Wasteland Echoer.

Chapter 538: The Road Outward
"'Future'?" Wright took a few steps forward in amazement, looked up and down at the "Future", and said:

"You are not Dak, the human who accepted my commission in the Gray Dream, right?"

"Of course, I'm not." Future shook his head and replied:
"I came here just to save us Lost Ones. If possible, I would also like to save Cruzd and mankind."

Light always remained alert to the "future" that suddenly appeared before his eyes as an enemy. When he was in the Empire of Sune, most of the Lost Ones he met had mental problems. Even Natasha, the "Goddess of Love", showed a hysterical side with a pistol downstairs in the kerosene lamp shop in the city of Sogra.

However, compared to the Imperial soldiers wearing diving suits that could not be removed under "MB-2000: Alien Waters", the violent alien beastman Soukod, or Atto under the Sugra Waterway, or even the killer whale in the Scarlet Moon Arena, "Future" seemed too gentle and calm, seemingly non-aggressive, and did not seem to pose any threat to Wright.

In view of this, Wright did not launch an attack or defense immediately. The eight "Dark Touches" could not be retracted anyway, so he simply curled them up and hung them on his shoulders, wrapped them around his waist, and hung them behind him.

Wading through the puddle of water that had been dyed red by the flame power and blood of the Lord of Eternal Red, Light walked in front of the "Future" and asked:
"Do you know the way out? I have been trapped here for thirty years and I want to leave. However, this door has always been closed until you came and it opened."

"Since I can find the way in, I can also find the way out." "Future" coughed a few times, looked at Wright, and said in an affirmative tone:
"My profession is [Explorer]. We naturally have the ability to peek into things hidden behind the fog. Moreover, my ability was sublimated by a dead dragon, which allows me to always find the right direction when doing 'two difficult problems'."

"Future" said, pointing to the "Non-Euclidean Tunnel" behind him, and said:

"After the 'wind wall' in the 'Bisrunai' area was destroyed, the 'Red Fantasy Ruins' exposed outside had three entrances. One of them was the 'Central Culture Ruins' discovered by Yaroslav, the commander-in-chief of the Federation's 'Red Fantasy Ruins' campaign, after he defeated the 'Newly Created Snake Girl'."

"'Central culture ruins'? What is that?" Wright asked curiously.

"Although the Central Empire originated from the east-west transportation route east of the central lake, with the famous port city of Constantinia as its head, the wider territory it ruled was in the vast desert area centered on the 'Land of the Moon'." Future glanced at the mechanical watch on his wrist and explained:

"South of the Far Southeast Region of the Cruz Federation is an endless desert area that has long been wiped out by the gods. The Federation Committee calls it the 'Hopeless Sand Country'. It was once the residence of nomadic tribes. In order to survive in the desert, they invented the 'Ermama Headdress', 'Tower of Aidari', 'Temple of the Lord', etc. The entrance to the 'Red Fantasy Ruins' touches the 'Central Cultural Ruins', which have a strong desert architectural style."

"Oh? Tell me in detail, it's really new." Wright urged.

"Half of it is buried under the yellow sand. It is hard to imagine that there is such a miniature desert without any snow in the ice and snow wasteland. The other half is built in the cave left by hollowing out the ground. In fact, on the surface, the entrance controlled by the federal army is a door, the most formal gate leading to the deepest part of the ruins." "Future" narrated:

"This 'wind wall' has existed for much longer than we thought. Perhaps in the Dragon Age or the Human Age, this was not an ice field but a desert. I heard that there is a beast that humans cannot touch in the waters separating the ice layer and the ice-free port at the edge of the Demon City. It is this beast that turns the cold wind that should have blown toward the coast downward, turning the northern border of Cruzde into a world of ice and snow, and making the land that was originally unsuitable for farming fertile, thus creating the Cruzde civilization."

"Well, 'Future'... allow me to call you that. After all, I can't remember those long Western names." After getting the nod of "Future", Wright continued to ask:

"'Future', did you come in through the door 'half buried under the sand'?"

"Of course not." Future shook his head, pointed at his alienated arm, and said:
"It was the 'Ancient Power' that guided me here. The 'Ancient Power' once saved me from the confusion of 'Wu Xin'. Later, in the 'Bitter Ruins', when I fought against Ivan XXII, the initiator of this wasteland disaster, it was also it that gave me the power to defeat evil.

"The road I took was the one that was opened up during the war between humans and dragons. It was originally covered by a solid layer of ice. Due to the 'Moon Finger Ceremony' and the subsequent 'Sacrifice Ceremony' conducted by the Federal Committee, the 'chain' element that was originally dormant in the soil, ice and snow was stimulated in large quantities, which in turn caused an underground explosion." "'Chain' element? What is that?" Wright asked.

