The Rich Cultivator
Chapter 173 - 172. Rooms of Memories (1/3)

Chapter 173: 172. Rooms of Memories (1/3)

Lily and Isadora sprinted down the narrow temple passageway, their footsteps echoing off the stone walls. Behind them, creeping vines twisted and lashed, reaching for their ankles with a menacing hunger. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and ancient moss, and the dim lighting made it hard to see more than a few feet ahead.

Lily clutched an orb tightly in her hand, its glow casting soft hues of rainbow light on the walls around them. At a glance, the orb appeared like a gem of many colors, but under closer inspection, its true color seemed to be an ethereal white, pulsing with a mysterious energy. The orb radiated with life force, and Lily could feel its power coursing through her as she ran.

"Where is this passage going?" Isadora asked, her breath coming in short, hurried bursts as she kept pace with Lily.

"I have no idea! The passage just opened up after I took the orb," Lily shouted over her shoulder, glancing quickly behind them at the ever-chasing vines.

Isadora’s hand flew to her temple, massaging her head. "Why can’t I remember anything?" she groaned, clearly struggling with the haze that had clouded her mind.

Lily, despite the danger, allowed herself a brief chuckle. "Looks like you sobered up," she teased, though her focus remained on the path ahead.

As soon as Lily reached the edge of the crumbling temple, her eyes fell on the towering wall of the Labyrinth ahead. The path they had followed seemed to close behind them as the structure collapsed, leaving them no room for error. With quick thinking, she attempted to summon her flying sword, but nothing happened.

"Damn it," she muttered under her breath. Whatever enchantment surrounded this section of the Labyrinth was still preventing the use of flight-based treasures.

Without wasting any more time, Lily took out her whip. With a swift flick, it shot forward, wrapping tightly around a nearby sturdy branch that jutted out from one of the few standing structures. Isadora grabbed onto her waist as they leaped into the air, swinging just as the last section of the temple collapsed into a cloud of dust and rubble behind them.

They soared through the air, their combined weight pulling on the whip before they landed gracefully onto the solid ground on the other side. Lily wasted no time and quickly retrieved her whip as they steadied themselves on the uneven surface.

At that moment, something clicked in Lily’s mind. *Oh... I can use my storage treasure now...* She thought to herself, realizing the strange restriction on her items had lifted as soon as they escaped the temple. Wasting no time, she quickly stored the orb back into her spatial storage.

Isadora noticed this immediately. "Hey..." she shouted.

Lily waved her hand nonchalantly, already anticipating the question. "I know, I know... We’ll share it later. Just relax," she said with a playful smirk.

With the orb secured and the immediate danger behind them, the two women finally had a moment to take in their surroundings. They had landed on a part of the Labyrinth that felt almost surreal. The ground beneath their feet was soft and pillowy, like fluffy clouds, though the air still carried the eerie tension of the maze.

"Where are we?" Lily muttered under her breath, her eyes scanning the strange landscape. Everything about this part of the Labyrinth felt different from the rest.

As they took in their new surroundings, a thin trail of smoke caught Lily’s eye. It was coming from somewhere not too far ahead, rising into the mist like a beacon. She pointed toward it. "Let’s go there first. Maybe we can figure out what’s going on."

Isadora nodded, and the two of them moved cautiously toward the smoke, their footsteps barely making a sound on the cloud-like ground. They advanced quietly, using the mist and the uneven terrain as cover. As they got closer, they ducked behind some large wall and peeked out to get a better view of the source of the smoke.

What they saw made Lily’s heart skip a beat.

Captain Silver Eye stood there, his imposing figure as fearsome as ever. His signature silver eye gleamed in the mist, and the rest of his pirate crew was gathered around him. Vice Captain Burgess, a hulking figure of a man with a cruel grin, was by his side, barking orders to the rest of the Silver Eye Pirates, who were busy tending to what appeared to be some kind of campfire.

As they continued to watch, Captain Silver Eye’s gaze swept across the area, as if he sensed something in the air.

"What’s wrong captain?" Vice Captain asked.

"Nothing... Finish the preparation quickly before this part is transforms." Captain Silver Eye said.

"Yes captain." The Vice Captain nodded.

┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉

Tyler moved cautiously towards the heart of the strange, colorless space, his steps echoing in the otherwise silent void. As he advanced, the blurred surroundings slowly gave way to stark white walls, the only remaining color in this surreal landscape.

The oppressive silence was heavy, almost suffocating, yet he pressed on, following the distant sound of Lutz’s cry.

As he moved closer - Slowly, images began to form around him, shifting and blurring until they solidified, like fragments of a dream coming into focus.

"A Room of Thoughts???... like where Astrid was locked," Tyler muttered, recognizing the strange quality of the space. But this wasn’t Astrid’s memories. No, something felt different.

As the images sharpened, a scene unfolded before him.

A young girl, no older than ten, stood alone, gripping a sword that was nearly as tall as she was. Her brow furrowed in concentration as she practiced, slashing the air with determined, deliberate movements. Sweat dripped down her face, and her hands trembled with exhaustion, yet she kept going.

"997... 998... 999... 1000." The girl counted her strikes aloud, her voice a mix of pain and pride. She stopped, her small frame sagging under the weight of her effort. Wiping the sweat from her brow, she glanced towards a group of girls her age who were passing by, laughing and wearing beautiful dresses. They paid her no mind, walking with carefree joy as if they belonged to a different world entirely.

The girl sighed, longing evident in her eyes. She watched them for a moment longer before turning back to her sword.

"Have you finished practicing?" A deep, authoritative voice rang out from behind her.

The girl spun around to see a middle-aged man approaching, his face stern but kind.

"Yes, Grandfather," she replied, straightening up despite her exhaustion.

"Good... my little Evergreen. Now you can go and play," the man said, his tone softening.

A smile broke across the girl’s face. Without hesitation, she dropped her sword and ran, eager to join the other children. But her excitement quickly turned to disappointment.

"You stink."

"You look dirty."

The girls’ cruel words hit her like daggers. They sneered at her appearance, her clothes soaked with sweat and her hands calloused from practice. The girl recoiled, her joy shattered as the children turned their backs on her.

But just as she was about to walk away, a boy with a handsome smile stepped forward, extending his hand. "You can use a sword, right? That’s cool," he said, his voice warm and genuine.

The little girl’s eyes widened, her cheeks flushing red. She hesitated for a moment, then slowly took his hand, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

Tyler walked further as he watched the scene play out, his brow furrowing. "Evergreen?"

Suddenly, Tyler stopped in his tracks. The atmosphere in the room shifted, growing heavier, darker. In the center of the room, he saw them—Lutz, kneeling on the ground, tears streaming down his face. His body trembled as he sobbed uncontrollably.

Just a few feet away, the King of Rosefall lay on his back, struggling for breath. His face was pale, his chest rising and falling in shallow, labored gasps. Death clung to him like a shadow, waiting to claim him at any moment.

And there, standing over the King, was Astrid.

She held a knife in her hand, the blade gleaming ominously in the white light. Her eyes, once filled with innocence and hope, were now cold and distant. She stared down at the dying King and Lutz with an expression of disdain, as if their suffering meant nothing to her.

"What the hell is happening?" Tyler whispered and looked at them with confusion.

The wedding dress of Astrid is torn and her breast is revealing a little. But there is no knife scar in it. It seems like she healed herself.

What happened next made Tyler eyes widened, Astrid moved closer to the king.

"Don’t worry about me. It is atonement for my sin. Don’t blame yourself. I always love you, Astrid." The King said.

Astrid then plunged the knife into King’s heart. There was not even a single tear. The King of Rosefall Kingdom passed away.