Before entering the cave, Lex was fully prepared. He threw a box of matches outside the cave, which contained a miniature remote-controlled bomb he had set up. When needed, he could detonate the small bomb to create flames and use 'Flame Jump' to escape.
In his pocket, he carried a stack of roughly cut paper figures. He also had a kettle, but it was filled with seawater, not for drinking, of course, but as a carrier for 'holy water.' He had already used ''Devil May Cry'' to create a kettle of holy water.
If there's danger, escape immediately.
Don't show off.
Don't take risks.
Staying alive is more important than anything.
After cautioning himself, Lex entered the cave. Not long after, he encountered a series of descending stone steps.
Inside the cave, sunlight filtered through cracks in the mountain or man-made holes, illuminating the environment to a degree, but not enough for Lex to see the full picture.
Who would insist on living in such a dim cave? Wouldn't living outside be more pleasant?
This environment is practically like a tomb.
Lex's thoughts wandered as he descended the stone steps. He saw weeds growing on the ground, and among them were fallen wooden spears, torches, stone bowls, and even complete dog skeletons.
He kicked away some debris, picked up a torch from the weeds, and with a swipe of his hand on the torch, a crimson glow appeared, igniting it.
Lex walked forward, holding the torch, and saw houses built along the cave's contours. Some were made of wood, others of stone, varying in height and haphazardly distributed throughout the space.
Many of these houses had already collapsed, especially the wooden structures, which had clearly turned into piles of rubble.
After walking for a while, he saw a totem carved with the pattern of a Feathered Serpent, with gold flakes inlaid for scales and two wings made from various bird feathers.
Lex raised his torch, and mused, "Feathered Serpent worship, if I remember correctly, is from the South Continent. Could it be that people from the South Continent lived here? But how would people from the South Continent end up here, living on this desolate island?"
He also noticed that many buildings had doors decorated with feathers or gold, which indeed was the style of the South Continent.
Lex saw a relatively intact stone house, so he tried to push open the door. Inside, he saw a black coffin, and he almost ran out of the cave.
He was right after all.
This cave was simply a tomb.
Lex did not open the coffin. He quietly retreated and then inspected two other well-preserved rooms. Without exception, he found one or more black coffins inside.
Some coffins had even fallen apart, with the remains exposed to the air. Lex even saw the skeleton of a child.
Soon, Lex arrived at the altar. The altar was piled with a large number of white bones, but these were animal skeletons. Sheep were most common, followed by dogs, and some other animal bones that Lex couldn't identify.
They were neatly stacked according to a certain pattern, with skulls piled on the top layer, forming the shape of a Pyramid.
As Lex approached to examine the skeletons, he suddenly saw, through a goat's skull, a person kneeling in the shadow behind the altar!
The kettle containing holy water was immediately taken out by Lex. He unscrewed the stopper, carefully went around the altar, and walked forward with light steps, only to discover it was a corpse.
The corpse was dressed in South Continent-style clothing, most notably the pants, which were both light and heavily pleated. Lex remembered reading in a book that this was the style of ancient Balam Empire attire.
In front of this corpse was a stone platform, and on the platform lay a coffin. This coffin was different from the others; it was an iron coffin. The lid of the iron coffin had a Feathered Serpent pattern and was inscribed with some text.
Upon identification, Lex confirmed that these were in the 'Ancient Feysac'.
"Speaking of which, the common language of the Balam Empire in the South Continent originated from the Ancient Feysac, but the languages that are the source of all countries on the North Continent are also ancient forsac. Without those strange buildings and totems, based on these texts alone, it would be difficult to determine who once lived here."
"Hmm, a great one? A tireless seeker, he finally rests here."
Lex read the text on the iron coffin, of course, translating them into Loen.
"A tireless seeker? What was the person in this iron coffin searching for?"
"He brought some people from the South Continent, searching for something, but ultimately rests here?"
Lex quickly blinked, activated Spiritual Vision, looked around, and found no abnormalities. He saw no special aura, nor did he detect any undead or Wraiths.
So he stuck the torch aside and tried to push the coffin lid, finding that the lid was not completely sealed and could be pried open.
Lex then stood on the stone platform, pressed his hands on the coffin lid, and exerted sudden force. Immediately, the iron coffin's lid was pushed open a crack. Lex immediately retreated, picked up the torch, observed for a moment, and seeing no abnormalities inside the coffin, he then stepped forward.
He pushed the coffin open most of the way and saw a mummy lying inside, wrapped in layers of cloth strips, with its hands crossed over its chest.
On the mummy's chest lay a locked wooden box, decorated with gold flakes all around, each engraved with a simplified Feathered Serpent pattern. The area around the iron coffin was also filled with various burial items, but it was clear that the importance of these items did not compare to that box.
What could be in the box?
Lex reached out to lift the box.
Suddenly, in his Spiritual Vision, he saw a phantom, translucent hand suddenly extend from inside the mummy and grasp Lex's hand.
Lex immediately felt a chill, as if his arm had turned into an ice sculpture, losing all sensation.
Fortunately, he was prepared. He immediately tilted the kettle containing holy water onto the mummy, and immediately, phantom green smoke rose, and unreal, irritating shouts echoed in his ears.
A figure abruptly floated up from the mummy; it was a man with skin so pale it was almost translucent, with distinct South Continent racial features. His face was tattooed with mysterious symbols, two golden long nails pierced his ears, and the left side of his lower lip was split, as if injured by a sharp object.
His body was also adorned with feathered gold.
This man, with dark circles around his eyes, deep black lips, and profound eyes, let out a silent scream towards Lex, and then his figure faded and vanished, leaving behind a cluster of light points like scale fire. Although these light points fluttered around, they seemed to be trapped by some invisible force, unable to fly too far.
Sometimes they would suddenly expand, forming a face, the face of the man from earlier. It opened its mouth, but no sound came out.
"What is this? Residual spirituality?"
Lex thought for a moment, then put them into the kettle that had been emptied of holy water. After screwing on the stopper, he, still uneasy, created a spiritual wall before putting the kettle away.
Next, Lex took out the small wooden box placed on the mummy's chest, easily pried off the lock, and used Devil May Cry to open the lid. Then he raised the torch and looked into the box, where an item lay.