102 Desert: Lazarus Pool

108.

For Lei Xiaogu, he obviously would not use such a low-level method of luring the enemy to eliminate them - he must have a bigger plan by keeping the farmer.

But even if Regulus would not use the mission to harm them for the time being, Red Robin still felt that there was something wrong with this cave.

He always felt that this cave was tailor-made for Aria, as if it had life, moving and appearing only for her.

Such bizarre phenomena had never occurred in Gotham before, but after arriving in the desert, strange things happened one after another, which once again made Drake believe that he had entered the core area of ​​solving the problem.

...The place where you can find more secrets is also more dangerous.

Red Robin's heart was filled with alarm, but he remained calm. He turned on his personal light and, along with Kara, followed Aria's lead as they cautiously entered the cave.

Inside the cave, bright torches burned, their light evenly distributed by stone troughs in the walls, illuminating the entire cave. Clearly, someone had been here before them and left this object behind.

"It's a very thoughtful design." But it's too deliberate. Tim's eyes wandered over the cave's rock wall, unsure if Lei Xiaogu had placed this... If it was him, then the entire mission would be even more suspicious.

The previous motive could be said to be motivated by self-interest, but the subsequent inferred motive went against Lei Xiaogu's previous principles - or was he still struggling with that power, so his words and deeds always seemed inconsistent?

Kryptonians are more sensitive to the subtle changes in expressions of people around them. Kara glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and didn't say much.

Compared to Tim Drake, Aria, her brain power idle, seemed much more relaxed. Completely oblivious to the potential danger, she relaxed as if she were back in her own backyard. She deftly walked to a rock wall and pulled out a strangely shaped key from her backpack. The end of the key handle was meticulously carved into a skull, a look both playful and eerie.

I always feel like they are about to open a door to something indescribable...

Tim stared at the key and tightened his grip on his palm, finally unable to resist complaining:

"Skull key, secret cave...it looks like the beginning of a horror movie."

Now that the door had been "found", that was all the effort he could make in this mission.

Therefore, how to choose the words becomes an important issue that Red Robin will face.

…

Aria didn't notice his alarm. With a smile, she inserted the key into the stone lock and glanced at him. "Don't be nervous, Red Robin. I can assure you, there aren't any scary monsters in there."

The monsters inside all have health bars. Having a health bar means they can fight, and if they can fight, there is nothing to be afraid of.

Tim looked calm, but his mind was racing.

"Mr. Qi said he needs you to use this key to unlock the mine," he said slowly, concealing his inquiry perfectly, making it sound like a casual question. "But if the key is his, why doesn't he do it himself?"

"Why?"

It was obvious at first glance that he hadn't thought about it that way at all, but Drake was more or less starting to get used to the farmer's way of thinking.

He even began to like this new brain a little; it was easier to guide than the old one.

"Perhaps Mr. Qi is like that?" Aria thought carefully, unable to find a suitable word in her vocabulary to describe this mysterious man. "He likes to give people various challenges, but he has a good heart. The tests are just to spice up the game."

"So, once you find the key, the mine will be yours?"

"I don't think it counts?"

Although Mr. Qi placed a note and a skeleton key at the bottom of the mine, he did not explicitly say whether he wanted to give this place to her. The farmer did not think she had the right to dispose of the mineral deposits - this was more like a resource hunting point set up by Mr. Qi, and anyone who met the qualifications could come and get some.

"Of course, if Mr. Qi needs to use the resources here one day, I will be happy to share them with him."

Her answer was simple and direct, without any hint of greed. Tim tried to keep his tone more casual. "What if, I mean, this mineral deposit could create huge value, such as supporting a country's war expenses, would you let Mr. Qi use it?"

"Impossible." Aria gave her answer almost the next moment: "Mr. Qi doesn't like playing this kind of war game."

Mr. Qi is just a mysterious little blue man who likes to make blue fruits that look like him grow all over the player's land. It doesn't make sense to call him the mastermind behind the war.

"If you're worried about bad guys trying to take advantage of the treasures here, don't worry!" To reassure him, Aria patted her chest and said, "There are many monsters in the Skull Cavern. Even if someone could get in, they would die in there."

