Chapter 11 : double-sided idol

At the bottom of Crescent Lake, the dark waters were filled with a layer of strange dense, the temperature was freezing cold, and the air seemed to be frozen heavy. Leo and Luna were suspended in the water, the current beside them was delicate and slow, only their breathing and heartbeats broke this dead silence. The wilting of the Moon Dew Flower continued, and as the Void Ring drew on it, the light at the bottom of the lake became more and more disturbing.

The Void Ring in Leo's hand suddenly vibrated violently, and his fingertips felt an unprecedented power surging towards him, as if the black hole inside the ring was devouring everything. His expression became grave and his brows knitted. The ring's energy was fluctuating in more ways than one, and he himself was unable to control it all.

"Leo! You ..." Luna had also sensed the ring's abnormality, and her mechanical eyes had begun to flash a warning red light. "The ring is absorbing energy, it's becoming uncontrollable!"

"I know." Leo replied in a low voice, a hint of helplessness in his tense breath. "It's devouring the power of these flowers, but there's no way I can stop it."

As the Void Ring continued to absorb, the surrounding Moon Dew Flower Pods began to show extensive wilting, the white petals streaking like snowflakes as they quickly withered. Even with this change, Leo still couldn't stop the ring's energy absorption. The petals became fragile and subsequently fell off, sinking to the bottom of the lake. The flowers that were originally as white as jade seemed to have lost their vitality at this point.

"These flowers ... "Luna took a deep breath and looked around, the mechanical eye light on her face flickering slightly. She analyzed, "The energy of these flowers has disappeared, perhaps ... also affecting the operation of the Lunar Lake."

"We have to find out why." Leo forced himself to calm down and took a deep breath of the chilly underwater air as he suddenly realized that some kind of latent threat was creeping closer.

Just then, a blur of light suddenly emerged from within the void ring, the image flickered like a dream, a picture intertwined into a picture of tattered memories. Leo's eyes slightly lurched as those images played continuously with almost no pause - he saw that the roots of the Emerald City's giant tree, where countless Moon Dew Flowers had originally grown, had suddenly lost their vitality at a certain point in time. The roots of the giant tree no longer nourished these flowers, but were suppressed by some mysterious force.

Leo unconsciously whispered, his heart beating violently faster, the sight in front of him deeply shocked, "The roots of the giant trees in the Emerald City ... they used to be the parasites of the Moon Dew Flowers."

He gripped the Void Ring tightly and felt the energy surging within it intensify. The ring seemed to be responding to his shock; it seemed to realize that memory. Accompanied by more images, the details of everything gradually became clearer: the Emerald City's giant tree was replaced with a mechanical heart, and the Moon Dew Flower gradually withered under the suppression of this power, eventually disappearing completely.

"So that's it." Leo muttered, his brows furrowed as his gaze became deep, as if he was recalling something from the past.

"This means ...," Luna analyzed calmly, her gaze fixed on him, "the power of the Moon Dew Flowers came from the Emerald City's giant tree, of which they were once a part of the roots. But with the replacement of the mechanical heart, all that changed."

However, just as Leo and Luna were immersed in this unexpected discovery, the white energy heart at the bottom of the lake suddenly beat violently. With the beating of the heart, the surrounding water current seemed to fluctuate, and layers of ripples appeared on the originally transparent water surface. Then, Leo and Luna's eyes focused on the energy heart - its color began to gradually shift, from a flawless white hue to a bright red filled with evil connotations.

"What is this ..." Leo's heartbeat accelerated rapidly, and he realized that the change in front of him was not just as simple as an energy reaction at the bottom of the lake, but represented some kind of more profound change.

Suddenly, Leo's eyes snapped open. Just as he was still deep in thought, the faceless idol at the bottom of the lake suddenly moved, its blood-red eyes suddenly opening as if it had captured the presence of all living beings, radiating a strong sense of oppression. Those blood-red eyes seemed to pierce through all the nothingness, gazing deeply at Leo and Luna.

"What happened?" There was panic in Luna's tone, but her mechanical eyes remained calm. "This idol, it ..."

Before she could finish, Leo pulled her hand violently, feeling an unspeakable energy spreading through the water. He knew that the awakening of the faceless idol meant that a greater danger was about to descend.

Suddenly, the entire space at the bottom of the lake began to distort violently, and the originally calm surface of the lake transformed into an endless whirlpool, as Leo and Luna were attracted by the powerful force and lost their balance. Both of them felt a strong suction force almost simultaneously, followed by a huge pressure, as if there was an invisible weight pressing them towards the abyss.

Just as the suction became more violent, the surrounding waters suddenly exploded into a whirlpool. Leo and Luna lost their sense of direction for a moment, and the scene in front of them instantly became blurry. Then, they were pulled into a collapsing illusion by the powerful force.

The water was like a mirror, reflecting the endless sky, Leo and Luna stood on the boundless water, surrounded by silence. In front of them, it was the faceless idol, still standing in the distance, its blood-red eyes like an abyss, gazing at them.

"This is ..." Leo violently stopped his feet, a chill rose in his heart, "This is not reality, this is ... an illusion! "

"No!" Luna analyzed nervously, "This is an illusion, it's manipulated by the idol! We must find the breakthrough as soon as possible!"

Huge waves suddenly emerged from the water, and as they twisted, several grotesque water-shaped demons instantly emerged from the water. Their bodies were made of transparent water, and the water flowing from their limbs, claws, and mouths raged like living creatures. Whenever their bodies were severed, they quickly reconstituted themselves with water into a new form, seemingly never disappearing.

"These monsters ... "Leo's sword blade flashed in the water as he said coldly, "They are made of water and cannot be killed!"

"Only by destroying that faceless idol will these water-shaped demons disappear." Luna frowned, her eyes cold. Her mechanical eye was already aimed at the faceless idol, "Leo, we can't delay, we must find a way as soon as possible!"

Leo nodded, realizing that this was the only way. He drew his sword and quickly moved towards the idol's back, preparing to attack from the idol's blind spot. However, just as he was about to approach the idol, a sudden change occurred in front of his eyes - a brand new idol suddenly grew behind the faceless idol, a blood-red face with eyes that were still blood-red and filled with overwhelming power.

"How is this possible ... "Leo stopped in his tracks in shock, the shock on his face hard to hide. That idol had even derived a second side from its original foundation, turning into a two-sided idol.

Instantly, the water-shaped demons in the water became even more ferocious, their speed accelerated, their strength increased, just like immortal demons, constantly lunging at Leo and Luna. The blood-red eyes of the two-faced idol gazed at the two, as if they wanted to devour them completely.

"We have to break its two-sided structure!" Luna said through gritted teeth, "There's no time, Leo!"