Chapter 141: The Temple |
Joe did not seem to have many doubts about being inside a dream, quickly accepting the situation.
As for the reason...
"Ah, archaeology is just like that. We've encountered plenty of strange things before, like curses and whatnot, and quite a few people have died. But Teacher said that if you do archaeological excavations, you can't be afraid of this, right? You get used to it."
"..."
Levi decided that after he returned, he would have a chat with the Old Butler to see if Military Intelligence Section 7 could form some kind of strategic partnership with the Archaeology Department of the Royal Master Academy under the name of the Exploration Editorial Department.
Looking at it this way, the probability of this group encountering supernatural incidents was much higher than average.
Soon, under the guidance of the Cheshire Cat, the trio forged ahead, entering the next nightmare.
Compared to Joe's bizarre and complicated nightmare, this one was far more simple and direct.
"Help...!"
"Ah... this really is a textbook nightmare."
Beholding the scene before him, Levi could not help but sigh. If Joe's nightmare was a bit tricky and troublesome, then the scene before them was entirely pure and direct.
Not far away, on a sheer cliff face dozens of meters high, Miss Godine was wearing mountaineering gear, her hands gripping a tree branch with desperate force. Beneath her feet, the ocean water crashed relentlessly against the cliff, surrounded by a forest of jagged reefs that looked like bleached bones.
Come to think of it, Miss Godine had mentioned that her hobby was mountaineering. For someone who loved climbing, this was an absolute nightmare.
"Miss Godine!"
Perhaps because he had enjoyed pumping iron along the way, the moment Joe saw Miss Godine, he instantly threw his own nightmare to the back of his mind. He rushed to the edge of the deck and shouted up at her.
"Hold on! We're coming to rescue you!"
"And how do you plan to rescue her?"
Levi looked at the muscle-brained Joe, completely speechless. Although this man did not seem to have any psychological trauma regarding Miss Godine from that wedding nightmare, he should at least use his head a bit.
"Uh..."
Hearing Levi's question, Joe instantly froze. He scratched his head like a chimpanzee, his face a picture of pure, unadulterated stupidity.
"I climb up and carry her down?"
"Can you even climb that?"
Although Joe's behavior strongly resembled an ape, Levi did not believe the man actually possessed the skills of Tarzan.
"Uh..."
Evidently, Joe was not cut out for this.
"If we can fly up there, it should be very easy to save Miss Godine," Annie offered at that moment.
In reality, this would be an utterly impractical suggestion.
But who could blame them when this was not reality?
What followed was simple. Levi steered the ship upward to fetch Miss Godine. The moment her feet touched the deck, the entire nightmare shattered, dissolving into nothingness.
Compared to before, this time was much simpler, allowing Levi to breathe a sigh of relief.
If everyone's dreams were this simple, life would be much easier.
Unfortunately, good luck only struck once. When Levi plunged into the next nightmare, trouble arrived.
"Well, well. I assume this must be the Professor's dreamscape," Levi muttered expressionlessly, leaning against the ship's wheel as he stared ahead.
The reason he said this was simple: after he steered the ship through the glowing portal of this dream, he immediately crashed headfirst into a stone wall, leaving the vessel stranded among a pile of rocks like a dead fish.
Standing before them was a massive, subterranean structure resembling a temple.
Continuing forward by ship was obviously impossible, so everyone disembarked and walked toward the temple.
To Levi, the temple looked ancient. The architecture slightly resembled the Parthenon, with a ring of thick, towering stone pillars lining the exterior. The grand gates of the temple stood wide open, revealing a pitch-black interior.
"This looks like the architectural style of southern Colenburg," Miss Godine said, carefully examining the building's features. "Towering pillars, stone construction, located underground... I recall reading in documents that this architectural style existed in the past."
"The south?"
Hearing this, Joe's expression tightened.
"Could it be... that time?"
"Do you know something about this?" Levi looked at Joe and asked.
Since this was a dreamscape, it was drawn from the memories of the dream's master, meaning this temple could not have been fabricated out of thin air.
"I've heard some rumors, but it happened before I became Teacher's student," Joe said, scratching his head. "I heard that when Teacher was young, he once led a team on an archaeological expedition to an underground temple. An accident occurred, and except for Teacher, the entire archaeological team died."
"Such a thing happened?"
Miss Godine was visibly startled, and Joe quickly reassured her.
"It's just hearsay. I only heard it from other people in Teacher's department, so I don't know the specific details. Anyway, after that incident, Teacher didn't do any teaching for a long time. It wasn't until three years later that he returned to his teaching post and began taking on students again."
"Only Teacher survived? Was it that dangerous?"
"I heard from others that Teacher just had bad luck and encountered a once-in-a-century earthquake..."
"But the fact that he managed to escape a once-in-a-century earthquake proves his luck was excellent, doesn't it?" Levi added from the side, silently critiquing the logic.
"Uh... put that way, it does make sense."
"So, this place won't suddenly collapse, will it?"
