As for whether the Heart of the Towering Mountain truly possessed the power to pry open the gates to the Demigod realm,
Lin Gui believed that it likely did.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be recognized across the entire continent as a "divine artifact."
Even if it was widely considered the "most useless" among the Ten Divine Artifacts,
the mysteries and value it contained were still enough to drive countless powerful individuals to seek it out, one after another.
In Balin’s heavy and slow narration,
Title Rank experts whose names shook the continent and left legends behind had all come to try their luck.
But in the end...
Balin looked at Lin Gui solemnly, his voice as heavy as iron:
"The human 'Unyielding Spear,' Hant."
"The barbarian 'Blood Butcher,' Woodrow."
"The Night Elf clan chief, 'Shadow Blade' Lynn..."
He paused, each name falling like a heavy stone upon the heart.
"These Title Rank experts, who stood at the pinnacle of their respective races, went in."
"And after that... not a single word was ever heard from them again."
Balin turned to Theia, his gaze piercing:
"Little girl, you should have heard the legends of 'Shadow Blade' Lynn."
"She was the strongest warrior of the Elven race in five hundred years, the pinnacle of the assassin’s path,"
"a peak existence at High-tier Epic, the Queen in the Shadows."
"Even she stayed within those walls forever..."
"Even she couldn't cross that thousand-li barrier of despair."
He stared intently into Theia’s eyes, as if trying to look into the depths of her soul.
"Do you think that, with just you... you can do it?"
Theia’s body trembled slightly, and her fingers curled up unconsciously.
She had certainly heard of Lynn’s great name.
She had even met her once when she was a child.
She hadn't expected that Lynn had ultimately disappeared at the Wall of Sighs.
Unease, like cold vines, quietly wound around her heart, making her breathing a bit heavy.
Balin’s gaze turned to Lin Gui, sharp as a blade.
"And you, a mere little mage at High-tier High Rank."
"Do you truly believe you can achieve it?"
Lin Gui remained silent for a moment.
His black pupils were calm and rippleless in the reflection of the hearth fire,
yet something flickered deep within them.
"I can give it a try."
Balin was completely dumbfounded.
He stood up abruptly, his heavy body stirring a gust of wind.
His roar nearly lifted the rock roof:
"That was a High-tier Epic assassin! An absolute powerhouse who could cross the wilderness as if it were level ground!!"
Spittle sprayed across Lin Gui’s face.
Lin Gui silently raised a hand to wipe it off, his movements as calm as if he were brushing away dust.
He had wanted to say that, in terms of raw strength, he wasn't even fit to carry that "Shadow Blade's" shoes.
He was definitely no match for her in concealment, either.
The perception of an Epic rank expert would be enough to see through his Shroud of the Gloomy Night.
But compared to those legendary figures who had perished within the walls,
he possessed an advantage they definitely did not:
the Eyes of the Netherworld.
He could see all intangible things; he could look directly at the essence and threads of a soul.
And the most terrifying aspect of the Wall of Sighs...
according to the clues pieced together by Eli the scholar,
it was exactly that: it was teeming with invisible, formless soul-type demons.
This was the real trump card that gave him the confidence to say he would "give it a try."
Soul-type demons that others couldn't see, he could.
Since he could see them, he only needed to do what he always did when crossing Forbidden Zones alone:
be cautious, act like a little mouse, reduce his presence as much as possible, and slowly burrow through.
But he couldn't explain these reasons to Balin.
In the end, Lin Gui only met Balin’s shocked and complex gaze and calmly repeated:
"Just consider me... someone who doesn't know the height of the heavens or the depth of the earth."
"I want to go and try this Wall of Sighs that has buried countless powerful men."
Balin stared fixedly into Lin Gui’s eyes.
In those rare black pupils,
there was no youthful frivolity, no hot-headed bravado,
only a deep-sea-like stillness and earnestness.
He hissed, leaning forward, and asked tentatively:
"Could it be... that you really have that lost concealment treasure of the 'Brotherhood' in your hands?"
Lin Gui wordlessly pointed to his own faded, old mage robes.
"Look at my outfit."
"Do I, a wandering mage, look worthy of owning such a legendary item?"
Balin immediately countered, tapping his finger on the desk:
"But your Levitation is incredibly refined! It’s like you’ve practiced it for a lifetime!"
"And even though you're only at High Rank, you have a demi-artifact!"
"I’m telling you, even among demi-artifacts, your Staff of the Windwhisperer is one of the best!"
"With all this, who would believe you’re just a wandering mage."
"With this setup, if you told me you were a Mage Disciple from the Magic Tower, I’d believe you."
Lin Gui spread his hands, his tone frank:
"I really am an unofficial wandering mage."
"I didn't study at the City of a Thousand Towers, I've never registered with the Mage Association, and I don't even have an official mage badge."
"As for the demi-artifact... I did someone a small favor, and they just gave it to me."
