On my second playthrough, they were full of malice towards me.

Thinking of this, Ba'er looked down, trying to find Liao Ji's figure, but when he actually looked over, the young man who was clearly there before, along with the other two guards beside him, had all disappeared.

Suddenly, a bad premonition rose in Caiba'er's heart. The fear he had once felt at the hands of Lord Ash surged into his mind, making him extremely flustered. He even abandoned the Dragon Girl and rushed towards a certain place behind him because he thought of a terrible possibility.

That was the location of the "altar," a place where the terrifying negative turbidity accumulated over hundreds of years through his manipulation of the Dragon Kingdom's class oppression was gathered. Ba'er did not set up any guards for the altar, even though it was very important. After all, the turbidity and pollution emitted by the altar itself was the best defense and protection measure. It was impossible for anyone to approach the altar while enduring such powerful pollution.

Apart from

That person.

The anxious high priest was about to move when another figure blocked his way, as if this was the dragon girl's true purpose from the very beginning.

Chapter 125 Altar, Pool, and Elves

Liao Ji has always been a man of action. From the moment he arrived at the Ancient Wolf Clan, he could vaguely sense that there was a hidden calamity here. This was the power of the "protagonist," which could be described as a calamity radar detector.

This feeling became even more pronounced when the High Priest danced on the stage, filling the air with turbidity and causing the demi-humans below to fall into a frenzy. When the High Priest spilled blood to weaken the curse on the demi-humans, Liao Ji was completely certain that the High Priest and the deep turbidity he had sensed were of the same origin.

Therefore, the entire design was actually arranged by Liao Ji from the very beginning, including when the High Priest came over, he deliberately used a strange and doubtful tone to utter the words "Who are you?" without any attempt to conceal them, which could cause enormous damage.

He certainly had a gentler and calmer way of putting it, but Liao Ji didn't choose that. Only by using the sharpest words to sting the other party could he make the high priest lose his mind and be filled with anger.

As expected, the High Priest made his move, and Jiu You immediately followed her orders, as planned, to confront and engage the High Priest, while taking advantage of this opportunity...

Liao Ji, along with Yilin and 86, headed towards the location of the Turbid Calamity Source that he had sensed, while the High Priest focused all his attention on the battle with the Dragon Girl.

The three of them did not encounter much resistance. After all, in terms of the commotion they made, the Dragon Girl's appearance as an empress was enough to leave all the demi-humans of the Ancient Wolf Clan dumbfounded. Although the empress may be hated by many demi-humans, her majesty and sense of fear were still the greatest in the entire Dragon Kingdom.

As they ventured deeper, it wasn't just a matter of being blocked; the same filthy black mud as the original desolate swamp began to appear frequently. Trees withered, the land became barren, and this place seemed to have been turned into an absolute forbidden zone by the entire Ancient Wolf Clan.

Just getting a little closer, both Irene and 86 began to feel unwell. Irene held her head as waves of dizziness began to surge through her. The girl wanted to grit her teeth and persevere, but after taking a few more steps deeper, she began to feel nauseous and vomit. Zhuo E's mad words echoed in her ears, making it difficult for Irene to move.

As an android, 86 was no exception. Her mechanical parts began to malfunction, and frequent short circuits caused her to constantly generate "warning warning" system messages. Later, 86 even lost most of her sensory system, and chaotic and distorted code streams appeared in her eyes.

This was a calamity that the Dragon Kingdom had accumulated over hundreds of years, so immense that it could be described as a national calamity leading to the "death of the nation." Clearly, it was not something that Yilin and 86 could bear at present. Therefore, Liao Ji stopped the two from continuing to follow and told them to retreat to the entrance and wait for him.

Even though she would usually argue back, the young girl could only grit her teeth and nod, helping the equally struggling maid out of this restricted area. In their current state, they would only cause trouble for Liao Jitian.

However, on the other hand, when Irene looked at the young man in the restricted area who was no different from any other day, she felt a sense of fear from the bottom of her heart for some reason.

After all, she had personally experienced the torment and chaos of being enveloped by the turbid curse. Yet Liao Jin was still able to stand unharmed, even ignoring the terrifying curse. This made the girl wonder if Liao Jin was still human. Or rather, could a human really do this?

