Chapter 87: Information left behind
Enzo and Douglas both realized that something was seriously wrong when they saw the scene before them.
Judging from the meat still roasting and some dried meat that had barely been touched and fallen on the grass, it was clear that Christina's group hadn't hurriedly left due to some urgent situation.
Moreover, the protective shield activated by the Scroll was still intact.
What exactly happened?
Enzo's expression turned grave.
Douglas couldn't deny it, saying emphatically, "It's impossible, absolutely impossible. When Christina told me to leave, she specifically said that only I could find help and rescue them."
Douglas's words caught Enzo's attention.
Only Douglas can find the rescue and successfully evacuate the trapped personnel.Exactly what meaning is hidden behind the words he said?
Enzo asked a few questions, and Douglas didn't hide anything. He explained, "Christina founded the Flame Association and is our leader. But she also has another identity. She was once a priest of a tribe and inherited the power of priest inheritance. According to Christina, she wields the power of Farsightedness, which allows her to see things from a great distance, even glimpses of the future, and alter destinies. She ordered me to leave and seek help."
Farsightedness?
The leader Christina possessed such a formidable ability.
Enzo recalled Lester, whose ability was called farsight, but it paled in comparison to Farsightedness.
Suddenly, Douglas became excited.
He paced back and forth, muttering, "Captain Christina has the ability of Farsightedness. She likely foresaw what would happen and may have left clues for us."
This idea seemed plausible.
However, upon seeing the protective shield, Douglas grew despondent again.
Without Christina's permission, they couldn't enter the shield to find some clues there. They had to wait for it to naturally dissipate, which would take the entire night. Who knew what could happen during that time?
At that moment, Enzo stood up.
He walked to the edge of the protective shield and gently touched it with his hand.
The shield appeared ethereal, but upon contact, it felt indestructible.
Douglas realized what Enzo intended to do and tried to dissuade him, "Mr. Enzo, please give up. This Scroll is extremely valuable even in the Gold Oak Tribe. Its protective ability is undoubtedly powerful—"
Before Douglas could finish his sentence, he froze, mouth agape.
Crack... crack...
Like glass shattering, the protective shield began to crack densely, then quickly spread, until the entire shield shattered, dissipating into a golden light as if it had never existed.
Enzo chuckled lightly, retracting his hand and saying , "Doesn't seem all that sturdy after all."
Douglas fell silent at that moment.
Mr. Enzo's true capabilities remain unclear.
However, Douglas didn't forget his task anymore.
As the protective shield shattered, he immediately ran into where the original caravan members had stayed, rummaging through until he found several bamboo pieces on a grassy patch. The black ink markings on them were clear, evidently left not long ago.
Yet, what they recorded wasn't useful information but rather farewells.
[Douglas, all goods are yours now!]
[What on earth is this? It's like I've glimpsed another world.]
[Just my luck.]
[...]
Douglas was distraught, collapsing to the ground, muttering, "What's going on... why has everyone disappeared..."
Enzo didn't comfort Douglas. Instead, he closed his eyes slightly, sinking his awareness into his mind, sensing the feedback from the life sapling totem.
Just moments ago, the third leaf had fully manifested.
The first leaf granted him the ability of Firstborn Blessing, bestowing blessings upon newborn life, enhancing physical prowess, and increasing potential, which held great significance for the tribe's long-term development but showed no immediate effects for him. The second leaf brought Life Link, allowing many to share damage, proving highly effective in battle.
However, the third leaf left Enzo a bit puzzled.
Because of the ability what Enzo just obtained, it's rather ordinary, just life perception.
This ability allows him to perceive life, nothing more.
Before this, he could already sense other life forms.
"Could there be something else special?" Enzo murmured, wasting no time and directly focusing his perception, discovering it wasn't just simple life detection but a specific object's perception.
In other words, it was more like life positioning.
With the blood of organisms, he could pinpoint their location.
Earlier, during the encounter with the Giant Tooth Wind Wolf, Douglas and company had been injured, leaving plenty of bloodstains in the reeds, perfect for life perception.
Seeing Douglas still grieving, Enzo didn't disturb him.
He found a bloodstain and initiated life perception with it.
