“You haven’t got it yet?”
Shade asked, and the witch smiled while eating an apple:
"Yes, Shade, you are very perceptive. It is indeed temporary. The Threaded Text was submitted to the gods last time. The Nameless Sacrifice Book that records the power of the sun has been found but is sealed and cannot be obtained for the time being. However, the Jaeger Scroll that records the mystery of death has no seal and can be obtained now. We originally planned to wait until the long black snow ended before getting it, but since you have appeared, let's get it now."
She glanced at Miss Samuel, who looked pale and was shivering as if she had a bad cold:
"Becky, you stay here and look after the luggage and my apprentice. Shade, you go with me. Black Snow doesn't seem to have any effect on you."
"Yes, I am immune to the power of instant death."
“This is much more convenient.”
She stood up, her cloak covering her pair of lace-up ladies' long cloth boots. Seeing that Shade was staring at her boots, he joked:
"If you like to watch, there is time on this trip and you can watch as much as you want."
"I did not mean that... ... "
"It doesn't matter."
She signaled to Xia De that there was no need to explain further, and then walked out the door first.
All the ruins nearby were part of the Gaddis Library, but due to the collapse of the building and other strange reasons, it is impossible to reach every corner of the library from the foyer where the bonfire is located, so it is necessary to find another entrance to enter the deeper part of the library.
After leaving the hall, the undead who had been revived by the black snow noticed them again.
Miss Orlanod took Shade's hand and brought him into the air again. Together, they used the moonlight to temporarily dispel the evil spirits in the air, but they did not let down their guard:
"Be safe, there's more to flying than just souls."
"roar!"
The alarming roar even made Xia De worry that it would cause an avalanche. The black spot that appeared in the distance in the black snow seemed to be...
It was a huge skeleton, with wings on its back and a long tail covered with bone spurs. The red light in its eye sockets was dancing, vaguely reminding Shade of Darkness's human pus form.
"Bone Dragon. There are too many ruins buried in the Dead Valley. The Gadis Library is only a part of it. This one flew here from somewhere else. Shade, hold on to me."
Facing the black snow, the thirteen golden steps sparkle brightly.
"Moonlight Greatsword!"
This is a familiar name, but the great sword extending from Miss Orlanod's hand is almost a hundred meters long:
“Heh~”
The translucent yellow weapon swung forward in a sweeping motion, sweeping up the snow and wind, almost turning the sky yellow. The giant skeleton dragon had no chance to dodge, and was reduced to wreckage under the sword.
The giant sword broke into scattered points of light that flew around, and Miss Orlanod also pulled Shade into the dark cave on the side of the cliff. After entering the building, the undead outside became quiet again.
"The Moonlight Greatsword just now was really powerful."
Shade let go of Miss Orlanod's hand and praised her from the bottom of his heart. The latter clapped her hands and summoned three fireballs to guard her and provide light:
"The Moonlight Greatsword is a very ancient magic, simple yet effective. Over the long years, users have developed it into many forms and effects. If I have time, I can explain it to you in detail, but now please follow me."
After looking around to determine their location, they walked along the dark passage. The musty smell of their boots on the dusty floor made it almost impossible to breathe. This road was very strange. There were no doors or windows on both sides, only mottled murals. At the end of the passage, there was no road at all, only a statue as tall as a person standing in front of the wall.
In the light of the fireballs, Shade saw the statue. It was a skeleton in a robe, holding a stone slab tightly with his bony arms. The statue was made of bronze, but the surface was already rusty, and it must have stood here for countless years.
Because of the rust on the surface, the metal is no longer smooth, which makes the skeleton look like it has grown dense bone spurs, making it look even more weird and terrifying.
The more he stared at it, the more Xia De felt that something was wrong with it. When his eyes met the empty eye sockets, a suction force seemed to suck Xia De's spirit into it.
A white hand blocked Shade's eyes, and Miss Orlanod blocked Shade's gaze from the skeleton:
“Don’t look at it, it’s not something a living person should be exposed to.
I've heard the teacher mention this before, the Soul Forging Skull, a forbidden alchemical weapon made by the people of the Second Age using distorted knowledge, and like the so-called 'Giant God Soldier', it is a servant of the ancient supernatural beings. That stone tablet is the Jaeger Scroll, which we found when Fiona encountered an accident, but we didn't take it because we wanted to send Fiona back."
