever, as if Darkus had stayed in this dimension forever.
The fog shrouded around Darkus again. He was swaying on the spot, his hands kept grabbing at his chest. He was looking for the Holy Soul Reef hanging around his neck, but it seemed that it was because he was in a dream. Because of this, the Holy Soul Reef disappeared from his neck. He was worried that the connection between his feet and the deck of the ship would suddenly disconnect, and then he would be thrown out of the ship like an empty oak barrel and fall into the raging storm outside the ship. As the fall accelerated, his heart was lifted. It reaches the throat.
After a moment, Darkus felt that the sinking ship suddenly stopped, and the mist gradually faded like the morning fog. He still couldn't see anything, he could only hear the scream and howl of the wind, but he couldn't feel the wind blowing on his face.
It seems that the ship under Darkus' feet has entered another dimension. The ship is constantly twisting. While the hull is not moving, the bow of the ship twists first in one direction and then in another direction, as if The ship is trapped in four different dimensions at the same time, full of weirdness and weirdness.
What really horrified Darkus was that the whole world seemed to be shaking, as if he was standing on the edge of another lucid dream. He fought the dream with all his anger, yelled, roared, roared and vented.
With Darkus' catharsis, everything stopped, the wind blew over, and there was no one on the ship except for his presence. His feet could leave the deck, but he could only keep walking in place.
A vague figure appeared on the deck. The figure crouched on the deck holding a brass bowl in one hand and a brush engraved with elven runes in the other. The wind blew thin condensation threads from the surface of the bowl, and the figures continued to draw blue-gray stripes on the deck. The figure didn't seem to notice Darkus, concentrating entirely on the matter at hand.
The figure squatting on the deck began to slowly turn in place, and he used a brush to draw a small circle on the deck around the figure.
"Now, you can ask!" After everything was done, the figure's cold eyes turned to Darkus, staring at Darkus like an owl.
"Like a dead man in a grave who suddenly stood up to answer three questions?" Darkus smiled coldly. Although he didn't know whether the figure was male or female from the mouth, he seemed to know who was in front of him. It's powerful, but why does it appear here? This is the territory of the lizard people! Could it be that Malekith was doing something to cause fluctuations in the spiritual vein network while he was sleeping?
"Time is running out." The blurry figure did not answer Darkus's almost joking question, but stared at Darkus and said.
"How can a prophet see into the future?" Darkus asked.
"Because there is no such thing." The figure said with a wink.
"A boring riddle! Maybe this is our second meeting? Let's be practical!" Darkus said with a smile.
"Then listen and learn. Imagine that you are standing in the middle of the river." The figure stood up and said slowly. After observing Darkus's state, he paused and continued, "In the middle of the river, you know that the water will Flow down your waist. Your only point of reference is where you stand on the riverbed, everything else is in motion, changing moment by moment before your eyes, and that's how most mortals perceive the passage of time." "I'll
try !" Darkus frowned and followed the figure's words in thought, but he did not follow the figure's words.
"Now, imagine walking out of a river and standing on the bank where your anchor point has changed. You can look back at the river and see its course in both directions. If you want, you can catch a glimpse of a floating log and Trace its course along a flowing stream. You can see where it has come from and where it is going, because you can see its entire process. This is how a seer perceives the future, by changing perspective and accepting the totality of existence ."
"Isn't this how a prophet can change his perspective?" Darkus noticed something was wrong and began to question.
"If a person were to step outside the realm of the material world, he could look back at the river of life and see where it was flowing. Or, if he was possessed by a powerful enough soul, he might see a vision, or even the future, and you Just can do it!" The figure was silent for a long time, looking at Darkus intently, and then said slowly after a long time.
Suddenly, the figure disappeared on the spot, the wind gradually expanded into a low roar, the fog appeared again, and Darkus heard the pure sound of the ship's bell echoing from the fog.
