Chapter 282 Shadow Intermediate

Athens, one of the oldest historical cities on Earth that has survived to this day and is still in use. When human beings stumbled into the gate of civilization from the primitive era of slash-and-burn farming, when for the first time human beings no longer worried about food, clothing, warmth and wild beasts in the wilderness, when the earliest philosophers and wise men appeared among human beings, when human beings began to use words and mystery to Using religious symbols to express their thoughts and wonder about the world, city-states began to rise and kingdoms began to be built. The earliest thinkers who broke away from basic production devoted their abundant brainpower to huge stones and carefully designed vaults, and used high walls, columns, vaults, and stairs made of rocks to build cities that symbolized human power. Their courtyards are decorated with reliefs and statues full of religious mysteries. From the beginning, the buildings were simply used to shelter from wind and rain and to resist wild beasts. They have evolved into various additional functions and even simple symbolic meanings. The ancient and glorious boulders Building complexes rose from the ground and quickly became one of the most incredible creations on the planet.

However, cities are not the only symbol of glory for human beings. There is another group of creatures coexisting with humans on this planet, although they have been hiding in the shadows either actively or forcibly, and are even completely unknown to human beings today. Although their bodies have disappeared, they are still active in the history of this planet. The history books of mankind will not remember them, but another history book made of stone and wood will not forget them: the city.

The older the city, the more traces of the ancients are left behind. The oldest cities have even been completely integrated with the creatures in the shadows and cannot be separated. These cities are not only the homes of humans, but also the territories of many dark creatures. ——No matter how much the demon hunters and the church reject this, they must also admit that there are still a large number of lairs occupied by aliens on this planet. These lairs have been built hard by aliens from the beginning, and they will never do anything about it. Give in. In an era when various myths, legends and historical records were confusing and intertwined, a small number of aliens lived completely openly with humans and built these spectacular ancient cities. Compared to the majority, which maintained an absolutely brutal rule over humans, These powerful creatures who regard humans as domestic animals are considered rare "moderates", so they are worshiped as protective gods by the people on earth. The entire city even exists to worship a certain person. A powerful and benevolent "god", this situation lasted for thousands of years. It was not until humans broke out of this captivity with the help of witchers that half of the founders of these cities were driven into the shadows. .

No one now believes that the city's ruined temples were once inhabited by supernatural beings.

But as mentioned earlier, these cities have been the homes of some aliens from the beginning. They have built it with their own hands, maintained it, and even went to war for it. They didn't really leave the city, they just rebuilt the fortress and hid it in a corner where humans couldn't detect it.

A group of people were slowly approaching an entrance to the fortress.

Hao Ren and his party refreshed themselves in the hotel where they stayed, and set out with Vivian today to find a strange person who is also said to have survived from the mythical age. He is one of the few acquaintances of Vivian. She lived in the oldest area of ​​the city, and it had been a long time since everyone got off the bus.

"Are you sure the person we are looking for is in this direction?" Hao Ren looked up again at the familiar old streets around him, questioning Vivian's sense of direction for the third time, "If you are right, this is the third time we have See this stone wall.”

"Just walk like this, in a circle," Vivian nodded, "Athens is a very special place. Many alien survivors have made their home here, but they need to use special methods to find them - the Witcher has never searched here. It hasn’t stopped, and all the daredevils who can’t hide themselves have long since died.”

Hao Ren could only nod and continue to follow Vivian in circles on the oldest streets of the Acropolis, unknowingly getting closer and closer to the more ancient depths of the city. Occasionally, he looked up and looked around in boredom. When he saw those old buildings that he could no longer tell whether they were historical relics or ancient buildings imitated and repaired by modern people, he would suddenly have a strange illusion that transcended time. He felt as if he was walking in the middle of a slideshow arranged backwards along the history of mankind. The further he walked, the more he saw the scenery of the past.

