As they had decided that they needed more information from those people, the group decided to release them so they could guide them toward their camp, where the cultivators hoped to get more information about the world and its possible dangers.
As soon as they were released, the three people quickly indicated to the group the direction and started walking toward it.
If the mall was a square, right now they were in the south area of the first floor, and they needed to get to the west area, where they would go through a few corridors before arriving at their destination.
In a few minutes, they arrived at the camp without any incidents or anything relevant happening. The camp was a gigantic room filled with different shelves that were used as walls to create different spaces. If someone from the outside world were to see that place, they would soon realize that it was a supermarket that those people had converted into their new living area, as there were even a few shopping carts lying around.
The first thing that they noticed was that there weren't a lot of people there, with no more than forty people in total. Every single one of them looked as bad as the three they had already met, and every single one of them had their eyes covered with clothing.
"This way please, I will go and call for the elder." One of the men indicated the way before quickly leaving toward a group of people.
There, the man started talking with those people for a minute before an elderly man came near the group.
"Are you really from another place?" the elderly man asked.
"Well, yes. Technically speaking, we are not from here." Edwin replied while laughing.
"We had heard that there was some kind of story about people who could break some kind of spell, so we came here hoping to lend you a hand, or at least, to get some information about what we can expect when we continue ascending, "Denise explained.
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"Yes, there is a story that talks about the curse that has fallen on this world. If you want, I can tell you everything that I know. " The elderly man said.
"Yes, we would love to hear it," Denise replied.
"Then, come here, and let's sit. This may take some time, so you should be comfortable. Follow me, "the man said, motioning for the group to do so.
With that, the man began to walk toward some benches that were positioned in a triangle and sat on one of them, while offering with his hand the others to the cultivators to sit on. After that, the man began to talk.
"To tell the story about how this world has fallen into the abyss, I need to go back decades ago. At that time, an evil cult appeared in this world. This cult would use human sacrifices to get the favor of their evil god, who, in return for the sacrifices, granted them unearthly powers with which they could create even bigger massacres. Things started slowly, with a few victims each year, but the situation began to scale with time. As they were getting stronger, they were also getting more and more greedy. " The man began to explain the situation to the group. "Their greed knew no bounds and they had respect for nothing and no one, so one day they crossed the final line and offered the whole world to their God. With that, their God got even more influence over this world, and he covered the world with a cursed mist that drove anyone inside it crazy. Those that had their minds crushed by the mist lost their humanity, becoming beasts that prowled the mist looking for prey to feast on their flesh. That's how the crawlers appeared. "
"Ok, I get it. This world has become the territory of an incredibly powerful creature that created a mist that can make anyone crazy, but the thing is, how are we supposed to help if just being in the mist can make us monsters? " Cyrus asked while arching an eyebrow.
"That's why you are so important. I have seen a few groups from outside this world appear in this building, and every single one of you is much more resistant to the mist effects than any of us. Even more, a few decades ago, there was another group of survivors that lived nearby, and they told us that those groups of outsiders had managed to find the places where the ritual was made, and they said that a pentagram was drawn in each of those places so the spell would be maintained. If you are capable of getting there and destroying the remaining pentagrams, maybe the world will be freed from this curse once and for all. " The man explained.
"Ok, I think I need to talk with my group about all of this before deciding anything," Cyrus said as he stood up and made a gesture so his companions would get close to him.