Chapter 13: Arrival and Truth
The scenery outside the train blurred past. The Eye Princess pressed her nose against the window. Although she had grown up in Doom Star, she knew very little about the outside world. She had always been in the "Hidden City: Yargul" before, and later, due to unforeseen circumstances, was brought to "Innsmouth" by the Ancient God scholars.
Now that she learned she was returning to "Innsmouth," the Eye Princess Loris, though she didn't say it, felt a certain resistance inside. She appeared to be admiring the scenery, but in reality, she was thinking about how to broach the subject more tactfully.
"Before you lose your value, you won't be abandoned."
Su Xiao maintained the Dragon-Slaying Flash on the table before him, speaking in a calm tone.
These words were clearly unpleasant to hear, but upon hearing them, the Eye Princess Loris felt reassured. The more such blunt words, the more they aligned with reality.
"Of course I am very valuable. Don't forget, I once activated the 'Abyss Eye Consciousness.' The reason that old bastard Edro saved me was because I still have use in the subsequent rituals. Although I'm not sure why they aborted the ritual after activation last time."
The Edro the Eye Princess mentioned was the Great Scholar Edro, the one who was stuffed into a sandbag and beaten by Green Gillian.
"Oh?"
Su Xiao paused in his movements and asked, "How long was the last ritual activated?"
"Hmm~, about a few days. I don't remember exactly. After all, after the ritual was activated, I was almost dead. I spent more time unconscious than awake."
After saying this, the Eye Princess shrugged helplessly.
This was good. The Eye Princess had begun to willingly reveal some of the secrets she knew. It seemed the recent "meal plan" was very effective.
How do you make a target who needs protection and deeply distrusts you gradually develop trust? The answer is... do nothing special, just treat them normally. That is the easiest way to make someone let their guard down.
Su Xiao had just come out of the Abyss Near Zone not long ago. What he needed most now was a good sleep. At the speed of the Lord's Train, it would take about 10 hours to reach "Innsmouth." Doom Star was indeed too vast. Teleporting directly to an unknown location carried too high a risk.
A few hours later, Su Xiao, who had been leaning back and dozing, suddenly opened his eyes. He glanced at the trajectory on his terminal. The destination was not far off.
As he stood up, the Dragon-Slashing Flash was sheathed at his waist. The train slowed down. Without waiting for it to stop, he leaped out through the open door.
The train behind him sped away. Su Xiao's hand rested on the hilt of his blade. A sound of wind breaking came from ahead, and a golden meteor fell from the sky.
Boom!!
Golden power surged like a tide. The Deer God, holding a battle staff, had pale golden flames rising from his entire body. The flames dripped from the tips of his slightly long fur, showing just how abundant his golden power was.
The earth suddenly trembled, then sank inward. Su Xiao and the Deer God vanished from their spots simultaneously.
With a clang, the long blade and battle staff clashed. After a brief silence came a thunderous roar. The space within a radius of over a hundred kilometers instantly shattered.
A black, curved, serrated greatsword spun through the air. Su Xiao and the Deer God both retreated, dodging the incoming Abyss weapon. The black greatsword stuck diagonally into the ground. The next moment, a figure appeared and casually grasped the hilt of the black greatsword.
The blade of this Abyss weapon was jagged, like the sharp teeth of a wild beast. The blade itself had curved, dark red veins running through it. From the handle of this greatsword, centipede-like tendrils spread out, wrapping around the wielder's arm. The only feeling this weapon gave was ferocity.
Indeed, the newcomer was the Crimson Beast Dilo. Coincidentally, his resurrection point was not far from where Su Xiao and the Deer God were currently fighting.
As soon as the three parties gathered, the surrounding world began to show signs of rejection. The reason was simple. Whether it was the deathmatch between Su Xiao and the Deer God, or the previous deathmatch between the three parties, the area that bore the brunt was not only "transformed" but Doom Star also had to mobilize a massive amount of World Force to repair the damaged world regions.
The problem was that the combined causal fate volume of Su Xiao, the Deer God, and the Crimson Beast Dilo was too immense. World rejection was indeed difficult to shake for such a causal volume. Therefore, the world rejection only lasted for a moment before gradually dissipating.
At this moment, Innsmouth.
