Chapter 143: The Old Woman’s Wall

Bai Yu chose to disregard the Old Woman’s cryptic pronouncements, instead stepping forward to inquire politely.

Despite her internal aversion to riddlers, Bai Yu maintained her courteous demeanor.

After all, crucial information still needed to be extracted from the Old Woman.

“Greetings, Old Woman,” Bai Yu began, her voice soft. “Could you tell us what you mean by ‘guilty ones’ and this ‘military cage’? We find ourselves here, inexplicably transformed into ordinary people, and have no idea why. Do you perhaps know how we might leave?”

Bai Yu’s tone was deliberately gentle, almost childlike, designed to elicit a kind response from anyone, especially an Old Woman.

‘I’m almost disgusted with myself,’ Bai Yu thought, a testament to her perfectly honed acting skills.

The Old Woman, perched on her chair, slowly lifted her head, revealing a face deeply etched with wrinkles and parched skin. Her dull, lifeless eyes fixed on Bai Yu.

“Hehe… hahahaha!!”

Her sudden burst of laughter was unsettling, a bizarre cackle that grew even more eerie as it mingled with the howling, frigid wind.

Bai Yu’s brow furrowed. Could this Old Woman truly be a lunatic?

“The guilty need no defense,” the Old Woman declared, her voice cackling. “Your presence in this prison is your rightful retribution!”

The Old Woman cackled, her withered arm thumping against the armrest of her chair.

“We are all the same, all of us are guilty!” she shrieked. “The gods have trapped us in this icy wasteland, confined us within this military cage by these walls. This is our retribution, the punishment we deserve!”

The Old Woman repeated these pronouncements like a madwoman, her frenzied demeanor causing Bai Yu’s brows to knit in concern.

Bai Yu turned, shaking her head at Ellie Roth Charlotte.

“It’s no use,” Bai Yu murmured. “She’s completely incoherent.”

A wave of frustration washed over Bai Yu. To finally encounter another living soul, only for them to be a madwoman, was disheartening.

“Let me try,” Ellie Roth Charlotte offered.

Ellie Roth Charlotte patted Bai Yu’s shoulder. She, too, had heard the Old Woman’s words and found them rather outrageous.

The Old Woman had branded them criminals without cause or inquiry.

Ellie Roth Charlotte approached the Old Woman. In other circumstances, she likely would have resorted to coercion, perhaps even violence, to extract the information.

However, her mood today was unusually pleasant, largely thanks to Bai Yu. Thus, she refrained from any disrespectful remarks toward the enigmatic Old Woman.

“Old Woman,” Ellie Roth Charlotte began, her voice calm. “Could you explain what you mean by ‘guilty ones’? And what exactly is this ‘wall’? Most importantly, how can we depart from here?”

Ellie Roth Charlotte framed her questions based on the Old Woman’s own words, and, as anticipated, the Old Woman responded.

“Hmph, hmph,” the Old Woman scoffed. “The wall is the gods’ cage, built to punish us. No one can ever surmount it; it is a punishment for sinners. As for leaving, hahaha, how could that be? No one can leave! We are all destined to remain here forever, forever…”

The Old Woman continued to mutter, her words punctuated by wild laughter, clearly lost to madness.

Ellie Roth Charlotte clenched her fists, a furious heat rising within her. Her earlier good mood had completely evaporated; all she wanted now was to send the riddler Old Woman’s head flying with a single punch.

But Bai Yu, quicker than her, seized her arm and shook her head at Ellie Roth Charlotte.

“She still has her uses for now,” Bai Yu whispered. “As long as we can communicate, we might still pry some information from her.”

Bai Yu had no intention of punishing the Old Woman either. Even if the woman spoke in riddles, she owed them no assistance, and Bai Yu found it beneath her to harm an elderly person.

Seeing Bai Yu’s expression, Ellie Roth Charlotte’s anger largely dissipated. She simply sat on a nearby stone, leaving Bai Yu to continue her attempts at extracting information from the Old Woman.

