Lin Qin and Aileen headed southwest through the Yulan Empire. The closer they got to the Dark Forest, the gloomier the surroundings became, and an oppressive feeling hung faintly in the air. Whenever they passed through towns and villages, they stopped briefly so Aileen could discreetly investigate the water sources and the residents' condition.
Sure enough, the farther southwest they went, the more cases they found of water sources being tainted by darkness. The doses were still carefully controlled to avoid causing widespread panic, but the affected area was vast.
In a town called Graystone Town, they stopped to rest at a tavern. Aileen casually asked the tavern owner, "Have any people in town been falling mysteriously ill or feeling unusually tired lately?"
The owner sighed as he wiped a cup. "Aye, they have! No idea what's going on, but lots of people have been saying they feel weak and listless. They went to the temple, but it didn't help. Must be the weather."
Lin Qin and Aileen exchanged a knowing glance.
At a nearby table, several mercenaries had been drinking heavily, and their voices grew louder.
"Damn, this place is cursed! I spent half a month roaming the edge of the Dark Forest and came back empty-handed. Nearly got myself killed, too!"
"What happened, Hans? Run into something big?"
"Wasn't a magical beast!" The mercenary named Hans lowered his voice, his face still etched with fear. "I saw a group of guys in black cloaks escorting dozens of bound people toward Silent Valley! Those people had vacant stares, like walking corpses!"
"Silent Valley? There's nothing out there. What were they going there for?"
"How should I know? The whole thing gave me the creeps! I got out of there fast!"
Silent Valley? Lin Qin committed the name to memory at once. He took out a map and saw that Silent Valley lay on the edge of the Dark Forest, remote and rarely visited. It was indeed an ideal place to conduct a secret ritual.
"Looks like we've found the place," Lin Qin said to Aileen as he put the map away.
They didn't linger in Graystone Town. They set out for Silent Valley immediately. To avoid alerting anyone, Lin Qin didn't fly. He and Aileen traveled through the dense forest, relying on his powerful mental strength to evade any hidden sentries.
The closer they got to Silent Valley, the stranger the surrounding energy became. Faint dark elements hung in the air, along with an unsettling sense of deathly stillness. Even the wildlife had grown scarce.
A day later, they reached the outskirts of Silent Valley. From a rise, they looked down at the valley, which was shrouded in a thin layer of gray mist that obscured what lay within. But Lin Qin could clearly sense an immense, evil energy gathering inside, like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
"The dark elements are so dense... And those cries of anguish from the souls..." Aileen's face paled. As a Water Element mage, she was sensitive to the signs of life and souls, and could faintly sense the countless tormented souls gathered in the valley.
"The ritual probably hasn't begun yet, but they're preparing for it," Lin Qin said. "We need to find a way inside, or locate the heart of the ritual."
Charging straight in would be the worst option. It might drive them to desperation and make them start the ritual early or destroy the evidence.
"I could try using Water Mist Technique to create a small patch of fog and conceal our movements," Aileen suggested. "My Water Mist Technique involves precise control of the water element. I can make it resemble the natural environment to some extent, so it'll be harder to notice."
Lin Qin nodded. "All right. Stay close to me and suppress all your auras."
Using the trees and rocks for cover, they crept toward the valley entrance without a sound. As expected, two guards stood there. They wore black leather armor and had dull expressions. They were about Level Six, apparently puppets controlled by the Dark Church.
Lin Qin didn't alert them. He led Aileen around a steep cliff to one side. Using his control over the earth element, he created tiny footholds along the cliff face. The two climbed like geckos and made it into the valley without incident.
Once inside, they could feel the evil energy and hear the tormented souls even more clearly. The valley was dim, and the gray mist hampered their vision. They spotted a few scattered black tents and patrolling guards. These guards were clearly stronger than those at the entrance, and their eyes burned with greater fanaticism.
Lin Qin's mental strength reached out like invisible tendrils. Carefully avoiding the patrols, he probed toward the center of the valley, where the energy fluctuations were strongest.
At the very center of the valley, they saw a horrifying sight—a massive altar made of black boulders, over a hundred meters in diameter! Dozens of Bone Pillars carved with twisted runes surrounded it, each topped with a burning green flame. Above the altar, a gray vortex formed from countless fragments of tormented souls spun slowly, twisting and wailing as it radiated suffocating mental pollution.
Below the altar, at least several hundred people knelt in tightly packed rows! Most were dressed in rags, their eyes vacant, as if their souls had been torn from them. They were the victims whose souls had been weakened in the poisoning of the water sources! They had been herded here like livestock to serve as "sacrifices" for the ritual!
Three people in ornate black robes stood before the altar. The one in the middle held a skull scepter set with a huge black gem, and a powerful pulse of Saint Realm dark magic radiated from him. He was clearly the one presiding over the ritual. To either side stood another figure: one was a gaunt old man who looked like a skeleton and exuded a dense aura of death—a Saint Realm Necromancer; the other was an assassin shrouded in shadow, his face impossible to make out—a Saint Realm Shadow Assassin.
"Three in the Saint Realm..." Aileen drew a sharp breath, her face even paler. This was far beyond what they had expected.
Lin Qin's expression was grave, but he didn't panic. He carefully studied the altar's layout and the positions of the three Saint Realm experts.
"The ritual isn't fully prepared yet," Lin Qin murmured. "That Soul Vortex isn't stable enough, and the altar's energy circuits are still charging. We have time."
"What should we do?" Aileen asked nervously. Faced with three Saint Realm experts and such an evil ritual, she felt immense pressure.
"We have to destroy the altar or disrupt the core of the ritual," Lin Qin analyzed calmly. "A direct assault won't work. They'd start the ritual at once, and those sacrifices would be doomed. We need to find an opening and strike in one decisive blow."
His gaze fell on the Bone Pillars carved with runes around the edge of the altar. They seemed to be the key nodes for sustaining the Soul Vortex and transmitting energy.
"Aileen, can your Water Element magic seep in without a sound and disrupt the energy structures inside those pillars?" Lin Qin asked. Water Element magic excelled at infiltration and erosion, so it might prove effective.
Aileen studied the Bone Pillars carefully and nodded. "I can try! Their energy fluctuations are strong, but their structure doesn't seem entirely stable, especially at the connecting nodes. If I use highly concentrated water elements to erode them from within, I might be able to destroy them from the inside without drawing immediate attention."
"Good." Lin Qin made his decision. "I'll create a diversion and draw their attention. You find an opening and destroy as many of those Bone Pillars as you can. Remember, your safety comes first. If they discover you, retreat immediately."
"Understood!" Aileen took a deep breath, forced herself to calm down, and began silently preparing her magic.
Lin Qin began channeling the Saint Power within him, his gaze fixed on the figure holding the skull scepter—the one presiding over the ritual.
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