Chapter 1 The News from Gazel

The news brought by Gazel temporarily diverted Hao Ren and the others' attention from the strange history of this planet, refocusing it on the missing wizard. Hao Ren still remembered his original purpose in bringing everyone to this world – to find Baptiste and extract the secrets of the evil spirit Vivian and the summoning ritual from the wizard's mouth. However, after witnessing the incredible reality of the Purgatory Planet, he had become distracted for a while.

The "witch" mentioned by Gazel tugged at Hao Ren's nerves. The timing of the "witch's" fall from the Eternal Pillar coincided with Baptiste's activity on Earth and the beginning of a series of Purgatory experiments. Moreover, Baptiste's desperate desire to reach the second level of Purgatory was likely related to that witch. Vivian inquired about the witch's final resting place and learned that she had been buried in the Fire Tribe's territory.

Hao Ren couldn't wait to investigate everything: "How far is the Fire Tribe from here?"

"At the other end of the prairie, at the confluence of the earth's spiritual veins," Gazel replied in the rhetoric typical of a tribesman, "where the spirit of the mountain and the spirit of the wind converge. A magnificent Eternal Pillar supports the sky there, and a part of the Fire Tribe has been guarding that place for generations."

Then he pointed in a certain direction: "Go in this direction, and it will take sixty-six days and nights at a leisurely pace on horseback. The place where the hot wind blows is it."

"We don't have time to walk there slowly," Hao Ren frowned. "Gazel, do you know anyone who can negotiate with the Fire Tribe?"

"You're going there?" Gazel widened his eyes, then revealed a look of realization. "Oh, right, you have the miracle of traveling a thousand miles in an instant. I can lead the way for you. The tribal warriors of several tribes are all familiar with each other and abide by the ancient alliance. We can visit each other's Eternal Pillars."

Hao Ren nodded and casually tossed the data terminal into the air, "Then it's best not to delay, let's just transmi..."

"I must speak with the elder," Gazel said quickly. "Since we are going to another tribe, I should inform the elder."

Hao Ren nodded: "Okay, go ahead… Wait, I'll go with you, and I can ask the old man if he knows anything about the witch."

Elder Gotalug was still in his yurt. This respected and knowledgeable old man could no longer tolerate the cold evening wind outside, so he would not leave his house after the clouds began to fade. He was very surprised by Hao Ren and Vivian's sudden visit and seemed quite apprehensive, so he quickly stopped what he was doing and stood up to greet them. Hao Ren noticed that a large number of tough, parchment-like writing materials were spread out on the old man's low table, and the ancient scroll he had seen before was open to the side. If he remembered correctly, that scroll recorded all the history and myths: the part that the natives of this world could still remember.

Gotalug was copying these sacred classics—in fact, this was one of his missions as a tribal leader. The scroll was a sacred object that every tribe possessed, and each elder was responsible for protecting the scroll. When they grew old and felt that their days were numbered, they would begin to copy the knowledge on these scrolls, making a new copy to pass on to their successor. The tribal elders possessed a magical predictive ability that allowed them to foresee their death date almost precisely, so they could always complete this sacred task perfectly in the final stage of their lives.

In this incredible underground sanctuary, the few remaining human survivors passed on ancient knowledge and memories in this way, generation after generation. Although some loss was inevitable, and although this inheritance seemed fragile and unreliable, it had truly been passed down to this day.

Gazel showed a solemn expression when he saw the paper and pens, and then conveyed Hao Ren and Vivian's intentions.

"Oh, the witch, the witch from hundreds of years ago…" Although Gotalug was old, his mind was still sharp, and he nodded repeatedly. "Many people still know about her. Gazel, take my 'mark' and give it to Bernia of the Fire Tribe. Be sure to explain the situation and do not neglect our gods."

As he spoke, he handed Gazel a wooden ornament that looked like a pendant, while Hao Ren casually asked, "Speaking of which, did that witch do anything earth-shattering? Has her story been passed down for hundreds of years?"