Soon, Liao Ji continued to stride forward, and the young man's figure disappeared from Irene's sight.

indeed.

Aside from a slight visual discomfort caused by the desolate and eerie forbidden area surrounding him, Liao Ji had no other physical reactions.

The turbid evil that had been drifting and permeating the forbidden zone, solidifying to the point of almost turning into blood-red mist, did not surround Liao Ji or obscure his vision upon his arrival. Instead, it scattered outwards as if fleeing.

Liao Ji proceeded unimpeded all the way and finally arrived at the deepest part of the forbidden zone of the Ancient Wolf Clan.

And there

It is a huge skull altar.

Unlike ordinary altars, this skull altar is more like a pool. Its size is not about height, but rather about spreading out on the ground. As Liao Ji approached, a "glug-glug" sound came from the pool of water. The water was also composed of filthy black mud, but it was thicker, more evil, and more repulsive to look at.

In the very center of the "black water" of the altar pool, there is a skeletal claw protruding from the black mud of the pool. The sharp, slender claw is holding a piece of red jade that seems to be formed from countless dead monsters.

From this piece of jade, Liao Ji saw that whenever a new life of a "demi-human" was born, this piece of withered jade would flash with light. Then, the bloodline of the newborn would be drawn away by the power of the curse in the dark and transferred to the newborn demi-human cub in the black mud pool of the altar. Thus, the curse that Liao Ji had seen before appeared.

Only then was the source of everything truly investigated and clarified by Liao Ji. As long as this altar exists, and the cursed jade in this pool is not taken away and destroyed, the curse of the demi-human race will continue indefinitely. It's like a tireless machine that brands every newborn individual with the mark of a curse from birth.

Without the slightest hesitation, facing the viscous, filthy black mud in the pool before him, Liao Ji stepped directly into the altar pool, intending to traverse through the silt and filth to reach the center of the pool and take down the cursed jade to destroy it.

but.

This time, the filthy black mud formed from the dense turbid pollution no longer fled. It seemed that it also knew that it had to guard the cursed jade, which was equivalent to its heart. So, after Liao Ji stepped into the pool, all the black mud seemed to come alive and began to frantically reject Liao Ji.

Liao Ji tried many times, but each time he stepped into the altar pool, his feet felt as if they were sinking into a swamp, and he could not move any further. The powerful repulsive force then caused the black mud to "spit" him out, causing him to fall out of the altar pool.

Ugh

Liao Ji sighed. After trying everything and nothing worked, it seemed that only one option remained.

A way to prevent the black mud from rejecting him.

He glanced at his skill bar. So far, he had used three out of his five skills once. Only two remained: [Annihilation] from Reina and [Unclear] from the elf Anno.

【Elf's Protection】

Since Anno's shadow is behind the Old Alliance, then this altar built by the Old Alliance...

After taking a deep breath, Liao Ji finally awakened the [Elf's Protection] skill, which had been dormant in his skill bar for a long time, and it began to glow.

Immediately afterwards, twinkling starlight began to appear around him. These lights, like fireflies in a forest, were drawn to Liao Ji and began to flow into him.

A few breaths later, Liao Ji was enveloped and protected by the power of nature. A semi-transparent elven barrier covered his entire body, constantly protecting him from all external harm.

Ok

This familiar sense of security

So, Anno, if you can really feel it...

Now, this forbidden zone, formed over a century and bound together by the nation's turbidity, can only be accessed by "himself." In other words, only he can resolve the issue of this altar.

Liao Ji closed his eyes, feeling the sense of security that the elves' protection gave him, while also conveying his determination to protect the Dragon Kingdom, protect Jiuyou, and destroy this altar.

Then, Liao Ji moved again. He stepped into the black pool of the altar once more, under the protection of the elves.

And this time

The filth and sludge in the pool no longer rejected him; no, not only did it not reject him, it even...

The black mud began to rapidly climb onto Liao Ji's body. Of course, with the barrier of the elven protection in place, it couldn't truly merge into Liao Ji's body. However, it hadn't intended to do so anyway. The elven protection acted as a guiding coordinate, allowing it to precisely envelop Liao Ji completely before beginning to carry him out of the pool.

sink

sinking

Darkness filled Liao Ji's vision, and his soul seemed to be drawn into an abyss with no end in sight, lasting for what could have been several minutes, hours, or even days.

