Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 895 - 888: Gazing into the Abyss

Chapter 895: Chapter 888: Gazing into the Abyss

Tangmo and the others weren’t using magic crystal powder, but magic circuit cables produced by the Otherworld Research Center, a product combining Earth technology with Otherworld magic, primarily used to guide magical power and achieve some of Earth’s common physical functions.

The ultra-mobility devices worn by the Advance Team and the sights on their weapons utilized these magic circuit cables. These were magical cables made by combining magic crystal powder with several types of metals known for their flexibility.

The emergence of magic circuit cables mainly addressed some objective magical challenges, such as if one wanted to draw a rune, one had either to carve it or use magic crystal powder to draw it, both of which had certain limitations. Therefore, magic circuit cables were primarily advanced substitutes to replace both methods, bringing Otherworld magic directly into the industrial civilization level.

After some preparations, the two finally connected the rune externally. Then, Tangmo signaled Baiyue to retreat and step back, and she herself also took a step back, then extended her finger and pressed it directly onto the rune patterns on the door.

Every passive rune actually has a sensitive area that, if lightly touched, would immediately activate. This sensitive area could be derived through simple calculations. Unfortunately, apart from Tangmo and Baiyue, no one else in the Advance Team knew how to derive the method for passive rune-sensitive areas.

The spot Tangmo touched was the sensitive area on the door’s rune. With just a light touch, the entire door’s rune patterns instantly lit up. Based on the brightness of the rune patterns, Tangmo roughly estimated the magic power reserve of the magic crystals behind the door. If the rune were to explode disorderly, the released magic power from those magic crystals would be enough to blast a large hole within a ten-meter radius.

Fortunately, the Advance Team had Tangmo, a seasoned and experienced mage like her to direct the operation. The magic power flowed continuously along the patterns, eventually reaching the runes she had externally connected through the magic circuit cables.

With Tangmo’s rune, the entire door’s rune instantly changed properties. Then, Tangmo stepped forward, placed her hand on a spot without any rune patterns, and gently pushed forward, and the metal door was immediately pushed open a crack.

As the gap between the two doors widened, the originally unified rune instantly became ineffective, and the luminous rune patterns on the door lost their glow instantly.

"Done!" Tangmo clapped her hands excitedly and eagerly climbed out along the staircase.

"The door’s open; we can move forward," Tangmo called out joyfully to Luo’er not far away after climbing up to the ground.

"As expected, whenever it comes to magic-related things, Moumou never disappoints me," Luo’er said delightedly, then rushed towards Tangmo excitedly.

Hearing the news of Tangmo’s success in opening the door, Axia narrowed her eyes, and her gaze clearly changed a lot while looking at Tangmo.

Tangmo’s performance made her take note in a new light; Axia knew that Tangmo was a dwarf hybrid, so she deduced that her actual age was probably in her twenties.

Even so, she was very young in the field of magic, achieving such a deep mastery at such a young age indicated that this girl was indeed extraordinary, a rare talent indeed.

Of course, what she didn’t know was that Tangmo’s achievements were partly innate and partly due to the education at Haiya Academy.

Haiya Academy had been teaching them to learn magic and spells starting from kindergarten, all the way up to elementary, middle, and then high school. One could say magic education almost ran through the entire student life of the hybrid races.

The results of such an equal and persistent education were astonishing. Geniuses like Tangmo and Baiyue went without saying, but even Hu Daoke, who couldn’t use any magic at all, had a foundational knowledge of magic that was higher than that of an ordinary mage.

The reason why Hu Daoke always seemed quite foolish about magic was mainly because he was compared to other members of the Advance Team. He was at a level that fell short of the better but surpassed the worse; he was indeed much inferior to other members of the Advance Team, but compared to ordinary mages, he was much more knowledgeable.

The education at Haiya Academy was very classical exam-oriented education, as the headquarters urgently needed these hybrid beings who understood both Earth knowledge and Otherworld cultures to help them control the Otherworld, so there was no possibility of so-called quality education.

The goal of Haiya Academy was very clear: to elevate the cultural level of the hybrid races to a certain tier, and then select top talents within that tier. That’s why even Hu Daoke’s basic magical knowledge was higher than that of an ordinary Otherworld mage.

Luo’er came excitedly in front of Tangmo, eager to descend into the tomb, but Tangmo stopped her.

"Wait, let me scout ahead first," Tangmo said as she took out a magic crystal lamp, then slapped it in her palm, and the rune on the magic crystal instantly emitted a pale blue cold light.

"I’ll go," said Luo’er worriedly.

"You can’t manage," Tangmo glanced at Luo’er and then shook her head, "I need to check the magic crystals behind the door, and that’s not something you rough and tumble men can handle."

"So in your eyes, I’m just another rough and tumble guy," said Luo’er, unable to help but laugh and cry at the same time.

"You’re different," Tangmo retorted, giving him a reproachful glance before heading into the doorway with the magic crystal, and Luo’er quickly followed behind her.

Behind the door was a small platform, and beyond the platform was another long, dark, and deep stairway. Seeing this, Tangmo instinctively panicked and couldn’t help but step back, bumping right into Luo’er who was following her.

"Scared?" Luo’er asked, steadying her.

"Yes!" Tangmo nodded vehemently, never hiding her feelings from Luo’er.

"I can’t believe you. You just told me to wait outside for you," Luo’er sighed, then turned her around so that he was facing the deep passage behind, and said, "Alright, I’ll stand right behind you. Go ahead and check."

"Be careful yourself, don’t fall off," said Tangmo, concerned.

"Don’t worry, if I fall, I’ll just tumble a few times," Luo’er said with a smile.

"That’s uncertain," Tangmo said as she turned to look at the deep passage behind her, suddenly feeling a wave of panic, so she quickly turned back to search for the magic crystals embedded behind the door.

Luo’er stood behind her, silently watching her busy herself. He took a deep breath, and the air was filled with a damp, musty smell; clearly, the space had not exchanged air with the outside world for a long time.

Thinking about the abyss at his back made Luo’er turn to look several times. Suddenly, Nietzsche’s famous saying came to mind, "When you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you."

With this thought, Luo’er suddenly felt a tingling on his scalp, as if someone was staring straight at him from behind. As a firm atheist, he took a deep breath, then turned around, only to be greeted by an intoxicating sight.

"Ten high-purity magic crystals, a tidy little profit," muttered Tangmo to herself as she carefully removed the magic crystals set in the doorframe.

"Luo’er, help me move these magic crystals out," Tangmo said as she bent to pick up several crystals, all the while calling out to Luo’er behind her without turning around.

After a moment, when she noticed that Luo’er made no move, she couldn’t help but turn around and call out, "Luo’er?"

It was only then that she realized something was amiss. Luo’er was standing silently with his back to her, facing down the deep stairway and taking slow steps down the stairs.

"Luo’er, what’s wrong with you?" Tangmo asked, her voice trembling.

"Still asking, still asking, get the Soul Summoning Bell, get the Soul Summoning Bell!" Fulajie’er’s frantic voice echoed in her mind. Tangmo immediately realized that Luo’er might have been bewitched by Tana again.

"Stop him," Tangmo commanded Fulajie’er, then turned and ran out of the tomb, climbing up to the ground and calling out loudly to Baiyue, "Yue’er, the Soul Summoning Bell!"

"Catch!" Baiyue, true to her name, reacted immediately. She took off the Soul Summoning Bell from her person and tossed it over.