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墨書 Inktalez
"Are you really going to do this? No matter how many times, you'll be scorched. The heat of the lava has reached unimaginable levels; even water would evaporate in an instant. This plastic shell will turn into a puddle of soft goo in no time."
"What you're doing won't work. Just give up."
"Don't you understand? You'll definitely be turned into a puddle of soft goo."
Suddenly, memories related to this flashed through his mind. Even Ross had such thoughts; that sense of helplessness was truly terrifying. The immense disparity shook his heart violently.
It felt as if two voices were conversing within him. This was not a sign of madness; it was genuine fear. He had moments of courage, but the feeling of powerlessness in the face of death magnified everything to an ultimate level. Not even a single word could escape him. He just wanted to test it out—if the thermometer melted, he might escape disaster and try that suspended magnetic array. After all, at least that way he could reach the other side.
Jumping straight down from this height was tantamount to suicide, with a slim chance of survival. Even if there was just one opportunity to live, he had to seize it and face everything with determination.
Just once? His life depended on this one chance. If it didn't work out, he would try that suspended magnetic array. No matter what, just one opportunity was all it took.
The voice inside him conveyed this message, and Freyr did not stop him. He knew that stopping him would be futile, yet he still acted as he did; there was nothing wrong with it. It was simply something he needed to do to feel a little better.
Finally, Ross had set the suspended fishing line down. The other end of the fishing line was tied to the thermometer, which he lowered bit by bit. The person sending down the line felt no temperature at all until he sensed that the thermometer was nearing the surface of the lava.
At this point, they used a high-powered telescope to look down and found that the lava remained still; the thermometer was suspended in mid-air. The fishing line was made from a material tougher than human hair, but it wasn't invincible enough to withstand flames without melting.
This line was very cheap; even a small flame could burn it away. They had tested it before purchasing—nothing particularly special about it—just slightly higher quality than regular sewing thread, not made from pure nanomaterials.
Even with nanomaterials' properties, while a single nanofiber could slice through a speeding vehicle effortlessly, what good was that power if it still fell short against intense heat? Before even approaching the heart of the flames, it would curl up under the scorching heat.
It truly was strange; Freyr expressed his skepticism with a slight gasp. This layer of lava indeed showed little difference—the edges of the thread remained cold to the touch. Even though affected by high temperatures, overall, the thread should have become extremely hot, yet there wasn't much change here at all.
"See, I was right after all. Now, let's put it in the lava and see what happens," Freyr said.
"Are you really going to do it? This is my only thermometer," Ross muttered from the side.
"If it melts, I'll get you a new one. It's not a big deal. Once we get out of here, having a thermometer won't be a bad thing," Freyr replied with a shake of his head, a hint of teasing in his voice.
"Alright then."
Ross swallowed hard, his hand loosening for a moment before tightening again as he gripped the end of the thin line with precision.
"Strange," Ross huffed. He felt that the rope in his hand hadn't changed since before. He looked up at Freyr beside him, whose expression was more amused than anything else, as if he had figured out the meaning behind their strategy and was now wearing that expression.
"How strange. So that's how it is, hahaha," Freyr laughed. "Pull it up so I can see better." He leaned down to look intently, nodding vigorously at Ross. His wrist twisted as he wound the rope around it, but there was still no other movement; everything was eerily quiet. Gradually, he felt that the weight in his hands remained unchanged from before. On the surface, he appeared calm, but inside, he was tumultuous like raging waves.
After reaching a certain height, Freyr's lips curled slightly. "Yes, that's right. That lava is just an illusion. I should have known something was off here. The magnet not being affected by the temperature must be related to this."
"Alright, once you secure your things, come down with me. I'll wait for you below," Freyr said, and before Ross could even respond, he had already jumped down.
He jumped down so carelessly! Below them was lava; how could one make such a rash decision about their life based on a single experiment? Shouldn't they test things a bit more? It was reckless beyond belief.
His heart raced with disbelief as he looked down. Freyr took on the posture of a diver preparing to leap and spun in mid-air before quickly vanishing into the lava below without leaving a trace or even bubbling up.
Even if he had been instantly melted by the lava, there should have been some remnants or signs of struggle. Was it really that hot? He thought this but still slowly pulled up the fishing line until the thermometer emerged.
The edge of the Thermometer showed no signs of melting. Upon careful inspection, there were no other damages aside from the cracks that had been there long before. Remarkably, this Thermometer was still functional. In other words, this calm lava resembled a fictional surface coating.
It was merely a deterrent placed there, likely fooling quite a few people. In essence, the phrase "to be placed in a situation where one must fight for survival" applied here. Thus, traversing those Suspended Stone Formations would lead to certain death. In reality, those suspended stones were not as safe as one might think. The stones on the other side collided with each other and turned back into Dust, sending a cloud of dust rushing toward him.
"Cough cough cough, this is dangerous! This thing is terrifying; I need to keep an eye on it," he thought as the commotion below intensified.
"Come down; it's safe here."
Before long, a familiar voice responded from below.
"Is that you, Freyr?" The voice sounded somewhat different, almost like the Grim Reaper calling out to him. However, he couldn't refer to his teammate as the Grim Reaper; that would be disrespectful.
He immediately shouted back, but after a long silence, there was only one response before everything fell silent again.
He had intended to continue calling out to confirm the other's location, but since he felt that the other party wasn't trying to respond, it was clear that this layer of lava was merely an illusion. There must be a safe landing spot below.
With this thought in mind, Ross swallowed hard and then leaped down.
(Chapter End)
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