Chapter 512 513-The Hidden Truth

Chapter 512 Chapter513-The Hidden Truth

The moment Jelia stepped out of the passage, she was momentarily stunned.

Not from fear, but sheer astonishment.

The end of the passage opened abruptly into a vast cavern, reminiscent of stepping into a magnificent hall.

At the end of the passage, all traces of humanity forcefully erased, leaving behind only the silent beauty of nature.

Countless conical crystals stretched down from the cave ceiling, their own faint luminescence providing the sole source of light within the cavern.

The glossy, semi-transparent stalactites drooped from the ceiling, their dark light refracting and scattering through the mist to emit a deep blue luster, akin to a clear night sky.

At the tips of the stalactites, water droplets gathered before shining brightly in the darkness, mirroring the twinkling stars above.

Just the cave ceiling alone painted a breathtakingly beautiful nightscape.

Beneath the "nightscape" lay a tranquil, deep lake, its edges invisible even to Jelia with her extraordinary vision.

She could only see the mist-like vapors that hovered and shifted over the water.

Droplets gathered on the stalactites above, eventually captured by gravity, plunging into the lake with a sound.

That was the source of the water noises Jelia had heard moments ago.

Tightening her clothes around her, Jelia suddenly felt a slight drop in temperature.

Was it her imagination? Hesitating for a few seconds, she decided it was best not to approach the unknown waters.

After all, who knows what resides within them?

She walked a considerable distance around the lake, circling back to the passage's entrance without uncovering anything new.

It seemed to be a closed environment, connected to the outside world only through that passage.

Yet, the path was one-way; Jelia had seen no forks in the road on her journey, and upon her arrival, the passage ended abruptly at a cave wall.

An entirely sealed area yet it bore marks of human craftsmanship? This paradox left Jelia in a state of hesitation, sinking into confusion.

Initially, she thought this place was merely an ordinary ruin, but now it appeared not to be the case.

It seemed something was concealed here.

Standing still, lost in thought, Jelia decided to return to the other end of the passage, where she had first appeared.

If Ali found a way in, that was likely where he would show up.

Since there wasn't much here besides a cave, waiting there seemed the best option.

Sheathing her short knife, Jelia took one last look at the cave.

Tightening her small cloak around her and pulling up the hood, she turned and left.

"Why leave?"

A voice erupted behind her!

There was another person here, aside from herself!

And yet, she had been completely unaware.

Without turning, Jelia's hand instinctively reached for the hilt of her short knife.

"Why won't you turn to look at me?"

The voice continued, sounding like a young man's—unremarkable yet not unpleasant to the ear.

Taking a deep breath, Jelia pressed on.

She recalled a creature Ali had once mentioned.

To call it an animal seemed a stretch; to label it a spirit, somewhat impolite.

Thus, "creature" was the only term that seemed fitting without error.

Footsteps!

Since when did Plague Spirits have footsteps!

Disregarding the risk of being parasitized, Jelia swiftly drew her knife and turned around, her gaze piercing through the dim haze at the end of the passage.

Two green lights flickered to life, revealing a slim figure advancing with a floating gait.

Jelia's lips were tightly pressed, her facial muscles tense.

She had never killed anyone, but for the sake of self-

preservation, she was not averse to staining her hands with blood.

The figure, gasping for air, locked its gaze firmly on Jelia, stopping about seven or eight meters away.

"You sure run fast..."

"Were you the one chasing me?"

Jelia scrutinized the figure before her, her eyes moving up and down the silhouette.

The figure before her appeared to be a subhuman, crowned with a pair of wolf ears, yet his body was so gaunt it nearly resembled a skeleton.

Only his eyes shone unusually bright, reminiscent of a person starved for days suddenly beholding a feast.

This was a completely enclosed space; having circled the underground lake just moments ago, Jelia had not detected any other life forms besides herself.

This meant that this Werewolf likely had nothing to eat here.

Extreme hunger drives humans to cannibalism, but what about a half-orc? Jelia felt a chill creep up her spine, and she instinctively took a half-step back.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"What do I want?"

The figure looked at Jelia, a strange smile playing across his face.

"In a place like this, at a time like this, with just the two of us, what do you think I could possibly want?"

Jelia retreated another half-step, her back arching slightly, resembling a leopard ready to pounce.

Though she hadn't formally learned combat techniques, half-

orcs are inherently battle-ready.

The moment she grasped the knife handle, she became acutely aware of every inch of the blade, from tip to spine.

A longer reach grants strength, a shorter one risks danger.

While weapons inherently carry strengths and weaknesses, the outcome ultimately depends on the hands wielding them.

"Stay back! Or I'll be forced to defend myself," Jelia warned, her eyes coldly fixed on the figure.

The figure paused, seemingly surprised by Jelia's firm resistance.

His body swayed slightly, and he took a step forward, hands slightly raised in a gesture of peace.

"I just want to get out of here! Is even such a simple wish something you're unwilling to help with? We're both trapped here now. If we don't want to die in this place, you must cooperate with me!"

"Get out? Cooperate?"

The shadowy figure's words stirred something in Jelia; he seemed to know something about this place.

"You came in here without knowing anything?"

The look in the figure's eyes shifted slightly, turning somewhat somber, but then, as if a thought struck him, he sighed, and the gloom in his eyes dispersed.

"Forget it, at this point, whether I speak of it or not is already irrelevant."

"This place is a deception."

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