As he said this, he stopped Xia De behind him, then reached out and touched the stone slab held by the skeleton.
There was a slight cracking sound, and bloody cracks appeared on Miss Orlanod's palm. She withdrew her hand, and as green smoke covered the surface of her hand, the cracks slowly healed. This was the elf's healing technique:
"Malice towards the living is the characteristic of this evil alchemical weapon. It would have been more troublesome to temporarily transform myself into an undead creature to deceive the statue, but since you are here, Shade, you come and take it."
She motioned for Shad to come forward.
“But I am also a living being.”
"For this era, you haven't even been born yet. Don't worry, nothing will happen."
With a smile on his face, he took Xia De's hand and came closer to the skeleton statue.
Since she said so, Xia De carefully stretched out his hand. Nothing happened during the process of stretching his hand forward. But when his hand was about to touch the stone slab, the skeleton suddenly moved.
Instead of launching an attack, he moved his arms to block Shad's hand, preventing him from touching the slate:
"You are not a living being... What are you?"
The monotonous voice spoke a language that Shade had never heard before. It was probably the language of the time when the skeleton was made. Shade translated it for Miss Orlanod and replied:
"I am human."
"You are... a resurrected person?"
"Yes."
Shade had entered and exited the gate in front of the water, and could indeed be considered to have come back from the dead. In this way, Shade met both of the conditions of the third chosen one: "the eyes are related to death" and "can almost come back from the dead". His eyes can see the undead that normal ring sorcerers cannot see.
"Answer one question and I'll give you this book."
Xia De raised his eyebrows, asked the witch behind him again, and then answered:
"Sure, what's the problem?"
"What is death?"
After translating to Miss Orlanod, the latter wanted to answer, but Shade stopped her with a smile:
"I know this question. I know it quite well."
As he spoke, he gently wiped the air with his left hand, and a black gap immediately opened up. Behind the gap was a shallow beach in front of the tranquil waters.
That is not the underworld, but a conceptualized place where the concept of "death" appears due to observation by living people, so it has no concept of time and space. Theoretically, anyone who opens the passage to this place from any place in any era will arrive at the same place. But it is precisely because of observation that the same "place" becomes different.
Therefore, behind the gap at this moment, there was no "Tree Kiss" bonfire of Shade, no light of the dark moon, and no Door of Death at the foot of Mount Xikar.
"Look, this is death. The truest kind of death."
Shade said softly, as if admiring the beauty of this magic.
Miss Orlanod took two steps back and looked at the gap in horror. The skeleton did not respond immediately, as if it was also startled by Shade's actions:
"Real...death..."
With a crackling sound, the skeleton uttered a few final words before collapsing into a pile of completely rusted metal debris.
The stone tablet of the Jaeger Scroll fell into the bronze wreckage, but it did not break due to the fall. Xia De learned his lesson and did not dare to look at the stone tablet carefully. He glanced at the location of the stone tablet with his peripheral vision, then took off his coat and planned to wrap it up.
"Shade, that gap just now was..."
“The path to the concept of death itself can be understood as the most real death.”
Shade explained it briefly, and Miss Orlanod would definitely understand:
"I once passed through the Death Gate Relic and entered death, and then returned. Yes, through the power of the gate of the god we met in the Thousand Trees Forest."
"The Door of Death... Are you talking about a double-opening stone door with stories of death carved on it?"
Miss Orlanod asked suspiciously. Shade nodded and prepared to pick up the slate from the wreckage.
"Have you seen this door in this era?"
"Yes, but why did you enter that door?"
The witch with pointed ears frowned and grabbed Shade's wrist to prevent him from squatting, wanting to confirm whether he was really still alive:
"Now, this door is a torture device. It is the most terrible torture device used by the Supreme Witch Council to punish witches who have made mistakes. We don't use terrible punishments such as hanging and beheading. This is not decent. The death row prisoners will walk into the door of death and then step into death."
"What happened between the Fifth and Sixth Eras?"
This is the question in Shade's mind. The torture instruments controlled by the Witch Council in this era actually became the key relics in the hands of the Orthodox Church in the next era to help seal the narrow space. The change of eras buried too many truths. Even Shade, an investigator who can walk in the past, cannot know the whole truth.
"I have never heard of anyone coming out from behind that door alive."
Miss Olanord added, and unfortunately, Shad had heard of two of them.
Chapter 721 Instruments of Torture