Appearing

Heavy, disordered footsteps echoed through the pitch-black passage as Aaron and the others continued through the sewers.

The farther in they went, the more they felt a chill and an oppressive cold.

"Here should do." Siosand toyed with Tien's bronze card, glanced over the surrounding terrain, and said, "This should be about right."

His tracking spell had a certain range limit. Unlike Sart, he couldn't disregard distance, which was why he had to enter the sewers.

Besides, their opponent was a fallen Silver Tier member of the Gold Coin Path. Sart didn't dare perform another ritual to learn his movements, so Siosand had to handle the marking and tracking.

No matter how proficient Sart was with rituals, he was still only Bronze Tier. Escaping unscathed from a Silver Tier's counterattack had already been exceedingly difficult. How could he dare perform another ritual?

Last time, at most, it had been a chance encounter. Both sides had been caught off guard, allowing Sart to gain a slight advantage.

This time, however, things might not be so simple.

Lord Bals glanced at the cracked writing on the wall beside him and said, "This should be the western part of Leyden City, near the filtration layer."

"The filtration layer?"

"The sewers of Leyden City are divided into three levels. The third level is the filtration layer, which is specifically used to filter out large debris and prevent it from blocking the outlet."

Though Lord Bals did not say it outright, everyone understood. The so-called large debris was probably corpses and the like. It was even possible that the filtration layer had been deliberately designed for that purpose from the outset.

In Leyden City, even the city guard consisted of ordinary people. Order mostly depended on personal strength and the laws on the books.

Peace and safety in Leyden City were merely relative concepts.

However, under Iron Arm Balthus's reputation, very few people dared to let loose and cause serious trouble.

As for the few murder cases that occurred each month, Bals had always remained silent—or tacitly allowed them.

"There are traces of Heretical Cult Aura here. It seems someone often comes and goes through this place." Siosand muttered to himself as he looked around. "And it seems there's more than one Heretical Cultist?"

His soul could easily sense the Heretical Cult Aura permeating the surroundings.

The subtle point was that there was more than one trace of that aura.

"More than one?" Aaron froze.

But Siosand did not answer him. He merely snapped his fingers crisply. The card in his hand flew into the air and floated quietly before everyone, then shattered inch by inch.

Countless shadows surged out once more, causing the torches in everyone's hands to dim.

Faced with this familiar scene, Aaron could not help frowning as he recalled what had happened before.

However, in the next second, he saw Siosand take a deep breath. A vast amount of darkness seemed to be dragged into his body by some invisible force.

Numerous profound runes appeared across the surface of his plain linen robe. They shattered and reformed as they collided with one another.

That inconspicuous tower-shaped rune suddenly blossomed with silver-white light. It was dazzling enough to sting the eyes, sweeping away the darkness in the sewer and illuminating it like broad daylight.

Aaron felt an inexplicable fluctuation rapidly spreading outward, extending toward a certain direction as if it possessed a will of its own.

He had only looked at the runes on the linen robe for a few seconds before his eyes began to ache unbearably, forcing him to avert his gaze.

"What was that?" He gently bumped Sart beside him and asked in a low voice.

"Spiritual Sense Tracking. It relies on intuition and instinct to guess the other party's location. It's one of a Seer's specialties." Starlight flickered in Sart's eyes as he replied softly. "Seers are different from us. They believe that abandoning the flesh makes the soul more sensitive, allowing it to see more things that would normally remain unseen. The body is merely a vessel that sustains the soul."

Aaron's heart stirred. He suddenly thought of the voice he had heard before and hesitated before asking, "You mean the soul can see more?"

"That's roughly what it means. But without the protection and training provided by supernatural power, our souls would rapidly dissipate after leaving the body. Only Seers and a few others can separate their souls from their bodies."

See more?

Aaron lowered his head, concealing the astonishment on his face.

If that was the case, then had Old Albert's conversation with his predecessor really happened?

Or was it some kind of omen?

Before he could finish thinking, he heard Siosand let out a long breath.

The silver light rapidly dimmed, and the runes on the linen robe faded one after another. Deep darkness emerged from his mouth before finally condensing once more into a bronze card.

"I found him. He's still beneath our feet." Siosand spoke calmly, but the weariness in his words was obvious.

Lord Bals frowned. "Still beneath our feet?"

"Yes, still beneath our feet. I can sense his presence." Siosand lowered his head and stared at the filthy, solid stone bricks beneath him. His gaze seemed capable of piercing through layer upon layer of obstruction to see the Heretical Cultist directly.

"But there shouldn't be anywhere else to go farther down." Lord Bals said, "I took part in the renovation of Leyden City's sewers back then. There shouldn't be any space beneath the filtration layer."

"Then is that why the Earth Demon Spider was there?" Alice still could not let go of that Earth Demon Spider.

Sart frowned. "Perhaps the Heretical Cultists dug it out?"

After all, the city guard had not even finished cleaning the first level of the sewers. How could they possibly descend to the filtration layer to inspect it?

In theory, as long as they did not make too much noise and ensured that the underground space they excavated would not collapse, almost no one would find out.

"If that's really the case, then this is probably the hideout of Leyden City's Heretical Cultists." Bals's expression darkened. "In that case, I'm afraid we'll have to leave."

Aaron pretended to be stunned and stared at Bals. "Go back?"

"Go back." Bals nodded. "If Master Siosand hasn't made a mistake, then this hideout probably contains many Heretical Cultists..."

He looked at Aaron and Sart, hesitation showing in his eyes.

As a Gold Tier expert in a narrow space like the sewers, Iron Arm Balthus certainly would not be afraid. He might even have preferred to fight in such an environment.

The problem was that he was not alone. Aaron and Sart were in the group, and Alice was as well.

Facing one Silver Tier fallen one was manageable. But if they faced multiple enemies, the variables would increase tremendously once a battle began.

Even as a Gold Tier supernatural being, Bals had no confidence in challenging multiple Heretical Cultists in one go.

However, it seemed that the Heretical Cultist had not given them much opportunity to choose.

In a daze, Aaron seemed to hear a loud cry from beneath his feet.

There was clearly no wind, yet their torches shook violently. An inexplicable cold rose from the soles of their feet to the tops of their heads, chilling Aaron into an involuntary shudder.

Following the vague sensation, he turned around and looked back, unable to help freezing.

Within the thick darkness stood a human figure.

A human figure black enough to dazzle.

At that moment, a hoarse, dry voice echoed through the sewer. "Lord Bals, you truly do keep your promises."