I'm Trapped in the Block

In a normal archaeological dig, discovering the ruins of a civilization should be a joyous occasion.

However, they were the Mineral Race.

A species of beings that felt no emotion other than fear.

They did not create, did not seek knowledge, and certainly did not build civilizations.

Within these ruins, they also discovered the remains of past members of the Mineral Race.

These remains dated back to a time even earlier than those found in the previously discovered war relics.

In other words, these remains truly belonged to the masters of a past civilization.

Before that war, a Mineral Race civilization had indeed existed in the Thorn Stone Forest.

The researchers were stunned. ’Could they have been Abnormal Vein Patients, too?’

’Has the Abnormal Vein condition existed since ancient times? Was it just always in a dormant state?’

The researchers even speculated that this previous civilization had been born from the entire Mineral Race being infected with the Abnormal Vein condition.

But how did this prosperous civilization go extinct? And why did war suddenly break out?

The researchers investigated the ruins and found that all the remains within had died at the same time.

And sometime after that, the Source War began.

It was as if a sudden mass extinction had utterly annihilated this civilization.

This discovery sent a chill down the spines of all the researchers.

’Is destruction the ultimate fate of the Abnormal Vein condition?’

What had led to this civilization’s downfall? Unconvinced, the researchers continued to trace back further in time.

However, they once again found traces of war—an even older war.

And before that war, there were the ruins of an even more ancient civilization.

It was a cycle!

An Abnormal Vein civilization would arise from war, only to be destroyed by a sudden, inexplicable force.

None of these civilizations could escape this fate.

Through their study of the geological strata and the ruins, the researchers discovered that the mass extinction that wiped out the entire civilization was an earthquake.

An immense earthquake that had spread throughout the entire Thorn Stone Forest.

Just as the civilization reached its peak prosperity, this great earthquake would arrive on schedule to destroy everything.

Then, the war would begin anew.

As Cixing spoke, Mo Ling’s mind was already filled with doubt.

’A civilization of Abnormal Vein Patients gets destroyed once it reaches a certain point? But wasn’t the Abnormal Vein condition created by the red cloth’s ability?’

’Could the Abnormal Vein condition have existed even before that?’

Just as he was thinking this, Cixing had already led Li Luo to the bottom of the stone pillar.

Here, an opening sloped downward, leading deep into the earth.

"This is Civilization Number One, the first one we discovered," Cixing said, standing before the opening.

"It’s right down there?" Li Luo asked, a little surprised.

"Yes."

Following the passage from the opening, they soon arrived at a desolate expanse of ruins.

It was a pit, only partially excavated, its deepest parts completely buried under sand and rock.

But from the excavated sections, one could see the former prosperity of this civilization. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Unlike the style within Neon Village, the architecture here was extremely uniform. The buildings were shaped like straight conch shells, standing upright on the ground.

The entrances to the shells curved to meet the ground, while their tops tapered to a high point.

These shells came in various sizes, but their style was remarkably consistent, lacking the diverse, flourishing feel of Neon Village.

Still, the orderly buildings allowed one to imagine scenes from this civilization’s past.

Li Luo pointed to a carving on one of the buildings and asked, "What is that?"

"That was what they used to worship."

Mo Ling followed Li Luo’s finger and saw it was the same colossal, many-armed member of the Mineral Race from the carvings in the passage earlier.

"Their art was highly developed. The villagers of Neon Village often imitate them," Cixing explained.

’So that’s why. No wonder the carvings in the outer passage also featured this giant member of the Mineral Race. The villagers must have created them by imitating the carvings here.’

But now, all of it was buried under dust, lying silently in the depths beneath the Thorn Stone Forest.

Unknown to the world.

Cixing looked at the ruins with a hint of sorrow. "It’s all gone."

Nearby, many other members of the Mineral Race were studying the ruins. Upon seeing Li Luo and Block, they merely cast a curious glance before returning to their work.

After a moment, Cixing composed himself and said to Li Luo, "The favor I wanted to ask is for you to help us test a device."

Cixing led Li Luo back inside the stone pillar, taking a passage to another underground space.

Here, there was a massive, multicolored sphere made of all sorts of stones, like a hodgepodge of every mineral in the Thorn Stone Forest.

A set of stairs extended to the center of the giant Stone Ball.

With a wave of Cixing’s hand, an entrance appeared in the center of the giant Stone Ball.

"The favor I need is for you to go inside for a while and see if you feel anything."

"Or, to be more specific, a certain signal."

Cixing patiently explained, "Don’t worry, it’s not dangerous. We’ve tested it ourselves before. We’ve even had some humans go inside, and we’ve brought in other animals from outside the Thorn Stone Forest. It causes no harm whatsoever."

"What is that thing?" Li Luo asked, not quite understanding.

"It’s a signal amplifier, similar to a prism. It focuses all the signals within the Thorn Stone Forest into the center."

"If you don’t believe me, we can find another animal and demonstrate for you."

Cixing’s words were utterly sincere.

Li Luo hesitated for a moment, then agreed.

"There’s no need for another demonstration, but I want to bring my relic inside," Li Luo stated her condition.

Cixing nodded eagerly and replied, "No problem, of course you can. Do you need any other preparations? Is there anything else you want to bring?"

"No," Li Luo said. She then led Block up the stairs and into the Stone Ball.

The entrance then closed.

A walkway extended to the center of the Stone Ball, where there was a platform. As Cixing had instructed, Li Luo walked to the center and waited.

The interior of the Stone Ball was also made of multicolored stones. After the entrance closed, ripples began to emanate across their surfaces.

But the ripples didn’t last long before the entrance opened again.

Li Luo, her face full of confusion, walked back out along the walkway.

After she descended the stairs, Cixing looked at her with concern.

"It seems you didn’t feel anything."

He had guessed correctly again.

Li Luo nodded, indicating that she hadn’t heard anything, nor had she received any unusual signals.

She even took out her electronic tablet.

"I enabled all types of signal reception. No abnormal signals were generated."

Cixing glanced at the tablet and exclaimed in surprise, "Human technology is so convenient. Thank you."

"You’re welcome."

Li Luo still looked completely bewildered.

’Nothing at all?’

Mo Ling finally snapped back to reality and glanced at Li Luo’s tablet. The signal data on it indeed showed no fluctuations.

He scratched his head, completely baffled.

’Then what was it that I just saw?’