Pillar of Yita

Fang Hong picked up the Attendant’s Crest from the ground. He calmed down and looked around. The crystal light was dim, the underground was dark, damp, and cold, with moss growing all over the walls. The hall was circular, about fifty steps from east to west and north to south, with no exit other than the entrance.

The ground beneath his feet was uneven, with some rough patterns. By brushing away the dust with his hand, he could see shallow grooves underneath. The grooves, either straight or curved, extended in all directions, forming a neat pattern.

Fang Hong straightened up to see further. His eyes flickered in the darkness as if he could see the place as it was when it was first completed. ”Is this a Magic Array?” he asked Miss Tata on his shoulder.

”It looks very similar.” Tata agreed with his observation.

Fang Hong walked forward along the patterns, taking a total of thirty-three steps. The patterns converged on the north side of the hall, where something seemed to be beneath. He commanded the Energy Angel to sweep away the dust, revealing a wolf’s head mark on the ground.

Seeing this scene, Fang Hong suddenly thought of something. He raised the crystal, and the soft light illuminated the northern wall. From the ceiling hung a tangled mess of vines, casting chaotic shadows.

He walked over, parted the branches with his hand, and indeed, behind the stone wall was a wolf’s head crest, surrounded by thorns, with a line of small characters carved into the stone:

’Awe-inspiring and just—’

Seeing this, Fang Hong remembered why the wolf’s head on the ring in the painting looked familiar; it was the crest of the Rogsel Family.

Speaking of which, he had some connection with this family. He possessed an inheritance right from the Rogsel Family that he had unintentionally obtained in the Dolifen Fantasy.

In the Phantom Realm, Dolifen’s Praetor, Rockland Rogsel, was the last Family Head of the Rogsel Family, who perished in a great fire thirty years ago. His final obsession in life was bound with the Dragon’s Golden Eyes. After Fang Hong avenged him in the Phantom Realm, he received this peculiar inheritance.

Although the Rogsel Family was located on the Scepter Coast, it was possible that this was a branch family formed through marriage, so it wasn’t surprising for this crest to appear here. Fang Hong couldn’t help but think of the girl in the painting, curious about her identity.

He looked at the stone wall, wondering if his inheritance right could play a role here. With this in mind, he placed his hand on the stone wall, but after a moment, nothing happened.

He then thought that the Rogsel Family revered strict hierarchy and prided themselves on blood; perhaps the Magic Array used ’blood’ as a medium. He reversed his hand, stained a bit of blood on his chest, and pressed it against the stone wall.

This time, a miracle occurred. Fang Hong realized that his hand passed through the stone wall without obstruction, his palm vanishing behind it, leaving only part of his forearm, as if passing through a wall of a phantom.

He took a gentle breath, tried to move forward, and the stone wall gradually engulfed his elbow, upper arm, and even his nose; then, in a blink, he found himself on the other side of the stone wall. The faint glow from the Illumination Crystal in his left hand outlined a low, narrow passageway, with tangled roots extending from all sides, casting shadows.

The passageway seemed hastily carved out, low and uneven, even forcing him to stoop. More importantly, he found bloodstains on the ground, just recently dried.

Following the bloodstains, he hadn’t gone far before light appeared in the darkness ahead. Seeing this, Fang Hong extinguished the Illumination Crystal and sent the Clockwork Fairy flying in that direction.

But in that direction, he didn’t see Gita; the field of view was empty as if the Clockwork Fairy entered a stone chamber.

On either side of the stone chamber stood a statue, their hollow eyes staring forward. In the center was a stone platform, black and heavy, resembling igneous rock. On either side of the platform, luminescent crystals grew, the source of the earlier light.

Seeing nothing else in the stone chamber, Fang Hong lifted his Wind Goggles and walked over to examine the crystals, surprised to find that they were all impure Magic Crystals.

But this golden Magic Crystal, he had rarely seen elsewhere, as the crystal’s color typically represented the magic attribute. What attribute does gold represent?

”Miss Tata, these Magic Crystals—?” Fang Hong broke off a piece and placed it in his palm. Its pure golden color was as unblemished as amber.

But amber doesn’t have such a regular shape.

Tata shook her head, indicating she hadn’t seen similar crystals either. ”The magic here is very rich, forming these crystals. They have taken a hundred years to form.”

Unfortunately, Magic Crystals are too common in nature; this level isn’t worth much, so Fang Hong only pocketed a small piece before continuing forward. He had a faint sense that the magic pooling in the valley originated from the underground here.

When he passed the stone platform, he glanced at it inadvertently, feeling the depth of the igneous rock did not appear natural. It looked more like layers of blood once flowed across the platform, forming this color as it dried.

He couldn’t help but shudder, touching it to discover that he was overthinking. The stone platform was smooth as a mirror, and the rock’s color was intrinsic. Nevertheless, as he touched the platform, a feeling of oppression flashed through his mind, instinctively pulling back his hand—

”Who’s there!”

Suddenly, Fang Hong heard Miss Tata’s somewhat stern questioning voice.