The power of the Soul Snatcher lurked in all sentient thoughts, and when you fell asleep, it would wake up.
The man in black staggered through the small door into the rock platform. Behind him, the metal door quietly closed, and a layer of optical camouflage once again covered the entrance and exit, making it look normal.
The inside of the rock platform was a completely different world. In fact, this was a secret stronghold that had been hollowed out. There were dozens of meters of mountain rocks on the ground as cover, and there was also a rather wide space underground. The man in black walked down a narrow downward slope for a few meters before entering a slightly cramped small room. The four walls of the small room were carved out of rock, and the stone roof was low. If a slightly taller person came in, they would have to lower their head. The four stone walls were inlaid with dim yellow lights. They were not oil lamps, nor were they candles that the civilians of this world were familiar with. Instead, they were square crystal boxes connected to each other by wires. It was some kind of electricity-driven light-emitting device, a product of science and technology!
A man sat in the corner of the small room. He was also wearing a black hooded robe, which was exactly the same style as the man in black. The robe at first looked a bit like the uniform of the clergy of the Lost Gods, but it had all the symbols related to religious symbols on the surface, and the hood was wider, making the wearer look unusually gloomy. The man in black sitting in the corner saw the man who rushed in and shook his head curiously. His voice was sharp. "Why are you so flustered? I saw you running this way from the monitor just now, as if you were being chased. "
There was an oval display device on the small table in front of the man in black. It turned out that he was using this thing to monitor the scene outside the rock platform. It seemed that this small room should be a place similar to a "sentry post".
"Don't talk so much. The underground mine tunnels in the south have been exposed," the man in black said as he looked back with a little fear, as if the "tracker" that he thought he had shaken off had appeared again. In fact, he had been tortured by this "illusion" along the way, and now he was a little neurotic. "We have to tell the leader as soon as possible. This place is no longer safe."
"Exposed?" The man in black with the sharp voice suddenly trembled. He quickly pressed a few buttons on the wall and then asked in a hurried tone, "What the hell is going on? Aren't you going to set up explosives to block the tunnel? "
The short, fat man in black sounded a little annoyed. "I was planting explosives in the mine as planned, and I restarted the antenna tower to burn down the annoying town next to it. But somehow, an adventurer accidentally opened the door of the underground facility … I've killed him, but the widowed priest in the town has reacted. She brought adventurers to check the situation, and a strange adventurer found me … Now, he should have found out the secret of the underground mine."
The man in black with the sharp voice said in an unfriendly tone, "Use the Antenna Tower to burn down the town? Who told you to do these unnecessary things? Don't you know that the town has a protective shield?! "
"I just wanted to cause chaos and trap the adventurers in the town. I didn't really intend to succeed, but the widowed priest was quite courageous. She personally rushed out with her people. I thought she would hide under the protective shield and wait for support like the other heretics," the man in black said in an embarrassed tone, "Now is not the time to talk about this. When things calm down, I will look for the leader to punish me. Now, let me in first."
"Our comrades in other strongholds have received the report. Next, it's up to our leader to deal with you … He may report this to the commander. You … Forget it, you go in first." The man in black with the sharp voice said a few words, but he seemed to realize that complaining was useless, so he could only shake his head and open another heavy alloy door on the rock wall behind him.
"Thanks." The man in black muttered and walked into the alloy door. Behind him, the "gatekeeper" cursed under his breath as he closed the door to vent his dissatisfaction with the upcoming escape. But his cursing suddenly stopped, and instead, he muttered to himself in confusion, "Huh? Why do I suddenly feel a little … "
Feeling sleepy for no reason, the gatekeeper was puzzled for a moment, and then he lay on the table and fell into a dream.
At this moment, the short fat man had entered the inside of the stronghold and came to the underground. This was a large crypt with a complex structure that looked gloomy and strange. The crypt was supported by a mixture of rocks, giant wood, and steel beams. The architectural structure looked neither fish nor fowl. Walking in it gave people the feeling that they were in a dungeon. The walls of the crypt corridor were inlaid with lamps that were not bright enough. It was unknown whether it was to save energy, the technology of the lighting equipment was not good enough, or it was simply the bad taste of the crypt owner, but these dim yellow lights only made the surrounding environment more gloomy and strange.
"I've really stayed in this damn place for too long … Maybe it would be better to move to a more spacious place." The man in black muttered as he walked quickly on the stone path. He was not very worried about the punishment in the future. It was unknown whether he believed in the benevolence of the "leader" or that he really did not commit such a heinous crime. In the crypt, there were some people in black who were dressed similarly to him. There were also a few people who did not wear robes but wore other strange uniforms. The clothes of the latter obviously did not look like the civilians of this world. The white robes made them look like doctors or scholars from some small southern countries. It was said that this was the attire of ancient "scientists." The man in black greeted his black-robed colleagues and showed a more respectful attitude to the white-robed people. It seemed that the latter had a special position in the "organization."
