Chapter 181: The bait

“Who said that just because I found it, it belongs to you?”

Ethan aimed Realm Breaker at the Void Eye but did not immediately pull the trigger. Thousands of Simulated Fire Hearts still floated throughout the chamber, their black-purple light causing the fire patterns across the ceiling and floor to flicker continuously. The six crystals previously sustained by the Void stood out even more clearly. Vein-like patterns had appeared across their surfaces, while Ryan’s face constantly shifted between them, sometimes laughing maniacally, sometimes grimacing as though enduring unimaginable pain.

The Void Eye did not react to Ethan’s provocation.

Its black-purple pupil merely contracted slowly.

Immediately afterward, the six corrupted Simulated Fire Hearts simultaneously released energy threads as thin as hair. The black-purple strands entered the chamber’s shared network, connected with hundreds of surrounding crystals, then rapidly enveloped the real heart fragment deeper inside.

Space instantly became chaotic.

The Fragment of the Lava Emperor’s Heart disappeared from its original position, then appeared among a cluster of crystals on the left.

Less than a second later, it was transferred somewhere else.

The six black-purple crystals continuously changed their connection points, using the existing simulation network to exchange the real heart fragment’s coordinates among thousands of false ones.

Laira narrowed her eyes at the moving lights.

One hand was already resting on the Boundless Fishing Rod, but even with eyesight far beyond that of an ordinary person, the shifting positions were still too fast for her to lock onto the target.

“Can I pull all of them down?” Laira asked.

“If you want to make the entire chamber explode.”

Ethan kept his eyes on the Void Eye.

“The real heart fragment is still mixed in with them.”

“Then I’ll pull that eye down first.”

“Wait a little.”

Laira looked slightly disappointed but still withdrew her hand.

Behind them, the Flame Bone Dragon stood near the sealed stone door, its wings folded tightly against its skeleton to avoid touching the fire-patterned threads hanging from the ceiling.

Ruo Yan controlled it and moved it toward the edge of the chamber, away from the increasingly chaotic energy.

However, she could not take it outside because the carrier that had opened the door had already shattered long ago.

Ryan burst into laughter.

His laughter came from the six crystals before being transmitted through the other Simulated Fire Hearts, filling the entire chamber with overlapping echoes.

“Ethan, do you really think that finding the heart fragment means you can simply take it away?”

Ryan’s face appeared across the nearest crystal.

His red-purple eyes opened wide, while the black cracks across his face continued spreading.

“Without you and the Eye of Truth, finding it among thousands of imitations would indeed have taken a great deal of time. You’ve saved the Void an enormous amount of effort.”

Ethan did not respond.

The Eye of Truth operated at full power, revealing the chamber’s internal structures layer by layer, but the real heart fragment continued changing positions.

Every time Ethan locked onto one coordinate, the six black-purple crystals immediately redirected their energy into another branch of the network.

[The target is continuously changing coordinates.]

[Six Void energy sources have been detected maintaining the transfer.]

[The transfer structure was formed by occupying the simulation network.]

The final line of information caused Ethan’s gaze to change.

The six Simulated Fire Hearts had not originally been spatial anchors.

They were merely ordinary components of the sensory-disruption array.

However, after the Void connected them together, their functions had completely changed.

The Void Eye had forcibly transformed the six crystals into temporary coordinates for moving the real heart fragment out of the seal.

The Eye of Truth could not have discovered this mechanism beforehand because it had never existed.

Only after the Void began operating the network did the entire pathway clearly appear before Ethan.

At the same time, the fire patterns beneath the stone floor began glowing in response to his gaze.

Whenever Ethan looked toward one of the six crystals, several nearby fire patterns would emit red-gold light, almost as though the chamber itself were actively showing him which locations had been invaded.

That feeling appeared again.

The Inner Sealing Area seemed to be cooperating with the Eye of Truth.

It did not directly provide an answer, nor did it guide Ethan toward the heart fragment like a map.

But whenever he looked in the correct direction, the ancient fire patterns around him immediately reacted, helping confirm his deductions.

Ethan quickly locked onto the weakest energy pathway among the six crystals.

The real heart fragment appeared at exactly that moment.

It was transferred to the center of the chamber, with a spatial tear slowly expanding behind it.

The Void Eye waited deep within the fissure, its pupil fixed directly on the heart fragment.

A terrifying suction force immediately erupted.

Dozens of nearby Simulated Fire Hearts were dragged out of position.

The fire-patterned threads connecting them to the stone ceiling stretched tight, while the real heart fragment began sliding toward the spatial tear.

“Ethan!” Ruo Yan shouted.

Realm Breaker released a deep gunshot.

The bullet did not fly toward the Void Eye or the real heart fragment.

Instead, it struck directly at the intersection of two fire patterns beneath the floor.

Shattered stone flew in every direction.

Dark red Burning flames immediately erupted, then followed the black-purple energy pathway hidden inside the array.

Ryan froze for a moment before laughing even harder.

“You missed? Ethan, so your Eye of Truth is only worth this much after all!”

“I think he did it deliberately,” Ruo Yan said coldly.

Laira nodded seriously.

