When the Head hurried back to the group, his clothes which were usually perfect were slightly ruffled, as if he had gotten into a fight.
He had a broad smile on his face, though, as if he had done something very satisfying, and as soon as he reached the group that had been progressing along the path, he said, "A Hero needed to be…forcibly put to sleep. Let's pick up the pace. We're already expected there, and it is best not to keep those of the Eternal Blossom waiting."
Daneel, who had already infiltrated the group and was one of the Warriors standing beside the large globe of ice inside which Percy was frozen winced slightly as he heard this, as he could tell that Rayen had probably had to take a beating to facilitate this action of his.
Well, it had been necessary.
Deciding that he would help the Hero a bit with something later on, Daneel began to briskly walk along with the others as they started to hurry along and get to that point where the no-trespassing zone started.
As soon as they reached it, they crossed it without hesitation.
As soon as Daneel entered the zone, the first thing he felt was the formation that had scanned him and all the trinkets he was holding.
It was a really good thing that the Big Four were not in possession of the formation that could scan the overall complexity of an individual, because otherwise, Daneel would definitely have set off a lot of alarms because of the Ancient Dragon in his head.
This was the typical formation that had been present in each and every sect of the Big Four he had already been to, so there was nothing too surprising yet.
Even after passing that line, though, their pace didn't slow, and they continued walking through the forest while parting the bushes that came in their way.
It was only another 20 minutes later the Daneel finally saw something change.
Up until this point, the forest had been normal, but slowly, trees and plants that were different from any he had ever seen before started to appear.
As he asked the system, the answer he got made him blink with confusion.
[These are species which are supposed to be extinct in this age. Some of the species of plants and trees that host has passed so far date back to 2000 years ago, and some even date to the Empire.]
Huh? How was this possible?
Typically, a species would go extinct if the conditions for its continued existence were not present. Generally, these conditions would be common throughout the continent, and the only way that this would not be the case was if this place… Was completely isolated.
As they kept going further and further in, Daneel started to feel that this must be true, and that some formation might be in effect which was making this possible.
The way Hero level formations worked was that there were quite a few which could be completely hidden from even the sight of Hero level individuals.
If the system was upgraded, it might have been able to scan and pick up things that normal people at the level couldn't, but right now, it was only at the Champion level, which meant that there could be quite a few formations that could be there without Daneel knowing about them. While some such as that which had to scan things were always visible, most others would remain discreet, as that was how formations used to be designed during the time of the Emperor.
Finally, another 10 minutes later, they stopped.
Daneel didn't know why they had done so, as this place didn't look any different from everything they had passed so far.
Yet, as he looked ahead, he noticed a strange… shimmering, in the air, which made him ask, "System, what is ahead of us?"
[Phenomenon Analysis module deployed. Scanning. Hero-level Obfuscation formation found. What host is currently seeing is a reflection of the area that host has already passed.]
A reflection?
Interrupting his thoughts, the Head spoke up.
"All those are making this trip for the first time, brace yourselves. The golden rule here is to not ask any questions, and to not stare at anything for too long. Those of the Eternal Blossom do not take kindly to undue attention. No matter what you see, if you value your life, just glance and ignore. If you want to find out what is really happening, then I can only say that you should grow strong enough to become privy to the details. Let's go."
With these words, he led the way, and as soon as he stepped past that point where Daneel had seen the shimmering, he disappeared.
There were five people in front of Daniel, and after they all disappeared, too, it was finally his turn.
Yet, the moment he stepped past that point, he stumbled into the one in front of him.
Daneel was about to curse as that was what any normal Warrior from the Sect of Hedon would do, but the words got stuck in his mouth as soon as he looked around and saw something that made him freeze.
"Ouch! Get outta-"
As someone bumped into him from behind, he understood why the same thing had happened to him, so he simply stepped forward while still looking around with absolute shock which was clearly displayed by his jaw that was hanging.
At first glance, it looked as if this was still the forest that they had walked into.
However, if anyone kept watching for even a second more, then they would understand right away that something was very, very wrong.
All of the plants and trees were… changing in front of their eyes, by the second.
For instance, Daneel focused on a small sunflower that had just bloomed beside the path they were taking.
While he watched, it grew older and older until it withered away.
Something that was supposed to take months of time had occurred in a matter of seconds, and for the life of him, Daneel could understand how it was possible.
Right at the beginning of his path as a mage, he had investigated whether it was possible to manipulate the ultimate enemy of all living things - time.
