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Lina Jones, whose strength was slightly lacking, didn\'t notice the subtle tension from Alita Miller and her group. Her eyes shone with determination as she looked intently at Dean Bruce and said in a serious tone, "During the exploration of the ruins, you can claim any herbs or treasures that aren\'t mentioned in ancient texts.

Additionally, if we successfully explore the ruins, I will personally ensure that you get the resources you need to secure the first place in this competition."

"Deal!" Dean Bruce replied with a beaming smile, though his gaze briefly shifted to the figure who had tried to dissuade Lina Jones. He had a feeling that if a conflict were to arise with the Temple of Wisdom, that person would be a significant threat.

But for now, with the partnership freshly forged, there was no immediate need to worry about such things.

With the cooperation established, the Temple of Wisdom followers no longer barred Dean Bruce and his companions from joining them. Lina Jones led them directly to the small pool in the center of the valley.

The water was shallow, clear enough to see the bottom, and reflected the moon as though it were a real celestial body lying within the pool.

Dean Bruce scanned the surroundings, confirming that the pool was the only notable feature within the valley. He frowned slightly and asked quietly, "Is the entrance to the ruins hidden beneath the water? Should we just dig it out?"

"No, no!" Lina Jones quickly responded. "According to His Holiness the Pope, this ruin is connected to the moonlight. We must invoke the power of the Moon Goddess through sincere prayer to open the entrance to the ruins."

"..."

Dean Bruce, recognizing his lack of knowledge about these deities, wisely chose not to press the matter further. He smiled and said, "Since this involves the gods, I\'ll leave the ritual to you."

Lina Jones gave a slight smile in return, then motioned for the other followers to kneel respectfully by the pool. She held a book reverently in her hands, reciting prayers in a soft, melodic voice.

Meanwhile, the figure who had earlier tried to dissuade Lina Jones remained standing, their gaze fixed on Dean Bruce. Unlike the others, this person hadn\'t experienced the previous battle and regarded Dean Bruce as a stranger who had conveniently shown up at a critical moment. Naturally, this aroused suspicion.

But unfortunately for them, they had chosen the wrong target for their scrutiny.

Dean Bruce harbored no ill intentions or malice toward Lina Jones and her followers. Whatever suspicions the figure had would lead to nothing--no threat, no hidden agenda. It was a dead end.

If she had focused her attention on Alita Miller and Horton Martin, she would have definitely noticed something was amiss.

Buzz----

As time passed, the moonlight indeed grew brighter, eventually casting a beam of light that shone directly on the book Lina Jones was holding.

In an instant, the radiant moonlight blossomed, filling the entire pool with its glow.

Seeing this scene, Dean Bruce couldn\'t help but feel a surge of emotion. The existence of gods in this world was undeniably real; otherwise, no matter how sincerely you prayed, such a near-miraculous event would never occur!

Splash----

The sound of flowing water gently reached everyone\'s ears, instantly bringing a look of joy to the faces of Lina Jones and the others.

For a moment, all eyes were on the pool.

Inside the pool, the reflection of the moon shimmered, absorbing and concentrating all the surrounding light, becoming even more dazzling than the moon in the sky.

Swish!

A portal emerged in the water, and Lina Jones and the others beamed with delight. They hurried towards the pool, exclaiming, "Everyone, enter in order, and be extremely careful! No one knows what lies within the ruins!"

"..."

Dean Bruce, worried that there might be traps or other dangers inside the ruins, did not follow immediately. He waited until most people had entered before stepping forward.

Buzz----

Almost the moment he stepped through the portal, Dean Bruce felt a sense of weightlessness and a tingling sensation that made him unable to control his body, causing him to feel a surge of panic.

He didn\'t know how long had passed when the sound of wind suddenly reached his ears, and all his senses returned. Dean Bruce opened his eyes, only to see the ground rapidly zooming into view--he was falling!

Screams followed, indicating that the others had also been transported here. Only then did Dean Bruce\'s tense heart relax. He let out a soft breath, casting the Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain spell, allowing himself to float gently like a breeze.

Landing safely, his ears were filled with the sounds of screams and collisions.

The situation was especially dire for those clad in armor. Although their bodies were more robust than those of the mages, the armor they wore was much heavier than the mages\' robes. The force of their impact with the ground caused internal injuries.

Nearly every warrior and swordsman was coughing violently, and some, less fortunate, were even coughing up blood from the shock.