This was a cold and damp city. All kinds of buildings were strangely shaped, as if they had been soaked in the deep sea for ten thousand years. These bizarre buildings shared a common feature: the outer walls were covered with a large number of barnacles and faintly emitted a pale green glow. Looking down at "Innsmouth" from above was like looking at a city located in the deep sea.
However, compared to its eerie appearance, the residents of this seaside city were relatively fortunate. Of course, this was a relative statement. They neither needed to believe in the Ancient Gods, nor were they contaminated by the eerie, nor would they die from indescribable things.
The reason for this was that the residents of "Innsmouth" all had unique mutations. More than 70% of them had characteristics of marine life, such as scales and gill fins.
In fact, the reason they were not contaminated by the eerie of this world was that their ancestors had been contaminated by an Ancient God who controlled the ocean a long time ago. After generations of reproduction, they developed resistance to this Ancient God contamination. More importantly, that Sea Ancient God was already dead, and its bones sank into the "Dead Sea" of this world, also known as the North Sea.
Living by the mountains, one lives off the mountains; living by the sea, one lives off the sea. 60% of the food sources for the residents of "Innsmouth" came from foreign trade, and 40% from the ocean.
Yes, this damn place "Innsmouth" actually had foreign trade. Even more peculiar was that the city's management was handled by the Municipal Council. Even more amazing was that the municipal management here ranked among the top in this world.
Thinking about it, if "Innsmouth" were truly an area of extreme chaos and indescribability, how could the "Second Asylum" exist? If the whole city were full of madmen, why would they lock them up? Also, the Yargul School would not have set up its headquarters here.
The Yargul School's move was quite clever. Using the knowledge they possessed, they solved the lifelong soul and local body pain of the "Innsmouth" residents caused by the "Ocean's Blessing." They also significantly reduced the high probability of deformities in the offspring of "Innsmouth" residents.
Currently, the status of the Yargul School in "Innsmouth" was no less than that of the "Municipal Council."
Municipal Council Building, 17th floor. The oil lamp in the room was bright. City Lord Heracles put down his fountain pen. His graying hair represented how much he had toiled for "Innsmouth" over the years. Developing a city of madness and indescribability to its current state was the result of the efforts of several generations of city lords, including himself. Therefore, he could not let these achievements go to waste.
"What exactly is wrong with Doom Star?"
City Lord Heracles spoke with emotion. He had learned through intelligence channels that multiple peak powerhouses had arrived. But knowing such a major event only made him more worried, with no other gains.
"City Lord, has this Transcendent World ever shown any goodwill to us intelligent beings since its birth?"
The female secretary beside him, wearing rimless glasses, spoke half-jokingly.
"Yes."
City Lord Heracles sighed. He capped his fountain pen and looked at the visitor across the desk, asking:
"Mr. Edro, what brings you here this time?"
For this Great Scholar, City Lord Heracles found him a headache. He had long experienced the other's arrogance, but his contribution to "Innsmouth" was undeniable. Who doesn't have flaws? Besides, with his ability, he was indeed qualified to be arrogant.
"City Lord, I am here to remind you of your promise..."
Great Scholar Edro had just started speaking when—
Boom!!!
The entire building shook violently. Many barnacles of various sizes attached to it were shaken off, showing the intensity of the impact.
City Lord Heracles' mind buzzed. At that moment, he felt as if the apocalypse had arrived. After recovering a bit, he looked out the floor-to-ceiling window and saw only the golden light erupting on the horizon, along with a surge of dark red blood energy shooting into the sky. The blood energy seemed to form a blood beast that blotted out the sky, pouncing down fiercely.
Boom~!!
The earth trembled again. Soon, a powerhouse from "Innsmouth" rushed into the office. This Supreme Strong's face was somewhat pale, and the cyan fish scales on his arms stood on end due to inner tension and fear. He whispered into City Lord Heracles' ear.
"What? Over 2,800 kilometers away? Are you kidding me? We're not that far from Dream Castle..."
City Lord Heracles stopped mid-sentence, suddenly realizing something. He swallowed and asked:
"Is Dream Castle still there?"
"It fled."
The Cyan Scale Strong said something he himself found hard to believe. One could imagine the expressions on City Lord Heracles, Great Scholar Edro, and the female secretary at that moment.
"What the hell happened?!"
City Lord Heracles felt both a chill in his heart and anger.
