The weird howl lasted for a full five or six seconds before slowly weakening under the pale faces of everyone.
Only the echo was left, floating in the dark and empty hall, faint and chilling.
"What's wrong?"
Ricky frowned and shouted softly: "Repay!"
The Swords of Disaster all turned their heads, nervously searching for the source of the scream.
More than a dozen torches were raised high, illuminating the surroundings. The group was like adventurers exploring the wilderness, nervously wary of the unfamiliar unknown.
Thales exited the hell senses in shock: except for the dust in the darkness, the old stone table, and the cell full of bones, he saw nothing.
Orders were passed from level to level, from the hall to the tightly guarded stone steps.
"No," after a while, the voice of mercenary Sonny came from behind:
"They are not our people, and everything will be normal in the future."
The doubt on Ricky's face deepened.
On the other side, Zhuozi whispered a few words to a subordinate who appeared at an unknown time. He watched the latter retreat into the darkness again, and then raised his head solemnly:
"Not us either."
"But something else."
Ricky turned to Samuel and cast a questioning look at the former star noble.
Samir seemed to have discovered something. He looked at the iron sign next to the Iron Curtain with a little surprise, and then looked at a hanging ring next to the iron sign: "So this is..."
But at this moment.
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
That heart-rending scream like a ghost's cry came faintly from the darkness again!
Everyone’s hearts tightened again!
This time, the terrifying "ghost scream" was accompanied by a harsh and unbearable scratching sound: "唏婷叏"
Almost everyone frowned subconsciously, and some even covered their ears.
"What the hell!"
Russell twisted his face: "What are you doing!"
Amidst the unpleasant noise, Ricky clenched the hilt of his sword, suppressing his emotions and asked Samuel: "Do you think this has anything to do with the Alchemy Tower?"
"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"
Thales gritted his teeth, feeling that the sound made his nerves extremely nervous.
Just like, just like the sound of nails scraping against the blackboard in the memory of the previous life...
Thinking of this, he was suddenly stunned.
Scratch the blackboard?
At this time, Samir, who was thinking hard, suddenly spoke:
"I know what this is!"
Samir turned around with a happy expression on his face, like a lost person in the desert who has found a source of water:
"This is, this is the sound of nails scratching on rough metal!"
I saw Samir touching the metal iron curtain and excitedly said: "It's coming from behind here!"
Everyone was shocked!
Countless pairs of eyes looked at the strange iron curtain.
Thales looked at the iron sign beside the iron curtain and entered the hell sense:
[Angelo, male, born in Worraland in 22 years.]
[Jailed in 1953, charged with: murder, robbery, theft, murder of nobles, illegal gathering of people.]
[Finalizer: Emerald City Judge Johnny Brennan]
[Customer: Viscount Gonghai City Sona Kevindir.]
[Customer: Garrett Luman, Baron of Blade Tooth Camp.]
Imprisoned in 1953...
Thales frowned slightly.
There is another name on the iron plate:
[Fowler, male, born in 3 years ago somewhere in Eastern China.]
[Jailed in 1953, charged with: smuggling, theft, tax evasion.]
[Finalizer: Emerald City Judge Johnny Brennan]
[Customer: Viscount Gonghai City Sona Kevindir.]
[Customer: Garrett Luman, Baron of Blade Tooth Camp.]
[Note: Died in 1972.]
Ricky figured something out. He looked at the Iron Curtain and then at the iron sign next to him, with surprise on his face: "So, the prisoner mentioned on the sign, the lone thief, he, he is still alive?"
The painful howls and scratching sounds gradually weakened and turned into a low drawl.
"Woo"
This time, Thales recognized it: it was someone's sobs, and their pitch changed after passing through the thick iron plate.
Everyone's eyes were focused on the Iron Curtain and what was behind it.
"I understand," Samuel walked to the center of the Iron Curtain in front of everyone and looked up and down at this special room shrouded by the Iron Curtain in the light of the fire. "This is the mechanism of the black prison. I didn't know it was the Alchemy Tower."
Yes, it was transformed by the later Star People."
"The cells we saw earlier were full of corpses, but those were actually empty cells. And this one, these with iron curtains, are the cells with 'residents'," Samir stared at the wall carefully.
The lifting ring, his voice was slightly heavy: "This lifting ring is the switch that controls this iron curtain."
Behind the Iron Curtain, the deformed sobs continued faintly.
