Even the builders of An Nan Manor probably never knew that such a vast Underground Palace lay beneath the residence.
Strange, mysterious murals lined both walls, telling the ancient story of the Lion-like Clan.
They had once lived atop the clouds, once dwelled among the mountains and wilds, once kept company with flood dragons and stood in balance with the peaks. They had once occupied the stars and the earth, once dreamed of the romance of an infinite universe.
"This is the past of that 'lady.' She and her people once had a wonderful past, as well as hopes for the future."
Until boundless darkness descended, and the entire world sank into gray.
Looking at everything before him, Zhao Yan seemed thoughtful, but inwardly, he felt nothing.
He had heard too many stories like this. It was nothing more than another civilization that had finally failed to withstand the corrosion of contamination and marched toward destruction.
And the progression of the murals seemed to confirm his guess.
Gray rain fell from the sky, and cracks resembling smiling mouths appeared across the ground.
Mortal Beasts—cat-like beastfolk—twisted and warped, turning into bizarre monsters.
Gods either rotted and degenerated, or fled into the distance.
At last, at the end of the passage, the story's ending was revealed.
That enormous Ark left the homeland that had completely fallen into darkness.
And in that scene, the most eye-catching figure, the one occupying the central position, was a half-cat, half-human silhouette.
"Her mortal name is too cumbersome, and our language system does not pronounce it well, so we all call her the 'Mother God,' or rather—"
Walking ahead, Mr. An Nan carefully pushed open the stone door and spoke into the room.
"—Mother, I have brought the person you wished to see."
There was a god