Chapter 1925 Scent of the Void <TOC> Chapter 1927 Exchange of Glances
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Translator: SumTLMan
Sanders’ inference, although integrating two speculations of Tree Spirit, was more convincing than unilateral conclusions.
It’s now certain that the knight armor must have appeared in the ruins within the last century. Therefore, the person who brought it in must have used a hidden passage unknown to all. Otherwise, entering through the main gate would inevitably trigger the seal.
Since there exists a concealed passage in these ruins, the presence of hidden rooms is not so peculiar.
Tree Spirit pondered for a moment and looked at Sanders: “I agree with your inference. However, the biggest issue now is where is this hidden passage that leads to the outside world?”
“Let’s try to find the hidden passage later,” said Rhine. Hundreds of years ago, when the ruins were sealed, he was also brought by Tree Spirit to look for the so-called hidden rooms. At that time, he was skeptical about the existence of hidden rooms, so he didn’t seriously search. Although it’s still uncertain if there are hidden rooms, one can be sure there must be a hidden passage. Anything that has happened will leave traces, and searching with this established fact will be much easier than searching blindly.
Rhine paused: “For now, I’m more curious about who this outsider, who entered the ruins within the last hundred years, might be.”
“If there are no surprises, it should be the master of these ruins,” Angel concluded, voicing the answer in everyone’s minds.
Tree Spirit nodded: “Only the master of the ruins or someone related to the master could possibly know about the hidden passage.”
As far as they know, there are only two possible masters of these ruins: one is the unknown creator of the ruins, and the other is Tizarro.
According to Angel’s reasoning, it shouldn’t be Tizarro; he leans more toward the original creator of the ruins.
Tizarro, as the mentor of Dulmatin, left the Southern Region quite early. Moreover, based on his anecdotal notes, although he deduced the existence of hidden rooms in the ruins through certain details, it seems he never found their exact location.
The first owner of the ruins, having created them, naturally designed the secret passages. Thus, it’s logical for them to know about and use these passages to enter the ruins.
Another crucial piece of information is the alchemical runes on the knight armor.
While they lack details about the first owner, the layout of the rooms and the arrangement of various sophisticated instruments in the laboratory suggest he was an alchemist.
If this person was indeed an alchemist, then perhaps the alchemical runes on the knight armor were drawn by them.
Angel shared his analysis, and Tree Spirit agreed, “Yes, the one who brought the knight armor here is most likely the ruins’ first owner.”
“This means we are outsiders. After all, they were the one who created the ruins,” Angel reflected with a shake of his head.
“That’s not necessarily the case. If it really was the first owner returning, they would have noticed Tizarro’s traces and the fact that the ruins had been sealed. They showed no concern, didn’t touch the seals, and added nothing to the mechanisms… I see only one possibility,” Tree Spirit said, shrugging: “They don’t care about this alchemy lab anymore, or perhaps, they have abandoned it altogether.”
Tree Spirit’s words held some truth, much like how many wizards often leave temporary laboratories in various places. Once they depart, these labs are essentially abandoned, with no concern for whoever might enter afterward. However, one puzzling aspect remains… “Then why did they return?”
“Who knows? Maybe they were just passing by and decided to take a look.”
“Regardless of their intentions, we have at least confirmed this information now.” Rhine inserted into their conversation: “Irrelevant speculations can be set aside for the moment. As the Star Observing Day hasn’t ended, I’ll take this opportunity to examine this ruin more thoroughly.”
Rhine’s statement implied his serious intention to inspect the ruin this time.
Both Tree Spirit and Sanders agreed with a thorough reexamination of the ruin. Although they didn’t consider it a significant task, they were idle and thought it better to find something to do.
Then they began their Second Search.
However, their so-called search wasn’t about looking around with a lantern in every nook and cranny. They remained gathered in the study, but Rhine closed his eyes and released the Eye of Truth, patrolling every corner of the ruins; Sanders released several magic falcons to extend his vision, searching for abnormalities within the ruins. Angel also transformed his mental power into tendrils, probing every part of the ruins.
As for Tree Spirit… he did nothing, as he was merely a spiritual avatar and incapable of much.
Though Tree Spirit didn’t engage in any action, his constant chatter never ceased.
Initially, he analyzed the various oddities of the ruins and speculated about the identity of the first alchemist. But after exhausting his analyses and running out of topics, he resumed his routine grumbling.
Naturally, the content of his complaints revolved around the issues of the tea party venue.
It’s rare for Rhine to be here, and Tree Spirit’s complaints are even more intense, and to highlight his own plight, he keeps playing up his misfortunes.
The conversations revolve around topics like “Liana’s unreasonable demands,” “I’ll be severely injured if I open up an internal space,” and “If I really did open up an internal space, witches might harbor ill intentions towards the Life Pool.” These topics are discussed repeatedly.
Perhaps tired of Tree Spirit’s nagging, Rhine, still with eyes closed and manipulating the Eye of Truth, replied, “You go ahead and open the internal space. I’ll personally oversee the Life Pool during the tea party and ensure no outsider enters.”
Hearing that Rhine still sided with Liana, Tree Spirit became somewhat frantic, “You overseeing the Life Pool is fine, but let’s forget about opening the internal space. You know the backlash I’d suffer from it.”
Speaking of backlash, Rhine paused slightly, because Tree Spirit wasn’t wrong. Opening a space within the core of the tree body to accommodate many would definitely cause backlash, but…
“Indeed there will be backlash, but for the Eternal Tree of such magnitude, it’s bearable, at most requiring a year or two of recovery.”
A year or two, for the Eternal Tree, which measures its life in millennia, is trivial.
“Even just a year or two is precious time. If the Mirror World suffers attacks during this period, the consequences would be severe,” Tree Spirit continued to argue.
“That argument might deceive other wizards,” Rhine said calmly with eyes still closed. “A year or two of recovery won’t diminish a bit of your combat strength. Even if we are really attacked, we’ll be here to hold the front.”
Tree Spirit: “But…”
“No buts. A year or two of recovery in exchange for a grand witches’ gathering is worth it. Plus, you know every host of the tea party gains some hidden privileges. If used well, this event can gather a lot of information, which is only beneficial to Savage Grottoes.”
Rhine was well aware of Tree Spirit’s reluctance, but the tea party was crucial for the Savage Grottoes, not just to showcase strength but also to reap many benefits.
“Moreover, if you really don’t want to open an internal space, you’ll have to find an alternative. You know our Savage Grottoes are on a barren plateau, and the Mirror World is the only impressive thing we have.”
“And within the Mirror World, the Eternal Tree is the most prestigious, with the richest magical power, where everyone’s movements can be controlled.”
Chapter 1925 Scent of the Void <TOC> Chapter 1927 Exchange of Glances