The inner corners of his eyes are at the highest position, while the outer corners are hanging down, like a flat version of the Chinese character "eight".
The thing's nose seemed to have degenerated... Hitzfeld checked carefully several times to make sure that the mark she saw was not the bridge of the nose.
It has no nose bridge or nose wings, only two thin slits that are tilted downwards where the nose should be - and no ears either, but two deep holes where the ears should be. Its mouth is made of countless wrinkles that turn inwards, a bit like the lips that form when human skin becomes loose after aging.
"This thing looks so weird..." She heard Darent muttering in the background.
Hitzfeld had to agree with him this time - because the weird face wasn't even the most uncomfortable part of this thing; what was truly unbearable was its torso.
Its trunk is like a beehive.
Starting from the neck downwards, the surface of the body is densely packed with holes. Some of the holes are so large that you can clearly see that they are filled with internal organs, but there are more holes... and the fillings blocking those holes make them look more like insect eggs.
The second mural showed them the front and half-side view of the crawler's body, while the crawler in the third mural turned its body so that they could clearly see the monster stuck in its spine.
It was a...worm.
Hitzfeld took a closer look, but still wasn't sure of the conclusion.
In her opinion, this was a smaller version of the red earth worm...but it was different from the red earth worm because many spider-like legs and limbs extended from under its armor. These things tightly wrapped around the back of the crawler from behind, and many of the disgusting egg-like objects in the holes on its back seemed to be about to jump out from being strangled.
Leia was the first one who couldn't bear it anymore and started to dry heave.
The others could still hold on, but their faces also looked grim.
"So what this means is that the worms' ovaries are underneath their torsos?" Darent asked. "No one told me that those little spheres are also organs like livers and lungs? That's ridiculous."
"Just keep reading and you'll find out." Xia Yibing glared at him and looked towards Hart's back in front of her.
Hitzfeld nodded in agreement - from the current perspective, these murals and carvings are actually a set, and their essence is cut-off dynamic shots. If there are more murals later, then the sculptor must have a lot of information that has not been fully displayed.
The only annoying thing was that there were some seemingly irregular scribbles on the two carvings. Hart was the only one among them who could understand the code, but he didn't seem to have any intention of explaining it.
As they continued forward, the fourth, fifth, and sixth mural carvings came into view.
By this point, there were not many people in the team who had not vomited.
The fourth carving shows a creeper raising its long and thin arms with a distorted face. The "eggs" in its body are bursting like blood bubbles, with many tiny tentacles and limbs moving inside.
The fifth picture shows its head completely separated from its body - the clawed worm lying on its spine seems to have drilled into its skull from the back of its neck. When the head is pulled out of the torso, the claws that are holding its torso also loosen.
And the sixth picture is the bloody ending... A long, giant centipede-like thing is entrenched in a pile of rotten meat, its head is the distorted face of the crawler, and countless reptile cubs are going in and out of the holes in the wreckage, devouring the last essence left by it.
"Is this the truth behind the Creeper's cloak..." someone said in a trembling voice, "Another insect nest? What exactly is the worm that hatched from its spine?"
"It's their king." A faint voice came from the front.
"If they are just used as carriers for hatching worms, there are actually many things that are more suitable than them. The tiny eggs in those holes are actually just waste recycling. The only reason those beasts accept crawlers as their companions is that they need to continue hatching emperor worms in this way."
That was Hart, standing in the shadows in front, finally beginning to explain the contents of the mural to everyone for the first time.
"Is this how the emperor worm came about?" Smail clenched his fists and pursed his lips.
Although the Creepers are out-and-out monsters, in fact, since the Cult and the Royal Court have not changed the grammar regarding these things and have always used "they" to refer to them, it can be seen that they still retain the last bit of bottom line.
They were once human too...
Even though they had long been out-and-out enemies, Smail still found it difficult to conceal the fury that welled up in his heart when he saw his biological counterparts being used as incubators for other species.
After all, it was just a worm... nothing more.
Even if it is prefixed with emperor, it is still a bug, a beast!
Those fellows who went astray in the early years... and chose to degenerate into creepers, weren't they really blinded by something?
