Chapter 429: Desolate World
"Next fork in the path, 200 meters."
"No, no, we overshot it!"
"T-there's an Anubis Iron Guard!"
Li Meng ignored the labyrinth monsters and used his speed to outrun them.
Too fast, it was simply too fast.
Caroline felt a fierce wind slamming against her face,
Making her cheeks ache.
The rapidly retreating scenery blurred into a haze.
"Was that something just now?"
Along the way, Li Meng passed many adventurer squads.
Before they could even react, he had already sped past.
"I think it was a person!"
"Someone carrying a woman!"
"Such speed! I couldn't even react."
"A Sword King?"
A five-man adventurer squad stared in shock toward the depths of the cave.
A black shadow had just brushed past them at incredible speed.
By the time they realized, it was long gone.
The journey that should've taken three days,
Li Meng completed in just five hours.
"Here we are!"
Ahead, the space suddenly opened up.
Li Meng rushed out of the tunnel into a massive underground chamber.
The underground space wasn't a natural cavern,
But a neat, rectangular space.
The rock walls were smooth on all sides.
At the center of the chamber was a giant teleportation circle.
[Huh, this is an interstellar teleportation magic circle,]
Xiao Bai's voice suddenly rang in his mind.
An interstellar teleportation magic circle?
Li Meng's eyes lit up.
"Xiao Bai, didn't you say the interstellar teleportation circles on Augus Star were all damaged?"
[That's true, but my memory is incomplete. It's possible some intact interstellar teleportation circles remain.]
[Master, do you feel it?]
Li Meng set Caroline down,
His gaze locked onto the teleportation circle ahead.
"Yeah, that's the power of a god fragment!"
Embedded in the circle was a golden crystal the size of a soccer ball.
An interstellar teleportation circle needed the guidance of a "Realm Lord" to enable interstellar travel.
Without the god fragment, the circle couldn't operate.
"Xiao Bai, can it really take us to another world?"
Li Meng wasn't sure if the Ancient Star Domain he aimed to ascend to was in the same universe.
But the existence of spatial barriers hinted otherwise.
The Ancient Star Domain was likely in a different dimension.
Still, he couldn't be certain.
[Yes, it can take you to another world.]
In the empty underground space, the two walked toward the circle.
As they walked, Li Meng pondered.
Previously, adventurers who entered the teleportation circle had returned.
This meant there was another interstellar teleportation circle on the other side leading back to Augus Star.
But why had those adventurers gone insane?
Was there some terrible danger in that world?
And why did people call this a random teleportation circle?
If that information existed, it meant not everyone who returned was insane.
Otherwise, no one would know anything about it.
Li Meng stopped in front of the teleportation circle,
Hesitating slightly.
"Li Meng, what's wrong?"
Seeing him frozen, Caroline couldn't help but ask.
"Nothing."
Li Meng grabbed Caroline's hand,
Pulling her into the teleportation circle.
As soon as they stepped in,
The circle activated.
Profound golden light surged from the magic circle.
The two of them turned into golden beams and shot upward, disappearing.
Li Meng only saw a flash of gold before his eyes.
When he could see again,
They were in an unfamiliar land.
The sky was covered with thick black clouds,
Casting a dim darkness over the world.
Beneath their feet was another massive interstellar teleportation circle.
Around them were scattered rocky outcrops.
The circle was located at the summit of a tall mountain.
Looking into the distance, endless mountains stretched to the horizon.
Li Meng didn't let go of Caroline's hand,
Pulling her toward the edge of the cliff.
Standing at a high vantage point, Li Meng saw the barren world.
The mountains and land were utterly desolate, not a blade of grass in sight.
Even the magic in the air was pitifully thin.
In such an environment, once mana was exhausted,
It would be incredibly difficult to recover.
Only potions or magic crystals could replenish mana here.
"U-um, Li Meng, could you... let go of my hand?"
Caroline's face flushed slightly beside him.
Li Meng hadn't released her hand at all.
No matter how much she struggled, he refused to let go.
"No. This world is very dangerous."
Dangerous?
Caroline looked up at the sky.
Only now did she realize they were no longer inside a labyrinth.
Because no labyrinth could have a sky like this.
Li Meng turned and surveyed the mountain top.
He saw no corpses of adventurers.
Which meant whatever drove them mad wasn't the environment itself.
"Kekeke, two more delicious two-legged sheep!"
Suddenly, a harsh, excited voice echoed from the mountaintop.
A pile of rocks nearby began to move.