In this cold, dark abyss, light finally appeared.

That came from a glowing sprite.

It was a figure that hugged him from behind, embracing him with a burning embrace, stopping him from sinking further into the abyss of darkness; it was...

A warm spirit.

Chapter 126 Anno?

Liao Ji had never felt so comfortable.

The feeling was as if one's whole body was half-wrapped in a large ball of soft cotton, and the other person was using their warm body temperature to soothe one's icy body from sinking into the abyss, and using the elastic and full pressure that kept coming from behind to bring one back to consciousness.

This was indeed very effective, and Liao Ji slowly opened his eyes.

Seemingly sensing that the person in her arms had regained consciousness, the light from the elf behind her dimmed and gradually returned to normal. She released her arms from around Liao Ji from behind and turned to face the young man.

When Liao Ji woke up, the first thing he saw was a beautiful and charming face. Styutia's features were already among the best in humans, but compared to the woman in front of him, she still had to admit defeat.

The woman's features were unbelievably exquisite. From her high, straight nose to her perfectly shaped cherry lips, even the corners of her eyebrows had a subtle upward curve, making her amber eyes even more captivating. From any angle, it was difficult to find a single flaw; she was like a porcelain doll sculpted with the utmost care.

This does indeed fit the definition of the "elves" race, which is the race most favored by "nature," the craftsman.

Two pointed ears, peeking out from her wheat-colored golden hair, were trembling slightly, perhaps out of excitement or something else.

The elf's fiery gaze was fixed on the young man in front of her, and her white, lotus-root-like arm rose from the side, her soft hands gently caressing Liao Ji's cheek.

At the same time, the ethereal voice unique to elves rang in Liao Ji's ears.

"Lord Ash, it's Anno who's late."

Her words were filled with tenderness and affection, making her voice even more magnetic. Just hearing such a pleasant voice echoing in one's ears was an unparalleled enjoyment, immersing one completely in it.

Liao Ji's lips moved slightly as if he wanted to say something, but the elf seemed to feel sorry for him and couldn't bear to let him speak. So she hugged Liao Ji from the front again, as if she were a child, and gently pressed the young man's head down, allowing him to bury his head in her round and full chest, where he could be intimate and rest as he pleased. After all, there was no softer and more elastic pillow than this.

No, it was the pillow that emitted a milky fragrance, almost like the scent of orchids, even after Liao Ji took a deep breath.

"Cough cough. Cough cough cough!"

The pillow was nice, but it was too big and too soft, making it hard for Liao Ji to breathe. In the end, he was finally able to leave the elf's embrace after a series of coughs and struggles.

Liao Ji gasped for breath as if he had come back to life. He looked at the elf opposite him, who seemed to have realized he had "messed up," and was filled with panic and apology. Then he looked at the pair of weapons on the elf's chest that had almost killed him.

Although it was very inappropriate, the first thought that came to Liao Ji's mind was indeed...

Anno

Are they that big?

Pah! What are you even thinking?!

Liao Ji quickly shook his head to clear his mind of these random thoughts. Now was not the time to think about such things. He shifted his gaze from the elf and began to look around, but unfortunately, all he could see was darkness.

"Anno, where is this?"

If he remembered correctly, he should have stepped into the black pool of the altar, after which the filthy black mud inside suddenly changed its nature, pulling him deeper and deeper, until he came to his senses and found himself in his current state.

However, what the elf said next surprised Liao Jiyi.

"Lord Ash, your soul was devoured by the Turbid Calamity. I sensed your call, so I entered the Turbid Calamity's consciousness with you. We are now trapped."

"The interior of the turbid consciousness?"

"Yes," the elf nodded.

"So how do we get out now?"

"this."

Liao Ji's question suddenly made the elf shyly lower her head, put her hands behind her back, and slightly close her two fair legs under her dark green dress.

"Lord Ash, because of the urgency of the situation, I am only accompanying you with a portion of my soul. With my current soul power, it is not enough to help you break through this place. However, if you can help Anno replenish his mana, with your power, I will be able to recover most of my mana, and then leaving this place will be a piece of cake."

Liao Ji: "."

He looked at the elf opposite him, whose face was turning red from the base of her neck, and who avoided eye contact, her eyes drooping and swaying erratically. He asked, just to confirm: