« Why do I feel like something's off ? » dit soudain Feng Yiliu alors qu'ils traversaient la forêt.
« What's wrong ? » demanda Li Huailin, qui marchait en tête.
« How many bears have we killed ? » demanda Feng Yiliu.
« Huh ?
This … seven or eight ? »
Li Huailin réfléchit un instant. En chemin, ils avaient croisé sept ou huit Oursons en Peluche. Sans surprise, ils les avaient tous tués.
« It's eight. »
Feng Yiliu dit : « Everyone, aside from the first time, we haven't received any attacks from Teddy Bears in our subsequent battles. »
« Nonsense. This thing's attack swings are so big. We can dodge it with a simple movement, » répondit immédiatement Ton Millénaire Immuabilité. « Of course.
« The problem is … it's too easy to dodge … » dit Feng Yiliu. « Guys, this is a secret land we're talking about. In theory, the difficulty should be about the same as the Abyss of the same level. But look at the monsters that appear here. They can perfectly dodge their attacks. Don't you think it's strange ?
« Huh ?
Well, a little, » dit Millénaire après y avoir réfléchi.
« Finally, someone is using his brain … » dit l'Empereur de Jade.
« I've noticed that only Teddy Bears appear in this forest. Moreover, we only get 650 EXP after killing them. Don't you think it's a little low compared to the Abyss? » continua Feng Yiliu.
« Indeed. This EXP is similar to that of a Level 85 monster. It doesn't seem like a monster that has received any bonuses. » acquiesça Millénaire.
« Although it's a Secret Land's monster, it doesn't have any Attribute bonuses. Isn't that a little strange? » dit Feng Yiliu.
« Is there a conclusion? » demanda Li Huailin, qui marchait en tête.
« A conclusion? » dit Feng Yiliu après réflexion. « There's too little information. No conclusion. »
« Then what are you talking about? » fit Li Huailin en écartant les mains.
« I'm just a little curious, » dit Feng Yiliu.
« Well, there will be a conclusion after the quest is completed. Isn't it good to look forward to it now? » dit Li Huailin. « Oh, I think we're out of the forest. »
« Eh? »
Les quelques joueurs regardèrent devant eux. Effectivement, il n'y avait plus de forêt. Un très grand lac s'étendait devant eux. Ils n'en apercevaient pas les rives de part et d'autre. En revanche, ils distinguaient des montagnes sur l'autre rive.
Li Huailin baissa les yeux. L'eau du lac était très claire et limpide. On en voyait presque le fond.
Cependant, comme c'était un jour nuageux, peu de lumière du soleil atteignait le lac, ce qui lui donnait un aspect légèrement sombre.
« It doesn't look like we can swim across. »
Ton Millénaire Immuable jeta un coup d'œil et dit : « It looks like the other side is at least a few kilometers away. By the time we get there, the sky will be bright. »
Bien sûr, les joueurs de Cœur de Gloire pouvaient aller dans l'eau, et même plonger. Cependant, la vitesse de nage était calculée séparément de la vitesse de marche. Par défaut, la vitesse de nage des joueurs était très lente. Il existait de l'équipement pour l'augmenter, mais aucun des cinq joueurs n'en possédait encore.
Selon la vitesse de nage par défaut, il leur faudrait effectivement une demi-journée pour traverser le lac.
« That's why I said it's not this way … Look, we've reached the end of the road, haven't we?
Don't tell me we're really going to swim across. » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur étala les mains. « What do we do now, Mr. Leader? »
« There should be something nearby, » dit soudain Li Huailin avec certitude.
« Hey, you should give up. You're a man. Is it so hard to admit your mistake?
I know you're the one who led us the wrong way, » dit Ton Invocateur Empereur Invocateur.
« Huh? » Feng Yiliu et Millénaire Immuable se mirent aussi à regarder Li Huailin avec suspicion.
« No … In fact, I really think there's something here. » Li Huailin dit sérieusement.
« What could it be? It's obvious that you don't know the direction. Fortunately, we reached the end of the road after walking for ten minutes. Otherwise, I don't know how much time we would have wasted, » dit l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur en soupirant.
« No, I think it's here.
In fact, when I first entered the mystic realm, I already sensed this place from the hillside.
It's a forest, but there's only a lake here, and when I looked here from the hillside, I noticed a strange phenomenon, » dit Li Huailin.
« Strange phenomenon? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« It's cloudy, but I saw the lake emitting golden light … » dit Li Huailin.
« Golden light? »
L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur se tourna vers le lac. « There's no light at all. Did you see it wrong?
Did anyone else see it? »
« Ah?
I was only paying attention to the black smoke. I didn't notice the lake at all, » dit Millénaire Immuable.
« I didn't notice it either, » dit Feng Yiliu.
« Me, » Anran leva soudain la main et dit : « I saw it too. »
« Eh?
You saw it too? » dit l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur, surpris. « Really? »
« Yes. »
Anran acquiesça. « There was indeed light, just a few seconds before I saw the black smoke. I saw it more than once. »
« Hey, why didn't you say anything? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Yes. » Anran acquiesça.