"Hart!"
Frick took a few quick steps forward and frowned at his colleague: "Where did you see these things you mentioned? Those characters? I mean the code?"
"No." Hart denied it immediately.
No?
Everyone, including Hitzfeld, was stunned.
Hart certainly had no chance to learn this in Onsayn. If he didn't get this information by reading the code... then was he just making it up?
"You think you have a sense of humor?"
Frick couldn't stand it anymore, so he stepped forward and grabbed Hart by the collar.
Their foreheads were almost touching, and through the reflection in Hart's eyes, Frick could see how distorted his own face was.
"Before you punch me in the left cheek, I just hope you can look to the side a few more times."
"What is there to observe!" Frick became even angrier and raised his right hand directly, but his head still turned to the left reflexively.
"There is no—"
He was stuck.
"No..."
The hand that was holding his collar gradually loosened, and his expression became stiff and horrified... He raised his head and stared at the wall on the left.
What exactly is that?
Hitzfeld couldn't stand this torture any longer. She pushed aside the knight in front of her, trotted over to Frick with one hand hanging, and looked at the wall that dazed him.
This is the seventh painting, and it is also the largest and covers the widest area of all the murals.
From the wall to the ceiling...even around the opposite wall and the ground below. The content is that countless giant worms have shed their claws, grown huge teeth, curled up their bodies and lined up, allowing a human to carve patterns on their teeth.
Carved eye pattern.
Xia Yibing also quickly followed.
After a brief moment of amazement, she quickly turned her attention to the human's face.
Then she was also stunned.
He was a typical old man with a long beard and a wrinkled face.
There is a mole in the middle of his left face, near his temple.
In addition, he also held a number of cross swords with gemstones on the hilts, and he was using this to carve patterns on the worms.
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There is one more chapter that will be included in the next update... I am not in good condition now and it would be unwise to continue writing... I am too excited to watch the Champions League final!
Chapter 51 Hidden Dangers
"There is a mole in the middle of the left side of the face near the temple, and the shape of the long sword..."
Smail approached them while staring at the mural, his expression almost distorted.
Hitzfeld knew why he lost his composure like that...including Frick's shock and Xia Yibing's stunned look, she knew the reason behind it.
Because they all knew the old man in the mural.
He was Jodin Frentes, the bust embroidered on the dirty banner, the second Pope of the Order of the Sun after St. Felipe.
So this guy is a traitor?
The reason he disappeared was because he came to the Worm Plains? To create an "emperor" for these evil species?
She looked at the shocked expressions of the others, then turned her attention to the mural carvings, staring closely at the old man's blurry face.
The corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, and his eyebrows were drooping.
Did the sculptor deliberately give him a kind smile, or was this what he saw with his own eyes?
"We must find a way to get out of here as soon as possible!" Smail said firmly, "We must tell Padom about this as soon as possible... even if it means sacrificing many lives!"
Ongsayin was established to fight against the evil species, and the only enemies they have faced so far are the Zerg itself and the fallen Creepers.
But if the contents of these murals are true, then they have not only discovered the secret of the birth of the emperor worm, but also uncovered the biggest traitor since the founding of the "Saint Jodin" sect!
How could he not be angry?
How can we remain indifferent to this?
If you are fighting against a group of unintelligent beasts, the battle plan you will eventually come up with will definitely be different from if you are fighting against an intelligent and sufficiently cunning enemy.
He couldn't imagine... what if there were more conspiracies behind this? For example, the curse in the red soil... aesthesia?
So there is absolutely no time to delay.
We must leave the cave as soon as possible, no matter how many sacrifices we make, even if only one person is left, exhausted, with broken limbs... we must crawl back to Onsayn and tell Padom about our findings here!
"Smail?" Xia Yibing narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean? Are you planning to reject the previous plan and move on?"
"The patrol team has actually exceeded its mission." Smail nodded gently. "The main reason we entered the red soil this time was to investigate the approximate number of emperor worms... and you have seen these murals. If this is true, then the number of emperor worms is actually linked to the number of creepers... Over the past hundred years, I don't know how many humans have fallen and been bewitched by them. The number is probably very shocking."
