Chapter 789: Chapter 786: Where to Go?!
Rubbing her temples, Lin Bingxuan decided not to tell Xiao Tian for the time being. Ever since he lost his skills to save her, the burden he carried during this period seemed too heavy.
Even though Lin Bingxuan was now considered among the ranks of skilled individuals, possibly even slightly more powerful than Xiao Tian, she dared not say that in the face of danger, she could keep from holding him back.
Thus Lin Bingxuan decided, no matter what, to let him relax for a while. From another perspective, this could also be seen as a good thing.
After making the decision, Lin Bingxuan walked out of the basement, only to find that Xiao Tian was on the phone, and he didn’t look relaxed.
After hanging up, Xiao Tian said in a deep voice, "The latest news is that since we returned from Qing Province, we haven’t found any record of Linda buying tickets."
Lin Bingxuan sighed, relieved that she hadn’t chosen to tell Xiao Tian directly. Now that Melinda’s sudden disappearance was enough to worry him, telling him about his amnesia would only add to his turmoil.
"Don’t worry too much. Maybe Linda hasn’t gone too far and therefore didn’t choose to fly or take a train," Lin Bingxuan comforted, though she felt uncertain herself.
Xiao Tian said nothing, forcing a smile, just as another call came through.
...
After hanging up, Xiao Tian said, "According to the cell phone signal, Linda’s signal disappeared after she left Shanghai."
Lin Bingxuan frowned, subconsciously pursing her lips. With no result from the phone tracking, there really was no place to search in the vast world outside of Shanghai, finding a person wasn’t easier than searching for a needle in a haystack.
If this direction led to no results, now it seemed there was only one path left: finding the key to unlocking the next stage of the Five Elements Crystal, as Melinda mentioned. Finding it was equivalent to finding Melinda.
This was the old method Xiao Tian used to find Lin Bingxuan before. However, back then, Lin Bingxuan’s target was the Five Elements Crystal, but Melinda’s target this time remained a mystery.
At that moment, Ghost Face came out of the underground laboratory, holding a report in one hand and the Megrez Stone in the other, and said, "Your crisis can now be declared over; the genetic breakdown has been completely repaired."
After listening, Xiao Tian asked, "Do you know what the key to unlocking the next stage of the Five Elements Crystal is?"
The question caught Ghost Face off guard, but he quickly said, "That’s exactly what I was going to address. Previously, we found the Five Elements Crystal through a pendant and learned of another pendant’s existence through it, each link tightly connected."
"Now it appears that the key to unlocking the next stage of the Five Elements Crystal is within this Megrez Stone," Ghost Face, who had found out the stone’s origins, confirmed.
Gazing at the Megrez Stone in front of him, Xiao Tian asked, "Do you have any ideas? Feel free to share."
After a moment of silence, Ghost Face said, "I do know a few historians; we could consider having them help us pinpoint the locations on the map. However..."
"But doing so might reveal that we have the Megrez Stone, right?" Xiao Tian said directly.
"Exactly!" Ghost Face sat down with a serious look, "So if we can unravel it ourselves, it’d be best not to resort to asking those people."
But Xiao Tian shook his head, "There’s not enough time to learn history." He said, slicing his finger open, letting the red blood drip onto the Megrez Stone.
Suddenly, light slowly spread over it, and the Megrez Stone floated into the air. Xiao Tian calmly said, "Take pictures and show them; I’ll give a million to whoever can decipher the map."
Seeing things had reached this point, Ghost Face didn’t object further. He started taking photos of the surroundings where the projection was cast, motioning to Xiao Tian to stop after a while.
After the Megrez Stone’s projection disappeared, Ghost Face said, "Let’s keep a few key points to ourselves and not be foolish. Also, I think we should gather more experts for analysis, to help cross-verify and avoid anyone trying to fish in troubled waters!"
Xiao Tian was indifferent, acting like a hands-off boss: "Do whatever you see fit, as long as you find the place!"
Ghost Face secretly lamented, though it sounded easy, deciphering the map’s secrets was merely the first step.
After all, what the key to unlocking the next step of the Five Elements Crystal was, is still a mystery. Even if they knew what place the map pointed to, without knowing what to look for, it was all for naught.
Once the plan was set, Ghost Face immediately rose to bid farewell, returning to the underground laboratory to match potential objects against characteristics of the key for unlocking the second stage of the Five Elements Crystal, based on the further research conclusions, to attain the final results.
——
At this moment, Melinda had already arrived at a place very familiar to her—Halam Town in Norway, where she first met Xiao Tian.
Seeing the surroundings almost unchanged, Melinda was filled with mixed emotions, recalling how Xiao Tian saved her here as if it happened just yesterday!
Recalling the days when her power soared, Melinda hurriedly reached the town.
That happened after she and Xiao Tian parted ways. After they bid farewell, Melinda left alone, only to encounter an ancient tomb-like underground cave on the way.
At that time, after some probing and concluding there was no life-threatening danger below, Melinda resolutely entered through the entrance.
The small-looking entrance from outside was actually quite spacious inside, with burnt-out torch remnants at the corners, resembling a tomb robbers’ tunnel.
Drawing this conclusion, Melinda initially thought of turning back. Places already visited by tomb robbers, no matter rich or bountiful, must have been emptied long ago, leaving nothing for her to discover.
Yet, thinking she was already more than halfway through, turning back felt like a waste, so she continued forward along the corridor.
Unexpectedly, Melinda discovered that this place still held a treasure, an object resembling a disc, with a long handle, possessing a peculiar overall shape.
However, Melinda could distinctly feel the extraordinarily intense energy waves emanating from within.
Though excited, Melinda retained her basic rationality and did not rashly grab the treasure but proceeded with cautious testing.
After several tests revealed nothing unusual, Melinda boldly enveloped her hand with True Qi and reached out to grasp the oddly shaped disc.
However, at that moment, an unusual phenomenon occurred.
As soon as Melinda’s hand touched that dish-like artifact, she was suddenly overwhelmed with a sense of alarm, a shiver rising swiftly from the depths of her soul...
