Chapter 816 Saint Seim City <TOC> Chapter 818 The So-Called Chicken Ribs
Translator: SumTLMan
The entire illusory realm was shrouded in extreme darkness, a thick mist of grey pervaded everything, so dense that even daylight couldn’t dissipate the gloom.
However, it wasn’t entirely devoid of light within the boundaries of the illusion. Jiebo noticed it; in several ruins, there were luminous ascensions—some from firefly street lamps, others were mere fireflies, but most were the spectral wraiths floating in the air, holding lanterns.
In the sky near Jiebo, there were terrifying wraiths roaming about, each holding a scarlet light.
These wraiths appeared extremely vicious and scary, holding a lantern in one hand and a massive scythe in the other. With a casual swing, they could cut through trees and rocks.
However, upon a closer look, these wraiths were filled with some kind of illusion magic. They weren’t true wraiths, but just illusions.
“What are these patrolling wraiths set up by Angel for?”
Moreover, what about these pervasive ghosts and phantoms? Were they there to prevent people from entering the orphanage?
Just as Jiebo was pondering, a man with a turban screamed and rushed out of a ruined building.
Blood-red light flickered in the hallway.
After the man came out, he was still shouting, “Five more minutes, five more minutes… I just need to survive five more minutes.”
Hee-hee-hee—The eerie laughter of a little girl came from the ruined hallway behind the man.
She was a terrifying little girl dressed in a blood-red dress, with a heavy stench of blood, holding a small knife in her hand, she floated out leisurely.
The moment the man saw the girl in the red dress, he was so frightened that he jumped up and ran wildly outside.
But the outside was not as peaceful as he thought. There were more butchers here, sharpening their knives and looking at him. After running a distance, the man found a deformed little girl who moved like a spider hidden in the grass.
The man paused for a moment, pointing at the spider girl and said in a trembling voice, “I… I… I think I saw your corpse in the basement… Weren’t you frozen?”
The spider girl didn’t answer him, but opened her mouth wide, her sharp teeth gleaming with a pale, chilling light under the firefly lamp.
After the girl in the red dress, a new butcher—the spider girl—had joined the chase.
“Ah!” The man let out a desperate scream, simultaneously calling out two names, one was Lord Pat, and the other was—Alda, save me!
Jiebo observed the scene, his brows furrowed in contemplation.
The man was not a stranger to him. It seemed that Angel had discovered this talented individual from a small fishing village. Jiebo recalled that during the day the man had saved that wild child, the child had called him Uncle Drew, hadn’t he? Ever since Angel began from the Feran Continent, this man had been by his side.
However, what was strange now was that Angel had left this place with a soul, but left this talented individual within the illusion. What did this imply?
Was this a test? Jiebo mused for a moment, shifting his gaze to the girl in red.
“Illusion spell? No… It’s an actual soul!” Jiebo was surprised to find that in this illusion, not only were there terrifying creatures crafted by illusion spells, but there was also an actual ghost? The power of this soul was abundant, equivalent to a novice apprentice. This man, known as Drew, probably couldn’t escape.
However, what surprised Jiebo was that Drew was not caught by the girl in red. In the ruins of the orphanage, filled with hidden passages and hiding places, Drew ran about in all directions. Taking advantage of the differences in perspective, he continuously circumvented his pursuer.
The spider girl, in this game of cat and mouse, lost sight of Drew.
However, this “runaround strategy” was useful against illusionary creatures with little intelligence but was ineffective against the girl in red. After Drew shook off the spider girl, she flew low in the sky, searching for Drew from above. His attempts to hide were futile.
Unless he hid again in the building.
“Why are you running? Hehehe, don’t worry… I won’t kill you so quickly. I’ll merely flay you bit by bit, then drain your blood to water the pink cherry tree at the entrance,” the eerie voice of the girl in red resonated in Drew’s ears.
Drew, seeing the girl in red not far away, hurriedly headed towards the open playground.
As he ran, Drew wailed, “You won’t kill me. Lord Pat won’t let you kill me. I will survive, I must…”
“Do you dare to bet if I will kill you? Hehehe,” the chilling voice of the girl in red echoed again. “The limit Lord Pat set for me is not to let you die too easily. But if I cut off your hands and feet, drain your blood, and feast on your flesh, you probably won’t die too easily, right?”
With each punishment the girl in red mentioned, Drew’s heart skipped a beat, the fright prompting tears to stream down his face.
Seeing this, Jiebo, who was hovering in mid-air, shook his head, “Talking so much before killing, she’s just trying to scare him, isn’t she? This Drew is quite dull, running into an open playground…”
However, in the next second, Jiebo realized he was wrong. Drew collapsed on the playground, but the girl in red didn’t pursue him any further.
A soul of a boy, pure in spirit, jumped down from the playground’s carousel, standing in front of Drew, “Sunny, time’s up. The Dawn Game is paused. This is a safe zone, you can’t enter anymore.”
Tears streamed down Drew’s face as he watched the little boy standing in front of him, murmuring, “Alda, you really are a good kid…”
Sunny hovered in mid-air, her scarlet dress fluttering, her eyes filled with madness, “Rules of the game? I won’t be bound by them.”
