Chapter 100

"Captain, don't be sad anymore," the kind-hearted Sera consoled.

"Yes, people can't..." Gordon originally wanted to say, "People can't come back to life," but then he thought about the resurrection spells that could reverse life and death in this world, so he swallowed his words. However, it was clear that Kara couldn't be revived. The conditions for resurrection were extremely strict, and even if they managed to find a high-level cleric who could perform the spell after great effort, it would definitely be too late.

Ronald shook his head: "As an adventurer, I'm already used to life and death. It's just that seeing Kara die in front of me makes me feel a bit complicated."

Ronald knelt down and closed Kara's wide-open eyes: "You first deceived me, stabbed me, and in the end, you saved my life with your own..."

Gordon shook his head. He had a rough idea of what had happened. Kara's adventurer team was indeed attacked. However, after escaping alone, she was captured by a group of scoundrels who specialized in robbing adventurers. Unable to withstand the threats and torture, Kara had to become their bait to save her life.

But when Ronald was in danger, Kara's conscience suddenly awoke, and she decided to make amends for her mistake. She stepped forward and used her life to shield Ronald from the ice spike.

Her seemingly contradictory actions were, in fact, quite reasonable.

Gordon had not only seen but also experienced many cases of betrayal and deceit among friends. In the game, a friend who was laughing and joking with you one moment could stab you in the back the next for a piece of top-tier equipment dropped by a boss.

The moral standards in the virtual world were relatively broad, but in the real world, even if one could resist the temptation of material gain, how many people could still keep their promises when their lives were threatened?

"Because betrayal and deceit are so common, loyalty and trust are even more precious," Gordon remarked.

Hearing Gordon's words, the members of the Lucky Coin team exchanged glances, each with complex thoughts. This adventurer team, which had always been smooth sailing, would face a real crisis. How would each of them choose? Would they unite to overcome the difficulties, or betray their former companions for their own lives and interests?

Gordon's words made the atmosphere a bit strange. After Ronald used his spear to dig a grave and buried Kara, he laughed and broke the heavy atmosphere: "Kara was an adventurer, and dying in the Danze Ruins could be considered her final resting place. At least it's better than lingering on a sickbed in old age... Let's deal with that captive first, then see what we gained from the battle."

Thinking of the loot, everyone's faces relaxed a bit, and they smiled.

"Gordon, you contributed the most in this battle, so you have the right to deal with the mage's life and property," Ronald said.

Gordon nodded. This was his due, and there was no need to be polite.

The mage, who had been knocked unconscious by Ronald's spear, finally woke up. He found that his mage robe and all his items had been taken, and his limbs were tightly bound, immediately losing any thought of resistance.

Seeing Gordon approach, a glimmer of hope ignited in his heart.

Although he hated the person who had destroyed his precious staff, he knew that the fellow mage in front of him was the best person to negotiate with compared to the rash warriors or the emotional women.

Gordon directly picked up the mage's dimensional bag and asked, "What's the password?"

The mage hissed in pain. The wound on his leg, pierced by Ronald, was causing intense pain, and he had to clench his teeth to endure it: "If you swear not to kill me, I'll give you the password for the dimensional bag and tell you the uses of everything inside."

"I can kill you and still open your dimensional bag. As for the items inside, I have some confidence in my arcane knowledge and appraisal skills. I probably don't need your information," Gordon was unmoved.

"In my dimensional bag, there is one item that only someone who has explored and studied the Danze Ruins for a long time would know the use of. You are a mage, and you should be very interested in items from the Nether Duran Magic Empire."

"Your words do move me," Gordon cast a "Detect Thoughts" spell and found that the mage was not lying, "Alright, I swear by the guardian god Ioun that I will not kill you."

The residents of the Telos world would never lie about their guardian gods unless they intended to abandon their faith. If you used a false faith to deceive others, you would offend the true gods.

Although the gods were usually busy and didn't micromanage their followers' affairs, they were absolutely strict about matters of faith.

Hearing Gordon swear by Ioun, the mage finally felt relieved: "The password for the dimensional bag is 'mato-so.'"

Gordon followed the instructions and opened the dimensional bag, immediately noticing an item inside.

It was a black metal rod, about the length of Gordon's palm, smooth on the surface, with the number "three" etched in Nether script.

