The black sun hangs high

Chapter 237 The Fluids of the Corrupted Flying Dragon

Hearing Theseus's words, Hugh frowned and asked, "From what you're saying, it seems that I have to survive what's coming and resolve all those troubles to fulfill the requirement of 'stepping out of the script,' is that what you mean?"

"More or less, but there's never a clear standard or limit for these kinds of things. You can decide for yourself."

After speaking to Hughes at such a serious level for so long, Theseus reverted to his usual lazy demeanor. He leaned back in his chair, gently shaking his leg as he said to Hughes, "But this time, don't expect me to step in and solve any problems for you... After all, this time, the challenges you face are much greater, and if I intervene, it will most likely lead to even more terrible trouble."

Hughes could hardly believe that one day he would hear the word "terrible trouble" from Theseus's mouth.

So what kind of being could make Theseus so restrained?
Hugh thought for a moment, then felt a chill run down his spine.

So he tried to ask more questions, but before he could finish speaking, Hugh found that he couldn't make a sound at all. It was as if some force in this dream sanctuary had sealed his mouth, preventing him from making any noise.

"Shhh."

Theseus raised a finger, making a "shush" gesture: "There are some names and some things that are absolutely taboo anywhere, even within this sanctuary... I can talk about them, but you can't, at least not now, understand?"

Seeing Hugh nod, Theseus withdrew his fingers. With the removal of that powerful restriction, Hugh finally regained the right to speak within this dream sanctuary.

At this moment, Theseus casually added, "If you can, there are some things you'd better not even think about. So-called gods always possess abilities beyond your comprehension, and right now, you happen to be benefiting from their remaining power in this world, therefore..."

He raised his hand and gently tapped his head: "Managing your thoughts will do you good."

"I see."

Hughes sighed and accepted Theseus's advice.

However, he also knew that controlling his own thoughts was not an easy task. Some things, the more you don’t want to think about them, the more likely they are to pop into your mind. Fortunately, he now possessed extraordinary power far beyond that of ordinary people. With his magic, he was still able to interfere with and influence his mental world to a considerable extent.

Theseus smiled. "If you need it, I can try to help you... Didn't your original world have a term? I remember it was something like 'thought imprint'? It may not be accurate, but I can give you some profound hints."

A malicious, comical expression appeared on Theseus's face: "Well, interested?"

Hugh quickly shook his head: "Not yet, thank you."

"it's a pity."

The conversation between the two finally came to an end, and Hugh finally had the opportunity to ask about the "sacrifice" and "exchange" matters. He said, "I brought the 'eyeball of the spider that walks through the water' and the 'body fluid of the rotten dragon'... The quality has not been verified, but they seem to be fine. Can you give me some advice on this?"

"Aha..."

Theseus lazily shifted his chair, turned back to the computer screen, and reopened it. He then casually replied, "With your current abilities, you can probably only handle one more of them at most. However, I won't make the choice for you; I can only offer some directional suggestions. Consider it a 'tip' for your excellent performance during this period."

As he spoke, Theseus raised his hand and gripped the mouse: "If you want to increase your chances of 'survival,' then you can try sacrificing the eyeballs of those spiders. They can give you some advantage in... uh, 'running away.'"

He paused, then continued, "But if it were me, I would probably choose 'Foul-Smelling Dragon Fluid' because it's interesting enough and might bring about some unexpected changes."

Having said that, the faceless god turned his head, and as if to deliberately annoy Hugh or affect his mindset, Theseus once again uttered that rather "soft" feminine voice: "The moment of choice has arrived, and I am looking forward to it!"

……

Hugh returned to the other side of the shelter with a strange expression on his face.

He felt that although Theseus's behavior and attitude towards him had become much milder during this period, the twisted and strange tendencies in his personality were still very obvious. His attitude of constantly switching between being unserious and overly serious was really giving him a headache.

But this time, the message that Hugh received from Theseus was also very important.

At least for now, Theseus does not seem to have any aversion or hostility towards the goddess Merle who shaped the present-day Vaan. On the contrary, his words and actions suggest that he may even be on the opposite side of the ancient gods.

This may sound incredible, but as Theseus said, the choices he might make and his inclinations cannot be judged simply by the concept of "position." In other words, it is entirely possible that he might temporarily choose to favor one side over the other for some unknown purpose.

For Hughes at this point, that message is enough.

He stopped in front of the two alchemical materials he had brought and began to seriously consider the directional advice Theseus had given him.

A moment later, Hugh reached for the alchemical container filled with the strange slime. “I must stick to my original idea… Improving the escape rate is not what I need most right now. As Theseus said, my personal fate is intertwined with the fate of the group, and that is the key to my true escape from that ‘preordained script.’”

Hugh finally made up his mind. He took the alchemical container in his hand, then turned and walked to the corridor next to him. Soon, he came to a water dispenser.

The water dispenser's bucket was empty, and the logos and text that should have been printed on it had been completely replaced by black, dark, misty script. Looking at these unfamiliar characters that he couldn't understand at all, Hugh suddenly remembered a question he hadn't had a chance to ask Theseus.

