This time, Yulia hadn’t tampered with anything—it was the teleportation array’s own mechanism.
Places like these naturally had traps. Someone has to take the first step.
And if there are volunteers rushing ahead, isn’t that perfect?
She had planned to let them scout the way anyway.
Even if there really were treasures inside that they snatched first, Yulia wasn’t worried.
As Edward had said, nothing here held any appeal for her.
The Jade Empire was far superior to this place, let alone the Golden Kingdom’s ancient legacy.
The things they fought tooth and nail for were probably just junk in Yulia’s eyes.
“Teacher, wait a bit before going in. The space on the other side is large, but we don’t know the specifics. There might be something dangerous—let them test it first.”
“Alright.”
After a while, the teleportation array remained silent.
Edward glanced at Yulia, and she nodded.
He stepped into the array.
A second later, Edward returned.
“Let’s go. There’s nothing inside except patterns and symbols.”
Yulia followed.
Emerging from the array, she narrowed her eyes.
The space inside was vast, but not dark.
The walls and floor emitted faint red and white glows, illuminating the area well enough.
Yulia swept her gaze around and saw the two men huddled in a corner again, grinning foolishly at her.
“We—we got a little excited earlier.”
“Hahaha! We’re more familiar with this place, so of course we had to scout ahead for you, my lord and lady!”
Yulia ignored them and turned her attention to the countless patterns and symbols covering the walls.
The so-called ‘symbols’ was something she recognized—the Senluo language.
She began studying the images in order, reading the accompanying text.
The more she saw, the darker her expression grew.
Combined with the text, she could piece together the story recorded here.
It was a ritual—or rather, an offering.
And the recipients of the offering were those towering, monstrous figures looming in the clouds.
The monsters came in many forms, each depicted differently across the murals.
But the common point was that the sacrificial offerings below them were small, insignificant, and numerous.
From the first mural to the last, fewer than one-tenth of the original number remained.
The text consisted of beautiful verses, praising human wisdom and divine mercy.
But against the blood-red imagery, the contrast was absurd and grotesque.
At the very end, the poem concluded:
“—This is the peace and tranquility we fought so desperately to obtain. Peace? Tranquility? Heh.”
“Kid, what’s wrong?” Edward gently patted Yulia’s shoulder.
She shook her head. “I just feel… a little sick.”
“You can understand this?”
“Yes, I can.” She closed her eyes and exhaled heavily. “I saw their desperation. Or rather… our desperation.”
“They sacrificed themselves, begging for the gods’ mercy. And the few who survived were doomed to repeat the same fate.”
Edward took her hand. “Let’s go. This place is too oppressive. I don’t feel right either.”
Suddenly, a furious shout erupted:
“What?! This is just some useless drivel?!”
Edward frowned and turned to see the General clawing at his own head, his face twisted with rage.
He grabbed the Strategist by the collar and screamed, “You f*cking said there’s treasure here! You swore we could break through to a higher realm! Look at this! What the hell is this?!”
The Strategist roared back, “You brainless oaf! If it weren’t for you dragging me down, I’d already be a legend! You’re a fat hog hoarding everything for yourself—a f*cking waste!”
The two hurled curses at each other, their voices escalating.
Edward’s frown deepened. “They’ve lost their minds.”
“Perhaps.” Yulia’s voice was calm. “This place is saturated with resentful energy.”
The two had been teetering on the edge of sanity this whole time, their emotions swinging wildly. The only thing keeping them going was the hope of treasures in the deepest part of the ruins.
Now that their hope was shattered, the suffocating resentful energy had eroded what little reason they had left.
As they spoke, the two men began brawling.
The General pummeled the Strategist with his fists, while the Strategist sank his teeth into the General’s shoulder.
With the General’s strength sealed and the Strategist’s limited power, neither could quickly overpower the other.
“Let’s go.”
Yulia turned and left.
Soon, she, Edward, and the remaining guards resurfaced.
Yulia looked at the disheveled soldiers—some sitting, some collapsed—and said coldly:
“Those two are still down there, in the deepest part. They’ve turned on each other. They’ve gone mad. You’re all doomed anyway.”
“Now, you have a choice. You can go down there and do whatever you want with them… or you can stay here and wait for death.”
She had no ability to lift their curse—and even if she did, she wouldn’t.
At her words, many of them numbly raised their heads and stared at her.
A moment later, the first man staggered to his feet and trudged toward the underground entrance.
Soon, others followed.
In the end, every last one of them descended into the ruins.
Yulia watched the entrance in silence.
After a pause, she raised her hand—then swept it downward.
The fissure collapsed, sealing shut completely.
“Teacher, I want to see a battlefield.”
“You still want to go?”
“Yes. It’s the last thing I want to do here.”
“Fine. I’ll take you to observe from a distance.”
Edward ordered the others to wait at the teleportation point, then led Yulia away.
Finding a battlefield wasn’t hard—they were everywhere. But Edward took her to the most brutal one.
Tens of thousands clashed on both sides.
Their war cries shook the heavens; their momentum was unstoppable.
But to Yulia, it was almost laughable.
This war is between humans. And in the end, the ones who lost will still be humans.
How is this any different from a sacrifice?
“Teacher, why is this place forever trapped in war? Why can’t it stop? Unlike the Jade Empire…”
“Many have studied this question. And they all reached the same conclusion.”
“Which is?”
“Survival.”
“Survival? Wouldn’t unification make survival easier? Like… like our Jade Empire?”
“No. That’s impossible here.”
Edward looked north—the direction of the Jade Empire.
“The people of Ashen Realm are far weaker than those of the Jade Empire. If they unified like us, it would invite Calamities.”
“You mean… there are no Calamities here?”
“Exactly. Calamity only befalls powerful, unified realms—like the Jade Empire or the Verdant Empire. That’s why the Ashen Realm must never unify. If it does, only destruction awaits.”
“…”
At that moment, Yulia finally understood the meaning behind the murals in the ruins.
But was this truly peace and tranquility?
Without the courage to rise against the heavens, it was nothing but a pitiful struggle for survival.
“Perhaps… it really is as you discovered in that text,” Edward suddenly said.
“Which text?”
“‘Calamity is the trial of the gods. The king shall return from the ashes’.”
“…” Yulia was silent for a moment before smiling faintly. “But Teacher, that’s only the first half. There’s more.”
“What is it?”
“‘What use are gods to me? I wield my sword and laugh at the heavens’.”
“Is that really—?”
“Who knows?” She shrugged dismissively. “Teacher, let’s go.”