The Record of Unusual Creatures

Panda Novel

It was not far traveling from the dimensional entrance to the old city. The magnificent granite wall of the town was already in sight.

The collapse of the alien dimension was not uniform. On one side of the city, nearly one-third of the town had disintegrated. But the failure on the dimensional entrance side was much slower. The wall on that side, even a part of the area outside the city, was intact and stable. It saved Hao Ren and his team a lot of trouble in maneuvering through the danger-ridden gaps in between the collapsed space.

“It is indeed filled with the breath of that bygone era,” Vivian said, looking up at the towering city wall. “But I can’t tell which mythological city it belongs to. I can’t remember a thing.”

Lily looked at Vivian and said, “Aren’t you a living fossil from the Mythological Era? Is there still anything that you don’t know about?”

“Too many cities in the Mythological Era were just a flash in the pan. Even I can’t know every one of them,” Vivian said, shaking her head. “The humans at that time were still at a very low level of productivity. Mythical monsters and beasts were roaming the world rampantly. The living environment was extremely hostile and harsh. The construction of such a magnificent city depended almost entirely on the otherworldlings—protection and guidance came from the ancient gods, who usually cared only about their own comfortable life and ruled with an iron fist. But it is undeniable that without them, there would be no magnificent cities. The only thing was, the ancient cities that were built had their own shortcomings.”

“Once the god that the city worshipped was dead, it was a game over for the city too.” Y’zaks interrupted.

Vivian nodded in agreement. “Other than that, the battle between the different otherworldlings had brought the cities into destruction overnight. I do not even know how many ancient cities like this had disappeared throughout history, especially during the barbarian era when the Mythological war was at its most brutal.”

“Ahem, let us leave history class for another time. Shall we move ahead into the city?” Hao Ren interrupted. “This dimension is collapsing, we don’t have much time.”

“Where is the city gate?” Vivian looked at Hessiana. “Where did you get in last time?”

The little bat pointed at a gap on the wall. “Through that gap. I do not know where is the city gate. The situation was strange, and my two men just stayed inside for a short while before backing out.”

Hao Ren nodded. He tucked the explosives that he had just taken out, brought the team coming before the gap in the city wall.

“It is strange. It seems that the gap is breached from the inside,” Y’zaks said. His vast experience in combat told him that something was not right about the gap judging from the state of the collapsed walls and broken stones. “Check these positions; they all crumbled from the inside out.”

“It was not attacked by enemies from the outside?” Hao Ren’s brows knitted together.

“I am afraid that something was in the city,” Vivian said. “It was not uncommon during the Mythological Era. The two cities of Garaude and Gudallo were destroyed from the inside out because they had summoned the vengeful spirit. Keep your eyes open when we get in. If there was really a vengeful spirit, maybe there is still some remnants left in the city.”

Everyone checked their protective spells and equipment. Even Rollie licked her claws with utmost seriousness. Following behind Hao Ren and Vivian, they carefully squeezed through the gap in the wall.

As soon as they stepped into the other side, Hao Ren noticed that the surrounding environment was slightly dimmer than the outside. The air was filled with a faint red light, coating the place with a thin tone of bloody red.

Hao Ren could not help but look up, but he saw no changes in the sky. The chaotic border of the dimension was still surging, and huge whirlpools of swirling sand still gradually devoured the dimension. There was not any light source in the vortex and the clouds. The red light curtain seemed to exist by itself straight out of thin air.

“This is the red light curtain that your two men said?” Hao Ren turned to look at Hessiana.

The little bat was nodded nervously. “Yes, it is. Under the red light curtain, people will unknowingly lose their physical strength, and they may gradually lose their mind. They are almost fatal to human beings, but the Blood Clans could detect the danger before it costs any damage.”

The hair on Lily’s ears and tail puffed up the moment she stepped into the red light environment. Her powerful beast instinct sensed danger in the red light. “Let us not go any deeper. We need to figure out what this red light is all about. Mr. Landlord, do you have anything that can block it off?”

Hao Ren glanced at his feet and found that there were no shadows. The same phenomenon existed everywhere—the buildings and the collapsed stone spiles. He placed his left hand over his right arm hoping to see a shadow. But there was none. “This light is weird, it can either pass through objects or is omnipresent like the air that self-illuminates.”

