038 Ruins

"I am Freya, Freya Oseles," the woman in the red robe said indifferently, offering nothing more.

That battle had ultimately ended with the retreat of the black-robed figure because Christine had finally intervened.

When the crystals filling the sky suddenly materialized above the battlefield, surrounding that dark silhouette, the opponent had already realized that further persistence was futile. During the earlier engagement, he might not have been unaware of the few individuals watching from the sidelines. Yet, for reasons unknown, he had chosen to press the attack. Christine had remained standing nearby without acting, which was why that magnificent clash had drawn out for so long.

Only when the blue-robed woman took two steps forward, gripping her staff and making a sweeping gesture, did the adversary understand her intent: she would no longer stand aside, and the battle was drawing to a close.

A purplish-black radiance swelled abruptly, bursting toward the direction of the Tower of Jade and carving a gap through the encircling crystals. The shattering ice reflected the sunlight into brilliant prismatic hues, and a dark figure sprinted across the tree canopy, leaping great distances before vanishing into the ocean of green leaves.

Beneath the afternoon sun, the flying fragments of broken ice still gleamed with dazzling brilliance, and that crimson figure drifted slowly toward them through this natural beauty, magnificent and intoxicating. Drawing closer, Vold and the others could finally distinguish the ornate red robe she wore, covered in intricate patterns of golden thread, several of which still pulsed with lingering, unspent magical energy.

Trailing a wisp of steam, the red-robed woman descended slowly before them like a fire phoenix touching down in the mortal realm. After exchanging a nod with Christine, she stated her name to the group.

Concise and detached, beneath her short fire-red hair lay a youthfully vibrant yet expressionless face. Her skin had a pale yellowish undertone, radiating healthy vitality, and a necklace composed of red gemstones seemed to hang from her slender neck. The wide robe failed to conceal the proud curves of the red-haired woman's physique; her twin peaks heaved breathtakingly with the heavy breathing that followed the fierce battle. Her staff was slung across her back, obscuring its full appearance, but one could vaguely discern that it resembled a withered branch, its twisted boughs embedded with glowing red stones that emanated a warm light.

Having spoken those words, the red-robed woman made no further gestures, merely gazing indifferently at the others without a ripple in her eyes. Despite her striking beauty, the formidable strength she had just demonstrated deterred the players from making any presumptuous moves, or even from lingering their gazes upon her for too long.

"Do not be so impolite, my sister." Amidst the awkward atmosphere, only Christine remained entirely unaffected, turning her head with her usual composure. "You should already be aware of these individuals' circumstances. Oh, that one..." She pointed to Breaking Mountain: "He arrived just today, so you might not know him well, but he should be someone who..."

She placed a finger against her lips, light dancing in her eyes: "...has a rather poor temper, and was having some... misunderstandings with the others just now. Would you not agree?"

With that alluring voice, Breaking Mountain nodded repeatedly, as well-behaved as a kindergarten child.

"Since everyone now understands the situation before us, the rest will be easy to discuss." Seeing that the other party had no intention of stirring up further trouble, Christine nodded with satisfaction and pointed forward. "We need to... join forces and head toward that place."

Following the direction of her gesture, the group looked together toward the towering structure.

"That is it, our destination—and yours." She spoke words that sounded slightly awkward yet universally comprehensible. "Barring accidents, you and I will both find what we desire there, um... probably."

She spread her hands. "Even I cannot be certain at the moment."

"It is virtually confirmed to be a ruin left behind by the ancient magical empire," the red-robed woman interjected coldly from her side.

The blue-robed woman fell silent for a moment, then turned to Vold and the others. "At this stage, I believe we all share a common goal, as well as... a common enemy."

A-Niu scratched his head, Meng Zhu pouted, Vold lowered his brow, and Snow-Song Mirage alone... her eyes burned with fighting spirit and determination.

Finally... this time, we will prove it to you!

"I hope you will carefully consider your previous experiences, along with your purpose... and meaning in coming here." Reaching this point, the blue-robed woman finally put aside her alluring demeanor. "Unknown perils lie ahead. Neither I nor my sister can guarantee we can handle everything alone. When that time comes... I trust you will shoulder the responsibilities that are rightfully yours."

She took two steps, linked her arm with Freya's, and stood facing the group side-by-side. "Whether as adventurers... or as companions."

"We will, ladies." A deep voice rang out. It was Vold, acting as their leader, who finally raised his head with a solemn expression.

"Adventurers never engage in such base deeds." He placed a hand over his chest, performing a strange salute—something he had crammed and learned during his offline breaks.

"In the name of the veteran adventurers." He straightened up.

