For this question, clearly no one could give an answer, so Ebner stopped thinking about it and instead pulled Edwina along to look around the high-backed chair.
But the result was that, apart from a pitch-dark passageway behind the chair, there was nothing else at all.
Roselle really looted this place clean! Ebner griped inwardly, then finally went with Edwina to the back of the chair.
Behind the seat of the "God of Luck" was a downward-leading, pitch-black passage!
This arrangement was extremely similar to the one in the "Hall of Honesty" inside the "City of Miracles," Liveseyd…
Adding to that the familiar-looking bronze gate at the outermost entrance of the ruin…
Ebner was nearly certain this palace had originally been used to seal the entrance of the "Sea of Chaos"!
But strangely, he could not sense the aura of the Sea of Chaos here—it was as though it had been moved away by someone…
Yet even the Creator of Silver City at his peak couldn't have done that, right?
Then was it the "God of Luck" who had done it using the "Pure White Eye"? Could He—no, could I—really be that powerful?
Hmm… recalling how Daniel and the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom" once conducted experiments using the Sea of Chaos at the abandoned castle in Delaire Forest… and how Roselle more than a century ago had directly taken away the gate used to seal that entrance…
Putting the two together, it wasn't hard to deduce that the Sea of Chaos entrance in Delaire Forest had most likely been "moved" too—and probably by Daniel, who also possessed the "Pure White Eye"… by "me"!
As for where it was moved to…
Wait!
Could it have been moved into the depths of that "Unknown Land"?!
That illusory "All-Knowing Eye" and "Pure White Angel"… could they be stably present only because the Sea of Chaos within was providing them power?
If this assumption was true… then no wonder the "Pure White Eye" was so repelled by the "Origin Castle," and why above the gray fog it couldn't use abilities like "Analysis" at all…
But though the "Unknown Land" was extraordinary and its essence extremely high… could it really be high enough to contain the entrance to the Sea of Chaos?
That would mean… it was at least on the same level as the Sea of Chaos itself…
As these thoughts flashed through his mind, Ebner felt a deeper sense of dread toward the depths of the Unknown Land.
At this moment, Edwina clearly noticed how similar the passage before them was to the one in the Hall of Honesty. Her clear, spring-like eyes shifted slightly as she asked Ebner, "Shall we go down and take a look?"
Ebner hesitated, performed another "divination," then said solemnly,
"It might be dangerous… Stay here, I'll go down and see."
Edwina's thin lips parted, trembling slightly for a while, but in the end she said nothing.
Though confident in her strength, she was still not a demigod. In terms of survivability, she couldn't compare to a real demigod. If she forced herself to follow, she would only drag Ebner down and put him in danger.
"Don't worry, I'm only going to take a look. If there's danger, I'll come right back." Ebner noticed her worry and comforted her with a few words. Almost unconsciously, he touched the black gem embedded in his chest, which instantly bolstered his confidence.
The Goddess gave me this item before I came to this ruin—it must have a purpose… it should be able to keep me safe.
Of course, I could choose not to explore, and simply turn back… but since Little Snake Will suggested I bring that 'key,' and neither the Goddess nor Lilith gave me any warning…
That means this exploration is actually beneficial for me!
After weighing the matter for a moment, Ebner finally made up his mind and descended the steps of the passage into the deepest darkness.
And there, he saw a wall. A wall carved with many short, ancient symbols—but with a gap in the center, leaving it incomplete.
The size of that gap perfectly matched the "key" in Ebner's hand—the stone slab engraved with the symbol of the God of Luck.
This structure looked familiar too… It was just like the wall behind the statue of the "Mother Goddess of the Sky" in the church of the foggy town in the Nation of the Evernight…
That little town should have been built by the "Mother Goddess" together with Antigonus… Could it be that the God of Luck was also acquainted with them?
Did they reference "my" idea when building the church?
Hmm, though that wall "passage" could also have been something the Goddess casually created. After all, inscribing Her symbol worked there too, and it was the only way out.
