Pillar of Yita

Those silver liquids formed a line on the ground, just like an invisible cage, preventing those monsters from daring to take a single step beyond.

It was Holy Water.

Since Fang Hong had known in advance that the main enemy in Dolifen was the Undead, he naturally had everyone in the team prepare a good amount of it—Holy Water was a powerful Holy Relic infused with Divine Ether, and the priests of Ouli, Marlan, and Milaila in Eteliria could all produce it, though the most lethal to the Undead was undoubtedly the Life Holy Water.

However, in the Lower City Area of Elpaxin, there was only Marlan’s Holy Sanctuary; unexpectedly, hitting the mark without aiming, the Holy Relic of the lady of justice and bravery proved to be the greatest nemesis to these blighted beings.

But unfortunately, Holy Water was only the lowest Level Holy Relic, far from capable of killing these Blight Objects, at most stopping them in their tracks.

”Mr. Ade, there is a door!” Hes suddenly exclaimed in surprise.

Fang Hong hurriedly turned his head to look in that direction.

But what kind of door was that? Its surface seemed soaked with a layer of dark red, it was impossible to make out its original color, and the door frame was covered with tumors, sprouting blood vessels, still slightly trembling.

A massive blood handprint was stamped on the door, the blood flowing down formed a peculiar Mark, unmistakably the Mark of Sacrifice of the Zealot.

Hes’s perception as an ordinary person naturally could not compare to Fang Hong’s, but even she could now make out the appearance of the door, her words stuck in her throat, unable to be uttered.

Her face was pale, her hand covering her mouth as she felt nauseated.

Fang Hong had also sensed that there was something strange about the door, but he looked behind him; from the darkness, more and more heads surged out, clustering densely like sprouts in a nursery.

Why was there a door in the stable; shouldn’t that lead to the courtyard outside? But he had no time to think about what exactly was going on here, and looking elsewhere, there seemed to be no other way out.

”Wait, let me think, help me up for a moment, Hes.”

He said weakly, the bleeding on his hand had already stopped, but within the pain there was a slight itch, definitely not a good sign.

Hes nodded her head, then helped him stand up, Fang Hong grimacing in pain. ”Ow, gently!” he almost cried out: ”I’m dying, Hes!”

”Ah, sorry sorry,” Hes said, flustered: ”Just bear with it, Mr. Ade.”

Fang Hong looked tearfully at the girl.

Honestly, this place was clearly problematic. Although Fang Hong was still a novice himself, his insight was not inferior to many others.

He had been wandering around in this damned stable and couldn’t find a way out or a way in, encountering these monsters barely a few minutes ago when he suddenly came across this door?

And this door was too bizarre, behind it couldn’t be anything good

The most twisted part in a Phantom Realm often indicated a deeper connection to reality; this place might truly hide the biggest secret from thirty years ago.

But such places were also the most dangerous—a popular expression could be, it might even be the domain where the final boss resided.

Venturing was venturing, yet one shouldn’t just recklessly throw away one’s life—

Fang Hong seriously felt that at this moment he should remain calm, he must think, weigh the pros and cons, and not be forced into a passive choice by the situation.

”All these things before me are illusions, stay calm, you must stay calm, Fang Hong—”

He comforted himself for a few moments, then raised his head to look.

The result was seeing those heads had already broken through the Holy Water barrier, like a breach in a dike, gushing out from the darkness.

Hes, shivering from the sight but still maintaining composure because Fang Hong appeared very brave, asked with a pale face: ”Mr. Ade, have you thought of a way out?”

Fang Hong was nearly scared out of his mind by the scene.

”Think my ass,” he shouted, turned around and slammed the door open with a kick, dragging the girl inside with one move: ”Quick, don’t think too much, get in!”

”But...”

”No buts, any more buts and there won’t be an after, catch— our dinner maker!”

Fang Hong then stuffed the Type III Walker inside.

