novelonline Chapter 3474, Year 334 of the 5th Era
Chapter 3474, Year 334 of the 5th Era
Chapter 3474, Year 334 of the Fifth Era
[Outsider, you have stepped into the "Corridor of Time".]
[A message from the ancient god "Father of the Infinite Tree":]
[Autumn of the 334th year of the Fifth Era, Eastern Continent, Whispering Hills.]
[Event: Lodging needed.]
[Duration: 50 minutes (1/3)]
Standing in the white mist, Shad gasped for breath. The terrifying mental pollution caused by the powerful whispering element immediately disappeared after leaving the [House of the Pseudo-Humans]. At this moment, he even wanted to embrace the white mist before him:
"Luckily, I didn't use the key this morning."
He sighed again, then was surprised by the timing this time:
334 years? That early?
This is the very early Fifth Age. Before this, the earliest time Shad had ever been was in 903 when he first encountered Chloe climbing the Silver Mountains, but that was more than 500 years later.
334 years is a much longer time for Violet and Theresa, who lived at the end of the Fifth Age, than they were for Shad. This almost certainly means that Shad is unlikely to encounter any acquaintances on this adventure.
Unless, like Miss Wilde, the green dragon maid from Ash River Valley - Strange Tree Academy, a companion who has traveled through time appears this time, but the probability of that is extremely low, even lower than the probability of Shad encountering a new Fire-Holding Nun.
However, not having any acquaintances isn't a problem; perhaps other witches can solve his current predicament. Even if they can't, he can ask a god who is likely to appear for help, though whether that god will be willing to assist him is uncertain.
"At least it bought me time to think about how to escape. Emilia and Claire must be very worried. I hope we don't encounter an evil god this time."
Then he thought of the [Lord of the Tomb] from last time; the other party had been incredibly generous.
"At least it shouldn't be an evil god like the God of Vampires."
You have received additional information.
The figure of the Father of the Infinite Tree watches over you.
The ancient god of time has given you a test:
[Assist the Old God "Lord of the Walls" in selecting suitable guests for the inn.]
[The Father of the Infinite Tree will reward you with: any spell already possessed that is linked to the [World] rune, the Arcane Art - Polymorph: Serpent.]
Shad, emerging from the white mist, breathed a slight sigh of relief. He had touched the holy symbols of the three evil gods before opening the door, and had been worried that this would lead to his encounter with them this time.
Fortunately, the "Lord of the Walls" they encountered this time was a well-known benevolent deity of the Fifth Age, with a wide following that spanned almost the entire material world, as he was the "Guardian of Homes and Dwellings." Many mortals, even those who were not his followers, would pray to him when moving to a new home.
Although this deity has almost no records of divine intervention and his church is not well-known, people are still willing to believe in him.
Numerous records and descriptions of this deity and his followers have been unearthed since the Sixth Age, undoubtedly indicating that he was a benevolent god. Devout believers could protect their homes from evil spirits simply by displaying his holy emblem.
This ancient god likely departed during the later part of the Fifth Age, and we are still in the early part of the Fifth Age, so there is no need to consider these matters.
"The reward is to transform sorcery into magic, that's pretty good. Polymorph seems pretty useless."
Shad had already chosen which spell to use at this moment, but that would have to wait until after the mission was completed. As for the shapeshifting spell that would grant him a new form, Shad treated it as if it didn't exist. His cat, wolf, and dragon forms each had their own uses and advantages, and he no longer needed a new form.
This time, we entered the [Time Corridor] by opening a door instead of using the door in our home. Therefore, once we entered this white mist, there was no chance to go back or double our time.
Lost in thought, Shad took a step forward into the fog, which then slowly dispersed like a stage curtain. This time, Shad was not in the coffin; beneath his feet was a wooden floor, above him a blackened, damp ceiling, and around him were old wooden tables, chairs, and wardrobes.
"Indoors? That's quite unusual."
There was no light source indoors, and his "dark vision" only allowed Shad to see objects within a radius of less than two meters. He raised his hand as if to call for moonlight, but an instinctive sense of danger made him abandon the idea.
At this moment, you are facing the door, but when you turn around and look behind you, you see the window of the room. The good news is that this window is real, not the kind of window depicted in the painting of "The House of the Fake People".
The windows were boarded up and nailed shut, but there were still some gaps that allowed Shad to look out. Although he knew it was dangerous, Shad went to the window anyway, and through the gaps in the boards he saw the scorched earth and the pitch-black sky that looked like an abyss.