"It seems that Law Destroyer Bai Ye, the Deer God, and the Crimson Beast Dilo fought near Dream Castle. Dream Castle was very angry, but after taking a hit from the Deer God's staff, it left in anger."
Saying this, the Cyan Scale Strong felt both secretly pleased and terrified. In his life, he had suffered too many losses near Dream Castle.
Hearing this answer, City Lord Heracles' head was buzzing. He pressed further:
"Are they the two peak powerhouses who destroyed the 'Soul Graveyard: Aiso Gobi'?"
"Yes, and not long ago, the three of them also destroyed the 'Barren Stone Mountains'..."
The Cyan Scale Strong's voice grew quieter. It wasn't that he was afraid of the City Lord, but that he genuinely respected him. He remembered too well what kind of life he had as a child. It was under the leadership of several generations of city lords and the efforts of many that "Innsmouth" had its current state.
In fact, the City Lord was overthinking. In this melee, Su Xiao would not let "Innsmouth" be destroyed. As one of the three protagonists of this deathmatch, he could certainly control this to some extent.
The office was very quiet. All the high-ranking officials of "Innsmouth" had arrived one after another. In the following eight hours, the more than twenty people in the office were terrified, as the world occasionally shook violently, making them feel the fear of an apocalyptic catastrophe and world destruction.
When everything calmed down, everyone felt the joy of surviving a disaster. However, this also served as a wake-up call for the Municipal Council to invest more in city defense. In recent years, "Innsmouth," relying on its former reputation as a city of madness, had rarely been attacked by external enemies.
Everyone simply stayed in the office and held a meeting through the night. When the first rays of the morning sun rose the next day, everyone confirmed that "Innsmouth" had successfully survived this disaster, which, though not dangerous, had been nerve-wracking.
"Finally, it's over."
Finance Officer Elvir spoke. He was over fifty and somewhat overweight, but as the "God of Wealth" of "Innsmouth," he held a high status.
Suddenly, the office door was pushed open hastily. The council high-ranking officials, who had been frightened all night, showed displeasure. Seeing it was Dragon Scale Hailad, they didn't show it.
But Dragon Scale Hailad no longer cared about that. His face twitched, and he said urgently: "City Lord, the Law Destroyer Kukulin Bai Ye is heading towards our 'Innsmouth City' on a beast train. I estimate he will be outside the city in no time."
As soon as Dragon Scale Hailad said this, including City Lord Heracles, everyone present felt their world collapse. They had thought that the three peak powerhouses had already decided life and death, and the victor would go back to rest. Who would have thought that only six hours after the battle ended, one of them was heading to "Innsmouth"?
However, compared to the council high-ranking officials, Great Scholar Edro was in an even worse mood. Hearing that the Law Destroyer was coming, some very unpleasant memories quickly surged to his mind.
Half an hour later, outside the city.
The Lord's Train stopped. Su Xiao, still not fully recovered from his injuries, had just stepped off the train when he saw the closed circular city gates slowly moving to both sides. A group of people walked out from the hundred-meter-high giant gate. The leader was a tall, middle-aged man with graying hair. This person's power was not strong, but his presence was not weak.
"Law Destroyer, welcome to Innsmouth."
City Lord Heracles spoke with a smile. From the fact that this Law Destroyer had stopped the train and gotten off, he roughly judged that the other party probably had no ill intentions. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so polite. Of course, some mentally deranged individuals were exceptions.
Baha flew over and landed on Su Xiao's shoulder, saying, "We have some business to take care of here."
"Oh? If we can help, just say the word."
"We want the 'Madness Heart' from the 'Second Asylum.'"
Under Su Xiao's instruction, Baha stated one of their intentions.
Hearing this, City Lord Heracles was stunned. The council high-ranking officials on both sides were also stunned. Among them, a little old man was the most excited, as he was the director of the "Second Asylum." He stepped forward and asked:
"Is that true?"
"Of course."
Baha sensed something interesting was happening, so he answered very directly.
"Gentlemen, please take the Madness Heart away. Whatever conditions you have, just name them."
The old director said this, almost tearing up with excitement.
"..."
Su Xiao, Baha, and Bubu Wang all remained silent. The reason was that the development of events seemed to have become interesting.
The famously terrifying city of "Innsmouth" had become hospitable today. But considering the visitor was a peak-level Law Destroyer, everything seemed reasonable.
