Alliance: A Great Compassion Mantra, I make the whole network autistic

Chapter 754 Trigger
"We must set off immediately." Shadow's voice was calm and firm. "Every moment of delay increases the danger to innocent people."

"I agree." Su Ye nodded and turned to the guards and said, "Notify the queen that we will set off north immediately. Also ask her to prepare logistical support. We may need supplies on the way."

"Yes, Sentinel of Light, I will convey it immediately." The guard saluted and hurried away.

The four of them quickly packed their equipment and prepared to embark on a new journey. Outside the palace, people gathered spontaneously to see them off. The young child also squeezed into the crowd, raised his little hand, and shouted excitedly: "Come on, Sentinels of Light!"

The young travelers waved to the children, and their sense of responsibility became stronger. They were not only to complete the mission, but also to protect every innocent smiling face on this land.

On the way, they took turns to talk about their original intentions of joining the Bright Sentinels, shared each other's stories, and deepened the trust and tacit understanding among the team. Although this journey is long and full of unknowns, their hearts are closely connected because of their common beliefs.

It was late at night when they arrived at the northern town. The town seemed unusually quiet, but there was uneasiness hidden behind the quietness. They sneaked into the town carefully and found a few strange figures occasionally walking on the street.

"Spread out and stay hidden. We need to find these people's lair and protect ourselves at the same time." Su Ye ordered and took the lead in blending into the night.

The young traveler and Shadow teamed up and found some clues near an abandoned warehouse. The door of the warehouse was closed, but dim light could be seen faintly, accompanied by low voices of conversation.

"We have to go in and take a look." The young traveler lowered his voice, exchanged a glance with the shadow, and then approached quietly.

Using the surrounding debris as cover, the two approached the warehouse and found a small half-closed window. With the faint moonlight, they glimpsed a ritual going on in the house. In the center was a magic circle emitting a strange light, and several people in strange costumes stood around.

"This... is this summoning something?" the young traveler exclaimed in a low voice. Even though he had experienced many battles, such a scene made his back feel cold.

"We must stop them." Shadow drew out his dagger and prepared to attack. But at this moment, a voice suddenly sounded in the house, interrupting their plan.

"Friends outside, since you are here, why don't you come in and sit down?" The voice was playful, as if it knew everything already.

The young traveler's heart trembled, realizing that something was wrong, but he still pretended to be calm: "Since we have been discovered, we don't need to hide." As he said that, he pushed open the door and walked into the warehouse with Shadow.

The air in the room seemed to freeze, and the people who formed a circle slowly turned around, revealing various strange masks. In the center, a mysterious figure in a robe slowly stood up, took off his mask, and revealed a familiar and hideous face - it turned out to be a senior member of the "Shadow Council" who was previously believed to have died.

"Do you really think you can destroy the 'Shadow Council'?" The man sneered, his eyes full of mockery, "We are like shadows, omnipresent and never disappear."

"Your confidence will soon turn into despair." The young traveler showed no sign of weakness, the iron rod in his hand ready to strike.

"Really? Then let us see whether your light is brighter or my darkness is deeper." The senior member waved his hand, and suddenly, more shadow guards emerged from the room and surrounded them.

The battle was about to break out, but during the fierce battle, the young traveler noticed that the magic circle seemed to be absorbing some kind of energy. If it was allowed to complete, the consequences would be disastrous.

"Shadow, split up. You deal with these people, and I'll go destroy the magic circle!" he shouted loudly, and then rushed to the center of the magic circle regardless of everything.

Just as he was about to destroy the key part of the magic circle, a hand suddenly rested on his shoulder. He turned around sharply and saw an unexpected figure.

"Father... is it you?" The young traveler was extremely shocked. The person in front of him was actually his father whom he had not seen for many years and who was said to have died long ago.

"I have been protecting you secretly, son." His father said softly, with mixed emotions in his eyes. "Now, let us fight side by side."

