Dice In The Darkness: Cthulhu Calls

Liu Xing looked at the colossal Ancient One statue and realized that after entering the mist, he had likely been transported into some kind of alternate space.

The official reports from England hadn’t mentioned this massive Ancient One statue, and it didn’t seem like the sort of thing that could be easily concealed.

But this also relieved Liu Xing, as he held the rank of "Ancient One officer," and he figured he might receive preferential treatment in Ancient One territory... right?

Seeing the Shoggoth appear before him, Liu Xing instantly felt like he was in trouble. After all, in this day and age, Shoggoths loyal to the Ancient Ones were supposed to be in the depths of the sea.

Thinking this, Liu Xing wanted to use the mist to teleport back to Zekiel Island, but he realized the mist behind him had vanished.

"Damn, am I going to die here today?" Liu Xing couldn’t help but mutter.

Just then, the Shoggoth transformed into a humanoid form and spoke, "Hello, my friend, I’m Maisky, the one in charge here."

Liu Xing was momentarily stunned, looking at the Shoggoth now resembling an old man. He nodded and said, "Hello, I’m Watanabe Ryuusei, but..."

Before Liu Xing could speak further, Maisky chuckled and said, "Yes, I am indeed a Shoggoth. But because in recent years, I’ve encountered creatures like you here, I thought it would be better to assume a form like yours for better communication. After all, you are an Ancient One officer, in a sense, my master."

Shaking his head, Liu Xing knew he couldn’t go along with the Shoggoth’s words. "Oh no, I’m not a member of the Ancient One clan, just happened to get the rank of an Ancient One officer."

Seeing Liu Xing’s honesty, Maisky smiled and said, "You’re even more straightforward than I imagined. So, let me get straight to the point. I hope you can get me out of this place. I’ve been stuck here for who knows how many years."

Liu Xing nodded, surveying the area. "Of course, but I don’t know where this place is exactly. How can I help you leave?"

After a moment of thought, Maisky pointed to the massive Ancient One statue. "In simple terms, this is a miniature alternate space created by the Ancient Ones. Such spaces have various functions, some store supplies, some serve as shelters. As for me, I’m here as a trap. You just entered a mist, right? That’s the most common way the Ancient Ones use to teleport. They confuse opponents with mist, making it hard to notice the teleportation facilities within. Then they send the opponent here, either to be killed by me or to kill me."

Liu Xing nodded, realizing what had happened. "So that’s how it is. No wonder I ended up here."

"Ryuusei, can you see that massive Ancient One statue?" Maisky gestured. "That’s the control center of this miniature alternate space. Only those with Ancient One lineage can use it. So, I hope you can use it to release me. Of course, as a reward, I’ll offer you some benefits."

As Maisky spoke, he led Liu Xing to the Ancient One statue.

When Liu Xing approached the statue, it emitted a red light, enveloping him.

Liu Xing felt a bit panicked. Despite his Ancient One officer rank, he didn’t have Ancient One blood. If the control center only recognized bloodline and not rank, he might be in trouble.

Fortunately, the control center acknowledged Liu Xing’s identity.

As the red light faded, a virtual screen appeared before Liu Xing, detailing the specifics of this miniature alternate space.

Of course, there were two options regarding Maisky—release or kill.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, ultimately choosing to release Maisky. After all, he wasn’t sure how long it would take to "kill," and Maisky was standing about two meters behind him.

Now, Maisky could easily kill him without hesitation.

Thinking this, Liu Xing nervously looked back at Maisky, only to find him gone. It seemed Maisky had been teleported to Zekiel Island.

So, Liu Xing chose to teleport himself back to Zekiel Island, as there was nothing else of note in this miniature alternate space, and he was concerned about potential conflicts between Maisky and Zhang Jingxu’s group. R̃ÄNＯВЁș

Thus, Liu Xing returned to Zekiel Island.

When Liu Xing arrived on Zekiel Island, he immediately saw Ling Ishikawa and others confronting Maisky.

Seeing Liu Xing, Ling Ishikawa and the others breathed a sigh of relief, lowering their weapons.

Seeing this, Maisky shrugged. "Well, it seems you finally believe what I said."

Liu Xing informed Zhang Jingxu and the others about Maisky.

After surveying the surroundings, Maisky looked puzzled and said, "I didn’t expect to return here. Looks like I can offer you, Ryuusei, an additional reward."

Hearing Maisky, Liu Xing realized Maisky probably knew about Zekiel Island.

So, Liu Xing smiled and said, "Seems like you know what Zekiel Island is all about."

Maisky nodded, smiling. "Of course, because I was involved in building Zekiel Island back then. So now, I know what you’re here for. But let me remind you, Ryuusei, because this is an important research facility of the Ancient One clan, having a mere identity won’t do. Only those of Ancient One lineage can enter. So, you might not even be able to get through the facility’s doors."

Liu Xing frowned and said, "We came to Zekiel Island this time to rescue an Ancient One, and that Ancient One should be in the research facility by now. So, we must enter the facility."

