Chapter 456: This Is Not Failure, Just 95% Victory

30 minutes is actually quite long.

For male friends, 30 minutes would already be something worth bragging about in any occasion.

However, for an operation to search for important items in a vast unknown area, 30 minutes is insignificant.

Flesh Render wasn’t confident it could find the King Gnawbone’s secret treasure within 30 minutes, but the good news was that the mysterious Spirit Mage accompanying it seemed very familiar with this place.

The magic carpet floated gracefully past those areas shrouded in heavy fog, carrying him and Flesh Render swiftly without making any turns or deviations. After several minutes of rapid flight, they stopped in front of a bare cave.

“This is it, the entrance from Zone A to the Exhibition Hall’s core, exactly as described in the ‘Prior’s’ exploration notes.”

The Spirit Mage jumped off the magic carpet and touched the peculiarly textured rocky cave with a kind of strange emotion, saying softly:

“Ancient mighty forces shaped this, yet still couldn’t resist time’s endless changes, wiping away all the wonders leaving only the outlines of bygone days, not even shadows remain, just fragments of the past.”

“You seem very familiar with this place?”

Flesh Render followed behind the Spirit Mage, asking suspiciously:

“Have you been here before? Or has someone in your organization been here?”

“More than once.”

The Spirit Mage didn’t conceal these answers.

While leading Flesh Render into the dark cave before them, he explained:

“Over the past few decades, our organization has explored this place several times, but each time we couldn’t truly reach the core. The ancient power still lingers here, letting us glimpse its secrets but preventing us from delving deeper.

Almost every exploration ended in failure. This is a tightly sealed system, what you see here maintains connections we cannot understand with places thousands of miles away. Only when my colleagues achieve breakthroughs elsewhere will the path here open to us.

So many bone-breaking explorations only brought back the specific terrain of this place and Ningkinanka’s weakness… well, that can’t even be called a weakness.

They themselves came from among the stars, banishing them there just sent these wanderers ‘home’.

Fortunately, thanks to the hard work of distant friends who severed some kind of invisible protective force, the gate to the place of creation finally opens today!”

“You mentioned earlier that you came here with a mission?”

Flesh Render asked quietly:

“So, you now have confidence in entering this mysterious core?”

“That… is not something you need to know, my dear Gnoll sir. What I’m going to do here has nothing to do with you.”

The Spirit Mage flatly refused:

“From a proper procedural perspective, I’ll give you a suggestion, don’t touch things you shouldn’t touch or know about. King Gnawbone’s remains are just ahead in the Visitor Hall. Take them and leave.”

“Just the remains?”

Flesh Render frowned and said:

“What about the secret treasure?”

“That’s not something you can get right now.”

The Spirit Mage emphasized:

“Nobody knows what King Gnawbone did here originally, but we can confirm that the Gnoll civilization tablet has already been sent to the core area of the Exhibition Hall. Some incomprehensible authentication procedure has been activated, and that thing is now protected by the Creator’s power.

Never mind you, a poor Silver-rank mage, even a team of Gold-rank powerhouses couldn’t force their way in.

However, that’s exactly what I came for.

If you’re lucky, when I complete my mission, you might also be able to take the Gnoll civilization tablet back to Dark Mountain.”

“Civilization tablet?”

Flesh Render rolled its eyes and said:

“So, this ‘civilization tablet’ is King Gnawbone’s secret treasure? This is the first time I’ve heard this term. What exactly does it represent? Look, I’m leaving soon, right, sir? Please, considering that I’m also a Spirit Mage, don’t let me leave with a belly full of questions.

That would keep me up at night.”

“You old Gnoll sure have a lot of questions. You should be grateful I’m quite fond of sharing.”

The Spirit Mage leading the way pursed his lips, pulled his hood up higher, then explained to Flesh Render behind him as they stepped onto the downward spiral staircase in the cave depths:

“The so-called ‘civilization tablet’ is a symbolic object that every race possesses. It symbolizes a race’s right to exist and continue in this world, and its bearer becomes the spokesperson for that civilization.

You can understand it as proof of identity.

It possesses various magical powers, with each tablet having different effects, but what’s certain is that when you’re acknowledged by the tablet, you, as the individual representing your race, will be granted ancient might.

The reason King Gnawbone could gather the largest and most frenzied Gnoll Black Plague army in history was because it found the Gnoll civilization tablet and gained its recognition.

Therefore, King Gnawbone’s true title should be ‘Spokesperson of the Gnolls’.

Ah, unfortunately, the first half of King Gnawbone’s life is very obscure.

Nobody knows where it found the lost civilization tablet. That cunning Gnoll deliberately erased information about its early life – it clearly didn’t intend to let others know about its personal ‘treasury’.

What a selfish creature!”

The Spirit Mage complained:

“If we knew where King Gnawbone’s treasury was, Dusk’s great undertaking wouldn’t have been delayed so many years. It must have found some important relic from the Creator’s era before the epoch…”

“Moss Valley!”