The reason we can see so far is because there are tiny specks of white glass-like debris in the black soil that provide a faint light.
The surrounding terrain was not flat; small, rounded hills, neither high nor steep, stretched out in the darkness—this was the "Whispering Hills." And the building where Shad was currently located seemed to be situated atop the highest hill nearby.
Suddenly, Shad darted away from the window crack. In that instant, he felt something dangerous staring straight at him from the darkness outside. He touched his eyes and felt the wetness of blood. That thing could injure Shad with just a glance was far more dangerous than the [House of the Pseudo-Humans].
The dark room grew increasingly eerie, with something else seemingly hidden in the shadows. Based on experience, Tree Father would likely have thrown Shad into a dangerous place initially, so he approached the door as quietly as possible.
As he grabbed the doorknob with his right hand, he felt a cold hand rest on his shoulder from behind. In that instant, almost all the heat in his body was drained away; he shivered involuntarily, then stiffly opened the door and walked out.
The stiffness caused by the extreme cold didn't disappear until the door closed behind me.
"Evil spirits and demons."
He was absolutely certain that what had just appeared behind him was some kind of ancient demon. Fortunately, it hadn't chased after him; Shad had no desire to engage in a fight with such a thing in this unfamiliar place.
"The mission statement suggests that the innkeeper has a good idea of the current situation."
There was no light in the corridor either, and visibility was limited to within two meters. The corridor was very dilapidated; although no moss grew on the wooden floor, the surface was covered with mud and grime. The temperature inside the hotel was around five degrees Celsius, and the air smelled damp and musty; it looked like it had been abandoned for a long time.
Shad moved a few steps and observed that the long, narrow corridor was lined with doors, each with a number. For example, the door Shad had just walked out of had the number "1022," while the door opposite "1022" had the number "1098."
However, he will need to continue exploring to figure out how to interpret this address number.
He could walk to the left or right, but due to limited visibility, Shad wasn't sure which way to find the stairs. His [Powerful Spatial Awareness] was unusable here, and just as Shad was about to search for coins to try his luck by flipping one, "she" softly reminded him:
When you appeared just now, although you were facing the door, you were actually slightly to the left.
So Shad took two steps to the left, and a dim orange-red light appeared in the darkness ahead. He continued forward in the direction of the light, and while observing the door numbers on the other doors, he saw "1025", "1085" and "1002" in succession.
"They all start with 10."
Separated from the "Devil's Room 1022" by only one door, Shad saw that the room with the number "1024" was the source of the fire. The wooden door was tightly closed, not even a crack, yet Shad still saw the fire.
Although he didn't know what this meant, his experience had shown him that firelight in the dark was usually a "safe haven." After standing outside the door and listening for a while, and confirming that he couldn't hear any sounds coming from inside from the hallway, he knocked on the door.
Shad's knock wasn't very forceful, but when it broke the silence, it still had the eerie feeling of a steam bomb exploding in a grand hall.
dong dong dong~
After knocking and waiting a moment without anyone opening the door, Xia De guessed that the person inside was probably also frightened. He then grasped the doorknob and tried to push the door open, only to find, unsurprisingly, that the door was locked from the inside, and that it couldn't be selected with the "Door Key".
"May I open the door? I know there's someone behind it. I don't know how I got here, but I swear I'm not weird."
He spoke to the door, but there was still no response. Shad glanced back uneasily at the darkness on either side of the corridor.
“I have a lot of supplies with me that might be able to help you. And I worship the moon goddess, the ancient god—the Sage of the Moon. I know you or your group are cautious and unwilling to let strangers in, but I am really not a bad person. We who have unfortunately ended up here should help each other, and I swear that the help I can provide is beyond your imagination.”
Something was definitely standing in the darkness on both sides of the corridor. The door was still closed. Shad took a deep breath:
"Old God - Lord of the Walls".
A moment later, the door did indeed open a crack, letting more light spill out of the room. It remained open for less than a second before closing again, but that was enough time for the nimble cat to dart into the room.
"Don't move!"
The stern female voice pointed at the beautiful silver cat, but softened slightly upon seeing its luxurious color and adorable appearance. However, the cat immediately transformed back into Shad's form in a flash of silver light. Upon seeing that it was a man, everyone in the room made attacking motions towards him.
"What the hell are you?"
"Calm down, ladies. As I just said, I am human."