Destination

Lumian had always felt that Vanak, who could borrow some of the power of "0-01," was more dangerous than Albus and Julie, and now this area filled with lightning was so perfect for him to use his abilities:

Regardless of whether Vanak can only change the weather to a similar state, and regardless of whether he can be compared to Julie and Sallys, who can become Descent Vessel, he is comparable to a true Half-God in Forest of Thunder.

"Even if Albus and I were together, we'd be beaten to a pulp by the Storm..." Lumian's first reaction was to quickly leave this area and find another way to "0-01". By then, even if Vanak came after him, he wouldn't be so terrifying as to be impossible to fight back, since he was no longer in the optimal environment.

In a flash, Lumian recalled the Nightmare she had had.

He remembered that behind Forest of Thunder were Mountain Peak of Corpse and bones, and at the top of the Mountain Peak, there seemed to be "0-01" stuck in them!

In other words, this is the only way to enter the Core Area of the seal; there's no way to bypass it!

This point, though not explicitly stated in the book "Examples of Underground Mausoleum Construction," is hinted at.

"Or, feign retreat to lure Vanak out and avoid fighting him in Forest of Thunder..."

"Wait a moment..."

Lumian suddenly had a bold idea.

Since those previous dangers considered him one of their own, would Vanak, as the "0-01" Marionette, also make a similar judgment?

Vanak cannot be regarded as a fully intelligent human being; he is more like a self-aware Soldier Puppets.

There's a high chance that such a goal can be Past!

"When I first arrived in Morola, I had very little '0-01' Corruption, just a bunch of random things, which was normal for it to arouse Vanak's hostility. Now, I have been studying for a long time, and the Corruption is gradually approaching the critical point."

You can give it a try.

"If that doesn't work, activate your shadow to withstand the Lightning attacks, seize the opportunity to ' Teleportation ' outside, and avoid fighting Vanak in Forest of Thunder..."

Lumian made a quick decision and started walking forward.

During this process, he recalled the Nightmare he had since entering Morola, listened to the now-normal Brass Earpiece imparting knowledge to resonate more with the Corruption, and aimlessly pondered questions that were either important or meaningless, in order to help relax his mind and reduce his physical tension.

That might alert Vanak to something amiss!

Why did we go straight to Forest of Thunder?

"According to the Nightmare, shouldn't there be a Burning Palace and a torrential Torrential Rain ahead?"

Are they on another route?

"..."

Lumian endured the increasingly intense tingling sensation, silently calculating the distance he had traveled.

"We'll be facing Vanak in three or four steps..."

Just as Lumian had this thought, he heard slow but drawn-out breathing coming from a few meters away, masked by the rolling thunder.

Lumian's back involuntarily tensed up again, his right hand plunging into the "Traveler’s Bag," ready to pull out the rotting Corpse of the "Abscessed Severed Hand."

After their previous wriggling approach, they had merged together, but were still unable to break through the "Traveler's Bag" barrier and reunite with their heads.

As Lumian drew closer to Vanak, unable to see any expression on the other's face, he instinctively tried to hold his breath.

He quickly composed himself and forced himself to remain normal.

The next second, he felt someone staring at him, which caused a faint layer of fine bumps to appear on his face.

That was Vanak's gaze.

At that moment, Lumian desperately wanted to be a "Hypnotist," but he could only keep telling himself, "I am the Experimental Subjects, I am the Experimental Subjects..."

He maintained a steady, unhurried, straight-forward posture, just like the Experimental Subjects shrouded in Black Robe.

"Two steps... one step..." Lumian tried to clear his mind.

He Past past the imagined Vanak.

"One step... two steps... three steps..." Lumian dared not relax, feeling a dense layer of cold sweat seeping down his back.

Outside Forest of Thunder, Albus Medici, through the eyes of a guard Soldier Puppets, watched intently Lumian, carrying Carbide Lamp and a broken head, walked step by step toward Vanak, whose shirt was unbuttoned.

He saw Vanak's gaze fall on Lumian, follow him for seven or eight seconds, and then slowly move away. He watched as Lumian passed over this most dangerous and Library figure in Morola and walked towards the end of Forest of Thunder.

"This..." Albus narrowed his eyes for a moment, then laughed. "So that's how you got through those dangerous areas. No wonder you've been studying all these past few weeks... When we get to our destination, we'll have to be careful he doesn't use this trick..."

After walking for a while, Lumian felt the tingling sensation on his skin begin to subside, and the sound emitted through the Brass Earpiece produced a very faint echo.

This immediately made Lumian realize that he had left the Forest of Thunder and entered a narrow Passageway.

"After walking through this Passageway, we should reach the vicinity of the Corpse Mountain Peak..."

"I'll have to wait until Albus up, or should I just go and clash with Julie and the others myself?"

