dark.
It was a pitch-black, deep world.
When all members of an investigation team arrived in the dark world, they found that it was completely different from what they had imagined.
It was as if my vision had disappeared. Even with my eyes wide open, I could not see anything but darkness. And the surroundings were dead silent, without any sound, no birds singing, no insects chirping, not even the sound of the wind.
Time seemed to stand still, thoughts slowed down, heartbeats began to speed up, and panic arose spontaneously.
ever!
At this moment, a fist-sized flame bloomed in the air. The orange-yellow light was like a bright lamp, illuminating everyone's sight and guiding them to move closer.
The warmth that emanates from it makes people feel a little relieved.
"Investigate a group of team members and move closer to the flames."
At this moment, a deep male voice broke the silence and sounded not far away.
Everyone felt relieved when they recognized the voice of Captain Jack.
But as members of the Imperial Inquisition, they did not let down their guard.
Ran suddenly asked:
"The sun shines brightly on the earth..."
Immediately, the surroundings fell into a brief silence.
Everyone in the investigation group felt a sudden tension in their hearts. This was the secret code they discussed before entering the dark world. It was to avoid the team being dispersed due to various factors and was used to confirm the identities of the members when they met.
"Dispel the cold and darkness."
Captain Jack's voice came next.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and headed towards the flame. When they got closer, they could see clearly that the flame was suspended in the captain's palm, swaying gently.
"Is this the 'dark world' hidden in the third layer of the spirit world? This environment is too terrifying... I feel that my perception is suppressed. If there is an attack from polluted creatures during the operation, I am afraid it will be difficult to react in time."
Wells said in a deep voice.
Everyone stood together, with the captain and the flame in his hand clustered in the middle. The orange light illuminated everyone's face, and the light and shadow flickered, revealing their solemn expressions.
"It's okay. Xibei and I can create a ball of light for the team to illuminate... This way we can avoid sneak attacks from the darkness."
Rahn spoke out loud, and Xibei nodded beside him.
Chen Lun shook his head slightly.
At the same time, he extinguished the flame in his hand, causing the team members to let out a slight exclamation.
When the environment fell into darkness again, Captain Jack's voice was heard saying:
"The dark world is filled with powerful polluting creatures. If we are not careful, we will fall into great danger. Using the power of the Sun Sequence to illuminate is like a child 'holding a torch' walking through the dense forest in the middle of the night, loudly telling those beasts 'I am here'..."
All the members understood what the captain meant.
Although lighting will make movement much more convenient, it will also cause greater hidden dangers.
Because light in a dark world is very likely to attract the attention of polluting creatures!
"Captain, what should we do? Except for Wells and Federica who can adapt to the dark environment, the others will more or less be unable to exert their strength due to the darkness..."
Rahn's voice rang out.
"Don't worry, we only hide in the dark when we are on the road and investigating. If we encounter a battle, you two, Lan and Xibei, will be the first to illuminate... But remember to fight quickly and turn off the lights immediately after you have dealt with the enemy."
Chen Lun explained.
"Yes, Captain."
After a little thought, everyone agreed to the proposal.
Immediately, Chen Lun said softly, "Let's go," and started walking forward. Everyone confirmed the direction based on the subtle footsteps deliberately made by the captain, and followed closely behind.
Chen Lun relied on his five senses and used his sense of smell as vision to move freely in the darkness. At the same time, he took out his silver cane and performed some divination to confirm the direction of the investigation.
But before the team went far, they were attacked.
whoosh!
A sharp whistle suddenly broke through the air. The perception of the team members was suppressed by the darkness, so they did not notice the attack until it was approaching.
Then there was a loud bang!
Boom! !
Everyone only felt the ground beneath their feet shaking violently, and a strong wind blew from behind, even lifting the corners of their clothes and hair.
Rahn's face changed and he suddenly spread his arms.
"Light!"
Xibe drank with him.