"She fell from the Eternal Pillar, and that alone is enough to go down in history," Gotalug nodded repeatedly. "And she brought a lot of novel and interesting knowledge, and once saved the Fire Tribe… You will know when you get there."

Hao Ren said goodbye to Gotalug with a bit of doubt and anticipation, and then took Gazel away from the Wind Tribe's settlement. As everyone found an open space and prepared to teleport over, Gazel asked curiously, "How are we going to get there? Are we still using that very fast 'divine chariot'?"

"No, we're teleporting this time," Hao Ren pointed to the data terminal floating in the air. "I had a probe search in the direction you said, and it's already found the Fire Tribe's settlement. We can teleport directly there."

Gazel thought about it and decided that this must be another miracle.

Everyone stood within the teleportation range, and the data terminal enveloped them in a ball of light. The next moment, dizziness and distorted scenes came at the same time. When these calmed down, Hao Ren and the others had arrived at the foot of another Celestial Pillar Tree.

A Celestial Pillar Tree, no different in appearance from the Wind Tribe's Eternal Pillar, supported the sky. At the foot of the giant pillar was a continuous black mountain range, and unlike the Wind Tribe's home, the temperature around this Eternal Pillar was significantly higher—as if they had gone from a cool temperate zone to a tropical one. The plants around the Celestial Pillar Tree here were obviously sparse, and large areas of land around the tree's roots were exposed. The soil had a strange reddish tint, giving people a strange feeling of heat.

There was a reason why the tribe living here was called the "Fire Tribe."

Although the various tribes basically maintained a nomadic lifestyle, not all humans were constantly migrating on the prairie. They had their own general range of activity, and some tribal members would stay at the foot of a certain Celestial Pillar Tree for a long time: they regarded the corresponding Celestial Pillar Tree as the foundation of their tribe. The Celestial Pillar Tree in front of them was the Fire Tribe's "totem."

The tribal customs of this world were very complicated, and it would take days and nights to explain the knowledge about religion and tradition. Hao Ren only learned some from Gazel, but it was still far from a deep understanding.

The Fire Tribe's settlement was at the foot of the Celestial Pillar Tree, and the lights in the settlement could already be vaguely seen from here. Hao Ren and the others arrived quickly, and at this time, the night had just fallen, and the people in the settlement had not yet rested.

Gazel had just recovered from the dizzying spatial teleportation. He looked at the familiar scenery not far away, a little confused, and it took him a while to realize that he had crossed "sixty-six days of travel" in the blink of an eye, and he was immediately stunned—if Hesperides hadn't poked him in the back with her whip, he probably could have stayed there for another half an hour.

"Don't alarm too many people," Hao Ren grabbed Gazel and earnestly instructed, "We're mainly here for the 'witch' thing. Just let the tribal warriors and the elder know. If possible, take us directly to the place where the witch is buried."

Gazel nodded vigorously to show that he understood, and then quickly ran towards the settlement not far away. His figure was like the wind, and he quickly disappeared into a hazy darkness. Before long, Hao Ren saw him leading a small group of people out of the village in a flurry—including the Fire Tribe's elder. Unlike Gotalug, this elder was in his prime, even stronger than those tribal warriors. After hearing the news of the goddess's arrival, he started running from the door of his yurt, accelerating to seventy yards in just over three seconds, it was said…

After that, the process of pushing Vivian out to take the blame was basically the same. In short, after a series of hectic rituals that made the person involved's head spin, the scene finally quieted down. Hao Ren didn't have time to get to know the elder and warriors from the Fire Tribe one by one. He went straight to the point and mentioned his intention, and Gazel pushed a little girl who looked only ten years old or so out from behind the crowd: "This is the Fire Tribe's contemporary Saintess, her name is Bernia, and she can take you to the temple inside the Eternal Pillar."