Through the mist that had not yet solidified, Darkus found that the scene in front of him had changed again. He saw the rough outline of the railings, and then the deck of another ship, which was scattered with debris and was in disrepair and dilapidated. . The boards were warped and covered in mold, and the fittings were covered in rust and dirt.
Darkus saw a skinny figure crawling toward him on the deck. The figure was wearing tattered clothes and sniffing the air like an animal. The other turned to look at him, and he saw the figure pointing at him, then raising its head and letting out a melodious wail that had lost all reason or hope. Before he could see more, the ragged figure was swallowed up by the mist.
Finally, Darkus was awakened by Drusala.
Darkus sat on the ground. He needed to calm down to dispel the terrible chill brought by the dream. Although this dream was not as strong as before, it was still obvious enough to make him worry that he had finally crossed a certain threshold and fell. Entering a nightmare spun by some strange being. To make matters worse, he began to have more and more strange dreams, each one more intense and terrifying than the previous one. "A world where death is terrifying and life is uneasy."
-
The lizardmen in the City of the Sun and Hesiota are still gathering in the City of Lenses and Spicazuma through teleportation, the City of Disguise , the tunnel leading to the outside world in Horotho was also temporarily suspended, and a small number of troops also moved to Spicazuma.
The army belonging to Lord Mazdamudi will set off from Spicazuma, join the armies of Moon City and Taraxlan, and then arrive at Mist City and Slanwupek. The armies of the three cities will cross the horse. The Grimmas Mountains simultaneously launched an attack on the five northern territories of the Harken Empire.
The army of Tehenhuoyin, the prophet of the First City, Itaza and Sotigo, will besiege Haken's capital and contain Haken's forces. At that time, the lizardman army that has finished the war in the north will move south to fight with the encircled lizardman army. Attacked simultaneously with Druch's Black Ark fleet.
However, the action at this stage has nothing to do with Darkus for the time being. It will still be a long time before the Lizardmen march and the arrival of the Druchi Black Ark Fleet. He can use this time to do other things.
A group of prepared Drukhi gathered at the edge of the square. Although today's protagonist is not them, they are still very excited because their Majesty the Witch King and the Hand of the Witch King will participate in today's adventure.
Drucki went on an adventure with His Majesty the Witch King and the Hand of the Witch King. What kind of qualifications did he have? What kind of bragging rights is this?
As an anchor, Chupa Coco yawned and leaned his whole body on the staff, and supported his body hard to prevent it from falling to the ground. He had already entered the old age of the skink and was ready to sleep on the spot. Obviously He didn't sleep well because of the stars in the sky last night.
Darkus nodded to Chupa Coco, and the next second, a group of adventurers were teleported by magic to the Huangqi Temple located in the southernmost part of the Lustria Isthmus.
The Huangqi Temple enshrines a statue of a jaguar that lurks in the dark night and is ready to attack. This is the incarnation of the ancient saint Huangqi.
Huangqi is the most mysterious of all the ancient saints. He is called the "Stalker" and sometimes wears shadow and transforms into a panther-like hunter. He is often depicted as a cunning night god, a rival to Kotech, the sun god, but his most famous identity is as the supreme hunter.
Huangqi is worshiped by any lizardfolk responsible for hunting down prey, and the chameleons with mystical powers of invisibility worship Huangqi above all other Old Ones. Lizardmen blessed by Huangqi often display amazing hunting and tracking skills, able to move effortlessly through the densest areas of the jungle. You can spot your prey in the rippling blue water, then effortlessly traverse pathless terrain to intercept it.
Just like when Darkus came last time, the current Huangqi Temple is still withered and dilapidated. It has not been properly repaired in the past few years. Even the chameleons and skinks guarding here are missing. The jaguar statue The eyes decorated with purple gems were also removed by the adventurers, and the body and tail were also smashed.
Darkus climbed up and touched the statue. According to the traditional routine, there might be something hidden inside the statue. He searched carefully along the traces of damage, trying to find any clues, but after searching for a long time, he still found nothing. Any trace.
"Any clues?" Malekith asked with interest as he stood below.