Flesh Render said quietly:

“That’s where King Gnawbone first rose to power. The fact that after its rise, its first target was seizing Moss Valley from the Shadow Elves proves that place held great significance for King Gnawbone.”

“Indeed, that’s the most likely place for the relic to exist, but we couldn’t find it. Almost all of Moss Valley has been turned inside out.”

The Spirit Mage shook his head and said:

“Not just us, I estimate even the descendants of King Gnawbone’s clan don’t know the exact location of that relic. Perhaps King Gnawbone never intended to pass that information to others. It’s just ahead, take off all your spirit energy items.”

He turned back to warn Flesh Render:

“There are guardians in the Visitor Hall. They’ll react to spirit energy. If you don’t want trouble, do as I say.”

As he spoke, he had already started removing all his spirit energy items, and Flesh Render could only follow suit.

However, the old Gnoll’s aroused curiosity clearly wasn’t so easily satisfied. It stared at the peculiarly shaped metal door made entirely of strange steel before them and said:

“So about the civilization tablets… if they’re really as magical as you say, where did they come from? You keep mentioning pre-epoch mysteries. I guess these tablets aren’t mortal creations either?”

“Hmm, the Creator.”

The Spirit Mage took off his pants leaving only boxer shorts, removed the decorative ring from his ankle and tossed it aside, not caring about his currently awkward appearance. Holding that oddly shaped “metal staff,” he said:

“Just like the source of all miracle artifacts, all civilization tablets come from the Creator. Of course, on this continent, the majesty of gods has replaced the legend of the Creator. Only among the Sanghai people in the land of origin can you still hear poems praising the Creator.

Just from this point alone, the Sanghai people who call themselves ‘People of the Creator’ have reason to look down on the barbarians of the continent. People here have forgotten the true power and instead worship some astral spirits that have power but are hypocritical.

This is truly embarrassing.”

“But… but does the Creator really exist?”

Flesh Render also took off its robe, revealing that withered body, and said quietly:

“I always thought that was just a legend.”

“Then congratulations, you’ve stepped into legend! The ground you stand on was shaped by the Creator personally. Feel honored, Sir Flesh Render, you’re about to enter the Creator’s hall. This is absolutely not a privilege that any random life form can have.”

The Spirit Mage grinned, striding proudly through the door before them.

Under Flesh Render’s gaze, he spread his arms standing in the middle of the doorway, allowing blue light from the doorframe to scan over his body, finally producing a strange voice speaking in a language Flesh Render couldn’t understand at all.

This seemed to be some kind of peculiar “inspection” process. With a soft click, the closed metal doors ahead slowly opened, bright but not harsh light shining through from within, making the unprepared Flesh Render squint its eyes. Through its fingers, it could see this was a very clean and marvelous place.

There was no gas lamp illumination.

But those light strips hidden within the minimalist architectural style provided stable and warm light sources. The hall didn’t have many things or decorations, you could say it was “bare walls,” yet that extremely minimalist but “futuristic” design filled this place with a kind of “high-end feel” that the Gnoll couldn’t understand.

It immediately realized the Spirit Mage wasn’t bragging, this truly was the “Creator’s domain.”

“Come in, what are you standing there for? Ningkinanka’s banishment time is almost up!”

The Spirit Mage wearing only boxers and a hood called from the other side:

“Quickly take King Gnawbone’s remains and leave. Don’t interfere with my continued work here, I had quite a struggle getting this job from Lord Source.”

“Ahhh.”

Flesh Render hurriedly stepped forward like a country bumpkin, mimicking the Spirit Mage’s posture by spreading its arms in the doorway. Blue light beams shot out from around its head, scanning over its body and causing Flesh Render slight discomfort.

The Spirit Mage’s keen perception made it feel that at this moment all its secrets were being analyzed by these light beams. It couldn’t understand how this thing worked, but it could guess this was some kind of special “detection spell.”

“Biological template code D-04, Silver-rank individual, Threat level: Low! First-time entry to Visitor Hall will be granted ‘temporary visitor’ status. Please observe Exhibition Hall regulations. Please do not enter areas other than the Visitor Hall.”

A light voice sounded beside Flesh Render’s ear.

Though it couldn’t understand the language, it strangely understood the meaning, this was clearly information transmission beyond language and text, directly “copying” the content into the Gnoll’s mind.

This made Flesh Render once again feel the “greatness of the Creator.”

It stepped onto the Creator’s domain with an attitude of seeking knowledge and exploration, but when it saw its footprints leaving ugly mud stains on the pristine floor, Flesh Render even felt an inexplicable shame rise in its heart.

It felt it had “desecrated” this sacred place.

However, soon a round, strange box came floating over with a whirring sound, not only cleaning up the mud but also circling around Flesh Render, spraying peculiar mist that cleaned the dirt from its body.

“Ha, the Creator’s little pet – amazing, right?”

The Spirit Mage leaning on his metal staff said teasingly to Flesh Render:

“These little things can be found in every Creator domain. They’re some kind of preset spirit energy items responsible for cleaning up garbage. I’ve tried taking apart a few broken ones, but I couldn’t even find their assembly seams.