Listening to Samuel's words, Thales looked around at everything in this hall with complicated emotions. His eyes passed through the thick dust and passed by those things that may have been thousands of years ago. They looked inconspicuous, but they were unique.
craftsmanship.
"A senior member of the Belletti royal guard is the chief punishment officer who succeeded Sakel after his promotion. He is responsible for escorting royal prisoners to the Prison of Bones. He told me many years ago that the criminals in the black prison will bear the consequences.
I have never understood the two pains of death and survival, and I only understand them today.”
Samir's hand gently touched the hanging ring, which was lined with a layer of dust, and his tone was erratic: "When the living prisoners were locked in, the iron curtain rose, isolating them from the light and the hall; and from the ground,
The supplies dropped at the entrance of the cave will only fall behind the Iron Curtain and into these prison cells where there are still living people."
He looked around in disbelief at the other empty cells, his eyes passing over the dry bones behind the bars.
"On the one hand, it exaggerates the despair of being isolated from the world, and on the other hand, it gives hope of survival."
"Two kinds of pain."
Samir said blankly, his face looked very ugly.
Everyone fell silent.
Former Baron Russell on one side looked solemn: "This prisoner behind the Iron Curtain, why doesn't he speak or call for help, only screams and scratches?"
The driller arched his shoulders and said nothing.
The one who answered him was Josh, who was rescued by the Sword of Disaster.
"Because he can't."
Josh shook his head, leaving Russell slightly startled.
"It's just like practicing swordsmanship. If you don't practice for a day, your hand will become useless."
"As I said, when you stay in a lonely cell isolated from the rest of the world for too long, longer than expected..." The Sword of Disaster, who had just been released from the Bone Prison, looked at everyone.
A person, and everyone who was swept by his gaze felt a chill in their hearts:
"Believe me, you will lose more than just time and freedom."
Thales stared at the cell behind the Iron Curtain and felt that the air here was much colder.
"What the hell," Clay stared at the iron curtain with stern eyes, paying attention to the movement behind it. "The Prison of Bones, is this place... does it want people to die or live?"
No one answered.
There were only faint sobs.
Do you want people to die or live?
Thales stared at the iron curtain, worried.
After a few seconds, the driller sighed: "Or neither."
Ricky twitched his lips and interrupted the suppressed conversation: "I think we are on the right track."
He turned around.
"keep going."
Following his figure, the Swords of Disaster took action one after another.
"Are we just going to leave and ignore the prisoner behind here?" Russell frowned and looked at the Iron Curtain.
The driller shook his head and smiled disdainfully:
"Why bother?"
With unspeakable emotions, everyone turned around.
Thales glanced at the Iron Curtain for the last time, feeling heavy.
The firelight retreated from the hall in the darkness.
Leaving behind the iron curtain, and the increasingly painful and desolate sobs.
Their journey is still continuing, but obviously, the recent discovery has inspired the Swords of Disaster who had already set their sights.
Soon, they went down step by step, and the halls they passed became larger and larger, and each hall contained more and more cells, from nine, ten, to more than a dozen, or more than twenty...
What makes Thales uneasy is that more than one of these cells is covered by an iron curtain.
That is to say...
"We have found a way." He didn't know how many floors there were. Samir frowned and looked at another iron curtain in front of him. He looked at the sign above and said, "The real black jails are all below the tenth floor."
Clay nodded, ignoring the frantic slapping sounds behind the curtain.
"It seems that's right."
Ricky straightened up from the iron plate with the prisoner's profile written on the other side.
[Tak Peng, male, born in Sodala City in 1930.]
[Jailed for 10 years, charged with: robbery, gathering a crowd to rebel.]
[Finalizer: High King Kessel Shining Star]
[Customer: Honorary Baronet, Claus Chatham.]
[Customer::Baron of Blade Tooth Camp, Roman Williams.]
Thales looked at these iron plates with a depressed mood.
Except for the lone thief at the beginning, they went down layer by layer, and along the way, cells containing real people could be seen everywhere.
Without exception, these cells are all shrouded behind heavy iron curtains. Some of them are only cries of pain, and some of them can hardly recognize one or two human cries for help...
In some cases, there is only dead silence.
In these prisons, according to the vague iron plate and what Samir said, there were female countesses who murdered their husbands and children, big pirates who privately plundered merchant ships without permission, frustrated nobles who rebelled privately, and people who fought all night long.
A blood-related avenger who killed thirty-four people.
