Repair and Accumulation
It was a simple ornament made of a bunch of roughly polished bones strung together. Ronan found teeth, finger bones, skulls, and other things among them, some human and some from unknown wild animals.
Each bone was covered with strange black patterns, like some kind of totem symbol, giving it an eerie and evil feel.
These bone ornaments and the Goat-headed Monster corpse on the ground immediately reminded Ronan of the Ram Horn Mask he had obtained from the Dark Head of the "Ancient Wizard Revival Society." The two were very similar in style, as if they came from the same civilization.
Does the "rotten and evil" mentioned in the fable refer to the Ancient Wizard Revival Society?
Ronan remembered Moriel telling him that a protracted war had broken out between the otherworldly forces, led by the [Abyss Demon], and the ancient wizards. Although the war ended with the Ether wizards, some remnants of the [Abyss Demon] lay dormant in the depths of the world, and the Ancient Wizard Revival Society was their shadow.
They may have a human appearance, but their bodies flow with the blood of Abyss Monsters.
This seems to corroborate the first line of the fable.
So what does the last sentence mean?
Are those who are delusional enough to make a comeback the remnants behind the Ancient Wizard Revival Society, or the terrifying army of Abyss Monsters that were repelled by the wizards in ancient times?
Ronan clutched the Goat-headed Monster bone ornament in his hand, gazing at the oasis corrupted by evil before him, his eyes gleaming.
He suddenly felt that this so-called "Stone of Destiny" trial seemed to be trying to explain and reveal something to them, the group of wizards undergoing the trial.
Someone stood atop the decaying, rotting corpses of the former Keldim Wizard Empire, and recounted a bloody truth to them.
"It stinks."
Hathaway walked up from behind, covering her nose and looking like she was about to vomit.
Can you see the writing on the ground?
Ronan asked her.
Hathaway stared at the ground for a moment, nodded, and then read aloud what she had seen, word by word. "They are not the product of a human-sheep slug... They are far more filthy than you imagine."
"So boring"
After reading it, Hathaway made a speechless comment.
It seems that only he can see that fable, or perhaps everyone sees different prompts during the trial?
Ronan's eyes flickered as he collected the Goat-headed Monster's corpse from the ground and beckoned Hathaway to continue onward.
The Quivada Oasis was larger than Ronan had imagined, and the sparsely vegetated plains were teeming with roaming Goat-headed Monster.
These Goat-headed Monster seem to exist as a kind of race. They possess considerable intelligence, but most of their will is dominated by the instinct for killing and destruction. They are quite strong, but their methods of attack are rather limited. Once you get used to them, they are not difficult to deal with.
Ronan discovered that Goat-headed Monster of the same level could provide more energy to the Elemental Pool than ordinary Magic Creature, which was good news for him.
After clearing out five waves of Goat-headed Monster, Ronan unexpectedly encountered a long-awaited "Black Night" in the Quivada Oasis.
The Goat-headed Monster appeared more frequently at night, and their spear-throwing attacks became even more concealed under the cover of darkness. They surged out from all directions of the plain like a tide, wave after wave, with unique tracking skills, relentlessly pursuing Ronan and his companion.
"Whoosh—whoosh—"
The blade of [Golden Origin] gleamed in the Black Night, shining brighter than fireworks, reaping the lives of wave after wave of Goat-headed Monster like wheat being harvested.
Ronan heard the rapid breathing, turned his head, and saw Hathaway's slightly pale profile.
"Feeling the pressure?"
Ronan casually summoned a few Water Element to replenish Hathaway's "Elemental Legion" and asked a question.
Hathaway bit her lip and said firmly, "This time when I go back, I'll try to advance to the fifth rank. Grandma has already prepared everything for me, but I've always been lazy. This time... I feel it's almost time."
The "pain" Ronan inflicted on Hathaway opened a valve deep within her soul, seemingly awakening some of her long-dormant talents as well.
In fact, Hathaway's progress was very rapid. Her Soul Power was increasing almost every day. Ronan would be amazed every time he checked her strength.
Madam Mel should really thank him.
The golden blade sliced through the bodies of the Goat-headed Monster, sweeping across the black wilderness. As if striking something, a few rocks and earth exploded with a "bang".
Just then, the first rays of dawn set in the sky, and the Black Night receded.
Ronan descended step by step from the sky on a long ladder forged from golden flames, and saw a black altar shattered by magical blades among the mangled corpses of the Goat-headed Monster.
Behind the altar, a fissure more than five meters long, resembling a black earthworm constantly wriggling, was revealed, from which a thick, putrid stench continuously leaked out.
"Spatial Rift another world?"
Ronan sensed fluctuations of spatial energy at the edge of the fissure. He was certain that the Goat-headed Monster roaming the plains had emerged from the fissure in front of him. He seemed to have found the root cause of the decay of the Quivada Oasis.
