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The eerie silence surrounding Ebner Mondo\'s death only confirmed Dean\'s suspicions.

This wasn\'t a physical space!

It was something else entirely. Ebner Mondo had used the power of the Moon God to pull their souls into this realm. That\'s why, in their perception, they had suddenly left the underground and found themselves in this bizarre place.

After all, what kind of power could transport so many people from deep beneath the earth to an entirely new space in an instant?

And because everyone here existed as soul forms, death came quietly, without a sound, and everything felt so unnatural.

Ebner Mondo\'s death occurred because he underestimated Dean Bruce, never expecting the Annihilation Blood Nail to deal direct damage to a soul!

However, while the Annihilation Blood Nail had indeed killed Ebner Mondo, the real question remained: how could their souls escape this strange space?

"What the—!"

"Damn it... what kind of place is this? Are we going to be trapped here forever?"

"Lord Dean, do you have any ideas?"

With Carol Lane\'s observation, everyone else realized the gravity of the situation and turned their hopeful yet anxious eyes toward Dean Bruce. While they trusted him, there was a growing sense of guilt.

Ever since they had entered the ruins, it had always been Dean Bruce who saved them from danger.

Of course, this only made Dean Bruce\'s presence seem even more heroic and towering in their minds.

In response to the crowd\'s anxious chatter, Dean Bruce calmly said, "This isn\'t reality. This must be an illusion or a realm of souls."

"An illusion?"

The group exchanged uncertain glances until Alita Miller suddenly spoke up. "If this is an illusion, then maybe pain can help us escape!"

At her words, someone immediately took up a blade and slashed at their own arm.

Swish—

But the blade cut through thin air, as if it had no effect. It was just like when Ebner Mondo had ignored Borus Kendra\'s magic earlier. In this space, their bodies were nothing more than illusions.

With this realization, the idea of inflicting pain to trigger an exit seemed impossible.

"Hmph, I thought that old bastard was stronger than he actually was. Turns out he was just using the tricks of this space! But the Moon God... this space—what is it, really? What\'s the secret behind it?"

Everyone exchanged bewildered looks, unable to think of any way to break free from this mysterious space.

"Could it be a magic array? If it\'s a magic array, there must be a core point. If we find that, we can escape!"

"Ace, your soul is the most sensitive. Can you try to sen—"

Alita Miller\'s voice abruptly cut off as she scanned the area, realizing Ace was nowhere to be found.

There was no need to guess; Ace had already perished in Borus Kendra\'s earlier counterattack.

After all, Ebner Mondo had only pulled the souls of the living into this space.

And it wasn\'t just Ace. What had once been a group of over forty people was now reduced to barely a dozen. Horton Martin had also vanished.

Lina Jones noticed it too, her face taking on a sorrowful expression as she whispered, "I never imagined we\'d lose so many people on a single expedition... Claire… they were with me for so long, yet I couldn\'t save them. All I could do was watch them die…"

Her words seemed to affect everyone. Even Alita Miller and the rest of the survivors wore expressions of grief.

Seeing this, Dean Bruce shook his head slightly. Things really hadn\'t gone according to plan.

According to the original plan, when they found the treasures in the ruins, that would be the time to betray and turn against the Temple of Wisdom.

But who could have anticipated that this place would be filled with danger and offer no benefits at all? After fighting side by side for so long, they hadn\'t even had the chance to act on their hidden agendas.

At this point, even if they did find treasures, no one had the energy or will left to fight each other.

The constant battles had left them utterly exhausted.

Hum—

Just as the group\'s spirits were at their lowest, the starry void around them began to shimmer. Lights coalesced, rapidly forming into the figure of a young girl. She floated silently in the air, her appearance shocking everyone present.

Even Dean Bruce couldn\'t hide his astonishment, his gaze locked onto the girl.

She slowly scanned the group, her eyes finally resting on Dean Bruce. Though her expression remained calm, there was a flicker of emotion in her eyes that puzzled him. Unable to suppress his curiosity, he softly asked, "Do you know me?"

"..."

The girl nodded ever so slightly, a gesture that left the entire group in stunned disbelief.

What was going on?

This girl was clearly a part of whatever mysteries lay within these ruins, so how could she possibly know Dean Bruce?

Dean Bruce was equally taken aback. "How do you know me?"