« What do you mean by 'yes'? At least explain it to me, » hurla l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Actually, there's something else, » dit soudain Li Huailin.
« Something else? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« After arriving at the village, I noticed two things. First, the road, » dit Li Huailin.
« Road? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur, curieux.
« Yes, in fact, there were two roads in the village we passed just now. »
Li Huailin dit : « The first road is the one we found for the first time. It's the road to the village, but that's the other way around. This road is actually the road from the village to the outside, right? »
« Yes. » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur acquiesça.
« Now it's interesting. I also found the second road in the village. Where do you think the second road of the hidden village in the mystic realm leads to? » demanda Li Huailin.
« Huh?
I didn't notice it at all, » dit Millénaire Immuable.
« Didn't the villager say that there was a castle in the north?
It must lead there, » dit l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Yes, I thought so at first, but in fact, we all tried. At first, we all walked north, but we didn't see the road, right? » dit Li Huailin.
« Yes. » Feng Yiliu acquiesça. « There was no road at all. After a few steps, we reached the forest. »
« Where does it lead to? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Here, of course, by the lake, » dit Li Huailin.
« Here? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur regarda autour de lui.
« Look carefully at the soil under our feet … Although it hasn't been smashed, it obviously looks like someone has passed by. I'm sure that this is part of the road. If we go south, we should be able to return to the village. This place is at most fifteen minutes away from the village. If you don't believe me, you can give it a try. » Li Huailin pointa une direction et dit.
L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur baissa les yeux vers la terre sous ses pieds. Il ne l'avait pas remarquée avant, mais maintenant qu'il la regardait, c'était effectivement un peu étrange. Il n'y avait pas du tout d'herbes dessus. Une telle situation naturelle était impossible. Il était évident que quelqu'un était passé par là.
« Okay, now let's talk about my second discovery, » fit une pause Li Huailin et continua.
« What is it? »
L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur n'avait vraiment rien remarqué d'étrange au village, mais au final, Li Huailin en avait trouvé deux. Le premier était raisonnable, ce qui le rendait curieux quant à la deuxième découverte.
« First of all, think about it, » dit Li Huailin. « I said that no matter what, there would be someone left in the village who didn't die and then give us the mission, right? »
L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur roula des yeux et dit : « Yes, yes, we know that you're the most f*cking witty. »
« Usually, that's the case, but the situation this time is different. »
Li Huailin dit : « Usually, the village is full of corpses, so there was a person who didn't die who pretended to be dead and then was given the mission to us … »
« D*mn, I understand. No wonder I felt that something was wrong when I entered the village. »
Feng Yiliu comprit soudain. « There are no corpses at all. This time, the other party took all the corpses away. It's impossible to leave only one person in the village. »
« Yes, don't you think it's strange? Why did the other party take away the corpses but leave a person who isn't completely dead? » demanda Li Huailin.
« Is it a trap?
Actually, the other party deliberately left that person behind? » supposa l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Stupid, how did the other party know that someone would come to the village? Why did they set up a trap? The other party shouldn't have known about the existence of our team until now, right? » dit Li Huailin.
« Yes, what's going on? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« It's very simple, because this person wasn't in the village when something happened, » dit Li Huailin.
« Eh? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur fut stupéfait. « That's not right, then how did he die? »
« A bear, » dit Li Huailin en tendant un doigt.
« Impossible, the other party had a knife wound on his body, » dit immédiatement l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur. « If he was killed by a bear, it wouldn't be a knife wound. »
« Yes, there's a huge knife wound on the left side of his chest, » dit Feng Yiliu.
« A knife wound doesn't have to be cut with a knife. You can also use an axe, » dit Li Huailin.
« An axe? »
L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur pensa soudain à l'objet de quête, la vieille hache. « Wait, it's true that when the axe was handed to us, there was blood on it. However, the other party was originally covered in blood, so it's normal for it to be covered in blood. But you have to be clear, whether it's a knife or an axe, the bear won't use either. »
« So, in fact, although the knife wound looks very scary, it's actually not fatal, » dit Li Huailin. « Think carefully, when the other party died, did he cover his chest with his hand? »
« Eh?
Is that important?
I … didn't pay attention … » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur essaya de se rappeler un peu, mais il n'y parvint toujours pas. Il n'avait pas du tout prêté attention à un si petit détail.
« The right side, » coupa soudain Anran. « That's right. »
« Yes, it's the right side. Think carefully, when a person is about to die, you will usually subconsciously cover the place where your injury is more serious. However, the knife wound was on the left side. Why did the guy cover the right side? »
Li Huailin dit : « It's very simple. The left side was just a scratch, and the right side where the bear hit was the fatal wound. »
« Huh? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur eut soudain l'impression de ne pas suivre. « Can you explain it more clearly? »
« Simply put, this guy was holding an axe and was attacked by the bear. Then, he was hit several times by the bear. In the end, one of the hits hit the axe, and the axe flew out and scratched the other party at the same time. However, because the axe was very important, he picked it up and continued to fight. In the end, he still couldn't win against the bear, and then he received a fatal blow, » dit Li Huailin.
