Find a Troubled Girl after leaving the Guild-Chapter 381 - 215: Zen Heart Flowing

"What’s wrong?" Hephaestus looked at the bearded colleague.

Gaelin pointed to the center of the closeable holes arranged in a regular pattern at the top of the sphere.

"It’s scorched here."

Upon his reminder, everyone carefully observed and indeed found very slight burn marks.

"You are observant." Cassandra laughed.

Hephaestus furrowed his brows and rotated the sphere again, finding more marks at the same angle.

"This situation is very unusual," the red-haired artisan said decisively.

"What happens when it’s scorched?" Lisya asked, blinking her clueless eyes.

Hephaestus answered, "The Creation Cauldron, our ’Dome Furnace Association’ was founded to pursue it. We are the group of people who understand it the best in the world."

"So?"

"Don’t rush; this is just the premise."

The red-haired artisan continued, "According to our understanding, the Creation Cauldron is a sanctuary built at an eternally active volcano left by the most glorious ancient civilization after the world’s birth.

"We gave that civilization the codename ’Primordial Being’.

"Countless years later, the mechanisms they left behind are still operational and can even manipulate the world’s permissions.

"A Level 9 innate barrier can prevent matter from the ravages of time, and for a civilization capable of crafting such dimensional tearing, space-traveling Steel Guards, the core they constructed shouldn’t show these burn marks caused by energy overload."

Lisya turned to look at other artisans of the Dome Furnace Association, finding their assessments surprisingly consistent.

From the perspective of high-tier artisans, this multi-holed sphere itself is extremely close to perfect, and the burn marks on it were accidental.

"Then what has it experienced?" the young girl with orange hair asked.

"It endured an unusual strike targeting its core; these burn marks should have been left from that," Gaelin speculated.

Hephaestus looked at Li Ang: "You just used Spiritual Manipulation to forcefully shut down this core. As a creation of civilization, the fact that it can be deactivated is naturally a qualified standard, but forcibly shutting it down could leave damage marks."

"Are you saying someone forcibly shut down this guard before?" Li Ang asked.

"Do you recall it mentioned that 720,000 day-and-night cycles ago, the authority to wield Treasure Artifacts was revoked from mortals?" the red-haired artisan asked.

Some people nodded in agreement upon hearing Hephaestus’s inquiry.

"Day-and-night cycles should be its way of expressing a day, which amounts to two thousand years ago. It implies that, two thousand years ago, the Creation Cauldron decided to enforce the rule forbidding mortals from crafting Treasure Artifacts."

On Nebis, a day also has day-and-night cycles, but the phenomena are fundamentally different from Earth, yet strangely similar in observation. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

"But that doesn’t make sense," Farlonio said, "My ancestor, from a thousand years ago, said he could create Treasure Artifacts with ease."

Hephaestus replied, "Yet it also mentioned a cycle number of 250,000, which equates to over seven hundred years ago."

"Seven hundred years ago, the last ’Fire Thief’ was executed." Li Ang quietly recited the guard’s words from that time.

"This statement carries significant information; let’s not analyze others for now. I can only say this juncture coincides with the time many grand artisans in history believe the last Treasure Artifacts were created."

"In other words, it was because of the existence of the one called ’Fire Thief’ by the Furnace Guard that people prior to seven hundred years ago could create Treasure Artifacts for a period?" Elaphia analyzed.

"That’s my belief," Hephaestus nodded, holding the multi-holed sphere, "These burn marks might be the result of the Fire Thief forcibly closing that guard."

Hephaestus closed his eyes, sensing the sphere, while Li Ang switched to the Spiritual Horizon to observe.

"Although I am still lacking in proficiency, from my understanding as an artisan, the creator designed this sphere to be filled with that kind of black mist, but according to my perception, that black mist now occupies only a small portion of it."

"You call that lacking in proficiency?" Cassandra showed a speechless expression.

In the Spiritual Horizon, Li Ang could also see that indeed, when that special spiritual black mist was confined within the multi-holed sphere, it didn’t even reach half of its capacity.

Hephaestus didn’t address the female artisan of the Ox Race; he just said, "Perhaps due to the long passage of time, it suffered attrition, or maybe the Fire Thief wore it down in battle. In any case, the Furnace Guard exhibited intelligence not matching its formidable power, hence it didn’t unleash significant destructive force."

Cassandra chuckled dryly, "It’s enough already; without Lady Legislator, we would have been done for."

"Since mortals are to be forbidden, then beneath the legendary are mortals; it should not falter before Level 9."

Hephaestus began a series of mutterings again, such as "Who exactly is the Fire Thief," "What technology is needed to shut down this guard," "Are more guards also shut down," and "Did he do this at the Creation Cauldron," musings to which others couldn’t interject.

Familiar with his ways, Gaelin and Cassandra exchanged a glance, smiling wryly, instructing the artisans to consolidate the remains of the Steel Guard and prepare for rest.

"Well, the crisis is averted, thanks to you all."

Cassandra stretched with a big yawn, smiling at Li Ang and Elaphia.

She patted Li Ang’s shoulder, "Young man, we must collaborate more in the future."