After gathering up the harvest, the undercurrents beneath the Maul storm had gradually become clear.
Along with them, one event had begun to stand out: Ji Yin's mysterious disappearance.
As a member of the Greedy Worms' team in this operation, he had just recovered from serious injuries yet was active on the front lines. He was even very likely the one handling the deal and coordinating with An Jing.
That player, whose faith was relatively less fervent, was undoubtedly a key figure in the operation.
Yet by the time I had just arrived in Maul, he had vanished without a trace.
Given that he had been active on the front lines, there were indeed plenty of dangers he could have run into.
For example, Solondir might have discovered he was being watched; Selena might have found him while lying in wait; or perhaps he had a stronger affinity with this place and had turned into a Wise Dead inside a Miracle Creature, never to return.
Unfortunately, as events had unfolded, each of these possibilities had been ruled out one by one.
First of all, the odds of Solondir being responsible were low.
On the one hand, this was about an upgrade, so his methods would likely be the most aggressive. If he found someone plotting to sabotage an ascendant, killing them outright would be perfectly normal.
But even with their shared senses cut off, the Greedy Worms' life links were still intact. Laurie and the others were all alive and well.
Second, Selena had clearly found nothing either. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been fooled by my impersonation at first and gone to the Siren's ship to risk abducting someone. It simply didn't make sense.
As for getting trapped in the Realm of the Dead?
Leaving aside the question of why