Chapter 70: Heavenly Pillar Carvings
"Do you still have this function?"

At this moment, as soon as Qiu Ge spoke, Ji Jue and Xiao An lay on the calf and began to sneak towards the clock tower. Fortunately, there were many buildings around, so no one noticed for a while, and the huge clock tower also blocked many sights, leaving them with space to sneak closer.

[Otherwise, do you want me to use my old arms and legs to help you do that thing? ] The ghost ball turned around proudly: [Ball, I am good at technical tools! ]

As he spoke, the sphere shook, and a faint blue light emerged, covering the two of them, instantly absorbing all the spiritual fluctuations that swept past.

[Hurry up, speed, I have blocked all the detections of the clock tower for you, and temporarily camouflaged you.] Guigongqiu whistled in a very humane way: [Invisibility hack, kid!]

Ji Jue couldn't help scratching his head.

I can’t stand it anymore. Why does the person who is influenced by my ability become more and more flirtatious and likes to take advantage of me?
Ji Jue pinched his chin and couldn't help but feel horrified: Could it be that I really have a mental breakdown?

Is there a possibility...?

The Ghost Ball asked helplessly: [So, as a work of nature, I really have my own consciousness? ]

"But how come you are so skilled at picking locks?"

Ji Jue had a lot of question marks on his forehead: "Why would Professor Ye give you such a sneaky skill - Oh Oh Oh!!!"

Before he finished speaking, he had already realized it and pretended that he had never asked such a question.

What is stealing?
This is called overcoming difficulties, okay?

This is the bearing of a master and the pattern of a professor!

If the mountain cannot be overcome, I will go over it!
It seems that when Professor Ye was young, he also had the time to learn from others, pool ideas and work together!
Such an excellent inheritance of the master's school and tradition of the faction should not be passed on by oneself, right?

Just like that, people held their tongues in their mouths and horses wrapped their hooves, and even the cattle and horses lowered the engine noise to the lowest level. After tiptoeing around for a long time, they finally made sure that no one was spying around, and carefully leaned against the wall.

The ghost ball jumped up from Ji Jue's hand, and a small gap appeared the moment it swept across the wall. When the calf and horse passed through, the gap closed instantly without any trace.

Not even a speck of dust fell off.

Ji Jue is already inside the bell tower!
I couldn't help but take a few deep breaths...

As soon as he raised his eyes, he saw several huge puppets that looked like the guards outside, standing quietly in the dust - there were at least four such powerful ones!
Unfortunately, due to a lack of maintenance for too long, several Guardians have been covered with gaps and cracks and are almost falling apart, and can no longer be activated.

The moment two of them noticed the intruders, they raised their jewel eyes beneath the broken masks and cast a ray of red light that swept across the people.

What was read was only the identification circuit disguised by the ghost ball.

【Put down your guns, we are one.】

"call……"

Ji Jue finally breathed a sigh of relief, feeling cold sweat about to break out from his back. He looked at Xiao An, who shook his head slightly: "There is no one alive here."

The clock tower occupies a huge area, but the interior space is simple and almost empty. The entire first floor is filled with all kinds of things, such as tables, chairs, benches, and various living tools that are so rotten that they are completely unusable. There is even a very old manual lawn mower, a small wooden horse with peeling paint, and a whole exquisite slide. The girls’ favorite dolls are already covered with mold spots, and the armor that fits the size of a child is also covered with scratches...

It's like a whole children's playground.

"Are we in the wrong place?"

【upstairs】

Guigongqiu suddenly felt a little regretful that he had not been programmed with the function of rolling his eyes.

Ji Jue raised his head and looked at the staircase that wound up along the tower. He turned back and waved at the little calf, then turned over and climbed up, pointing upwards...

The little calf was silent for a long time, and the silence was very dirty. If Ji Jue hadn't ordered it not to make any sound, it would have wanted to blow the horn twice, which was not very pleasant.

Just like that, it gurgled and carried the two people rapidly upwards.

Finally, we arrived at the door before the frame broke due to fatigue.

But looking at that ordinary door that was only half-closed...

Ji Jue couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

——It’s very likely that we won’t be able to ship the goods this time!

After all, there was no blockade at the entrance, and the door had never been closed. It didn't look like Mercury's workshop at all.

He carefully took the pole and poked open the door that had not been pushed for many years.

After the sharp friction sound, there was a muffled sound.

The door panel fell inwards, and the breeze stirred up the dust on the ground. After hundreds of years, the visitors who arrived again saw only a mess.

Bookshelves collapsed, books scattered and decayed, the words were lost in the mold and could no longer be distinguished. And all around, the spiritual circuits collapsed, the runes blurred, and the totem of the Supreme Good dissipated.

The cauldrons broke, the instruments rusted, the furnaces went out...

Ji Jue sighed silently, and his heart finally died.

Blue sky and white clouds...the ship is sunk!

This was indeed Mercury's workshop, but unfortunately, it was completely abandoned. He could even conclude that it was not damaged in the past four hundred years, but had been abandoned more than four hundred years ago.

Some things that can be moved may have been moved away long ago, and things that cannot be moved are left here. No one has maintained them for so long and they are completely unusable.

As for Mercury's creations and achievements, there is not a single word about them.

