Chapter 4449: Still Working

"Meh..." Rean was completely uninterested. "Let’s just go a little further into these ruins to map them and then go somewhere else. No point wasting much time there."

Lukay disagreed. "What are you talking about? We are deeper into the Godly Creatures Territories than anyone else has been before. There is a good chance we will find more runes for the Sacred Relic."

Rean shrugged. "We already found plenty in the struggles of the last ruins, remember? You read the report. We contributed a lot with just a single mission."

Lukay took the chance to warn them. "You should still take a deeper look and try to retrieve runes if there are any usable. As you said, you have already mapped this place, and the Godly Subjugation might see it as you ignoring one of the main reasons for the Elite explorations. You might have to pay your taxes as a result if they aren’t very happy."

Before Rean could answer, Celis jumped in. "Then we will investigate immediately! I’m not paying shit! They are my Godly Predator Crystals!"

Roan looked at Lukay and Celis. He definitely didn’t think they would be penalized for ignoring the ruins. They charted a huge area like no other group. Besides, with their connection with Tobao and Arcis, it was even less likely they would get any penalties.

However, he decided to not say anything. What Lukay knew was that the twins’ group was important to the Godly Subjugation, Alchemy, and Arrays Guilds. The twins’ group had never talked about their connection with Tobao and Arcis. It was better to keep it that way.

"Rean, just go there."

Rean sighed but didn’t fight back. "Fine, let’s take a look."

—

These ruins didn’t really have any protection array like the ones they visited back then. Naturally, they had no guardians either. Normal animals as well as low-level Godly Creatures could be seen everywhere on their radar, with one or two Godly Beasts here and there.

Still, these ruins weren’t from a city either. It only took a few minutes for Rean’s airplane to map everything before only forests remained on the other side.

With everything mapped, Rean turned the airplane around and flew toward the center of the ruins.

"Seems like it was more like some kind of base of operations, or a fortress of some sort instead of a city," Rean commented.

Roan had his eyes on the 3D map and agreed. The outer walls, although mostly collapsed, still formed an almost perfect rectangle. Four larger structures occupied the corners, likely watchtowers in the past, while countless smaller buildings surrounded a single massive construction at the center.

"You are right," Roan said after observing the layout for a few more seconds. "The walls are too thick, and there isn’t enough living space for a city. This place was built for defense." He enlarged the central structure before marking a point on the map. "The command building should be there."

The airplane descended onto what had once been a wide stone courtyard. Time had reclaimed nearly everything. Thick vines climbed over broken walls, towering trees had forced their roots through ancient stone, and patches of moss covered what remained of the fortress. Several collapsed towers still stood partially upright, their cracked silhouettes overlooking the ruins like silent sentinels that had refused to fall completely.

Nearby Godly Creatures naturally noticed the group’s arrival. Rean wasn’t using the Godly Pressure Disguising Arrays, after all.

The moment they stepped out of the airplane, a few Godly Spawns rushed toward them together with a lone Godly Beast hiding behind a broken wall. None of them survived more than a few breaths before being reduced to corpses.

The remaining Godly Creatures were still too far away to notice the disturbance. At least, for now. If they stayed long enough, more would inevitably gather.

Naturally, Celis collected every single Godly Crystal before the group moved on.

The entrance to the central building had partially collapsed, yet a passage large enough for several people to walk through remained open. They entered one after another, immediately noticing the familiar restriction.

Just like the previous ruins, neither Celestial Sense nor Godly Sense could pass through the walls.

Roan wasn’t surprised. Since they believed this place to be an ancient fortress, preventing enemies from scouting its interior with Divine Sense would have been a basic defensive measure. The truly impressive part was that such a restriction still functioned after so many years without consuming any Godly Energy.

The interior was dark and eerily silent.

Thin rays of sunlight slipped through cracks in the ceiling, illuminating countless particles of dust drifting lazily through the air. Rubble covered much of the floor, forcing them to carefully weave around collapsed pillars and broken walls. Every now and then, they passed ruined rooms filled with shattered furniture, rusted tools, and objects whose original purpose had long since become impossible to identify.

"It really feels like a military fortress," Lukay commented while looking around.

Roan nodded. "The corridors are intentionally narrow. Even if invaders breached the outer walls, very few of them could advance at once."

*Roar!*

Another Godly Spawn suddenly leaped from behind a fallen pillar directly toward Rean.

His Crystal Void Swords flashed.

The creature split into two before crashing lifelessly onto the stone floor.

