"Keep these original books, sir."
The lead wizard pointed at the bookshelves. "Copying the information was enough for us. These physical books may contain details that scans cannot fully capture, or they may themselves be some kind of special medium. There could be no one more suitable than an alchemist such as yourself to study them."
Benjamin nodded and did not refuse.
The vessels of knowledge themselves sometimes contained secrets. For wizards, this was practically common sense.
Giving him the physical books was also a form of compensation from another angle.
The three wizards did not linger. With their abundant gains in tow, they swiftly withdrew along the path they had come from, presumably eager to return, digest their harvest, and exchange it for Military Merit.
In the vast treasury, only Benjamin remained in the blink of an eye, along with the silent Black Giant at his side.
The mountain-like piles of resources had already been cleared away. Only several rows of heavy bookshelves remained, along with the lingering aftertaste of energy and soul crystals in the air.
After storing every book in the treasury within his Internal Space, Benjamin left without the slightest attachment.
He ordered the Black Giant to set several high-energy blast points, then swiftly retreated.
When he flew out of the cave entrance and landed on the surface, a muffled boom sounded behind him, and the ground trembled faintly.
That underground complex, which had hidden wealth and knowledge, completely collapsed and was buried beneath a chain of explosions, cutting off any possibility of the enemy making use of it again.
For the next three days, Benjamin continued patrolling the cleared regions on the outskirts.
Relying on the Eye of Investigation and his own senses, he found several scattered resource sites and hidden small warehouses, gaining some