Chapter 141: Chaos

"Done!" Mavis handed the Guide’s Guardian back to Shus, exhausted. The frequent use of her dwindling energy over this short period had taken a heavy toll on her.

As Shus took the relic, he immediately felt an inexplicable connection to it. Probing it with his mental energy, a thousand-cubic-meter space revealed itself before him. Shelves were packed with wooden boxes, each containing various stockpiled materials.

"I’ve hit the jackpot!" Shus didn’t have time to inspect them one by one, but the sheer quantity was staggering.

"I can't go on; I need to rest," Mavis muttered, looking pale. With that, she retreated into the Guide’s Guardian.

"Wait, you can enter this space?" Shus watched in disbelief as she simply vanished inside.

"Of course. This space was generated by a Void Spirit. It can’t store living creatures, but soul forms are fine!" Mavis's voice echoed directly in his mind.

"A Void Spirit?" Shus decided he really needed to brush up on his encyclopedia of ancient creatures.

"They are beings born within space itself. No one knows their true form; they often attach themselves to other creatures and claim their bodies as their own! This space was created within its body. A Tier 3 Void Spirit—not bad, right?" Mavis began drifting around the interior, searching for anything that might help restore her spiritual strength.

"Hmm!" It was far better than "not bad." The value of this spatial artifact far exceeded his imagination; he doubted even the Silver Rose could produce such an item.

Shus hung the Guide’s Guardian back around his neck and tucked the bloodline test tubes inside as well. He had considered adding some of the potions he was carrying, but fearing it might arouse suspicion, he decided against it.

"Ahhh!!" A shrill scream from Mael suddenly tore through the air, followed by a roar of rage from Minnie.

"Something's happened!" Shus made sure he looked composed before rushing out to see what was going on.

"Shus! Over here!" As soon as he stepped out, he saw Gutter waving at him.

"What’s going on!?" Shus hurried to their side, only to see Mael’s chest soaked in blood, with Minnie clutching her, weeping bitterly.

"Potions! Shus, where are your potions!" Gutter didn't have time to explain, reaching for Shus's pack.

"Here, here!" Shus cooperated, pulling out the natural potions. Seeing them, Minnie hurriedly forced two vials down Mael’s throat and poured another over the wound.

"It’s... no use... Mother... I can feel myself..."

"Cough, cough..." Mael’s breathing grew increasingly faint. The natural potions were nowhere near potent enough to heal her.

Shus stood to the side, silent. There was nothing he could do but watch helplessly as Mael’s life force faded.

"Shus, come here for a moment!" Gutter suddenly leaned in and whispered.

"What is it?" Shus walked aside with him. Ryan, witnessing this, didn't ask questions; he simply closed his eyes, seemingly unable to bear watching Mael die before them.

"Do you still have any of that Nature’s Whisper?" Gutter glanced back at the grieving Minnie. He had known her for many years and knew exactly what Mael meant to her.

"If I had it, I would have used it already!" Shus could guess what Gutter was thinking, but he truly didn't have any. To prove it, he turned his backpack inside out.

He hadn't brewed any Nature’s Whisper before coming, and even if he had, without channeling the natural energy within his own body, the potion wouldn't have been enough to save her. Then again, if he could channel that energy, he might not have needed the potion at all.

"Sigh!" Gutter knew Shus wasn't hiding anything, but seeing Minnie’s state, he couldn't bear it.

"What happened to you all?" Shus looked at the wound; it appeared to have been pierced by something, likely a creature from these waters.

"Don't ask. We were heading in different directions, and Minnie and her daughter were together. By the time we received her distress signal and arrived, Mael was already like this," Gutter said, filled with self-reproach. He felt that if he had arrived sooner, things might have turned out differently.

"And the killer?" Shus scanned the surroundings, but aside from some broken debris, there was nothing.

"This..." Gutter didn't know how to answer and could only shake his head.

"Judging by the wound, it must have been a Three-Eyed Merman," Mavis’s voice sounded.

"Aren't you afraid of being discovered?" Shus realized he could communicate with Mavis mentally.

"What’s there to fear? I have the Void Bag; he can’t detect me!" Mavis’s voice sounded much clearer; it seemed she had found something good inside the space.

"What is this Three-Eyed Merman you mentioned?" Shus didn't dwell on the distraction and focused on the injury.

"They are the most common sea monsters in these waters. But to injure a First-Tier Wizard like this, it must have been their leader," Mavis replied with certainty.

"How strong are ordinary Three-Eyed Mermen?" Shus felt that leaving immediately was the only sensible choice.

"About the strength of a Third-Tier Apprentice. Their lethality lies in their third eye, which can launch an attack similar to a mental shock. It’s very easy to fall for it. I remember people used to catch them to sell!" Mavis said, while greedily absorbing energy radiating from a strange branch inside the space.

"For their eyes?" Shus could guess the purpose of those eyes.

"Exactly. Consuming a third eye increases one's mental power!" Mavis took advantage of Shus’s distraction to absorb more of the energy.

"So, what do we do now?" If one sea monster was this powerful, not to mention the possibility of a giant octopus from thousands of years ago, the situation was dire.

"Obviously, leave at once. Though, it would be great if you could collect that girl’s corpse before we go," Mavis admitted she had her eye on Mael’s body. She didn't care about talent—she had the bloodline tubes to fix that—she just liked Mael’s appearance.

"You want Mael’s body?" Shus hadn't expected Mavis to consider rebirth using her.

"That's impossible. Mael is already dead. If you were to 'resurrect' using her body, how would you explain it?" Shus flatly rejected her.

"Isn't that simple? Just kill these three and leave them here. No one would know it was you!" Mavis said dismissively. She had lived a long time and knew that personal interest was everything.

"We’ll see," Shus replied. While he knew Mavis had a point, he was still resistant to such cold-bloodedness.

"Tch, you’re just inexperienced. You’ll understand later that your own strength and interests are the only things that keep you alive in this world!" Mavis preached. To her, choosing a body was like shopping; she wasn't about to give up on one she liked so easily.

"Is that why you ended up sealed?" Shus didn't want to argue. He still had to calculate his options carefully; everyone present was a First-Tier Wizard, and he didn't have much of an advantage.

"You..." Mavis was choked by his retort and abruptly cut the connection.

"We should leave this place as soon as possible," Shus said to Gutter, his tone grave.

"This..." Gutter was at a loss. He had brought them here, but with Mael beyond help and the manor still largely unexplored, he was conflicted.

"You must realize that these waters are full of dangers. Do you want to survive, or do you intend to..." Shus didn't finish, turning his gaze toward Mael.

"I know, but... I just can't bring myself to accept it!" Gutter said, deeply troubled.