Chapter 1729 - 1023: Manus’s Giant Hand

What... is this thing!?

Upon seeing the black hole appear behind him, Tami’s whole body trembled, and an overwhelming sense of disgust arose in his heart.

It was as if his instincts were rejecting what was in front of him!

His fingers suddenly began to tremble—no, more accurately, it was the Wolf Ring worn on his finger that started buzzing.

This ring reacted to the black hole before him, even forming a Protective Shield of white light around Tami.

Only when facing the Four Kings of Little Londo within the Abyss would the Wolf Ring produce this Protective Shield specifically designed to block the Abyss!

"Run!"

This thought suddenly arose in Tami’s mind.

Why did Maru and the others, who were by his side just a moment ago, disappear mysteriously without a trace now? If he wasn’t experiencing some sort of illusion, then they certainly encountered misfortune, and it must be connected to this black hole!

Perhaps they were sucked in.

This floating dark hole sent shivers down his spine, his instincts screaming at him not to touch that thing—turning away and leaving was the way to go now.

Yes, run now, hurry and report back to the captain and them, bring them here to study this strange thing together.

Due to the training content from Skyrim Strategy Group, Tami opened the Image Stone hanging on the collar of his armor while preparing to escape.

This was a special Image Stone made by Skyrim Strategy Group, essentially a small live-streaming device, only to be opened in situations needing immediate reporting. Once opened, the signal could be received and the scene seen by the monitoring room at the headquarters of Skyrim Strategy Group.

Luluwo intended this device not only for convenience in dungeon exploration but also to protect his group members.

Just as Tami opened the Image Stone, the thumb-sized stone barely lit up when the black hole suddenly mutated.

Blame him? Surely it’s no good. Don’t look, just run!

"———!"

A roar indescribable by words echoed from the black hole, and in the next moment, the hole inexplicably expanded several times as a giant black hand, along with its arm, charged out.

It appeared in front of Tami almost instantly, this twisted limb abruptly opened its palm, revealing fingers embedded with dense grey-white growths terrifying enough to petrify those with trypophobia.

Then, it gave Tami no opportunity to resist, grabbing at him with its hand in one fell swoop.

Hidden Mist Fierce Bird!

Like a reflex, he attempted to use his special evasive maneuver.

The result was that the giant hand was an unavoidable technique, no, it was a plot-induced kill that couldn’t be dodged.

Hidden Mist Fierce Bird failed to be executed, and the hand grabbed Tami in one swift move, the enormous strength compressing his bones instantly.

Amidst the intense pain, his vision became a whirl, forcibly dragged into the black hole.

As this was done, the eternally hovering black hole also gradually faded away.

Meanwhile, alarms blasted in the monitoring room of Skyrim Strategy Group’s headquarters, and the member responsible for monitoring duty today shouted through a loudspeaker:

"A new prey has appeared!"

Cold, trembling...

Uncertain of how much time had passed, Tami finally regained some consciousness, feeling as though he was lying on the ground, the earth slightly vibrating, causing his armor to pinch him painfully.

He hadn’t opened his eyes yet but felt the piercing pain from broken bones inside his body.

"Tsk, how unlucky, what exactly was that thing..."

Tami could only reach for the Elemental Bottle hanging from his waist and gulped down a few mouthfuls, finally feeling his body recover, opening his eyes.

What met his gaze were blue skies, white clouds, towering trees, and verdant mountains. He could even hear the sound of a waterfall nearby, and the air was suffused with a freshness that brought joy with each inhale.

"Have I reached paradise..."

Very unfortunately, no.

[Ulashiro Royal Garden]

"Is this already Ulashiro!?"

Tami flipped to his feet and surveyed his surroundings, all presenting the image of a primitive forest in his eyes.

Not to say anything like the luxurious architecture the Royal Garden’s lofty name suggests, he didn’t even see a hint of human-made structures—it was pure, unadulterated forest.

How could this be called the Royal Garden....

Perhaps because forests possess common traits, or perhaps he saw wrong, but he truly felt this place was quite similar to places like the Black Forest Courtyard.

"What on earth was that giant hand just now?"

Recollecting the exquisitely repulsive black giant hand, Tami shuddered.

He harbored both psychological and physiological revulsion towards it; just recalling that thing’s image sent shivers down his spine and fear to his heart.

Fear?

Now that he thought about it, it seemed he hadn’t been afraid of anything in Sain Dungeon for a long while—even the most terrifying among the Four Kings of Little Londo, Tomb King Nite, seemed just impressive to him.

"Is it because of the Abyss."

Settling down, perhaps he found the reason for his revulsion towards the giant hand.

While being dragged into the black hole, he saw some other things, like a pair of glowing crimson eyes. Those eyes undisguisedly revealed evil and greed, as if wishing to devour the entire world.