On Earth, the truly original ancient cities no longer exist. Even the city of Athens is an advanced city that has been repackaged and repackaged by modern civilization. What a group of people saw most when wandering around the bustling urban area was the city of Athens. The skyscrapers and bustling shopping malls that were the same as other modern cities once disappointed Lily, who was very excited. However, after everyone followed Vivian along the way and slowly left the newly established city area and entered some of the more primitive areas of Athens, they finally got their wish to see ancient Greek-style stone pillars and sculptures - whether they were real Historical relics are also imitations restored by later generations. These things are intertwined and embedded in the cracks of the city's new buildings, making people unable to help but feel a strong sense of history.

The further you move towards the older areas of the Acropolis, the stronger this sense of history becomes. In the end, the retro-style houses simply become the most important buildings on both sides, and the exquisite sculptures are almost complete. Modern signs such as impetuous neon signs and station signs were replaced, and as Vivian led everyone deeper into the street, this change became more and more profound, until finally Hao Ren finally felt a trace of disobedience. Feeling coming.

He looked at the streets on both sides. This street was still vaguely familiar, as if he had passed by it two or three times an hour ago. But if he looked carefully, he would find that the scenes on both sides of the street were changing in detail, and the street lights disappeared. The colorful shop signs are fading, the concrete floors on the road have turned into neat and flat stone slabs at some point, and the sun that should have been hanging in the east has moved to the west at some point.

Lily, a very nervous girl, was a little strange: "Hey, the atmosphere around me doesn't seem right. There are fewer and fewer passers-by."

Even though this is a relatively old neighborhood, it is by no means a desolate area. When everyone first came to this area, there were still many pedestrians around, but at some point, the flow of people on both sides of the road became less and less. This change was subtle, and it wasn't until the number of pedestrians on the road became unnaturally small that Lily realized something was wrong. Hao Ren looked at the increasingly weird scenes around him strangely, and found that even the existing pedestrians on the road were a little strange: they were walking aimlessly on the road like zombies, and no one could be seen talking to each other. I couldn't see anyone stopping to do anything of their own. They were like a "landscape" deliberately arranged by someone, just to ensure that this street would not be too weird.

"We are already close to the shadow layer. We must be careful if we go forward," Vivian slowed down. "Don't open any door on the roadside, let alone go to any corner where the sun doesn't shine. , don’t talk to any passers-by, and most importantly – don’t go beyond my steps. This begins a maze, and if you take a wrong turn, you will fall into the trap of the shadow world.”

Finally, she specially reminded Yzaks: "Big man, please pay attention. These shadow layers were created by the strongest aliens for thousands of years. Even you may be trapped in them."

Yzaks nodded cautiously, while Hao Ren felt a little fussy: "I'll go... What you guys are doing is like a ghost movie..."

"All the aliens who have survived so far are divided into two types. One is a lone party like me, and the other is a group. The latter must have some skills to form a family under the current situation," Vivian smiled lightly. He said, "This place is one of the few remaining settlements. It has been in business for thousands of years. The layers of defense methods are no joke. Even the demon hunters can't do anything about this place. Well, at least there is nothing they can do for the time being." "

Everyone continued to walk through this alley that seemed to be going in circles, but the surrounding scenery was changing every moment. Every time you took a step, the buildings and decorations on both sides of the road would be so subtle. A little bit of change, and this change is becoming more and more obvious. It seems that as it continues to approach a certain "shadow medium", this street can no longer hide its abnormality. Hao Ren noticed that the modern buildings on both sides of the road had completely disappeared at some point. Houses made of stone were leaning out from both sides at weird tilt angles. It seemed that these cold stones were looking at them curiously. Everyone is ordinary. Between these buildings, you can still occasionally see signs and road signs with a little bit of modernity, but they have all faded out of color and are as weird as black and white photos. Hao Ren turned around and looked in the direction he came from. He saw a mist and could no longer find the intersection.

Everyone finally stopped in front of a strange shop, which was the last remaining "modern house" on this street.

A beautiful woman in black clothes with a gloomy expression stood in front of the door waiting for them. She smiled at Vivian: "Long time no see, Your Majesty the Countess."

"It's really hard to find you in this place," Vivian stepped forward and said, "Hesperus."

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