NOVEL NEXT Chapter 305: Chapter 305: The Hanged Man's Warning
Accompanied by a sharp, pounding headache, Jeremy felt a surge of information flood into his mind. Although passing through the portal had taken only a brief moment, the overwhelming flow of data made Jeremy feel as though he had experienced a far longer passage of time.
When he emerged from the portal, his mind was in a fog, his thoughts scattered.
"What's wrong? You don't look well. Did something happen to your body?" the God of War and Ritchie asked in unison, concern etched on their faces.
Jeremy shook his head, still trying to regain his composure. Though he hadn't fully recovered, he knew he had to appear calm in front of his companions.
"My body is fine. It's probably just the instability of the portal causing me some headaches. But I'm feeling better now. We should assess our surroundings. We need to figure out where we are as quickly as possible."
Jeremy's words snapped both Ritchie and the God of War back to the pressing matter at hand. They needed to identify their current location immediately.
The environment around them was strange, unlike anything they had encountered before. While they could still sense a presence of High-Dimensional Data, it seemed to be cloaked in a thick mist, a fog that was unlike the familiar historical mists they had encountered in the Tower of Exile.
After surveying the area, Jeremy began to suspect that they were no longer inside the Tower of Exile.
"Could it be that we've been forced out of the Tower of Exile? Did the [White Tower] use this method to expel us?" Jeremy murmured, disbelief evident in his tone.
Both Ritchie and the God of War exchanged shocked looks upon hearing Jeremy's suggestion.
"That can't be true, can it? If we've been kicked out of the Tower of Exile, then our entire plan has completely failed! And how is it that the God of War is still with us? Shouldn't he have returned to his own plane by now?" Ritchie immediately pointed out the flaws in Jeremy's theory.
The God of War nodded in agreement, his expression still serious.
"You're right, Ritchie. If we had been kicked out of the Tower of Exile, I would've returned to my own world. There's no way I'd still be here with you," the God of War stated firmly.
Just as the words left his mouth, all three of them felt an intense energy fluctuation from ahead.
Amidst the violent waves of energy, a black, upside-down figure appeared in the distance, not far from where they stood.
The moment Jeremy saw the figure, he immediately recognized it. Standing before them was another planner of the apocalypse game and a deity of immense power: [The Hanged Man]!
Jeremy quickly steeled himself for battle, calling out to Ritchie and the God of War, "Prepare yourselves for a fight! Our enemy has shown up! That upside-down shadow is who we're up against!"
Ritchie and the God of War reacted instantly. Both took a step back, weapons drawn, with the God of War already slipping into a focused combat stance.
Despite their immediate readiness, [The Hanged Man] didn't seem intent on attacking. His massive, shadowy figure remained concealed within the dark fog.
Jeremy could feel [The Hanged Man]'s gaze fixed on him, but there was no sense of hostility. It was as if the deity wasn't interested in wiping them out just yet.
After a tense standoff, Jeremy took a bold step forward and shouted, "What's your purpose in being here? Did you interfere with the portal I created? Are you trying to trap us here?"
As soon as Jeremy asked his questions, [The Hanged Man]'s shadow shifted slightly. A cold, emotionless, and massive eye appeared within the fog, fixing its gaze on Jeremy and his companions.
The eye observed them intently, as if weighing their every move.
After what felt like an eternity, a deep, ancient, and terrifying voice echoed from the eye. "You guessed correctly. I interfered with your portal. I've sent you all into the abyss."
[The Hanged Man]'s words stunned the trio.
Jeremy's face betrayed a hint of fear as he hurriedly glanced down at his feet, suddenly realizing the gravity of their situation.
As Jeremy glanced down, he realized that beneath his feet there wasn't solid ground, but a shifting mass of black liquid. This could only mean one thing—they were indeed in the abyss.
At the same moment, Ritchie and the God of War also realized where they had ended up. Panic set in quickly.
Ritchie tried to manipulate the shadows around him, attempting to free himself from the abyss's grip. But his efforts were in vain—shadows in the abyss were immobile.
