Dead silence returned to the square, except for the stench of the dead ghosts that turned into ashes.
The battle ended so quickly and the process was so bizarre that the brains of the three survivors had not yet fully recovered from the horrific scene just now. The young priest, who seemed calm and reliable, killed more than ten fierce and terrifying monsters with just one sword. This was completely beyond their understanding of extraordinary power.
The player believer sat slumped on the ground, looking at the long sword in Moria's hand that was still burning with faint flames, his eyes filled with a dull mixture of excitement and awe. He knew very well that any of the two people in front of him had the strength to kill them all easily.
This is awesome.
The other two ordinary believers who were frightened out of their wits were trembling all over. They didn't even have the strength to stand. They could only support each other and lean against the cold stone wall, their faces as pale as paper.
Moria put away the long sword, and the flame on the sword was extinguished. He walked slowly towards the three survivors, his footsteps could be clearly heard in the empty square, and every step seemed to step on their tense nerves.
"We have no ill intentions." Moria's voice was calm and gentle, trying to soothe their emotions, which were already on the verge of collapse. "But we need to know what happened here and where your companions are now."
His words did not have much effect. The two ordinary believers just shook their heads in horror, their lips trembling, unable to say a complete sentence. On the contrary, after the initial shock, the player's eyes flashed with a shrewdness unique to players in assessing the situation. He struggled to get up from the ground, his movements seemed a bit funny.
"Big, big brother..." He tried hard to force out a smile that was uglier than crying, with an obvious hint of flattery in his voice, "We... we were also forced! We are all the leader, and we are all that bastard Spade K! It was he who brought us to this hellish place!"
The figure of Li Wen appeared quietly beside him, the shadow of the hood shrouding it, bringing an invisible sense of oppression. The Crow Feather Dagger she held in her hand glowed with a cold glimmer under the faint blue halo. Although it was not pointed at him, the vague killing intent made the back of his neck feel cold.
"Where is your leader?" Li Wen's voice was very soft, but cold and emotionless.
The player believer shuddered, and almost poured out everything he knew. "The whirlpool tore our ship apart, and many people died when we fell. Spade K... The leader is lucky, He fell in with all of us, not far from here. But he didn't care about the life or death of us ordinary players. He only took a few of his confidants and went to the center of the city with... something he snatched from the fortune teller."
Fortune teller? Ms. Sivell?
"What?" Moria asked.
"I, I don't know what it is..." The player believer waved his hands hurriedly, "That thing looks like a compass, and it also looks like a Star Compass. It's very weird. It's full of incomprehensible symbols. The leader said that it is the key that can guide him to find the 'treasure'."
He seemed to be afraid that the two of them would not believe it, so he hurriedly added, "Really! He said at that time that as long as you follow the guidance of that thing, you can find the most magnificent building in the city, and the 'treasure' is there."
The most magnificent building... Li Wen and Moria's eyes coincidentally turned towards the center of the ruins. In the area shrouded by layers of building debris and dark light and shadow, one can vaguely see the outline of a spire that is far taller than the surrounding buildings and relatively well-preserved. It is like a sharp sword piercing the sky under the sea, standing there quietly, exuding an ancient and majestic atmosphere.
"Why did he come here?" Moria frowned, "Release the sealed being?"
"No, it's not." The player believer's head shook like a rattle, "The leader... he doesn't care what the hell is sealed here at all. His goal from the beginning to the end is not to release any people or monsters."
This unexpected answer surprised both Li Wen and Moria.
"Then what is his purpose?" Li Wen's dagger was passed forward without leaving a trace, the cold edge almost touching the opponent's neck.
The player felt a chill in his throat, was frightened out of his wits, and spoke faster, "It's stealing, it's stealing. I... I overheard him discussing with Heart A, saying that there was a very high-level, powerful being who was killed by a powerful thing. The incomparable artifact is sealed here. His goal is to steal that artifact before the seal completely expires. He said... as long as he gets that artifact, he will become the strongest player in this game, and any bullshit studio will have to give way to him!"
Stealing the sealed artifact?
This crazy yet logical answer allowed Li Wen to connect all the clues in an instant. The leader of Eternal Life Blessing Cult, the purpose from the beginning to the end was not to release the hot potato Soul Lord, but to steal the powerful artifact that was enough to suppress Soul Lord.
This is undoubtedly more covert than releasing Soul Lord directly, and is more in line with the logic of a profit-seeking player. He does not need to face an awakened and uncontrollable terrifying existence, he only needs to steal the sleeping treasure in the gap between the seals.
However, he seems to have overlooked one of the most important things - the reason why an artifact is an artifact lies not only in its own power, but also in the responsibilities and functions it carries. Once the seal is removed by external force, even if Soul Lord does not wake up immediately, it is only a matter of time before its power escapes and the seal completely collapses.
No, it's not so much ignoring, but not caring at all. After all, they are players.
Just when Li Wen was about to continue asking for more details, a sudden change occurred.
A low roar, as if coming from deep within the earth, came from the depths of the ruins without any warning. The sound was heavy and suppressed. It was not an explosion, but more like the tooth-breaking sound made by the friction between gears and rocks when a huge machine that had been sleeping for thousands of years was restarted.
Immediately afterwards, the entire underwater ruins began to tremble slightly.
The ground of the square shook slightly, and small gravels fell from the cracks in the surrounding buildings. The blue Sky Dome above the head, which was made of sea water, also rippled in circles visible to the naked eye.
"Then, what's that sound?" The surviving believers looked around in horror, the blood draining from their faces.
The expressions of Li Wen and Moria also changed at the same time, and they all looked at the majestic spire standing in the center of the city. The source of the vibration seemed to come from there.
Boom——
There was another more violent roar. This time, the loud noise was accompanied by the "waking up" of the entire city.
I saw in the distance those stone statues that were originally dead objects standing on the eaves of magnificent buildings, on the edges of squares, or on both sides of broken bridges. Their surfaces began to crack. The cracks spread rapidly like spider webs, and stone chips peeled off.
Deep in the crack, there is a cold light that does not belong to any living thing.
Immediately afterwards, accompanied by waves of scalp-numbing "clicking" sounds, the statues moved.
They twisted their stiff stone necks, and in the originally empty eye sockets, two cold and ruthless eyes shining with magical light were Ignite. They stretched out their cracked, bat-like stone wings, shook off hundreds of years of sediment and seaweed accumulated on their bodies, and let out bursts of piercing roars, as if they were rubbing against rocks.
"Gargoyles..." Moria's voice was extremely solemn, "They are the magic guards of this city."
Li Wen frowned slightly, of course she recognized these things. These Construct Guard, created by ancient magicians using alchemy and elemental magic, are the nightmares of countless players when exploring ancient ruins. They are tireless, not afraid of swords, extremely resistant to magic, and are absolutely loyal to the only instruction they have set - to eliminate all unauthorized intruders.
These gargoyles are obviously the last line of defense for this Sunken City and the final guardians of the sealed artifact.
As the first gargoyle spread its wings from the top of the towering building, kicked off suddenly, and its huge body glided down with the roar of the wind, more gargoyles also "came alive" one after another.
Their number is increasing, dozens, hundreds... a dark mass, like an army of demons awakening from hell. The huge stone wings block the last ray of light from the sea, and the eyes carved from magic gems connect into a bright and deadly galaxy in the darkness.
Their eyes were locked on all living creatures in the square without distinction - whether it was Li Wen, Moria, or the three Cult of Eternal Life believers who had been scared out of their wits.
In their eyes, all intruders have only one fate.
die.