Chapter 510: Final Piece of the Puzzle.
’What does she mean, she doesn’t have a choice?’
’Is she being forced by someone or something?’
Many thoughts ran through his mind, but he could not wrap his head around it.
His brows furrowed deeply as he stared at the ancient scorpion, trying to understand the meaning behind her words.
The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he became.
For such an entity to be forced, how powerful was the one behind it?
That thought alone terrified him.
Once again, he was reminded of how weak he was.
The realization settled heavily within his heart, making his previous confidence seem almost laughable.
Previously, when he became a Level 40 Necromancer, he thought he was strong enough to work unhindered through the Bleeding Desert.
He had believed that with his undead army and his newly acquired strength, none could threaten him on the bleeding desert.
Only for reality to slap him in the face when he arrived before the ancient scorpion.
From her aura alone, he could tell the ancient scorpion was an existence beyond Level 40.
The overwhelming pressure he had experienced earlier had already given him a glimpse of the vast difference between their strengths.
He was still grappling with the reality that this world harbored such an existence. And now, he had learned that such an existence was being forced.
The thought made his heart tighten slightly, and a faint chill ran down his spine as he considered the terrifying implications behind her words.
Shaking his head, he took a deep breath and forced himself not to think about it.
There was no point in worrying about something he could neither understand nor change with his current strength.
"What do you mean you have no choice?"
"It means what it means. I have no choice." The Ancient Scorpion responded, unwilling to explain further than that.
Her massive eyes remained calm as she stared at him, showing no intention of elaborating on the matter.
It was obvious that whatever she meant by those words was something she had no intention of revealing.
"So, are you going to tell me about your trial, or would you rather spend your time contemplating secrets beyond your realm?"
When she put it that way, Thoren didn’t have a choice but to sigh heavily once again.
He knew she was right.
There was little value in wasting his time trying to unravel mysteries that were far beyond his current level of understanding.
Whoosh!
From his inventory, he took out the ancient book he found from the ruin. The moment the book appeared in his hand, his expression became serious as he carefully tried to explain.
"This..."
Before Thoren could even begin his statement, the ancient book suddenly flew out of his hand and arrived before the ancient scorpion.
His eyes widened slightly as he instinctively followed the movement of the book.
The book flew open quickly and arrived at the only page left inside.
Watching the solemn expression in the ancient scorpion’s eyes, Thoren did not try to interrupt her.
Her massive eyes remained fixed upon the ancient page, and for the first time since their conversation began, a noticeable change appeared within her expression.
Right now, he needed her assistance to interpret the content of the book while also finding clues about the Blood Compass.
Whatever secrets were contained within its remaining page could potentially be connected to his trial, making this opportunity far too valuable for him to interfere.
Before he could relax a bit, the air inside the cavern suddenly swirled, and behold, four sheets of ancient paper appeared out of nowhere and slowly descended into the open book.
Thoren’s eyes widened as he watched the strange phenomenon unfold before him.
Each sheet was made of the same material as the ancient book.
The moment all four sheets fitted into the ancient book, a flash of blinding light erupted from the book.
The entire cavern was illuminated in an instant, forcing Thoren to narrow his eyes as the intense light spread across the surrounding walls.
"Finally..." The Ancient Scorpion muttered, her voice filled with happiness as her massive eyes remained fixed upon the ancient book.
"Who would have thought the last part would be found by a human?"
She sighed, but that did not reduce her joy.
If anything, the faint excitement in her voice became even more noticeable, contrasting sharply with the detached demeanor she had maintained throughout their conversation.
Listening to her rambling, Thoren creased his brow but did not speak. He simply waited patiently for her to finish reading the ancient book, knowing that interrupting her would accomplish nothing.
After what seemed like forever, the ancient book finally closed and vanished into thin air.
The sudden disappearance of the book brought Thoren’s attention back to the ancient scorpion, whose massive eyes slowly shifted toward him.
"Tell me, what do you want to know?" The Ancient Scorpion asked.
"What is the book all about? And is it true that other Carapace Clans cannot read it?"
"A secret about our world. As for why others cannot read it, that is simple."
"Because it is written in the original language of the Veyrath, and my clan was the first pet species that survived their crazy experiments before our world turned into this."
"Pet!"
Thoren’s heart skipped a beat.
The word struck him harder than he expected, and his expression changed instantly. His eyes widened slightly while several thoughts raced through his mind.
Since the Scorpion Clan were nothing but pets to the Veyrath, then other Beastmen species were also pets.
The realization was both shocking and unsettling.
Everything he had assumed about the Beastmen races suddenly felt different, as though an invisible layer had been peeled away from the history of this world.
"That’s indeed the case. We’re nothing but pets in their eyes. Mindless animals."
"To satisfy their craving for knowledge, they performed many experiments on us that you can’t fathom."
"Luckily for my species, we’re the first to survive, and thus, we were allowed to awaken our intelligence and learn a great deal from our masters."
She explained expressionlessly, her tone devoid of any emotion.
There was no anger in her voice, nor was there resentment or sorrow. After living for such a long time, perhaps those emotions had already been buried beneath countless years of memories.
"Little human, is that enough to satisfy your puzzling mind?"
Thoren was too shocked to speak and could only nod.
The ancient scorpion watched him for a moment before slowly speaking again.
"Good. Because you don’t have enough time."
"Hmm?"
Thoren’s expression changed immediately.
"What does that mean?"
The Ancient Scorpion did not respond. Instead, she slowly raised one of her massive limbs. A faint mental fluctuation spread throughout the cavern.
The next moment, her mental power condensed into a parchment that materialized in the air. The parchment flew toward Thoren, and he instinctively caught it.
"That’s what you need. Go now..."
Looking at the parchment, Thoren realized it was a map written with human words.
His eyes immediately narrowed as he studied the markings across its surface. At the center of the map was a red marker.
Without needing anyone to tell him, he knew that was his last destination.
His fingers tightened around the parchment as he stared at the red marker for several seconds.
He gripped the map tightly and stared at the Ancient Scorpion one last time before preparing to depart.
Just then, the Ancient Scorpion spoke, causing him to halt in his tracks.
"..."