The man in black stopped at the end of a corridor because he saw a tall, long-haired, beautiful woman in a leather coat standing in front of him. No matter how calm he was before, he could not help but take half a step back when he saw the tall woman. Then, he lowered his head and said respectfully, "Leader … I've messed up."
"I already know," the woman who was called the leader seemed to have no expression on her face. "It's not all your fault. That widow was an adventurer a few years ago. She's different from those heretics who came from the school and lived like princes. She's a troublesome person who dares to say and do what she wants … Your idea of burning down the town to buy time is right. It's just that you've met a woman who doesn't fall for it."
"Leader, what should we do next? The underground mine tunnel has been exposed. I'm afraid that the widow priest will soon suspect that there are Awakened members nearby. She may search this place. We'd better hurry … "
"No, now is not the time to evacuate," the tall woman waved her hand forcefully. "This place is far away from the diocese. No matter how capable the widow is, she's only one person. At most, including the seven or eight apprentice priests in the town who act with the adventurers, they only have so many people in a short period of time. They can only search around the ruins and the periphery of the forest. They won't be able to find far. They won't be a threat before the support of the diocese arrives. But the widow will definitely inform the other parishes to block the traffic. If we evacuate now, we will be blocked by the heretics on the periphery. "
The leader's analysis was reasonable, and her firm attitude gave people inexplicable confidence. The man in black bowed respectfully. "Leader, you're very thoughtful. So, we can only wait here? Sooner or later, the heretics will gather their people and summon them. "
"First, this place is not so easy to be exposed. Didn't we get through the two previous searches safely? Second … our colleagues in other areas will find a way to open up the route. Even if they can't, we can 'disperse' on the spot. At worst, we can just give up this base." The leader glanced at the man in black in front of her. Seeing that the man seemed to have something else to say, she finally waved her hand impatiently. "Alright, let's do it this way. There's no better way than this. Go to your room and rest now. The rest is not something you can worry about. "
"… Yes, leader."
The man in black respectfully excused himself. Then, a feeling of physical and mental exhaustion overwhelmed him. He quickly returned to his room and fell asleep on the bed without even changing his clothes.
The nightmare began to spread like a tide.
In an empty and boundless grayish-black fog, he stood alone on the desolate black land. The man looked around blankly, not knowing where he was. He even forgot his own name for a moment.
Some inexplicable fear spread from the bottom of his heart. Although he did not know why, he began to run away!
Run away, run away, run away! No matter what, run away! In short, run away!
Boundless fear shrouded his heart, and the man in the nightmare desperately fled under the drive of pure fear. The fog around him was endless, and there was nothing familiar in the grayish-black world. He did not know why he was running, did not know what he was running from, and did not even know why he was afraid. He felt that there seemed to be endless giant monsters in the thick fog, and he heard vague whispers in his ears. He felt that his body was being devoured by some kind of cold rodent, and he felt that he was immersed in a bloody mud, about to drown and on the verge of suffocation … However, there was nothing around him. Both his sight and touch told him that all of this was an illusion, but it was useless. All kinds of terrifying illusions spread in his heart. Even though they appeared out of thin air, it made him believe that he was about to be devoured!
Twisted thoughts spread wantonly, and there was a faint mockery coming from the thick black fog. A thousand eyes were staring at the weakest side of his heart. The man in the nightmare felt that his heart was being occupied by some kind of parasitic 'plant', and the vines called 'Cataclysm' drilled holes in his heart, and then crazily spread in his soul!
The 'Cataclysm' filled the dream, and then it slowly seeped out and spread to the real world …
No one could see the 'Cataclysm' that was spreading in the air, but the underground base was swallowed by the strange atmosphere. Some people who were sleeping dreamed of the same horrible scene. They began to moan under the torture of the nightmare, and from the mouths of the humans came out a trill that sounded like mud spewing and insects hissing, and ordinary people who were awake felt that they were in a strange place. They looked at the familiar scenery and familiar colleagues around them, and strange conversations began to spread throughout the entire base.