The God of War's breathing grew erratic. In his own world, he had heard tales of the abyss. He knew that entering the abyss meant almost certain doom, with escape being nearly impossible. His instinct was to flee immediately.
"You don't need to struggle. Without my permission, none of you can leave the abyss. And rest assured, I harbor no hostility towards you. I brought you here merely to give you a warning," [The Hanged Man] said, his voice chillingly calm.
Jeremy, Ritchie, and the God of War were all perplexed by this statement.
"Why would you warn us?" Jeremy asked bluntly. "Shouldn't you be working with [The White Tower] to destroy the three of us?"
[The Hanged Man] let out a sharp, mocking laugh.
"[The White Tower] isn't worthy of my cooperation! Guarding the Tower of Exile is his responsibility, not mine. So, even if you were to destroy the Tower of Exile, it has nothing to do with me," [The Hanged Man] replied, his disdain for [The White Tower] evident.
This revelation gave Jeremy a new understanding of the dynamics between the planners of the apocalypse game. It seemed that [The Hanged Man] looked down on [The White Tower], seeing him as insignificant.
Sensing an opportunity, Jeremy decided to press for more information.
"In that case, you should send us back to the Tower of Exile!"
"Don't be so impatient," [The Hanged Man] replied coolly. "I'll send you back once I've given you my warning. Besides, I believe my interference has already done you a favor. Without me, you would have fallen right into [The White Tower]'s trap. Did you really think he couldn't block your portal?"
There was a certain logic in [The Hanged Man]'s words, and Jeremy nodded slowly in agreement, realizing the depth of the situation.
"I certainly owe you my thanks. Now, would you kindly tell us your warning?" Jeremy asked.
[The Hanged Man]'s massive shadow suddenly loomed closer, his cold, emotionless eye transforming into a spectral blue glow that merged back into his shadowy figure.
"The warning is simple: do not, under any circumstances, interfere with [The Fool]'s plans. You are no match for the great [Fool]. If you meddle in his designs, you will all face a fate worse than death. And when that time comes, I will also become your enemy."
After delivering his ominous message, [The Hanged Man] vanished as quickly as he had appeared.
In an instant, Jeremy, Ritchie, and the God of War were transported back to the Tower of Exile. This time, they found themselves in a relatively safe zone, with no mechanical monsters or powerful evil souls in sight.
As they regained their bearings, both Ritchie and the God of War were visibly confused.
Ritchie was the first to speak, his tone laced with disbelief. "That warning from [The Hanged Man] seems completely unnecessary. Does he honestly think that one sentence is going to stop us from opposing [The Fool]? Is he really that naive?"
Before Jeremy could respond, the God of War interjected, his voice calm and thoughtful. "I don't think he's naive at all. The reason you see it that way is because you didn't grasp his true meaning."
Ritchie scoffed and replied with a hint of sarcasm, "Oh? And what do you think his 'true meaning' is? Are you suggesting he's actually encouraging us to go against [The Fool]? As one of the planners of the apocalypse game, would he really do that?"
Before the God of War could respond, Jeremy nodded, his expression serious.
"I think that might actually be what he meant," Jeremy said, his words leaving Ritchie stunned, though the God of War seemed far less surprised.
"Think about it," Jeremy continued. "The power within the Tower of Exile is only accessible to [The Fool] and [The White Tower]. This means that the other planners of the apocalypse game have no way of tapping into that power. Do you really think they'd be content to miss out on such an opportunity for greater strength? I highly doubt it.
So, the other planners would likely be more than happy to see us destroy the Tower of Exile."
Jeremy's reasoning left Ritchie even more shocked. However, after a moment of reflection, Ritchie began to see the logic in his argument.
The cooperation between the apocalypse game planners wasn't as tight-knit as it might seem. There was fierce competition among them. It wasn't so far-fetched to imagine that [The Hanged Man] would be happy to see the Tower of Exile fall, especially if it meant [The Fool] and [The White Tower] would lose their exclusive hold on its power.
The idea that [The Hanged Man] might be using them as pawns to achieve this goal no longer seemed so unreasonable.