I have become stronger, but also shorter [comprehensive]

If there is no clue to guide, it is almost impossible to find this place from the vast desert.

Distance is the first problem that shadow seekers have to overcome.

From the current location to the flat sandy land where the stele fragments were first found, there are countless heavy sand dunes in the middle, thousands of miles away.

Secondly, if you want to find this place, you have to pass through the lairs of poisonous insects and the territory of ferocious beasts, facing the gusts of hot wind that you don’t know where it’s coming from. It’s very easy to miss the way forward.

The various traps encountered along the way are obvious obstacles, and the long distance from one point to the second is a cover for trying to cut off the connection between the two.

That's why it is said that it is impossible for those who are not really persistent to find "here", and who do not have extremely strong perseverance and physical strength, to find their traces.

This "relic" that has survived from a long, long, long time ago is like a living thing.

Hiding so deeply means that it doesn't want to be discovered by those who are interested.

"I really didn't expect this to be the case."

When the figure from outside broke the long silence at the edge of the deep pool and was reflected on the surface of the crystal clear water, the sound also resounded abruptly.

"It's as if it's been here from the beginning, and there's no sign of it being moved. But that doesn't make sense if that's the case."

Jin pushed aside the soft branches of the trees hanging in front of him that almost touched the ground, and looked forward, barely penetrating through the narrow gaps that leaked from the layers of branches, leaves and vines.

If they hadn't seen it with their own eyes, it would be hard to imagine what their final destination would look like.

There is an unknown oasis on the edge of the desert.

The outside of the oasis is unexpectedly surrounded by swamps.The wetland and the dry desert are two diametrically opposed scenes, but they are connected together, which is both vivid and strange.

When they came in, only a small part of what they stepped on was soil, and more of them were bare on the surface, tree roots that had been climbed by moss over the years.

In some places with uneven terrain, a shallow layer of water has accumulated. As the pace advances, the sound of splashing water also sounds from time to time in this deadly environment.

Along the way, apart from what Jin said at the beginning, the two people who were traveling together did not communicate any more.

The atmosphere can only be described as "serious".

The reason is that not long after entering the oasis, they discovered that the trees that packed the space tightly were not trees, but stone pillars that were entangled by vines so that they could not see the original appearance underneath.

The expression on Eric's face was faint, and under the gaze of Jin who hesitated to speak, he put his hand on the vines that seemed to blend in with the shadows.

wow.

In just an instant, the originally inseparable vines broke into countless fragments, which fell silently.

Things that had been covered up for more than a long time before revealed their true faces, which was expected to be full of mottled eyes.

In addition to the picture that can be imagined, there is also a little unexpected greenness reflected in the boy's golden eyes.

Small tender green branches drilled out from the gaps in the stone walls that were once part of the building, swaying tremblingly in the breeze, shaking off the stale smell that has accumulated for many years.

"..."

Eric just stared at this little sprout, unable to tell whether it was good or bad.

"The area around you can't see the original appearance... Are all the original streets?"

Kim speculates.

"No."

"what?"

"It's not on the street yet, this place should have been a city wall."

Hearing this, Jin stopped talking.

It's not that he was surprised that the young man was able to tell the truth so accurately, but out of a self-knowledge that he realized that this was not the time for him to speak.

For Eric, who has lost the memory of his past, he has never been to this place.

The city—or, rather, the country, in its entirety—was not present in the fractured memory fragments.

But he can almost tell at a glance what everything here that has been eroded by the years used to look like.

Just like the place we are walking through now.

Although it looks like the ground is flat now, and the surface is still covered with tree roots and stagnant water, thousands of years ago, this place was originally a highland with the best view created by manpower.

Many people have climbed the city wall in the past. From this angle, they have looked into the small but extremely peaceful country.

The thick bricks and stones entwined by the roots of ancient trees have left countless walking tracks, and the branches and tendrils that fall layer upon layer are like curtains, and perhaps you can imagine the buildings and markets that have disappeared in the dust...

No.

Can't imagine it at all.

And there is one more point that was not stated before:

Eric is in an extremely "dangerous" state at this time.

His agitation seemed to return, just because of all this caught in his eyes.

I want to destroy, I want to destroy all the foreign things that block my vision, invade the former land without authorization, and cover all the traces that can barely be connected with the "past".

It may have been an instinct ingrained in the bones of the man who had been the protector.Because he later realized that he no longer had the qualifications and identity to protect, a huge gap suddenly opened up in his heart, and unspeakable sadness grew.

The scenery under the city wall disappeared, and the lively street scenes of the past were no longer visible.

The two people from thousands of years later walked here, and there was no trance feeling that they were passing by ancients from different time and space.

Even Eric can still use his "intuition" to tell where they passed without hesitation:

We have come to the end of the city wall, we should change the direction, that is the neighborhood where the common people live.

The whole area here is full of houses, which are not high and look simple, but when it comes to festivals, they are decorated with lanterns and colorful silks, which make the eyes brighten up at once.

Turn around again, bypass the little slope where the little devils like to run around here, go forward, and continue to go forward.

It is the city and the center of the country.

The imperial palace has appeared in a position that can be seen by raising the eyes.

And in the depths of the palace, which is almost as simple as the house outside, and not much larger in scale...

--clatter.

Walking at the forefront, he stopped abruptly like a young man who was speeding through the space-time gap between the past and reality.

In front of him, the maze set by the pitch-dark curtain was broken, and a brand-new picture finally jumped into his field of vision.

The ticking sound was not the sound of footsteps, but the collision sound of dew dripping on the calm lake surface from an unknown leaf.

The lake located deep in the oasis has been found.

It is the source of life, and it is vast and boundless without seeing the other side.Although existence is real, it is like a dreamlike mirage.

"..."

"It's not an illusion."

"That's right, it's not fake, what we see is the real scene."

"Is this the place you were looking for?"

"Do not."

The boy answered abruptly.

"It's not that I'm looking for—"

There was a very short pause, and the few emotions that were revealed were chewed by Eric's teeth.

"It's here, be sure to call me back."

Say so.

Regardless of the lake ahead, there is no road to speak of.He walked straight.

It seemed that no difficulty could stop it.

It seemed that no obstacle could stand against it.

From the appearance of the first ripples, the surface of the mirror-like lake water finally shattered.

The sparkling water seems to reflect two parallel lines intersecting each other. The people who are still walking in the present and the precipitation belonging to the past time all intersect here unprecedentedly.

The lake was ankle-deep.

The lake water covered both legs, softly wrapped around the waist.

Eric still didn't stop.

His thoughts have long been submerged in the icy lake, in the turbulent ocean currents of history, and came to the place where the "he" once walked——

Every step forward, there are many fuzzy figures flashing by, and with the passage of time flickering.

The position he finally came to finally made him stop.

There is no "remember" wrong words.

A few steps forward, right in front, is the throne that once belonged to someone.