On the sea surface, the atmosphere was bizarre to the extreme.

Thor, Takatsukasa Arashi, and Kalen.

The three SS-grade prodigy from different nations, hailed as the top of the younger generation, were currently holding identical golden pendulum clocks and looking at each other in dismay.

The expression on everyone's face was as ugly as if they had swallowed a fly.

The wild joy and smugness that had just filled the air were long gone.

Replaced by thick suspicion and absurdity.

"What on earth is going on here?"

Prince Kalen was the first to lose his composure, pointing at the pendulums in the other two's hands, his voice somewhat distorted.

"Why do you also have the Pendulum of Life?!"

"The ones in your hands must be fakes!"

Thor let out a cold snort. In his azure eyes, electric arcs flashed, filled with brutality.

"This one of mine was found from the bottom of a lake on an island."

"When I found it, I also encountered the siege of thousands of exotic beasts."

"This is definitely impossible to be fake!"

Takatsukasa Arashi was still wearing that icy expression, only glancing faintly at the two of them.

"Mine is too."

For a moment, the three fell into silence once again.

None of them were fools.

For three identical Divine Artifacts to appear all at once, there were only two possibilities.

Either two of them were fake.

Or all three were fake.

They had been played by this damned ruin!

Thinking of this, Thor's expression turned completely gloomy, the electric snakes dancing wildly around his body becoming even more violent, boiling the surrounding seawater with a "sizzling" sound.

Right at this tense moment.

A gentle and sacred figure quietly descended from the airship of the Freedom Federation.

It was none other than Archbishop Andrew.

The compassionate smile on his face seemed to have never changed.

But the moment he appeared, the tension in the scene that was close to freezing was instantly replaced by an intangible pressure.

"Thor. Let me see the thing in your hand."

Andrew spoke in a calm tone.

Hearing this, Thor's thunderous light instantly receded.

He turned around and bowed his head respectfully toward Andrew.

"Yes, Your Excellency Archbishop."

Without the slightest hesitation, Thor respectfully presented the golden pendulum clock with both hands.

Andrew extended a palm as fair as a work of art, gently grasping the body of the clock.

However, the moment he contacted the pendulum clock.

His face, which always wore a gentle smile, showed a subtle change for the first time.

As the archbishop of the Freedom Federation, he had once been fortunate enough to personally touch a true Divine Artifact.

The aura emitted by that Divine Artifact, although somewhat similar to the pendulum clock in his hand, contained a vastness and majesty originating from the Origin of the World's Law that was thousands and tens of thousands of times stronger than this pendulum clock!

This...

is fake.

Andrew instantly reached a conclusion in his heart.

However, before he could voice his judgment.

A sudden change occurred!

The golden pendulum clock in his hand suddenly burst into a dazzling golden light!

Then, the sturdy metal clock body began to dissipate rapidly like a sand sculpture!

Transforming into hundreds of millions of points of golden light dust, slowly ascending into the sky.

Not just the one in his hand.

In the distance, the two pendulum clocks in the hands of Takatsukasa Arashi and Kalen underwent the same change at the exact same time!

"This! What is going on?"

Prince Kalen widened his eyes, looking in disbelief at the "Divine Artifact" dissipating in his hand.

Three golden streaks of light gathered from light dust circled once in the air.

Afterward, as if guided by some mysterious guidance, they simultaneously changed direction and plunged into the sea.

Disappearing without a trace.

Everyone stared blankly at this scene, their minds completely blank.

After all that fuss, they were all fakes?

Except for the people of the Freedom Federation, Sakura Country, and Ancient Egypt, the heads of other countries all showed expressions of relief on their faces.

Phew, thank goodness.

It was a false alarm.

"No—!"

An extremely suppressed roar exploded on the sea surface like a thunderclap!

Thor let out a long howl facing the sky, his brilliant blonde hair fluttering without wind, standing on end one by one!

The terrifying power of thunder burst forth from his body with a boom!

He had been played!

He, the dignified Thor, had actually been played by a broken ruin!

This was simply a supreme humiliation!

"I must find the real Divine Artifact!"

"And smash this damn ruin to pieces!"

Thor's eyes were red, and he poured all his anger onto the innocent sea surface beneath his feet!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Thick blue lightning bolts, like spears of divine punishment, frantically slammed into the sea!