With the joint efforts of the father and son, the magic circle was successfully destroyed. At the same time, Su Ye and Qi Meng also resolved the threats outside and rushed to the interior of the warehouse. When the light shone on the room again, the shadow guards seemed to have lost their strength and fell down one after another.

"This is not over yet. The roots of the 'Shadow Council' are much deeper than we thought." Su Ye said seriously, "But as long as we are together, there will be no difficulties that we cannot overcome."

"You are right, Su Ye." The young traveler's father nodded and looked around at his comrades with a determined look in his eyes. "This time, I will officially return and work with you to completely eliminate the shadow on this land."

The cheers of the people seemed to still echo in their ears, but at this moment, they were facing a more difficult task. Su Ye stepped forward and shook hands with the senior: "Welcome back, we need you."

"So, what's the next step?" Qi Meng asked. Her eyes showed both hope for the future and vigilance against unknown challenges.

"We need to find the true source of the Shadow Council," the young traveler suggested. "Since they have reappeared when we thought we had eradicated them, it means that we have not touched their core before."

"And to do this, we need more intelligence." Shadow added, his calm voice revealing a power that cannot be ignored. "Qimeng, can your magic track their footprints deeper?"

Qi Meng pondered for a moment, then shook her head gently, "I'm afraid it's difficult for me to achieve it alone, but if we can find clues about people who were once insiders of the 'Shadow Council', perhaps we can find a breakthrough from the information they left behind."

"I have an idea." The young traveler suddenly said, he recalled the conversation with the complex pharmacist in the underground laboratory, "That pharmacist, he was once a member of the 'Shadow Council'. Although he betrayed them, maybe we can learn more from him." "That makes sense," Su Ye agreed, "We can go to that underground laboratory, maybe we can find undiscovered clues."

The plan was finalized, and the group decided to temporarily return to the palace to prepare for the trip to the underground laboratory. On the way, they met the child who had admired the young traveler. This time, the child held a homemade small wooden sword tightly in his hand, and his eyes were full of determination.

"Big brother, can I become stronger and help you?" The child's eyes showed both expectation and anxiety.

The young traveler squatted down and looked at him seriously. "Everyone has the opportunity to become powerful, but the most important thing for you now is to learn and grow. In the future, when you are ready, the world will show you the stage."

After hearing this, the child's eyes sparkled and he nodded vigorously, as if he had found direction in these simple words.

After returning to the palace, Su Ye immediately reported the new discovery to the queen and requested resources to support further investigation. The queen did not hesitate and immediately gave her full support, "For the future of the kingdom, we will spare no effort."

On the eve of his departure, the young traveler stood alone on the balcony of the palace, gazing at the starry sky, with mixed feelings in his heart. At this time, a gentle voice sounded behind him: "What are you thinking about?"

Qi Meng walked to his side, her presence was always so warm and calming.

"I wonder if we can really defeat the Shadow Council completely, and..." The young traveler paused, turned his head and looked at Qi Meng, "What will be waiting for us at the end of all this?"

Qi Meng smiled and held his hand. "No matter what the outcome is, at least we are together now, fighting for light and justice. That's enough, isn't it?"

The young traveler smiled, and his confidence and determination were reaffirmed. He turned to look at Qi Meng and responded gently: "Yes, that's enough."

The next morning, they set out on their journey again, heading into the unknown darkness. Inside and outside the palace, countless pairs of eyes were watching their backs, some full of hope, while others were filled with deep worry.

The horn of departure sounded quietly in the twilight of dawn, and the team was ready to go, aiming directly at the underground laboratory hidden in the fog. Su Ye, the young traveler, Youying and Qimeng, as well as the father who had just returned, formed a force that should not be underestimated. They knew that this action was not only to explore the truth, but also for the peace of the kingdom, and to have a final showdown with the forces lurking in the dark.