“Since you claim a wall traps us,” Bai Yu pressed, “then where exactly is this wall?”

Bai Yu shrewdly recognized the crucial piece of information. After all, she found it hard to believe any mere wall could truly imprison her.

Based on the Old Woman’s ramblings, if they could somehow surmount this ‘wall,’ they might escape this continent and, perhaps, even re-establish contact with Stella and their allies.

Bai Yu’s words seemed to spark a flicker of interest in the Old Woman.

“I advise you against futile struggles,” the Old Woman warned. “The gods’ wall cannot be surmounted. Only endless sin awaits those who try.”

“I understand,” Bai Yu replied, her tone deceptively meek. “I’m merely asking for the wall’s location. Surely you can tell me that much?”

Of course, Bai Yu was merely humoring her; there was no way she would remain here indefinitely.

The Old Woman remained silent, simply pointing a withered finger in a particular direction.

It was the very direction Bai Yu had been heading earlier.

“Thank you then.”

While Bai Yu couldn’t verify the Old Woman’s accuracy, they were already traveling in that direction, so there was nothing to lose by following her lead.

Bai Yu took Ellie Roth Charlotte’s hand, preparing to set off in the direction indicated by the Old Woman.

“Ignorant ones,” the Old Woman called out, “my final counsel to you: do not engage in futile struggles.”

The Old Woman remained seated on the rock, her gaze fixed on Bai Yu as she spoke.

Bai Yu offered a perfunctory nod, choosing to ignore her further.

The Old Woman observed Bai Yu’s reaction but said nothing more, simply remaining seated on the rock.

“Should you fail to cross,” the Old Woman’s voice drifted after them, “turn and walk in the opposite direction of the wall. Traverse the endless wind and snow, and you will arrive at the homeland of sinners. That is your sole place of salvation…”

Bai Yu halted abruptly.

“What is it?” Ellie Roth Charlotte asked.

‘The homeland of sinners,’

The homeland of sinners.

Bai Yu murmured the phrase, a persistent unease settling within her. She had a nagging suspicion that something was amiss, that a larger conspiracy might be at play on this continent.

“It’s nothing,” Bai Yu said, shaking her head. “Let’s continue. Perhaps we can reach this ‘wall’ before night fully descends.”

Bai Yu shook her head, dismissing the topic. Perhaps it was merely her imagination playing tricks.

Spreading her wings, Bai Yu embraced Ellie Roth Charlotte and ascended swiftly into the sky.

The Old Woman, watching Bai Yu ascend from the corner of her eye, showed no discernible emotion, remaining motionless as she stared at the ground.

As twilight deepened, the sun vanished completely from Bai Yu’s sight, yet the fabled wall remained elusive.

Just as Bai Yu considered finding a makeshift spot to rest for the night, a distant, faint white line drew her gaze.

Bai Yu accelerated once more, rapidly closing the distance to the enigmatic white streak.

****

As they drew nearer, the true nature of the sight became increasingly clear to Bai Yu.

It was then that she finally grasped the meaning of the Old Woman’s ‘wall.’

It was an immense, boundless rampart, its length defying comprehension as it stretched interminably in both directions, vanishing into the horizon.

With every meter they covered, Bai Yu became more acutely aware of the wall’s colossal height.

Looming beneath the darkening sky, the wall exuded an unsettling aura that filled Bai Yu with profound discomfort.

A chilling sense of confinement truly settled upon her.

Bai Yu frowned, finally reaching the base of the colossal ice wall just as night fully enveloped the sky.

Indeed, even from her elevated position in the sky, Bai Yu could only describe their location as being at the foot of the ice wall.

Beneath its towering presence, Bai Yu felt utterly minuscule.

She had never conceived that such an immense construct could genuinely exist in the world.

This was unequivocally not a creation of human hands, Bai Yu concluded with certainty.