Chapter 50: The Cataclysmic Stone Tablet

After Lin Jie finished sending the false victory report that was enough to temporarily deceive the Eternal Serpent cult headquarters, his entire body slid down from the blood-stained alchemical telegraph machine.This experience of directly touching the corpse to read the deceased's memories was far more polluted and mentally contaminating than the previous reverberation perceptions.

The contradictory emotions of the black-clad leader's fanatical faith in the cult and his fear of impending death before dying were like potent poison, leaving fragments in his mental world.

William quickly stepped forward to help him up.

The silent veteran didn't say much, simply taking out a small silver medicine bottle from his chest, pouring out two pills emitting a cool minty fragrance, and stuffing them into Lin Jie's mouth.

"These are 'Calming and Mental Purification Tablets' issued by the Association. The raw materials include powdered tears of mermaids from the South China Sea. Rest well after taking them and you'll be fine."

Lin Jie nodded gratefully and dry-swallowed the pills.

A cool energy immediately rose from his stomach, slowly washing over his burning, stinging nerves that had been overconsumed, providing some relief for his headache.

"We must completely leave this place before dawn breaks."

William's tone was firm as he glanced out the window. "This ship won't hold much longer. Once it completely sinks, all traces will be taken to the bottom of the lake."

Their main objective had been accomplished. Now was the time to safely withdraw from this chaotic chess game.

"Before we leave, there's one last thing we need to do."

Lin Jie's gaze fell once again on the headless black-clad corpse that had triggered the self-destruction restriction. "This person clearly held a significant position within the cult."

"He must have been carrying something more valuable than what the ordinary members had."

William nodded, having had the same thought.

Looting spoils was always an essential part of any victory.

Without further hesitation, the two began their final thorough search of this most valuable "relic."

They quickly discovered that the black-clad leader's equipment was indeed far superior to that of other ordinary members.

His seemingly ordinary black uniform had an inner lining made from some extremely tough UMA leather that could effectively resist blade slashes.

The steam weapon at his waist also had unknown alchemical symbols engraved on the gun body.

And in his inner pocket, besides several obsidian-carved serpent badges representing his rank within the cult, Lin Jie's fingers touched something hard, cold, and about palm-sized, its surface seemingly carved with complex patterns.

He carefully retrieved the object.

It was a dark gray stone slab made of material that was neither stone nor jade, cold and heavy to the touch.

The slab's shape was irregular, seemingly a fragment forcibly broken off from a larger stone tablet.

Its surface had been polished extremely smooth, engraved with ancient linear script Lin Jie had never seen before and complex astronomical symbols, depicting a star chart overflowing with calamitous meaning.

At the center of this star chart, a massive and evil "disaster star" emitted lines resembling ominous light.

Several "stars" representing major European capitals—London, Berlin, Rome, and others—appeared dim under this disaster star's illumination, showing signs of imminent downfall.

Only one star wasn't suppressed by the disaster star but instead formed a strange energy connection with it from afar.

Beside that star was clearly engraved a Latin word Lin Jie knew all too well—"PARIS."

Lin Jie's expression changed dramatically!

He immediately realized this slab was no ordinary decoration or identity token!

This was likely a sacred object used by the Eternal Serpent for astrological rituals, predicting heavenly secrets, and possibly even related to the mysterious "Mentor" mentioned by the black-clad leader!

The depicted "Paris Disaster Star Descent Chart" blatantly revealed the final location and core purpose of that mad "Ancestral Regression Ritual" in an oracle-like manner!

"Sergeant William, look at this."

Lin Jie's voice carried barely suppressed excitement.

William leaned closer.

Though he couldn't understand the complex symbols, he could feel malicious spirituality emanating from the slab when his gaze fell upon it, causing discomfort deep within this battle-hardened veteran.

"Such a sinister object."

William cursed under his breath. "This item is extraordinary."

"Take it with us, we're leaving immediately!"

Lin Jie nodded solemnly.

He carefully wrapped the slab in oilcloth over a dozen layers, then placed it in the innermost pocket against his chest.

The intelligence value of this slab was immense.

With it, the top scholars and mystics at I.A.R.C. headquarters might be able to decipher the Eternal Serpent cult's grand conspiracy regarding the Paris World Exposition.

After completing their final looting, they didn't linger for a moment.

The two slipped back into the icy lake water.

This return journey was far more difficult than the approach.

Though the massive vortex stirred up by the "Guardian Deity" had subsided, the undercurrents and turbulence it created at the lake bottom hadn't completely dissipated.

The lake water continuously battered their exhausted bodies.

When they finally climbed back onto the fishing boat that had been hidden in the darkness, completely drained, the scholar who had been anxiously waiting for nearly an hour on board almost rushed over in tears.

"Thank God! Thank the holy spirits of the lake!" The old scholar draped dry blankets over them with trembling hands, then shoved a pot of hot tea prepared with ample whiskey into their hands.

"I just saw... I just saw those escaped cultists on the shore! They emerged from another hidden passage by the lake like frightened rats, then fled headlong into the deep mountains without looking back! I was so worried they'd discover us here!"

When William briefly recounted all their discoveries from the sunken ship, including the slab, to Alistair, fear enveloped the scholar's face.

"These lunatics..." the scholar murmured. "We must return to Inverness immediately and notify your organization via the fastest telegraph!"

"No, quite the opposite, sir." Lin Jie took a sip of the scalding hot tea and calmly rejected this seemingly most reasonable suggestion.

His gaze turned toward the direction of Inverness town.

"We can't be sure whether the Eternal Serpent organization has planted their own 'eyes' in important Highland towns like Inverness."

"Every encrypted telegram sent to London from their telegraph office might be monitored by them. We can't take any risks."

"Moreover," William added, his cautious thinking perfectly aligning with Lin Jie's, "the survivors who didn't participate in the operation will definitely try every means to leave Scotland first to avoid official investigation."

"And the fastest way out of here is taking the train south from Inverness. If we return now, we might run straight into them at the train station."

Alistair immediately understood the danger.

If they encountered those equally desperate fugitives in a narrow station while all exhausted, it would inevitably trigger a bloody firefight.

"Then... what should we do?" The scholar felt helpless.

Lin Jie's gaze turned to the detailed map in his hand.

His finger traced along Loch Ness's elongated waters, heading south.

"Sergeant William is right, we can't take conventional routes. But whatever they can think of, we can too. What we need to do is be one step faster than them."

His finger pointed at an inconspicuous small town at the southernmost tip of Loch Ness.

"Fort Augustus—it also has a train station. It's smaller and more low-profile than Inverness."

"We'll sail this boat south along Loch Ness's waterways overnight, directly reaching there. We'll board the train back to London before they do."

"Additionally, Mr. Alistair, we'll need to trouble you to come with us. Besides ensuring your safety, we need your professional insights about this incident."

This meticulous "race against time" plan immediately gained unanimous agreement from William and the scholar.

Thus, the small fishing boat that had witnessed too many secrets didn't return north to bustling Inverness but turned around, beginning its final voyage south along the vast, deathly still lake surface toward the unknown.

They successfully reached the peaceful lakeside town of Fort Augustus before dawn.

Finally, when the first morning sunlight illuminated Fort Augustus's Victorian-era style train station, three travelers who appeared slightly weary but exceptionally excited boarded the first steam train returning to London.