"Hey … do you feel … there's someone here?" "Don't scare … scare yourself. There are so many people around. I feel a little cold … "" What is' it 'looking at? "" Who is' it '? " "Someone is talking, someone is listening …" "Who are you talking to, who are you talking to, do you see a pair of eyes?" "Cold, everywhere, I know, you, someone is watching …"
People began to talk restlessly. At first, it was mutually understandable, but soon it became fragmented sentences, and then these fragmented sentences became strange and inexplicable pronunciations, and finally, even the pronunciations became a sharp noise like metal tearing. People looked around in horror, listening to their former compatriots speak in a language that did not belong to humans, and then they heard the same strange sounds coming out of their mouths. Their hearts began to waver, and fear found fertile ground. When the entire underground palace was filled with the whispers of the 'Cataclysm' that did not belong to humans, everyone's thoughts no longer belonged to themselves, and their souls became abstract symbols, slowly, over and over again, spelling a name: Sandora? Kelvi? Ulysses …
However, what was happening in the spiritual world was unknown to ordinary people. They only knew that they were being overwhelmed by an increasing and unreasonable fear. They could only hear themselves and their comrades making incomprehensible and strange noises. Finally, after the accumulation to a certain extent, the 'Cataclysm' broke out.
The accumulated fear in the depths of their hearts suddenly increased, and this had nothing to do with the strength of one's will. The stronger the will, the more intense the pressure of fear. This was a process of self-betrayal, and the process of scaring oneself to death. The first person broke down and began to scream wildly, and this inhuman roar instantly filled the entire underground base.
The fear of humans became a source of energy, and the shadow of the Soul Snatcher spread from the depths of everyone's heart. These shadows slowly entered the real world from the illusory world, and slowly formed … erm, a golden ball of light.
I appeared in a gloomy underground palace with Sandora's ball in my arms. Looking at the chaotic scene in front of me, and listening to the ear-piercing noises from all directions, I felt unwell. "Your skill is a little evil … Spiritual pollution or something."
"It's better than spiritual pollution, because I can teleport myself through the nightmares or thoughts of the infected, and I can appear at any place they desperately want to hide." Sandora's ball swayed gently, and the underground base instantly quietened down. Everyone had fainted from fear. "How is it? How does it feel to be born from fear?"
"Erm … I feel a little dizzy. It feels like there are ten thousand people shouting in my ears," I scratched my head and said honestly.
In the past few days, I experienced a very … novel 'journey'.
Crossing the boundary between reality and illusion, I was teleported from the dream world with the Soul Snatcher. Sandora had only left a seed in the man in black, but this seed quickly spread through his thoughts and the communication between him and the others. It even spread through their 'understanding' and 'recognition' of each other. In the end, a great fear erupted, and Sandora and I were 'born' from the fear.
It sounded quite unbelievable. Fear seemed to be something intangible, but the power of the Soul Snatcher defied common sense. To Sandora, nightmares really seemed to be a door — and she didn't even have to open it herself.
"This is just a small-scale application. Actually, I once used a horrifying dream to deal with a troublesome enemy race." Sandora slowly floated forward, looking for a valuable place. As she floated, she talked about her 'achievements.' "That race's technology was very strong, and they also had some research in mysticism. They even gave me a headache. So, after careful preparation, I said something to them. I poured a part of my power into this sentence and sent it into the enemy's mind. In the end, that race went extinct within a month. All of them were scared to death. "
"… Didn't anyone tell you that this technique of yours was quite scary?"
"I know. This technique is meant to scare people."
I felt like my worldview and Sandora's were incompatible …
This time, Sandora had carefully controlled her power. Plus, "Fear" wasn't a direct attack. Instead, it was a passive attack using the enemy's own soul. So, there weren't many casualties. Everyone in this underground base was still alive, and the great fear had made their minds abnormally weak. It was much easier to ask questions.
We are now eager to know what this organization is all about. According to the information obtained from the 'Mind Monitor', this organization is actually quite large. They have more than one stronghold, and they are brazenly going against the Lost God Church.
They called the members of the Lost God Church "heretics." What did this mean?
Could it be that this organization itself was some kind of religion?
I looked at the facilities in the underground palace. There was electricity, high-tech lighting equipment, and a closed-circuit surveillance system. In fact, everyone was equipped with advanced firearms. I even discovered magic crystals or staff-like items on some of them. This meant that not only did they have technological equipment, but they also had advanced magical technology.
"This organization is probably the so-called 'Technology Revival Faction.' They're opposing the Lost God Church's' Technology Sealing Faction. '" I told her my own guess. "However, this Technology Revival Faction doesn't seem to be very likeable. They kill and set fires without thinking. In order to divert attention and stall for time, they even want to massacre an entire town. No matter if they succeed or not, they're treating human lives like grass. Although I didn't like the conservative methods of the Lost God Church in the beginning … to be honest, these fellows seem to be a bit more ruthless."
"People who deviate from the traditional path are always used to calling their actions' justice for the few. 'This will allow them to use violence against the majority without any qualms. Also, they're always able to use' foresight 'and' open-mindedness' to absolve themselves of any wrongdoing." Sandora had a clear understanding of the situation. "To put it bluntly, they're actually terrorists? Terrorists. Oh, I found them. This so-called leader. "
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