Chapter 3353: Death God Temple

"I am looking forward to our next meeting in a safe and peaceful place. Don't go take risks on purpose just to run into me."

Xia De reminded again. The girl wearing glasses smiled embarrassedly, and it was obvious from her look that she wouldn't listen.

"Hero who holds the fire, did you find the fire in your era through secret arts?"

Sister Belen also asked at this time. She had been sitting by the fire without moving, and because she couldn't see her eyes, Xia De thought she was meditating.

Xia De shook his head regretfully:

"I

Sister Beren nodded slightly without making any further comment. Finally, Miss Liyade, holding the small hound that seemed to like her, asked Xia De in a low voice:

"Can I... really leave this place?"

"If an accident occurs, remember that what you need to do is sincerely repent and apologize. As for other matters... I will do my best to help you. But I still hold my previous view: the Great Ones shouldn't care much about what you did, and even if there is punishment, they won't specifically focus on you.

If the gods don't want to let you leave, then in all likelihood, they aren't letting any of us leave, and you are just included in that."

Xia De held Miss Violet's hand:

"Grave robbing isn't a proper job after all; don't do this kind of thing again after we get out this time."

Miss Liyade nodded rapidly; she had offended the "God of Graves," and in the future, she wouldn't even dare to approach a cemetery.

Xia De then remembered her saying last time that her younger sister needed her financial support to attend school, so he looked at the Witch Empress beside him. The sixteen-year-old girl understood Xia De's meaning just from his gaze:

"No problem, it's just the burden of supporting two people's lives. Although the level is a bit low, the experience and knowledge regarding burials and exploration are still useful."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The flaxen-haired girl hurriedly stood up to thank her, but Miss Violet only nodded slightly without saying much more.

"Speaking of which, Xia De, what have you been busy with lately? Is there anything I can help with?"

She asked Xia De again, her eyes looking at the cat lying on Xia De's lap:

"Before we set off for the destination, let's talk about your recent story last; just keep it simple, I know you're worried about the time paradox."

"Recently..."

The perfume on Miss Violet's flesh puppet was the same as the perfume on her true self, but she certainly hadn't brought perfume when she came to the 【Tombstone Wasteland】 this time, so the scent was already very faint.

"Recently, I have been waiting for a wonderful play to be performed near the snowy mountains where I am searching for the sparks of the First Flame. It's just that the actors are currently undecided, and there is no script yet. I am waiting for the protagonist of this play to appear; right now, I only know one of the actors, and she is actively preparing."

"Doesn't that mean you don't know anything?"

Theresa couldn't help but say, and Xia De nodded:

"A very powerful diviner beside me said that the script might be related to a miracle left behind by a certain god. It's a combination of seven small stories... speaking of which, it involves resurrection from the dead, but it didn't succeed."

That was the story of the sixth day—

【On the sixth day, a poor mother met a god in a cave at night with her dead child. She longed for the miracle of resurrection by the fire, but the god did not grant such a fate, only helping the mother bury the child.】

"Actually, resurrection from the dead is still possible."

Miss Liyade by the fire said. Seeing everyone looking at her in surprise, she placed the small hound she was holding by the fire, letting it lie beside its mother:

"I know the worlds of the living and the dead are strictly isolated, and I also know that if a dead person truly resurrects, it represents not a miracle but a disaster. But there is one exception, and it is related to the god here."

She said cautiously, and even Miss Violet was curious about what she would say:

"The God of Graves is the guardian of graves; what does this have to do with the resurrection of the dead?"

Miss Liyade explained carefully:

"For us witches, judging whether a person is dead is simple: whether the soul is still there and whether the mental power is still active are all evidence. But for the vast majority of ordinary people, it is difficult for them to judge whether a person is truly dead or falsely dead.

In the past, there were many cases of people who were buried climbing out of their graves themselves, or suddenly opening their eyes during mourning ceremonies. Ordinary people think this is a miracle, but those with some knowledge know it's just that they had emerged from a state of suspended animation. Some regions have a tradition of keeping a body for seven days, which is also to prevent living people in suspended animation from not being discovered."

She pointed to the ground:

"The God of Graves is the guardian of graves and also the guardian of the dead. If the coffin being buried contains a living person, and the rest ceremony of this Great One happens to have been performed, then that living person will be immediately ejected from the coffin and wake up.

This is not a blessing from the god; it's just that the God of Graves does not accept the living invading his world. Therefore, this is considered a resurrection of the dead by ignorant ordinary people."