And even this wall before him might not be unrelated to the Goddess… Judging from the murals earlier, the God of Luck had also participated in the Rose of Redemption formed by the Creator, meaning He likely knew both the Goddess and Lilith long ago.
With this in mind, Ebner didn't hesitate further. He directly inserted the stone slab key into the wall's hollow.
They fit together seamlessly, without the slightest excess.
Immediately, the wall lit up, gradually turning transparent, revealing beyond it a sequence of black, illusory gates arranged in vertical succession.
Their style bore quite a resemblance to the torii gates of his previous life's island nation.
Before Ebner could even use the "Pure White Eye" to observe, he was suddenly "pulled" into the wall, and then uncontrollably thrust through gate after gate, plummeting rapidly toward some unknown destination.
During this process, he felt the "Blessing of the Goddess of Beauty" on his forehead, the black gem on his chest, and some power from deep within the Unknown Land behind his eyes all intertwining with each other, resonating with the passageway of "gates" beneath his feet.
He didn't know how long it took, but eventually the endless darkness before him receded, and he found himself standing upon an altar that had just stopped shaking.
Not far away, a tall youth holding an axe was watching the altar warily. Yet he showed no surprise at Ebner's sudden appearance, as though he hadn't seen him at all.
No—it was certain he couldn't see him.
Ebner circled around the youth a few times, and seeing no reaction, confirmed his judgment.
What's going on here? Ebner turned his gaze back toward the now dormant altar. With the "Pure White Eye" running at full capacity, he quickly figured out the general situation.
"This youth's appearance I haven't seen before… but his build, the details of his clothes, all are identical to the 'Sun'… and with that axe, it's almost certain he is the 'Sun'!
"So this must be the 'Afternoon Town' he was exploring with Silver City's chief?
"The Forsaken Land of the Gods… No wonder this place is filled with the dark power of a deity!
"And it's precisely this power that has been used by the black gem bestowed by the Goddess on my chest, forming a layer of 'concealment'…
"With this screen in place, not to mention the 'Sun' Derrick—even Amon or the True Creator wouldn't easily find me.
"This is very likely an evolved version of 'Evans' Hidden Barrier'!
"So safety is indeed assured…
"Now then, the new question is—
"How on earth do I get back?!"
Ebner glanced at the altar, which seemed to have lost all its power, and fell into thought.
Meanwhile, Derrick waited a while after the phenomenon disappeared. Feeling there was no immediate danger, he lowered his head again and prayed devoutly:
"Fool who doesn't belong to this era;
"Mysterious ruler above the gray fog;
"King of Yellow and Black who wields good luck…"
In the sea region of the God War ruins, Klein, who had been admiring the scenery by the window, was once again forced to enter the washroom. He set up the interfering items, retraced four steps, and ascended above the gray fog.
Seating himself in the high-backed chair at the head of the long bronze table, he extended his right hand. Spirituality spread out, touching the crimson star representing the Little Sun.
All of a sudden, the praying voice became abnormally clear, and the corresponding scene unfolded before Klein's eyes.
He first saw the still slightly blurry Little Sun, then realized that the environment he was in was not quite right!
Around the "Sun" flowed indescribable darkness, within which countless eyes of differing shapes were silently staring at him.
These eyes were dense and vague, deep and repressed, like uninvited onlookers—and the Little Sun was utterly unaware.
Afternoon Town is this dangerous? Klein knew very well what the Sun was about to do these days.
After a moment's thought, he intuitively judged the darkness to be highly bizarre, not quite real. So he gave up on responding with the "Sea God Scepter" and instead opted to pull the other into the gray fog.
But just then, he suddenly noticed that among those countless eyes, one was extraordinarily bright—completely different from the others—and faintly had some connection to himself.
After a quick check, Klein's mouth fell open in shock, and he muttered,
"That's… Liu Bo? When did he end up in the Forsaken Land of the Gods?"
(End of Chapter)