Since the Lady had moved, there was naturally no reason for the others not to follow.
The group followed the two ratmen to the entrance of a deep underground cave.
Inside, several ratman villagers were frantically carrying out a few humans who were covered in blood!
“What happened?!” Jerry’s brow furrowed at the sight as he immediately questioned them.
“Brother Jerry, I found these people in the secret tunnel of the City Lord’s Mansion’s cellar. They were fine just a moment ago, but now they’re suddenly failing!”
One of the ratmen ran up to speak as soon as he saw Jerry, treating him like his pillar of support.
“Is it blood loss?” Jerry asked as he walked forward.
“Poison… the… daggers were poisoned…”
“Damn it… those… disgusting… cultists…”
The humans being carried by the ratmen muttered curses subconsciously, their consciousnesses clearly fading.
However, after Jerry looked them over, he let out a slight sigh of relief.
Among the six people, only one was seriously injured; the others only had scratches.
Of course, poison was never something to be taken lightly.
Thus, Jerry made a decision: they would perform a Purification Ritual for them!
As expected, Ileya’s brow twitched slightly. These ratmen were not lacking in Transcendents.
However, she didn’t know which Supreme Being they worshipped.
The Lady had never heard of a Supreme Being that was extremely friendly toward humans.
It was a pity Amisa wasn’t here, so Ileya had no one to ask. As for the safety of Amisa and Arthur at this moment, the Lady wasn’t worried at all.
It wasn’t that she was cold-blooded, but rather that she had a certain understanding of their power.
Setting Arthur aside, even a weakened Amisa couldn’t possibly fear a mere cave-in.
“Mr. Jerry, could we observe your Purification Ritual for a moment?” Ileya stepped forward, smiling softly as she asked with great politeness.
This caused Veil, who had been clinging to her back, to pout instinctively. ‘Even if they didn’t let you, you’d still sneak a look, wouldn’t you?’
“Ah… of course. It isn’t a secret ritual,” Jerry said.
He was momentarily stunned before nodding reflexively. His claim of being friendly toward humans really wasn’t just for show.
He organized the ratmen to carry the six people to a cave at the very top.
The space here was not small; it was a small plaza that could accommodate at least a hundred people, even larger than the previous burial pit.
At the deepest part of this underground cave stood a giant tree so thick it would take ten people to encircle it!
Upon closer inspection, one could see that where the giant tree connected to the cave ceiling and the floor, it seemed to have merged into one.
It appeared to be a load-bearing pillar supporting the cave to prevent it from collapsing.
But…
When Ileya saw this piece of wood, her brow furrowed slightly.
Although the tree was cleaned and cared for by the ratmen every day, there were still places where the bark naturally peeled away.
The color revealed inside was actually a faint purple. It was a smooth, lustrous purple like a gemstone!
‘The Crystal Giant Tree?!’
Ileya was inwardly shocked, but she showed no expression on her face. She simply turned her head calmly and asked a nearby ratman villager.
“Is this the Supreme Being you worship? Does it have a Divine Name?”
“Of course,” the ratman nodded, seemingly having no taboos about such things.
“The Supreme Being we worship is known as the ‘Source of All Sorcery and Desire, the Benevolent Mentor of Sages and Secrets, the Snake and Crow that Lurks in the Deep Sea and Soars in the Sky… Her name is—the Crimson Heart Witch.'”
‘The Crimson Heart Witch?’
‘Shouldn’t it be the Crystal Giant Tree?!’
Ileya felt momentarily lost. Although she couldn’t say she knew much about the Crystal Giant Tree, eight or nine out of every ten enemies she had encountered since her soul-transmigration had some sort of inexplicable connection to that Supreme Being.
Furthermore, that entity was likely the Supreme Being that had started the war against the human Kingdom.
It might also be the one indirectly or directly responsible for her family’s ruin in this life.
Therefore, in her spare time, Ileya had done some research on the Crystal Giant Tree. That research was now coming in handy.
She was certain that whether this was real bark or a statue made by the ratmen, its characteristics pointed toward the Crystal Giant Tree from the records. It was definitely not some “Crimson Heart Witch.”
“Great Lord of Witches, Benevolent Mentor of Secrets, your wayward Kin remember your teachings… Amidst the disorienting fog, we pray for your response…”
Before Ileya could figure it out, the ratmen ahead had already knelt in a wide circle!
Cr-crack…
Amidst the loud chanting of the ratman priest, the Crystal Giant Tree in front of them actually… actually split open!
Reflected in Ileya’s bewildered and shocked crimson eyes was a stone statue.
It was a humanoid figure wearing a pointed hat and wizard robes, holding a long staff.
One could tell the statue was carved from stone, but the large portion of its body not holding the staff was currently being stained by purple crystals, becoming transparent and brilliant.
‘There… there really is a Supreme Being called the Crimson Heart Witch?!’
‘What is her relationship with the Crystal Giant Tree… Parasitism? Symbiosis? Cooperation?’
Ileya felt utterly confused.
“Hey… bad… Lady.”
Right then, Ileya suddenly heard a faint voice in her ear. Turning her head, she saw Veil looking quite mysterious.
“What is it?”
“Look at the statue’s ears… aren’t those the ‘pointy-eared humans’ Arthur mentioned?”
Reminded by the Foolish Goddess, Ileya recovered from her shock and looked at the statue.
Indeed! Although the statue wore a large hat, one could clearly see that its ears were pointed! Just like the…
“Like an elf…”
Before Ileya’s train of thought could land, Holly suddenly spoke. “Pointy ears… are there elves in this world?”
However, none of the “natives of another world” responded to her statement.
The ratmen were kneeling on the ground with great devotion, their prayers echoing in unison.
Unlike prayers offered to other Supreme Beings, their posture was not particularly humble.
Compared to how others treated a Supreme Being as their “God,” this looked more like they were treating a mentor or… a Chieftain.
Moreover, from beginning to end, these ratmen were using the human language to pray.
They were completely different from those Cave-Dwellers.
‘A Supreme Being who is approachable, likes humans, and has a history with the Crystal Giant Tree?’
Ileya scratched her cheek. Could the “mysterious ruins” Professor Fuer mentioned be this place?
No, no, no…
The Professor had once said that a massive secret was hidden here.
Once that secret was revealed, the entire human Kingdom might be thrown into great turmoil.
But looking at it now, other than the Crimson Heart Witch looking somewhat like a human, she didn’t feel the shock of uncovering a world-shattering secret…
Therefore… what she was seeing was likely only the tip of the iceberg. The true secret was probably not within this ratman tribal village.
Thinking of this, Ileya slowly raised her head and looked upward.
That was the location of the ruins of the City of Rand. Perhaps the answer she was looking for was up there.