Act 84 Trace III

就在眼前，一团蓝色丝线围绕的魂质被染黑，颤抖着化为阴影。
这些阴影并非纯粹的黑暗。
银焰的灰烬被剑锋荡开，利奥侧过身跨过最后一个被劈开的阴影，半空中消散的魂质似乎还残留着紫色。
有些是走投无路的平民，有些是心有不甘的士兵，也有自认倒霉的强盗...被污蚀杀害，他们的黑暗情绪与魂质便成为了阴影的源头。
痛苦，绝望，挣扎。
这些灵魂碎片，无一例外记录着污蚀来袭的可怕惨状。
太多的惨状会麻木，深切感受面临灾难的渺小，无力。
In the heavy night sky, the city of Lake Rock, shrouded in darkness, seems like a massive maze woven with shadows, with vine-like darkness thriving and danger lurking.
Leo walked through the streets of Stiegel and arrived at a narrow alley nearby.
司格尔街道和南群街道之间的房群算得上高大，处于商街交汇处原本价值不菲，但此刻只剩下残损的空壳。
过分的安静和沉默让他停下脚步，站在街角环顾四周。
两排漆黑的房群中，通往南群街道的巷口弥漫恶臭的血腥气，仅是进处便躺着三名尸体，身穿磨损较少的盔甲，两名卫兵，一名佣兵，身边有相对完整的长剑长戟。
坑洼的头盔被捏缩不成形状，他们是瞬间被杀死的。
小巷内的影子模糊不清，恶臭和血腥气冲天。
如果司格尔街道是混乱的战地，那这便是单方面的屠宰场。
He judged, and saw the obvious mark of the breastplate, with dried green traces on it.
Golden Kite Grass, Red Shield.
The former naturally belongs to the Golden Kite Orchid family, and the latter is the symbol of the "Red Shield" of the Mercenary Alliance in Huyan City, two quite powerful armed forces in the city.
橘光亮起，他注意到周围几乎没有阴影的踪迹，这意味着没有魂质残留，灵魂和身体是一同被毁灭。
普通的污蚀做不到这点，例如蛭灵和蛭灵首，它们的攻击方式源于身躯的力量和敏捷，甚至是爪牙的毒性，而不像噩魔或是噩魔首，这类污蚀有很强的侵蚀性，比起蛭灵更趋近邪恶的本质。
然而，这次的始作俑者似乎很好地兼备了两类污蚀的特性，从不堪的残躯和魂质的稀少多少可以窥见一些。
当他思索之时，黄昏之戒亮起一缕微光，低阶的感知魔法起效。
Roughly over 600 meters ahead, there's a solitary individual moving.
Quickly, another solitary individual appeared behind, considering the route characteristics between Siger Street and South Group Street, they have a clear intention to approach.
Immediately, six individuals appeared, approaching the alley where he stood.
"How did you find..."
Leo raised an eyebrow, puzzled. He contemplated whether the shadows and the corruption in the city had a special connection, but quickly dismissed the possibility.
他的拇指抚过戒指表面，一双火焰组成燃烧的橘黄眼睛出现在半空中，光线和空气中的微妙细节都被收入眼底，六个个体的情况很快被他掌握。
The shadow is running.
With deep green compound eyes, jet-black scales, and a hunched, muscular body, they resemble leech spirits but also possess demonic traits, with several semi-transparent tentacles wriggling on their backs.
污蚀的异化似乎一直进行，这不是好消息。
“...”
利奥的身影变得模糊，周围的空间荡漾起湖面般的涟漪。
他将坐标定在某处小巷。
下一刻，涟漪荡漾，一双眼睛在某只污蚀身后出现，他隐藏在空间的缝隙中，并未被其察觉。
利奥低头看了眼前方的污蚀，跟着穿过小巷，六只体型差异不大的同类在他之前所在的位置齐聚一堂，随后翻开，四处寻找什么。
Obviously, due to the nature of intermediate-level and above magic and spatial attributes, his existence cannot be accurately perceived by contamination.
Yet another possibility ruled out.
"Are there eyes in the sky?"
