I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

Drizzt, a dead man, now pays tribute to Lu Ban and his companions, who are facing death, through the distant past.

No wonder Lu Ban felt a sense of familiarity with the remains in the cave.

He didn't know what Drizzt's will would think after seeing him.

But Lu Ban knew that what Trist wanted to protect, he had indeed protected.

At the same time, Lu Ban also sensed a subtle connection of fate. The "Seven Chapters Secret Scripture of Xuanjun" left behind by Xuanjun was obtained by that foreigner, who studied and absorbed it and rewrote it into the "Nine Chapters Secret Scripture of Crane Cry," which he brought to the ruined capital. Now, Lu Ban has come to the ruined capital again because of the matter of Daoist Crane Cry, thus completing the loop.

Even Lu Ban was somewhat curious whether Trist's "Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Monarch's Secret Scripture" was created by him after obtaining the "Nine Chapters of the Crane's Cry Secret Scripture" and simplifying and deleting it. In this way, this knowledge would continuously circulate in the long river of time, achieving a closed loop.

“We need to investigate the matter of Daoist Heming. According to the information that Mr. Trist and I have collected, this Stormy Manor is not only Daoist Heming’s residence.”

Seeing that Lu Ban and Xi Ya remained silent, Stone spoke again.

"The Taoist Heming may still be alive here."

Chapter 614 Moths to a Flame

"Is Daoist Heming still alive?"

Having spent so long in the foreign land, Xi Ya had naturally come into contact with many things related to Daoist Heming. In her understanding, Daoist Heming should have already ascended to heaven, and his will had become like that of an evil god in those foreign lands, leaving only his corpse to be fought over.

From the perspective of the "now" ruined capital, he must have lived at least several hundred years ago. How could he still be alive today?

"To be precise, if you define death as the cessation of consciousness, then Daoist Heming has never died; if you define death as the abandonment of the physical body, then Daoist Heming has already died."

Stone flicked the ash from his pipe.

I don't like the way you talk.

Sia speaks frankly; at least Trist wouldn't say something so ambiguous and unclear.

“I’m sorry, Miss Sia, my profession has made me accustomed to maintaining an air of mystery. If telling only half the truth can achieve my goal, then the remaining half can fetch a good price. Of course, I will be careful in front of the Chosen One.”

Stone explained that he meant no harm, and then went on to say something.

"According to my and Mr. Trist's investigation, Daoist Heming did indeed ascend. The so-called ascension is the same as sublimation. He mastered a lot of knowledge that was severely polluted in the ruins, and may even have faced some great beings. When the pollution reached a certain limit, he lost his human body and became an existence like those monsters."

"His human remains contained a great deal of pollution. They were divided and collected by his disciples and sometimes appeared in the underground black market of the ruined city for sale. Those rich and stupid guys would spend a lot of money to buy them, grind them into powder and eat them in an attempt to enhance their own strength or prolong their lifespan."

"Of course, in the beginning, these powders did give them extraordinary sensations. They could feel their bodies becoming younger, their muscles stronger, their vision broader, and their thinking clearer. This was because the pollution brought them power. But then, after only a few years, most of these people would fall into madness because of the constant babbling in their ears, and ultimately meet a tragic end."

"Even so, the remains of Daoist Heming are still in high demand. People always have a sense of luck, always thinking that they won't be the ones to suffer misfortune. But no one knows that they are like moths drawn to a flame, rushing headlong toward destruction without realizing it."

At this point, Stone sighed.

These foolish rich people rush headlong into pollution, but aren't the chosen ones the same?

The chosen ones initially entered the Silent Land for power, to change their lives, and to pursue knowledge.

As the missions progressed and the truth of the alien realm was gradually revealed, the Chosen Ones discovered that it was not they who were pursuing knowledge, but rather knowledge that was pursuing them. Nevertheless, the Chosen Ones still had to continue to delve deeper into the alien realm to acquire more power, or they would fall into madness or die directly.

The more powerful a chosen one is, the more missions they undertake, the lower their sanity becomes, and the closer they are to madness.

The phrase "moths to a flame" perfectly describes the chosen ones.

"As for the spirit or soul of Daoist Heming, this involves the state after sublimation, or rather, the state of becoming a god."

After carefully considering his words, Stone said.