"How amazing is it? How much exactly?"
"According to statistics, there are an average of 1 to 200 people trespassing on the red soil every year," Frick answered for his companion. "Of course, most of these people are not going there to be ovaries, they just want to make money..."
"You can let so many people into the red soil every year? Is the wall of Onsin just for show?"
"You have to understand that we can't be everyone's personal babysitter!" Frick was a little unhappy. "Ongsayin Fortress has blocked the entire gap tightly. We even have checkpoints on the nearby hills to prevent anyone from trespassing into the plains to seek death."
"But some people just don't obey discipline! They may dream of getting rich overnight and digging for the secret treasures of the ancient dynasty. For this so-called dream, they can go without food and water for two days, hiding in the cracks of the rocks and waiting for us to change shifts and sneak over."
"They can also dig holes underground," Hart added in a low voice. "This behavior can directly shake the foundation of the city wall... The parish announced a hundred years ago that anyone caught doing this would be hanged, but it was useless... Some people still took the risk."
What a headache.
Hitzfeld and the others...as well as the knights who followed, everyone felt a tingling sensation on their scalps.
There is no doubt that the fate of those who trespass into the red soil is mostly miserable. They will be attacked by worms on the vast plains, and perhaps within a few days even their bones will be digested clean, and they will no longer have any connection with this world.
No one here cares whether they are dead or alive, but if - if those things really have the means to deceive people and use this method to replenish the number of creepers...
Then, as emperor worms that can only hatch from crawlers as ovaries, wouldn't their numbers continue to grow?
They had already seen the power of the emperor worm. It was definitely a terrifying predator, not only was it extremely powerful and fast, but most importantly, it was covered with a layer of pitch-black armor, and even ordinary caliber field artillery would not be able to deal with it.
You don’t need too many of these things. Just pick 200 out of those 2 people every year, and assume a 1% conversion rate... How much can you accumulate over the years?
Even if we take into account the growth cycle, the number is still daunting.
Many knights looked at Smail.
In their hearts, they were inclined to agree with his proposal: no matter how many people were sacrificed, the message had to be brought back, and Weng Sein could not be unprepared for such a threat.
"In fact, there will be more..." Seeing that Xia Yibing was still staring at him with a bad look, Smail tried to explain to her in a kind way, "You know how long the history of Wengsayin is. When it was first established, we didn't have the same awareness of prevention as we do today. Many people would try to enter the red soil to look for ancient ruins."
“So you have to go up.”
"Yes...we can't continue to waste time."
"How can this be a waste of time?" Xia Yibing gritted her teeth, "Not all straight lines can be called shortcuts! Your decision is to send everyone to their deaths in vain!"
"I am willing to sacrifice myself!"
Smail raised his voice, took a step forward, and confronted the woman.
"And what about you, Agent? I've always heard that you are called the Knights of the Red Rose and the Lion! Is this your enlightenment? You are afraid of death... Is this your devotion to your faith and country?"
The two of them made the atmosphere extremely tense, and Hitzfeld had no choice but to step forward to separate them: "Okay, Smail, she can't be that kind of person."
All Shadow Lion agents were prepared to make sacrifices when they joined. It was nonsense to say that Xia Yibing was afraid of death.
Although Darent didn't say anything, he took a big step towards the two of them, making it look like he was standing with them.
This suddenly became a confrontation between two groups: the three agents plus Master and Apprentice Weilencel against all the knights.
Weilencel was careful not to say anything, but everyone understood that going up would involve huge risks.
That giant insect might still be on the loose.
In the worst case scenario, it will call for more companions.
In comparison, it would be more appropriate to continue down...
Of course, this only applies to "survival".
"Hitzfeld, it's your turn to express your opinion."
Smail couldn't convince Xia Yibing, so he simply turned his attention to the girl.
"It's better not to delay the vote than to delay it."
"I won't comment for now," Hitzfeld said. "I just want to ask, if we get discovered by it after we go up, how can we get rid of its pursuit without horses?"