"Heh, I wonder how Albus will manage to get past Vanak's obstruction..."

Lumian stopped and listened intently to any sounds coming from the direction of Forest of Thunder.

Tap, tap, tap, he heard footsteps that were neither fast nor slow.

"Why stop?" Vanak's sharp voice suddenly rang in his ears.

A chill ran from Lumian's tailbone straight to the back of his head, almost making him pull out the headless Corpse with the "Abscessed Severed Hand".

He tried to "explain" somewhat stiffly, but after a moment's thought, he chose to remain silent and began to move forward in silence.

In the almost frozen atmosphere, Lumian heard the clatter of footsteps passing by her, heading towards the end of the Passageway.

He let out a quiet breath.

He didn't stop, but slowed his pace, crawling like a snail.

Soon, he felt the gaze of countless eyes once again.

Seeing Vanak heading towards the location where "0-01" was placed, Albus Medici, while mocking Lumian for taking such a risk, calmly passed through the Forest of Thunder.

By the few guard Soldier Puppets in the Passageway, Albus saw that the walls on both sides were made of square steel pieces, with a smooth, mirror-like surface.

At this moment, Distortion Paleness faces appeared in these "Mirror".

These faces belong to the inhabitants of Morola, who are silently gazing at Lumian. Occasionally, someone cautiously extends their hand from the metal surface and stealthily reaches for Lumian's body.

Lumian simply slashed out a ball of Flames in that direction, without making any further Aggressiveness moves.

Seeing the Paleness hand retract into the steel wall, Albus the Soldier Puppets in front of him to open its mouth:

"I noticed that Vanak isn't blindfolded. Do you want to try it too?"

Inside the Underground Mausoleum, Marionette of Vanak's caliber doesn't need to be blindfolded, nor does it need to worry about being replaced by the "Person in the Mirror"? Theoretically speaking, I could too, since I'm about the same level as him... Albus see that I wasn't attacked by Vanak earlier and become suspicious of my condition, making some guesses? Lumian responded to Albus's words:

I don't want to die yet.

He then asked, "Should we wait here for a while, until Vanak and those two ' Witch ' are locked in a fierce battle, and then go and take advantage of the situation?"

Vanak rushed to Corpse Mountain Peak to stop Julie and Sallys from doing something to "0-01"!

Albus replied using one of his Soldier Puppets, "I didn't spot those two ' Witch ' up ahead."

Julie and Sallys haven't arrived yet? Have you two "Witch" gotten lost? You were the ones who entered the Underground Mausoleum first! Or perhaps you've already arrived but are Concealment, waiting for your chance? Lost in Lumian resumed her normal pace.

As he walked, he smiled at Albus and said, "You should have noticed by now that Vanak won't attack me. So, are you going to let me go in by myself and approach the target location without any hindrance, or come with me, or perhaps get ahead of me?"

Lumian was worried that Albus would take advantage of his blindness and deliberately delay him, allowing him to enter the area around the Corpse Mountain Peak first to face any potential accidents. Therefore, he pointed out his abnormality in advance to make Albus and not dare to let things go unchecked.

The dangers that follow must be faced together; don't try to lag behind and become the last Reaper to reap the rewards!

Albus's laughter rang out from Lumian's side and front:

"Now that a cooperation agreement has been reached, we'll definitely go in together."

"I'm starting to admire you," Lumian replied insincerely.

After walking another dozen or so steps, Lumian suddenly stopped. He felt that if he went any further, he would really reach the Corpse Mountain Peak.

"Why aren't you leaving?" Albus asked through the Soldier Puppets guarding the entrance.

"Why did you stop too?" Lumian asked in return.

"You still don't trust me," Albus sighed.

Lumian responded with a laugh:

Aren't you the same?

As he spoke, he suddenly quickened his pace, as if trying to shake off Albus and rush to the foot of the Corpse Mountain Peak.

A moment later, he heard a whooshing sound—the sound of Flame Spear piercing the air.

Lumian let out a "ha" and completely left the Passageway.

The next second, he felt a strong sense of danger.

That wasn't a premonition, but rather the Hunter's instinctive reaction to an attack about to strike his head.

Are you here to die too?

Julie's voice suddenly echoed in Lumian's ears, cold and indifferent.

Lumian quickly activated the Black Mark on his right shoulder and pulled his right hand out of the "Traveler’s Bag".

They were carrying a dark, swollen, headless Corpse!

Inside the Apartment that Trier, Franca, and Jenna rented.

Jenna said to Franca, "Your suggestion really worked. I've finished digesting the ' Witch ' Potion. Sure enough, it's time to gravitate towards mysterious dangers."

Franca was immediately overjoyed.

"Should we postpone our ascension to the Sacrificial Plaza in the Catacombs for two days, or now?"

Jenna pursed her lips and said, "My spiritual intuition tells me that now is the best time."