“If the red light could penetrate objects, then we would not see it,” the MDT suddenly said. “If that is the case, it will not produce reflections and will not be absorbed by any surfaces. Even when the light enters the eyes, it will pass straight through without being caught by the retinas.”

“So is it everywhere? What the hell is it?” Lily said, blinking her eyes.

A thought flashed across Hao Ren’s mind. But before he could say a word, he heard Vivian’s voice coming from the front. Her voice was low and erratic: “It is the moonlight.”

“Moonlight?” Lily’s ears flicked. “Battie, can you not talk in that creepy voice. I am having goosebumps all over the kin now.”

Vivian turned around. She had summoned her vampire power. Her eyes were as bright red as blood, and a faint red-mist shrouded her as if it had blended in with the red light curtain around it. “It is the light of the crimson moon. The crimson moon used to shine on the city.”

Everyone was shocked. “The crimson moon? The type that you summoned?” Hao Ren was the first one who realized what Vivian meant.

“Only one crimson moon with supernatural power has ever appeared on this planet, and that was my power,” Vivian said. “This light has extremely weakened and mutated, but I have sensed my own energy. This is the light of the crimson moon.”

The puffy tail of Lily had become ever bigger than before. “Stop scaring people, Battie! There is no moon here! And you were not here before, how could there be moonlight here!”

“I can’t explain it, but there is indeed moonlight here,” Vivian said, shaking her head. “I have never seen moonlight that could still linger around after the crimson moon has disappeared. But then again, my crimson moon is beyond understanding—beyond my comprehension. So let’s accept this as fact.”

Under the crimson moon, moonlight was everywhere— Hao Ren silently recited the famous saying among the otherworldlings and the demon hunters. He then looked up. “So the crimson moon must have once shone on the city. Vivian, do you not have any impression?”

“I cannot remember anything,” Vivian replied firmly.

“Well, it seems that it is your memory problem again.”

“We should make a decision now,” Y’zaks said with a rough voice. “It is not a good idea to be exposed under the crimson moonlight. We either leave or find a way to block the red light. My demonic-rune shield can’t block it.”

“The moonlight has weakened over the years,” Vivian said while looking at Hao Ren. “I have no problem moving under the moonlight. You and others should be able to stand for a few hours to a day if you guys could summon your shields.”

Hao Ren thought for a moment. “Sigh, never mind. I have a stronger one. It will ensure everyone could move freely in the moonlight.”

While speaking, Hao Ren calmed himself down. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he began to communicate with his goddess and cast a spell with a grim expression on his face.

A moment later, everyone moved deeper into the city under the sacred protection of the I’ve Got You Covered, and I’ve Got You Covered shields.

“Hao Ren let not mind the names. The most important thing is that it works. In the Mythological Era, those fellows with fancy and cool skill names have all died. It is much like the tall poppy syndrome. I think only practicality is the king,” Vivian said as she tried to comfort Hao Ren.

“Have you ever seen any school of skills comes with a ticker?”

Vivian was speechless.

Probably, Rollie was the only one excited about the ‘light shells.’ She curiously poked the ‘I’ve Got You Covered’ ticker that drifted past her occasionally. Just like every qualified cat, she enjoyed playing all by herself.

Seeing the heartlessness of Rollie, Hao Ren could not help but sigh again.

Hessiana tried very hard to ignore the ticker that floated in front of her. She would not want to be seen near such a silly thing had she been able to find her own way. But for the moment, she had no other choice but bowed to reality; this shield could resist 100% of the negative power in the ancient city. What was more fortunate was that her two men were waiting outside so news about this layer of the stupid shield will not be known on the outside world.

Messy thoughts flashed across the mind of the little bat while she moved carefully around the old and lifeless buildings.

An atmosphere of desolation and death surrounded the ancient city built of boulders, like every ruin from the Mythological Era, it was bothersome. The sound of buildings and dimension collapsing came the other end of the city, and the giant sand vortex spinning in the sky was depressing. Even Hessiana, who was fearless since young, began to feel a sense of creepiness crept inside her.

She felt that something lurking in the city was staring at her.

The streets they walked past were empty and silent. The dust rolled up by the air was surging in between the ruins, covering the entire street with a dusty fog.

In the air of dust, a large shadow slowly emerged and disappeared in a flash. It was hard to determine what it was.

The sandstorm was still boiling, and no trace of it was left behind.

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