Before him, the red-robed and blue-robed figures stood sternly in unison, staves gripped in hand across their chests. "May the will of the elements guide your path."

"Everyone, rest for a moment, then we depart."

***

The first obstacle in their path was the cliff right before them.

A careful observation of the terrain suggested that the basin formed around the Tower of Jade roughly resembled a giant bowl. Consequently, its "rim" must have a steeper slope, while the "bowl bottom" would be much gentler.

The location where Vold and the others currently stood was precisely the rim of this giant bowl. They now had to figure out how to descend the cliff without simply jumping.

Snow-Song Mirage suggested they find several giant trees of equal height, leap across their crowns, and continue downward to reach the bottom safely. However, this plan was rejected by Vold. Setting aside whether the treetops were stable or vulnerable to ambush by monsters, the low-level recruits from Green Stone Village that he had brought along simply lacked the leaping prowess required—at least Meng Zhu and A-Niu didn't.

The two Archmagi possessed the ability to fly, but wind magic was not their specialization, and they could not carry so many people. Even if they could manage it, the process would be fraught with danger. After all, the black-robed enemy might still be lurking in the shadows, watching them... Moreover, such a method would entail a massive expenditure of energy for the two women, making it a poor choice by any measure.

Breaking Mountain was traveling alone, and having reached a dead end before regrouping, he was desperately short of supplies and tools, unable to contribute anything useful for the group. Fortunately, before entering the Emerald Forest, Vold and Meng Zhu had prepared ropes. Although most of those ropes were short and intended for camping, when tied together, they could barely reach halfway down the cliff. Thus, left with no alternative, the group finally adopted Vold's suggestion: climb down.

It was indeed the most cumbersome method.

They tackled the remaining height difference by finding a suitable tree. As for securing the rope to the tree, they had to rely on the help of the two Archmagi. Once the rope was fastened, Vold volunteered to test it out himself, being the first to climb across the steep, slanted line and then using his short sword as an auxiliary tool to slide carefully down the trunk. The others leaned over to watch Vold's figure blur and finally vanish into the dense foliage below, before they heard his shouted voice echoing up.

"......Safe...... down......."

The height of the cliff combined with the height of the giant tree made Vold's voice difficult to discern, but hearing those keywords was enough. The group formed a brief queue and began setting off one by one. Snow-Song Mirage looked at Breaking Mountain standing at the rear, making no effort to conceal the vigilance in her eyes. "You..."

"Set your mind at ease, little girl. I am not one of those ungrateful wretches from your Wings of Freedom..." Breaking Mountain crossed his arms with a look of disdain.

Nor was Snow-Song Mirage intimidated by any potential trickery, as those two blue and red figures were still hovering not far above, keeping an eye on the movement below.

Watching the final man in tattered leather armor take to the rope, Freya finally could not help asking, "Elder Sister, this person..."

"I know your doubts, my dear sister," the blue-robed woman replied nonchalantly. "Yet after all this time, do you still not trust my intuition? That is, after all... a woman's terrifying intuition, you know?"

Christine winked playfully, hinting at something. The cold face, so entirely unsuited to bright crimson, finally showed a trace of bashfulness.

"Although the time has been short, based on my observation, that man is no villain." Seeing her dear sister losing her composure, Christine finally voiced her conjecture. "And his strength should be the greatest among those adventurers. I imagine... he should be able to help us...."

Freya turned her gaze toward her sister, detecting a hint of doubt—though the source of that doubt differed from her own.

"No matter what appears, we will deal with them," she said simply.

"......Of course." Seeing her resolute expression, Christine involuntarily broke into a gentle smile. "I firmly believe in that, my dear sister."

The two descended together, merging into the group of adventurers.

***

In the forest below, the environment differed little from before. Although everyone still felt awe toward the massive tree trunks over a dozen meters in diameter, with repeated exposure, they gradually grew accustomed to these towering giants.

The only difference was that the initial path still lay along a steeply inclined slope.

Because of their immense span, the cross-sections of these dozen-meter-wide trunks appeared slanted against the ground. Whenever Vold and the others skirted around a tree, they invariably encountered exposed, increasingly deep wood grains, sometimes even seeing gnarled roots thicker than a man, crisscrossing and plunging deep into the earth before their eyes.

Strangely, despite such unbalanced exposure, these giant trees grew as straight as javelins, maintaining their ninety-degree vertical stance—a rare sight in nature, almost like utility poles buried upright in a slope. Vold and the others could only assume this was simply the result of the world's design.

Fortunately, up to this point, they had not encountered the unscientific swarms of monsters from earlier, so no substantive danger had transpired yet. Even so, the group did not let down their guard, knowing that such calm was hardly a good sign.