A golden ball of light the size of a head rose into the air and bloomed above his head, but it was only able to dispel the darkness within a radius of dozens of meters, as if the darkness was the old dirt under the kitchen sink that was difficult to remove.
After everyone squinted their eyes to see the things around them clearly, they couldn't help but take a deep breath.
I saw a silver-white, thin insect man over two meters tall being stepped on by Captain Jack. Its two mantis arms were cut off at some point and scattered around it, constantly spraying disgusting, thick, dark green juice. Its strange, spindle-shaped head trembled from side to side, as if it was trying to struggle to get up.
But the next second, the silver cane in the captain's hand fell suddenly.
bite!
The sharp end of the staff pierced the insect man's head, nailing it to death.
"The structure of these sons of the ancient gods, Didak, is different from that of humans. They live in the dark world all year round and have stronger perception than us... So even if we deliberately hide in the dark, we will be discovered if we get a little closer."
Chen Lun looked down at the insect man's corpse and said calmly.
The team members held their breath. They were also shocked that the captain killed the sneak attacking insect man in just one breath. Such strength was awe-inspiring.
Hiss hiss hiss!!
Strange roars came from all directions, accompanied by dense footsteps.
"Oh no! We've been discovered!"
Wells said hastily.
Everyone looked around, but there was only darkness and they had no idea how many enemies there were.
The unknown causes panic.
Even Chen Lun frowned slightly at this moment, because the number of insect people pouring in was too many!
"Seventy or eighty... No, there should be hundreds."
He thought to himself.
Swish!
Chen Lun waved his hand, and his left arm fell off, transforming into seven white snakes that jumped onto the shoulders of every team member.
"Laen, Xibei, dissipate the light... Everyone, follow me and flee at full speed. The White Snake will guide you."
Although everyone was surprised at the captain's methods, they also knew that now was not the time to think too much, so they responded one after another.
They knew very well that the captain's decision was correct, because it was meaningless to stay and fight. Even if they could win, the aftermath of the subsequent battle would continue to attract more enemies. They came to investigate, not to wipe out these Didak insects.
The ball of light above his head gradually shrank until it disappeared.
The surroundings returned to complete darkness.
At the same time, everyone felt the little snake on their shoulders moving its head, guiding them in the right direction. Trusting their captain, they ran at full speed.
There was no sense of space in the darkness, and even with a strong wind blowing towards them, they didn't know how far they had run, but the strange roars and footsteps behind them were gradually moving away.
Ten minutes later.
Everyone stopped.
The captain saw a flash of fire in front of him again, and they moved closer tacitly.
"The dark world is indeed a mysterious forbidden area. If you are not a high-ranking extraordinary person, you will definitely die if you come here."
Wells let out a long breath and couldn't help but sigh.
"Let's keep going, and be careful."
Chen Lun spoke up.
Everyone responded in a low voice.
After going through a series of events just now, the expressions on their faces became more solemn in the darkness.
*
*
*
Another two hours passed.
No one knew how far they had groped in the dark following the captain, nor did they know where they were.
The only thing that could be felt was the gravel road beneath one's feet, which gradually turned into a dilapidated stone road, as if one had walked into the ruins of a past civilization.
At this moment, everyone suddenly heard faint sounds of fighting coming from afar, rumbling sounds, not only the unique hissing of the Didak insect people, but also sporadic shouts from humans.
All the team members felt the identity cards on their chests trembling slightly.
Rane suddenly realized something and said quickly:
"It's a call for help! There are other investigation teams fighting nearby!"
The golden nameplate on the chest of the Imperial Inquisition members is not only a symbol of identity, but also has many other functions, one of which is sending and receiving distress signals.
Chen Lun thought about it. Although it would be best to avoid this situation, it was after all a request for help from a comrade within the Imperial Inquisition. It would be unreasonable to watch him die without helping him. So he said:
"Let's go and take a look."