"When the knowledge that humans can absorb reaches a certain limit, the body collapses and the soul becomes alienated, and they will degenerate into monsters. However, there are exceptions. If one does not passively receive the infusion of knowledge, but actively seeks knowledge, there is a certain probability that one will not completely lose one's mind, but will be able to retain some of it, or use some special means to block the erosion of knowledge on oneself, and can also preserve one's will."

Upon hearing this, Lu Ban thought of Xuan Jun.

Drizzt must have also been corrupted to the level of the Great Old Ones, but his will was still able to be maintained and continued to a certain extent. From the perspective of ordinary people, Drizzt had already become a Mystic Lord, a demigod-like being.

谷聼

Therefore, as long as one is exposed to pollution under certain conditions, it is possible for one to be sublimated and become a deity.

"Daoist Heming has ascended, but not completely. He used a rather crude and primitive method of ascension—leaving the pollution inside the body while the soul leaves the body to seek a new vessel, thus gaining the most knowledge while avoiding pollution to the greatest extent possible."

Stone explained.

"Hmm? This way of describing it..."

Lu Ban quickly thought of his lost crowbar.

When Lu Ban grasps the crowbar, the corresponding methods of using the crowbar will cover his brain like a spider web, and knowledge will flood into his mind. However, once he releases the crowbar, the corresponding knowledge will disappear, without causing serious contamination to Lu Ban.

This method of inscribing knowledge onto objects can mitigate contamination to some extent. However, it also has drawbacks: once the object leaves one's possession, it no longer belongs to oneself, and its power is given to others.

For Daoist Heming, the body is also an object.

He left some of the severe pollution in his body, scattering it across various places, while his mind remained rational, lying dormant in the ruined city, waiting for the day when he could slowly digest the pollution and adapt to it. Then, he would retrieve his body through certain methods and continue to advance towards higher levels of pollution.

"Perhaps Daoist Heming is listening to us right now."

Stone smiled.

What do you know about the Night of Summoning the Souls?

Sia asked again.

The resurrection of the dead is a taboo topic in the Kingdom of Night. Even with magic, it is impossible to bring the dead back to life. However, the Night of Summoning Souls in this ruined city seems to be hinting that the dead may be resurrected.

"Summoning the soul is a hidden custom in the ruined capital. Only a small number of people know about it. These people are usually followers of the Crane Cry Sect. They believe that as long as the soul-summoning ceremony is performed on the ninth day after the death, the soul of the deceased will return to the body and be resurrected. Before that, the body needs to be kept intact or replaced with a fresher body."

Stone said as he recalled.

"The followers of the Crane Cry Sect have done some illegal things for this reason. You all know that those rich and powerful people dream of being resurrected, and their sycophantic subordinates will kill young people to please them and use them as ritual sacrifices."

"How stupid."

Xia scoffed at this.

"Will this ritual succeed, or is this just a simple scam by the Crane Cry Sect, like asking me, the Crane Cry Daoist, to send money?"

Lu Ban asked.

"At least to my knowledge, there are no successful examples."

Stone said, but then quickly changed the subject.

"But it is said that Daoist Heming himself used a similar method to bring back the soul."

Chapter 615 The Closed Loop of Fate

The room reeked of dampness and decay, even the curtains looked wet. Lu Ban looked out the window and saw that the sky had been covered with gloom, as if a downpour could fall at any moment. The distant forest was swaying in the wind, waves spreading from the treetops, making people uneasy.

Yes, this is Stormy Mountain Villa, which should be covered by endless storms. Sunshine is a precious thing, while darkness and storms are the main themes here.

Boom—

A bolt of lightning struck from the dark clouds, exploding amidst the swaying sea of ​​trees. The lightning seemed to ignite a fire, illuminating the lush forest with a dazzling red light, but soon, raindrops began to fall.

At first, it was just a few drops, but then a torrential downpour began, as if to wash away all the pollution in the world. Soon, the fire caused by the thunder was extinguished, and wisps of gray-black smoke rose. But before long, even the smoke disappeared. The whole world was cut off by the rain curtain, and Stormy Mountain Villa stood alone on the cliff, like an old man abandoned by the world.

The cold rain pounded against the glass window, making a noisy and chaotic sound.

