Day 1: A nameless abandoned city inside the Sansara World.
The sky was bright and sunny. White clouds drifted aimlessly behind the backdrop of an endless blue expanse. The ruined city consisted of worn-out buildings and empty roads.
At the center of the city was a giant water wheel construction. But there was no river to be found. It was likely that the floating river in question that powered the waterwheel had died or was no longer in a separate dimension anymore.
This ruined city seemed to be as extensive as the city of Edin, if not more. It had amphitheaters, public bathhouses, palaces, and regular residential areas. They were all connected by spacious roads and alleyways, which now looked like giant snakes and small pythons from a bird's-eye view.
Even when the city's view was nothing but ruins and desolation, it spoke volumes about its former glory. The giant runic nodes and elemental towers had stopped working a long time ago. But they still had strong residual mana signatures, as if they could be activated at any time.
The view was oddly similar to that of the city of Edin. This abandoned city was less developed than the current Edin even when it was in its prime. But it carried the same vibe as the current capital city.
A black-haired man was standing atop a seven-floor building overlooking the city's current state. He had appeared at the site out of the blue not too long ago.
This young man was drawing a comparison in his head as his emerald green eyes scanned the area for friends and foes. He felt like he was experiencing a Deja Vu.
'Hmm. Another ruined city. The same as the one in the Titus tournament. I wonder if they have a connection.'
Eren said before lighting up his Sativa smoke. He couldn't smoke earlier in the day due to being in the presence of a Sage. So the not-an-addict addict embraced his vice as soon as he found some alone time to do so.
Eren was referring to the ruined city he had found while he was at the Titus tournament. That city also felt like it was a lost page in history that had been forcefully ripped out.
The sheer size of the Sansara World was much more substantial than the ruined city at the time of the Titus tournament. And there were many differences between the two cities observed by the butcher. Still, he couldn't help but draw a comparison between the two.
Thankfully, Alephee was there to answer some of his questions.
'Yes. You can say that. The city you found in the Titus tournament and this abandoned city belong to the same era.
These ruined cities had distinct traces of other worlds. I can sense that this city established a connection with the demon realm a long time ago when it was prospering.
So I'm guessing places like these were locked inside separate dimensions. And new cities and places were created in their stead.
The city you found at the Titus tournament had a huge library. You had stolen a bunch of books from there which were filled with knowledge from other worlds that you couldn't use.
This abandoned city that you are seeing in front of you is most likely the ruins of previously constructed Edin. Apparently, they couldn't get rid of signs related to the otherworld. So just like the city you found in the Titus tournament, it was locked inside a separate dimension.'
Eren's eyebrows rose as he realized the relationship between the abandoned cities. It made sense to him that the kingdom would separate such cities from normal rankers' reach.
He also understood why Alephee was telling him about these things at this point.
Eren was just starting when he entered the Titus tournament under the disguise of Tuan Aag. He didn't have the individual power or the political pool he had at that time. He was restricted in a variety of ways. Gaining information like this wouldn't have helped him in any way.
However, Eren's consistent breakthroughs in his ranking journey allowed Alephee to also remove some of the restrictions she faced. She concluded that he was ready to start receiving such information step by step.
Eren had stolen a bunch of old books from the library during the Titus tournament. The library was destroyed after his exit and he managed to get those books out of the tournament.
However, he was disappointed that Alephee did not know how to help him translate these foreign-language books. It was either that or he wasn't fit to know the knowledge contained in them at that point in her eyes.
Eren also tried to translate the books in his free time. But he found only limited success in understanding the topics written in these books. The kingdom had done an excellent job covering all the knowledge related to otherworlds, after all. So Eren gave up translating those books.
Those stolen books were still with him. But he didn't want to draw too much attention to himself by searching for ways to decode the contents hidden within them openly. So he had left that knowledge on the sidelines.
'That certainly explains the similarities. But what do you mean by the city having a demonic connection...'
Eren was about to chat with Alephee some more when he felt a tingling sensation on the back of his right hand. He raised his hand and looked at the circle-shaped tattoo that had been imprinted on him ever since he entered the Sansara World.
This circle-shaped tattoo had six segments within it. It could be used to access the Sansara interface that was made available to all the participants currently inside the Sansara world.
Eren sensed that someone from his team was nearby through the use of a tattoo. Lightning struck and he disappeared from his place. There were many tasks and he was already short on time. The butcher needed to make a few things clear to his teammates before he embarked on his tasks.
AN: The abandoned city in the Titus tournament was described in chapter 517.
