Chapter 607 - Treasure Hunting (2)
"Wow, the fish here look so weird. Your magic energy can still last long enough, Ely? I feel the pressure here is quite high." Sylvia controlled the Gravy Ark to enter into a large trough near the ancient shipwreck among the coral reefs.
It was only one hundred meters deep from the mouth of the trough to the bottom. Around them today, there are many models of inscriptions that, at first glance, look like puzzles with particular mechanisms.
"Well, it's the deep-sea fish, Sylvi. I can sustain this barrier for half a day without fail. Hum, please take a look at the mechanics around here, Sylvi. They say that this place might be hiding something, and this trough is probably man-made." Elysia looked around with her sacred vision active. She wanted to confirm the truth of the information from Erina's father.
'Hm, yes, there is a secret passage in the stone wall over there. The entrance was sealed by a spiral stone door with an unknown mechanism. Shall we destroy it instead of struggling with the puzzle, Ely?' Elena came up with the most straightforward solution, according to her.
'Uh, that sounds easy. But, will it be okay? I mean, the uninvited might be here because of the explosion or the commotion.' Elysia tried to think of another solution.
It was an ancient mechanism where no one knew how it worked. Literally, brute force was indeed the easiest way to break in, just like what Elena did in the mysterious island maze a few days ago.
'Then just make a hole the size of your body diameter, Ely. We'll go in by swimming. Hm, but you need to make sure your crew is protected from pressure and radar detection or whatever. I feel we are not alone here.' Elena folded her arms and tried to examine Elysia's surroundings.
'I agree with Master Elena. At five o'clock to the north, a group of divers at a depth of ninety meters from the water's surface. They are probably less than a kilometer away from us now. I accidentally saw them just as we were about to enter this trough.' Rhea told her the results of her observations.
'Diver? In this South China Sea? Is it possible they are part of the navy and scientists who will research this place? How do they look, Rhea?' Elena felt her guess was correct.
'There was a metal capsule the size of three elephants camouflaged in a coral reef. The divers are wearing strange metal armor.' Rhea revealed what she had seen before.
'I see, so special divers, huh... Ely, they're not ordinary divers and will probably be here in a few minutes. Quickly dig a hole there, save the Gravy Ark, and go inside by swimming. Don't forget to provide cover for you and your crew.' Elena reminded Elysia to move quickly.
Elysia just nodded because she could see the divers in question with her sacred vision. Therefore, she asked Sylvia to approach the spiral stone wall.
It was covered in moss and coral, barely visible. Sylvia was confused about what Elysia was going to do. Still, she was instantly shocked when her friend suddenly punched a hole in the stone wall.
The spiral stone entrance was more than two meters thick, but a hole the size of an adult was created quickly.
"Sylvi, Vann, we will enter by swimming. I will cast protection magic on you, and please don't separate yourself from me, understand?" Elysia raised her finger to emphasize her point.
"En." Sylvia and Vanessa looked at each other and nodded to Elysia.
After that, Elysia wrapped everyone in protective magic that followed their bodies' shape. The Gravy Ark was stored in the Space Bag, and they entered the hole in turn. Elysia guided her treasure-hunting group went deeper.
A few moments later, a group of fully equipped divers descended into the trough to carry out their task. They were like an astronaut wearing a special underwater full metal armor.
After observing the strange carvings and intricate puzzles on the stone walls, the divers took some pictures with an underwater camera.
The flashlights flashed several times. At that moment, one of the divers accidentally saw a mysterious hole in a remote side of the wall. He gestured to his team and pointed to the hole.
Then, the divers immediately approached the hole. They looked at each other because they knew that that hole wasn't there yesterday.
One of them tried to shine a light into the hole with a bright flashlight. To his surprise, it was a hidden passage. Apparently, it was pretty deep and winding but large enough for several people to enter. The small entrance was the only problem. Someone might have been here before them and got in there.
He informed everyone about that with hand sign language. Then, the brave one tried to measure his body size to fit into the hole. Unfortunately, his armor was too big and prevented him from entering.
