In this brief moment of silence, the communication crystal suddenly rang, and the crisp sound broke the silence.
Merlin was startled and reached out to pick up the crystal. He glanced at it and found that it was a message from Kim Henry.
Back then, Jin Henry had a keen eye for talent and clung to Merlin, the "big tree", following him all the way. Now he has become the head of the Steam and Star Alchemy Workshop, in charge of many affairs.
Merlin looked at the message from Jin Henry with a look of joy, and Jin Henry sent only one message: President Merlin, we succeeded.
Deep in the intricate, maze-like sewers of the Arcane City, a foul smell permeates every inch of space.
The dark green sewage flowed slowly along the pipe wall, making a disgusting gurgling sound, and the occasional splash of water flashed strangely in the dim light. The walls were covered with slippery moss, and from time to time drops of water dripped from the cracks in the stones above, hitting the dirty water and creating ripples.
In the most hidden corner of this city, a group of sneaky guys gathered quietly like ghosts.
They were dressed in tattered black robes with their hats pulled down very low, revealing only a few pairs of eyes flashing with cunning light.
After a while, another group of people with equally suspicious behavior hurried over to make the connection.
"Is everything ready over there?" a shrill-voiced person among the first group of people to arrive asked in a low voice.
"Yeah, everything is settled." Someone from the other side responded with a low and hoarse voice. The sound echoed in the empty space of the sewer, carrying a bit of eeriness.
"Hmph, if the Arcane Academy hadn't suddenly taken over the Arcane City, we wouldn't have had to act so early and our plans would have been disrupted." Someone grumbled in dissatisfaction, his words full of regret.
"There's nothing we can do. Things have come to this point. Fortunately, we have been planning for many years. Even if we act hastily, it won't cause any big trouble." A man who looked like the leader said calmly, with a sinister look in his eyes.
At this time, someone in the crowd spoke with concern: "What about the guy from the Arcane City? Do you have any plan to deal with him? If he intervenes, this matter will be difficult to handle."
"Don't worry," a tall fellow sneered, "He won't make any moves. Once the plan starts, the adults will entangle him."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. Then, the group that came here to meet looked at the inky black underground and shuddered: "I can't believe that such a weird thing is sealed under this arcane city."
Everyone's eyes followed him into the endless darkness. Faintly, there seemed to be something strange moving slowly, like a dormant giant beast that could wake up at any time and exude a creepy aura of oppression.
"What's below is not sealed, you don't need to worry about these things." A big man with a face full of flesh waved his hand impatiently, "It's normal for the Arcane City to have these things. The Arcane Academy was originally established to seal that adult. Choose me. Everything we do now is for the great Lord! When the Lord comes, this world will crawl at His feet."
With that, this group of mysterious people gradually disappeared into the darkness. The sewer returned to silence again, with only sewage still flowing, as if the thrilling conversation just now had never happened. However, the conspiracy hidden in the depths of the darkness was like a volcano about to erupt, with undercurrents surging.
Outside the lower city of the Arcane City, there are many villages scattered across the vast land. These once relatively independent settlements are now under the jurisdiction of the Arcane City.
Over the past few days, the Arcane City has dispatched civil servants to various locations to conduct population census reviews.
On this day, several civil servants in uniform trudged all the way to a remote village.
The long journey made them exhausted, and before they even stepped into the village, they could already hear complaints.
"Oh, our superiors are really mean. They actually sent us to such a faraway place to conduct a census. It's such a hassle coming this far." A younger civil servant wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking reluctant.
"That's right. Who would have thought that the Arcane City would not even let go of these small villages scattered outside the city, and incorporated them all at once." Another older man echoed, with helplessness in his tone.
"Okay, stop complaining. Hurry up and finish your work and go back. We don't know how the other groups are progressing." The person who looked like the team leader looked a little anxious and urged everyone to speed up.
When they finally arrived at the entrance of the village, a strange atmosphere hit them, making everyone instantly alert.
The originally bustling village was now dead silent.
"Something's wrong. We've arrived at the village entrance, but how come we can't see a single person?" The sharp-eyed young civil servant frowned and whispered in confusion.
"Yeah, that's strange." A slightly fat civil servant scratched his head. "I passed by here when I came to the Arcane City for an exam. It was very lively at that time. After all, this is an important road leading to the Arcane City, and people come and go."
With full of doubts in their hearts, everyone walked towards the village cautiously.
Everywhere you look, you see desolate and dilapidated scenes. In the barren fields, weeds grew wildly and the crops had long since turned yellow and fallen over, obviously no one had cultivated or cared for them for a long time.
The open door of the tavern swayed in the wind, making a creaking sound.
On the streets, ownerless cows strolled leisurely, occasionally mooing, which further highlighted the silence of the village.
Looking around, the local residents seemed to have disappeared without a trace.
At this time, the sky became increasingly gloomy, and the dark clouds seemed to completely swallow up the village. A gust of cold wind blew by, and everyone couldn't help but shiver.
"What the hell is going on!" The leader's brows were twisted into a deep "川" shape, and his companions beside him looked at each other, their eyes full of panic and confusion.
"Do you smell a rotten odor?" he said in a low voice, with a hint of nervousness in his voice.
Everyone then woke up as if from a dream and sniffed hard. The faint stench, like a ghost hidden in the darkness, drifted into their nostrils.
The deeper you go into the village, the stronger the smell becomes, like an invisible hand tightly strangling everyone's throat, making you feel sick.
Suddenly, someone walking on the side pointed at the street corner, widened his eyes, and exclaimed in a low voice: "Look... I see someone!"
Everyone became alert instantly and all looked towards the corner of the street. In the dim light, a figure was leaning against the wall with his head drooped, not moving at all. At first glance, he looked like a drunk sleeping soundly.
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