The four of them walked to the corner.
Lake led the way, his tentacles creeping silently along the edges of the copper walls.
The light from the march lamps swept forward, illuminating a fork to the left.
Lu Yuan saw it.
The fork led to the bottom of a sealed vertical shaft.
The shaft wasn't high, only about four or five meters, with its top blocked by copper plates and rubble.
It was filled with the corpses of ghouls.
Greater ghouls and little ghouls were piled layer upon layer, stacked from the bottom of the shaft up to the middle.
The bodies were interlocked, their keratin layers biting into limbs, stacked like a crude staircase as if intentionally placed that way.
The surfaces of the corpses were desiccated, as if the moisture had been sucked out from within.
The keratin layers had collapsed against the contours of the bones, and the skin was stretched so tight it was almost transparent.
A thick aura of death filled the air, trapped within the shaft, yet there was no stench of rot.
Lu Yuan frowned.
The lack of rot meant the flesh and blood inside the corpses had been drained.
The aura of death itself acted as a deterrent to living ghouls, which explained why this section of the pipe network had been so unusually quiet.
Seeing this, Bolen spoke up.
“Using ghoul corpses to build a staircase to the top while utilizing the scent of death to keep living ghouls away.”
He paused.
“Two birds with one stone.”
Kraus made no comment.
His gaze swept over the desiccated corpses, his expression unreadable.
Lake's tentacles retracted from the gaps in the keratin of several greater ghouls.
“Something is gestating inside these corpses. It's weak, but its aura is unique.”
His tentacles hovered over the pile of corpses for a moment.
“Take what can be moved,” Lake continued. “Burn whatever can't be moved on the spot. Let the logistics team pick through them; the keratin and skeletons of greater ghouls might make decent alchemy materials.”
Kraus frowned as he looked at the pile of corpses.
“So many ghouls… where did they collect them all?”
Clearly, no one could answer that.
The shaft remained silent for a while.
The light from the march lamps flickered over the surfaces of the dried corpses.
Kraus finally nodded.
“I'll arrange for someone to handle this later.”
At the edge of Lu Yuan's vision, greyish-white text flickered.
【Environmental Perception: Unknown life is gestating...】
【A very weak yet special existence. It still has some time before it arrives in this world.】
Lu Yuan was taken aback for a moment when he saw these words.
Weak? That made sense; Environmental Perception hadn't even triggered a warning.
He looked down at the pile of corpses and thought to himself.
‘It probably isn't anything powerful. When the logistics team comes down to move them today, these corpses will either be burned or hauled away. Whatever is gestating inside will likely die along with them.’
Lu Yuan didn't give it any more thought.
The four of them began to climb the staircase made of corpses.
Their soles met a sticky sensation as they stepped down.
The sound of shattering keratin mixed with the squelch of moist skin being pressed together. The aura of death was stirred up by their footsteps, trapped and unable to escape the shaft.
Bolen walked last, his cane tapping against the chest cavity of a greater ghoul, producing a dull, hollow thud.
“I never did anything like this even when I was young,” the old man grumbled.
They climbed about two stories high.
An iron grid spanned the middle of the shaft, dividing it into upper and lower sections.
The grid wasn't finely welded, but it was sturdy enough to support a person's weight.
Above the grid lay the true base of the Grey Covenant.
Kraus climbed onto the grid platform and stood firm.
Lu Yuan followed close behind.
The base was more spacious than expected.
The upper half of the shaft had been completely modified.
The iron grid served as the floor, and simple shelves and hooks were nailed into the surrounding shaft walls. With a diameter of over ten meters, it felt quite roomy.
The light from the march lamps swept across the area.
A simple alchemy table stood right in the center.
The tabletop was covered in scorch marks, dried liquid stains, and scattered powders.
The signs of operation were very fresh; some of the powders hadn't even been dampened by the humidity yet.
A few sealed small white bottles sat next to the alchemy table.
Kraus walked over, picked one up, and uncorked it.
The liquid inside emitted a clear, cold luster, like liquid moonlight.
Kraus brought it close to his nose and sniffed.
“Glazed Water.” His eyes lit up. “And the purity is quite good. This is a fine alchemy material.”
“Lu Yuan, come take a bottle. This stuff is very rare in the Empire. If I recall correctly, your alchemy skills are quite good as well.”
Lu Yuan was startled by the offer, but his body moved forward honestly.
After all, he hadn't seen a single alchemy material that could serve as a mutation anchor until now.
He picked up a bottle.
【Detection Target: glazed insect secretions (Rare)】
【A diluted version of glazed insect secretions. It can be used to refine many rare potions.】
Lu Yuan's eyebrows twitched slightly as he read the greyish-white text. So that was it. He then tucked it into the satchel at his waist.
Kraus recorked his bottle and placed it back where it belonged.
Bolen had absolutely no interest in any of this. Instead, he kept poking and prodding at the pile of ghoul corpses below.
After Lu Yuan stowed the Glazed Water, his gaze continued to sweep over the base.
Along one side of the shaft wall, ten humanoid shells were lined up in order.
They were translucent greyish-white, resembling the molted husks of creatures.
The inner walls were smooth, and they were just the right size to accommodate an adult human.
Lu Yuan crouched down to take a look.
It was obvious that these were the "beds" for the Grey Covenant members.
They would molt to sleep and then re-cover themselves upon waking. The liquification ability granted by Glazed Water made this form of hibernation possible.