Gordon continued to feel the cold rod and found a small button at the bottom. When he pressed it, accompanied by the sound of precise mechanical movement, the metal rod transformed into a cross-shaped key.

"This is..."

The mage chuckled: "The key to enter the third warship."

The warship he referred to was one of the five Nether Duran flying warships that were shot down during the great battle.

"Do you see the third warship? It's right there, with its smooth lines and elegant hull, standing out in this ruin!" The mage gazed into the distance, his eyes filled with fascination.

Gordon followed his finger and saw a large, dark object in the northwest of the ruins, between the Life Tree ruins and the noble district, like a spindle, slanted into the ground.

Gordon estimated that the flying warship was about a hundred meters long. After years of decay, the hull was unrecognizable, covered with various mutated vines. A faint red mist surrounded it, continuously seeping out from the cracks in the hull caused by spells. This was the "murderous fog" that adventurers talked about with fear.

"During the great battle, the third warship, 'Wings of Ansinthara,' was shot down by the Sun Elves, and most of the crew died. Its captain, the 7th-level mage Adonis, escaped with a few survivors through the emergency exit at the bow. However, they were surrounded by the Sun Elf army and all died in battle. Adonis left the only key to enter the warship and his notes, which I happened to obtain."

Gordon checked the dimensional bag and indeed found a notebook. The paper material was the same as the Nether Duran scroll he had obtained from Dorn. This was indeed a relic of the magic empire.

"So what if I have this key? The warship is surrounded by dense and perennial murderous fog. How do you think I can enter?" Gordon put the key and Adonis' notes in his bag, but his words showed no particular interest in these items.

"Have you forgotten what I just said? Adonis escaped through the emergency exit at the bow. When the warship crashed, it was headfirst, deeply embedded in the ground. If you enter the third warship 'Wings of Ansinthara' from underground, you can bypass the murderous fog. Moreover, the power core and other parts of the warship are completely isolated, so the interior of 'Wings of Ansinthara' is not affected by the murderous fog."

The mage paused, fearing that Gordon would think the information he provided was not valuable enough, and added, "You should thank the murderous fog. For a thousand years, no outsider has ever visited the interior of the warship. It must be filled with treasures, and perhaps even a Mytheric Core!"

Mytheric Core...

Even the well-informed and calm Gordon couldn't help but blink at the mention of this term.

The Mytheric Core was the greatest invention of the Nether Duran Magic Empire. This magical device could continuously extract energy from the Weave to power various magical machines or large arrays.

You can think of it as an almost inexhaustible nuclear reactor, and the harmful radiation released when such a reactor is damaged is the murderous fog.

The Nether Duran Empire produced Mytheric Cores in three sizes: small, medium, and large. The largest Mytheric Core could provide the magical energy for a floating city. The medium-sized Mytheric Core was the power source for the empire's flagship, the Dreadnought-class warship.

As for the most numerous combat ships in the flying fleet, like the five that crashed in the Danze Ruins, they used the smallest Mytheric Cores.

However, even the smallest Mytheric Core was an immeasurable treasure for any mage, even a legendary one.

The capital of the Ferelden Empire, Dragon's Honor City, was known as the City of Light because it possessed a medium-sized Mytheric Core granted by the Dragon God Bahamut, providing the city with uninterrupted magical energy for 480 days a year, allowing magical streetlights to illuminate every corner of the city.

Seeing Gordon's excited expression, the mage quickly said, "Sir, you should let me go since I provided so much useful information."

Gordon took a deep breath, suppressing the enormous temptation of obtaining a Mytheric Core. He looked at the hopeful face of the mage and turned to Ronald, saying, "Captain, since I have complete disposal rights over this captive, I will now hand him over to you. Are you willing to accept him?"

"More than willing," Ronald stared intently at the mage.

"No!" The mage's face, which had been full of hope, instantly turned to despair. He struggled to break free from the ropes, "You swore, you swore! You're betraying your god, you'll be punished!"

"No," Gordon extended his index finger and waved it in front of the mage, "I swore by Ioun that I would not kill you. But I didn't say I wouldn't hand you over to someone else."

"You despicable, playing with words..." The mage's last words were cut off as Ronald's spear pierced his throat, turning his final words into meaningless coughs, and a stream of blood flowed from his mouth.

Thud!

The mage's body fell to the ground, and Ronald withdrew his spear, muttering, "This spear is for Kara."

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