Ironclad Granny added, "Actually, it’s not too hard to find out which force within the Stewart Safety Zone it is. From the ceremony, it’s clear that this force is hostile toward humans and cares about the number 36; with these two conditions, along with the details at the time of the sacrifice, we can inquire in the Soul Sect’s circles."
At this point, Ironclad Granny shifted the topic, "However, even if we find out the opposing force, it doesn’t mean much."
Angel asked, "Why do you say that?"
Ironclad Granny replied, "During the sacrifice ceremony, the force from the Stewart Safety Zone could have come directly, but they didn’t, which suggests they were likely responding to someone performing the sacrifice, rather than descending on their own initiative."
"And the person who performed the ritual has clearly left, and the altar is abandoned. Trying to track down why the sacrifice was made and what they sought is actually very difficult... unless we personally go to the Stewart Safety Zone to ask that force, but doing so holds little meaning."
Angel looked at Nis, who nodded gently to indicate Granny was right.
Angel was silent for a moment, "Is Lady Cilla’s appearance related to the sacrifice ceremony?"
"I can be sure that Lady Cilla isn’t from the Quest World. Although she is undead, she belongs to the Central Empire, her appearance there is within the normal range." Nis replied, "However, Lady Cilla’s rapid increase in strength should be related to the death energy in the altar. It might be that later, Lady Cilla discovered that altar and by nurturing herself with the death energy, gradually became so strong; she might even have become a Special Undead through it."
Angel asked, "Is the death energy in the altar from the Soul Plane?"
Nis nodded affirmatively, "Yes, the Quest World is not short of death energy, and there is a lot of accumulated death energy in the undead zone, which can become a perpetual source of death energy producing continuously. I estimate that during the sacrifice, death energy from the undead zone leaked out and was attracted by this symbol, continuously releasing a lot of death energy in the cavern."
By now, Angel had largely reconstructed the entire event from the words of Nis and Ironclad Granny—
Years ago, a wizard, suspected to be a Carabit, might have held a sacrifice ceremony in the cavern, and made some kind of deal with a force from the Soul Plane, the content of which is unknown. After the ceremony ended, this person left the cavern, the altar was abandoned, and some time later, Lady Cilla inadvertently discovered the place, and rested in the cavern, gradually cultivating with the death energy until today.
From the looks of it, the most crucial part is the person who originally held the sacrifice ceremony.
But now it’s known that the person has left for a long time, and it’s hard to trace why he held the sacrifice and what deal he made with the force from the Soul Plane.
Indeed, as Granny said, this matter stops here.
Moreover, Angel’s concern for this matter was because it’s close to Bolai Town, fearing Frode might be affected. Now it’s confirmed there’s no lingering concern, and further investigation holds little meaning.
There are many secrets in this world, and there’s no need to fixate on this one.
Thinking of this, Angel had already decided not to focus on the altar matter anymore.
"Seems like this trip was a waste." Angel shrugged, "But it wasn’t too bad, finding a place full of death energy might be good for Frode to practice Soul Trick here."
Nis agreed heartily, for the undead, practicing in the Quest World is surely the best; now Frode, borrowing death energy from the Quest World, can somewhat accelerate his cultivation.
After confirming there were no other issues with the altar, Angel prepared to leave.
However, at this moment, Ironclad Granny, while stroking the symbols on the stone slab, said, "You just said it was a wasted trip, but it’s actually not."
Angel’s half-dissolved figure paused, solidifying again, "Granny, what do you mean?"
Ironclad Granny pointed at the symbols on the stone slab, "This, is the greatest gain."
Ironclad Granny’s words puzzled Nis as well, "Isn’t this just a representative symbol, what’s its meaning?"
"Its meaning lies in that within it is a trace of constant vibration from that force in the Stewart Safety Zone."
Nis asked, "Constant vibration? Granny, do you perhaps know the meaning of this vibration?"
Ironclad Granny gazed at the twisting, sinuous symbol, "I don’t know its meaning, but I know this constant vibration is a special kind of Soul Power, which doesn’t easily dissipate. We can locate the coordinates of the opposite side by studying this constant vibration."
"Coordinates?" Nis didn’t immediately comprehend, mumbling a few words, but soon he was stunned, looking at Ironclad Granny with astonishment, "Granny, you mean..."
Ironclad Granny nodded, "By locking on to the coordinates of the Quest World, we can find a way to open a pathway to this world."
Nis stood up with a roar, which was exactly what he had thought of earlier.
If they could truly find a coordinate in the Quest World, they could open a pathway themselves, without having to spend money to borrow paths from the three families...
This is definitely a matter of great importance to Nis, or even to the Barbarian Cave, as the Quest World is abundant in Soul Sect resources!
But soon, Nis frowned, "I get what Granny means, but to contact that force’s special Soul Power, a specific decryption method is needed."
Only by deciphering its outer encryption mechanism can the power inside be accessed.
And the decryption method was the problem they initially considered. Specific conditions and methods are needed to decipher it.
If the decryption fails, this symbol will naturally vanish like smoke, and the constant vibration will disappear, making research impossible, let alone finding the coordinates.
Ironclad Granny said, "Then just decrypt it... haven’t you forgotten about Angel’s Dream Conch?"
Nis’s eyes lit up again, right, there’s a Dream Conch! The Dream Conch can pull real-world things into dreams. Items in dreams might break without affecting real objects.
He could keep trying different methods to decrypt it, until he succeeds one day! Once successful, they can test it in reality!
Thinking of this, Nis turned his gleaming eyes towards Angel.
"You must help me!"