“If he actually missed, I’ll pretend I didn’t see it.”

Ryan’s faces all stiffened at once.

Ethan glanced at the two of them, then pointed toward the Undead Mage.

“Move it into the center of the six pathways. Keep the Bone Dragon at the end of the chamber. Don’t let the fire patterns on its wings touch the network.”

Ruo Yan immediately controlled the Undead Mage and made it step forward.

The skeletal puppet carried no staff. Its empty hands hung at its sides, but deathly energy had already begun flowing from its sleeves.

The moment it entered the area surrounded by the six crystals, dozens of black-purple energy threads immediately wrapped around its bone armor.

“What are you using it for?” Ruo Yan asked.

“As a relay for your Soul Threads.”

“Is it dangerous?”

“For someone alive, yes.”

Ethan looked at the skeleton being covered in Void energy, then added:

“It’s already dead, so it’s not a big problem.”

The blue flames inside the Undead Mage’s eye sockets trembled.

Ruo Yan remained silent for several seconds, seemingly unable to think of an argument.

Meanwhile, Mumu happily ran over, the halo above its head already beginning to rotate.

[Mumu has activated Endless Blessing.]

[Buff acquired: Perfect Lighting.]

A pale golden beam of light immediately descended from above, making the Undead Mage the most conspicuous object in the entire chamber.

The light even automatically adjusted its angle whenever the puppet moved, making the skeleton look like the most important character preparing to appear in a performance.

Laira looked at it and commented:

“Quite imposing.”

Ruo Yan pressed a hand against her forehead.

“I don’t need it to look imposing.”

Three seconds later, the halo above Mumu’s head moved again.

[Buff acquired: Dustproof.]

The ash covering the bone armor instantly disappeared.

The Undead Mage became so clean and polished that it nearly reflected the surrounding light.

Mumu tilted its head and examined its work, apparently feeling that something was still missing.

Endless Blessing continued operating.

Then another notification appeared.

[Buff acquired: Resilient Hair.]

The entire chamber fell silent.

Laira looked at the perfectly smooth top of the Undead Mage’s skull and thought for a moment before saying:

“This buff arrived a little late.”

The soul flames inside the puppet’s eye sockets erupted violently.

If it could still speak, Ethan and Mumu’s ancestors for eighteen generations would probably have received its greetings.

“Mumu, buff Laira.”

Ruo Yan pulled the slime aside.

“Stop taking care of the Undead Mage’s appearance.”

Mumu puffed out its cheeks in dissatisfaction but still redirected Endless Blessing toward Laira.

Several streams of pale golden light appeared one after another.

Finally, a completely new buff formed.

[Buff acquired: Spatial Anchor.]

[While active, the target can resist most forced displacement effects.]

The moment Ethan saw the notification, the corner of his mouth curved upward.

“Perfect timing.”

“Mu!”

Mumu planted both hands on its hips, completely forgetting about its previous three buffs.

Meanwhile, the Burning effect from Ethan’s shot had already spread along the Void energy pathway.

The flame did not destroy the original fire patterns.

It only clung to the corrupted black-purple portions.

Every time the Void attempted to inject more energy to repair the connection, Realm Breaker’s anti-regeneration effect burned away whatever had just appeared.

The first crystal lost the black-purple veins covering its surface.

“Ruo Yan, left side.”

Ruo Yan closed her fingers.

Soul Threads passed through the Undead Mage’s body and entered the fire-patterned pathway that had just been freed.

She did not turn the crystal into a puppet.

She merely used the Soul Threads to guide the original fire-element energy back into its proper route.

The first Simulated Fire Heart changed from black-purple to red-gold.

Then came the second.

And the third.

Ryan finally realized what was happening.

His face appeared across thousands of Simulated Fire Hearts at once, all of them becoming vicious as his voice mixed screams with hatred.

“Stop him!”

The Void Eye suddenly opened wide.

Hundreds of black-purple tentacles shot from its pupil, passed through the spatial tear, and flew directly toward Ethan.

But Laira had already stepped forward.

The Boundless Fishing Rod swept horizontally.

White light erupted from the rod and tore apart the tentacles at the front, while Thunderfire immediately burst forth and burned away the remnants.

“Your opponent is me.”

Laira spun the fishing rod in her hand, her long red hair whipping behind her under the surging energy.

“Not yet,” Ethan said as he watched Ruo Yan reclaim the fourth crystal. “Wait a little longer.”

Laira frowned slightly but still stepped half a pace back.

The fifth crystal quickly returned to red-gold.

Only the final point remained covered in Void energy.

The real heart fragment had already been dragged right up against the spatial tear.

Part of it sank into the black-purple mist, causing its red-gold pulse to visibly weaken.

Ryan laughed again, but this time his smile looked somewhat forced.

“Too late! Even if you reclaim those crystals, the heart fragment already belongs to the Void!”

“You’re right,” Ethan replied calmly.

“If my only goal was to keep it here.”

Before Ryan could understand what he meant, Burning broke through the corruption surrounding the sixth crystal.

Ruo Yan’s Soul Threads immediately entered it and pulled the fire-element energy inside back onto its original path.

All six Simulated Fire Hearts changed color at the same time.