But Ricky ignored the prisoners and continued on.
And the further down they go, the more serious and terrifying the culpability of the repeat offenders becomes, the more complex and difficult to understand, and the more treacherous and difficult to judge.
Thales walked through one floor after another, one cell after another, and one iron curtain after another. Among the prisoners, he saw the heroes who robbed military supplies and rescued the people during the war in the Year of Blood. He also saw the heroes in the war.
Li killed the incompetent Shangguan, then led his troops to kill the enemy, and finally won the victory.
There are even great aristocrats who are generous, kind, noble in character, help those in need for free, and have high reputations.
"Why lock him up?"
Northland swordsman Clay stood in the cell where the nobleman and his subordinates were imprisoned, frowning at the iron curtain and the iron plate: "According to what you said, he is generous, kind, philanthropic, and has a good reputation. Is this wrong?"
"Of course it's wrong," Russell stood aside and said coldly: "Because his ancestors were established by a certain prince and were close relatives of the royal family who inherited the blood of the Bright Star."
“In the eyes of contemporary kings, this is called ‘ambitious and evil-intentioned’.”
"Did I tell you that from the Iron Thorn Queen to Sumer I, from Elliga to the Red King, the most indispensable thing in the history of the stars is the bloody power struggle?"
Thales's heart moved, and he glanced at the fast rope far away on the other side.
Samir on the side paused for a moment, then he hummed softly and continued to move forward.
Along the way, they saw huge embezzlers who had made both great contributions and great mistakes to the kingdom; temple priests who promoted the theory of oneness of gods and the theory of mortal destiny; historians who insisted on going back to the era of the Red King and reopening old taboo cases.
"And this one, I remember him. This is a scholar who was thrown in after writing a few books." Zhuozi looked at a cell and said with a smile: "It seems that he was locked up with a nobleman who provoked a private war. It seems that
It’s been thirty years…”
Hearing this, Thales couldn't help but say:
"Scholar? Why?"
Samir came from behind and said coldly: "Because he wrote a book."
"Insisting that civil rights are higher than royal power, and popular authority is higher than divine authority."
Thales was startled for a moment and was speechless.
"Your grandfather did not take his life, but just threw him here. It was very merciful, Your Highness."
The look in Samuel's eyes made Thales quite uneasy.
"The stories of each of these people are extremely complex, mysterious, and legendary, enough to make the bards write sleeplessly for three days and three nights while being ecstatic," Samir looked at the iron men in front of him with strange eyes.
There is something in the words of the curtain cell:
"Many times, the kingdom cannot determine their life or death based solely on existing laws and guilt."
Thales frowned silently: "So, you mean, the Prison of Bones is..."
But Samir just interrupted him and said silently:
"Now, they are closed behind these iron curtains, waiting for time to kill themselves."
Samir still stared closely at Thales, his eyes sharp and full of unspeakable emotions.
The anxious Thales had to look away.
"I was wondering, if these more or less shady felons were released and held in hand, would it be possible to attack the Kingdom of Stars..." Russell rubbed his chin, thoughtfully.
"That's not our goal," Ricky interrupted him coldly:
"As our guest, you don't have to do anything extra."
Russell sneered dissatisfied.
In the darkness, Dozi coughed, attracting everyone's attention.
"I don't know if you have noticed," said the driller with squinted eyes: "The empty cells on the top floors are filled with dry skeletons."
"And now," he turned around and looked at the scene behind several empty cells:
"The empty cells in front of us are full of mummies, and some of them still have a slight smell."
Ricky's expression changed.
"you mean……"
"Either, these are prisoners who have been dead for a few years," Zhuozi said with a solemn expression, "Or, we are already very deep underground, where even the decay of corpses is much slower."
Very deep underground.
Thales's mood sank to the bottom.
The driller slowly expressed his intention: "Dear Crassus, if we continue searching aimlessly like this, are you sure we can still return to the ground and evacuate safely within the limited time?"
Ricky remained expressionless and raised the torch:
"How long have we been gone?"
Clay on the side replied silently: "It's been more than half an hour, and I have descended a total of eighteen floors."
Ricky remained silent and looked at Samuel.
Samir shook his head, his eyes still firm: "It should be soon."
"We have to find him to have answers."
Ricky was silent for a while, then nodded solemnly.
So everyone turned around again, looking for the unknown target.
The drill boy smiled helplessly, realizing that his reminder had no effect.