Balin’s eyes widened in surprise, and even his beard perked up:
"That extravagant? Giving away a demi-artifact just like that? Which noble family is that wasteful?"
Lin Gui thought to himself:
That person has a true divine artifact in her arms, one that's soul-locked.
She can kill from ten thousand li away without leaving a trace.
Why would she care about a mere demi-artifact?
But he didn't say it. He just coughed and pulled the conversation back to the main point.
"Anyway, I must go to the Wall of Sighs."
"You can’t really keep me here forever, can you?"
He looked at Balin, his tone calm yet carrying a sharp piercing quality:
"When the Alliance Council sends people to carry out 'that resolution' at the end of the year..."
"how do you plan to cover up Theia’s existence?"
These words struck Balin’s weak point with precision.
In front of the Alliance inspectors, he couldn't even protect the orphan of a Heroic Clan,
much less a descendant of the Demon King who possessed demon energy.
Balin fell silent for a long time, his thick fingers unconsciously stroking the tabletop.
The hearth fire crackled, illuminating the deep lines on his face.
Finally, he let out a heavy sigh, one filled with profound helplessness.
"Proof."
Lin Gui tilted his head. "What?"
"At least prove to me."
Balin raised his eyes, his gaze turning hard as stone again.
"That you possess the ability to cross a Forbidden Zone, rather than just going to your death."
He walked to the wall and pulled open a massive parchment map.
His finger slid over the menacing areas marked in red ink.
"There are three Forbidden Zones surrounding Shield City."
"To the south and west is the Silent Sea, to the north is the Wall of Sighs,"
"and... this one to the northeast."
His finger jabbed hard at a region in the northeast painted deep black.
"The Blackwater Forest."
"A wasteland and graveyard known for its massive numbers of demons."
Balin’s voice dropped low.
"There are twenty-nine known Epic demons and over four hundred and ninety Legendary demons inside."
"And those are just the ones we’ve 'already identified.'"
He turned, his gaze weighing down on Lin Gui like a lead sinker.
"What I want you to do is simple."
"Using 'Lonely Peak' on the map as your coordinates, enter the depths of the Blackwater Forest,"
"and bring back a mineral that only grows there."
"A special crystal that can greatly enhance the power of magic crystal cannons. We call it 'Black Crystal.'"
He stared into Lin Gui’s eyes, emphasizing each word.
"As long as you can make it out alive and bring back a fist-sized piece of Black Crystal,"
"I will admit that you might actually be qualified to 'give it a try' at the Wall of Sighs."
"If you can't do it..."
Balin’s voice sank, carrying an unquestionable decisiveness.
"Then take the little elf girl, pick another destination, and just live your lives."
Lin Gui readily agreed to Balin’s demand, not even haggling over the terms.
Ten minutes later.
On the open-air observation deck above the rear mountain exit of Shield City.
The cold wind howled, whipping their robes.
Balin pointed toward the distant horizon, toward that dense, impenetrable patch of black.
He said in a deep voice to Lin Gui, who was already seated on the flying vessel:
"That is the Blackwater Forest."
His voice was muffled by the wind, carrying a heavy, almost tangible emotion.
"To collect the minerals inside..."
"Every year, the finest dwarven warriors die there."
"Those who die are all elites—the weakest are experts at High-tier Transcendent."
He was silent for a moment, his gaze looking into the distance as if piercing through the void.
"My younger brother, Kardon... is also buried in there."
"A High-tier Legendary expert, the best shield warrior of our generation."
"During an escort three years ago, a crack of thunder woke an Epic demon sleeping in the forest's depths."
"To cover the retreat of the mining team, he turned back alone to hold the line."
Balin’s voice was a bit hoarse, like the sound of rusted iron scraping together.
"He never came back."
"We couldn't even find his body... he most likely ended up in the belly of an Epic demon."
He turned to Lin Gui, his expression complex.
"The mining area you are going to is exactly where he fought his last battle."
"If you want to regret it now and turn the flying vessel around, it’s still not too late."
Lin Gui didn't answer immediately.
He just looked at that roiling patch of ink-blackness in the distance, which seemed to possess a life of its own.
Suddenly, he asked a seemingly unrelated question:
"Is your demand for Black Crystal high right now?"
This question took both Balin and Grom by surprise.
Grom scratched his coarse, stiff hair:
"Naturally we need it. It’s a consumable, and we never have enough."
"But that cursed place has limited transport capacity; very few make it back alive with any."
"Most of the time, the boss has to risk going in personally as an escort to bring a bit more back."
His voice dropped, tinged with helplessness.
"As for the other Legendary dwarves... we can't afford to lose any more."
"Each one is a treasure; lose one, and we lose a pillar."
"I see."
Lin Gui nodded as if he understood.
He looked up, uncorked the bottle, and drained the high-quality mana potion Grom had given him in one gulp.
Then, he nodded to the worried Theia.
He activated the flying vessel and flew off alone toward that black forest that had swallowed countless lives—a place where even Legendary powerhouses could fall.
Rate on N.U.