He had been disappointed to find that although relative time could be modified at very high levels, such as in Ashahell's case, it was impossible to change the general flow of time. Time could not be sped up, or reversed.
Yet, here… That was clearly not the truth.
It didn't stop here, though.
After the plant withered, a single seed fell into the earth, and as Daneel's shock started to reach another level, the cycle began anew. A small sapling took root, and started to grow once again.
With this, he finally understood what was going on.
After looking around for a bit more, he knew that he was right.
All of the plants and flowers around him… Were repeatedly being born and dying!
But how?!
Of course, the first thing he did was ask the system.
[System has detected that a formation is in effect that cannot be analyzed with system's present level. Please upgrade.]
Along with the regular frustration that came from hearing the upgrade message, Daneel realized that he had probably been foolish in expecting the Champion level system to have an answer regarding this phenomenon which was clearly far beyond that level.
"What about the memories of the Emperor and the techniques behind the third seal? Is there any mention among those regarding something that could result in this effect?"
[Scanning. Certain references found, but the system cannot form a clear connection. Deeper analysis beginning.]
Denny actually heaved a sigh of relief as he heard this, as there was at least hope that he could get an answer soon.
As he heard this, though, he decided to ask Drakos, but before he could do so, he saw that they had come to a halt again, as there was a figure standing in front of them.
This was the first individual they had seen since entering the forest, and she seemed to be just as enigmatic as the surroundings. She was wearing a cloak with a hood that covered her face, and all over it, there were many flowers which were are all displaying the same effect - they grew, they wilted, they died, and they started to grow again.
Once again, Daneel had no idea how this was happening, which was pretty frustrating.
"She awaits. She's not very happy, because you're late by 84 seconds."
Hearing this, the Head actually… grimaced.
Huh? Wasn't he supposed to be the foremost figure in the continent who did not need to fear anyone? If so, why was he reacting in this way?
Not understanding, Daneel watched as the Head nodded and instantly disappeared, after which the figure waved a hand.
Daneel had already precautionary order the system to not stop any attempts from outside to teleport him, as this was not supposed to be an ability that could be present in a typical Warrior. He felt glad that he had done this, as the woman had cast a teleportation spell on them all.
As Daneel blinked to see the new location that he had arrived at, he saw that they were in some sort of a stone cave. Creepers grew here and there, and there were stalactites and stalagmites hanging from above which felt like they could fall and impale them at any moment.
"The healing will take place here. Go in that direction to reach a few huts, where you'll be staying for three days. If you value your lives, did not even try to enter here. If you're needed, you will be called for. Now, leave."
Among their group of 15, 5 had already come before, and they instantly started heading in the direction shown by the woman, where there was a passage.
Daneel followed after deciding that he would make his move from those huts after going through all the references that the system had found.
Along with the others, he started walking in that direction.
Everything looked like it was fine, but suddenly, at the last moment before he entered the passage, the woman spoke up.
"You, who is about to leave. Stay. She wishes to speak to you."
Daneel froze instantly, and the five ahead who had been walking forward looked at him with pity.
'What the f*ck? Why are you all looking at me as if I've been placed on the chopping block?'
Although he got this thought, he didn't dare to refuse.
He turned around with a puzzled expression on his face, and as he saw the woman wave him over, he walked forward.
They had left behind the transparent ice ball in which Percy was suspended, and as Daneel reached it, the woman disappeared.
Only the pitter-patter of the footsteps of those leaving echoed in the large open cave which was bare except for him and that ball, and as they all left, the system spoke in his mind again.
[Hero-level barrier has come into being around host.]
Daneel had detected it, too.
He didn't know what was coming, but as he had a moment, he decided to arm himself with at least a little bit of knowledge regarding just what that phenomena he had seen before was.
Before he asked, though, the system spoke up, which meant that it had finished its analysis.
[After deep analysis, one reference best matches what host has witnessed: Study of the Path of Life and Death. This is a taboo path where anyone who tries to study it walks a fine line between these two aspects of existence, and it was banned during the Empire due to the extremely high rate of death. The Emperor's strongest foe was skilled in a certain sub-path of this Path, and it was thought that his knowledge perished with him. The reference is that the Emperor once heard that the man trained by studying something similar, but in that case, it was a cycle of the life and death of animals.]
Life and Death?
Daneel felt only more confused than before, but all of the thoughts and questions that appeared to him instantly fled his mind as a voice suddenly reverberated in the cave, startling him and making his heart go still.
"So the King of Lanthanor is in possession of an Empire spirit. How interesting. Why have you graced my Sect today, King?"