Remains

Jialan proceeded alone through the ruins, taking each step with extreme caution, as the place was filled with unknown dangers. Although his Mana pool had been greatly expanded, it still felt insignificant within these ancient ruins.

After passing through a narrow passage, Jialan arrived at a vast underground cavern. In the center of the cavern lay a calm lake, its water a peculiar dark green, emitting a faint luminescence. A thin layer of mist floated on the surface, giving it an unreal quality.

"This place..." Jialan's Mental Power detected a powerful energy fluctuation originating from the center of the lake.

He cautiously approached the lake's edge and discovered luminous creatures swimming within the water. They resembled fish, but their bodies were semi-transparent, with runes seemingly flowing inside them.

"These aren't ordinary creatures," Jialan retreated warily. "They are composed of pure magical energy."

He attempted to communicate with these creatures using his Mental Power, but the response was a chaotic and violent surge of energy. Clearly, these creatures had lost their minds.

Jialan dared not provoke them. After a moment of thought, he decided to try a daring approach. He closed his eyes, murmured softly, and formed hand seals. A Frost Shield slowly materialized around him. After a pause, he began casting another spell. The lake's surface started to freeze, and these ice crystals formed a temporary pathway leading directly to the center of the lake.

Jialan carefully stepped onto the ice path, feeling the energy fluctuations beneath his feet with each step. The magical creatures seemed drawn to the ice crystals and swam closer, but they did not attack him.

Upon reaching the center of the lake, Jialan saw a human-shaped skeleton floating there. It was enveloped in a faint glow. Though its body was decayed, it still exuded a heart-stopping pressure. Jialan's eyes widened in surprise. He had only felt such an aura from high-ranking officials at the level of department heads in the magic academy. This was merely the aura from a corpse; Jialan estimated that its owner had been at least a Magus in life, which was the peak combat power of some smaller kingdoms.

The aura spread like an invisible tide, wave after wave, as if even the surrounding air was trembling. The skeleton's attire was simple, the fabric long since rotted and tattered by the years. Its hands were crossed over its chest, tightly grasping a small green bottle. The bottle appeared unremarkable, with no patterns or symbols on its surface, as if it were just an ordinary glass bottle. The liquid within shimmered faintly with a pale green light but emitted no sense of danger.

Jialan took a deep breath and cautiously approached the skeleton, each step taken with extreme care, as if afraid of triggering some unknown restriction. When he finally stood before the skeleton, the aura intensified, as if an invisible force was pressing down on his nerves. He reached out, his fingertip touching the small green bottle, the cold sensation causing him to tremble slightly.

The moment he took the small bottle, the skeleton let out a low sigh, as if it came from a distant time and space. Then, the decayed body began to disintegrate, like sand scattering in the wind, peeling away bit by bit and turning into fine ash. The ash drifted with the wind, falling into the lake, causing ripples to spread across its surface...

Jialan clutched the small bottle in his hand, a sense of unease stirring within him. Before he could examine the liquid inside, the ice beneath his feet suddenly began to shake violently. The entire Elf Ruins seemed to be shaken by some immense force. The surrounding stone walls emitted low rumbling sounds, and debris rained down from the ceiling, striking the ice and lake with dull thuds. The ice beneath Jialan's feet instantly cracked, and lake water surged through the fissures, cold spray splashing onto his face.

"Not good!" Jialan's heart leaped as he tried to steady himself. However, the ruins' tremors grew more intense, as if the entire space were collapsing...

A low hum filled his ears, and the space before his eyes began to distort, as if being torn apart by an unseen hand. He felt a powerful force envelop him, pulling his body involuntarily into the void.

During the teleportation, Jialan's vision blurred, the surrounding scenery becoming distorted and chaotic like stirred lake water. He vaguely sensed the figures of his companions flashing by in the void as well, as if they too were being teleported by the same force. His heart eased slightly, but then a wave of intense dizziness washed over him, and his consciousness began to fade.

When he regained consciousness again, he was standing in an unfamiliar forest. Just as he was about to rub his head from the dizziness caused by the teleportation, At that moment, a deafening roar echoed from the distance. Jialan spun around abruptly, seeing a massive pillar of smoke rising from the horizon. Even from this distance, he could feel the powerful energy fluctuations; the ruins were collapsing...

The Misty Forest appeared exceptionally quiet after the snow, with thick snow covering the ground and crystalline icicles adorning the branches. Sunlight pierced through the thin clouds, casting dappled shadows on the snow. Jialan stood beneath an ancient tree, taking a deep breath as the cold air filled his lungs, invigorating him. Although he was far from the ruins, he knew this area was equally dangerous. Magic Beasts tended to be more active after snow as they needed to find food.

Jialan carefully observed his surroundings. The sun was now directly overhead. Based on its position and the moss growth on the tree trunks, he roughly determined his direction.

"The ruins are now about a hundred kilometers to my northwest," he muttered to himself, drawing a simple map in the snow. "The border camp is to the southwest, about three hundred and fifty kilometers away. It's quite a distance, roughly ten days of travel. If only I could fly," Jialan thought of that Wind Element High Mage.

However, what brought him some peace of mind was that, despite the considerable distance to the camp, he was at least moving away from the Aus Empire's border. That area might now be crawling with enemy patrols.

Jialan tightened the robe around him and began to head southwest. Each step sank deeply into the snow, emitting a crunching sound. He had to find a safe shelter as soon as possible.

After walking for about an hour, Jialan discovered a cave half-hidden by snow. He approached cautiously and discreetly cast a detection spell. Faint blue Mana ripples spread out, carefully probing the cave's interior. After confirming the absence of Magic Beasts or dangerous magical traps, Jialan carefully crawled inside.