Even the farmer would occasionally "faint" in the Skull Cavern due to exhaustion of health. Aria was still very confident about the difficulty of this thing for NPCs.

Aria pointed inside with sparkling eyes. "If you're still worried, you can come with me down there to take a look. We still have plenty of time before we hand over Mr. Qi's mission."

She turned to the alien girl and said, "Kara, you've probably never seen what it's like inside a mine. I think it's really fun!"

...Never mind, at least a seed has been planted.

According to Red Robin's previous practice, he would definitely go to a dangerous place with the farmer to collect more information, but considering that he would have to negotiate with Regu Xiao later, Tim Drake wisely decided to conserve some energy for the moment.

"No need," the young man smiled a trusting smile. After last night's conversation, he was somewhat confident that the Kryptonian wouldn't tell the farmer about it, so there was still plenty of room for him to play. "Since you can trust Mr. Qi, I think maybe I can also increase my trust in him a little bit."

If the farmer hadn't fled into the tent like a rabbit last night, he would have been able to collect some of the information. Derek thought for a moment and asked with concern, "So, what are your plans next?"

"Mr. Qi promised to lend you temporary use of the Lazarus Pool after you complete your mission..."

Tim paused slightly and lowered his voice: "...I'm sorry to hear that."

Aria nodded. She was also sad when the ancient fruit died, but she has recovered now.

"That person must be very important to you."

He softened his expression and continued, "Otherwise you wouldn't be willing to take such a big risk. After all, this transaction doesn't sound like it was made out of pure curiosity."

He paused for a moment, as if to give her time to recover.

Tim lowered his voice and spoke more slowly, fearing to touch the pain deep in the other person's heart. "Is it a relative? Or a friend?"

It seemed as if everyone had involuntarily misunderstood in the same direction. The farmer gave a dead look and said bluntly, "Neither of them. I have it with me. Do you want to see it now?"

Tim Drake: ???

…

The information was quite shocking, and Tim quickly adjusted his expression, trying to keep his facial muscles serious, and thus missed Kara's half-smile.

Derek even felt that he needed greater concentration than when facing Batman's questioning to sustain this conversation.

"With you?"

"Yeah." Aria nodded as if it was a matter of course. "Of course I put it in my backpack. Where else would I put it?"

Drake realized that such a question was extremely rude, and swallowed the second half of "What do you mean by that?"

He retrieved the relevant information from his brain.

If it wasn't a relative or a friend, then it was most likely a lover. Although this was information that Red Robin himself hadn't gathered, Tim Drake still felt that Grayson, who irresponsibly spread gossip, had to bear 15% of the responsibility for his previous error in reasoning.

According to intelligence, the farmer has a "power" that allows him to carry a backpack. While it can't store living things, it should be able to store dead things... This is indeed the most efficient storage method for travelers on long journeys into the desert...

It might be hard to accept at first, but when he thought of Mr. Freeze who still kept his wife in the cryostat, Red Robin felt that he could do it again... But Mr. Freeze didn't carry his wife around with him.

Calm down, Drake, calm down. Even though the image of Aria running around with a small satchel containing a corpse recurred in his mind, Red Robin suppressed the strange feeling in his heart and convinced himself to accept Aria's "carrying a corpse in a backpack" plan.

After all, this sounds quite touching, doesn't it? Although most of the time when encountering such a situation, Tim Drake would urge the other party to let the body rest in peace as soon as possible, but now they are still on Lei Xiaogu's territory. If they let the other party rest in peace here, God knows what Lei Xiaogu will do with the body.

Speaking of corpses, Drake's detective instincts were stirring again.

He quickly ran through a series of questions in his mind: What was the cause of death? Where was the body buried? When was it exhumed? Could there be pathogens? Was this... considered illegal removal of remains? Of course, he didn't ask any of these questions. After all, identifying the deceased was one thing; offending the family's feelings was another.

"So you want to see it now?" Aria repeated, and there was even a hint of anticipation in her tone, as if what she was going to show people was not the remains of a loved one, but some rare treasure worth displaying.

For a moment, Tim really wanted to see it—not out of curiosity, but because his detective instinct was too strong. But in the end, he chose a more cautious response.

He took a deep breath and imitated Bruce Wayne's standard expression at a funeral: serious, heavy, mourning, and lowering his voice: "No need. I respect your choice."

