Chapter 175: Wasteland of Dead Gods

In the early morning, Luo En arrived at the school's Central Library early.

In his hand, he held the special authority badge.

This was one of the rewards he won in the Bloody Gladiator Society, which could be used to select a precious ancient book from the treasure collection area.

"Bloody Gladiator Society champion, Luo En Ralf."

Luo En showed the badge to the guard calmly: "I am here to use the special authority."

The old guard took the badge, checked it carefully, and nodded:

"Confirmation correct. Please follow me, Apprentice Ralf."

He turned and led Luo En through the main hall, walking toward a narrow corridor that was not open to apprentices on weekdays.

At the end of the corridor was a heavy door made of obsidian.

Complex runes and strange biological images were carved on the door, twisting like living things under the candlelight.

A vague strange sound seeped out from the door crack; it did not sound like any language Luo En was familiar with, but a kind of unsettling whisper mixed with rustling sounds.

The old guard inserted the badge into the groove on the door and recited a secret spell softly.

As the spell was completed, the obsidian door made a dull roar.

As if a sigh came from a distant place, it then slowly opened inward, revealing a deep darkness.

"The rules of the treasure collection area are very simple."

The old guard's voice was pressed extremely low, as if afraid of disturbing some existence hidden in the darkness:

"One hour of selection time, can only take away one book, and must not damage, copy, or alter any items. Once you enter, the guardian golem will monitor you throughout the process, and any violation will lead to immediate expulsion and permanent loss of access."

When adding the last point, the old guard's expression became extremely serious:

"Also, don't pay attention to any sounds or whispers; those are just echoes of knowledge. No matter what you hear, do not respond."

Luo En nodded to show understanding: "I will abide by the rules."

"Good luck, young man."

The old guard stepped aside and made a gesture of invitation, a trace of complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

Luo En took a deep breath and stepped into this knowledge treasury.

The door closed slowly behind him, making a heavy muffled sound, as if completely isolating him from the outside world.

After entering, he found himself in a hall with an irregular shape.

The walls were made of some kind of strange material exuding faint light, with patterns like living blood vessels flowing on the surface, bringing a kind of pulsating sense of life to the entire space.

What was even more unsettling was that every time he shifted his gaze, the boundaries of the hall seemed to change slightly, as if space itself were breathing.

In the center of the hall was a multi-dimensional crystal structure; at first glance, it looked like a tower, but when the perspective changed, it would present completely different geometric forms.

Suspended at its top was an orb that looked like a human eye; the iris part presented a deep indigo color, while the pupil was a black hole-like vortex, which seemed to be able to swallow all light.

"This is a bit interesting, it has that eerie depth unique to wizards..."

While Luo En thought this, he scanned cautiously and noticed several guards standing at the edge of the hall.

These guards were not ordinary stone golems, but alien structures carved from a kind of translucent blue-black crystal.

Their forms vaguely resembled humans, but the proportions were completely chaotic, with overly long arms, deformed heads, and extra bends in the joints that should not exist.

What was most unsettling were their "eyes"; dozens of red crystals of different sizes were embedded in each guard.

Luo En just scanned them simply and quickly turned his attention back to the book selection task.

Time was limited, and he had to find the books he needed efficiently.

He approached the central structure cautiously, feeling the ancient energy fluctuations exuding from it.

Luo En tried to understand the operating principle of this indexing system.

Rather than a classification system, it was more like a thought-response device:

It would perceive the needs and thoughts of the visitor and actively guide them to find knowledge that resonated with them.

Luo En closed his eyes, concentrated, and clearly presented the key concepts of "Extraordinary Biology," "Abyss," and "Bloodline" on the surface of his consciousness.

The eye-shaped orb at the top immediately reacted to this information; the iris turned deep purple, and the pupil expanded, forming a pitch-black vortex.

Luo En followed its guidance and arrived in front of a bookshelf made of a mixture of dark purple biological bones and some unknown metal.

The books on the bookshelf were various; some were regular in shape like ordinary books, while others wriggled like organic creatures.

There were even a few that seemed to be condensed from some kind of semi-solid substance, with tiny bubbles constantly forming and bursting inside.

In the center of this bookshelf, a special book immediately attracted Luo En's attention.

It was an abnormally thick classic, with a volume about the size of an adult's chest circumference, and the cover was wrapped in the leather of some unknown creature.