After entering the city and exchanging some pleasantries, City Lord Heracles left with the council high-ranking officials. Although this was risky, it was also a wise move. Showing sincerity appropriately made it less likely to attract hostility.
The others took the opportunity to leave, but the old director stayed. If he weren't afraid of being cut down with a single slash, he would have already grabbed Su Xiao's sleeve tightly, worried that this Law Destroyer might change his mind.
The train drove into the city. Under the old director's guidance, they headed towards the "Second Asylum." With nothing to do, Baha asked:
"Why is it called the 'Second Asylum'? Is there a 'First Asylum'?"
"Of course there is."
The old director's tone was heavy, his face full of stories.
"Judging by your expression, were you the director of the First Asylum?"
"No, before that asylum was burned down, I was also a resident there. What unforgettable times."
The old director sighed. Baha stopped there and didn't ask further.
The scenery outside the window was unique, making Su Xiao feel as if he had arrived at the bottom of a sea without water. The residents here all had a power similar to an Ancient God curse, though weak, it was stubborn.
Amazingly, these dormant deep-sea curses allowed them to avoid being invaded by the eerie environment of this world. It was like being born with resistance to this world.
The train passed through a long alley, and the view suddenly opened up. The buildings became sparse. An asylum, like something out of a horror movie, came into view. Through the spiked metal fence, the main building of the asylum could be seen. In the dim atmosphere, the oil lamps on both sides of the main gate looked like two eerie orange eyes.
The gate was unguarded. After entering the courtyard, a large flock of red-eyed crows was startled. Everyone got off the train. The Eye Princess moved closer to Su Xiao, seemingly sensing the danger here.
Before the metal main door was even opened, the sounds of banging on doors, strange laughter, and muttering could be heard from the rooms inside.
One could imagine the old director's mood on his daily commute. He took out his keys and opened the door.
Creak.
The metal door opened, revealing a three-meter-wide, tens-of-meters-long corridor. On both sides were rows of metal doors. Hands reached out from every possible opening in the metal doors. Some hands were withered, some covered in black scales, some showed white bones, and some had countless hair-thin tentacles writhing freely.
Tap~
Su Xiao's hand rested on the end of his waist scabbard. The next second, the noisy and mad corridor suddenly became so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. Seeing this, the old director very much wanted to hire this person, but he immediately dismissed this absurd idea.
As for why these madmen weren't completely locked in their rooms, don't question the choice of an asylum that had been operating for decades. Completely sealing these madmen would lead to even more terrifying outcomes.
The group smoothly passed through the corridor and arrived at the first underground floor. There were fewer rooms here, but the beings imprisoned here were generally not humanoid. These creatures were very quiet. Everyone continued down to the nineteenth underground floor without incident.
The nineteenth floor was very spacious. As soon as he entered, Su Xiao felt as if he had arrived inside the chest cavity of a giant beast. The surrounding walls were rough and dark red, with a slight sense of wriggling.
It felt as if the entire asylum was a giant living creature, and the huge beating heart ahead was its core.
Seeing this huge heart and the densely packed formations around it, Su Xiao felt admiration. This must have been the work of a ritual master. They had made the entire asylum half-alive and continuously absorbed the madness of the beings it contained.
In other words, the Second Asylum was not the terrifying prison one might imagine. As long as the madmen of "Innsmouth" were imprisoned here, their madness would gradually weaken. Eventually, there was a high probability they would return to normal. Even if they couldn't fully recover, they would change from extremely dangerous, irrational madmen to somewhat neurotic, eccentric individuals.
The problem now was that the madness absorbed by this asylum had reached its limit. The ritual master had considered this, but unfortunately, they had probably gone on a long journey or had simply passed away.
This led to the formation of this "Madness Heart." As a result, the madmen sent to the "Second Asylum" not only failed to recover but became more severe.
Su Xiao understood the difficulty of Bounty 1. If he violently removed this Madness Heart, it would most likely explode, causing severe consequences. At that time, this district would fall into madness, and Bounty Mission 1 would fail.
After observing for a while, Su Xiao felt that with his own knowledge of formations, he really couldn't do much. But he could compensate from other aspects. After thinking for a moment, he took out a piece of Contract Parchment, drafted the content on it, and handed it to the old director, asking:
"Are you the owner of this asylum?"