I dare say even if we brought the best mechanist from Shaldor Engineering Academy, they wouldn’t know where to start.”

“These are divine objects, it’s proper that mortals cannot touch or understand them.”

Flesh Render snorted.

It wasn’t surprised by this.

In its worldview, even a roll of toilet paper beside true gods wasn’t a “sacred object” that mortals should touch.

This stubborn response made the Spirit Mage lose interest in continuing conversation with this fellow. He pursed his lips and pointed to a row of seats leading to the core of the Visitor Hall, saying:

“Go on, your king is there.”

Hearing this, Flesh Render strode forward immediately. Going around the seats, it saw a skeleton sitting in the first row chair, that was indeed a Gnoll skeleton. Though long dead it hadn’t weathered or become just bones, merely presenting a mummified state.

Like Flesh Render and the Spirit Mage, it had removed its armor and weapons, wearing only simple clothes, showing that King Gnawbone also understood the “rules” for entering the Creator’s domain.

Flesh Render looked at the skeleton before it with complex emotions.

Actually, like other Gnolls, it believed in its heart that King Gnawbone hadn’t died but was just hiding to lick its wounds while waiting to rise again.

However, the cruel fact before its eyes was telling it that King Gnawbone had long since died!

As an excellent necromancer, Flesh Render could even judge that King Gnawbone had been dead for over a hundred years, meaning the Gnolls’ king had already passed away before the Fourth Black Plague had truly ended.

However, Flesh Render soon noticed something wrong.

It frowned looking at King Gnawbone’s mummy sitting in the chair before it, saying:

“Why would our king take such a strange posture? This isn’t any kind of Gnoll ritual…”

“That’s prayer.”

The Spirit Mage walked to Flesh Render’s side and said quietly:

“Your king was praying alone in this Creator’s domain before death. No one knows what it was praying for anymore, but if I had to guess, it’s related to a series of puzzling operations it carried out at the end of its life.

But I can be certain that King Gnawbone wasn’t a follower of the Lord of the Hunt, you’ve seen with your own eyes that it truly believed only in the Creator’s might, which is also why it couldn’t become our companion.

It’s said that when it was defeated in battle back then, it sought help from our newly established organization – ah, I wasn’t even born then, I’m just repeating hearsay – they say our leader ruthlessly refused it.

It seems in desperation King Gnawbone finally returned the power and glory it obtained from the Creator back to its source. Tsk tsk, if it wasn’t a Gnoll, just this behavior alone would be enough to call it ‘sincere’.

Go on.

Take it away.

For such a dead one who left a trace in history, returning to one’s roots is a kind of dignity.”

“But the secret treasure… our civilization tablet!”

Flesh Render looked toward the passage directly in front of King Gnawbone.

Although it had only first heard the term “civilization tablet” today, this still gave it an impulse to step inside, but the ominous silhouettes of steel guardians faintly visible in the darkness made it hesitate.

This was the Creator’s holy ground!

Everything here was beyond the imagination of a Gnoll Spirit Mage like itself. If even King Gnawbone had to wait here with such a humble posture, then Flesh Render couldn’t run wild here either.

“King Gnawbone’s secret treasure is in the core area.”

The Spirit Mage said quietly:

“Pray, if I successfully complete my mission, I’ll bring it back to give to you all. In Dusk’s plan, collecting civilization tablets is of utmost importance. We’d be very happy to see it returned to those who need it.

We’ll teach you how to use it correctly, of course after you swear to abandon this boring and wrong world.

But if I may give you a suggestion, after leaving you can search the swamps in the exhibition area’s outer ring for King Gnawbone’s personal belongings.

You’ve seen it.

It didn’t leave its armor and weapons and personal items outside the door, I guess this fellow had already carefully hidden those things before coming in.

If you find those things, perhaps you can figure out your king’s thoughts and plans at the end of its life. However, even just these remains alone are enough for you to return to Dark Mountain and complete your task.

You’ll be seen as a Gnoll hero.

Don’t forget what you promised me earlier, Sir Flesh Render.”

“Mm.”

The Gnoll mage nodded.

With an extremely respectful manner, it placed King Gnawbone’s corpse into a specially made body bag. Before leaving with the king’s remains on its back, Flesh Render turned and asked:

“I haven’t asked your name yet, sir. I can sense that your heart’s pursuit of the unknown clearly exceeds your loyalty to Dusk’s great cause… so, I think we could actually continue working together later. Could you tell me your name? A code name would work too.”

“You can call me ‘Explorer’.”

That person waved goodbye and said:

“As you said, I didn’t join Dusk for any great cause, and I’m not particularly enthusiastic about destruction, it’s purely out of desire and exploration for the unknown and the truth of the world. I can’t stand a huge mystery being ignored by everyone, and for this I’m willing to abandon my conscience and my humanity.

I’m not a good person, really.

Stay away from me.

May your road back to the city be smooth, sir, and also don’t provoke that swamp giant snake that returned from the Astral Realm, it’s got quite a belly full of anger right now.”