Chapter 69: Sorry, I Forgot How to Walk All of a Sudden

Disgusting. That was the only word that came to Liu Ji's mind.

The nauseating stench assaulted his nostrils, and the inhumane scene ravaged his mind.

And this was just the lowest floor of the tower. As the group ascended the tower, the scenes changed.

Now, it was even younger Earthwalker children who could barely walk. Their situation mirrored that of those below, except the vines binding their necks lacked thorns, likely due to their young age.

However, perhaps due to the poor environment or another reason, while some children looked relatively healthy, others appeared incredibly frail as if they could die at any moment.

At one point, Liu Ji could no longer bear it and wanted to help the children, but Yaine stopped him.

"You can't save them," she said. "There are curses inside their bodies. If the caster doesn't release the curse, they'll die if taken out of this tower."

Taking a deep breath, Yaine added sorrowfully, "The vines around their necks aren't just shackles; they're also their lifelines…"

Liu Ji wanted to ask if the curses could be undone, but seeing the shared sorrow in Yaine's eyes, he knew there was no need to ask—if it could be undone, Yaine would have already done so.

Suppressing the turmoil in their hearts, the group continued upward.

As they got higher, the children got younger. Eventually, they reached a floor filled with infants lying in vine-woven cradles, suckling the golden nectar from the threads.

There were significantly more infants here than children on the lower floors, with greatly varying conditions—some were full of life, crying loudly, while others were near death.

But strangely, during their ascension, not a single child's corpse was seen. Everyone understood that the older children were fewer because many had died during their growth.

What happened to the corpses afterward was a mystery.

As the group climbed higher, the scenes changed once more.

Gone were the infants, replaced by pregnant Earthwalker women bound to vine beds.

They lay there, naked, eyes vacant, staring at the ceiling with mouths slightly open, waiting for the golden nectar to drip from the threads. And, as if awaiting childbirth, their legs were forcibly spread by the vines, with urine continuously trickling down.

"Yaine, do we really continue up?" Guoguo asked feebly. "I feel sick."

"No one feels good." Yaine sighed, extending her left hand. "But we need to see this through. If you can't handle it, just close your eyes and hold my hand."

After some hesitation, Guoguo took Yaine's hand. Taking a deep breath, she chose not to close her eyes.

At this moment, Yaine was holding Guoguo's hand with her left and Liu Ji's with her right.

Based on their heights, it would look like she was a child being led by two adults, but in truth, she was probably the most mature of them all.

Mervant glanced at them and sighed. "Just the last few floors remaining. Let's go."

With him taking the first step, it became easier for the others to follow behind.

The next floor was also filled with pregnant Earthwalker women.

And so was the next…

Eventually, the group reached the topmost floor.

Here, hundreds of expressionless Earthwalker men and women were mindlessly engaging in reproduction.

The stench of feces and urine was already overpowering. The scent of hormones and bodily fluids mixed in made it all the more nauseating.

On closer look, these men and women were all good-looking and well-built by Earthwalker standards; however, their mechanical mating behavior made them seem devoid of humanity.

Yaine finally understood why the young Earthwalkers in the city were so uniformly aesthetic.

Clearly, Earthwalkers from the other side of the desert weren't inherently ugly. The reason the young Earthwalkers here were so good-looking was because someone—or something—was breeding them selectively.

This entire tower was a breeding farm for Earthwalkers.

And the bred Earthwalkers…

Yaine gazed out the window at numerous vast training grounds.

"God damned," she muttered. "What are the people who built this place planning…"

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"Alright. Now, it's time for you to receive God's blessing." The priest smiled, stepping aside to reveal the path into the ringed-shaped shrine.

Inside, the smiling maiden statue radiating a divine aura had an outstretched hand as if beckoning her brave warriors.

Seeing this filled the earthwalker warriors with excitement, and they clambered up.

The scrawny young earthwalker, in particular, was the first to rise, eager to run forward into the arms of the statue.

However, he was abruptly tripped and fell flat on his face.

He turned around in shock to find the short outsider holding his ankle.

"Let go of me!" he shouted in exasperation, kicking his legs. Before he could break free, he looked ahead again anxiously.

Seeing others nearing the maiden statue and basking in her glow, the young earthwalker grew even more desperate.

At this time, the short outsider spoke, "Calm down. You're here to join the army, not for a pilgrimage."

These words were like a bucket of cold water dousing the young earthwalker, sobering him up instantly.

That's right, he was here to defend his home and contribute to his race, just like the parents he never met. Receiving God's blessing was merely a ritual; so why was he so anxious?

While he was standing in a daze, the priest approached and asked with a smile, "What's wrong? Why are you all standing here instead of receiving God's blessing?"

"Makes sense," the short foreigner said. "How about… after you?"

The priest's smile faded as he coldly asked, "What do you mean by that? Is that doubt? Are you blaspheming our god?"

"No." The short outsider smiled. "I just forgot how to walk all of a sudden, so I was wondering if you could show me how to enter the shrine."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read