Under such conditions, any tiny sound could shatter the balance. The next moment, that balance was broken.

Breaking Mountain, possessing the keenest strength, heard the unusual sound first and issued a warning to the group. Vold and the others strained their ears for a moment before catching Christine's chuckling laugh. "It is the sound of running water. Do not be tense."

Meng Zhu breathed a sigh of relief and, just as she was about to follow the others forward, noticed Vold lingering and gazing in that direction. She halted. "What is it, Big Uncle? Hurry up..."

"Let's go take a look over there." Vold's voice echoed through the woods, and the others stopped as well.

"I have a feeling... we might find something over there."

No matter which path they took, as long as they remained within the basin, they would eventually reach the center. Thus, the others raised no objections to Vold's suggestion. Following the sound of the flowing water, the group discovered a small stream, yet apart from the crystal-clear spring water flowing within the riverbed, they found nothing of use.

"Just an ordinary river... Whatever you had in mind, it seems to have come to nothing." Snow-Song Mirage patted Vold's shoulder with a slightly mocking tone. Vold remained unperturbed, continuing to urge the others on: "Since we've already come this far, let's follow the stream forward. After all, this river is bound to flow toward that place eventually..."

"Alright, alright, we'll listen to you..." Even if there was something amiss, none of them could spot it immediately, so there was still no dissenting voice. They decided to simply drift with the current and see where it led.

Although the Tower of Jade was exceedingly tall, once they were swallowed up by the forest canopy again, their line of sight was obstructed. Ever since entering the map known as the "Periphery of the Tower of Jade," aside from catching sight of that towering spire at the very beginning, Vold and his companions had not laid eyes on any other artificial structures. Even so, the group thoroughly enjoyed the natural environment: the breeze, the green leaves, and—thanks to the difference in elevation—the "giant umbrella" formed by the treetops overhead wasn't entirely impenetrable. Sunlight pierced through the distinct layers of the dense canopy, leaking down to illuminate the babbling stream, as if gilding the clear water with a layer of golden scales. Occasionally, a stretch of the river was churned by a boulder, reflecting prismatic colors in the air.

At a certain point, the flow of the river grew turbulent. Ahead lay a bend in the riverbed, followed apparently by a small waterfall—the rumbling sound of cascading water reached everyone's ears. Rounding the bend, A-Niu, walking at the very front, was the first to spot the spray kicked up by the waterfall, refracting a rainbow in the air.

"This place is truly nice," A-Niu praised the beautiful scenery, then paused to think before adding, "This game is truly nice."

"Enjoy the magnificence brought by virtual technology!" Breaking Mountain walked up beside A-Niu. "A game's appeal goes far beyond this."

"That's for sure." A-Niu patted his chest. "For instance, combat! Haha! I love this. Fighting inside here feels amazing..."

Breaking Mountain paused, then burst into laughter. "Kid, you're not bad. I think highly of you. How about..."

"Don't poach people right in front of others," Snow-Song Mirage said coldly from the side.

"When our Jianghu recruits people, we've always been open and aboveboard! Unlike you lot, who do everything stealthily." Breaking Mountain retorted relentlessly. "Besides, loving combat is a man's romance. What would a woman like you know..."

Amidst A-Niu's approving nods and hums, frost seemed to gather across the female cloaked figure's face. On the other side, however, the young girl wearing purple vestments instantly struck back from a different angle: "Fight, fight, fight! Just love combat, do you? If you run into those ants and poisonous bees from earlier, let's see if you still like fighting..."

A-Niu and Breaking Mountain simultaneously changed their expressions and fell silent.

"Hey, stop jinxing it and come over here." Vold, on the other side, whistled and called out to the group. "Look what we've found..."

The others followed Vold's pointing finger—they had reached the base of the small waterfall where the river continued flowing forward, but not far away, artificial traces began to appear.

First came scattered stones, then fragments of wood, blocks of stone, combinations of wood and stone, until a wide area opened up before their eyes.

Dilapidated walls, crumbling partitions, low wooden posts, signposts, ruined carts, shattered wooden wheels, scattered miscellaneous utensils, and broken doors and windows, with patches of black scorch marks visible in places. The river wove through this area, passing the edge of a barren dirt plaza before curving away into the unseen distance. Extending alongside it were more ruins mirroring the ones before their eyes, affording them a rare, unobstructed view of the open blue sky above. A tall tower, mottled in gray and green, stood close ahead, blocking out most of the azure sky they had so rarely seen here. Near the edges of this area, vines squeezed through the crevices of collapsed walls and emerged from broken openings on the other side, as if embracing the entire abandoned settlement in their fold.

It was an abandoned village.