Chapter 44: Isolated Remains

Deathly silence.

Elena’s words pressed down on everyone’s hearts like a heavy tombstone.

Elaine’s face was as pale as paper. He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force, struggling to maintain his composure.

The Kingdom had given everything to find the Hall of Life, only to discover it was a flesh-eating monster that devoured all.

This was nothing short of the total collapse of faith.

Around them, the Dark Elves also hung their heads, submerged in a silent despair.

Yet, at the center of this storm of deathly stillness, Lin En’s reaction defied everyone’s expectations.

He showed no trace of despair or shock.

Instead, a cold light flickered in his deep eyes—a light almost maddened, as if calculating everything.

It was as if he completely ignored the sorrowful atmosphere around him, speaking to himself—or perhaps declaring an unquestionable command to everyone.

“The Hall is gone, but the essence of power remains.”

His voice was unnaturally calm, yet it sliced through the gloom like a sharp scalpel, cutting through the shroud of misery.

“It’s just that something went wrong. Maybe it was corrupted, maybe it mutated. It doesn’t matter. As long as the core source remains, any energy can be purified and reshaped.”

These words snapped Elaine out of his daze.

He wanted to refute them, but saw that Lin En’s gaze had already turned to Elena.

Elena was stunned for a moment.

Then, from the depths of her sorrowful eyes, a fury of deep offense ignited.

To her, Lin En’s attitude was the ultimate contempt for the millennia of sacrifice by her people.

“Purified? Reshaped?”

She let out a cold, furious laugh—a sound sharp and piercing.

“Outsider! What do you think it is? Polluted spring water? That is a primordial evil that gnaws at flesh and twists the power of life! Your ignorance is as laughable as your arrogance!”

“I only believe in results I see with my own eyes.”

Lin En was unyielding, his tone as cold as subterranean iron.

“Before we reach it, any conclusion is premature. Your only task is to lead the way.”

“I refuse!”

Elena shouted sharply.

“I will never lead anyone to become fodder for that monster! This is suicide, and a betrayal of our duty to protect! You must leave now!”

Tension crackled in the air.

Elaine immediately stepped in front of Lin En, his expression grim.

A bloody conflict seemed inevitable.

“Wait! Don’t fight!”

Elaine shouted, trying to calm the situation.

Elena’s gaze swept over him like a blade, but within it was a hint of exhaustion and helplessness.

She relented a step, her voice hoarse.

“Tell me—why? Why must you go to that place? The power of life there has already been completely twisted. There can be nothing you seek!”

At this final question, Elaine’s eyes dimmed.

He no longer argued, but spoke in a tone almost confessional, almost pleading, revealing the deepest secret of their journey.

“Because we have no choice.”

He said heavily.

“Our companion… His life is being devoured by a plague called Wither Fever.”

“We tried everything, but nothing could stop it.”

“We have to find the Hall of Life. Only the power of the Hall can heal him.”

To prove his words, Elaine opened his storage pouch.

He solemnly took out an Alchemical Box made of obsidian and silver metal.

He opened the box, revealing a gray, decaying fragment of human tissue sealed within layers of energy fields.

The moment Elena’s eyes fell on the fragment, it was as if she was struck by invisible lightning.

The anger, exhaustion, and determination on her face froze instantly.

Her pupils contracted sharply, her breath halting.

“The Power of the Isolated Remains!”

A shrill, trembling scream burst from her lips.

She staggered forward several steps, as if all her strength had been drained, then abruptly stopped a meter from the box, as though it were an untouchable holy relic.

Her gaze was riveted to the fragment of flesh, her lips trembling, disbelief in her eyes.

“No… Impossible! That’s the Power of the Isolated Remains! How could… Are you saying your companion was corrupted by the Power of the Isolated Remains?”

Elena’s exclamation detonated like a thunderclap in the minds of all the Dark Elves.

Lin En stepped forward, his cold eyes locking onto Elena’s stunned face. His voice was not loud, but it carried an undeniable weight.

“The Isolated Remains you speak of—what are they?”

Lin En’s question was like a needle, piercing the last threads of Elena’s fragile composure.

She jerked her head up, her eyes darting between Lin En and her own people—who were equally shaken—seeming to answer him, or perhaps to question the gods themselves.

“It is… the final power granted to us by the Lord of Boundaries to oppose the Broodmother! The last barrier between us and that monster!”

Her voice turned hoarse from emotion, and then she almost screamed:

“The Isolated Remains have been enshrined at the heart of the Sanctuary of War for generations, guarded personally by the Warchief Magis. No one but him may approach! How… How could a fragment of its power be outside? This violates all our laws and oaths!”

Lin En and Elaine exchanged a quick, horrified glance.

A terrifying thought formed in their minds at the same time.

The sudden outbreak of ‘Wither Fever’ in the outside world was no accident.

It was possible that the Enders—or Magis himself—had used the power of the Isolated Remains for some kind of experiment outside.

Or perhaps… it was the prelude to a greater, deliberate conspiracy.

The idea was too dreadful.

Lin En and Elaine both chose silence, not daring to voice their suspicion.

Now, what they held was no longer the ‘key’ to solve a problem, but undeniable ‘evidence’ capable of shaking the very foundation of the Dark Elves.

In the dead silence, Lin En stepped forward and gently closed the Alchemical Box.

He looked around, his gaze finally settling on Elena’s ashen face.

He no longer needed to ask, for now, everyone present wanted the answer even more than he did.

“It seems we all share the same question.”

His voice was low, but it reached every ear, pointing out the only path through the chaos.

“And there’s only one person who can answer it.”

Lin En paused, then gave the only logical command for the next step.

“Lead the way. We’ll ask your Warchief—Magis—together.”