"This place is too big, they can't find it." Russell snorted and followed.
"Yes, it's too big, but what surprised me most is that although the air is dull and the smell is unpleasant," the driller said to Russell next to him, "I don't feel it's difficult to breathe."
"Look at this building, the Institute of Confinement, right?"
Zhuozi looked around and sighed to Russell, who was getting impatient: "The people at that time, the so-called mages, must have been very powerful."
Thales's heart moved.
He saw Ricky walking in front discussing something with Samir.
"Yes," Thales walked to the drill as if nothing had happened and sighed sincerely: "I think so too. Such a large building is buried deep underground, and everything is meticulously done in terms of preservation, layout, and ventilation."
The driller glanced at Thales in surprise.
This was the first time that His Highness the Prince took the initiative to talk to him.
Thales smiled and said: "My father told me about the Prison of Bones. According to him, mages are really magical existences and can surprise you all the time."
surprise.
Sure enough, the next second, Thales saw that the driller's face changed.
Their search did not last long.
Soon, on the next floor, they came to an unprecedented hall.
The same dusty ground, the same ruins, and the same thick stone pillars. Thales looked around and saw nearly thirty cells.
Five of them were wrapped in thick iron curtains, with no fences or prisoners behind them.
Samir stood in front of one of the cells and raised a torch.
At that second, Thales clearly heard the sound of Samuel's breathing trembling suddenly in the quiet darkness.
The torch in his hand flickered.
"That's right," Samuel's voice trembled slightly:
"This is...our goal."
Everyone who was originally exhausted suddenly became excited, and Ricky stepped forward quickly and looked at each iron plate with a serious expression.
Thales entered the hell sense and tried his best to see the iron sign clearly.
[Little Quill Barney, male, born in Yongxing City in 3 years.]
[Jailed for 10 years, charged with collaborating with the enemy.]
[Finalizer: High King Kessel Shining Star]
[Customer: Lord of Wasteland City, Guardian Duke of Western Wasteland, Cyril Falkenhausz]
[Customer: Lord of Huigang City, Duke of East China Sea Guardian Bob Cullen]
[Customer: Lord of the Emerald City and Guardian Duke of the South Coast, Leinster Kelvindir]
[Customer: Lord of Cold Castle, Warden Duke of the North Val Arend]
[Customer: Honorable Lord Alaka Mu.]
[Customer: Sonia Satherley.]
[Supervisor: Roman Williams]
Quill Barney Jr.
Who is this?
Seeing this iron plate, the time he was admitted to prison, and the unusual names of the convict and the prisoner on it, Thales' doubts became more intense.
besides.
The crime is...
Collaboration?
"Wow," the driller's voice sounded from the side, seeming to understand: "This is the little Barney..."
Samir took a deep breath, knocked on one of the iron curtains, and turned back in front of the last iron sign:
“Is there a way to open the Iron Curtain?”
"Five cells...all of them!"
Ricky smiled.
He took out the long "key" again and walked to the stone pillar in the center of the hall.
The dust was blown away, revealing the emblem of the Alchemy Tower in the firelight.
Ricky put the key into the central round hole as before, waited for it to bulge, and then turned it.
"Kara."
An unpleasant mechanical sound sounded.
The next second.
Rumble...
As the sound of friction sounded, the torches in the hall swayed in unison!
I saw a lot of dust suddenly falling at the junction of the five iron curtains and the ceiling.
Rumble...
There was a rubbing sound.
Soon, Thales noticed that there was a gap between the iron curtain and the ceiling, and metal fences were exposed in the gap.
It also revealed the darkness behind it.
decline.
Thales thought to himself: The Iron Curtain is falling.
He couldn't help but clenched his fists.
Rumble...
Gradually, the Iron Curtain fell further and further, making an unpleasant friction sound.
Firelight shines on the metal railings exposed behind the Iron Curtain.
Compared with the empty cells, these bars were obviously untouched by dust and reflected a smooth metallic sheen.
Rumble...
But the fire only illuminated a small part of the cell, and there was still darkness behind the bars.
An unpleasant smell came from behind the Iron Curtain.
But everyone didn't pay attention. They concentrated on staring at the five cells with the Iron Curtain lowered.
Rumble...
Finally, the Iron Curtain got lower and lower, and finally fell completely to the ground, almost invisible.
Boom.
With a muffled sound, Thales knew: the Iron Curtain was completely opened.