Chapter 89: 87. The Magic Book (Supplementary Chapter)

87. The Magic Book (Supplementary Chapter)

Listening to He Jia'an's description of the Book of Sand, Yu Lianyun's pupils constricted. "What exactly is the origin of this Book of Sand?"

"Just as humans have no way of knowing where their own origins lie, this book is impossible to trace, but there is a theory circulating within," He Jia'an said, looking coldly at the book. "It is actually an Avatar of a certain Alien God, and that Alien God must be an existence infinitely close to omniscience."

"Could it be the Lord of All Things?" Yu Lianyun's expression changed abruptly.

"I dare not say," He Jia'an said in a low voice.

"Since it is infinitely close to omniscience and carries infinite knowledge, can it not tell us its origin?" Yu Lianyun asked.

"Do you think no one has ever thought of that?" He Jia'an put on a serious expression and frowned. "But those who have seen the truth, without exception, have all gone mad."

Yu Lianyun looked puzzled: "Doesn't this book grant specific knowledge?"

He Jia'an shook his head: "This book is not that kind-hearted. Regardless of whether it possesses consciousness, it is impossible for it to only release a harmless page. Besides, recall your state just now; you had a tendency to lose control before you even saw the contents inside. If you had truly seen the text within, do you really think you could still control yourself?"

Yu Lianyun was speechless, but she still had doubts: "Why would the Book of Sand appear here?"

"What is currently known is that the last time the Book of Sand appeared before the world was during the Bering Campaign of the World War three hundred years ago. After its last owner, Douglas, died, the Book of Sand went missing," He Jia'an said, equally puzzled.

"Douglas, the famous general from the history of the New York region?" Yu Lianyun was somewhat surprised; this was not an unfamiliar name.

He Jia'an nodded slightly. "It is said that when he obtained this book, he peered into the outcome of every battle he fought, and thus was victorious in every one. But there is no need to say much about what happened later; history has written it clearly. He went mad during a battle and put a grenade in his mouth to blow himself up."

"So that is why he went mad," Yu Lianyun realized suddenly. "The books even say he suffered from PTSD."

Having said this, Yu Lianyun fell silent for a moment, then stepped forward, wanting to flip through the book.

"What are you doing?" He Jia'an stopped Yu Lianyun again.

"I want to take a gamble. If it is the Book of Sand, it should be able to help us find a way to break the situation, right?" Yu Lianyun stated her thoughts truthfully, looking at the Forbidden Book on the Sacrificial Altar, and said, "Heh, suddenly, in an instant, I think I guessed why this book was placed here. Who placed it here is not important; what is important is the reason it was placed here.

Someone wants us to open it and use it!

The series of strange events that occurred in Cuizhu City this time may have been meticulously designed from the very beginning, with the goal of drawing out our Xuanmi Group, targeting us, and wanting us to die in these Abnormal events."

"Since you have guessed it, you should even less go and open this book," He Jia'an said. He gently pushed Yu Lianyun aside and stood before the Book of Sand himself, his expression complex. "If anyone is to look, it will be me."

"Team Leader He, your existence is more important than mine." Yu Lianyun grabbed He Jia'an's hand as he prepared to flip the book, looking at him earnestly, her tone carrying a hint of a plea. "Let me look instead."

"This is an order." He Jia'an shook his head, pushing Yu Lianyun away more forcefully this time, then held his breath and focused to grab the Forbidden Book that felt like flowing sand.

Miraculously, unlike Yu Lianyun, He Jia'an managed to grab the Book of Sand, which had been impossible to hold, in one go.

The moment He Jia'an obtained the book, it was too late for Yu Lianyun to try and snatch it back. The Book of Sand could only be viewed by one person at a time; it was equivalent to temporarily acknowledging He Jia'an as its master. Until He Jia'an finished reading, no one else could see the contents of the book.

The moment he held the Book of Sand, He Jia'an felt secret characters hidden on the book's cover. They were hidden beneath the recessed patterns; if one did not touch them with their hand, it was difficult to notice what words were written on the cover.

He Jia'an was not a historian, nor could he be an expert in ancient scripts, and he did not know what those secret characters, which looked like cuneiform, actually represented.

He wanted to know those characters...

He Jia'an's spirit jolted, his whole body trembling. No, this was not what he wanted to see. The things he truly wanted to know were the method to defeat the Daughter of Gluttony and the clear path to avoid this almost certain death.

Was his mind already being affected just as it had begun?

Cold sweat dripped down his forehead. He Jia'an's rationality, which he considered far superior to that of ordinary people, seemed so small and worthless in front of this Book of Sand. He watched the sand powder constantly dripping from the Book of Sand; those rustling sounds of falling sand seemed as if the book were mocking him.

"Calm down," He Jia'an secretly warned himself and silently opened the book.

He looked at the text that came into view. His gaze seemed to be attracted by a black hole, staring fixedly, glaring, wanting to pop his eyes out of their sockets, letting his soul merge into the all-encompassing world of the book.

He Jia'an's increasingly crazed expression was seen by Yu Lianyun. From the moment the other party opened the book, Yu Lianyun had been observing He Jia'an's actions from the side. If He Jia'an truly fell into madness because of the Book of Sand, she would have to take him down before he committed any extreme acts.

Soon, Yu Lianyun noticed He Jia'an's hands moving. He would grin wildly at times and pout in sadness at others; that half-paralyzed face could not stop his overflowing, visible emotional excitement.

When He Jia'an had flipped the book three times in succession, Yu Lianyun could no longer restrain herself. She grabbed He Jia'an's hand, wanting to make him put the book down, but her hand had no point of leverage on the Book of Sand. Her hand passed through the book, unable to make He Jia'an let go of the book, but this did not seem to affect He Jia'an's reading; he was still watching it as if intoxicated, even fanatically.

Seeing that this was not working, Yu Lianyun kicked He Jia'an over.

But even though He Jia'an had fallen, the book remained tightly in his hands, never once let go.

At this very moment, Yu Lianyun suddenly realized that humans simply could not use conventional methods to interrupt someone who was reading the Book of Sand, and she also realized with a start just how tenacious the mental will of that war-crazed General Douglas from three hundred years ago must have been to allow him to endure the possession of being unable to put the book down several times.

Those conspirators who harbored evil intentions and placed the book here had long guessed that this scene would occur, which is why they were so confident and bold in placing the book here.