Then, without managing to see clearly what was behind the door, he turned back; with a ’bang,’ he pulled the door shut with all his might, plunging the surroundings into pitch darkness immediately.

The two only heard a series of banging noises from outside, as the door seemed to continuously tremble from the impacts. Thankfully, the thick wooden door was sturdy enough and did not break as they had feared.

Behind the door appeared to be a narrow room—

Fang Hong was pushing against the door with all his might, shouting to Hes, ”Hes, find something to block this door!”

”I’m here, Mr. Ade!” Hes fumbled around in the darkness and managed to find a cabinet, which she pushed over with gritted teeth.

The thing was terribly heavy. Fang Hong took the cabinet and, with a great pull, placed it creaking against the door. The monster outside rammed a few more times, but the cabinet in the darkness did not budge at all.

Only then did Fang Hong breathe a sigh of relief, dripping with sweat.

He instinctively reached for the matchbox in his pocket but found it empty, unsure if he had lost it during the previous scuffle. He quickly looked up at Hes and asked, ”Hes, do you have any matches?”

”Matches, what are those?” Hes was perplexed.

Fang Hong then remembered that matches were something humans brought to this world after their arrival; before that, the nobles of Eteliria had always used high-end Magic Guided Conductors for lighting and making fire.

While the commoners were more down-to-earth—they generally used flint and steel for fire starting.

He shook his head and took a look around. The room was devoid of any light sources, completely dark, and even after adjusting to the dim environment, he couldn’t see anything.

”What is this place?” Fang Hong couldn’t help but ask.

Hes seemed a bit distracted, looking around somewhat dazedly: ”This seems to be a building within Holite Academy, ahead there’s a corridor, I remember there is a Holy Icon of Ailin there.”

Ailin was a saint from the era of heroes, most famously known in Ouli for aiding many of the impoverished. She was seen as a symbol of compassion and virtue, one of Ouli’s elected saints.

Finding her holy icon here wasn’t a surprise.

”Do you remember this place?” Fang Hong asked.

Hes nodded.

Unable to resist, she groped her way forward, and Fang Hong had no choice but to follow. Turning a corner, they indeed came upon a side corridor.

The Hustings Cathedral faced the Inner City Lake of Dolifen, and this side corridor seemed to be exactly in that direction. Fang Hong saw that ahead was a semi-open arcade, the cold moonlight streaming through the columns, outside was a cliff, below which the lake’s water shimmered.

The light of the Silver Moon fell on the central icon, in people’s imagination, Lady Ailin had angel-like wings spread out to each side, half-kneeling on the ground, shielding the Holy Water Pool beside her knees.

But the pool had long since dried up.

The place was both silent and peaceful, offering a stark contrast to the evil and filth from the stable earlier, causing Fang Hong to feel incredibly out of place.

Although a sanctuary of Ouli was supposed to be like this—

the contrast of the place always made him feel a bit eerie. Hes kept silent too, taking two steps forward. In the moonlight, the girl’s body seemed almost transparent, reflecting the moonlight, shimmering in the glow.

But suddenly, she turned around, eyes wide with a hint of panic, and said, ”Don’t—”

Fang Hong was startled, quickly turning around, but behind him was still dark, nothing there. He heard footsteps coming from behind him, turned again, only to find that Hes had run off without looking back.

Wait!”

Fang Hong paused, hastily gathered the Void Crystal and transformed it into a Level III Walker, and immediately chased after her. He thought Hes wasn’t running very fast, it shouldn’t be hard to catch up.

But unexpectedly, by the time he reached the other end of the corridor, after another turn, he found that the way ahead was completely empty.

Fang Hong felt a chilling sensation rising from behind.

He was certain, he had seen Hes run ahead, and he was only lagging a step behind, yet she seemed to have vanished into thin air.

He couldn’t help but look around cautiously, feeling that the place was filled with an eerie atmosphere.

Then he saw another door.

A regular, worn wooden door—

...