Not to mention the Matrix.

He sighed and was about to say something, but he felt his sleeves suddenly pulled. Xiao An, who looked pale, hid behind him tremblingly, "Brother Ji Jue, this is not good."

He lowered his voice: "There's a ghost!"

"have what?"

Ji Jue was confused, and looked in the direction of Xiao An's finger. Then, he felt as if he had fallen into an icy cave, and almost couldn't help cursing Haizhou Yayun: "Damn it——"

There really is a ghost! The direction Xiao An pointed to was in front of the huge stained glass window of the clock tower, half of which had already decayed.

Under the scorching sun, vague outlines emerge.

Like a back view.

She was wearing a pure white women's dress that seemed to be fluttering in the wind, with her long hair hanging down almost to the ground. Her profile was vaguely beautiful, charming and delicate, and she was staring into the distance in a trance.

It made Ji Jue almost unable to breathe.

mercury!!!!
——Saint Mercury!
But he didn't turn around and sneer as expected, or just point a finger and completely turn the two intruders and the motorcycle into ashes. Instead, he didn't react at all.

No matter how politely Ji Jue greeted and tested him, he remained indifferent from beginning to end.

Like a phantom.

To be exact, it's no different from a phantom.

Those are the traces left by the thoughts of the saints, engraved in time. Even if it is only for a moment, it can never be erased.

Ji Jue plucked up his courage, moved closer, and followed her gaze into the distance… Then he saw the huge pillar standing majestically at the end of the sky, like the support of heaven and earth.

The axis of the world is here, and the center of heaven and earth is the location of the giant pillar.

Just by staring, I felt an inexplicable sense of majesty and oppression, unable to breathe, and filled with the urge to bow my head or even kowtow.

But when Ji Jue looked carefully, he found that her gaze did not seem to fall on the giant pillar, but downwards, on the other side of the bell tower.

That magnificently decorated church.

Ignoring the constant loud noises and vibrations coming from the square, Ji Jue could vaguely hear the intermittent music. The busy band played joyous melodies, and in the hustle and bustle of the city, people walked in with smiles on their faces, offering flowers and blessings.

If those so-called history experts were not deceiving themselves, judging from the white veils flying around and the large number of birds gathering...it was a wedding.

A trumpet was blown, and all the guests witnessed it.

The horn blows a second time and the elder presides over the ceremony.

When the third horn sounded, the newlyweds became husband and wife amid applause and blessings.

But... there will not be a third trumpet sounding.

Because what swept across the entire Rift Realm was the aftermath of the collapse of heaven and earth. The earth shook, the sky collapsed, the mountains rose and fell, and the city trembled... and at that moment, Ji Jue saw it again -

A tragic crack appeared on the giant pillar that seemed like the axis of heaven and earth!
A magnificent mark emerged from the top of the tower, fleeting, complex and solemn, as if covering everything and pervading everything - it was the emblem of Supreme Goodness that was a million times better than Ji Jue's knowledge!

——【Tianyuan】!
Now, Tianyuan has collapsed.

The magnificent destruction and collapse began, the giant pillars were shattered and broken in half!

But it did not fall to the ground. The countless fragments were suspended in the air, emitting a terrifying glow that filled the entire rift world, rising and exploding!
Then, the stars lost their tracks again, the scorching sun dimmed, and endless rain of fire fell from the sky, smashing down, causing waves and destruction.

The wailing sound came from the quiet and peaceful city.

One after another.

The church collapsed and fell apart for who knows how many times. The guests fled in all directions, and in the rising dust, Ji Jue seemed to vaguely see a slender figure abandoned on the spot.

A woman dressed as a bride kneeled in the dust and ruins, crying weakly and asking for help.

But no one responded.

In her arms, the man whose lower body was crushed under the rubble was struggling hard, as if saying something to her, and pushed her away with all his might.

The final farewell.

In the roar, everything was completely buried.

Only the bride, covered in dust, staggered out of the ruins, tears falling from her face, washing away her makeup and dust, leaving behind an indelible scar.

She held her chest stained with blood with both hands and shouted and screamed at the ruins again and again until she was completely desperate.

Just like that, it was completely engulfed by the flames.

It could no longer be seen, only the faint wailing echoed in the wind, enveloping everything.

And in the city, on the streets, with the collapse of the giant pillars, everyone fell into chaos, the sound of cracking rang out again, and alienation began.

After losing the fragile human fetus, the crazy puppets once again turned into twisted monsters, fighting each other, destroying everything within reach, and scattering in all directions.

From paradise to hell, it seems to only take a moment.

Ji Jue almost forgot to breathe.

There were hallucinatory flashes of light, falling from his side, like tears.

When Ji Jue slowly turned around, he finally saw the sage's eyes, which were like empty holes.

She watched.

Watching the disasters that happened in the past, watching them repeat themselves again and again in the Rift.

Wait silently until a miracle or true destruction comes.

For a moment, Ji Jue felt as if he understood something. Perhaps, this was the reason why this Rift Realm had fallen to this point: "Brother Qiu, what exactly happened just now?"

The Ghost Ball was silent for a moment, then replied:

[Didn’t you see it with your own eyes?

——The Collapse of the Pillar of Heaven]

　Sorry, I overslept.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)