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Ch. 156: The Nameless City: Abdul Alhazred
🕑 Added 2024-10-30 14:31:52 +0000 UTCThe entrance to the temple was very small. Orochimaru and Kabuto had to tie their camels to a stone pillar next to the temple, and then, holding torches, crouched down to enter.
The temple was very deep, and although their vision was limited, the dark corridor seemed to extend infinitely.
Kabuto also noticed that the corridors were sloping downward, indicating that the overall structure of the building wasn't the typical flat architecture seen in human constructions, but instead extended deep underground.
Orochimaru led the way with the torch, while he followed cautiously behind him. As they moved further in, he realized the walls on either side of the corridor were bare—there were no sconces for lighting with oil.
He wondered if visitors to the temple always needed torches, but kept the thought to himself. Orochimaru's slight smile suggested he had anticipated everything—he radiated confidence.
They walked for what felt like hours through the narrow corridor. The low ceiling and pressing walls made Kabuto feel the weight bearing down on him.
Something about these unnaturally tight dimensions didn't sit right - what kind of architect would design this?
Is this some ruins of an ancient civilization? he thought. Or a temple buried by sandstorms?
Whatever it was, it definitely wasn't a place for people to live. It felt more like a temple for some kind of ritual. Yet, this didn't explain the abnormally low ceilings.
Fear of the unknown made Kabuto want to stop and retreat, but his obedience to Orochimaru pushed him forward.
After some more time, he suddenly noticed the cramped space seemed to open up a little. He raised his hand and found the ceiling had indeed risen, allowing him to stand a bit straighter, although he still couldn't stand fully upright.
Finally, some relief, he thought.
But just as he was getting comfortable in this space, he realized Orochimaru had disappeared.
"Orochimaru-sama?" he called out hesitantly, but there was only silence.
cold gust of wind blew through, extinguishing Kabuto's torch and leaving him standing in darkness.
"Orochimaru-sama! Where are you?" he shouted.
He heard a faint sound ahead. He quickly grabbed a kunai from his waist pouch and held it in front of him defensively. But no attack came.
It was Orochimaru, his neck stretched out to reach him.
"I'm just ahead. Follow me," he said, before swiftly retracting back.
Kabuto wasn't frightened by this sight. In these narrow passages, Orochimaru often used his Soft Physique Modification—a ninjutsu that allowed him to stretch and extend his body at will.
How can I see...
Something wasn't right. His torch had gone out, so how was he seeing Orochimaru? Where was this light coming from?
The strangeness of the situation pushed him forward, hurrying to catch up with the Snake Sannin.
Finally, he reached Orochimaru, who was kneeling next to a wall, carefully inspecting a wooden box. He saw hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of similar boxes neatly arranged along the walls of the corridor.
He hurried to Orochimaru's side and examined the box closely. Most of it was made from polished wood, but the front had a cool, smooth surface, similar to glass. Judging by its rectangular shape, he concluded that it must be a coffin.
"This seems to be a coffin."
"Hmm," Orochimaru said, confirming Kabuto's observation. "But what's inside?" Orochimaru's curiosity made Kabuto uneasy. Even someone as knowledgeable as Orochimaru didn't know what was hidden here.
Kabuto's discomfort deepened as Orochimaru slowly opened the thick coffin lid. As the lid slid aside, the contents inside came into view.
"What is that?!" As a medical ninja, Kabuto immediately recognized that the body inside wasn't human. In fact, it didn't belong to any known species.
"Calm down," Orochimaru's hand pressed firmly on Kabuto's shoulder.
Kabuto took deep breaths, trying to regain his composure, as he glanced away from the coffin. His rationality returned slowly.
"You're too bound by common sense," Orochimaru said calmly. "Maybe bringing you here was a mistake."
Compared to Kabuto's overreaction, Orochimaru remained composed. He extended the torch into the coffin, illuminating more details of the contents.
Inside was the dried-up corpse of an odd creature, dressed in luxurious fabrics and adorned with expensive jewelry and ornaments of gold and unknown shiny metals. Despite its mummified state, many details remained visible.
The reptilian being had a crocodile-like body, though shorter than a human. Its feet were more delicate than those of most reptiles, with distinctly separated toes resembling human digits. A large forehead crowned with small protruding horns sat above its crocodile-like jaw.
The remaining space in the coffin overflowed with gold, jewels, and ornate treasures, lending the scene an air of ancient opulence.
Orochimaru was now convinced that this was a highly civilized, ancient reptilian species.
Although the scene should have been bizarre, he couldn't shake a strange sense of familiarity.
A reptile dressed in luxurious clothing and adorned with expensive accessories... didn't it resemble some snake from Ryūchi Cave?
The cave, along with Mount Myōboku and the Shikkotsu Forest, was known as one of the legendary places, a place many ninjas dreamed of reaching.
The Ryūchi Cave represented snakes, Mount Myōboku represented toads, and the Shikkotsu Forest represented slugs.
In their youth, the Three Legendary Sannin had gone their separate ways in search of these legendary places, where they had signed contracts with the summoned beasts and learned the Sage Mode.
Orochimaru, of course, had found the Ryūchi Cave.
To learn the powerful Sage Mode, one had to first pass three trials. These three trials were set by the three leaders of the Ryūchi Cave, and if one failed, the leaders had the option to devour the failed challenger.