The group advanced in the dark, but not far away, they almost ran into a broken wall. Fortunately, they sensed it at the last moment and reacted in time, otherwise they would have been embarrassed.
Laen reached out and felt around briefly, then said in surprise:
"It looks like a dilapidated simple stone bungalow, but it has collapsed."
"There are traces of civilization in the dark world?! Was this once a human residence? Or some other kind of creature...?"
Said Xibei.
“Not sure yet.”
Wells spoke.
"Let's investigate this later, let's go save people first!"
"Um."
Everyone crossed the broken wall and continued running forward.
But they found that the frequency of various buildings appearing gradually increased, as if they had come to a passing town.
When they were almost at the center, they saw a light.
In an open space similar to a stone square, six or seven members of the Imperial Inquisition were being besieged by dozens of silver-white insect men!
The leader is none other than Hamilton, the captain of the second investigation team!
The long-haired man's face was stained with dark green juice and his expression was ferocious. His arms seemed to be assimilated with the surrounding environment and transformed into two huge shadow machetes. He fought three insect men alone and collided intensively with the lightning-fast mantis arms.
Ding ding dong!
Sparks flew several meters away, appearing particularly dazzling in such an environment.
The members of Group 2 seemed to notice the arrival of everyone, and joy suddenly appeared in their originally anxious eyes.
"It's reinforcements! Another investigation team is coming!"
"good!"
Hamilton swung out dozens of swords in succession, forcing the three Didak insect men to retreat repeatedly. The stone slabs of the square within the range of the fight were all cracked with sharp marks.
He suddenly raised his head and looked to the side. At the edge of the brightly lit square, a team of investigators came quickly. He couldn't help but raise his eyebrows, seeming a little surprised.
"Jack?"
Chen Lun led his team to the scene, and after taking a quick look at the battle situation, he immediately spoke:
"Everyone, help the second investigation team out of trouble!"
"Yes! Captain!"
Rahn and the others responded immediately, then rushed forward with serious expressions, while simultaneously displaying their respective sequence abilities.
Chen Lun moved instantly and appeared behind the three insect men that Hamilton was fighting. The silver cane in his hand changed into a slender snake sword in a few tenths of a second and was thrown out from his hand.
The silver light suddenly flashed, leaving dense tracks.
Ding ding dong!
The three insect men reacted quickly, waving their mantis arms and using slashing attacks to resist, colliding with the snake sword that was winding like a whip, emitting dazzling flames.
This series of actions was so dazzling that Hamilton saw it clearly. He stopped where he was and stared at the figure of the gentleman in the black hat.
Chen Lun's face was calm as he suppressed three insect people by himself.
The snake sword in his hand suddenly changed its shape and turned into a terrifying giant sword. As he turned around, he teleported to the other side of the insect man again. This change made the insect man stunned for a moment.
boom!!
The giant sword slashed horizontally, like a baseball bat hitting three bottles of beer, and directly swept the three insect men away dozens of meters.
The reason why they were not cut off was that one of the insect men had an extremely strong beetle-shaped carapace, and it blocked its companion at the last moment.
Boom! !
The three insects rolled around in the square, crushing countless stone slabs and plowing out horrible traces. When they struggled to get up from the ground, they found more than a dozen red streamers flying towards them.
That was the "diamond flying card" thrown by Chen Lun!
Rest, rest, rest—
The sharp and unstoppable red flying cards were like the most terrifying cutting weapon in the world, spinning at a high frequency and piercing through the bodies of the three insect men.
Hiss, hiss, hiss!
The three insect men suddenly collapsed like broken porcelain.
The disgusting dark green juice spilled all over the ground. Their vigorous vitality had not yet dissipated, and even the fragments were constantly wriggling.
Chen Lun didn't even look at them. He retracted the giant sword into a cane, walked elegantly to Hamilton, and asked softly:
"How is it going?"
Hamilton took a deep look at the young man in front of him, then dispelled the shadow of his arms and lowered his eyes.
