Summoning the Holy Sword

Chapter 1132: Enter the Ruins

It might possibly take a long time if it were just an excavation. But after so many years, the surroundings had been completely unearthed despite the lack of financial support. The most important task now was the internal investigation, which explained why everyone got to work immediately after getting ready, entering a cave in the mountains ahead. Apart from archaeologists and 'bystanders' like Rhode's group, there was also a ten-men excavation team and more than 20 well-trained soldiers, which wasn't considered a small number.

The cave seemed spacious enough for five to six people to go shoulder to shoulder. But as it was situated deep inside the mountains, the climate was extremely cold. At a glance, one could see the stalactites hanging down from the top of the cave. Although the cave was pitch-black, bright lights were set up on both sides of its path due to the excavation, which made it seem like a beautiful view. Thomas, who was leading the huge group, was enthusiastic as he strolled and narrated matters regarding this ruin to everyone.

"… We unintentionally discovered this ruins back then. From the very start, we only knew there were five of them. I suppose you've also seen the data. There were some relationships between the four ruins and the fifth was the hardest to find. Even though we have also unearthed records of the fifth ruin from the other four, the specific location wasn't clearly stated. Fortunately, thanks to an earthquake, our satellite managed to scan a large building complex underneath the surface and that was where we found traces of a relationship among all five ruins. If not, perhaps we wouldn't have discovered this fifth ruin."

Upon hearing Thomas's narration, a man behind him knitted his brows and asked: "Professor Thomas, if I recall correctly, according to the evaluation, the date these ruins were established…"

"That would be about 65 million years ago. We've gotten this definitive answer through our evaluations and tests. Not only that, but we have also uncovered fossils and plants from the Cretaceous period. All of them are enough to prove the time of construction."

Upon hearing Thomas's comments, Rhode twitched his brows in suspicions and didn't say a word. It seemed like those guys managed to transmigrate a long way back. If they were to succeed back then, perhaps humans wouldn't have had the chance to evolve from monkeys. Even though Rhode wasn't an expert in history, he knew 65 million years ago was when dinosaurs went extinct. Could it be that those guys were so unlucky that they were crushed by a meteorite right after they built the bases? That didn't make sense… Putting aside the fact that the meteorite didn't instantly destroy the entire Earth, most dinosaurs died due to the change in climate. As elites of the Dragon Soul Continent, as long as those guys possessed similar strength as Erin and Lydia, it shouldn't be too challenging for them to travel to the moon, build palaces, and wait inside in safety. Moreover, since they buried the Akashic Slates under the moon's surface, it went to show they were indeed capable of doing it. Furthermore, there was also a Deity Warden among them. If his younger sister wasn't wrong about the Presence Deity Warden being able to deny the pass and get rid of that meteorite, how was it possible for them to perish?

"In other words, what was established here may have been the first civilization on this planet?"

The young lady behind him couldn't stifle her agitation and asked passionately. Rhode shrugged in response. Well, if it were true, the people of the Dragon Soul Continent who came to Earth would also be considered the first civilization… even though they weren't local.

"It is highly possible. But what astonished us was that the architectural style of the five ruins was largely different from existing modern human civilization. They didn't seem to rely on any mechanical facilities and the architectural style was rather strange…" Thomas said, before coming to a halt. Everyone had been walking in the cave for two hours. As they advanced deeper, the path became increasingly wider. At that moment, they reached the end of the cave under Thomas's lead. But for some unknown reason, only this place was in complete darkness, where not even torchlights could aid them in seeing anything. Everyone turned to Thomas curiously, while the latter was apparently enjoying the moment. Facing their gazes, he looked ahead and the corners of his lips perked up into a smile. "… As for how strange they are, all of you will know after looking at them."

Thomas said, extending his hand and tapping gently on the panel at the edge of the stairs. Shortly after, in the sound of 'pops', the pitch-black space was instantly illuminated. Under the bright lights, the enormous structure was displayed before them entirely. Looking at the huge building ahead, not only the normal humans, but Lydia and Erin also widened their eyes in shock.

It was a rectangular structure that was tens of meters tall like a sacred palace residing in the deep mountains. At a glance, the surroundings of this building were as dark as the abyss where one couldn't even see the dome above. If they weren't sure that they were inside the mountains, perhaps they would think that they were in another world.