He wondered if this sanctuary truly existed in his dream, or if what he perceived as a "dream" was actually just a form of entering the sanctuary? In what other space did it actually exist?
as well as……

Will I have the opportunity to leave this sanctuary and explore the world outside?
However, these chaotic thoughts lasted only a moment before being immediately dismissed by Hugh. This was not the issue he should be thinking about now. Solving his current predicament and increasing his chips and trump cards were what he should really be doing.

Given the unusual phenomena that occurred when other "offers" were sacrificed previously, Hugh quickly adjusted his state. After making sufficient preparations and taking precautions, the Mage's Hand immediately picked up the alchemical container for Hugh and began to slowly float towards the water dispenser that was shrouded in mist.

As with every sacrifice Hugh had ever made, as the offering approached the container that "imprisoned" the unknown ancient creation, the black misty script that served as the seal "came to life." It began to slowly twist and change its form. The strange script that Hugh had initially perceived as "corrupted dragon fluid" eventually transformed into one writhing black serpent after another.

Under Hugh's watchful gaze, the black snakes formed from mist began to meander along the water dispenser's bucket. Then, the snakes' heads slowly rose and stretched into the air, swaying from side to side. A crack appeared on their mist-formed "heads."

That's a mouth, or rather, a mouthpart.

Among them, Hughes saw a series of interlocking, sharp black serrations.

As these dark shadows swayed their heads, the serrated edges began to "rotate" in a way that was difficult for humans to understand. This bizarre structure reminded Hugh of a marine creature called a "lamellae" from his original world.

However, these shadows were clearly not as simple as "snakes" or "eels." As they swayed, Hugh saw that their slender bodies, made of mist, had several protrusions. These protrusions were quite strange in shape, looking like limbs or wings that were about to grow.

Hugh frowned and waved his hand, and the Mage Hand immediately pushed the container filled with the fluids of the Corrupted Wyvern forward.

The next instant, the black shadows that "grew" out of the water dispenser's bucket became excited. They coiled up and instantly shredded the mage's hand carrying the container into magical powder. The can-shaped container filled with viscous liquid was tightly wrapped and wrapped around by them, and those chilling spiral serrations also stuck to the container.

The container, which had undergone special processing to hold corrosive liquids, underwent a strange change at this moment—it began to melt.

It's like putting ice or butter into a furnace.

The originally sturdy and corrosion-resistant jar began to dissolve and collapse in an instant. Hugh saw the metal parts on it begin to deform at an extremely fast speed, and then turn into some kind of viscous liquid that was difficult to distinguish. Then, the transparent glass on the jar and the magical ritual attached to the glass also dissolved completely in the entanglement of these black shadows. During this process, Hugh heard a strange sound with an extremely high frequency that made his hair stand on end.

It was as if countless mouths were sucking and gnawing at the can, or as if they were whispering secrets.

Soon, the jar itself was completely dissolved, and the shadows began to rapidly shrink, forming a new container with their long, narrow bodies. The mouthparts with sharp serrated edges then probed into the interior of this "new container" and began to suck up the putrid dragon fluids that emitted a strange odor.

As an extremely rare and infamous species among magical creatures, the Corruption Wyverns have always been a source of great controversy in the entire magical academic world and even the biological world.

Many scholars believe that these wyverns, whose body structures have long been severely eroded but who are still able to survive, are not actually worthy of being called a new "species"; they are simply some outliers in the vast wyvern population.

However, many spellcasters who study magical creatures believe that these creatures living in harsh environments such as swamps have actually formed a unique ecosystem. Their growth, predation, habits, and so on are completely different from ordinary magical creatures, and they can naturally be regarded as a unique species.

Of course, some people take a middle ground, believing that the Corruption Wyverns are actually an unexpected branch in the evolution of magical creatures, and that they may have retained some characteristics of their ancient ancestors, which is why they are so different...

But no matter what, one fact remains unchanged.

That is, no one in the entire Vaan would like the bodily fluids of this creature. Anyone, whether elf or goblin, would feel a strange sense of disgust and fear upon smelling them.

This reaction is innate and extremely similar, as if the smell had once caused severe psychological trauma to members of these different races.

Hughes was no exception.

The moment he caught a whiff of these scents, he cautiously took a step back. At the same time, his reliable fighting force, the Sprinting Rat and the Touch of Karron, appeared one after the other. Even his Mirror Messenger clone stood beside him in the slowly drifting mist. Hugh casually picked up the crystal gun he carried with him and handed it to his clone. The figure that looked exactly like Hugh skillfully took the gun and, with the help of simple tricks he had mastered, created several usable magic bullets.

Hugh himself gently shook his palm, and the wolf fang tattoo on his wrist immediately trembled slightly. Then, the Hound's Fang, which could summon court hounds and directly cause amazing damage, appeared in Hugh's hand.

Although he didn't know what would happen next, the indescribable eeriness gave him a strange feeling of facing a terrifying enemy.

This forced him to be on high alert.

(End of this chapter)