Chapter 133 - 103: Attack and Secrets of the Divine Artifact

Chapter 133: Chapter 103: Attack and Secrets of the Divine Artifact

"But after getting his hands on it, Hephaeston couldn’t fuse it into the sword. To achieve this goal, he made a deal with a mutated High Tier Fire Elemental Spirit. That spirit gave him the technique to fuse wind and fire."

The old man’s voice was calm, but the Sunshine Race Leader couldn’t hold back anymore. "Uncle, how could I not know about this? Why isn’t it recorded in our history? Was the Divine Artifact forged successfully?"

The old man glanced at him and continued. "The Divine Artifact was indeed forged, but later... something unexpected happened. Hephaeston was constantly brooding.

"He told the race leader at the time that Iliet was cursed and he had to find a way to resolve the matter.

"In the end, Hephaeston left with the Divine Artifact. He went to the Fallen Land, hoping to find a way to lift the Curse... and he never returned."

The wind blew across the Molten Lava Lake. The heat wave was thick with the smell of sulfur, choking their throats dry.

After listening to the old man’s account, Chen Shang asked the most crucial question. "Hephaeston made a deal with that High Tier Fire Elemental Spirit and got the technique to fuse wind and fire as he wished... so what did he pay in return?"

The old man hesitated slightly. "You are very smart. Hephaeston never explicitly said it, but everyone speculated that he traded away the bloodline of some of our clansmen. This caused those Ilians to be tainted with the Curse he spoke of."

The Sunshine Race Leader was boiling with rage after hearing this. "What? How could such a thing happen? This is simply unforgivable! What a selfish bastard!"

He finally understood why a genius who created a Divine Artifact wasn’t recorded in their history. If the deal was truly made at the expense of their clansmen’s bloodline, it wasn’t glory to the Ilians, but a disgrace.

Chen Shang recalled the cyan flame he had just seen, which seemed to align with the Curse the old man mentioned. He asked in a deep voice, "So, that Divine Artifact is highly likely still in the Fallen Land?"

The old man nodded. "That is indeed the case... Moreover, I suspect Hephaeston did manage to lift the Curse back then. But recently... the attacks from these Fire Elemental Spirits have been very abnormal. Perhaps something unexpected has happened."

"Alright, I’ll go to the Fallen Land. But if I really find the Divine Artifact, whose will it be?" Chen Shang asked directly.

"You wouldn’t rob us of our things, would you? We will give you an appropriate reward..."

The race leader was about to argue when the old man sighed. "If you find it, just take it. That thing is tainted with the blood of Iliet; it is not a Holy Artifact worthy of being passed down."

Hearing the old man say this, the Sunshine Race Leader lost his fighting spirit and tacitly agreed.

If nothing else, the Ilians valued their clansmen immensely. In this harsh environment, it would be difficult to survive without unity, let alone develop a civilization.

This was also why the Sunshine Race Leader was so furious with Hephaeston.

The old man continued. "If you do find something, I hope you can bring back Hephaeston’s remains.

"In return, we will give you a mapped-out route and a few secret Defensive Witch Artifacts from our tribe."

He looked at Evelyn, Ella, and Twilight. "At the very least, it will increase your chances of success."

Chen Shang looked into his eyes and suddenly asked, "Why don’t you post a mission on the Wizard Celestial Net?"

The old man shook his head helplessly. "The Fallen Land is a highly dangerous zone. Even Third Level Apprentices face peril entering it. Who would accept such a mission?

"If we offered the Divine Artifact as a reward, it might attract an Official Wizard. However, we only suspect it exists in the Fallen Land. If it’s not there, wouldn’t we be deceiving a Master Wizard?"

Chen Shang nodded. If it were purely just a mission, he wouldn’t go either. There were plenty of missions in the Wizard World; it wasn’t worth risking his neck for this one.

However, for the sake of his own cultivation and the clues regarding the Fire Elemental Eye, it was worth a try.

They stayed in the Sunshine Race’s territory for a few days. After obtaining the map and planning their route, they prepared to depart.

Before leaving, the Sunshine Race Leader took out a small pendant. Hanging from a dark red cord was an obsidian-like disc, its surface engraved with extremely fine Fire Runes.

He handed the pendant to Chen Shang. "This is our tribe’s Master Level Weapon, the ’Flame Heart Talisman’. It can enhance the power of Flame Attributes. It makes Fire Control less strenuous while boosting its power by a fair margin."

Then, he took out three identical pendants and distributed them to Ella, Twilight, and Evelyn. "All four of you get one. The Fallen Land is perilous. An extra sliver of power means an extra sliver of certainty that you’ll return."

Chen Shang accepted the pendant. It felt warm to the touch. When he probed it with his Spiritual Power, the runes lit up briefly. He hung it around his neck, letting it rest closely against his skin.

"Thank you!"

Five days later.

Chen Shang and the others stood near a scorched rift valley. Before them lay a wasteland that had been repeatedly ravaged by time and fire. This was the edge of the Fallen Land.

The ground here was made of dark red glass, beneath which countless tiny bubbles were sealed. Inside the bubbles was grayish-white smoke and dust.

Perhaps they were ancient ashes, or perhaps the final breaths of creatures from an even more distant era.

The air was distorting because the density of the Fire Elements was too high, compressing and bending the light elements. The mixed scent of sulfur and ozone made Ella cough.

Evelyn took a deep breath and made a professional judgment. "The Fire Element concentration here is ten to fifteen times higher than the outside world."

She reached out her hand, and a ball of flame shot up from her palm. It was twice as large as usual, and its color had shifted from tangerine to bright gold.

"Using Fire Element Witchcraft here will increase its power, but because it’s too active, the precision of the magic will decrease."

Holding her teddy bear, Ella’s Spiritual Force Field silently expanded outward. "There are lingering spiritual fluctuations here. It’s very chaotic, like many people screaming at the same time."

Chen Shang opened the Eye of True Sight, and the world in his vision transformed into a burning ocean.