"Seems like the Godly Creatures made this place their home," Rean commented while Celis calmly retrieved another Godly Crystal.

Almost immediately afterward, Rean looked toward another corridor. "There is another one coming from there."

Lukay turned just in time to see a bipedal Godly Spawn rush around the corner.

’Voltari Discharge!’

Yellow lightning burst from his core.

The electrical current struck the creature before it even reached him, instantly burning both its flesh and internal organs. The Godly Spawn collapsed without taking another step, allowing Celis to casually store yet another crystal before everyone resumed walking.

Lukay looked at Rean with curiosity. "How did you know? Does your Sense work here?"

"No." Rean shook his head. "I’m really good with Light Element. That allows me to perceive nearby Life Force. Of course, if my Godly Sense worked here, it would be much better. My Sense reaches much farther."

"I see..." Lukay nodded. "Well, keep doing that."

The deeper they ventured, the less intact the fortress became. Entire sections had collapsed into the underground levels, forcing them to climb over mountains of rubble or detour through partially destroyed hallways. Despite that, the overall structure remained surprisingly recognizable.

Barracks...

Storage rooms...

Training halls...

Meeting chambers...

Roan identified each area simply from its size and layout.

"It was built efficiently," he commented. "Everything important could be reached quickly during an emergency."

Unfortunately, efficiency didn’t leave much behind for future explorers. Other than the occasional Godly Spawn hiding inside the ruins, they found nothing worth taking.

"Should we go back?" Kentucky eventually asked. "It is obvious there aren’t any intact runes for the Sacred Relic."

"Let’s go a little further," Lukay suggested. "We’re not in any danger anyway."

Nobody objected.

After another several minutes of exploration, they entered an enormous underground chamber.

"It looks like..." Rean slowly swept his gaze across the room.

"...the warehouse," Roan finished.

The chamber stretched much farther than anyone expected. Long rows of collapsed shelves extended into the distance, while enormous stone platforms lined both sides of the room. Several storage racks had toppled over long ago, crushing countless containers beneath them, whereas others somehow remained standing despite being completely empty.

Broken armor...

Rusted weapons, some simple ones, and some that looked more advanced but were useless now...

Cracked shields...

Empty godly crystal containers...

Even dried Godly Creature materials remained piled inside several corners. Unfortunately, they had deteriorated so badly that they crumbled into dust the moment Celis touched one with a root.

Everything valuable had disappeared long ago.

Rean slowly wandered through one aisle, occasionally kicking aside broken equipment while Kentucky curiously inspected several weapon racks. Every piece they found was either damaged beyond repair or had simply decayed with age.

"What a waste..." Roan, however, wasn’t looking at the equipment.

His eyes slowly moved across the warehouse itself. He examined the arrangement of the shelves, the storage racks, the positions of the containers, and even the way the debris had accumulated over the years.

The warehouse didn’t resemble a place that had been looted after a desperate battle.

Instead...

It looked abandoned.

"Whoever left this fortress wasn’t fleeing from an immediate attack," Roan mentioned. "They packed everything worth transporting before leaving. Only what wasn’t worth carrying remained behind."

Silence filled the warehouse.

"So..." Lukay crossed his arms. "They evacuated."

"Looks like it," Roan nodded. "Which means they had enough warning."

Rean slowly looked around the enormous chamber once more. "Who knows how long ago that happened..."

"Hum?" Celis suddenly stopped walking.

He narrowed his eyes before extending several roots beneath a mountain of collapsed containers. "I feel a tiny circulation of energy."

Everyone immediately turned toward him.

"The type used in equipment?" Roan asked.

Celis nodded.

Without another word, his roots wrapped around the massive containers and began dragging them aside. Heavy scraping sounds echoed throughout the warehouse while thick clouds of dust rose into the air. One container after another slid across the stone floor, gradually exposing the wall hidden behind them.

Eventually...

A sturdy metal door emerged.

It wasn’t actually concealed. Over countless years, the surrounding containers had simply collapsed in front of it, completely blocking it from view.

"Rean," Celis called. "Take a look."

Rean walked over, leaving behind the broken armor and damaged runes he had been inspecting.

The moment he looked beside the door...

He stopped.

"...Electricity generated by runes?"

Mounted next to the entrance was a small electronic lock. It looked ancient, its metallic casing covered in dust and scratches accumulated through untold years.

Yet inside...

A tiny green light continued blinking steadily.

Finally, Rean smiled.

"Still working, uh?" He looked at the others before returning his attention to the ancient lock. "I guess it is worth a quick check."

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