It would be a bit inappropriate to say "May he rest in peace" at the end of the sentence at this time. After all, according to the farmer's persistence, he would soon see his lover doing sit-ups in the Lazarus Pool.

"If you don't read it, I'll take it back! Don't regret it later."

No regrets, how could there be any? Tim Drake's only regret was not reading more psychology books that focused on human love. As a result, he was now unable to accurately judge whether Aria's view of love was too distorted.

…

Aria felt like there was something odd about this guy, and while she didn't want to look or ask, she was just about to patch up her explanation when Red Robin suddenly turned around. Without moving his body much, he just gave his wrist a slight shake, and something slipped into his palm in the blink of an eye.

"Mr. Qi" appeared in front of Aria five seconds later. He was smiling, clapping in a relaxed manner, and looking at them with admiration.

"Sharp as always, Detective."

"You've done better than I expected." The old man turned to Drake. Lei Xiaogu's gaze was like the barbed tongue of a cat, scraping across the two of them, causing a slight sting. "Of course, Mr. Detective should have completely different standards than me."

Tim Drake didn't respond immediately. He was obviously on guard against Lei Xiaogu and his ninja army that might appear out of nowhere.

After confirming that the enemy and our forces were balanced, Tim Drake said the first words since the two met again.

"I think the success of the mission depends more on whether Mr. Qi is willing to help us."

There was a hint of surprise in Reguxiao's eyes. This slight emotional fluctuation would normally be impossible to capture, but Red Robin was already an old hand who had fought with him countless times, so the other party would see the slightest mistake.

Therefore, Lei Xiaogu is not in complete control at the moment. He is indeed unable to find the mineral deposit, nor does he have as much authority as the real Mr. Qi described by the farmer.

——Lei Xiaogu, who is currently devouring the power, may be a little weaker than usual.

I don’t know how much of the conversation the Demon Chief heard just now, but he most likely appeared now just for the Lazarus Pool.

A silent exchange of blows passed, and a subtle admiration returned to Lei Xiaogu's stern expression. He slowly lifted the corner of his robe and approached with dignity and composure, as if every step carried his absolute authority.

"No matter who it is," he said in a deep and powerful voice, as if it contained millennia of wisdom, "if they hold supreme power, even death will bow to them."

His gaze swept over Tim, Kara, and Aria, finally settling on the farmer. "You have passed my first test, farmer. For this, I allow you to enjoy everything you have earned."

There was no hesitation in Lei Xiaogu's tone, as if it was destiny, and every word was like an iron law thrown down from the seat of power.

…

What an arrogant tone, Red Robin thought, Lei Xiaogu has always been so confident, at least his mentality is good.

However, there was one immortal present, one who had lived in the pool for hundreds of years, and one who was a Kryptonian with a very long lifespan under the yellow sun. If they had to be classified, Aria and Kara could barely be grouped with the old immortal like Ra'shou.

But judging by Aria's expression, she clearly didn't want to be lumped in with Mr. Qi. So, as Red Robin's thoughts shifted, and Lei Xiaogu calmly took a few steps toward Aria, his voice low and confident, like a shadow casting over everything, saying, "Death and life, order and chaos, they are not opposites, but part of a cycle. Don't worry about the opinions of the mundane," the farmer gave a rather ungracious look of confusion.

Aria: Actually, it’s not that I’m trying not to understand on purpose, but some people just want to be riddlers.

So she simply took a few steps towards Lei Xiaogu and said directly, "So, Mr. Qi, where is your pool?"

Lei Xiaogu was slightly startled; this overly straightforward response once again shattered some of his expectations. However, the Demon Chief quickly regained his usual composure and seemed determined not to speak any more riddles to the illiterate farmer.

"Very good," he smiled coldly, turning and signaling the ninja behind him: "Take them to witness the glory of the alliance."

It sounded like they were about to take up arms and battle other players online. Aria grumbled silently in her heart, being considerate.

She used to think that Mr. Qi’s new skin was quite innovative, but now she still thinks the original version is better, at least it is more approachable.

…

Several tightly wrapped ninjas quickly stepped forward and led them out of the cave. Outside the cave were several modified desert off-road vehicles. The vehicles were heavy and covered with desert camouflage, and it felt like they could be driven to the battlefield at any time to experience a hail of bullets.