« Is that so? » dit l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur, incrédule.
« Otherwise, I can't explain the situation at the scene, » dit Li Huailin. « Why don't you explain it? »
« Hmm … » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur y réfléchit. « How about this? Even if he was killed by a bear, what does that have to do with us? Anyway, the other party is an NPC who conveys the mission. Anyway, no matter how he died, he still gave us the mission. »
« Haven't you noticed yet? » dit Li Huailin. « There's a very strange place here. »
« Huh? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur dit, confus. « What strange place? »
« It's the axe, » dit Li Huailin. « Why is this guy holding an axe? »
« Huh?
How is that strange? Isn't this axe the treasure of the village?
He … Eh, wait … He's not in the village … » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur comprit soudain.
« Do you understand now? He didn't have time to return to the village to get the axe.
When he noticed it, the village was already in ruins. All the houses were on fire. If the axe was in any house in the village, he wouldn't have been able to go in and get it. Everyone in the village has been taken away, so he wouldn't have been able to get it from the villagers. »
Li Huailin dit : « In fact, he was attacked by a bear before he reached the village. He fought and retreated back to the village, and then fell there. The blood on the ground under his feet began to drip from the outside. It means that he walked to the village after he was injured. The place where he fell is near the other road I mentioned. »
« Huh?
The more I listen, the more confused I become. If your hypothesis is correct, then where did this axe come from? » dit l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« It's very simple. He took the axe back to the village. That explains everything, » dit Li Huailin.
« Huh?
So he's the guardian of the village's treasure, so he carries the axe with him? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Do you think so?
Based on his clothes, he doesn't seem to have a high status in the village, and he's not the oldest either. If it's a normal village, such things would be handed over to the village chief or the oldest person for safekeeping. »
Li Huailin dit : « It's indeed possible that he's the guardian of the treasure, but it's infinitely close to zero. He can't even beat a bear, so how can he protect the treasure?
And he carries the village's treasure with him?
It's too strange. I really can't agree. »
« Then why is he holding the axe? » demanda l'Empereur de Jade Invocateur.
« Actually, you should ask him where he got the axe. »
Li Huailin dit : « Indeed, the other party said that the axe is the village's treasure, but the treasure didn't say that it had to be placed in the village. Could it be … here? »
« Huh? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur dit, curieux, « Here? »
« Yes, based on what I just said, there's something strange about the lake, and the village has a road that leads to the lake. Secondly, the axe was obtained by the villager outside the village.
There's only one explanation that can explain the situation. I'll tell you now.
First of all, when the village was destroyed, this villager was by the lake. I don't know what he was doing … »
« Don't know what he was doing? » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur l'interrompit.
« Maybe he was fishing, or maybe he was looking at the scenery. That's not important. »
Li Huailin dit tranquillement : « What's important is that when he unconsciously turned his head, he realized that there was black smoke rising into the sky in the direction of his village. »
Li Huailin pointa dans la direction du village et dit : « Something big must have happened in the village. That's what he thought at the time because there have been bad omens in the village recently. Just like the mission you took, you came here to investigate, right? »
« Yes, I met a villager in the main city. He asked me to investigate. » L'Empereur de Jade Invocateur acquiesça.
« So, he realized that the situation was not good. He could roughly guess that something big had happened in the village, so he quickly ran in the direction of the village. However, after taking two steps, he felt that something was wrong. He was just an ordinary person. Even if he rushed back, he would only die. He wouldn't be able to help at all. »
Li Huailin dit vivement : « However, at that moment, he had an idea. It was the treasure in the village. If he brought it back to the village, a miracle might happen. So, he immediately turned around and took the treasure, which was the axe, and rushed back to the village. »
« Unexpectedly, he was attacked by a bear on his way back. He fought for a while, but unfortunately, he was seriously injured. He ran back to the village with difficulty, only to find that the village had been destroyed, and everyone was gone. In despair, he collapsed. Then, we appeared, » dit Li Huailin.
« This … » L'Empereur de Jade réfléchit en écoutant. Bien que ce que disait Li Huailin n'était au fond qu'une supposition, il trouvait cela très raisonnable. « It seems that if that's the case, it does make sense. »
« Yes, it makes sense. »
Feng Yiliu, qui se tenait à côté, acquiesça. « So far, this is the result of the information we have gathered. »
« Oh!
That's what happened. » Le Millénaire Immuable acquiesça aussi. « Brother Awesome, you have a way. »
« Well, according to my speculation, this is the place where the other party obtained the axe.
Since this axe is the treasure of the village, it is very likely that the villagers worshiped it like a divine object, and the place of worship is … »
En parlant, Li Huailin pointa la route au sol. « This leads to the village. If we walk along the other side, we should be able to find the original location of the axe. I think we should be able to figure out what this axe is. »
Après cela, Li Huailin pointa l'autre direction sous ses pieds. « It should be there. Let's see if I'm right. »