The mages, on the other hand, fared better. The quick-witted ones managed to cast spells to cushion their fall, while those slower to react were saved by the lightness of their robes, avoiding any serious injuries.

Dean Bruce, with his limited mana, dispelled the Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain spell once he was safe. He then took a moment to survey his surroundings.

It was still night, and a bright moon hung in the sky. However, in addition to its usual silver glow, the moon was shrouded in an eerie purple mist.

"Hmm? This isn\'t right! If we\'re in a ruin, shouldn\'t it be underground or inside some ancient structure? How can we see the sky?"

"Could these moons be fake? No... the sky seems too real!"

Dean Bruce\'s pupils suddenly contracted as he realized this, and a sense of unease began to creep into his thoughts.

The sky stretched endlessly, and in the distance, he could see mountain ranges, with a few palaces faintly visible, each perched atop a peak.

At the same time, Lina Jones, Alita Miller, and the others also noticed something was off. They looked around in shock, their voices quickly rising in confusion: "Damn it, is this a ruin?"

"A ruin should be an enclosed space underground, some massive structure left over from hundreds or thousands of years ago! How does this place feel like we\'re outdoors?"

"The moon is hanging in the sky, and there are even stars--it doesn\'t look fake at all!"

"So... are we really inside the ruins, or have we been transported to some other place?"

For a moment, everyone who had entered the ruins exchanged bewildered glances, unable to believe their eyes.

But Dean Bruce, who had read countless novels and watched plenty of anime in his previous life, had a guess about the situation and wasn\'t overly surprised. He said, "Maybe this ruin is actually a small, self-contained world. In that case, having a moon and a sky wouldn\'t be so strange."

"Look to the left--the palaces on the mountain seem to be glowing. Why don\'t we go check them out first?"

At that moment, Lina Jones and the others, still in a state of shock and thinking slowly, instinctively followed Dean Bruce\'s suggestion.

It wasn\'t until they were climbing the mountain, trailing behind Dean Bruce, that they started to snap out of it, exchanging puzzled looks.

But since they had already started, they felt too embarrassed to change their minds and continued climbing, carefully scanning the surroundings, their vigilance high.

They climbed for a good ten minutes without encountering any danger, which allowed the group to relax a bit.

That was until they reached the halfway point, where the sound of wind and the flapping of wings began to reach their ears.

Looking in the direction of the sound, they were startled to see a butterfly with silvery-white wings fluttering in the air, its entire body glowing like a lightbulb, emitting a soft moonlight.

"This... this is the ancient creature recorded in the books, Moonlight Butterflies! It\'s said that Moonlight Butterflies possess extremely powerful hallucinogenic abilities, and they are almost impossible to kill under the moonlight!"

"No, that\'s not right. This species has been extinct for ages--how could it possibly appear here?"

Among the crowd, a follower\'s face turned pale with fear as he shouted, "There\'s something wrong with this place, Your Highness. Perhaps we should leave? If we encounter a truly powerful ancient creature, we might all perish here!"

"And if there are already extinct creatures here, this place certainly isn\'t safe!"

"..."

As soon as those words were spoken, several people\'s pupils contracted sharply, and a sense of retreat began to grow in their hearts.

Ancient creatures were the stuff of legends; they had no courage to face them. Besides, this ruin was far too strange. Just the fact that it had a sky and visible moon made it unlike any ruin they had ever explored before.

The unknown is always the most terrifying, the most heart-wrenching thing!

Lina Jones spoke in a deep voice, "There\'s no turning back in this ruin. Unless we thoroughly explore it, we\'ll be trapped here forever! So stop talking such defeatist nonsense. The only way out is to keep our spirits up and explore this ruin--there\'s no other way to survive!"

"If anyone dares to shake everyone\'s resolve again, don\'t blame me for being harsh!"

Lina Jones, after all, was the designated saintess, and her authority was evident. After her outburst, those who had been frightened understood there was no retreat, and instead, their expressions grew serious, with a faint aura of determination and killing intent beginning to form.

In the face of life-and-death crises, people can still muster great strength.

Lina Jones spoke softly, "Moonlight Butterflies may have powerful magic and terrifying hallucinogenic abilities, but they\'re practically blind. As long as you quietly approach them and kill them before they can cast any spells, they pose no real threat."

"Chelse, it\'s time for you to make your move."