Seen from the front, it was the "Abyssal Creature Atlas" in common language, and from the side, it was some kind of ancient rune.

And when viewed from a specific angle, one would see a series of incomprehensible geometric symbols, and staring directly at them would cause slight dizziness.

"This is exactly what I have been looking for..."

Luo En's heart accelerated involuntarily.

He had specifically inquired about this "Abyssal Creature Atlas" after learning the news from Li Li Liya's side.

It was said to have been written by a Dark Sun Wizard named Selwyn Aldrich.

This wizard explored the abyss for nearly a century, traveling through every area from the first layer to the thirteenth layer.

There were even rumors that he had stayed briefly in the thirteenth layer, the "Void Boundary," which was considered an extremely rare feat for anyone below the level of a Great Wizard.

He spent some more time browsing other books on the bookshelf to ensure he hadn't missed any better choices.

Although he saw a few attractive classics, such as "Soul Cleavage and Reshaping: The Price of Immortality," "Under the Starry Sky: Footprints of Ancient Gods," etc.

But considering his research direction, Luo En finally determined that "Abyssal Creature Atlas" was the best choice.

He carefully reached out to touch this classic, and his fingertips immediately felt a peculiar cold touch, accompanied by a faint electric-like stinging pain.

When spiritual power touched the book, some kind of consciousness seemed to be responding, examining this new reader.

"Incredible..."

He carefully took the book down, feeling the depth contained within it.

Opening the first page, he confirmed that this was indeed the complete version he wanted.

Unlike regular books, the opening of "Abyssal Creature Atlas" was not a preface or table of contents, but a warning.

Written in bright red ink, the strokes were frantic, and the handwriting pulsed slightly on the paper, as if it had been written directly with blood:

"Those who flip through this book should always pay attention to their own soul.

Knowledge is both a beacon and an abyss;

Those who know too much may become what they seek.

When you gaze into the abyss, the abyss is also gazing into you."

Below this warning was a peculiar seal, shaped like an eye, but the pupil was a miniature vortex, which seemed to be rotating slowly on the paper.

The decision was made, and Luo En, holding this thick classic, walked toward the central multi-dimensional structure.

When he approached, the eye-shaped orb at the top opened again.

A blue-black light swept across the book, seemingly performing some kind of soul-level registration.

"Selection confirmed: 'Abyssal Creature Atlas' (13th edition imprint), recorded by Selwyn Aldrich, a work that transcends time, high treasure collection level."

A tone with multiple voices superimposed came from the orb, sounding as if it came from afar, and as if it rang directly in Luo En's mind:

"Confirm taking it out? Once confirmed, the special authority will expire."

Luo En was startled for a moment, but quickly replied: "Confirmed."

The moment he said this word, a faint energy fluctuation conducted from the book to his body, forming an invisible but indeed existing connection.

"Recording completed."

The orb returned to calm, but at the last moment, it added in a volume that was almost inaudible:

"May knowledge illuminate your path, no matter where it leads."

Luo En turned and walked toward the exit, those alien guardian golems watching him leave.

Countless red crystal eyes watched his every move simultaneously until he stepped out of the obsidian door.

The old guard was waiting outside the door, and seeing the book in Luo En's hand, his face turned pale instantly:

"'Abyssal Creature Atlas'? God of Wisdom... this, this is really a... quite bold choice, young man."

Luo En responded calmly: "Knowledge has no good or evil; the key lies in the original intention of the user."

The old guard looked at Luo En with a solemn expression, his voice so low it was almost a whisper:

"Some say Aldrich never truly left the abyss; he just brought his findings back to the surface world in the form of a book, although this is not the original, I still hope you will be as careful as possible when researching it."

Luo En was silent for a moment, keeping this warning firmly in mind: "Using knowledge cautiously is a compulsory course for every wizard."

"May your wisdom surpass your curiosity."

The old guard finally exhorted: "Remember, when you explore the mysteries of the abyss, countless eyes are also watching you through the cracks of knowledge."

After returning to the workshop, Luo En immediately entered the most secret laboratory.

He activated multiple isolation arrays to ensure that the subsequent research would not be subject to any interference or leakage.

Subsequently, Luo En carefully placed the long-awaited "Abyssal Creature Atlas" on the reading stand.