Therefore, they split the team into two. One stood guard there, and the other returned to the submarine to report. The higher-ups had to send another special force for this new discovery.
Meanwhile, Elysia's group had just passed through the passage. They had probably dived more than two hundred meters from their starting point. Surprisingly, they found their way up and ended up on the water surface.
'It's like a cave, or maybe a dungeon, Sylvia. Ouch, it's so damp, dark, and creepy. Do ghosts also exist under the sea?' Elysia muttered as she came out of the water.
She looked around, somewhat horrified because she could see many hollow purple walls with several branching passages. The atmosphere just gave off an eerie bad feeling everywhere he looked.
'Haha, no worries, Ely. There are many strange and disgusting ghosts here, but they will not dare disturb us. Unless they want to be eliminated.' Sylvia patted Elysia's back with a confident smile.
'Uuh, I'm afraid to use my sacred vision here now because of you. This is where the pirates or whoever made this place to hide their treasure, right?' Elysia looked left and right with slight goosebumps. She wasn't too afraid of ghosts, but her heart couldn't stand the jumpscare.
'Then, please wait a moment. I'll get all those weird and disgusting creatures out of here.' Sylvia narrowed her eyes, and her blood-red eyes sparkled slightly. She emitted a sinister aura that threatened all the surrounding evil spirits.
Those subtle creatures then ran away as fast as they could. The scary devil came to threaten their existence.
'En, now they've run quite a distance. You can use your eye ability without fear, Ely. Which path should we take for the treasure?' Sylvia put her hands on her waist and puffed out her chest slightly.
'Hm, wait a moment...' Elysia activated her sacred vision again. His eyes gleamed with a purplish-blue light to scan his surroundings thoroughly, including what would await them deep in the passages.
'It looks like an ancient cemetery. Uhh, I can see some skulls there. And there is like a treasure room. Oh no, I just realized this is just a maze with a few traps.' Elysia pointed to a passage and continued to stare there.
'So, it's been decided. Let's go there. Vann, please stand guard in the back row while I walk in front as the vanguard.' Sylvia gave an ok hand gesture.
'Roger.' Vanessa saluted.
They then went to the passage that Elysia pointed to and traced the maze. Due to Elysia's advanced perception and Sylvia's reliable instincts, there weren't any traps triggered because of them.
They arrived at a hidden room that looked like a secret base at first glance. Many human bones were strewn everywhere, and all of them seemed so old and crumbly with age.
However, there was a throne-like stone with a skeleton sitting on it.
'Hm, is that a pirate from the past? Well, he must be living in luxury and fame. Oh, look at the jewels he still wears even though he's dead.' Sylvia circled the skull on the throne. 'By the way, where's the treasure room, Ely?'
'En, it can't be wrong anymore. It's over there. Behind that sliding stone door.' Elysia pointed to a stone wall.
'Well, I didn't expect the ancient civilization to be quite advanced either. They could have made a hideout like this in the past. I wonder what might end the era of magic on Earth. The ancients were considered very strong and masters of magic, but very few remain in this day and age.' Elena shook her head from within the Soul Realm.
'Some of them still remain in this world, but they are far weaker than the humans of the magic era?' Rhea wondered too.
'Who knows? But, Earth has at least some deities and gods. It's just, I don't know if they are stronger than Vrelenia's Gods.' Elena began to assume.
'I think it's unlikely to be true because Earth is not as rich as Vrelenia in terms of magic energy.' Rhea shook her head. But, she still wondered why this world could groom someone like Elysia and Elena.
'You may be right, Rhea.' Elena just shrugged her shoulders.
Meanwhile, Sylvia tried to open the sliding stone door with brute force. She pulled the door to shift with all her might, but it only moved a few centimeters.
"Ugh, this is so heavy!" Sylvia ended up using reinforcement magic.
'Shh... Your voice echoes here. Please keep communicating in telepathy.' Elysia covered Sylvia's mouth in reflex.
Sylvia just nodded and pulled the stone door aside. The gems and treasures gleamed as if to dazzle everyone's eyes.. The treasures of the past were hidden there.