Miss Godine looked around, already feeling a bit frightened. After all, this place looked like a subterranean cavern, with long-accumulated stalactites hanging from the ceiling like rows of sharp spikes. No matter how one looked at it, it was nerve-wracking.
"In any case, let's find the Professor first," Levi said, taking the lead toward the temple.
Although they were underground, the environment was not dark. Whether it was the braziers in front of the temple or the walls alongside them, lit torches and burning braziers illuminated the surroundings.
As for who lit these fires... well, it was just like exploring an uninhabited ruin in an RPG game where all the lamps were somehow lit. It was a question best left unbothered. It did not matter anyway, did it?
The entire temple appeared empty, but Levi had already locked onto the target's position using his Soul Vision. Although he could not be certain if it was the old Professor, he could at least confirm that the radiance of several souls resided deep within the temple.
For now, he would head inside to check the situation.
With that thought in mind, Levi entered the temple.
However, the moment he stepped inside, Levi suddenly halted. His eyes widened in shock as he stared straight ahead!
Inside the temple, there was naturally a deity being worshipped. Of course, unlike the modern Holy Lord Church, which only believed in the All-Seeing Eye, what appeared in this temple was not the symbol of the All-Seeing Eye, but a divine statue.
A goddess.
Her eyes were tightly shut, and her pitch-black hair spread out like a cloak, reaching to every corner of the temple. Hints of pristine starlight shimmered within her hair...
What was even more terrifying was that Levi had seen this goddess before!
And more than once!
"Whoa..."
Just then, a sigh of admiration from the side pulled Levi from his thoughts. He turned his head to see Miss Godine and Joe walking in, gazing around with immense astonishment.
"This is the first time I've ever seen such a magnificent temple."
"Me too. I've traveled to so many places with Teacher, but I've never seen a temple like this before."
"This doesn't look like the architectural style of the Golden Age."
"Probably the Era of Division. Back then, Emperor Arthur had not yet unified the entire continent, and different countries had varied beliefs and cultures."
"Come to think of it, this symbol looks a lot like the place we came to investigate this time."
"Ah, now that you mention it, there are indeed similarities in the symbols."
"Is that so?"
Listening to the conversation between Joe and Miss Godine, Levi was completely bewildered. To him, they all looked like incomprehensible squiggles, and he had no idea how these people could deduce whether the symbols were ancient or recent.
Since they were the professionals, he decided to listen to their explanation first.
"What do you two think?" Levi asked, watching the two of them lean down to examine the side of the goddess statue. "Any discoveries?"
"Ah, yes, Mr. Levi," Miss Godine replied cheerfully. "Based on our preliminary findings, we believe the ruins here should be related to the Morkhand Ruins we came to investigate this time."
"Yes, there is a connection in the script, and this temple should date even earlier," Joe agreed, nodding. However, his burly, muscular build combined with such academic speech felt rather mismatched. "From the perspective of textual analysis, this temple was likely constructed before the Morkhand Kingdom."
"Is this statue the Goddess of Night?"
"Yes, rumor has it that she later split into three deities: Moon, Star, and Dream. Strictly speaking, the Nightmare Goddess Morkhand is also one of the avatars of the Goddess of Night, right?"
"Wait."
At that thought, Levi's mind stirred.
"Is the Nightmare Goddess an avatar of the Goddess of Night?"
"Yes."
Compared to Levi's surprise, Joe and Miss Godine nodded quite calmly.
"Actually, this theory has long existed in historical research. According to historical legends, during the Era of Division—which is the early period of the Silver Era—the various countries on the continent actually worshipped different deities. But later, due to Emperor Arthur's conquests, those countries were either destroyed or fractured. Many historical accounts describe how the royal families carried away a portion of their faith when their nations split."
"A portion of their faith?"
"Correct. Just like Morkhand. According to legend, Morkhand was originally the descendant of a kingdom that worshipped the Goddess of Night. Later, they broke away from that kingdom to establish their own nation, carrying away the aspect of nightmare worship from the Goddess of Night. Because of this, they began to revere the Nightmare Goddess... That is how the faith of the Morkhand Kingdom itself was formed."
"How exactly do you carry away a faith?"
The more Levi listened, the more confused he became. If they carried away gold, silver, treasures, or a Divine Artifact, it would be easy to understand.
But splitting and carrying away a faith? This wasn't surgery—could they just slice off a piece of the Goddess of Night and carry it away on their backs?
Did it have to be so visceral?
"This..."
Joe and Miss Godine exchanged a look, shaking their heads.
"The academic community currently has no definitive conclusion on this. Some say it is merely a metaphorical way of describing a religious schism, while others believe there might be other secrets hidden within."
"However, judging by the current situation..."
"Ah—!"
Before they could finish their sentences, a sudden, sharp scream echoed from the depths of the temple, cutting them short.
Hearing the scream, Levi's expression darkened, and he gripped the gun in his hand.
"Let's go!"