When the pages unfolded under his hands, Luo En was surprised to find that this atlas was different from any ordinary book—the content inside seemed to be alive, changing and unfolding with the reader's focus.

The text flowed and reorganized constantly, and the illustrations would present astonishing three-dimensional effects when observed.

Some pages even exuded specific scents and sounds, making reading an immersive experience for all senses.

"The abyss, that 'eternally deep' space called by ancient poetry, 'wasteland of dead gods' recorded in mythology, and 'power furnace' viewed by wizards,"

As he read, a faint black halo appeared around the text:

"It is not a simple underground world or demon nest as mortals on the surface imagine. It is more like an independent cosmic bubble, a folded reality dominated by twisted rules, composed of at least thirteen (perhaps extending to infinity) multi-dimensional spirals of different levels."

With this description, a three-dimensional image emerged on the page:

An inverted spiral structure, wide at the bottom, gradually widening downward, and finally disappearing into an unspeakable dark vortex.

This image was not static, but rotating slowly; every time it turned, the form of the spiral would change subtly, presenting its multi-dimensional characteristics.

Luo En flipped through the preface and came to the first chapter—"Overview of Abyssal Geography."

The book described the overall structure of the abyss in detail, but these descriptions were far more complex and incredible than Luo En had expected.

The first and second layers are called "Blood-Colored Shoals," which on the surface seem to be just a wilderness covered by an eternal blood-red sky.

But the book reveals that thousands of "space vesicles" are hidden under this seemingly ordinary surface, each with its own unique ecosystem.

The boundaries between these vesicles are blurred and unstable; if one is not careful, an explorer might enter a completely different environment after taking one step.

The third layer, "Black Sand Wasteland," which is where that Manticore came from, is a cursed desert in surface description.

But deep analysis reveals a more astonishing truth: the "sand grains" here are actually micro-life forms, each with its own consciousness and purpose.

The entire desert is actually a huge cluster intelligence, expanding itself through constant devouring and assimilation.

However, what truly made Luo En feel creepy was the description of the fourth layer and below; these levels had begun to deviate from the forms of existence that mortals could understand.

The fourth layer, "Twisted Jungle," is an ecosystem that violates natural laws.

The boundaries between plants and animals are blurred, and life reproduces and evolves in incomprehensible ways.

The trees there might suddenly turn into animals, and animals might take root and sprout to become plants.

And some creatures possess both plant and animal characteristics, and there are even forms of existence that cannot be classified.

The fifth layer, "Sea of Eternal Night," is a fluid region where space is twisted...

The sixth layer, "Domain of Labyrinth," is a multi-dimensional space folding structure, not only a labyrinth of physical space but also a labyrinth of cognition and logic.

Here, the most basic causal relationships are broken; results may appear before causes, and paradoxes are the norm rather than the exception.

The book writes:

"The true danger starting from the sixth layer, Domain of Labyrinth, lies not in its complex spatial structure, but in its erosion of the explorer's thinking.

After being exposed to this environment for a long time, one's thinking mode will begin to lean toward the logic of the abyss, gradually losing the understanding of the concept of 'normal.'

Once this transformation begins, it is almost irreversible, because the affected person will think that the surrounding world has become 'abnormal,' rather than their own thinking having a problem."

The ninth layer, "Abyss of Souls," is even more abstract and difficult to describe; it is defined as the "boundary between existence and non-existence."

Here, thoughts and emotions become visible entities, and fragments of memories and dreams float in the void.

Souls can be directly observed and manipulated, just like objects in the material world.

And the deepest thirteenth layer, "Void Boundary," almost completely exceeds the scope that language can describe.

The content of this part of the book is full of mottled ink and blanks, as if the author himself found it difficult to translate what he saw and heard into words.

The few descriptions are full of contradictory and incoherent expressions, such as "infinitely small space," "burning ice," "noisy silence," and other paradoxical phrases.

Subsequent chapters describe the curse effects of the abyss in detail, which is more detailed and astonishing than any information Luo En had previously understood:

"The abyssal curse is not just an influence on the body and spirit, but a transformation of the form of existence. Every creature that stays in the abyss is unknowingly redefined, compiled into the 'dictionary' of the abyss, and becomes a part of its grammatical system."