The sea boiled, and giant waves surged into the sky!

Countless marine creatures that failed to dodge instantly turned to charcoal under the bombardment of thunder!

After venting for a long time, the anger in Thor's chest subsided slightly.

Without even looking at the others, his body transformed into a streak of thunder once more, rushing back into the ruin's entrance without hesitation!

On the ship of Sakura Country, Wada Hirayama glanced at Takatsukasa Arashi, whose expression was equally ugly, and said in a deep voice.

"Takatsukasa-kun, since these are all fakes."

"Then I must trouble you to make another hard trip."

Takatsukasa Arashi respectfully nodded toward Wada Hirayama.

"Yes."

After speaking, his figure flickered, and like a ghost, he silently leaped back into the sea.

A farce triggered by three fake Divine Artifacts thus came to an end.

However, no one noticed.

Those three golden streaks of light did not dissipate.

As if they had a consciousness of their own, they returned into the ruins once again.

Speeding toward a certain direction in the deep sea of the ruins.

Passing through layers of seawater, they finally reached an absolute deep sea that was pitch black like ink and where one could not see one's fingers.

Here, light and sound seemed to have been completely swallowed up.

The three streaks of light slowly stopped, hovering in this dead silent sea area.

After an unknown amount of time.

In this pitch-black deep sea, one pair, two pairs, three pairs...

Countless pairs of huge eyes emitting faint blue light slowly opened.

...

Meanwhile.

Inside the ruin, on that solitary small island.

Zhou Huai was still sitting cross-legged.

At this moment, the island no longer had the birdsong and fragrant flowers of a paradise-like appearance from before.

The entire island, along with the sea surface within a radius of several thousand meters around it, had been completely frozen.

Transforming into a huge iceberg emitting colorful chill.

And within that crystal-clear ice layer, the ferocious and crazy appearances of thousands of marine exotic beasts before their deaths were permanently frozen in place.

After nearly an hour of saturated attacks by Forbidden Spells, the endless army of exotic beasts finally quieted down.

But Zhou Huai did not choose to leave immediately.

For one thing, he temporarily could not find the direction back.

For another, the confusion in his heart had not been answered.

Clearly, some unknown consciousness existed within this ruin.

It was it that guided those exotic beasts to "escort" him all the way to this island.

But when he obtained the so-called "Pendulum of Life", it attracted a frantic siege by the exotic beast army.

These two things were contradictory in themselves.

If that consciousness did not want him to take away the "Pendulum of Life", why did it go out of its way to lead him here?

But if it wanted him to take it away, why launch such a terrifying attack?

Unless...

What it wanted him to find was not that pendulum clock at all!

That pendulum clock was just a smokescreen, a blindfold used to confuse him!

The real key might still be on this island!

Zhou Huai's gaze cast once again toward the center of the island, that freshwater lake that had been frozen.

He thought of a possibility.

At that time, all his attention had been attracted by that glittering golden pendulum clock.

Perhaps in some corner of the lake bottom, there was still something hidden that he hadn't discovered.

Thinking of this, Zhou Huai hesitated no longer.

He manipulated Gandalf to stand up, his mind stirring.

The solid ice beneath his feet began to melt rapidly, and an ice staircase just wide enough for one person to pass appeared out of thin air, winding down toward the bottom of the freshwater lake in the center of the island.

Gandalf followed the stairs, walking down step by step.

Soon, he arrived once again at the frozen lake bottom.

This time, he did not rush to look for anything.

Instead, he drove his Mental Strength to the extreme.

Like the most precise radar, he scanned every corner of this lake bottom inch by inch.

Not letting go of even the tiniest detail.

Time ticked by minute by minute.

Finally, in an extremely inconspicuous corner at the bottom of the lake, Zhou Huai made a discovery.

There, it was covered by thick silt and aquatic plants.

If it weren't for carefully probing with Mental Strength, it would be utterly impossible to find any abnormalities.

Zhou Huai's mind stirred, and a gentle current of water appeared out of thin air, washing away all the silt and aquatic plants in that area.

Something was revealed.

That was a key.

A huge key with an archaic design, forged entirely from some unknown bronze material.

It was as thick as an adult's arm, covered with mottled copper green and traces of years.

At the top of the key, a complex and mysterious vortex-like totem was engraved.

"Is this... the true target?"