Chapter 681 Clues from the Past

In the wondrous twilight of this subterranean world, Hao Ren and Vivian talked at length. They discussed the secrets hidden within Vivian and the creator goddess who, even after her demise, left behind countless mysteries and troubles for this world. Previously, Hao Ren had withheld much from Vivian, fearing it would cause her undue distress, but now, seizing this opportunity, he revealed many things.

One thing was certain: Vivian was far more than just the "ordinary bloodsucker" she believed herself to be. A disturbing shadow loomed behind her, and although no concrete evidence existed, the creator goddess's lingering power was intertwined with it.

This mysterious planet known as "Purgatory" might be the key stage for unveiling certain secrets.

Vivian's mentality had now become optimistic. She could even mock herself: "If I'm not a bloodsucker, I'm not a bloodsucker. There are plenty of bizarre races in this world, and every species has its struggles."

Hao Ren chuckled. "You're taking it well."

Vivian spread her hands. "We even have a husky at home who once thought she was a werewolf—Lili didn't stay down for long when she opened the door to a new life. I can't be less resilient than that baka."

Hao Ren was rendered speechless and quickly changed the subject. "Speaking of which, Gezer's people are the first to connect you with the creator goddess. Don't you think that's significant?"

Vivian raised an eyebrow. "What's so significant about that?"

"This isn't the only planet that worships the creator goddess," Hao Ren said, looking into Vivian's eyes, his tone gradually becoming serious. "Holletta also has a goddess faith, but their goddess is a chaotic, black-red mist. The wandering planet also had a goddess faith back then, but the database records the goddess as some kind of chaotic mental symbol. The Zolm people also once worshipped a goddess, and they even knew who their creator was until the planet suffered a disaster, but their goddess was also without a fixed form. Think about what that means."

Vivian frowned, suddenly recalling Gezer's reaction when he first "recognized" her: "It seems like the people here primarily identify me as the goddess based on my appearance?!"

"That's right. Although their fundamental evidence for identifying the goddess is divine artifacts like the 'Holy Blade,' their first reaction is to look at your appearance," Hao Ren nodded. "Before, when you were on Holletta, no matter how devout the Radiant Knights were, they didn't mistake you for the goddess. Even a guardian giant like Muuru didn't have any special reaction upon seeing you. But here… the locals kneel at the sight of your face. Don't you find that strange?"

Vivian's first reaction was to kick Hao Ren. "Can you talk properly?! What do you mean, kneel at the sight of my face?!"

Then, she seriously considered the question. "Well, thinking about Muuru puts me at ease. He wouldn't fail to recognize his own 'mother's' aura, so I don't need to worry about being some kind of vessel for the creator goddess's revival. As for the locals here… there's only one explanation: their ancestors personally witnessed the 'goddess' descend, and that goddess had my face."

As Vivian finished speaking, both Hao Ren and she fell silent for a few seconds. Finally, Hao Ren couldn't help but speak. "That's quite a bit of information."

Vivian sighed. "Are you suggesting that any of the things we've been discussing for the past half hour haven't been significant?"

At this moment, Lili's boisterous voice suddenly came from the side, interrupting Hao Ren and Vivian's conversation. "What are you two doing here?"

Hao Ren turned his head and saw Lili standing behind him, full of energy, holding a giant bag of spicy sticks, her face smeared with oil. He couldn't help but say to her, "Can't you eat less of that stuff? It's greasy and bad for you."

Lili glanced at the spicy sticks in her hand and stubbornly turned her face away. "No, it's a necessity."

Hao Ren was speechless.

This was the first time in his life he had heard of someone making spicy sticks a necessity!

"Necessity it is, then," Hao Ren waved his hand, admitting defeat to Lili's worldview. "By the way, what's up?"

"Oh, right," Lili slapped her head. "I almost forgot—that guy named Gezer is looking for you everywhere, saying he has something to report."

"Report?" Hao Ren and Vivian exchanged puzzled glances, wondering what the tribal warrior had come up with this time. Vivian frowned with a troubled expression. "To be honest, I really don't want to meet him. Pretending to be a god is already stressful enough, let alone having to pretend to be someone else's god. What if he asks me about the creation of the world later? What am I supposed to say?"

Hao Ren hadn't thought of that. He could only try to attribute the situation to Raven 12345 and realized that if it were that female lunatic, her response to her followers would definitely be: "Why don't you f\*\*\*ing Google it?!"—obviously, that style wouldn't suit Vivian. So, he could only shake his head. "Just tell him that you split the heavens and earth with an axe. They don't know Pangu anyway. But I don't think Gezer is looking for you to ask about the creation of the world. I don't think the natives here have reached the intellectual level to study how the universe came to be."

Vivian nodded with a bitter face. She had been forced into the role of the local goddess, and to ensure the smooth progress of the upcoming exploration, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and interact with the locals.

Lili immediately ran off to call Gezer over, then started watching the fun from the side with her "necessity" in hand.

As expected, Gezer's first reaction upon seeing Vivian was to prostrate himself in a full bow. This time, he was well-prepared and practiced, making the bow even more sincere than the first time. Vivian could only grit her teeth and accept the human's homage, trying to adjust her mindset to the time thousands of years ago when she was worshipped in temples by Earth's natives. She nodded solemnly. "No need to be so polite—I heard you had something to say?"

"Yes," Gezer stood up respectfully. "I heard you are investigating outsiders…"

It turned out that when Hesperides and Nangong Sanba were wandering around the settlement earlier, they mentioned Baptiste to a few tribal warriors. They probably only mentioned it casually, not expecting the tribesmen to actually help find a missing wizard in such a vast area. However, Gezer took the initiative to come over after hearing the news: this tribal warrior seemed to know something.

"Your people encountered that wizard?" Hao Ren asked Gezer in surprise.

"I don't know what a 'wizard' is," Gezer shook his head. "And our warriors didn't encounter any strangers while hunting. I just happened to remember that there was once an outsider who came to this place, but that was hundreds of years ago."

"Hundreds of years ago?" A line in Hao Ren's mind clicked into place. "Quick, tell me the details!"

"The elders still occasionally mention her," Gezer said, nodding. "It is said that she was a woman who fell from the Pillar of Eternity. She claimed to be a 'witch,' a woman who understands magic. She could fly, create paper with symbols and words that generated power, and use magic and potions to treat diseases. She fell from the Pillar of Eternity guarded by the Fire Tribe around four hundred years ago. She was severely injured at the time, but the Fire Saintess healed her with the power of the totem. That woman said she came from another world. I think that's the kind of 'outsider' you're looking for, right?"

"Four hundred years in this world should correspond to about eight hundred years on Earth," Hao Ren quickly said to Vivian. "It seems that the wizard named Baptiste started becoming active in the world around that time as well?"

"A little later, but the dates are close," Vivian nodded slightly. "We can assume that these two events are related."

"What happened to that witch later? Is she still alive?" Hao Ren asked Gezer urgently.

"She died a long time ago," Gezer replied truthfully. "According to the elders, the Fire Saintess extended the 'witch's' life by seventeen years, but she was already contaminated by the miasma and toxins at the top of the Pillar of Eternity when she fell, so she didn't live long."

Vivian's curiosity was completely piqued. "Where is she buried? Did she leave any relics behind?"