"This is the key to the explosion of the 'Fire of Heavenly Punishment'. When the 'Fire of Heavenly Punishment' explodes, the 'chain' elements will quickly split, and then interact with each other, causing collapse and releasing the energy stored in the stable structure, just like dominoes, and eventually causing an explosion with power comparable to that of a god." "Future" explained:

"Hehe, but, those idiots in the Federal Committee only saw the disappearance of the 'wind wall' and didn't notice the underground explosion of the 'chain' element. I, on the other hand, relied on the 'ancient power' to obtain the information given by the Creator, found the only oasis in the wasteland, found the cave covered by vegetation, and came here."

"Future" looked at Wright with a proud look, as if seeking the approval of this "evil god", but Wright's facial expression remained calm, without any ripples. Feeling bored, "Future" simply put his hands on the back of his head and continued in a childish tone:
"The situation here is extremely complicated. I am sure that most of the space here is not a physical entity, but the result of different dimensions and planes intertwined. Moreover, every time I enter a new plane, I will quickly forget all the information of the previous plane. Even if I write it on my hand, it will disappear with the change of space."

"So, even if we go out from here... and then go back, it will be very difficult?" Wright murmured, seeming a little disappointed.

"It's impossible to say it's not difficult. After all, Ivan XXII placed the 'Master Control Fire of Heavenly Punishment' here to prevent people from finding it later. By the way, I also came here for another purpose, which is to stop Ivan XXII's plot to destroy Cruzde." "Future" further explained:

"The emergence of the 'Heartless Virus' and the arrival of the 'New Metacrisis' are actually the result of Ivan XXII's 'New Construction Plan'. This great emperor, believed by the Cruzd people, calculated the exact time of the empire's demise. In order to ensure that he could rule Cruzd for eternity, and even rule the world, he selected a group of outstanding officers with strong combat effectiveness and great wisdom, and they fell asleep with him in the 'Ku Shen Ruins'.

"In Cruzde, the Ivanov virus was placed in advance, waiting for the right time to be released, so that the inferior people he considered would be destroyed and the excellent people could evolve. We all know what happened afterwards. The virus broke out in the Third Rebellion Campaign between Cruzde Empire and Aventlai. Afterwards, the major empires in the world fell one after another. Only the Flame Empire successfully resisted the invasion of the Heartless Virus, leaving a continuous piece of pure land for the entire human race."

"You just talked about the causes and consequences of the birth of the 'New Dollar Crisis'. What I'm more curious about is Ivan XXII's... uh... conspiracy to destroy Cruzde?" Wright asked the key question.

"'Fire of Heaven's Punishment.'" Future looked at Light with pleading eyes and replied:
"Ivan XXII probably went insane when he set up the 'New Construction Plan'. He was so cruel that he buried the 'Fire of Heavenly Punishment' here. Once he dies, the connection between the 'Kushen Ruins' and the 'Honghuan Ruins' through the underground device will be severed.

"The 'Master Control Fire of Heavenly Punishment' located in the 'Red Fantasy Ruins' will be detonated first, and within a few days, the 'Supporting' Fire of Heavenly Punishment that was previously placed in geologically weak areas and energy concentration areas throughout Cruzde will be detonated."

"What consequences will this have?" Wright asked when he saw that "Future" paused and there seemed to be a flash of fear in his eyes.

"An explosion on a larger scale." Future pursed his lips and replied:

"After the explosion of these geologically weak areas, natural disasters will be triggered that the Federation is completely unable to control. Production will stop, and cities and strongholds will be submerged. The explosion of energy-concentrated areas will cause earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. At that time, the entire Cruzde will become a living hell.

"In fact, Mr. Light, you are the evil god 'Echo', right? We, the 'Order Society', have already mastered all the information about you stored by the Hinet people. When I used the 'Ancient Power' to find a way, the Creator only guided me here, which is where you are trapped." "Future" pointed to the passage behind him that continued to emit a blue glow, and continued:
"This passage... after it was formed, I could no longer get any information from the 'Ancient Power' to move forward. You... your red magic power contains at least half of Deepser's power. I hope... you can take me to the deepest part of the 'Red Fantasy Ruins', where not only is the 'Master Controlled Heavenly Punishment Fire' buried, but also the 'Jumping Array' that Ivan XXII preset when he placed the bomb, which leads directly to the outside world."

"So, as long as we find the so-called 'Master Control Fire of Heavenly Punishment', we can leave here, right?" Wright faced the "Future", staring at the "Future"'s light black, slightly purple eyes with his pupils that had gradually returned to black, and asked in a deep voice.

"That's right." "Future" also looked directly into Wright's eyes and answered in an extremely affirmative tone.

(End of this chapter)