Chapter 428

Chapter 341: Return

In the depths of a forest in the New World,

Amidst the misty woods, the former sacrificial ground of Wood Hoof was now in disarray, with broken and fallen trees scattered everywhere, colorful stones strewn about, and the environment no longer as tranquil as before after the great battle.

At this moment, several figures stood on this chaotic site. They were dressed in the attire of the indigenous people of the New World. Among them, standing in the center, were a young man and an elderly man.

The young man wore a thick hunting outfit made from hemp fabric and animal skins, with two painted stripes on his face and an eagle feather decoration on his head, which was Kapak. Beside Kapak stood an old man in a long robe, leaning on a cane, with countless animal teeth and bone objects hanging from his body, his hair and beard completely white. This old man was Uta, the elder shaman of the Tupá tribe and Kapak’s teacher. Around them were other members of the Tupá tribe, all dressed like warriors.

In the midst of the chaos of the sacrificial ground, a cleared area had been created. In this area, the stone table used to worship Wood Hoof had been re-erected, with various offerings placed on top. In front of the stone table, a large pattern had been drawn on the ground, depicting an abstract and bizarre image of a giant bull. Surrounding the pattern were small totem poles, forming a ceremonial site.

The Tupá warriors stood around the sacrificial ground, holding firearms seized from the whites, their expressions focused as they kept watch over the surroundings. Uta sat cross-legged in front of the ceremony site, calmly smoking his pipe, gazing at the sacrificial ground with a cloud of smoke. Meanwhile, Kapak stood beside him, holding a pocket watch, his expression focused as he watched the movement of the hands.

“Kapak… Has the time not come yet?” Uta exhaled another puff of white smoke and asked, while Kapak, looking at his pocket watch, immediately replied.

“It will be soon, Teacher Uta. In a few more minutes, you can start the spirit medium ceremony.”

Looking at the time indicated by the pocket watch, Kapak said, “There’s no problem, Teacher Uta. I am one of those whom they saved. Otherwise, I might have already been sent back to their nest by those white extraordinary beings who hunt Wood Hoof, and met with misfortune. Those friends on the other continent are also believers of Akka, and they guarantee that they will free Wood Hoof. You just need to perform the spirit medium ceremony to bring Wood Hoof over.”

Kapak explained to Uta, listening to his words, Uta took a few deep puffs of smoke, then slowly muttered.

“Akasha…”

Uta pondered a word as he smoked the tobacco in his pipe. To explain why the spirit medium ceremony needed to be held at a specific time, Kapak revealed some information about Akka to Uta.

At this point, Uta knew that the spirit suspected to be residing in Kapak’s body might not be any ordinary spirit. It was possible that it didn’t reside in Kapak at all, since none of his exorcism methods worked on it, and generally, spirits couldn’t reside in multiple bodies.

In Uta’s understanding, this Akasha did not seem to be attached to Kapak but had somehow established contact with him through a transcendent method. Moreover, the one connected to Akka was not just Kapak; there were many others on the white continent across the ocean who were similarly linked to Akka. Kapak’s knowledge likely came from Akka or these connections.

‘Akka… I wonder what kind of existence it is, capable of spanning oceans to connect people? It seems far more than just an evil spirit… No, it’s far more than just a spirit…’

Holding his pipe, Uta pondered intently in his heart. Initially, he thought that something was attached to Kapak, allowing him to suddenly know a lot of medical knowledge. But from the current situation, the existence connected to Kapak was far more complex than he had imagined.

‘To be involved with such an unpredictable existence, whether it is a blessing or a curse for the tribe remains uncertain… However, so far, the Kapak influenced by Akka has not shown any harm to the tribe… but it’s hard to say what might happen in the future.

‘If we can successfully save Wood Hoof this time, perhaps we can verify Akka’s stance towards us… At least, there doesn’t seem to be any ill intent…’

Holding his pipe and smoking, Uta thought to himself, and just then, Kapak, who had been watching his pocket watch, suddenly called out.

“Teacher Uta! The time has come! You can start!”

Listening to Kapak’s words, Uta took another deep puff of smoke from his pipe, exhaling a long stream of white smoke before placing the pipe on the ground. Focusing his mind, he closed his eyes and extended his hands toward the ceremony site.

…

In the Prit Kingdom, northwest of Tivyán.

Far from the Stronghold of the Strong Winds, atop a hill in the forest, the Underworld Coffin Cult and others were caught off guard by an unexpected situation.

Unexpectedly, amidst the cargo being loaded, a massive explosion occurred. The sound and fire erupted from within the stacked crates, engulfing the entire pile of crates and the surrounding people and skeletons. The shockwave rapidly spread outward, carrying countless debris.

In that instant, those near the crate pile vanished instantly. Skeletons shattered, human bodies torn apart, and the shockwave continued to spread outward, sending people flying a few meters away before continuing further.

When the explosion happened, Larina, who was resting on a distant rock, was startled. She immediately moved, her ghosts diving into the body of Kale, taking control and using him as a shield. The shockwave and high-speed fragments struck Kale’s back, causing him to scream in pain. Both of them were thrown to the ground by the shockwave.

After the explosion, dust filled the small hill. Everyone either died directly or was stunned, and some were injured by flying debris, lying on the ground in agony. All the skeletons were shattered, bones scattered everywhere.

“Aaah… Pain…”

Kale, struck by numerous fragments, lay on the ground writhing in pain. As a Bone Craftsman, his naturally tough skin due to the “Stone” extraordinary ability prevented the debris from piercing him, but it still caused extensive skin damage and intense pain.

“Cough… Cough…”

Larina, using Kale as a shield, successfully avoided being hit by the debris. She slowly got up, clutching her dizzy head, surveying the chaotic scene around her. Her gaze finally settled on the source of the explosion, where a large cloud of dust still lingered.

“Cough… Explosives… d*mn thief… dared to… set me up…”

Seeing the scene, Larina naturally knew it was the work of the thief who had just left. She clenched her teeth in anger and said. Their transaction had never been binding from the beginning, and everyone was only thinking about how to trick the other party. Now it was clear that the other side had the upper hand.

“Get up! You guys! This is not the time to lie down. The essences are about to escape! Get up!”

Larina shouted at her injured subordinates lying on the ground. Just then, her spiritual senses detected something. After a slight pause, she turned her head sharply and looked into the cloud of dust at the source of the explosion. There, a huge shadow was slowly appearing.