A dozen ninjas stood beside the car, their eyes solemn and alert. When Lei Xiaogu walked out of the cave, they all knelt down and bowed their heads in salute.

Lei Xiaogu simply raised his hand slightly, motioning them to stand up, and then turned to Tim and his group.

"Get in the car, detective, Aria, and this young lady." He paused briefly, his eyes sweeping over Kara. "Your journey isn't over yet, and this part will test your will even more."

Lei Xiaogu stopped looking at them and got into one of the off-road vehicles.

Red Robin translated for the two: "The road is going to be bumpy soon. If you feel uncomfortable, please let me know."

The farmer couldn't hide her disappointment from the moment she saw the off-road vehicle, and Tim Drake heard her muttering as he approached.

Aria: "I don't like this Mr. Qi anymore."

Tim Drake was secretly happy, but he had to show a little surprise on his face. Fortunately, he had first-class acting skills and he could control the expression easily.

Red Robin asked with concern, "What's wrong?"

"He actually drove a car!" The farmer's back teeth were almost broken as he sat in the back seat: "I didn't even drive the tractor, and he actually got in the car first!" We were supposed to be the last fundamentalist Pure Land Watch NPC, but even you have betrayed me, Mr. Qi.

Drake: ?

…

Lei Xiaogu was a cunning man in the desert, and after they got off the car, they were taken to several floors underground. The route was winding, and even Red Robin found it difficult to remember the entire route.

Logically, he should have tried to persuade the farmer again on this matter. Tim Drake had seen Batman's depression after losing Jason, and he had also personally experienced the feeling of losing his father - knowledge is also a curse. When you know that there is a way to bring the dead back to life, this possibility will haunt you every night, leaving you restless.

But death is death. Even Reguxiao, who controls the Lazarus Pool, is quite restrained in using the pool, because he knows very well what kind of crazy stage will come to those who soak in the Lazarus Pool.

That was a feeling completely contrary to reason, and anyone who wanted to maintain their sanity would not easily try it. So even though the thought of them always stung him from time to time, Tim Drake finally decided to move on.

Red Robin could understand this, but it seemed a little pale to use it to comfort others.

He couldn't stop her from using the Lazarus Pool, just as Red Robin hadn't figured out what Lei Xiaogu was plotting. These were all concessions he could make before bigger problems arose.

"The situation is not as bad as you think." Kara reassured him.

So Red Robin gave up the desire to continue persuading or stopping Aria and continued to play the role of the understanding person.

"Did you know that soaking in Lei Xiaogu's pool is very likely to cause madness?"

Aria nodded.

"I heard about it. A friend of mine told me all the side effects."

"and you……"

"But there's no other way," Aria said, her eyebrows slightly lowered, as if she was helpless. "After all, this is the only method I've found. How can I know if it will work if I don't try it?"

"Then let it out."

Red Robin spread his hands. The boy's shoulders didn't look as strong as his mentor's, but they looked more than enough to bear half the weight of a human body.

"I'll help you lower him down. Try to minimize his contact with the Lazarus Pool water while doing so." He paused. "After all, Lei Xiaogu hasn't yet figured out the specific negative effects of the pool on living people, so it's generally best to minimize contact."

The leader of the Assassin's League guards his many resurrection pools like a dragon guarding a treasure, so those who study it have never been able to truly access the Lazarus Pool itself.

Aria shook her head. There was no trace of sadness on her face as she recalled the deceased. Perhaps it had been so long that those emotions were buried like a mine in the sand. However, the possessive desire she had for not wanting to cherish the remains of someone else touched remained as muscle memory in her every move even after the life had faded. "It's okay, it's easy. I can do it myself."

She narrowed her eyes slightly as she smiled, perhaps hiding her tears. "Besides, I have my equipment with me, so it shouldn't be a problem if I touch the water through it."

Normally, Red Robin would politely retreat at this time, giving the family some time to spend with the body, but considering that the identity of the corpse might be related to the farmer's true origins, and there was a certain probability that the farmer had gone insane from soaking in the Lazarus Pool, Drake stayed.

