Chapter 2: The Riddle (2)
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From the peak of Phoenix Mountain, one could see clearly that the sudden appearance of the lava river had sliced the entire Small Thousand World in two.
Every morning, countless fresh Self-Exploding Beasts would surge forth from the crimson river of lava.
They shook their bodies, and the residual lava dripping from their skin scorched the land beneath their feet, leaving behind charred black spots.
Over time, the land stretching out alongside the lava river had transformed into a scorched black soil.
After a brief rest, these freshly minted Self-Exploding Beasts would follow a fixed route and launch a new wave of attacks towards the Main Peak.
Returning from his distant gaze, Fatty couldn’t help but sigh, “Phoenix Mountain is truly something! Those monsters act like we don’t even exist and completely ignore us.”
The Male Character frowned, saying, “We’ve searched Phoenix Mountain from top to bottom these past few days and haven’t found anything strange.”
“No, we must have overlooked something.”
Luo Ying instinctively patted her waist, only to realize it was empty, a flash of disappointment crossing her face. “Otherwise, how do we explain the monsters’ strange habit of ignoring Phoenix Mountain?”
The Male Character nodded. “What if we go back to the place where the Monster King’s incarnation is imprisoned and look for clues?”
“Been there ten times already, why go again?” Fatty said, unimpressed. “You think the eleventh time will make it magically bloom?”
White Peach didn’t join in their conversation. She spent every spare moment training, her increasingly aloof demeanor making Fatty quite anxious, prompting him to frequently interrupt her.
Seeing Fatty so preoccupied with White Peach, the Male Character said, “Then I’ll accompany Senior Sister for another round of investigation. The Second Palace Master is all yours.”
Fatty grinned, “Deal! I’ll even take care of lunch!”
After parting ways with Fatty, Luo Ying and the Male Character headed once more towards the cave located halfway up the mountain.
They hadn’t chosen to stay inside to dodge the weather mainly because the cave felt heavily suffocated, as if countless corpses had rotted into dust within, leaving nothing behind.
No wonder for all these years, the Monster King’s Evil Incarnation managed to survive.
Perhaps, such heavy d*ath energy was what suppressed the formidable strength of Evil Shiyuan.
“Senior Sister, let me lead the way.”
Luo Ying replied with a lackluster “mmh.”
The Male Character raised a torch and slowly navigated the narrow passage, asking as he walked, “It’s said that the Monster King fell into a trap at Phoenix Mountain and surrendered, but from what I’ve seen, those traps look so crude. How could the Monster King be foolish enough to fall for something like that?”
Luo Ying shrugged. “Who knows? Maybe the Monster King really is that dumb?”
The Male Character replied, “…This conversation is going nowhere.”
Luo Ying yawned, looking like she was suffering from a withdrawal from alcohol.
“If you ask me, the Monster King entering the Small Thousand World was a mistake. If I were the Monster King and aimed to dominate the Three Races, why would I bring all of the best monsters into the Small Thousand World? It makes no sense, especially since the Monster King had the upper hand at that time.”
The Male Character pondered. “That is true. While the Heavenly Sword Sect is the leaders of the Human Race, obliterating the Heavenly Sword Sect is the only way to truly dominate the human realm.
But the Small Thousand World is inside a Small Cave Heaven, and the risks of putting all troops in there would indeed be high.
Even if the Monster King couldn’t see the trap, with so many generals and even a Monster Queen assisting him, how could they not realize this issue?
Unless…”
The Male Character and Luo Ying exchanged glances, both recalling the haunting experiences they’d suffered in the East Sea Underground Palace.
“According to what White Peach said, four hundred years ago was another cycle of the gods reaping the strong from the Three Races. The Monster King led a massive group of monster elites to battle against the Human and Demon Races, and the brutality and scale of that war are indeed unimaginable.
Initially, the Monster Race was on a roll, nearly pushing the Heavenly Sword Sect into a corner even within the Small Thousand World.
But right near Phoenix Mountain, the Monster King fell into a trap laid by the Human and Demon Races working together. As a result, the monster clan was thrown into chaos, and the Humans and Demons seized the moment to counterattack. For days and nights, the three factions battled, ultimately leading to the annihilation of the monster elites, while the Humans and Demons barely survived, with the powerful practitioners mostly wiped out.”
Luo Ying recounted the officially recorded history that everyone was familiar with, and the Male Character listened intently.
“Looking at it now, there are many suspicious points in this story,” the Male Character observed.
Luo Ying nodded, her expression growing increasingly serious. “Yeah, I can’t think of any profound traps that could ensnare the Monster King.”
“Unless…”
They both said in unison, “He did it willingly.”
The Male Character stared blankly, “But why would he do that? The monsters trusted him so much, entrusting their future to the Monster King.”
Luo Ying sighed, “Neither of us were there, and besides, this is just a hypothesis.”
“Yeah, let’s see if we can find any clues around here.”
The two continued deeper into the cave, torches held aloft.
To be honest, the cave’s setup was quite shabby.
After all, their prisoner was known throughout the continent as the Monster King. Even though it was only an incarnation of his, the place looked like a dirt shack.
No wonder she had been in the Heavenly Sword Sect for so long without knowing there was a secret prison on Phoenix Mountain. It seems it had to be a deliberate cover-up by the Heavenly Sword Sect.
Outside the cage were some traces of a ruined magic formation, likely left behind from the time Ji Shen broke in.
Luo Ying asked in confusion, “If the Master truly valued Phoenix Mountain, then no matter how many people were there to hold things down, the experts on the Main Peak would’ve surely noticed something amiss and come to help. How could they let Fu Yetian slip through the cracks?”
The Male Character replied, “Or perhaps it’s been so long since any incidents that the guards started to slack off.”
He shrugged, “Still, this forced explanation feels a bit far-fetched. Ling Xiaozu doesn’t seem like that unreliable of a person.”
After several previous investigations, Luo Ying had felt the same way, but this time it was even stronger, prompting her to voice her thoughts.
So, the more they thought about the whole affair, the more puzzling it became.
They grasped something yet overlooked something else.
But throughout, this was merely conjecture on their part, lacking any clear, directional evidence.
If only they could find some evidence to complete the missing link, the whole matter would definitely become clear and the truth revealed.
The Male Character squeezed himself into the cage where Evil Shiyuan had once stayed.
Though he had already searched the place inside out multiple times without discovering any clues,
this time when he squatted on the ground with the torch raised, he spotted something he had overlooked before.