In the next moment, his consciousness seemed to traverse through some dark space, entering an exceptionally unique place.
"Ruins?!"
Enzo involuntarily exclaimed.
The scene before him closely resembled ruins from within the soul world.
Collapsed walls were everywhere, and the entire world was shrouded in a haunting blue light, appearing immensely eerie and terrifying. Particularly within the ruins, there stood eerie figures. These figures had no facial features, their bodies were unnaturally smooth, and their shapes were grotesquely disjointed, resembling wax figures melted into bizarre forms.
Enzo was bewildered. "What place is this? And why haven't I seen those people?"
His life perception could detect corresponding biological owners.
However, Enzo didn't see any living beings in the ruins.
This was confusing!The shadows on the ground...
Enzo looked up .And the scene Enzo saw made him in shock.
In mid-air, dozens of people were ensnared in massive spider webs, unable to move.
At the edge of the webs, a gigantic spider, easily over ten meters in size, crouched. Its abdomen bore prominent white stripes. What astonished Enzo even more was that this giant spider's aura was stronger than that of the Giant Mountain Turtle encountered before—easily Level.3, if not more powerful.
However, as he was currently only projecting his consciousness, rescuing those bound was impossible.
Enzo withdrew his gaze and looked in another direction.
He made a new discovery at that moment.
Thers was a tall tower!
Over a hundred meters high, it loomed above the ruins, covered in strands of spider silk used to secure the enormous web.
"Ruins... tower... isn't this the place Amy described before?"
Enzo realized instantly.
Just then, he felt his consciousness grow weary. Unable to stay any longer, he retraced through a dark space and returned to his body.
Opening his eyes, he found it was already daylight, with Douglas calling out to him.
Seeing Enzo awake, Douglas sighed in relief. "Mr. Enzo, you're finally awake."
Douglas seemed to have regained some composure. He had gathered the scattered goods together, though sorrow still lingered in his eyes. But it was a far cry from the utter silence of the previous night.
However, Enzo was troubled now.
Had he spent just a short time in that strange place, while an entire night had passed in the real world?
No, it was that dark space!
Collecting his thoughts, Enzo stood up and asked Douglas, "Douglas, what are your plans now?"
Douglas shook his head with a bitter smile. "Mr. Enzo, I don't know. Christina, Roman, Fierro, Richard—they've all vanished. The entire Flame Association is reduced to just me... By the way, consider these goods a gift from us to you."
Douglas gestured towards the gathered goods, mainly animal skins piled into a small mountain.
Enzo glanced at the goods, then back at Douglas. "Douglas, Christina and the others may not have died. They could be trapped in some special space now."
Douglas was skeptical but considering Enzo's power and his unusual experiences the previous night.
He chose to believe. He asked, "Mr. Enzo, what should I do?"
"First, let's go back," Enzo replied.
Arceus's massive body, as a supernatural creature, effortlessly bore the goods brought by Douglas and the others, though securing the cargo proved somewhat challenging.
Soon, all the items were placed on Arceus's back.
With Enzo's command, Arceus swiftly slid back to the Crimson Star Tribe camp.
Upon their return, Enzo instructed Ward to receive the cargo and arrange accommodation for Douglas. He then sought out Amy and proceeded to the Adventurer's Guild to find Priest Lucy, recounting the events he had encountered the previous night.
Upon hearing Enzo's account, Amy's expression brightened momentarily.
However, upon learning about the dangerous giant spider in that mysterious space and considering that the Red River Tribe members had entered early, her optimism dimmed.
She reiterated what she knew.
After some thought, Priest Lucy provided an important insight.
"According to records, the barren mountain area once housed the Tower Tribe, a powerful totem tribe in the past. Despite their sparse numbers, each member of the Tower Tribe possessed supernatural abilities. The place you entered could very well be something left behind by the Tower Tribe."
Unfortunately, Priest Lucy only know these.
Her knowledge didn't offer much practical help to Enzo.
After pondering, Enzo remembered someone and hastily departed. He returned to his residence and once again utilized the scepter of the barren mountain, tapping into the residual life force he had previously sensed, allowing his consciousness to descend once more.