Chapter 1286 — Where the Clues Converge

Amber took the lead at the front of the group. Though this disgrace of the Alliance had spent the whole journey acting like she was scared half to death, when it came time to actually be useful she did not falter. With her nimblest agility she served as the forward scout, her petite figure flickering through the light and shadow of the dense forest, constantly bringing intelligence back to Gao Yang's side.

Like a speed-boosted eye-bug.

The slightly unreliable association flashed through his mind, and Gao Lan threw these messy thoughts to the back of his head. Just then, Amber, who had gone to scout the nearby environment, suddenly came running back, wearing an exaggerated expression of astonishment as though she had seen Rebecca arranging flowers.

"Come quick, look at this!!" The "half-elf" darted over like a gust of wind, chattering rapidly, "Up ahead... there's something up ahead! I thought I was seeing things! Up ahead, in the clearing..."

Gao Yang, at the front of the group, was momentarily stunned by Amber's sudden, exaggerated commotion. Then he casually shoved her aside and quickened his pace forward, saying, "Don't be so jumpy. What exactly is up ahead..."

Before he finished speaking, he had already stepped over a wall-like ridge of dark brown dead vines, and the view blocked by the plant remains opened up. The scene not far away came into view, stopping the rest of his words in his throat.

Footsteps sounded behind him as the rest of the group caught up. In an instant, Gao Yang heard several low gasps and sharp intakes of breath—everyone was staring in astonishment at the open ground not far away, at what stood quietly there... a small wooden cabin.

A small wooden cabin!

"A house?!" Even Daniel, who had kept his face stern the entire journey, could not maintain it this time; his eyes went wide as he stared at that simple little cabin in the distance.

The cabin had clearly been built from local materials—roughly worked planks and vines. Though not much to look at, it seemed sturdy and durable. It stood in an open area among the Cycle Giant Tree's remains, with nothing around it to block the way, as though to prevent dead branches and leaves falling from the giant tree's canopy from smashing the house. Not far from the cabin, among the coiled and piled plant remains, could be seen a large, overgrown cluster of berry bushes and other plant thickets of unidentifiable species. Unlike the vegetation growing haphazardly elsewhere nearby, these bushes had once seemed carefully tended—around them could still be seen collapsed fences and crooked wooden posts.

But all of it looked as though it had been abandoned for many years.

"This is... a trace of human habitation!" Victoria could not help breaking the silence. She stared in astonishment at everything not far away, then turned to her ancestor, the great adventurer. "Ancestor, you... Ancestor? What's wrong?"

Mojin stood beside Victoria, and at some point his expression had grown somewhat vacant. The old mage stared blankly at the distant cabin and its surroundings, and only after a long while did he seem to finally hear Victoria's call. Clutching his forehead, he muttered in confusion, "I... I don't know... I feel as though I've been to this place before, but I've forgotten—I've forgotten something very important... I seem to..."

Mojin's reaction made Gao Yang's heart stir instantly; a lightning-fast association burst into his mind. At the same time, Amber, who had been looking around and observing their surroundings, suddenly noticed something else. Tugging at his arm, she said loudly, "Hey! Look over there! Look into the distance! Those tower-like structures and the connecting framework between them!"

Gao Yang blinked, and his gaze slowly followed the direction of Amber's pointing finger.

He saw another, even broader open area at some distance from the cabin. A great many tower-like alloy structures extended from the steel platform, pointing straight up at the sky, and between these alloy "towers" were cleverly arranged and complex crossbeams and arches connecting them, forming a large three-dimensional structure that resembled an antenna array or perhaps some kind of decorative dome. All of it was obscured by the nearby plant remains, so that he had not noticed their existence at first glance.

He stared in that direction for a long time before withdrawing his gaze to look into Amber's eyes. The two of them looked at each other for two or three seconds, then finally said in unison: "A scene from the dust illusion!"

That was precisely the place shown by the "illusion" Amber had extracted from the depths of Mojin's memory—the place where Mojin had met the "Twin Elves."

So it was here, after all—here in the depths of the deep sea, in the Pathfinders' "home port," among the ruins of the "Cycle Giant Tree"!

Many threads of clues quietly closed here at last, revealing an "answer" that no one had anticipated. Even Gao Yang himself was taken aback by these dramatically converging clues. His gaze slowly drifted toward the small wooden cabin in the clearing not far away—that crude, simple dwelling... at this moment it seemed like the focus and core of all things, stirring up the truths of ancient times and the possibilities of the future.

"Victoria, keep an eye on Mojin." Gao Yang turned to the "Ice and Snow Duchess" beside him, then strode toward the silent little cabin. Behind him, Amber followed without a word, of her own accord.

Gao Yang came to the cabin. The humble dwelling answered him only with silence; there was no movement inside, as though its former occupant had long since departed. He reached out and slowly ran his hand over the rough wooden door. Made from the remains of the "Divine Wood," the door was somewhat mottled but still intact and solid.

He saw faint carvings on the door. Brushing away the dust on its surface, he made out the content of those marks—nothing earth-shattering, merely some animals and plants drawn in simple line strokes, along with a few plain but vivid landscapes.

Gao Yun drew a soft breath and pushed the door open.

The interior of the cabin came into view, its simple furnishings laid bare at a glance—two old, plain wooden beds, some similarly wooden shelves and household utensils, and against the corner a low wooden table on which still rested several bouquets of flowers, withered for who knew how many years.

Gao Song's gaze slowly swept across the room.

He saw no living person—but he saw no remains, either.

He saw only a wooden post in the center of the cabin, with green vines winding their way up along it. At the end of the vines, two pinkish-white twin blossoms swayed faintly, and around the post, at the base of the vines, lay a few fragments of clothing, already weathered and crumbling.