With no clues or findings, Darkus shook his head in confusion. The reason he was upset was not because he had not found any clues, but because the dream from last night still bothered him. He was not sure who the figure was. Who, if it’s Him it’s okay, if it’s that person it’s not okay. But the ogham stone worn around his neck did not respond. He also asked Master Ma in the morning, and it turned out that there was no fluctuation in Spicazuma's spiritual vein network last night.
Darkus speculated that yesterday's incident might have been too big. One was that Tyrion was supposed to obtain the Sunfire Sword two hundred and eighty years later, but now Malekith obtained it. This matter The follow-up will have a variety of complex and changing impacts, which are also related to the fate of the elves. Another is that yesterday's stars shone brightly, heralding the rise of the Lizardmen.
Which of these two things is a big thunder, but they happened to meet together, or is this destined? Will the constellations belonging to the Old Ones light up only at the moment when Darkeus, as Umac, discovers the chamber stone?
Originally, Darkus didn't want Malekith to come today. It would be useless for Malekith to stay in Lustria after obtaining the Sun Sword. However, under his hint, Malekith did not want to go back. The intention of visiting the Black Ark Fleet was that he was very interested in the next adventure. He couldn't let Malekith stay alone in Spicazuma. He might cause some trouble for him, so he could only bring him here and just treat him as if he was taking Malekith to continue relaxing. He was here anyway.
Then Darkus walked to Malekith's side and pointed at Ren, who stood there motionless after being teleported.
"Dear Cosmic Wheel, something is wrong with you today." Malekith whispered jokingly.
Taking advantage of the fact that no Druchis were looking over, Darkus glanced at Malekith angrily.
"I had a strange dream last night." Darkus stopped talking and said nothing more.
Malekith nodded in the same way and did not ask further questions in a tacit understanding.
The Drukhi took a small circle around the Huangqi Temple, but did not dare to go too deep. They knew the danger and terror of this jungle, and they still had a bright future and did not want to throw it away for no reason. At this.
Soon, the Drukis turned back, surrounding Renn with expectation, curiosity, envy, or jealousy. They knew that today's protagonist was Renn, and they had to do more. It’s more about witnessing and feeling the process.
But nothing strange happened to Ren, such as auspicious signs, rainbows, lights coming from his body, or visions coming from the sky.
"Sir, over there!" After a long time, Ren came back to his senses and pointed in a direction.
The Drukis looked in the direction Ren pointed, and there was nothing there, only the dense jungle and weird screams, ready to swallow them up like a bloody mouth.
Darkus raised his head and tried to discern the general direction from the sloping shadows of the trees, and then he took out the map slate in his arms. He looked at the map and studied it roughly. The direction Ren pointed was the City of Ashes and the Hollow Lake south of Pahuasike.
There is an unnamed river between Xuhua Lake and Huangqi Temple that eventually flows into the Zhiyuan Sea.
"This is a bit noisy." Darkus frowned and muttered while looking at the slate map.
Darkus knew that the next step might be the trial given to Renn by the Ancient Sage Huangqi. Based on the analysis of the nature and characteristics of the Ancient Sage Huangqi, it was estimated that Renn was asked to hunt something. He would not be so stupid as to shout for chase and then plunge into the jungle. Although he was here for adventure, he was not an adventurer or a pioneer. He adopted a stupid method. He first positioned the entire triangle. If he was still on the right side of the map after arriving at Xuhua Lake, he would go directly to the Zhiyuan Sea. If not, it would mean that he was at Huangqi Temple and Xuhua. Maybe in the middle of the lake, or on the unknown river.
After a while, the prepared team arrived at Xuhua Lake again.
Xuhua Lake, this place has its own explanations and stories, but the story can be told later, there are other important things to solve at the moment.
"Don't let them escape!" Darkus pointed at a few sneaky hot-blooded adventurers not far away and shouted. There was no need to be secretive at this moment. When the team teleported to those few The adventurers discovered them.
(End of chapter)