Under Thomas's lead, everyone arrived at the entrance of this sacred palace. The bright illumination of the lights allowed them to witness the palace that was as white as jade. They didn't know what materials were used to build it. The middle of the entrance was carved with mysterious and elegant patterns. Rhode sized up the sacred palace ahead and his eyes glinted in several flashes. He was almost certain that this sacred palace was related to the Void Dragon because based on its appearance, it seemed just like a replica of the palace right in the middle of Grandia. Apart from the smaller size, the other parts of it were almost exactly the same.

It seems like the five ruins were constructed by those guys dispatched by the five Creator Dragons and this ruin belonged to the Void Dragon. It also seems like everything worked out well for them from the start. If not, they wouldn't have wasted time building them. But why exactly…

At this thought, Rhode felt his heart skip a beat. An indistinct sense of insecurity surfaced in his mind. He also felt his heart pounding as though he were about to touch the truth of something. But after taking a closer look, he just couldn't figure it out. It was like taking a college entrance exam. He apparently knew the answer, but just couldn't find the specific content. This bothered him to a certain degree, but he shook his head and decided not to think about it.

"How do we enter?"

Gazing at the dark abyss that was 30 to 40 meters wide, another man pushed up his glasses, turned to Thomas, and asked dubiously. Thomas put up a helpless expression before letting out a sigh.

"I'm also considering this question."

"Can't we board an anti-gravity suspension vehicle?"

Upon hearing Thomas's response, the female researcher asked with a puzzled expression. After all, as technologies advanced, excavation became much easier for humans. In the past, there would be some dangers like in the movies. But now, those dangers seldom occurred anymore. As long as preparations were done properly, there shouldn't be any risks.

However, Thomas didn't respond to her. On the contrary, he stretched out his hand and tapped on the panel gently, and an unmanned flying device took off silently and flew straight at the sacred palace. Everyone's gaze involuntarily followed it. Just as it was about to arrive at the entrance, a bright, colorful radiance flashed and the flying device exploded in a loud 'boom' instantly. Then, it vanished entirely after being disintegrated by an unknown presence, not leaving behind any fragments.

Ssss—!

Looking at this scene, everyone took in a deep breath of cold air. Meanwhile, Rhode heard his younger sister's startled voice.

"That is an imprisonment enchanted field!"

"Imprisonment enchanted field?"

Rhode's heart sank. An imprisonment enchanted field and defensive enchanted field were entirely different. He had met one more than once in the Dragon Soul Continent, especially in ancient ruins. Unless the ancient ruins were thoroughly smashed, there would more or less be some enchanted fields around them and some were pretty strange. Back then, the Order Dimension that Rhode activated in the land of Chaos and battled with the projection was also a form of enchanted field.

But 'defensive' and 'imprisonment' were entirely different. 'Defensive' was used to protect something from harm, while 'imprisonment' was used to prevent being harmed from something. If this was just a defensive enchanted field, it would only be a defense mechanism of this sacred palace. But if it was the imprisonment enchanted field…

Could it be that one of the five Creator Dragons came up with some strange ideas back then?

Rhode's expression turned grim at this thought. Then, he asked urgently.

"Can those guys you sent cast this imprisonment enchanted field?"

This time, his younger sister pondered in silence to his question for a few moments. Then, she gnashed her teeth and said, "Only Marybelle is capable of casting such an enchanted field. This is space imprisonment and only the Deity Wardens I created are capable of using such a special enchanted field."

"… Huh?"

After hearing his younger sister's answer, Rhode scratched his head in confusion. He considered the possibilities of one of the Creator Dragons' subjects receiving orders from the dark side, ambushing Marybelle, and imprisoning this sacred palace. But as a matter of fact, this imprisonment enchanted field was released by Marybelle? What was going on? Was something imprisoned within? Marybelle couldn't have made a wrong move and trapped herself inside, right? While Rhode pondered deeply, Thomas's voice sounded once again.

