Chapter 245: Stone Beasts |
After these words reached his ears, Bai Mu's vision darkened, and he could once again feel his limbs.
A stale scent of dust and mildew rushed at his face, and at the same time, he spotted four silhouettes.
The closest to him was Scattered Fireflies. She stood on Bai Mu's left. Her outfit had not changed; she still wore that cleric attire and gripped a silver staff.
The other three figures were likely his teammates for this Script—one man and two women. The five of them were divided into three groups in a two-two-one formation.
Bai Mu and Scattered Fireflies stood together. Standing alone was a rather thin man. His outfit perfectly matched the style of this Script. He wore a cyan Taoist robe, a copper crown on his head, and cloud-silk shoes on his feet, with a longsword strapped to his back. It was an antique Taoist Priest getup, though the gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose looked slightly out of place.
In this Script, Bai Mu could actually see his teammates' IDs. In the upper right corner were the ID names of the others, along with his own. Each name had a portrait above it, and right now, all the portraits were lit up. It seemed he could use these portraits to determine if his teammates were still alive. As for this Taoist brother with the gold-rimmed glasses, his ID was "I Love a Sword", which clashed slightly with his professional appearance. When Bai Mu looked at him, the man's gaze silently swept over Bai Mu, Scattered Fireflies, and the other two.
The other two women were dressed in matching couple-style outfits. One wore a pure black dress, and the other wore a pure white dress. Their IDs were "Work Three Rest Four" and "Brewing Cat" respectively. Judging by their positioning and attire, they had also queued up as a team.
Work Three Rest Four was the one in the black dress. She looked to be in her early twenties, with a crisp bob cut that stopped right at the nape of her neck. She had a very pretty face, though her figure was somewhat flat, and her wrists were exceedingly thin, giving her a malnourished look. Her complexion was a pallid white that suggested she had not seen the sun in years. However, her eyes were razor-sharp. Despite her petite frame, she emanated a cold indifference. At first glance, Bai Mu felt that Work Three Rest Four was extremely adept at killing. He had seen the gaze of someone who had taken many lives. When Work Three Rest Four observed him, he felt her scrutinizing his neck and heart. She habitually examined a person's neck and heart to determine where their defenses were weakest.
Her sleeves were long and wide, seemingly concealing something inside—likely a dagger or a short blade. As for Brewing Cat, her appearance was as gentle as her name. She had long hair and a faint smile playing at the corners of her mouth. She looked incredibly mild, but there was not a trace of mirth in her eyes. She did not seem like a simple character either.
It was worth noting that before the "Ancient Manor" Script, she had already unlocked the Mana system. Furthermore, Brother Great Northern Wilderness had enthusiastically invited her to participate in that team Adventure Script. This proved that her strength and ability to uncover Side Quests were actually above the average Player's level.
In short, Bai Mu made brief eye contact with his three new teammates, getting a general sense of what they were like.
This sweeping gaze took only a few seconds. Aside from his teammates, he also took in his surroundings.
Just as the Script's synopsis had described, he was standing inside an empty, colossal ancient tomb.
Although it was an ancient tomb, it was not completely pitch-black. Before him stood two massive stone beasts. They resembled tigers or leopards but were carved with wings on their backs. Flames flickered in their eyes, illuminating the surrounding area, and it was precisely this firelight that had allowed him to observe his teammates earlier. These stone beasts were at least three stories tall, yet their heads did not even come close to touching the ceiling of the tomb, which was a testament to the sheer vastness of this place. After all, it was a royal tomb. In ancient times, the tombs of royalty and nobility drained the wealth and labor of the people, taking decades to construct.
This King of Huainan was renowned far and wide in the Script's synopsis, his deeds even passed down to subsequent dynasties. This demonstrated his immense wealth and power, making it no surprise that he had such a glorious and imposing tomb.
As for these two stone beasts, they were likely some kind of divine creatures guarding the tomb. However, Bai Mu did not know much about mysticism and could not name them. After a brief delay, a notification chime rang in Bai Mu's ears.
[Main Quest Triggered: Escape the Prince of Huainan's Tomb.]
All five of them heard this voice, and their expressions paused for a fraction of a second.
Before they could even introduce themselves, I Love a Sword pulled a Bagua compass from his robes. The compass began to spin on its own, its needle darting around erratically. His expression abruptly turned grave as he furrowed his brows.
"You there, Taoist brother," Brewing Cat suddenly waved her hand, calling out softly. "What is wrong? You do not look too good." "My Bagua mirror can predict good and bad fortune. Spinning this fast only means there is danger nearby, and it is very close to us." I Love a Sword pushed up his glasses. "By the way, do not call me a Taoist Priest. Although I am wearing a Taoist robe, I do not possess the Taoist Priest profession. This is merely a piece of armor." "Then how should I address you?" Brewing Cat asked with a smile.
"Just call me A Sword," I Love a Sword replied.
"Hello, A Sword," Brewing Cat said. "I am Brewing Cat, and this is my big sister Three-Four. You can call her Three-Four."
Work Three Rest Four nodded along with Brewing Cat's introduction.
"And hello to the brother and sister over there," Brewing Cat added, greeting Bai Mu and Scattered Fireflies.
"Hello," Bai Mu replied indifferently.
"Hello," Scattered Fireflies said, waving her hand.
"It looks like all of you queued up as teams. I am the only solo player here," I Love a Sword said, drawing the sword from his back. "Anyway, I will give a brief introduction of myself since we are all teammates now. As you can see, I am quite skilled with a sword and have some ranged attack methods. Because I played a Taoist Priest in previous Scripts, I know a little about mysticism."
"Then do you know what the stone beasts in front of us are? They will not suddenly start moving, will they?" Brewing Cat asked, looking up. "Their eyes are glowing, and it scares me a little."
I Love a Sword explained, "This design is standard for an Evil-Warding Beast. It suppresses evil energy, so it is a staple in royal mausoleums."
"As for this pair, aside from warding off evil, their bellies are likely filled with oil to serve as Eternal Lamps."
"The fact that their eyes are lit is actually a good thing. It means the air here is circulating and is sufficient to support both our breathing and combustion. However... this tomb was built in the previous dynasty, yet these Eternal Lamps have burned all the way into the next... This tomb might truly have some mysteries hidden within. It might be just like the ancient texts say—they used Mermaid Oil, which can burn for thousands of years without extinguishing..."