Chapter 14 — From Ruins to the Dharma Lord's Throne

The corridor leading deep into the heart of the Ancient God Ruins was much longer than the group initially expected. The stone walls on both sides were not engraved with images of ancient wars like those at Hoàng Lăng Ruins; instead, they were covered with rows of complex, dense characters that followed one another like a giant book written in stone.

"This is an ancient language, the forerunner of modern writing on the continent," Vũ Khanh said, his hand going over each character, trying to decode. "I can only read a small portion, but it seems to be some kind of diary, recording events in chronological order."

The deeper they went inside, the heavier and colder the air became. Dịch Phàm felt the Mixed Origin Spirit Root in his body reacting more and more violently, as if his body were getting closer to the source of a huge suffering that had existed for a long time.

After more than an hour of careful movement, the group reached a large circular hall located in the center of the ruins. The soaring ceiling with a large hole in the middle allowed a faint stream of light from outside to shine down, forming a column of light illuminating a stone pedestal in the center of the hall. On that stone pedestal was a giant crystal block, inside were suspended countless fragments of spiritual energy memories swirling like small glowing clouds.

"This must be the memory storage center of the entire ruins," Tuyết Nhi said, her voice full of surprise. "I have read about similar structures in the family's ancient books, but I have never seen a crystal this large and intact."

Dịch Phàm stepped closer to the crystal, feeling an invisible suction force pulling him closer. Without anyone reminding him, he knew he needed to touch it. He reached out and gently touched the cold surface of the crystal.

Immediately, a flood of memories flooded into his mind, much stronger and clearer than what he had experienced with the jade piece. He saw the whole scene of the Tàn Dạ battle from a completely different perspective—not from the side of the magicians guarding the border, but from the side of the Hắc Toái army itself.

In that memory, Hắc Diễm stood before a council of leaders under his command, pointing to a large map depicting the Tàn Dạ Border region. "The border guard team led by Tần Hạo Nguyên has a special bloodline, compatible with the ancient sacrificial array recorded in this Ancient God Ruins." His voice sounded hoarse and cold. "Years of exposure to the border guarding array left by their ancestors has transformed their bloodline, becoming the only key that can break the ancient seal here, releasing the power that has been buried since the great war." Another leader in the Hắc Toái council asked, his voice full of doubt. "Commander, if you only need their blood, why not kill them and use the blood? Keeping prisoners alive for a long time will cost a lot of guarding resources, and there is a potential risk of them escaping or being rescued."

"We need to capture them alive, not kill them," Black Flame continued, her red eyes shining with cold calculation. "The blood of the dead weakens over time, not enough to maintain the complex sacrificial array I need. Only the blood of the living, properly nurtured and exploited over many years, is strong enough to break the ancient seal here. This is why I need both of them to live, and live a long time."

"Once I have the power sealed here, no famous family, no alliance on this continent can stop me from unifying the Shangyuan, forever ending the unjust order that those who were born with everything imposed on those like me."

The memory switches, showing the image of Black Flame standing in this main hall, many years ago, in front of a giant seal carved on the stone floor, his eyes filled with cruel desire. "I was once a slave child in the mines of a famous family, treated worse than animals, while those of you born in luxury have never experienced a day of hunger and thirst. If this order cannot be broken by reason, I will break it by force and war."

Dịch Phàm jumped back in surprise, disconnected from the crystal, gasped, cold sweat broke out all over his body. What he had just witnessed was not only confirmation of Black Flame's true motives, but also a truth much more painful than he had ever imagined.

"Dịch Phàm, what do you see?" Tuyết Nhi asked, her voice worried, supporting him when he staggered.

Dịch Phàm recounted everything he had just witnessed, his voice shaking but trying to keep coherent. When he finished, the group fell silent, stunned by the truth that had just been revealed.

"So that means," Vũ Khanh spoke up, his voice heavy, "the battle of Tàn Dạ was not an ordinary border battle. It was a deliberate ambush, aimed directly at your parents because of their special bloodline."

"And Black Flame is still keeping them alive," Nhược Đông continued, "because he needs their bloodlines intact to break the seal here."

Dịch Phàm clenched his fists, a mixed emotion between relief knowing his parents were alive and extreme anger at Black Flame's cruelty welled up in his heart. "We have to find out exactly where he is keeping my parents. If the seal here is really related to his plans, perhaps the place where they are kept is not far from this Ancient God Ruins." At that moment, Tịch Dao, who was standing guard near the entrance to the hall, suddenly shouted a warning. "There's movement! Something's coming from the hallway behind!"

The group immediately got into a fighting stance. From the darkness of the hallway, a herd of small but numerous creatures, bodies as black as darkness, eyes glowing red, began to flood into the large hall, emitting shrill hissing sounds.

"The evil beast guards the ruins," Tuyết Nhi said, quickly summoning an ice wall blocking the entrance. "Perhaps they were awakened by our activation of the memory crystal."

"The squad seems to have practiced!" Vũ Khanh shouted, quickly coordinating each person's position. "Bạt Sơn, Nhược Đông hold the line! Tịch Dao provides long-range support! Dịch Phàm, Tuyết Nhi, prepare to counterattack when the opportunity arises!"

The battle raged fiercely in the large hall, the lights of magical moves intertwining, creating a scene that was both majestic and chaotic. Bạt Sơn erected a series of earthen walls to block the first attack, while Nhược Đông created sharp ice pillars that pierced the fragile bodies of the small evil beasts.

Dịch Phàm, putting together everything he had learned over the past months, concentrated his purifying energy, creating a circle of five-colored light that spread throughout the hall, causing every evil beast it touched to howl in pain before disappearing into black smoke.

The battle lasted nearly half an hour before the last wave of evil beasts were completely destroyed. The whole group stood panting in the middle of the hall, drenched in sweat, but luckily no one was seriously injured.

"We need to get out of here before there's another attack," Tuyết Nhi said, her voice still tense. "But first, let's copy down as much information from these character walls as possible. This could be important evidence to present to the White-Winged Alliance."

While Vũ Khanh and Nhược Đông were busy copying ancient characters, Dịch Phàm stood silently looking at the memory crystal, his mind filled with hundreds of thoughts. He learned the truth about Black Flame's motives and knew his parents were still alive. But the path forward—the path that led to confronting a man with an army and a war plot on a continental scale—now appeared clearer and more terrifying than ever.

"We will find them." Tuyết Nhi placed her hand on his shoulder, her eyes determined. "And we will stop Black Flame before he can carry out his crazy plot." Dịch Phàm nodded, his eyes following the exit of the ruins, where the fading daylight was waiting for them to return with a truth heavier than anything they had ever imagined when they started this journey.

On the way back out, Bạt Sơn broke the heavy atmosphere with a sentence, half joking and half serious. "If Hắc Diễm was once a slave child who was treated cruelly, then perhaps he and Dịch Phàm have something in common - they both came from the bottom of society."

"We are not the same," Dịch Phàm replied immediately, his voice decisive. "I understand the pain of being overlooked, of being marginalized. But I choose to prove my worth through effort, not by plunging millions of other innocent people into war and suffering to satisfy my own ambitions. That is the line between me and him that can never be erased."

The whole group was silent before that steadfast answer, and in each person's heart, the determination to stop the Black Flame was stronger than ever.