Ronan stared at the crack in the ground in front of him, and for a moment he felt an urge to crawl inside and see what was behind the crack.
Of course, he nipped this impulse in the bud as soon as it arose.
The structure of "space" is much more complex than most people imagine; not every Space Passage is two-way.
Even if he did have the courage to enter the crevice in front of him, what he saw after passing through might not be the "truth" he wanted.
Ronan stood quietly in front of the crevice for a while. After hearing the Goat-headed Monster's distinctive roar come from within again, he stretched out his right hand towards the crevice, his five fingers spread.
A mysterious silver light flickered in his azure eyes, and waves of Space Magic emanated from his five fingers, covering the crack in the ground in front of him.
Following closely behind, the black fissure in the ground, which resembled a wriggling earthworm, began to "heal" rapidly under the pressure of waves of spatial energy, until it completely disappeared from the ground.
—[Incredible! You actually have the ability to 'cure' them!]
A line of small characters slowly appeared where the crack in the ground disappeared.
Ronan frowned slightly as he looked at the small characters, and subconsciously glanced up at the sky.
He had become somewhat accustomed to the constant prompts during the trials, but since the last allegory, the prompts he saw had become increasingly subjective, giving him the feeling of being watched.
It was as if there were an invisible pair of eyes, always present in some unseen place behind him, watching his every move.
A strong burning sensation came from his wrist. Ronan raised his hand and saw that the Ring Mark on his hand had been filled in completely.
His recent act of "repairing" the spatial rift caused his mark's completion progress to jump significantly, and the person who initiated this trial seemed to greatly encourage Ronan's actions.
Ronan grasped the sleeve of his robe, gently covering his wrist, and calmly beckoned Hathaway to continue.
It seems we've gone back to the first phase, clearing out the monsters roaming the waterways.
Battle, endless battle, with Magic Creature that seem impossible to eradicate.
This process wasn't too tedious for Ronan. His [Golden Fire] was repeatedly honed in battle, and the proficiency of his five inherited spells continued to increase. The one with the lowest proficiency was almost at the second stage of the Magic Domain Resonance, while the one with the highest proficiency, [Golden Soul], was already heading towards the Master Level proficiency mark of 1,500 points.
Before long, another qualitative change may be on the horizon.
The Elemental Pool is slowly approaching the fifth tier. The corpses of Magic Creature within Elemental Pool are piling up like mountains, and the rate at which the corpses decompose into energy is almost outpacing the rate at which they accumulate.
"Call--"
A campfire was lit, and the orange flames dispelled the surrounding darkness.
Ronan sat casually in front of the campfire, slowly tearing apart the remaining dried Wind Serpent Jerky left behind by the wizard of the Astronomy Society.
Hathaway was intently stirring the fire with the end of her staff, focusing on boiling a pot of water.
Neither of them spoke, and even the [Cleaning] function of their robes couldn't dispel the strong, pungent smell of blood and filth left on them from the days of battle.
— [So heartwarming~]
— [It would be even better if I could have a bowl of hot soup right now.]
Beside the fire, several lines of small, fiery characters slowly appeared on the ground.
Ronan glanced at Hathaway and found that there was nothing unusual about Hathaway face.
Clearly, this was another hint that only he could see.
Perhaps it can no longer be considered a hint; it's more like an unseen "ghost" sitting with Ronan by the fire, stretching out its hands and feet to warm itself, smiling at Ronan, and letting out a contented sigh.
"The New Prophet"
Ronan chewed on the words along with the jerky, imagining what the person behind this "title" must look like.
After a moment, he shook his head, brushing away these meaningless thoughts and speculations, and looked at the campfire in front of him. Itai slowly flowed from under the sleeve of his robe and then slithered into the fire like a snake.
He watched Itai and flames danced together, separating into incredibly tiny forms.
The two energy particles, metal and flame, resonated in a wonderful way, and the flame gradually turned a brilliant golden yellow, with some dreamy and ethereal colors appearing and disappearing in the firelight.
Ronan was enjoying the atmosphere—by the fire, travelers told ancient stories passed down by word of mouth, sketching out epic tales by the firelight, soothing their weary souls and bodies.
A strange sense of peace and tranquility washed over him, perfect for processing and processing the lessons learned from his battles, for comprehending the deeper mysteries of the [Golden Fire], and for glimpsing the distant Golden Village within his golden dream.
Just as Ronan was quietly contemplating these fleeting moments, a sudden burst of firelight shooting into the sky in the distance jolted him from his reverie.
Hathaway suddenly stood up, and waves of intense magical energy emanated from her, causing the campfire to flicker.
Ronan narrowed his eyes, radiating his mental energy, and said softly, "Let's go take a look."
"Yes."
Hathaway quickly extinguished the campfire.