"The curses of the first to third layers mainly manifest as changes at the physical level—skin hardening or softening, sensory distortion or enhancement, organ position changes or functional conversion.

These changes may indeed be partially reversed after leaving the abyss, but there has never been a record of complete recovery;"

"The fourth to fifth layers begin to affect the mental structure—perception methods, thinking modes, and emotional reactions will all undergo fundamental changes.

The affected person may begin to understand time, space, and causality in a brand-new way, and even develop new thinking that cannot be expressed in mortal languages;"

"And from the sixth layer and below, the curse will directly reconstruct the essence of the soul—no longer a simple 'infection' or 'influence,' but a complete 'rewrite.'

Those explorers who have stayed here for too long are no longer creatures changed by the abyss, but have become a conscious fragment of the abyss itself, an active incarnation of the abyss."

The book specifically emphasizes a disturbing phenomenon—the irreversibility and contagiousness of the abyssal curse:

"Even explorers who have only briefly contacted the deep abyss will unconsciously bring the 'logic' of the abyss into reality after returning to the surface world.

Their thoughts, words, and even their existence itself will become tentacles of the abyss extending toward the surface world.

An individual affected by the seventh-layer curse can make the interlocutor's thinking begin to lean toward the abyssal mode just through long conversations."

This description made Luo En think of those black wizard organizations and abyssal cults that are not tolerated by the mainstream wizarding world.

They might be the collective manifestation of this contagion process, a group of individuals reshaped by the abyss, secretly spreading the influence of the abyss in the surface world.

The following chapters specifically describe the biological communities of each layer of the abyss.

Luo En was surprised to find that the classification system of abyssal creatures is completely different from that of the surface world.

There, life is not divided based on form or function, but with "existence density" and "reality anchoring degree" as the main indicators.

The most common category of abyssal creatures is "mutants," creatures that originally came from the surface world and were later transformed by abyssal energy.

"Mutants" are like the further evolution of these deformed creatures from the outside world, which he could barely understand.

What truly made him feel incredible were the descriptions of those native abyssal creatures.

These existences that belonged to the abyss from the very beginning completely broke away from the understanding framework of mortal biology.

The book recorded more than a dozen such native abyssal creatures in detail, each possessing characteristics that violate natural laws:

"Void Wanderer"—an energy aggregate without a fixed form, capable of existing in multiple spatial positions simultaneously and unimpeded by physical obstacles;

"Thought Swarm"—a collective consciousness creature composed of thousands of tiny entities, each possessing partial collective thinking, but only the collective can exhibit complete intelligence;

"Time Eater"—a peculiar creature that feeds on time, which gnaws on the "timeline" of objects, causing the attacked to experience accelerated aging or regression...

The most terrifying native abyssal creature is the "Soul Eater"—an existence that only exists in the ninth layer, "Abyss of Souls."

The book's description of them is extremely detailed, occupying almost an entire chapter:

"Soul Eaters do not exist at the material level, but exist as 'conceptual creatures' in the realm of soul and thought.

Their most terrifying characteristic is not their destructive power, but their contagiousness—any soul affected by a Soul Eater will gradually develop the traits of a Soul Eater, eventually completely transforming into a new Soul Eater."

"This transformation process is gradual and imperceptible. Victims usually do not notice that they are changing until it is too late.

The initial symptoms are tiny holes in memory, followed by the dulling of emotional reactions, then the ability to abnormally perceive the souls of others, and finally an uncontrollable 'appetite'—a craving for other souls."

"Most terrifyingly, even in the surface world, this transformation is almost irreversible once it begins.

The only known 'treatment' method is the Soul Splitting Technique, which cuts out and seals the infected part, but this itself is an extremely dangerous forbidden spell, and the success rate is extremely low."

However, just as the danger level of the abyss increases with depth, the treasures and opportunities contained within also increase exponentially.

Luo En flipped to the chapter "Abyssal Matter and Rarities," finding that the content of this part was far more systematic and detailed than imagined.

"Abyssal matter should not be simply understood as 'material,' but should be viewed as 'solidified twisted fragments'."

The book explains:

"Every kind of abyssal material can, to a limited extent, interfere with or overwrite the physical laws of the surface world."

This is also the content Luo En is most interested in at present.

But just as he was about to continue reading, he suddenly felt dizzy, and hurriedly reached out to support the table...

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 176 =====