These three leaders of the cave were the Snake Princesses. When they fully revealed their human forms, they appeared as three beautiful young women.
However, when enraged, parts of their faces and bodies transformed into serpentine features.
Ultimately, Orochimaru had passed the trials of these three Snake Princesses and stood before the White Snake Sage.
But the sage had had one final request for Orochimaru. If he agreed, the sage would teach him Sage Mode.
Orochimaru had refused and turned away.
Because of this, the White Snake Sage had called Orochimaru an ignorant brat.
To compensate for his failure to learn Sage Mode, he had later developed the Heavens' Curse Mark.
Now, seeing the corpse inside the coffin reminded him of the Snake Princesses from the Ryūchi Cave, adorned with fine textiles and precious metals.
Their half-snake, half-human form when angry had looked almost identical to the reptilian figure lying in this coffin.
So the Ryūchi Cave wasn't the oldest legendary place after all. Could this city be the true origin?
Based on what I'm seeing, this place must be over a thousand years old - even older than the Ryūchi Cave.
Perhaps the ancestors of the Ryūchi Cave originally called this city their home...
At this moment, the ancestor of the snakes in Orochimaru's mind was no longer the White Snake Sage of the Ryūchi Cave, who had only existed for about a thousand years.
In the records of the Necronomicon, the Nameless City seen in Abdul Alhazred's dream had had an ancient history stretching back to eternity.
Which was more significant was obvious at a glance.
"Orochimaru-sama?"
Kabuto's voice brought him back from his thoughts, and a wicked smile appeared on his face.
Unexpectedly, he had discovered the truth of the Ryūchi Cave here, a truth even the White Snake Sage might not have known.
"Kabuto, open the other coffins and check."
Under Orochimaru's orders, he opened two more coffins. Inside, just like the first one, were elaborately decorated half-snake, half-human mummified corpses.
This almost confirmed that this city had been an ancient civilization built by these half-snake people. And these people might very well have been the ancestors of the snakes from the Ryūchi Cave.
After passing through the passage lined with coffins, they entered a slightly more spacious room. While still cramped overhead, the room offered more space to move.
There they discovered murals depicting the ancient civilization. From these coherent paintings, Orochimaru read some of the city's history.
The city was originally coastal, built by the strange reptilian creatures now lying in the coffins. The buildings and gardens showcased their unique architectural style.
As the waters withdrew, the desert swallowed the fertile valley that once sustained them. Still, they had relied on their wisdom to survive on the increasingly arid land.
They had dug downward into the rock in a peculiar way, not only creating more living space but also following their prophet's guidance in trying to excavate a tunnel to an underground world suitable for their race to thrive.
But one day, their race had been consumed by feelings of hatred and enmity. In the final painting, the city's builders had destroyed the city they had once created.
The city they had built with their own hands, they ultimately destroyed with those same hands.
Orochimaru and Kabuto stood in silence before the historical scroll, their minds deeply shaken by the stunning revelations.
So the Demon Desert had not always been a lifeless wasteland but had once been a coastal area. And from that time, a high civilization no less advanced than human civilization had already existed here.
What an astonishing discovery.
Even the oldest historical records of the Land of Gods likely couldn't have contained this strange chapter of history.
Compared to Kabuto, Orochimaru's emotional reaction was slightly more restrained. This was because, from the Necronomicon, he had already learned some of the world's historical changes.
Billions of years ago, when the Elder Things had arrived, most of the world had still been covered by oceans. So when this city had been built, the desert had still been a coastline, which wasn't particularly surprising.
This revealed the city's history didn't stretch back as far as the Elder Things. Compared to their ancient civilization, this city was merely a newcomer.
Orochimaru sensed how the world's ancient history had been woven together with shocking precision. Each discovery only deepened his appreciation of history's intricate design.
As they contemplated these historical revelations, a gust of wind rattled through the chamber, forcing open a small door in the corner. The sound of metal hinges screeched from the door, and a beam of intense light shot through the door.
Before the powerful light, Orochimaru and Kabuto instinctively raised their hands to shield their eyes.
But as a seeker of truth, Orochimaru wasn't afraid of the blinding light and boldly walked toward the door.
"Orochimaru-sama!"
Kabuto called out from behind, trying to stop him.
But at this moment, Orochimaru's gaze was filled with fanaticism. Neither Kabuto's calls nor the fierce wind from beyond the door full of light could halt his steps.
What was that?
What is behind the door?
Let me see!
Orochimaru's insatiable thirst for knowledge pushed him forward, despite the unknown dangers that might lie ahead.
Through the gaps between his fingers, he peered beyond the threshold.
A vast expanse of radiant land stretched before him, uniform white light emanating from the ground. A thin, luminescent mist hovered above.
In that strange space, the doorway that connected to the chamber wasn't another simple entrance like the one he stood before, but rather a solemn brass door that emanated a tarnished glow.
From the luminous mist emerged a human figure, walking slowly toward the brass door.
Orochimaru was so shocked that he couldn't utter a word, standing frozen as if bound, his eyes fixed on the approaching form.
The figure reached the brass door, mounted the steps, and stood just beyond the threshold.
The moment the figure fully appeared, the light inside became less intense, and the strange wind vanished.
Orochimaru and Kabuto studied the figure that couldn't yet be seen clearly.
"Who are you?" Orochimaru asked slowly.
The figure answered in a calm, mature voice.
"My name is..."
"Abdul Alhazred."