He stood by the Lazarus Pool, surrounded by ninjas sent by the Demon Chief—these trained warriors had treated themselves as dead objects, and in a social sense, the only three of them who could converse here.

Drake looked up at the protective structure that Regulus had built for the pool, then slid over the weapons equipped by the ninjas and made eye contact with Kara. The Kryptonian girl was not used to this kind of socializing on Earth, so she looked away while holding back her laughter.

In the end, Red Robin's gaze had nowhere to go but inevitably fell on Aria.

The farmer changed into a pair of wading boots, and when she stepped carefully into the pool, Red Robin was a little worried that she would slip and swallow a bellyful of green water - but it seemed that his worry was unnecessary.

The pool shimmered with a faint green light, and steaming mist surrounded Aria, as mysterious and dangerous as the grace of the god of death in ancient legends. Her expression was focused and solemn, and she bit her lip slightly with nervousness. When she reached a deeper point, Aria brought her clasped hands to her chest and bowed her head like a sacrifice. Usually, people at such times might say some prayers for protection, but Red Robin heard a melody gently flowing from her mouth.

Rather than the soft and gentle songs that mothers sang to their children before bed or the hymns in church, Tim Drake felt that this was more like a song to welcome travelers home. He secretly memorized the melody and planned to look up what song it was later.

Even the usually aloof ninjas from the Assassin's League were so captivated by the solemn atmosphere that they froze in their tracks. Red Robin had to admit that even the most discerning audience would feel a certain sacred awe at the farmer's aura, lowering their gaze and daring not to speak.

It looked like the farmer was about to take the body out of her "space backpack". Red Robin was prepared to see a disfigured or decayed body, but she saw the farmer slowly taking out a handful of something she didn't know what it was.

Oh, no.

Even Tim Drake felt a little sad for Aria. She had worked so hard to reach an agreement with Regulus and got a chance to be resurrected, but her friend did not tell her that if there were only ashes, then no matter how magical the pool water was, it would not be able to return a complete human being to her.

No, that doesn't look like ashes...

For the first time, Red Robin hated his superior eyesight. At just the second glance, he saw what Aria was about to put into the Lazarus Pool through the gap between her fingertips.

—A handful of dirt and the shriveled corpse of a plant.

Is it that the world has finally gone mad or is it that he is mad?

...If Lei Xiaogu knew that this extremely sacred Lazarus Pool was used to revive a plant - Red Robin could almost imagine Lei Xiaogu's expression.

Although there was a certain probability that this would make it impossible for him to maintain the mask of "Mr. Qi" as a good man and completely expose himself in front of Aria, it was more likely that he would order the entire Assassin League to hunt down the three of them on the spot and swear to never open the pool to any outsiders again.

Tim took a deep breath, forcing down the feeling of speechlessness that surged within him. He pressed his fist to his lips, trying to hide the emotion threatening to spill from his face, while simultaneously checking the assassin ninjas' reactions with his peripheral vision.

Fortunately, they did not notice anything unusual and still kept their heads down.

So, Tim cleared his throat and said in an unquestionable tone: "Everyone, turn around."

"The leader of the Assassin's League has not allowed you to spy on the user's identity, nor has he allowed you to watch the ceremony."

As expected, the ninjas turned around obediently, cooperating with this seemingly sacred moment and avoiding interruptions.

Aria remained unfazed, maintaining a solemn and reverent posture as she placed the soil and plant into the center of the pond. Her voice was gentle yet firm, as she addressed the plant with deep affection, "You've suffered so much, and I'm sorry for you. Now it's time to wake up."

Tim stood aside, watching the plants wrapped in mud being enveloped by the dark green water, gradually shimmering, a sense of absurdity still lingered in his mind.

...Botanists would definitely be delighted to see this scene, but unfortunately Lei Xiaogu is neither interested in botany other than poisonous plants nor does he need desert greening.

It is possible that after knowing that the farmer uses his pool to resurrect things, he will become crazy obsessed with human anatomy - after interacting with the farmer, it is hard for anyone not to want to pry open her brain and see how the brain circuits inside are built together, right?

Now Red Robin doesn't believe at all that this guy wants to destroy the world on a subjective level - the project is technically difficult and quite picky about the people involved.

There will be another chapter later...