Chapter 1827: After the Calamity

At the same moment Li Laide’s figure vanished from the Play-Dao Ancient Treasury.

A breeze swept across the grassland, and four figures stood side by side above the void, watching the direction in which he had departed...

"By my count, we in this world have never left the Play-Dao Ancient Treasury before..." Luan Mei spoke softly.

"It’s because our little junior brother has protected us too well," Ning Ruyu replied with a smile. "Up until now, there hasn't been a situation requiring us to take action ourselves... Even the funeral for the Ruoshui Domain was handled by the little junior brother personally."

"But this time, we should go out for a walk..."

Mo Jiao took out a playing card, watching lines of small text emerge on the back, his expression gradually turning solemn.

"The little junior brother needs us."

"Old Five, I leave the Play-Dao Ancient Treasury to you."

Ning Ruyu patted the head of the Clown beside him. The latter let out a squeak and slapped his own chest hard, as if to say, "Leave it to me."

Four King cards flashed through the air.

Their figures vanished without a trace.

……

Witch-Dao Ancient Treasury, outskirts.

With a flash of white light, a figure wearing a white peaked cap drifted down to the ground like a feather.

He opened his palm, and a cloth doll, seemingly used for witchcraft rituals, was tossed onto the ground. If one were to look closely at the surroundings now, they would find similar witchcraft props scattered everywhere, a dizzying sight.

"Only one doll stolen this time..." Bai Ye sighed softly.

He turned his head to look at a mirror standing on the barren land nearby.

Inside the mirror, an identical figure wearing a white peaked cap was looking back at him.

"Is it this one?" Bai Ye asked.

"No."

The Bai Ye in the mirror shook his head in denial.

"It's been so long, stealing time and time again, and I still haven't found the witchcraft prop you mentioned..." Bai Ye couldn't help but sigh, looking at the Witch-Dao Ancient Treasury before him, muttering to himself,

"Just how many witchcraft props are hidden in this Witch-Dao Ancient Treasury in total?"

"The Witch-Dao Ancient Treasury is the vessel for all witchcraft rituals in history. Regardless of the size of the ritual, it leaves a trace here... The witchcraft props within are naturally as numerous as the stars," the Bai Ye in the mirror said slowly.

"Finding a specific prop among them is naturally like looking for a needle in a haystack."

"Forget it... Since it's the Red King's order, let's keep trying." Bai Ye shrugged. "Aside from being a bit boring, there's nothing to complain about..."

Before Bai Ye could finish his sentence, he suddenly seemed to notice something and let out a soft exclamation.

He lowered his head and took a playing card from his pocket.

As the face of the [Queen of Hearts] flipped over, a line of small text appeared on the surface.

"Red Dust Prison..." Bai Ye was somewhat surprised. "Is the situation this dire? Last time, during the funeral for the Ruoshui Prison, he didn't even make me interrupt the theft mission..."

"This concerns the Red Dust Lord, Su Zhiwei. This operation will likely be even more severe than you or I imagine... The Twilight Society will definitely need to mobilize everyone," the Bai Ye in the mirror said slowly.

"This day has finally come."

Bai Ye scanned his surroundings, used a cloth to wrap up all the witchcraft props scattered on the ground, and then casually found a corner to bury them deep underground.

He pressed lightly on the brim of his peaked cap, his snake-shaped earrings swaying silently in the wind, his eyes quietly watching a certain direction:

"Having stayed in the Witch-Dao Ancient Treasury for so long... it really is time to go out and take a look."

"This battle of the Red Dust..."

"Should be quite interesting."

……

Fusion Faction.

Old Wolf stood before the desk, his expression extremely grave.

"...In short, that is the situation."

"After Ying Fu killed four World-Enders in a row, the calamities in those original World-Ender territories fell into complete chaos. They have completely broken free from territorial restrictions and spread to every corner of the Gray Realm..."

"Calling them a 'scattered mess' isn't quite right. I’m more inclined to say they’ve transformed from organized groups with traceable actions into chaotic, disorderly ticking time bombs."

"If it weren't for the Mother Tree being able to disperse the calamities, I fear our Fusion Faction would have been harassed and attacked by these crazed calamities hundreds of times by now..."

Teacher Ye sat behind the desk, lost in thought.

"...No," he suddenly spoke.

Old Wolf was taken aback. "What's wrong?"

"Old Wolf, I’ve taught you this... Calamities from different territories have different habits. When you judge their actions from the perspective of calamities as a whole, you’ve already fallen into a misconception," Teacher Ye said slowly.

"The calamities of the Ghost-Mockery Abyss are naturally aggressive; the same goes for the calamities of the Sighing Wilds, only they prefer 'group fighting'... The calamities of the Forbidden Sea are almost impossible to leave the ocean; the calamities of the Flesh-Torment Turbid Forest like to live in groups; the calamities of the Delusion Mountains enter hibernation under specific circumstances..."

"Therefore, even if something like 'the tree falls and the monkeys scatter' were to happen, it couldn't possibly happen in all World-Ender territories at the same time."

Old Wolf seemed to realize something, his brow furrowing tighter. "Teacher Ye, you mean..."

"The current 'scattered mess' in the Gray Realm, chaotic and disorderly... is not how it should be. It is a facade deliberately guided and disguised by some existence," Teacher Ye said, his eyes narrowing with certainty.

"Behind them, there is already a new 'leader,' and this leader is extremely intelligent and skilled at disguise, knowing how to feign weakness and, even more so, how to fish in troubled waters."

"It will not be content with the Gray Realm simply becoming a defeated opponent of the human domains..."

"It must be plotting something."

Hearing this, even someone as slow as Old Wolf could roughly guess who the "it" Teacher Ye was referring to. Just as he was about to say something more, a series of urgent knocks sounded at the door.

Knock, knock, knock—

"Come in."

Teacher Ye spoke gently. As the door was pushed open, a young man holding a letter walked in quickly.

"Teacher Ye, a letter suddenly appeared at the entrance of our Fusion Faction. I don't know where it came from... but looking at the signature, it's for you." The young man presented the envelope.

A letter from nowhere?

Teacher Ye opened the envelope with suspicion, his eyes scanning the contents, and an unprecedented solemnity immediately appeared on his brow.

"Whose letter is it?" Old Wolf asked, puzzled, as it was the first time he had seen Teacher Ye wear such an expression.

"..." Teacher Ye took a deep breath and stood up from behind the desk.

"Old Wolf, go and call everyone in our Fusion Faction who has completed the 'Slaying of the Evil.' Tell the children to stay obediently at the Mother Tree and not to go out casually... We are going on a long journey."

"A long journey? Where are we going?"

Teacher Ye’s gaze passed through the window, looking toward a certain direction in the Gray Realm, his expression extremely grave:

"To..."

"The Red Dust Prison."