"Then why weren't we ejected directly back to the real world?"

Theresa rested her chin on her hand, but obviously, being put into a coffin is different from entering this land of the dead.

The kind of "resurrection of the dead" Miss Liyade spoke of is, strictly speaking, of course not "resurrection of the dead." Strict resurrection of the dead should be a soul that has already reached the end, only to be pulled back to the real world. And Xia De had only seen two such examples: Ms. Marilyn Handel, who was swapped back by Joey Barton, and Last Edwards, who was swapped back by his younger brother.

"Among the believers of the God of Graves, there are indeed divine arts for detecting the dead."

Sister Beren joined the conversation at this time:

"But the God of Graves is, after all, a god who shelters the dead; among this god's divine arts, those related to the living are very few."

The underground space where the five of them were currently located should be part of some underground mausoleum. According to the hounds, almost all large mausoleums under the 【Tombstone Wasteland】 can be interconnected. And after observing the surroundings, Miss Liyade believed that their current position was the main burial chamber of this underground tomb.

The hounds did not recommend that everyone explore underground, and Xia De and the witches certainly had no such intention. He was very clear that if he truly entered the vast world beneath the wasteland, he would likely come into direct contact with the deepest secrets related to that god.

But for now, sending the girls away was the most important thing. His "safe time" was almost up, and if there was an opportunity later, he could turn back and return.

They did not rest here for too long. After recovering the stamina lost along the way and a small portion of their spirits, they set off together, prepared to face the final leg of the journey.

Passing through the slightly narrow tomb corridor, they soon walked out of a tomb that looked ordinary. Because they were returning to the surface from underground, opening the entrance to that sealed tomb did not consume any shovels.

Looking into the distance at this time, the black shadow of the Temple of the God of Death was already standing in the depths of the mist; that was their final destination.

The small boat was summoned again, carrying them rapidly toward that black shadow. The boat slid on the mist that was like a calm water surface. Everyone was very nervous, and in the subsequent journey, they did not encounter any more attacks.

The buildings in the mist became increasingly clear. The people on the boat all stood up and looked solemnly toward that place, and even the cat looked over curiously.

Black iron railings surrounded the temple building, and gray-white mist flowed between those ancient metals, like the curtains draped by the dead.

The entire temple inside the railing looked like a living thing that had grown from the depths of the earth. There were no patterns or runes on the surface of the walls, but the cracks worn away by time alone were enough to prove its antiquity.

The footprint of the temple building did not look large, and it lacked the grandeur Xia De had imagined for a temple. Compared to the current concert hall in the Vista Woods, which was once the Temple of Time, this Temple of the God of Death was even somewhat... shabby.

But although the footprint was not large, the feeling it gave to the people on the boat when it appeared in their field of vision was in no way inferior to any scenery in this wasteland.

The ancient temple had stood here for who knows how many tens of thousands of years. The horror and eeriness of death, and the holiness and solemnity of the god, were perfectly blended together in this land of the dead.

The building itself had a strange ability; staring at it, Xia De even had the illusion that his soul was about to leave his body and truly become one of the dead. And so, he realized belatedly:

"Approaching this temple itself requires passing a death check."

But fortunately, everyone here had a very high resistance to instant death; even Miss Liyade, who was the lowest level, had a resistance to instant death far exceeding the normal level for her rank due to her profession.

The boat stopped while still some distance from the railing outside the temple, because in the wasteland that originally had no path, a clearly visible gravel path had actually appeared. They walked between the tombstones along the path, and after thirty-some steps, they arrived in front of the railing.

This temple of the Ancient God seemed to have merged with this wasteland; looking from afar, one could still feel the pressure, but upon arriving close, it felt like an ordinary building.

Miss Violet said the components of those "iron" railings seemed to be soul gold, Miss Liyade was praying at a rapid pace, the hounds huddled together following behind Xia De, Theresa looked at the building inside the railing in shock, and Sister Beren remained silent.

The railing gate at the entrance presented the shape of a stone archway. The style of the archway was simple, only bearing the holy emblem of the 【Ancient God of Death】.

As for the railing gate itself, it was locked by a black chain and a large metal lock. Theresa had originally wanted to ask if Xia De's lock-picking ability could open such a lock, but she didn't expect Xia De to pick up the shovel he was carrying and strike the chain fiercely—

Clang!

(End of chapter)