The girl remained silent, though the emotion in her eyes deepened, tinged with a sense of longing.

After a moment, she parted her lips, as if preparing to speak. The entire group, Dean Bruce included, focused all their attention on her, but just as they thought they would finally hear her voice, a sudden wave of dizziness washed over them, leaving their minds momentarily blurred.

Shaking their heads to clear the dizziness, the group slowly opened their eyes. To their astonishment, they found themselves back where they had started—before the sealed array deep underground.

Looking around, they saw the lifeless bodies of Borus Kendra and the researchers lying on the ground.

Just as Dean Bruce had suspected, their souls had been pulled into that strange space, but their physical bodies had remained here all along.

However, death in that space had been real.

"Huh? We\'re out already?"

"Who was that girl? How did she pull us out of that space?"

"Dean, that mysterious girl seemed to know you!"

"Ebner Mondo claimed he communicated with the Moon God to pull us into that strange realm. If that girl brought us out, could she be… the legendary Moon God?"

"The Moon God knows you? And she was looking at you with such... longing?"

"..."

The chatter grew louder as everyone started speculating, their minds reeling with questions. It seemed Dean Bruce had surprised them so many times that now, they were even beginning to link him to divine beings.

Even Dean Bruce couldn\'t help but twitch at the corner of his mouth.

While he had inadvertently led them down that path of thinking, he knew his own limits well enough. He wasn\'t even a Grand Magus yet—his strength came largely from his tenfold enhancement, high-level spells, and his collection of treasures. It was these that had allowed him to hold his ground against Magi for a short time.

Given his actual power, how could he possibly be connected to a deity?

From what Dean Bruce could surmise, the girl was likely some sort of spirit tied to the magic array, perhaps a guardian of it.

Still, feeling the genuine admiration and reverence from those around him was undeniably satisfying.

"Let\'s not get distracted," Dean Bruce said calmly. "Our priority is to investigate the connection between this ruin and the sealing array."

"…"

Carol Lane suddenly spoke up. "Dean, considering how fanatical Ebner Mondo was, and the existence of that mysterious girl, the legend of the Black Dragon might be true. We should avoid tampering with the sealing array. If the Black Dragon breaks free, it could cause chaos!"

Before Dean could respond, Alita Miller scoffed. "No matter how powerful the Black Dragon once was, it\'s been sealed for millennia. Its strength must have eroded by now. Are you really afraid of it?"

"The ancient tribe guarding this magic array didn\'t even have a single Grand Magus. I seriously doubt this Black Dragon is as fearsome as the legends say."

"Moreover, the whole reason we\'re here is to explore the treasures within these ruins. This sealing array is from an ancient era. If we can study it and possibly break it, we might even uncover the secrets of ancient magic!"

Dean Bruce narrowed his eyes slightly, agreeing with the logic.

No matter how powerful the Black Dragon once was, it\'s been sealed and suppressed for who knows how long. If it\'s even alive, it\'s barely clinging to life—its power must be all but gone.

Having come this far, Dean certainly wasn\'t going to leave empty-handed. That simply wasn\'t an option.

Carol Lane let out a soft sigh. "This entire expedition has relied on you, Mr. Dean. If it weren\'t for you, we wouldn\'t have survived. So whatever choice you make, I will follow your lead."

With Carol Lane\'s endorsement, the others fell in line as well, looking to Dean Bruce as if he were a divine figure. United, they followed him toward the massive dragon\'s head.

The head was tightly bound in shimmering silver chains. Even though it showed no signs of life, the overwhelming pressure it emitted only grew stronger the closer they got.

Every step forward felt like moving under the weight of a mountain.

Looking up, dozens of glowing sealing arrays sparkled, intertwined and binding the dragon\'s head in place.

As they neared, they could see the intricate symbols etched into the seals, some of which seemed to rotate and pulse with a mysterious light.

"Hurry, start recording these symbols!"

Alita Miller called out to her team, urging them forward to take detailed notes. On the other side, Lina Jones\' eyes shone with intense focus as she carefully studied the strange runes.

But just as they were observing the arrays, the air suddenly shifted. All of the sealing arrays above them began to tremble violently. And at that moment, an incredible surge of energy erupted from within Dean Bruce, instantly drawing everyone\'s attention toward him!