Kraus noticed them as well.
He walked over and counted them one by one.
Ten in total.
“They actually deployed ten of them at once?”
His voice dropped, as if he were talking to himself.
“There must be something they care about very much in Bronze City.”
Lu Yuan didn't respond.
He paced slowly around the base.
There were scattered remains of supplies, several desiccated water skins, and some small eerie objects of unknown purpose.
One of the humanoid shells was slightly different from the others.
Something was embedded on the inside of the shell.
Lu Yuan crouched down and reached out to retrieve it.
It was a palm-sized copper plate with fine patterns etched onto its surface.
Lu Yuan flipped the copper plate over to examine it.
It was an etched partial structural map of the inner city of Bronze City.
The lines were simple and precise, marking the locations of streets and building complexes.
However, the right half of the map had been neatly cut off.
It seemed the other half of the map was likely in the hands of the leader who had escaped.
Lu Yuan's gaze fell on the left half of the map.
One location there was specifically marked: the lowest level of the inner city City Hall.
It was a sealed-off area.
A special symbol he didn't recognize was drawn next to it.
“Kraus, do you know what this symbol means?”
Lu Yuan handed the copper plate over.
Kraus took it, looked at it for a few seconds, and his expression darkened slightly.
“Beneath the City Hall…”
Without saying more, he tucked the copper plate into an inner pocket.
Bolen leaned in. The old man had heard the words "City Hall," and his mouth hung open, but in the end, he asked nothing.
Kraus gave the order.
“Keep the base exactly as it is. Don't disturb anything. I'll arrange for a thorough investigation later.”
He looked down at the staircase of corpses at the bottom of the shaft.
“Let's go confirm the copper pillar first.”
Kraus looked at Bolen.
“How far is the third predicted coordinate from here?”
Bolen thought for a moment and tapped his cane on the copper surface.
“Based on our current position, it's about twenty minutes if we follow the pipe network.”
“Let's go. Lake, lead the way.”
The four of them descended the staircase of corpses back to the pipe network layer.
Lake took the lead, his tentacles of insects constantly scanning the passage ahead.
Bolen provided directions based on the orientation, and the four moved quickly through the copper pipe network.
This section of the pipe network was deeper and older than the previous ones.
The inscription patterns on the copper plates were almost completely dull, with only an occasional flicker of faint golden light from the depths before it vanished.
In some areas, the copper plates showed signs of corrosion, their surfaces rough and blackened, with the conduction pathways completely disconnected.
Bolen frowned as he walked, tapping his cane twice on the copper surface.
“This area has completely fallen outside the coverage of the sealing system,” the old man said, his tone unpleasant. “The power of the wall runes isn't reaching here. It's a bit strange.”
Kraus didn't respond, maintaining his pace.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, Lake stopped.
“We're here.”
Ahead was a larger space with a similar structure.
Bolen was the first to crouch down.
He held his cane vertically against the ground, placing both hands over the top and closing his eyes.
A faint blue-white light seeped from the bottom of the cane into the ground, spreading downward along the seams of the copper plates.
A few seconds later, he opened his eyes.
“The copper pillar is inside.”
But his frown deepened.
“Something's wrong.”
Bolen stood up, walked to the base of the wall, and used his cane to pry away a loose copper plate.
The layer of earth and stone beneath was exposed. The signs were obvious; the overturned soil was darker and looser, contrasting sharply with the packed earth around it.
Bolen pinched some soil and sniffed it.
“It's very fresh. This happened within the last few days.”
He turned to inspect the body of the copper pillar, his cane moving slowly along its surface as the blue-white light seeped into the inscription patterns.
“The runes are intact and haven't been damaged,” Bolen's voice grew somber. “But there are slight external scrape marks at the base. They were left behind when something was taken.”
He straightened up and looked at Kraus.
“It's obvious. The item here has been taken.”
Kraus's expression remained unchanged, though his tone grew a degree colder.
“The fourth one is likely gone as well.”
Four seeds. One destroyed, the Nightwatchers only had one left, and the Grey Covenant had taken at least two.
Greyish-white text surfaced at the edge of Lu Yuan's vision.
【Bronze City Status: +3... 20/50】
Lu Yuan remained silent.
He noticed Kraus take out the copper plate from the base and bring it close to the copper pillar.
The etched patterns on the copper plate began to emit a faint golden luster.
Bolen noticed it too.
He took the copper plate and brought it close to the copper pillar for comparison, blue-white light seeping from his cane into the surface of the plate.
The old man turned it over and over for a long time.
“The etched patterns on the copper plate are related to the inscriptions on the copper pillar,” Bolen said, his voice slow as if weighing every word. “The style isn't exactly the same, but they look like they were made by the same kind of hand. These are very strange patterns; I've never seen anything like them.”
He looked up at Kraus and handed the copper plate back.
“Tell me, Kraus, do you think the Grey Covenant is actually researching the copper pillars themselves, and the seeds were just something they found along the way?”
Kraus looked at the copper plate in his hand and said nothing, merely tucking it back into his inner pocket.
Lu Yuan made a mental note.
‘Clearly, Kraus knows something. And this Grey Covenant group has no small ambitions. However, based on their pursuit of the seeds at the time, the seeds seem to outweigh whatever else they're after?’
Kraus turned around.
“Let's head back. We've seen what we needed to see.”
Rate on N.U.
