Chapter 584: The Failed Saving Throw and the Secret of the First Era

Nothing to hesitate about.

Rod tapped "Yes" without hesitation.

The next moment.

His vision blurred.

By the time it cleared again, the scene had changed.

The viewpoint seemed to be a fixed-angle recording position.

As for the scene, it was actually no different from before—also inside a stretch of woods.

And judging by the types of trees and their positions, it was very likely within the Bai Yu region of the Wind Wall Forest.

Only the trees back then were nowhere near as dense and sturdy as they looked now.

Right there in the image before him.

Rod saw a human man carrying saplings and a shovel walk past, the things on his shoulder just happening to block his face.

Then he suddenly stopped at the edge of the frame and said helplessly in that magnetic voice:

"Fabio, could you stop slacking off?"

"This Wind Wall Forest is no different with one more of me or one less—it's not something that can be planted in a short time anyway."

The man named Fabio's voice was flippant.

But unfortunately, he seemed to be positioned outside the frame.

Rod couldn't see what he looked like.

"This is the King's mission—you know how important this place is."

"Isn't it just to block the Yigo tribe."

"No, no, far more than that. The Yigo tribe is only on the surface—we also have to bury the news of 'zzz—'"

Rod was utterly speechless.

Why is it getting censored?

Fabio, off-screen, let out a snicker:

"'Zzz—'? I know, the relic excavated from the lizardman ruins. Wait, you guys are afraid of what's written on it? That's fake, my forester friend."

"No one dares to be certain it's false."

"Come on, although those mage scholars still haven't figured out how to check an object's age of existence, from the First Era to now, the Fourth Era, there should be at least tens of thousands of years, right? Even a trace—we've found even a single trace?"

"No."

Rod's old forerunner said as much.

But he seemed quite firm:

"But the King wants us to do what we're doing now.

Not only that, we also have to build a town beside the Wind Wall Forest—coincidentally there are quite decent mineral resources here, so we can survive long-term on that."

"Yeah, yeah, you've said it more than ten thousand times—still need to seek out the Tree Spirit bloodline through the generations to suppress it here, right? And need the Half-Deer folk to cooperate, right? And the Druids, the three together forming an iron-nail lockdown, right? I remember."

That old forerunner laughed:

"You know it well enough. Every one is indispensable—only this way can we prevent the revival of that First Era of Lin Li, the evil gods, and the Outer Gods' mad descent as recorded."

The words had just fallen.

At that moment, a light breeze drifted past.

The scene seemed to have a pause button pressed—everything froze in place.

Rod was still mulling over what the old forerunner had said—"prevent the revival of that First Era of evil gods standing in multitudes and Outer Gods descending."

Seeing this, he couldn't help but be startled.

But the next moment.

A man's delicate face suddenly appeared from the corner of the frame.

In a flash, the human skin of that face began to fall away, leaving only a lizard face covered in scales.

Staring straight at Rod, who was outside the frame.

"Who are you? Why are you spying on me?"

He let out a voice identical to Fabio's.

Even through the frame, a massive spiritual pressure came crashing down like a sky-covering wave.

A pressure several times stronger than Asmodeus's!

Carrying a damp, cold, cruel, evil nature.

Rod was instantly startled into a cold sweat.

At the same time, the memory image of "Origin-Trace State" went poof and extinguished.

【Notice!】

【You have been hit by 'Fabio's Soul-Capturing Gaze'!】

【And have gained the following negative effects: Focus decreased, casting speed decreased, spiritual recovery decreased, Strength decreased, Constitution decreased, Magic Resistance decreased, Spiritual Art/Spell power and effects decreased, Fire, Cold, Acid, and Lightning Resistance decreased.】

【'Will of the Firmament' saving throw failed!】

"Holy crap!"

Seeing those words—Will of the Firmament saving throw failed—Rod couldn't hold back and cursed out loud.

Damn! That's rigged!

I just took a look at the tree's memory image! You f***ing set me up!?

Lady Kali, who had been casting a spell ahead, seemed to sense something was off.

She turned her head in astonishment to look at Rod.

"What did you do? Why have you become so weak?"

Rod gave a bitter smile.

He concealed nothing and directly recounted what he had just seen.

The negative effects he currently suffered were caused by direct contact with Fabio's gaze; hearing it should pose no problem.

Upon hearing this,

Lady Kali immediately stopped searching for trees with special spiritual energy.

She carefully examined Rod's body.

"Such a powerful 【Divine Gaze】, even surpassing the effects of most Ninth-Rank abilities."

"Actually, it mainly disrupted my spellcasting focus. I don't cast spells anyway, so it's not a big issue," Rod said, offering comfort instead.

"That person named Fabio... you said he finally revealed a lizardman's face?"

"Yes."

Lady Kali nervously gripped Rod's arm, magical light flickering.

"Modern lizardman mongrels are not the same species as those from the ancient era. They possess higher intelligence, greater strength, and enjoy hiding within the clans of other races."

"Although records are scarce, the remains of an ancient lizardman were indeed discovered in the Centaur Shared Burial Catacombs. This proves that this ancient lizardman remained undiscovered until the time of the shared burial with the centaurs."

Rod felt the Young Lady's hand trembling.

He gently patted it.

She glared at him: "Then Fabio must have thought you were using a spell to spy, which is why he employed methods even more targeted against mages."

"Can spellcasting across time and space be accomplished like this? I feel a bit dizzy. May I lean on you?"

Rod spoke nonsense with open eyes, feigning discomfort, and sat down unsteadily.

He was not actually dizzy.

Upon hearing this, Lady Kali pressed her lips together and said nothing.

She sat silently beside him.

Rod understood.

A tsundere elf; if she doesn't say no, it means yes.

He buried his face in her fragrant, snow-white neck, his forehead brushed by golden hair.

Rod's mind relaxed somewhat.

Although the arrival of the conscription corps brought a wave of debuffs, which was not good, it was after all an accident.

There was no choice; just take it one step at a time.

Lady Kali's body stiffened, yet she deliberately accommodated someone's strength.

Her tone was also stiff: "That is possible. But that Fabio's level is too high; I cannot be sure. Actually, I care more about the phrase 'The First Era of Lin Li, where Evil Gods stood tall and Outer Gods descended'."

"Is there a problem with that?"

"Except for the First Era's history being somewhat vague, clear historical records exist from the Second Era to the current Fourth Era. No gods have ever descended upon this continent."

"Then it must be the extra-dimensional space."

"Tens of thousands of years ago, the continent's population was far smaller than it is now. At that time, the extra-dimensional space was very small. Let alone anything reaching the level of a deity, there were hardly any cosmic beings. How could there be Outer Gods or Evil Gods?"

(End of this chapter)