The restaurant, separated by a wall, cast a bright yellow light on the profiles of the three chosen ones, but there was no warmth to be found there.

"Legend has it that Daoist Heming was originally just an unknown wanderer. Later, he obtained a secret technique taught by an immortal, cultivated it in seclusion, and then performed several miracles in front of people, becoming famous. Even the master of the ruined city knew his name. Daoist Heming took in many disciples and continued to expand his sect, eventually becoming a powerful organization above the ruined city."

Stone explained that it seemed to allow one to see the Taoist gradually ascend to wealth and power, eventually reaching the pinnacle of authority.

"This includes the art of bringing the dead back to life."

"A wealthy merchant in a ruined city died of illness. His family spent a fortune to invite Daoist Heming to perform a ritual, hoping to resurrect their master. Daoist Heming went and spent nine days preparing the ceremony. Finally, on the night of the ninth day, Daoist Heming successfully summoned the soul and brought the merchant back to life. The merchant rewarded Daoist Heming with a large sum of money and gifted him the Stormy Mountain Villa. Although the merchant eventually died of illness several years later, unable to escape his fate, Daoist Heming's reputation was thoroughly established after that incident."

Listening to Stone's story, Lu Ban quickly recalled the content mentioned in the "Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Monarch's Secret Scripture" that he had read.

The mud monster possesses the power to resurrect the dead. Of course, it doesn't resurrect the truly deceased, but rather monsters that have read their memories and disguised themselves as humans.

Stone certainly understands this as well.

"That's right. Daoist Heming must have summoned that monster and used it to replace the dead merchant, creating the illusion of resurrection."

Stone nodded.

The "Seven Chapters of the Mysterious Lord's Secret Scripture," or the "Nine Chapters of the Crane's Cry Secret Scripture," contains many descriptions of how to summon these monsters, how to control them, and how to use them to achieve immortality and healing.

But Lu Ban knew very well that it was just an illusion.

"So, Daoist Heming found a book about summoning monsters from other realms, learned the method of summoning, and then used it to profit?"

Xia asked.

"No, it might be more than that."

Lu Ban briefly recounted what he had seen and heard during his previous mission to the two of them.

After hearing Lu Ban's words, Stone frowned.

"Did Xuanjun create Heming Daoren, or did Heming Daoren create Xuanjun...? Mr. Trist has indeed been collecting information about Heming Daoren. He has also investigated the descendants of the Heming School and has obtained a lot of information about Heming Daoren's writings. It is very likely that he has compiled a complete summoning ritual based on this information..."

The not-so-young detective took a deep drag of his pipe smoke. Outside the window, the rain was getting heavier, with lightning and thunder threatening to engulf the mansion.

"Trist possesses knowledge not only about how to summon and control mud monsters, but also about how to seal these monsters, as well as information about some of the Great Old Ones. If he hadn't gathered these things, my world might have already been destroyed."

Lu Ban said that he was inclined to believe that the source of this knowledge was the dark-skinned man, but whether it was given to Trist or Crane Cry Daoist first was unknown.

The two have formed a closed loop of fate, intertwined like an ouroboros.

"...No, that's not it."

At this moment, Xia suddenly spoke up, denying Lu Ban's words.

“Your existence here, and your encounter with Drizzt and me, proves that your world will continue to exist after that. Even if Drizzt had not chosen to sacrifice himself, the Quiet Lands would certainly have sent other chosen ones to complete this task, because your existence is an established fact.”

She analyzed it using simple cause-and-effect logic.

"Or rather, among the alien realms we have observed, your world has survived to this day. Therefore, the existence of Xuanjun and the rise of Heming Daoist are inevitable. Just like, if you had not stopped Han Shuang back then, the Night Kingdom would certainly have been able to resist the demonic tide in another way, and my ancestors would have survived because I have already met you."

At this point, Xia's eyes flickered slightly.

"It's a bit complicated, my friend."

Stone rubbed his temples. He had never encountered any fellow travelers before, so he had no clear understanding of the time turbulence in the otherworld. At most, he could only sense the different speeds of time flow in different otherworlds.

"A closed loop of fate—this is something that can only happen in other realms."

As if she had just thought of something, Xia's eyes widened slightly. She found a napkin in the restaurant and used magic to draw on it.