Country of the Dead.

Therefore, names such as the Nether River are actually quite common for the Rat People, as any river near their villages might be called the Nether River by them.

The Lizardman Prince knelt before the throne of the Rat People, carefully examining the latter's manner of death. The Neander Clan Leader's left fist was clenched tight as if gripping something. He stretched out his hand, pried it open, and took the item, glancing at it with his jaundiced, vertical pupil.

"We'll head there," Fang Hong was saying, "Do you know the way there?"

Sophie nodded her head.

The others had already turned and walked out of the house.

Tainaric also stood up straight and walked towards Fang Hong, passing something into his hand as he went by.

Fang Hong was slightly startled, turned his head to look, and the Lizardman Prince, without a word, left him with only a view of his back. Only then did Fang Hong lower his head to look at the object in his hand; it was a brooch in the shape of a lily, gleaming in his palm.

On it, there was a line of ancient Dwarf script, an engraved adage that flowed like the quiet passage of time, like water:

'Time flows like water, wisdom grows day by day—'

Fang Hong's heart tightened slightly, finding it a bit glaring to the eye.

He thought for a moment and carefully pocketed the brooch.

Seeing his action, Sophie asked, "Do you recognize this brooch? It doesn't look like something the Rat People would have. I seem to have seen this adage somewhere."

Fang Hong nodded, but did not provide any more answers.

The others who had gone to search the village started to return one by one, bringing back bad news from every direction—the village was nearly wiped out, bodies lay scattered here and there as if they had been suddenly attacked without any warning.

The Dwarf Snorwen was found dead in his own bar, stabbed through the heart with a dagger, collapsing over the counter with blood all around.

The discoverer brought back the dagger, but it was an ordinary dagger with no clues on it.

But Sophie had the person turn the dagger over and then said through gritted teeth, "It was the doing of the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team."

"But this is just an ordinary dagger," Fang Hong asked.

"The Jiefulite Red Cloak Team can't fool me," Sophie replied deliberately, "The tip of the dagger is severely worn, but the surface has no nicks. It's a spare dagger, usually used for throwing."

"Only the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team's Nightingales like to do this, because their main daggers are generally standard issue from the guild, and they would definitely not be left at the scene."

Of course, it wasn't absolutely certain.

But here, she knew the likelihood was great.

"Ade, help me catch up to them," she said to Fang Hong, her tone carrying a hint of plea.

Fang Hong nodded, but after a moment's thought, he suddenly stopped and asked another question:

"Why would the Jiefulite Red Cloak Team be ahead of us?"

Sophie was taken aback.

Contrary to Fang Hong's expectations, the Nether River to the south of the Andrett Ratmen's village was not an ordinary subterranean river.

Under Sophie's guidance, after passing through a group of rugged caves, they finally arrived at the place. When Fang Hong saw the underground river surging mightily forward, he was suddenly stunned—it was a fluorescent green subterranean river, the green hue from the glowing algae within, with green light reflecting the distant, strange underground caverns, magnificent stalactites, and symbiotic underground vegetation.

It was wide and the currents slow, while the river was also shrouded in a dream-like blue mist that reflected off the green water, tinged with Azure, true to the great fog rumored to hover over the Country of the Dead, and there stood a lone pier amidst this large fog.

The pier extended into the river, beside which hung a fog lamp, never extinguished.

This place was so similar to the legendary Nether River that even Fang Hong couldn't help but pause for a moment before realizing that the pier was in fact not built by the Rat People, but was in the ancient style of the Xinsas Serpentfolk.

Upon seeing this scene, he couldn't help but ponder if this pier had any connection with the Black Holy City above ground.

Suddenly, someone in the team cried out in alarm.

Fang Hong looked up, only to see something drifting down the river through the dense fog. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a swollen corpse soaked in the water, once a human, the skin pale, staring at the people on the shore with bulging, pitch-black eyes.

Slowly drifting downward.

Then more floating bodies appeared, flowing down from upstream, bloated with round, distended bellies, under the semi-transparent skin, one could seemingly see the green, wriggling intestines, slithering like worms.

It was nauseating.

Several girls from Silver Weslan started retching upon seeing this, and led by them, others also made retching noises.

Fang Hong also felt sick to his stomach and couldn't help asking Sophie, "Is the river always like this...?"

Sophie, shielded somewhat by a Light Page, was slightly better off but still pale as she shook her head, "I've never seen it like this before, what on earth happened down there..." But suddenly, she stopped.

Everyone was watching as the water of the underground river suddenly grew dim, the green light fading away, and a layer of dark black, like mud, spread from below, with the creeping darkness also oozing downstream from upstream.

Until it contaminated the entire river.

Fang Hong, however, was staring into the distance, as a golden Clockwork Fairy flew out of his hand. He distinctly saw something breaking through the fog—a ship—

The high prow was that of a fearsome Evil Dragon.

The sleek hull was studded with round shields painted with Skeletons and spiders.

A spread-out sail, tattered amidst the mists.

And suddenly, from within the fog, a distant song arose, as if Ghosts, chanting a dirge for the deceased—

"Yo ho, yo ho, the ancient path of the ship—"

"The ancient path of the ship, leading to the fog of death..."

...

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