Without hesitation, Sunny charged directly into the playground, but in the next second, a thick mist rose from the ground. Before long, Sunny was ejected from the foggy zone.
After several attempts, Sunny could not break through the misty blockade. Clearly, Angel’s so-called safe zone was not a joke.
Standing outside the playground, Sunny stomped her foot in frustration, “You’d better fall into my hands, at least if you die in my hands, it’ll be slower. If you fall into the hands of other monsters, well…”
After leaving a harsh comment, Sunny turned around in a huff and flew back to her dilapidated building.
Witnessing such a dramatic scene, Jiebo was left with an enlightened expression on his face.
He had originally planned to catch this girl in the red dress and ask her what Angel had been doing here, but now it seemed clear to him. From the current situation, this illusion was purely a test of mettle.
The concept of a “safe zone” had even been introduced, if this so-called “Dawn Game” wasn’t a test, what was?
And the subject of this test, presumably, was Drew.
Since it was a test, then this girl in the red dress must have had an agreement with Angel, being the only real killer in the game. Naturally, he couldn’t capture her anymore, otherwise, Angel might get suspicious.
“Creating such a huge illusion, just to train a talented individual. Such grandeur, only Angel could pull it off,” Jiebo mused. Moreover, he had to admit, the game mechanics of this illusion were quite comprehensive. There were powerful and diverse killers, and survivors who had to rely on their courage and intelligence to escape. The two sides played against each other, with the one surviving being the winner.
This method of testing, when applied to testing talents, was quite effective.
The victor of the game would surely be someone bold, careful, and strategic. Such individuals were naturally suited for the world of wizards, and wizard organizations could heavily nurture them. Even if their talent was a bit low, they might still shine.
Those who failed in the game wouldn’t die, but would receive relatively fewer resources, allowing them to develop freely in the future. After all, many people might be timid in the early stages, but with time, they might undergo a complete transformation.
Such a method of testing and training was much more applicable compared to the so-called blood battles, death arenas, lightless cages… and other kinds of talent selection methods.
“The Dawn Game, huh? When I go back, I might suggest this method of training and testing to my mentor,” Jiebo thought to himself.
After a period of observance within the illusory realm, Jiebo surmised that this place was merely a testing ground Angel had devised for Drew. However, why Angel chose this location and the mysteries surrounding these ghosts still eluded him. There was definitely more than meets the eye.
Jiebo decided to stay put for the time being. After all, with Drew here, it was inevitable that Angel would return from Saint Seim City.
As for why Angel was headed to Saint Seim City? Jiebo tacitly assumed that Angel was in search of individuals with unique talents. He was too indifferent to involve himself in the tiresome affair of talent assessment, preferring instead to observe Drew’s desperate struggles and, if possible, unravel the secrets of the orphanage.
That was Jiebo’s initial plan, but it is often said that the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.
Just as Jiebo resolved to quietly infiltrate the building to assess the situation within, the scale on his forehead suddenly became warm. Taken aback, Jiebo touched his forehead lightly, releasing a palm-sized blue flying fish.
Initially, Jiebo thought the unicorn abyssal whale was bored and wanted to come out. However, when he realized that he had released a blue flying fish, he was jolted.
This blue flying fish was conjured by the last bit of energy from the water elemental avatar of his mentor, Florence, not too long ago. It had no other function except to deepen his sensitivity… to mysterious fluctuations!
Why were there mysterious fluctuations detected by the blue flying fish? Could there be a Mysterious Object within a hundred miles?
Stirred by excitement, Jiebo immediately ascended, leaving behind his intention of probing the secrets of the orphanage. He flew straight out of the range of the orphanage from a weak point in the illusion node.
Gazing into the pitch-black night, Jiebo released the blue flying fish.
He sought to determine the source of the mysterious fluctuations through the little fish.
In no time, the little fish provided Jiebo with a general direction. After detecting this information, the fish’s body rapidly shrank until it completely vanished.
The sensing range of this little fish was only a hundred miles, and it could only detect when the Mysterious Object was activated. Once it had located the signal, the little fish would lose all its energy. In essence, it was a single-use item.
Looking in the direction indicated by the little fish, Jiebo’s eyes flashed with a hint of surprise.
This direction within a hundred miles was… Saint Seim City?!
A question suddenly arose in Jiebo’s heart. How could Saint Seim City be the source of the mysterious fluctuations?
He was well aware that Saint Seim City was home to transcendents. Although their powers were nothing to write home about, they were backed by the Hurricane Tower. If a Mysterious Object appeared there, the news would surely have spread far and wide. But there had been no previous reports of any such objects in Saint Seim City, suggesting that this Mysterious Object may have recently appeared.
It might even have… appeared today?
Jiebo’s heartbeat quickened. If it truly appeared today, then what was so special about Saint Seim City today?
—Angel had gone to Saint Seim City!
Chapter 816 Saint Seim City <TOC> Chapter 818 The So-Called Chicken Ribs