Undercurrents!

Chapter 218 Undercurrents!

"Sir, the device has been activated!"

Vidis bowed before the Grand President, looking anxious.

"Is it Hick?"

The president was clearly very surprised.

He originally thought the chaos was caused by Hick's eagerness to obtain the "Darkblood Core" or by a conflict with the "Ship of Sighs".

"No! Not one of Hick's men, nor the 'Ship of Sighs'!"

Vidis spoke very quickly, with an incredulous tone.

According to the last fragmented information transmitted back by our lurking shadows near Erbin Island, what detonated that ancient seal seemed to be—

They are two surviving miners!

One of the veteran miners may know the inside story, while the other young man, in a desperate situation, forcibly activated the sealed core!

""

"miner?!"

A crack appeared on the usually placid face of the Grand Commander.

This answer completely exceeded all his deductions.

"Two—ordinary miners? They've triggered an ancient seal that even we can't comprehend?"

"Yes, sir! The space at the scene has completely collapsed, and that area, along with the miners and the sealed core, has disappeared!"

Sorge was caught in a spatial turbulence and his fate is unknown; Dila is seriously injured! The Eternal Night Dynasty's power on Erbin Island has suffered a severe blow!

Vidis added, his tone carrying a hint of awe at the unknown miner that he himself was unaware of.

The president fell silent. He slowly walked to the rough nautical chart and stared intently at the location of Erbin Island.

His fingers tapped the stone wall unconsciously.

"Unexpected—completely unexpected—"

He muttered to himself.

"Hick's plans have been disrupted, Sorge may have perished, and the 'Ship of Sighs' objective has been thwarted—the entire chessboard of the Boers Islands has been completely overturned by two insignificant pieces."

His tone contained no anger, but rather a strange and complex emotion, as if he had witnessed the wheels of history being derailed by a small pebble.

But soon, his eyes regained their sharpness and calm.

The situation spiraling out of control signifies danger, but it also means—an unprecedented opportunity.

"Vedis".

"Your subordinate is here!"

"First, use all resources to try to track down the whereabouts of that vanished space. We must find the person alive or dead!"

Especially the old miner and the young man who might know the inside story; they might carry a sealed secret, or—they might have become part of that secret.

"Second, closely monitor the movements of Hick's headquarters."

With the dramatic changes on Erbin Island and Sorge's disappearance, he would never let the matter rest.

He will likely intervene personally, or dispatch a more powerful force.

"Third, make contact with the 'Ship of Sighs'."

"Contact them? But Hick is also one of our sanctuary's people!"

Vidis was startled; that was an extremely dangerous being.

"An enemy can be a friend, and a friend can be an enemy!"

The president's voice was icy.

Tell them that we know about the door and the doorman.

Tell them that the recklessness of the Eternal Night Dynasty has awakened something that shouldn't have been awakened, and that we know something they don't—

Regarding methods for "appeasement" or "avoidance," probe their reactions and bottom lines.

Vidis took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and accepted the order: "Yes! I will do it immediately!"

He turned to leave, but was stopped by the Grand Commander.

"etc."

The president's gaze remained fixed on the nautical chart, as if trying to pierce through the rough paper and see the truth behind the fog.

"There is a fourth thing, Vidis."

"Please give your orders, sir."

"Find out all the backgrounds of those two miners. Especially the young man—what's his name? Where is he from? How long has he been working in the mine? Don't overlook any details."

The president's voice was deep and imposing.

"An ordinary miner capable of activating an ancient seal?" I don't believe in such a coincidence. Perhaps there are undercurrents behind him that we haven't yet detected.

Vidis felt a chill run down his spine and immediately understood the Grand Commander's deeper meaning.

This is not just about tracking, but about digging out the root causes that may lead to more "accidents" in the future.

"Understood! I will use all my intelligence networks to thoroughly investigate them."

Vidis's figure quickly disappeared into the dark corridor.

In the vast stone hall, only the Grand Commander remained, along with the dim torches on the walls that cast his shadow, sometimes long and sometimes short.