"Yes."
The old director replied while looking at the contract content. Although the content seemed normal, he still broke out in a cold sweat. The Law Destroyer Bai Ye's contracts were already infamous.
"Sign it, and then we can proceed."
Su Xiao said, waiting for the old director to make a decision.
"Alright!"
The old director showed a fierce look. He was already fed up with the situation at this asylum.
The moment the old director successfully signed the contract, the Contract Parchment suddenly split into 60 layers, and a series of branch contracts formed. Thousands of contracts appeared, causing the old director, who had been looking sleepy, to widen his eyes.
The reason Su Xiao had the old director sign the contract was to use the power of the contract, through the causal connection between the old director and the asylum, to influence the state of the "Madness Heart."
A large number of contract formations climbed onto the two-meter-diameter "Madness Heart" ahead. When the time was right, Su Xiao placed one hand on the "Madness Heart." The contract formations on it quickly transformed into sealing formations.
Su Xiao was not good at the "Absorber Formation" here, but he was skilled in contracts and seals.
With a sealing speed of 3,900 layers per second, a few minutes later, the "Madness Heart" was firmly sealed. Proud Song crystals spread under Su Xiao's feet, forming a crystal heart at the original position of the "Madness Heart."
Since he didn't understand the "Absorber Formation," Su Xiao chose to use a simplified version of the Devouring Core inscription instead. After all, the asylum was a huge whole. This crystal heart was just a central component, serving the functions of mild absorption and storage, with its core role being the storage of madness.
Su Xiao chose to submit Bounty 1: Madness Heart. This bounty tested not fighting into the asylum, but the flexible application of knowledge.
Snap!
All the contracts signed by the old director shattered. Su Xiao walked out of the asylum.
Just as he exited the main gate and entered the courtyard, Su Xiao saw a tall scholar in a white robe, slightly bald, with a beard, already waiting by the train. As soon as they met, the other introduced himself:
"Hello, I'm Sawyer."
The newcomer was the legendary wizard Sawyer, recommended by Zuiyasi's father-in-law, Chief Divine Officer Bergman.
Both parties had what the other needed. One needed to awaken the "Abyss Eye Formation," and the other possessed such knowledge but had never practiced it. So there was no need for unnecessary talk. They boarded the Lord's Train and headed to the legendary wizard Sawyer's personal laboratory in the city.
On the train, the legendary wizard Sawyer looked at the Law Destroyer across from him. He frowned and asked:
"Forgive my impertinence, but how many peak powerhouses have died this time?"
Hearing this, Su Xiao frowned. A very ominous premonition arose.
"You mean..."
"Yes. Last time, after Great Scholar Edro awakened the 'Abyss Eye Formation,' the Underworld Temple could not continue. For this formation to take effect, its formation container needed to be filled. This required the source blood of peak powerhouses. Additionally, after this formation was activated, it would silently envelop the entire Doom Star. As long as a Supreme Peak died on Doom Star, their source blood would be collected by this formation container. Last time, Great Scholar Edro estimated that the source blood of five peak powerhouses would be needed to fill the container."
The legendary wizard Sawyer's words cleared up all of Su Xiao's doubts. This was why the news of the "Abyss Heart" appearing this century had been released. Since the Underworld God already had the ritual to construct and awaken the "Abyss Eye Formation," secretly obtaining the "Abyss Heart" would have been the best choice.
It wasn't that the Underworld God didn't want to do this; it was impossible. Now, with over a dozen Supreme Peaks gathered in this world, this was exactly what the Underworld God wanted to see.
Upon learning this news, Su Xiao's first thought was to form a temporary alliance with the Supreme Peaks who were not hostile to him. But before that, he had to break the "Original Sin Causal."
The "Original Sin Causal" would erupt in just over 20 days. Ask yourself, which Supreme Peak in this world would cooperate with a Law Destroyer whose "Original Sin Causal" was about to erupt and kill him, and who also held six Daddy-level Original Sin Objects?
Moreover, in the past few days, he had fought fiercely with the Deer God and the Crimson Beast Dilo. This had resulted in his reputation in this world being... less than ideal.
Currently, not only were other Supreme Peaks unwilling to cooperate with Su Xiao, but even the Underworld God, who had a grudge against him, had not come to seek revenge during this time.