"Old Mother of the Swamp?" Lu Li muttered, gazing at the red light that enveloped him.
There was no reply. Just as she had said, it was rely an imprint of consciousness, left here in advance.
A few seconds after the Old Mother of the Swamp's whisper faded, the red light began to dim and vanish. Nearby, another source of red light materialized, casting a sinister glow.
Lu Li didn't hesitate. There was no turning back; his only choice was to walk deeper into the trap.
If the Old Mother of the Swamp was welcoming him, did that an the Mother of the Swamp—his ally—was losing their confrontation?
Bathed in the crimson light, Lu Li listened as the whisper of the Old Mother of the Swamp continued.
"A wretched creature like you cannot possibly draw the attention of a great consciousness... Human, you who are called thief and traitor, your fate will be the sa as the usurper's. You will beco a sacrifice to a great being. Keep moving forward... The end of your life and soul awaits you there."
The crimson light faded quickly. Having revealed her intentions, the Old Mother of the Swamp no longer needed to lure Lu Li deeper.
Lu Li could only press on. Another chasm, ford by what looked like a massive growth ring, opened up before him. As he drew closer, his Mind Level counter began to click.
Leaping across the chasm, Lu Li landed under a new source of crimson light, and the counter fell silent. This ti, however, the Old Mother of the Swamp's whisper did not co.
There was no more need for empty words.
A new light source appeared ahead, on the edge of yet another growth-ring chasm. Behind him, the old light continued to fade rapidly.
Lu Li clutched the statuette of the Mother of the Swamp in his pocket and, repeating her na silently to himself, pressed onward.
The "end" the Old Mother of the Swamp had prepared for him likely awaited in one of the upcoming pools of light, but Lu Li had no other choice.
When he reached the next beacon of light, there was no whisper. He continued onward, leaping across the next chasm.
"Stop..." a faint whisper suddenly echoed in his mind.
Lu Li froze. The red light behind him was fading fast, and the darkness was closing in. To avoid being plunged into darkness, he had to keep moving forward—but when he did, the whisper vanished.
Realizing what was happening, Lu Li stepped back to the boundary between light and shadow. He stood at the very precipice of the chasm, his Mind Level counter clicking frantically.
Before the Mother of the Swamp could say anything, Lu Li asked, "The darkness is closing in. Can you do anything about it?"
"Take out the statuette..."
Lu Li pulled the statuette from his pocket. The small figure, a representation of humanity, emitted a faint violet glow.
The encroaching darkness reluctantly halted before the light, but the violet radiance was so feeble that Lu Li could almost hear whispers and feel unseen touches from the gloom.
Nearby, the red light flickered, beckoning Lu Li toward it.
"What now?" Lu Li asked.
"Jump into the chasm... It leads to the Old Mother's shell... Break my seal... It's our only chance..."
"A few minutes ago, you said you had suppressed her," Lu Li retorted. "Now you're the one who's sealed, and we're at a disadvantage."
"She went mad... She tried to take the power by force... She is very strong... and very weak... I need... your help..."
Lu Li frowned. The closer he got to the chasm, the faster the counter clicked. "The chasm is draining my Mind Level."
"If you do nothing... it will consu your life... and your soul..."
The Mother of the Swamp was right. If he didn't jump, Lu Li's only other option was to walk toward the red light.
As for escaping...
Lu Li glanced back. Darkness had already consud the path behind him.
Approaching the edge of the chasm, Lu Li peered into the dark abyss. "How am I supposed to get down?"
"Just jump..."
"A dead man will be of no use to you," Lu Li replied.
"You won't die..."
With the Mother of the Swamp's assurance, Lu Li no longer hesitated. He turned away from the path laid out by the Old Mother of the Swamp, clutched the statuette, and leaped into the chasm.
The fall lasted only an instant before his back and feet made contact with a solid surface.
This wasn't a free fall. He was on a sloping surface, like a slide. Wind whistled past his ears, and in that mont, the Mother of the Swamp's whisper ca again.
"You might get hurt a little..."
Hearing this, Lu Li said nothing. He tried to shift into a better position and slow his descent, bending his knees to brace for the landing.
Ten ters, thirty, fifty.
Sliding rapidly downward, Lu Li lost his balance on the twisting surface. His shoulder slamd against an edge, and he was thrown head over heels.
Lu Li barely had ti to right himself into a horizontal position before he hit the bottom.
A dull thud was followed by a stifled groan. Lu Li rolled several tis, absorbing the impact of the fall. The Mother of the Swamp's statuette slipped from his grasp and clattered to a stop beside his head.
"Damn!" The sound of shattering glass ca from nearby. Thankfully, it wasn't the lamp beside his head.
The faint violet light illuminated a face contorted in pain.
Silence descended, broken only by the clicking of the counter.
Lu Li slowly pushed himself up. His right shoulder, which had taken the brunt of the landing, throbbed with excruciating pain, but that wasn't the worst of it.
He touched his abdon, and a sharp pain lanced through him, mixed with the sensation of tearing flesh. His fingers ca away sticky with blood.
The wound must have reopened.
Ignoring the pain, Lu Li retrieved the statuette and surveyed his surroundings.
The way back up was shrouded in darkness, but a wide passage opened up before him.
A pulsing, blood-red light gave the walls of uneven stone the appearance of living flesh. It was as if Lu Li were inside so giant creature.
The air hung heavy with the scent of rotting wood, even stronger than back at the detective agency.
"Where are we?" Lu Li asked, sensing no imdiate danger.
"The Old Mother's shell..."
"And where are you sealed?"
"In the shell's head..."
"Is the Old Mother there as well?"
"She's at the altar in the heart... preparing a ritual to reclaim the shell... You must free
before she finishes..."
"But you can't defeat her."
"That's why I need... your help..."
Lu Li scoffed. "We'll see about that. But instead of fighting the Old Mother, I have another suggestion."
"What is it?"
"Get
out of this swamp, or just help
leave. We can find an exorcist."
"It's too late... and I... don't trust humans..."
"Lead the way. Where do I go?"
"Forward... Stay out of the light... The Old Mother will sense you..."
Lu Li scanned his surroundings again. Patches of darkness, where the walls didn't glow, were scattered everywhere. They ford chains of shadow or isolated spots, like islands on a sea of lava.
"Anything else? Are there other dangers here?" Lu Li asked, starting along a dark path while studying his surroundings.
He couldn't believe the only danger ca from the environnt itself.
Not when he was inside the shell of the Old Mother of the Swamp.
"As long as you stay in the darkness... you're safe..."
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