When consciousness returned, Lucian was startled to find himself no longer within the Rearguard Base.
Instead, he stood in a dim and gloomy world, surrounded by an eerie, unsettling aura.
In this bizarre expanse, countless terrifying Tacet Discords emerged from the water's surface like phantoms.
Suddenly, he noticed the reflection of a mysterious woman clad in red within the water—she seemed to be the leader of these Tacet Discords.
Then, without warning, Lucian began experiencing the world from the perspective of these Tacet Discords.
In this strange vision, he saw the Tacet Discords pursuing a Midnight Ranger.
Just as the Tacet Discord was about to deliver a fatal blow to the Midnight Ranger, a warrior in azure robes suddenly appeared like lightning, wielding a long spear.
With astonishing speed and power, he struck down the Tacet Discord in a single blow.
The rescued Midnight Ranger, overcome with relief and excitement, cried out, "General!"
The Tacet Mark on the azure-clad general's back shimmered as he turned slightly, nodding in acknowledgment.
However, the appearance of the azure general seemed to enrage the Tacet Discords further.
Like a raging tide, they swarmed toward him in a frenzied assault.
Yet the general remained composed, gripping his spear tightly as he repelled the Tacet Discords with unstoppable force.
Not a single one could advance past him.
As the battle intensified, a massive azure dragon erupted from the general's body, its overwhelming presence annihilating the surrounding Tacet Discords one by one.
When the dust settled, the Tacet Discords that had surrounded the general had all vanished.
In their place stood rows of solemn, awe-inspiring Midnight Rangers, silently arrayed behind him.
Then, the general raised his spear high and let out a deep, powerful cry:
"Follow the Qingloong to war!"
Lucian's consciousness blurred, darkness swallowing his vision as distant, urgent voices called out to him.
With a start, Lucian jolted awake, a cold sweat trickling down his forehead.
"What... was that...?"
Beside him, Rover had already climbed down from his shoulder, pressing close against him, her head resting on his shoulder.
She clutched her forehead in apparent pain, as if suffering some mental torment.
Yangyang exhaled in relief. "You're awake. What just happened? Why hasn't Rover woken up yet?"
Lucian carefully moved Rover aside, letting her lean against the wall.
Then, frowning, he said, "I think... I was hallucinating?"
Yangyang: "You scared me... You both suddenly froze, completely unresponsive no matter how much I called. What did you see?"
"I think... I was seeing through the Tacet Discords' perspective. The world was dark and desolate, like... a battlefield?"
"And in the water's reflection, I saw a woman in red. She seemed to be controlling those Tacet Discords..."
Yangyang frowned, deep in thought. "...Red clothes, controlling a Tacet Discord tide..."
"You crossed space and sensed the battlefield not far from here... What else? Did you notice anything more?"
Still feeling dizzy, Lucian clutched his head, struggling to recall.
"Then... there was a general in azure robes. He drove back all the Tacet Discords, and a colossal azure dragon rose from the ground. I also saw countless Midnight Rangers charging into battle alongside him."
Yangyang looked slightly stunned. "The man you described... leading an army with the Azure Dragon's overwhelming presence, dominating the battlefield—that is the banner of the Midnight Rangers, the symbol unique to their commander... Jiyan."
"And right now, on the battlefield not far from here, Jiyan is leading an army, holding back the Tacet Discord tide."
Lucian was puzzled. "That man was Jiyan? But I've never seen Jiyan before."
Just as he voiced his confusion, Rover stirred beside him, slowly regaining consciousness.
Lucian reached out, gently stroking her back. "Rover, are you okay?" ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel·fiɾe·net
She shook her head, signaling that she was fine.
After Rover explained, it became clear that she, too, had witnessed the same battlefield.
The reason she woke later than Lucian was that she had experienced an additional battle at the end.
Rover: "This... is all very wrong."
Yangyang explained: "This battle itself is a sign of some anomaly—or perhaps both the battle and the anomaly are connected."
"The energy currents from Norfall Barrens are more oppressive than ever, suffocating."
"Right now, on that battlefield, there must be something that has an unclear but undeniable connection to the two of you."
Lucian took a sharp breath. "Wait—before I lost consciousness, I heard a voice too."
Rover calmly analyzed: "There's something inside me."
She turned to Lucian. "You heard it too?"
"Mhm. It sounded... young, like a child. I think it was saying... 'food'?"
Yangyang pondered. "A Tacet Discord? Shared perception with them...? I didn't sense any sound frequencies."
Lucian rubbed his chin. "It must have been because Rover and I were in contact."
Before losing consciousness, Rover had been riding on his back, her hand touching his face—he guessed that was the reason.
"Whatever it is... maybe I can..." Rover murmured as she stood up.
Lucian and Yangyang followed her curiously as she walked toward the Rearguard Base's terrace.
Rover closed her eyes and extended her right hand.
A strange, illusory frequency rippled before her palm, distorting the space.
She seemed to be sensing something.
Then, her eyes snapped open—her pupils bore the shape of a Tacet Mark, glowing faintly with golden light.
It reminded Lucian of Sanhua—her pupils had looked the same, though Sanhua's were red.
"Rover?" Yangyang asked hesitantly.
Rover explained: "Baizhi mentioned before that the leaf had Tacet Discord frequency fluctuations."
"The last clue—the direction the leaf points to is... there."
She pointed southwest.
Yangyang followed her gaze. "...That's... the Central Plains Terrace. Qichi Village."