“If you refuse to join us, we have no choice but to…”

“…eliminate you.”

The moment Phrolova finished speaking, Lucian lunged forward like lightning, Yamato in hand.

However, Phrolova had anticipated this.

With an elegant sway of the vibrant red bud in her hand, she moved like an orchestra conductor.

As she gestured, dissonant notes filled the air, resembling a funeral dirge.

A Tacet Discord emerged from the calm water before her, blocking Lucian’s attack.

Lucian’s expression hardened. Unwilling to engage in prolonged combat with the Tacet Discord, he instead accelerated his slashes, aiming to break through its obstruction.

But Phrolova retreated gracefully, seemingly unwilling to engage in close combat. As she continued to sway the bud, more Tacet Discords emerged from the water around her.

They lunged at Lucian with bared fangs and brandished claws, surrounding him completely.

Phrolova stood at a distance, watching calmly as Lucian fought the Tacet Discords. The corner of her lips curled slightly.

“We have trapped the Sentinel within the Hibernation Pod.”

“And here… shall be your eternal resting place.”

“Farewell, Outsider…”

As her voice faded, Phrolova’s figure began to blur.

Yet, to her surprise, Lucian scoffed. “You think you’re the only one who can summon ‘Pokémon’?”

His gaze sharpened as he released all the Echoes stored within his terminal.

In an instant, Echoes clad in red capes clashed fiercely with the Tacet Discords summoned by Phrolova.

Lucian’s feet moved with the Cloud-Dancing Butterfly Steps, weaving left and right through the dense encirclement of Tacet Discords. In the blink of an eye, he broke through the siege.

He charged toward Phrolova, whose figure was growing increasingly indistinct.

Phrolova’s pupils contracted slightly as she swayed the bud in her hand once more.

Following her movement, even more Tacet Discords surged endlessly from the water, attempting to block Lucian’s path.

Yet, no matter how many she summoned to hinder him, Lucian deftly dodged them all.

His target wasn’t the Tacet Discords—it was Phrolova, the one summoning them.

As Phrolova’s figure blurred further, Lucian quickened his pace. But even so, a distance still separated them.

At the last moment, Lucian swiftly drew Comrade’s Hammer. He didn’t need to aim—Sharpshooter ensured his accuracy.

“Bang—”

The deafening gunshot shattered the dissonant funeral music. In the next second, Phrolova’s figure vanished.

However, the orange-yellow bullet disappeared along with her.

“I must have hit her…”

“Too bad I couldn’t keep her here.”

Lucian deduced that Phrolova had poor close-combat abilities, resembling a summoner-type Resonator.

The red bud lay on the water’s surface, emitting a faint glow.

Lucian picked it up, rubbing it between his fingers.

“Is this… Red Spider Lily?”

“…As I suspected earlier, the Fractsidus has succeeded. Their imprisonment of the Sentinel has caused the temporal currents of Mt. Firmament to spiral out of control.”

“I had held onto a sliver of hope that my deductions were wrong…”

“…The terminal truly is unusable. I can’t reach Jinhsi.”

“In areas with turbulent temporal currents, normal communication is impossible.”

Rover and Changli had already entered the temporal disturbance zone of Mt. Firmament.

But they discovered that the temporal currents here were chaotic and violent—some areas even had completely stagnant time.

If they couldn’t nullify the effects of the temporal currents and left Mt. Firmament now, they might instantly turn to withered bones.

Just then, Rover’s terminal rang.

She quickly checked—it was Lucian calling.

After clearing all the Tacet Discords with Blood Saber, Lucian plopped down onto the water’s surface.

Phrolova had summoned far too many Tacet Discords. Even with the help of his Echoes, the battle had drained much of his stamina.

Now, he needed to figure out how to leave this place. The system shop should have something useful…

He opened the shop and found an item called Escape Rope.

It cost 1,000 points—not too expensive.

This item would allow him to exit the space directly.

However, it had one flaw: the exit location was uncontrollable.

Still, it was the cheapest option in the system shop.

Other spatial traversal items allowed coordinate input for precise exits, but they were far too pricey.

Before leaving, he should call Rover to let her know he was safe…

The call connected.

Rover’s urgent voice came through: “Lucian! Where are you?”

“Rover, I’m fine,” Lucian scratched his head. “But… I don’t actually know where I am…”

Beside her, Changli looked surprised. She hadn’t expected Lucian to be able to communicate with Rover.

After all, they were currently trapped in a temporal turbulence, and Lucian himself was in an unknown location.

“Who took you?” Changli asked.

Lucian: “Someone named Phrolova—a member of the Fractsidus.”

Changli understood immediately. “As expected of the Fractsidus.”

Rover frowned. “Did she do anything to you?”

Lucian: “She tried to kill me.”

Changli nodded slightly. “Typical of the Fractsidus. But since you can still contact us, it shouldn’t be a serious issue.”

Lucian sighed. “Too bad I couldn’t keep her here. But my bullet must have hit her.”

Rover let out a relieved breath. “As long as you’re okay…”

“Can you leave that place?”

Lucian’s expression turned serious. “Yes. I have an item that can get me out, but…”

“Once I leave, my location will be random. I might end up outside Mt. Firmament entirely.”

“So, if I’m no longer within the mountain after leaving this space… the rest will be up to you two.”

Rover reassured him, “Don’t worry. Leave the rest to me.”

Changli added, “In that case, you should leave as soon as possible. The Fractsidus might return. We’ll discuss the rest after you’re out.”

Lucian agreed. “Got it!”

After ending the call, Lucian grabbed the Escape Rope.

The rope coiled automatically, and a wave of dizziness washed over him.

The next second, his figure vanished from the space.

Truthseeker’s Pass

To reopen the Hibernation Pod, one needed to retrieve the core from Truthseeker’s Pass

and unlock it via the control mechanism.

At this moment, Jinhsi was here, preparing to obtain the core.

However, the Fractsidus had already taken over the area. Jinhsi had fought her way through, sustaining numerous injuries—some even pushing her into overclocking symptoms.

But for Jinzhou’s sake, she pressed on.

Truthseeker’s Pass was riddled with intricate mechanisms. Though the Fractsidus had occupied it, they were powerless to proceed.

Now, Jinhsi stood before a luminous rock, ready to open yet another stone gate.

But just then, a spatial rift flickered open above her.

Jinhsi looked up warily—had the Fractsidus returned?

Her grip tightened around her weapon, her instincts kicking in.

The next moment, a figure crashed heavily in front of her.

“Oww—damn, that hurts…”

“Where the hell did I end up this time…?”

Lucian clutched his waist, which had slammed into the rubble, and rolled over—only to find Magistrate Jinhsi’s flawless face gazing down at him with curiosity.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep