Chapter 20: The Secret of the Ruins in the Fog

  Magic condensation?

  Roth was quite surprised, having played Summoner's Sword for seven years and seen all sorts of strange situations, but this was a strange situation he had never seen before.

  What is referred to as "magic condensation" is that some summoned spirits, which have been used in conjunction with the holder for a long time and have a tacit understanding, will "give birth" to something during their evolution process. According to the game's terminology, it is because they evolve too quickly, resulting in an excess of magic power condensing within them, ultimately transforming into a magic condensation object - in other words, equipment.

  But in the players' mouths, a more straightforward way of saying it is that after evolving with a summoned spirit with high affinity, they will give them a surprise... and that's all.

  But this is not something to be envied, first of all the equipment level given by the summoned spirit is generally not high, secondly these equipment are all illusory products, only for the summoner's own use, if discarded they will directly become nothingness, can't be sold or given away, so it's half a waste.

  Rode was not surprised that the summoning of the spirit produced a magical crystal, after all, this holy sword had been following him until now, but what surprised him was - shouldn't the Holy Sword be equipment?

  Generally speaking, only living beings with a will of their own can possess the attribute of magical crystallization?

  What's going on?

  The holy sword can't be considered a living thing, right?

  However, Rod's stunned expression only lasted for a moment, so the system prompt didn't even give him time to confirm, it just told him that was the case, and that was all. The golden text quickly disappeared from Rod's eyesight, vanishing into thin air. Afterwards, the card that had been floating in his palm also returned to nothingness.

  Lilith and Mace exchanged a glance, but neither of them said anything. In fact, they still weren't very clear about what kind of person Rod was or what his identity was. Although he looked like a swordsman, everything he did aside from swordsmanship was hard to associate with the profession of a swordsman. However, neither of them asked any more questions. As an adventurer, Lilith naturally knew that many swordsmen possessed their own unique powers and traditions. And Mace became even more certain that Rod was likely a descendant of some ancient family, as only they would possess such an extraordinary existence.

  Although he sensed their gaze, Roderick didn't offer much explanation. As the leader of a guild, he knew that it was best to say and do only what was necessary. After all, online gamers could turn a simple conversation into a spectacular verbal battle, with every word and phrase being twisted and exaggerated by the opponent. Especially now that Roderick had become the leader of the first guild, his every move was scrutinized by many enemies. The more he explained, the more loopholes there would be for others to exploit. So he simply said nothing, letting them misinterpret as they pleased. He merely put away the card and began organizing other items.

  Lawyers are all quite wealthy.

  In the church, Lise and Mace found not only the statue that controlled the Golem but also a small pile of gems and a crystal that had lost its magical power. These were left behind by Rod who still had some use for them as an amateur alchemist.

  What surprised Rod instead was a diary found by Lige on the desk, which recorded the life of that wizard after he came to this small town.

  This piqued Rod's interest, although as a player, he was familiar with the entire instance of Misty Ruins and its causes and consequences, but from an NPC's perspective, it was still his first time.

  Although most of the content in the diary has become blurred and unclear, there are still some records left.

  The year of the saint, the fifth day of the thunderous month

  I succeeded, after countless innocent lives were sacrificed, I finally saw her shadow clearly in the center of the magic array. She smiled at me with a gentle smile just like when she was alive. I was so excited that I couldn't calm myself down, calling out her name, but she didn't seem to hear my response. The spell isn't complete yet, but I've already had hope, my idea is correct!

  The Year of the Saint, Fifteenth Day of the Thunder Month

  Praise the holy soul! I finally got her back, and I gained the power to resist everything! Bringing that lost soul back to my side, she saw me! I can touch her, feel her warm body, she hugged me, whispering my name. At that moment, I felt that everything I did was worth it. Ah... My beloved Shina, she is still as gentle, beautiful and considerate as when she was alive.

  I was torn, but I finally made up my mind to confess to her. I told her what I had done, and Sheena forgave me. She smiled as usual and forgave me. At that moment, life seemed so beautiful, even the sunlight outside was so bright. I have decided, I want to take her away from here, we will live an ordinary life, just like ordinary people. I won't touch those evil spells again, nor use magic, we'll move to a quiet mountain village, get married there, have children, and then die like ordinary people.

  I don't know if I still deserve such happiness, but I will strive for it, may the holy soul bless me.

  The year of the saint, the third day of the month of desecration

  Something is wrong.

  That's not Sheena, I have this feeling. Although her appearance is exactly the same as what I remembered, but I still have this feeling. That's not her, I told her my plan, but she just smiled and said okay, agreed. This is too weird, she's a smart girl, also a girl with her own ideas. She can't possibly listen to me all the time.

  I have some doubts, could there be a problem with the spell?

  Why is she so trusting of what I say?

  I want to conduct another experiment to confirm whether my idea is correct. God bless me, I hope my idea is wrong.

  The year of the saint, the fourth day of the month of desecration

  What's going on here with the sacred soul above?!

  That's not Sheena! It's just a monster with Sheena's shell! I told her, I'd kill people, old men, children, women for her. I don't need just one woman, I want more women to accompany me. If it were really her, she would absolutely disagree. But what surprised me was that she sat quietly on the bed, smiled and listened to everything I said, then gently said okay.

  This can't be! This isn't her! This isn't the person I remember! What is she? What is it? What is it?! (The handwriting becomes increasingly disordered).

  The year of the sage, the ninth day of the month of desecration

  May the Holy Spirit forgive my ignorance.

  This must be the punishment for defying the divine law, I wanted to reverse life and death, to regain the soul that had already disappeared. But I failed, this is the punishment. That thing was not Shina, it didn't have a self, it was just an empty shell, a monster that survived by instinctively probing and exploring the spiritual images deep within others' hearts. I wanted to kill it, but I couldn't do it anymore, it had absorbed all my strength... I'm going to die, I no longer have the power to stop it.

  It's fine this way... Xina, since you can't come to my side, then let me go to the eternal dark river to find you...

  May the Holy Spirit accept this sinful soul of mine...

  The diary ended here, leaving only a blank page. Rod shook his head after closing the diary, it seemed that this mage was indeed a romantic as rumored... However, if he had chosen to commit suicide earlier, probably not so many people would have died. But...

  A faint sense of discord flashed through Rode's mind, but it was gone before he could grasp it.

  Something seems wrong?

  Rod furrowed his brow, thinking for half a day, but ultimately didn't get an answer. However, he soon put the matter behind him, closed his eyes, and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

  It was just a small interlude, and the three of them rested for a night in this abandoned church, setting out again the next day, walking into the depths of the fog.

  "Whoosh!"

  A dazzling white light flashed by, followed by the shadow of a ghost that disappeared with a mournful cry.

  Compared to before, the evolved Star Scar is even more beautiful. The pure white sword blade is engraved with exquisite hollow flower patterns. The originally closed snow-white wings are slightly opened, and the white silver lines that emerge from the middle form a hilt surrounding the handle. Just looking at it, one wouldn't think it's a weapon, but rather an exquisite work of art. It shouldn't appear on the battlefield, but rather in an art museum or treasure room where it truly belongs.

  "It's truly an unparalleled masterpiece."

  Looking at the long sword in Rode's hand that was emitting a faint glow, Mais couldn't help but exclaim.

  "Excuse me for speaking bluntly, Mr. Lord, but in all the years I've been running this trading company, I have never seen a weapon as beautiful as this..."

  At this point, Mais closed his two small eyes.

  "I don't know, you......"

  Rod waved his hand, but it wasn't to answer Mais's question. He stared ahead and replied in a low voice.

  "We're almost there."

  "Huh?"

  Upon hearing this, Mais and Lige hastily lifted their heads and followed Rode's gaze forward. Soon, they saw a square overgrown with weeds, and on the other side of the square, two huge wooden doors were faintly visible in the misty veil.

  "As soon as we pass through this gate, we can reach the Aragak Pass and then be able to go down the mountain."

  Rod said here, Rod also breathed a sigh of relief. After all, since he woke up in this world, his spirit has always been in a state of high tension. Although adventure is a very happy thing for players, if it is under heavy injury and full of pressure, then even players will not be so happy.

  Moreover, this is not a game where you can log off midway to smoke, drink or play mahjong.

  But before that, there is still one more difficult pass to get through.

  Rod furrowed his brow and carefully observed the thick fog in front of him. He waved his hand, signaling the two people behind him to be careful.

  "Is there something wrong, Mr. Rhodes?"

  Seeing Rod's gesture, Lijie quickly reacted and took small steps closer to Rod, then asked in a low voice.

  "Be careful, the battle isn't over yet, we still have the most troublesome BOSS left to deal with."

  "Bo Si?"

  "Uh... I mean monsters."

  Rod shook his head, he was really used to giving orders in the game and couldn't change for a while. But now it's clearly not the time to pay attention to such trivial matters, he took a deep breath, then turned around and looked at the two of them.

  "Do you know the origin of the Misty Ruins?"

  At Rod's inquiry, both of them were stunned for a moment, then shook their heads.

  "This was once a bustling small town, but after the Wind Tide Channel opened, it gradually became desolate and uninhabited. After that, a wizard came here, he conducted forbidden magic experiments here to find his deceased lover, in the end, he failed."

  Saying this, Rode stopped for a moment and then looked around at the small town shrouded in fog.

  "And after that, this town became like this."

  "So, Mr. Rodd, this monster you're talking about is......"

  Mays furrowed his brow. He had thought that the two stone golems were the most terrifying creatures before, but was there something even more frightening than them?

  "Phantom."

  The word that came out of Luo De's mouth was dull and unremarkable, but the eerie tone made both of them involuntarily shiver from behind.

  "It was that wizard who was born in his final defeat, the most terrifying monster. If we're not careful, all of us will die here."

  "Is it very powerful in battle, Mr. Rhodes?"

  Although she was puzzled as to how Rod knew, the problem in front of her was obviously more important. But unexpectedly, Rod shook his head.

  "To be honest, it's not very strong. Its physical attack and defense are quite weak, similar to an ordinary ghost."

  "That..."

  Lilith was somewhat perplexed by Rod's explanation. If they were roughly the same, then why would Rod say that this thing was very dangerous?

  "Because You Yu has a special skill."

  Roder hesitated for a moment before finally deciding to speak up.

  "It will probe into your heart, then transform into a familiar appearance. If you can't wake up from the nightmare it creates in time and maintain a firm belief, there is only one dead end."

  When it comes to this, Roderick's tone is not very affirmative. Because in the game, this BOSS will only appear after all members of the adventure team have entered, and it will transform into a player-like appearance, confusing the player's judgment. At first, this was indeed a very troublesome BOSS, and many teams were wiped out here. However, methods are always thought up by humans, and soon players found ways to deal with it. After multiple battles, players discovered that the ghost's strength is not strong, and apart from copying the player itself, there is no particularly dangerous place, in other words, if only one player enters the scene, then it can only copy the opponent himself. Such a one-on-one battle is naturally not a problem for most players. So, after the ghost's mysterious halo was broken, it became a wooden stake for many players to practice single-brush BOSS... Its outcome cannot be said to be tragic.

  But...

  What's wrong, it always feels like there's some kind of contradiction somewhere?

  Rod furrowed his brow, and vaguely felt that there was a voice in the depths of his heart telling him that things were not so simple, but for the time being, he couldn't grasp anything.

  "Just give it to me."

  The fog grew thicker and heavier.

  Even the radiant light filled with divine power cannot easily penetrate this ocean of clouds and mist.

  Luo De stopped in his tracks.

  He could feel the worried gaze of the girl behind him, but this was the most efficient way, and it was also the only way.

  "Whoosh!"

  A white blade appeared out of thin air, and the clouds seemed to stir slightly because of it. Afterwards, they quickly returned to normal. They revolved around Rode's body, shutting everything else out.

  The air began to grow damp and heavy.

  It's coming.

  Roth lifted his spirits, and subconsciously moved his fingers, the cool sensation from the Will Ring on his index finger calming him down a lot. He was very familiar with his opponent, from their abilities to attributes, from their combat methods to attack range, Roth didn't think this would be difficult at all...

  Maybe not.

  A figure slowly emerged from the fog, and with its appearance, the surrounding air seemed to become even more turbulent. The flowing fog refracted the fluttering figure, making it look particularly eerie. A faint scent wafted through the air, mixed with a strange smell.

  That's the taste of disinfectant water.

  Rod furrowed his brow, feeling that the smell seemed familiar, but before he could consider it further. The fog in front of him suddenly dispersed, revealing the existence inside.

  But the moment he saw her, Rod stood still on the spot. He dared not believe it, his eyes wide open, staring at the figure in front of him, his mind a complete blank, unable to say anything. The memories that had been sealed away burst out in an instant, echoing violently deep within Rod's heart.