Chapter 109: Root Map, Stardust Sleep-Talk

The torrent of intent from the Elf Runes, like a cold river of stars, washed over Copperbeard's consciousness. The underground structure map, composed of countless points of light, lines, and nodes, resembling the roots of a massive ancient tree, grew clearer and clearer. This was not merely a map; it also contained the paths of energy flow, the importance of nodes, and functional annotations for certain areas!

The main root vein plunged deep into the earth, connecting to a surging pool of geothermal magma—that was the energy source of their "Root Furnace." Several thick secondary root veins spread outward in all directions; one, with the smoothest and gentlest energy response, pointed to the stone chamber where Copperbeard and the others currently were—the 【Core Sanctuary】. The others connected to areas marked as 【Nurseries】, 【Storage Nodes】, and 【Purification Hubs】, but unfortunately, most nodes were dim and lifeless, indicating stagnation or destruction.

What made Copperbeard's heart race the most was a relatively thin yet tenaciously upward-extending "root." It wound and twisted, piercing through thick layers of rock, finally pointing to a vague area on the upper part of the map, emitting a faint scent of decay—the 【Withered Forest - Surface Layer】! Beside it was an extremely dim, almost imperceptible small marker: 【Emergency Passage - Thorn Gate】.

An exit! There really was an exit leading to the surface!

But the state of this passage was obviously terrible; the map showed its energy pathways broken in many places, its structure fragile, and severely eroded by the gray, decaying aura representing withered rot. Forcing it open would carry immense risk.

"Thorn Gate..." Copperbeard murmured the name. The name itself carried a connotation of defense and trial. How to repair the passage? How to open the Thorn Gate? The fragments of intent offered only vague hints: 【Requires Core Authority】, 【Requires Resonance of Pure Life Energy】, 【Requires Repair of Energy Pathways】.

What was Core Authority? Control over the Life Altar? Resonance of Pure Life Energy... Lingna? Repairing Energy Pathways... that would require tools, and knowledge of Elf Rune technology!

Copperbeard's gaze involuntarily turned toward the corner where Wrench was struggling with his severed arm, and toward Lingna, who was immersed in guiding the growth of the glowing moss. Hope seemed to rest on these two partners who looked the least reliable.

Just then, a very faint, dreamlike groan came from beside the altar.

Lin Mo!

His tightly closed eyes were moving violently beneath his eyelids, his brows knitted tightly, and fine cold sweat seeped from his forehead. His scorched body trembled slightly, and the light film covering the Corrupted Claw Mark on his right arm rippled irregularly, as if something beneath was restlessly stirring.

"Brother Lin Mo?" Lingna stopped humming and looked at Lin Mo with concern.

Copperbeard's heart instantly leaped to his throat. Was the Corrupted Claw Mark about to counterattack again?

However, Lin Mo did not unleash terrifying corrupting power as before. He was merely struggling in pain, his lips moving silently, as if striving to say something. Copperbeard forced himself to move over and pressed his ear close.

"... Stardust... Sea..."

"... Judgment... Ley Lines..."

"... Fragments... Falling..."

"... Coordinates... Locked..."

Intermittent, meaningless words, like sleep-talking in a dream, squeezed out from Lin Mo's cracked lips. His voice was hoarse and painful, as if he was fighting against some form of spiritual erosion and tearing.

Stardust Sea? Ley Line Judge? Fragments? Coordinates?

Copperbeard's single eye instantly contracted! He remembered Lin Mo's final battle in the Stardust Sea! He remembered the massive warblade that tore through the Ley Lines and ultimately perished together with the Corrupted Claw Will! He remembered that when Lin Mo fell, a faint dark-gold shimmer seemed to exist within the pure stardust crystal he held tightly in his hand!

Could it be... that while unconscious, Lin Mo's soul was still entangled by that brutal battle in the Stardust Sea? Even... receiving information transmitted from the remains of the Ley Line Judge or stardust fragments? What was that "coordinate"?

"The Doctor... is looking..." Lin Mo's sleep-talking suddenly became clearer, filled with bone-deep vigilance and hatred, "... Cannot... let him... obtain..."

The Doctor! Again, the Doctor! What was he looking for? The coordinates of the stardust fragments? Or... the residual power of the Ley Line Judge?

A chill rose from Copperbeard's spine. The Doctor's reach was indeed everywhere; even Lin Mo's ordeal in the Stardust Sea seemed to be under his surveillance or calculation! Was Lin Mo's current painful struggle also related to the Doctor's attempt to forcibly extract information from his consciousness?

Just then, the dim stardust crystal on Lin Mo's chest, as if sensing the violent fluctuations of his soul, flashed brightly! An extremely condensed milky-white light instantly pierced into Lin Mo's forehead!

Lin Mo's body stiffened suddenly, his painful groan ceased abruptly, his knitted brows relaxed slightly, and he fell back into a deep slumber. The agitated light film on his right arm also stabilized once more.

The stardust crystal was protecting him! It was resisting external mental probing and the erosion of the Corrupted Claw Mark!

Watching the crystal dim its light once more, Copperbeard felt an immense heaviness in his heart. The crystal's power was clearly being continuously consumed. The secret hidden within Lin Mo's consciousness was like a double-edged sword; it could be the key to countering the Doctor, or it could become the source of destruction.

"Boss! It worked! Look at my 'Wrench One Multi-Function Survival Arm'!" Wrench's excited, strange cry broke the Heavy and Solemn atmosphere.

Copperbeard and Lingna turned to look and were instantly dumbfounded.

There, Wrench's twisted left arm was now roughly wrapped and fixed by several bent special alloy plates, forming a structure between a splint and a crude mechanical arm. The alloy plates were bound together with thorn-steel conduits and scorched cloth strips; one end of a conduit connected to a small, roughly hammered alloy water trough, its bottom lined with a thick layer of glowing moss. Another conduit extended outward, its tip ground to an exceptionally sharp point, flashing with cold light.

The most absurd thing was that the palm position of this "Survival Arm" had been replaced with a metal wrench, modified from the discarded casing of a micro energy conversion core!

"Look!" Wrench proudly tapped his "masterpiece" with his still-functional right hand, and the metal wrench rang with a crisp clang-clang. "It can act as a splint to fix bones! This trough can store water, filtered by the glowing moss; tilt your head when thirsty and drink! This pointed tube can serve as a drill or a dagger! And this wrench... hehe, of course, it's for fixing things and hitting people! I even reserved an interface; once we find more parts, we can add a flamethrower or..."

Wrench talked endlessly, introducing his goblin-style invention, as if the pain of his severed arm had become the joy of creation.

Copperbeard looked at the ferocious-looking, wildly functional "Survival Arm," then at the lush, warm-glowing "farm" of glowing moss under Lingna's care, and finally his gaze returned to the sleeping Lin Mo and the stardust crystal guarding him.

The partners were all struggling to survive and accumulating strength in their own ways. And he must find a way to repair that passage to the surface Thorn Gate as soon as possible. The cold intent of the Elf Runes surged again; this time, he captured a key piece of information regarding the repair of energy pathways: 【Requires Rune Carving Knife】, 【Requires Pure Crystal Dust】, 【Requires the Resonance of a Guide】.

Carving knife? Dust? Resonance?

Where in this sanctuary were these key items hidden?