Chapter 4657: The Power of the Forbidden Zone of Life
Lin Moyu let out a soft sigh. The appearance of the palm print meant Sovereign September could not be far away.
This print was left not long ago no more than ten years so she must be nearby.
It also indicated that Sovereign September was alive and still had some power.
Chaos Gem said, "Doesn't it seem strange, master? There's no danger here, so why did she leave such a palm print on the ground?"
It was true there were no living beings or threats, so why the mark?
A Sovereign would not do something needless; if she left a palm print, there had to be a reason.
This was especially so as Sovereign September was only a soul avatar, here in a place where it's hard to replenish soul power she wouldn't waste even a little.
If there's no danger and soul energy should be conserved, choosing to expend it on a kilometer wide palm print could only mean it served another purpose.
The only explanation Lin Moyu could think of was as a signpost
A Sovereign, worried about getting lost, may sound odd, but in this place, it was reasonable.
The rules in many regions were chaotic, so outside Sovereigns couldn't orient themselves by the world's rules losing their way was common, and they needed markers.
But what did the palm print point toward?
Lin Moyu followed the direction of the print. "It must be that way."
He did not go himself, but sent undead soldiers ahead. In just ten thousand miles, they found another palm print.
Again, a thousand meters in diameter, but now the direction of the index finger had changed slightly.
They followed the direction pointed by each print every ten thousand miles, another mark, each one's index finger shifting direction.
Sovereign September was using this method to guide herself.
"Where is she trying to go?" Lin Moyu wondered, sending another squad of undead along the reverse path, so he could reason out the entire route by tracking both the incoming and outgoing paths.
Softly, Lin Moyu said, "I have a feeling once we find Sovereign September, we'll find the world's core."
Chaos Gem asked, "Why are you so sure?"
"The palm prints gave me the answer. One is direction; the second is their strength each varies, not because she was reluctant to use power, but because she was in a hurry. That's why the force sometimes fluctuates."
"But why the rush? There are only two possibilities: she's either running away or chasing something."
"If she was running, she wouldn't leave prints those would just give her away. She must be the one pursuing something."
"What here would be worth chasing? Only the world's core."
Lin Moyu deduced: Sovereign September found the world's core, but realized only by refining it could she escape.
But the core was elusive, actively evading capture, so she constantly had to hunt it down.
"But even if it's the world's core, why leave palm prints?" Chaos Gem wondered.
Lin Moyu replied, "I have another guess, but I can't confirm it yet. Maybe soon I'll know maybe the marks serve a second function."
So, Lin Moyu kept following the palm prints. After several days, he stopped.
Chaos Gem grew curious. "Strange we've been here before."
Lin Moyu realized they had returned to the starting point, where the first print was found.
"All told, three thousand six hundred palm prints, each ten thousand miles apart, form a perfect circle. We just completed a circuit."
"My earlier hunch wasn't entirely correct; these palm prints were for more than guidance they circumscribed a territory."
"Sovereign September marked the world's core's probable location by drawing this circle."
"If so, we search within this area."
A vast swarm of undead swept the marked zone, blanketing every bit of land with their search.
The region was mountainous, but with enough undead, not a single patch went unchecked.
Several days of searching revealed nothing on the surface.
Lin Moyu trusted his reasoning: if nothing was above, then the answer must lie below.
Within the mountains were gorges and caves. The undead began probing inside, watching for any unnatural marks.
A Sovereign's spirit avatar leaves almost no trace upon touching the ground, but if she'd been here, there would be subtle clues.
It wasn't long before they found faint traces burn marks left by soul fire, barely visible, but still carrying a hint of soul aura.
The undead went deeper, tracing these clues.
This territory had a vast network of caves, creating a massive underground labyrinth far more complex than anything Lin Moyu had seen, stretching down at least a million meters.
If Lin Moyu had to enter unaided, he'd surely get lost.
Even with the undead's help, it required immense effort.
Deep below, these tunnels hid broken rules energies running wild. Sometimes, diving in one cave spat you from another, or sent you straight to the ground's surface.
Many undead repeatedly encountered these disorienting spots, making things difficult.
"If Sovereign September had no special means, just exploring this maze would take her ten thousand years."
Yet, they kept searching and soon neared their goal.
Finally, a handful of undead broke through an invisible membrane and entered a vast underground chamber.
Two undead instantly perished shredded by invisible force, their bodies utterly destroyed, not even ash left.
They couldn't resurrect on the spot, only by returning to the world of the summoning art.
Lin Moyu frowned. "The power of the Forbidden Zone of Life."
He viewed the world through his undead soldiers' eyes and saw a mist laden space, filled with the energy of the Forbidden Zone of Life.
He had tangled with this energy before and died countless times amid such mists he knew it well, and was sure.
With those that survived, he observed that the whole chamber seethed with fog some dense, some thin, drifting unpredictably.
This was the strength of the Forbidden Zone of Life just touching it meant almost certain death for anything native to the world.
The undead moved carefully, always dodging the drifting fog.
More and more undead entered, threading their way around the wild vapors.
Lin Moyu himself entered, following a carefully marked path, moving as fast as possible through the maze to reach this space.
He studied the mist. Unlike the undead, Lin Moyu could sense the abnormality directly.
Here, remnants of world rules and the Forbidden Zone's power mingled, causing the fogs to chase all over sometimes the rules pushed or pulled, casting one into mist to die in an instant.
"This place is a bit like the Primordial Vortex, but even more chaotic."
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