Passing through the lush forest, the group came to the edge of a deserted swamp, which was the only way to the underground laboratory. The fog in the swamp added a bit of mystery and danger to their journey. "Everyone be careful, there may be unknown dangers hidden here." The young traveler warned, and his words revealed the vigilance that a warrior should have.

"Don't worry, I have a keen sense of hidden traps." Shadow said as he tapped the ground with his dagger, listening carefully to the echo, trying to find unusual movements. Just as they were moving forward cautiously, a sudden strong wind rolled up layers of fog, and a dark shadow appeared in front of them like a phantom.

"Oh, what rare visitors! The Sentinels of Light actually dare to penetrate deep into my territory." It was a woman in a black dress and a pointed hat with a strange smile on her face. She was the Witch, one of the powerful allies of the legendary "Shadow Council".

"Witch, your appearance confirms our speculation that the 'Shadow Parliament' is not truly dead." Su Ye stepped forward and stood in front of everyone. His calm tone revealed a determination that should not be underestimated.

"Smart, but what's the use of knowing? Today, I will let you see the true power of darkness!" The witch waved the magic wand in her hand lightly, and suddenly, countless twisted vines emerged from the swamp and pounced towards them like living things.

"Qimeng, create a protective barrier!" The young traveler responded quickly and formed a tacit understanding with Qimeng, one attacking and the other defending, cooperating with each other. The shadow used the cover of the environment to continuously launch surprise attacks on the witch, trying to disrupt her spellcasting rhythm.

The battle was fierce but short. Just as the Sentinel of Light was gradually gaining the upper hand, the witch suddenly let out a piercing laugh and disappeared mysteriously from everyone's sight. "Don't even think about escaping!" Before the young traveler finished speaking, he felt a powerful force surge from the ground. A huge crack suddenly appeared under their feet, and they fell into a dark cave before they could react.

"Damn it, I've fallen into a trap." Su Ye stood up with difficulty and looked around with the help of the weak light. This was obviously a trap carefully designed by the witch, and it would be difficult to escape.

"Don't worry, I may be able to find the exit." Qi Meng said, concentrating and trying to sense the structure of the crypt through magic. At this moment, the young traveler noticed some strange symbols engraved on the stone wall, which seemed to be related to the pharmacist he met during his journey.

"Look here, these marks..." His words caught his father's attention, and the two of them studied the runes on the stone wall together. After some effort, they accidentally triggered a mechanism, and a hidden stone door suddenly opened, revealing a faint light.

"It's a way out!" The team rekindled hope and quickly passed through the stone door. On the other side of the door was a secret room filled with sophisticated instruments and ancient books. In the center was a crystal ball that flickered with a faint light, which seemed to hide the deepest secrets of the "Shadow Council".

Just as they were concentrating on these discoveries, the witch's cold laughter sounded again: "Finally, you are here. But do you think you can leave easily?"

"Since we're here, we don't plan to return empty-handed." The young traveler gripped his weapon tightly with a determined look, while Qi Meng had already prepared defensive measures, and Youying disappeared silently into the shadows, ready to give the witch a surprise.

"Very well, then let me see if you are qualified to uncover our secrets." The witch's words revealed provocation, but there was a hint of imperceptible anxiety in her eyes.

Just when the two sides were on the verge of a fight, a heavy sound of mechanical operation broke the tense atmosphere, and a huge figure slowly walked out from the depths of the secret room - it was the giant mechanical guard that the young traveler had encountered in the underground laboratory!
"It seems that you have a spare toy." Su Ye smiled coldly, his eyes fixed on the huge mechanical guard. The young traveler was stunned, and then recognized the behemoth: "Isn't this... the one we defeated at the beginning? How did it get here?"

"Of course, excellent chess pieces should always be used to their full potential." The witch raised her lips with a smile, appearing confident. "I had expected this day to come, and I specially prepared a 'surprise' for you."

"Qimeng, get ready for battle. Youying, you are responsible for restraining the mechanical guards, and I will deal with the witch." The young traveler quickly assigned the tasks, and a look of determination appeared on everyone's face.