利奥随即抬头，视线迅速掠过黯淡的夜空，随后扫过周遭的屋顶。
很快，他出现在某一高处，俯视着下方六只无头苍蝇般的污蚀，火焰般的橘光在他眼中转为深邃的琥珀色。
As the perception strengthened, some subtle connections appeared in the air, floating like swaying spider webs in the wind, these seemingly fragile threads leading to the nearby temple of Shengyero.
利奥微微点头，将左手按在森咒的剑柄，银辉一闪而逝。
极微弱的涟漪在街道中央穿过，朝着盛罗耶教所蔓延，六只污蚀突然间僵直，贯裂的伤口涌出银焰，顷刻间将其吞没化为灰烬。
Shengluoye Church, the former outer city grand church, is no longer magnificent. The tall trees have withered, and the statue of the Star God on the square is only half left. The damaged steps are surrounded by overgrown bushes and weeds, and some translucent tentacles crawl on the eaves. The tentacles occasionally raise their ends as if searching for something.
“原来不是眼睛，而是手指。”
利奥注意到缠绕着盛罗耶教所那些半透明触须，像是某种没有视力的寄生物，时不时伸出触须在半空中触摸着危险或安全的信息。
Although they couldn't find Leo in the space crevices, they still sensed unease and began to retreat back into the darkness of the church, trying to blend into the silent night.
Their actions made Leo realize that as the place with the strongest stench of corruption in the outer city, the Church of Shelroy was worth investigating.
Leo then quietly looked at the architecture of the academy for a while, but found nothing.
Those tentacles seemed to possess a trait that blocked low-level perception magic, as if there was an invisible barrier that locked the secrets of the academy inside, shrouded in darkness, rendering the Eye of Flame ineffective.
黄昏之戒可运用的法术还有许多，但对方的退缩让利奥决定采取直接的方式。
“aoojg，pobfft。”
他低语着，伸出食指轻轻点在前方的虚空，微小的漩涡像聚缩的小球，将光线汇聚起来，令周围的景色逐渐变得扭曲而不真实，作为中阶的空间系魔法，它需要一点准备来为毁灭做好铺垫。
The vortex was facing the nearby temple building, and the Sevita Star God sculpture in the center of the trajectory began to tremble.
Not only the half-broken sculpture, but also the trees, steps, ground, and even the field of vision were affected by the vibration.
利奥自然地抬起食指，指尖的漩涡瞬间消失。
没有太多嘈杂的声响，盛罗耶教所的上半截建筑像是被看不见嘴巴的咬了一大块，连带着那些触须，被卷入空间的压缩层中消失不见。
That's not enough.
紧随其后，盛罗耶教所的断壁残垣的上空涌现出几个燃烧着的符文，一阵涟漪卷起赤红的烈焰，比浪潮汹涌澎湃，将剩下的部分席卷焚烧，顷刻间照亮紫黑的天空。
The sea of fire disperses the darkness, and the shadows of the buildings sway in it.
The soaring red light illuminates the surrounding scene in large patches, and the ground seems like a red-hot mirror, with numerous scattered shadows swaying, like layers of swaying black forests.
通过空间与火焰的力量，盛罗耶教所会被利奥夷为平地。
不久，火海的某处鼓起，仿佛浮出海面的气泡。
气泡膨胀扩大，烈焰被看不见的膜层撑开，露出一具布满疙瘩的类人身躯。
顷刻间，那些疙瘩裂开缝隙，那并非数不清的疙瘩，而是数不清丑恶眼睛。
每一只都让人恐惧。
伴随这些眼睛的睁开，半透明的触须仿佛蛇群，从它的脚下狂舞而出，将烈焰荡漾开来，无数火星四溅。
“眼魔首。”
利奥认得出那只污蚀，思索着，他藏身于空间缝隙中，即便是现在对方也不知道他的所在。
眼魔首比蛭灵首或噩魔首都要强大得多，属于低阶污蚀中的佼佼者，某种程度上和利奥在双星海域遇到的刺骨魔一样强大。
眼魔首藏在外城区的盛罗耶教所，这让利奥察觉到一丝不对劲。
纷争结束，人类逃亡，阴影和一些污蚀盘踞在湖岩城是常态，但眼魔首这样的污蚀不应该留下，甚至躲藏在这里。
他一边思索着答案，一边面朝火海中的怪异影子走去。