Maisky rubbed his chin and said, "Alright, I’ll show you a clear path. It’s impossible for you to enter through the main entrance of the research facility, and judging by your current equipment, forcing your way in isn’t an option either. Right now, your only option is to exploit a design flaw in the research facility, located in the lower-left corner. Due to insufficient materials at the time of construction, a low-strength white stone was used to seal it. Though breaking that white stone would still be difficult for you, if I’m not mistaken, you’ve brought one of my kin with you this time to Zekiel Island."

Liu Xing nodded, indicating he understood Maisky’s point.

"After entering the research facility, you’ll be in the warehouse area. If the Ancient Ones haven’t cleared out the facility, you need to be careful because there are surveillance cameras in the warehouse connected to the facility’s automated defense system. Within a minute, automated defense robots will come after you. Though it’s been many years, there should still be three or four automated defense robots operational. So, I suggest you leave the warehouse quickly and find somewhere else to hide from those defense robots," Maisky advised earnestly.

Liu Xing frowned, not expecting Ancient One’s research facility to have automated defense robots. This wasn’t good news because dealing with these high-tech mythical creature-made robots wouldn’t be easy, especially with their outdated weapons.

So, Liu Xing figured that fleeing would be the best option when encountering those automated defense robots.

"All right, this is the gift I promised you. Decades ago, I encountered a human who had stumbled into a trap. His name was Maisky, yes, the same name I’m using now. Although we became good friends, he ultimately starved to death because there was no food there. But before he passed away, he specifically gave me this item and told me it was very important for you humans. So, I’m giving it to you now," Maisky said as he handed over an old-fashioned leather wallet to Liu Xing.

Accepting the wallet, Liu Xing couldn’t help but want to comment. Most likely, that Maisky was extremely fond of money, or else he wouldn’t have given a wallet to a "Monster" before dying.

Liu Xing believed that back then, "Maisky" probably still looked like a Shoggoth.

Seeing Liu Xing accept the old-fashioned wallet, Maisky nodded with a smile. "Now that you’ve accepted my gratitude, we’re even. So, I’ll take my leave now. I hope you, Ryuusei, can successfully complete your mission. Perhaps we’ll meet again someday."

With that, Maisky transformed back into his Shoggoth form and swiftly left Zekiel Island.

"Liu Xing, who exactly is this Maisky?" Zhang Jingxu asked in confusion.

Shrugging, Liu Xing explained what had happened after he entered the mist.

After listening to Liu Xing’s account, Ling Ishikawa furrowed his brows and said, "That’s not good news. If we encounter a Shoggoth in every mist we encounter next, Ryuusei, you’ll be in trouble."

Liu Xing nodded. If there were Shoggoths in the remaining nine mists, the chances of him and his group surviving through all of them would be slim. After all, encountering a reckless Shoggoth would mean death was imminent.

Thinking this, Liu Xing glanced back at the mist and noticed it had dispersed. In the center of where the mist had been, there was a beast retreat grass.

Zhang Wenbing took out a prepared pouch and collected the beast retreat grass along with the soil.

Then, Liu Xing and his group began searching for the second mist.

They hadn’t found the second mist yet, but they found the second beast retreat grass.

Upon seeing the second beast retreat grass, Liu Xing felt relieved because if the second grass hadn’t appeared within the mist, it meant the targets of those mists were all in the miniature alternate space where Maisky was. So, now that Maisky wasn’t there, there was no need for that miniature alternate space to exist, and thus all those mists disappeared.

"It seems we don’t need to encounter any other Shoggoths," Liu Xing said with a smile.

Zhang Wenbing nodded, curious, "By the way, Ryuusei, what did that Shoggoth give you just now?"

Because when Liu Xing received the old-fashioned wallet, there wasn’t any prompt triggered, so Liu Xing knew the wallet wasn’t an item. Hence, he didn’t care much about it and just stuffed it into his pocket without intending to discuss it with Zhang Wenbing and the others.

"Oh, it’s just a regular old-fashioned wallet Maisky gave me. He said it was from another Maisky who gave it to him before he died. So, I didn’t think there was much to say about it and just put it in my pocket," Liu Xing shrugged.

At this moment, Buke suddenly spoke up. "Maisky? Maisky! It must be that Maisky!"

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, realizing Buke seemed to know Maisky’s identity.

Buke noticed everyone’s attention on him and felt a bit embarrassed. "Uh, I suddenly remembered who Maisky was, so I got a bit excited. But anyway, I’ve always felt that the person the Shoggoth transformed into looked familiar, but I couldn’t remember where I’d seen him before."

"So, who is Maisky exactly? Buke, stop beating around the bush," Zhang Jingxu asked curiously.

Buke nodded and smiled. "Maisky was a renowned archaeologist in Scotland back then, with numerous archaeological discoveries. However, several decades ago, Maisky told his family he was invited by the English authorities to join a special archaeological team, and he disappeared without a trace since then. Many Scottish newspapers at the time claimed that Maisky was secretly killed by the English authorities because it was said that Maisky had made a significant discovery during a previous excavation but didn’t inform the English authorities."

After Buke finished, everyone’s gaze returned to Liu Xing.

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