"This is a kind of space barrier that is hard to break. We've spent a lot of effort and time to find a way to disintegrate it but to no avail. Fortunately, we have a solution this time…" Thomas revealed a delightful expression. This space barrier wasn't seen anywhere else and its origin also wasn't discovered, which was extremely strange. No matter where they excavated, they didn't figure out where it came from. Of course, he reported this matter to his higher-ups to request for more funds and equipment. However, the higher-ups were no longer interested in the research of ruins back then and the space barrier was too challenging to break. Even though the higher-ups had the will and intention to research, they were also afraid of causing a ruckus and causing it to be discovered by outsiders, which was why they eventually gave up. But now, after Thomas gained their full support, he finally found a solution.

Thomas waved his arm and several soldiers went up to him, placing four large, sealed iron boxes on the ground solemnly. They opened the boxes and everyone witnessed four stone statues carved with dragons inside. Looking at the four dragons, Rhode's expression turned complicated… Well, this wasn't the first time he saw them.

"This is what we unearthed in the other four ruins. According to my analysis, they contain strange powers that coincide with the energy waves from this shield. We did an experiment earlier and found that as long as we trigger the powers of these four statues, we can break the shield."

Thomas said and made a hand gesture. Shortly after, an officer pressed the button on a hand-held device and a mechanical sound rang. Unsure of what methods they used, the stone dragons emanated a mysterious, white radiance instantly. Their eyes also brightened and emitted eight dazzling light beams abruptly, striking heavily on the sacred palace. Then, the colorful shield around the sacred palace appeared once again. Looking at this scene, everyone widened their eyes in surprise and due to this reason, no one discovered the bright glint flashing in Rhode's eyes. At the same time, a faint magical summoning radiance flickered on Rhode's right hand, before transforming into an odd, circular magical ritual that spun for a few seconds before vanishing entirely.

This scene lasted for less than two minutes. As Rhode stood at the back of the large group, no one realized the phenomenon. Along with his movement, the shield suddenly disappeared and loud thunderous booms were heard where large slates flew out of the abyss and formed a huge path.

Gazing at this scene, Thomas became incomparably thrilled. He ascended the flight of stairs in excitement without beckoning to the rest, but they hurried to follow him closely. Meanwhile, the soldiers also raised their weapons quickly and went up the stairs, leaving behind Rhode's group in the back.

"Your Majesty Rhode, is anything the matter?"

Looking at this majestic palace, Lydia and Erin were curious to check it out. However, Rhode had given them a signal earlier and made them stay in the back. At this moment, they looked at him in confusion, while Rhode observed their expressions and nodded.

"That's right, something strange may be going on. I suppose both of you have already witnessed it. That is an imprisonment enchanted field, so perhaps something odd is inside. Everyone, be careful, especially of those guys at the front. Don't let them touch anything they shouldn't. If not, there will be trouble."

Rhode said and turned to Canary and Mini Bubble Gum.

"Of course, attack if anything is to happen."

It went without saying that Thomas wasn't aware that he had gotten in too deep. After Rhode's group entered the sacred palace, Thomas and the rest were observing the surroundings in excitement. The walls of this sacred palace were engraved with all sorts of mystical wording that was unknown to most people—even Erin and Lydia only had slight knowledge of it. But with Rhode's younger sister, who was the original Void Dragon, around, it went without saying that she understood the words. As the group advanced, Rhode's younger sister explained the content to him.

Indeed, what was recorded on the walls of this sacred palace was the pioneering history of Marybelle and the representative sent by the Creator Dragons. According to the records, even though the five Creator Dragons' representatives had transmigrated, they were separated and not sent to the same place. They didn't gather immediately, but chose to build camps individually instead (It seemed like the representatives also understood what demarcation was, where they had thought of separating territories before transmigrating). Back then, Earth was naturally abnormally dangerous to ordinary people. But in the eyes of the representatives, the dinosaurs were nothing more than ordinary 'creatures'. After all, compared to the beasts and wild animals in the Dragon Soul Continent, even though the dinosaurs were massive, they didn't possess similar abilities, so they were no threat at all.

On the other hand, Marybelle had also successfully constructed this sacred palace. Then, as long as they gathered, activated the Door of Akasha, and opened up the teleportation channel… But…

"How is this possible?!"

After reading the text on the wall, Rhode's younger sister shrieked. Rhode gazed at the unknown text, as well as the drawn twisted monsters. After a few moments, his younger sister explained.

"… Big Brother, if the records aren't wrong… we may have some troubles ahead…"