"Not good... Two team members died."
"… "
Chen Lun remained silent for a few seconds to show his condolences.
"terribly sorry."
“It’s something that’s hard to avoid.”
Hamilton shook his head.
He took a deep breath, glanced at the situation of the others, and found that his teammates had temporarily stabilized the situation with the help of Team One.
"Let's clean up those damn Didaks first, then we can talk."
"good."
Chen Lun's answer was quite concise.
The two captains then joined the battle and quickly killed the remaining Zergmen. Hamilton asked one of the Sun Faction members to disperse the light ball in the air, and everyone hid in a ruined building in an orderly manner.
After a tough battle, everyone felt a little tired.
In the narrow space of various broken walls and stone slabs, there was only a tiny light the size of a finger created by Larn. Everyone was eating portable dry food and resting.
"On behalf of the second team, I would like to express my gratitude to you."
Hamilton stood up and saluted Chen Lun and others.
The team members behind him also bowed with friendly expressions.
They originally looked down on the captain of Team One, thinking that he didn't even dare to make a bet. Now it seems that it was just a prejudice.
The other party was not only powerful, but also helped them, which made the people in Team 2 change their views on Jack to a certain extent. Now, in addition to admiration, they were also grateful.
At the same time, Chen Lun received a prompt from the panel—
Hamilton's favorability towards you has increased! Currently close!
Moore's favorability towards you has increased! Currently it is close!
Jennamil's favorability towards you has increased...
Chen Lun calmly closed the series of prompt boxes, then waved his hand and said:
"It's nothing. We all work for the Empire. We won't stand by and watch someone die... You entered the dark world before us. Did you find anything?"
Hamilton sighed.
"No... We have persisted here for two days, but the environment is too harsh. Not only do we have to avoid those insects, but we also have to be on guard against the treacherous terrain hidden in the dark... Sarah and Hector unfortunately died halfway, and we are exhausted after walking here."
He pointed to the ground below his feet.
"But if we really want to talk about gains, it's this city... It's an ancient city, and there are still some traces of past eras. Maybe we can find some clues from it. But before we had the chance to explore it carefully, we alerted the nearby insect people."
Chen Lun remembered the notes Mr. Byers left him, which also mentioned the relics of the ancient era.
He stood up and walked slowly in the small ruins of the building, scanning every corner. Suddenly, he noticed half an unusual stone slab in the rubble at the entrance.
Under the gaze of everyone, Chen Lun walked straight over, bent down and picked it up.
Looking down, he saw some strange words engraved on it. Chen Lun recognized that they were the same as those on the "Monument of Destiny" he had collected, and they belonged to the Yanita language.
"Do any of you know 'Yanitan'?"
Chen Lun turned around and asked.
At this time, a mature woman among Hamilton's team members stood up.
“I’ve had a little exposure.”
"Then could you please take a look at what is written on this slate?"
Chen Lun handed over the thing in his hand.
After the female team member took it, she looked at it carefully for a moment, and finally just frowned and said:
"It seems to be just a 'diary', but the recorder said that he should have gone to the monument in the center of the city to pray today, but because... I don't quite understand this, anyway, he was delayed by some things and missed the prayer. He is confessing to the 'Lord of Destiny'."
Chen Lun's eyes suddenly shrank.
"The Lord of Destiny... Are you referring to Lord Huan?!"
He thought for a moment and said to the others:
"I plan to explore this ruin to see if I can find the so-called 'monument'. Perhaps there are more clues on it."
"Let's go together. Laiya knows a little 'Yanitan language'. If we really find the monument, she can help you interpret it."
Hamilton said.
Chen Lun thought about it and felt that what the other party said made sense, so he nodded in agreement.
So he called out to his team members, and the two investigation teams walked out of the building silently and slowly headed towards the depths of the ruined city.
It was dark and silent, and no one could see anyone else.
There are still many terrifying Didak insects roaming around in this area.