He slowly raised his hand, his fingertips tracing lines in the air, as if outlining the broken spatial trajectory, or perhaps reviewing the completely disrupted chess game.

"miner----"

He muttered those two words again, a barely perceptible, cold smile curving his lips.

"Interesting. It seems this sea has been dormant for too long; even the sediment at the very bottom is starting to churn."

Meanwhile, deep in the thick fog on the outskirts of Erbin Island.

A ship, resembling a giant ghost and covered in dark biomass armor, floats silently on the sea.

This is the ship that strikes fear into the hearts of countless seafarers – the "Ship of Sighs".

Inside the bridge, the light was dim, with only the eerie green or pale glow emitted by the organs of various unidentified creatures illuminating a few blurry figures.

A figure stood in front of a huge, eyeball-like observation window, outside which were the still-unresolved, distorted spatial turbulence from the direction of Harbin Island.

He was draped in a robe that seemed to be woven from shadows, and his presence blended seamlessly with the entire ship.

"Elder, Vidis of the Sanctuary has sent an encrypted communication request."

A hoarse voice came from behind, carrying an inhuman friction.

The figure addressed as elder did not turn around, but instead let out a soft laugh, like the wind passing through a hollow skull.

"Ha—that old fox from the 'Sanctuary' is moving even faster than I expected."

They claimed to know about the door and the doorman, and said they had ways to appease or circumvent it.

The reporter continued.

Should we respond?

The elder remained silent for a moment, his deep gaze reflected in the enormous "eyeball" observation window.

"Respond. Why aren't you responding?"

The elder's voice carried a hint of amusement.

"With the chessboard overturned and the pieces scattered all over the place, it's the perfect time to revise the rules."

Tell the messengers of the sanctuary that we are willing to listen. But the location—that is up to us.

He slowly turned around, and in the shadows, only two points of eerie light, like will-o'-the-wisps, could be seen flickering.

"Also, activate the Deep Diver."

We will search for that vanished space at all costs.

Those two miners—

That young man, in particular, was given the highest priority.

Now that the "core" has been activated, it means the "key" has appeared. Before the "door" can truly open, we must obtain the "key."

The ruins of Erbin Island, a temporary campsite.

Dila leaned against the dilapidated wall, the bandage around her chest soaked with blood, her face as pale as paper.

He listened to his remaining men report the losses, his eyes filled with rage and a hint of barely perceptible fear.

Lord Sorge has disappeared, the elite forces have suffered heavy losses, and the mission has been a complete failure.

All of this stemmed from two miners he could have easily crushed!

"try to find!"

He coughed violently, blood oozing from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes grew even more ferocious.

"Mobilize everyone who can still move and contact headquarters for reinforcements!"

Even if we have to turn this entire sea upside down, we must find that damned space and those two miners!

I will tear them to pieces!

However, beneath his furious roar lurked a chilling aura.

The ancient, vast, and all-consuming power that the young man felt when he activated the seal still resonates in his soul. That was something no ordinary miner could achieve.

Unknown space, floating fragments.

The old miners and the young people were enveloped in a faint light, drifting along in the bizarre and chaotic spatial currents.

Beneath their feet lay a massive rock that supported part of the mine's structure, like a lone boat in a storm.

The young man was unconscious. On his right arm, a complex mark, resembling both an electrical circuit and a rune, was faintly visible, emitting a dim light that resonated with the surrounding violent energy.

The old miner held the young man tightly, looking at the shattered scene around him and the marks on his arms, his eyes filled with despair and a kind of resigned acceptance.

"As expected—the legend is true—'Dark Blood' has awakened, and the 'Key' has appeared—"

He muttered to himself, murky tears sliding down his coal-dust-covered cheeks.

"It's over—everything is over—but it might also be—a new beginning—"

He raised his head and looked into the chaotic void that had no direction and no end. He gripped the young man's clothes tightly, as if he had grasped the only hope, or rather, the only lifeline.

The storm has already begun, and they are at its very heart.

All eyes are now on this vanished space, and on these two seemingly insignificant figures who now hold sway over the fate of the entire world.