Treasure

The light in the forest gradually dimmed, and dark red blood flowed freely. Amidst the scattered limbs and broken bones, only one person stood with a sword, the stench in the air lingering for a long time.

After killing the Magic Apprentice, Rhode used his remaining strength to clear out the few Undead Creatures on the battlefield.

Without giving himself time to rest, after killing all the Undead Creatures, Rhode began to clean up the battlefield and count the spoils of war.

During the previous battle, Rhode hadn't seen any bags or similar items on the Undead Creatures, so he focused his search on the apprentice's corpse.

Mana violently erupted within the body. The apprentice's corpse was riddled with holes after death, as if any part could be easily torn off with a slight tug.

This also made Rhode sigh that a Hero-level corpse was ruined like this. If it hadn't undergone such modification, this Hero-level corpse would likely have many uses.

A Hero-level corpse, if used to transform into an Undead Creature, would have innate advantages over ordinary Undead Creatures. After undergoing certain rituals, it would even be qualified to transform into a Death Knight.

The corpses of Heroes were also needed for the creation of some powerful Treasures. The creators of Treasures wouldn't care whether the Hero's corpse came from humans or other races.

Therefore, Hero-level corpses held high value. Even though the Free Professional Merchants Guild didn't openly accept Hero-level corpses, the prices in the black market remained stubbornly high.

Of course, a living Hero commanded an even higher price.

What Rhode regretted was that the apprentice-level corpse was so damaged that almost all its subsequent added value was gone, and it couldn't even be transformed into an Undead Creature.

While searching the apprentice's corpse, Rhode found a pendant inside his clothes. The pendant was stained with blood, giving Rhode a strange feeling. He held it in his hand. Then, from his mangled fingers, he discovered a plain-looking ring. If Rhode hadn't paid special attention to this spot based on his past experience, he might have overlooked it.

An apprentice-level Necromancer would struggle to afford such decorative items, whether it was a pendant or a ring, let alone spend thought on them.

Holding the ring, Rhode made an attempt. He felt his Mana flowing into it, and Rhode knew he had found the right item – it was a Space Ring.

Space Rings were expensive, far beyond what an apprentice could afford. Rhode guessed that the Necromancer Apprentice had obtained the gold by selling captive Heroes. This implied that the Hero he was supposed to rescue was temporarily in a safe location.

Rhode recalled that activating a Space Ring usually required 10 Mana. After that, even if the Space Ring was lost, no one else could open or use it until the Mana injector died.

He poured all his remaining Mana into the Space Ring and felt it. The Space Ring didn't react. Since his current Mana was insufficient to meet the minimum requirement for activating the Space Ring, Rhode didn't bother with it and just put it away.

According to his habit of wielding weapons with his right hand, to avoid the ring affecting his weapon during combat, Rhode wore the Space Ring on his left index finger.

Next, Rhode began to examine the pendant. The pendant was rhombus-shaped, with layers of yellowed and blackened cloth on the outside, now stained red with blood, enclosing a hard object within.

Unable to determine its function from the outside, Rhode looked at the system log.

[Alot's Thoughts]

Quality: Treasure

Type: Pendant

Equipment Requirement: None

Base Attributes: Bloodline Sense +3

Evaluation: An object that carries a Hero's will, it will undergo incredible changes.

Whether you are an angel of the Holy See, an ancient god, or a demon from hell, a dragon from the abyss, please take away my thoughts, so I no longer doubt, no longer wander. --Alot

Through the system log, Rhode learned that this pendant was a Hero-level pendant Treasure. Pendant Treasures usually came with some special bonuses.

Various bonus effects could be attached to pendants, with the most practical being an increase in Mana recovery per hour. The attached attributes were generally unrelated to direct combat strength.

A player could equip a maximum of three pendants simultaneously. If the number of pendants exceeded three, the last pendant equipped would not provide any special effects and would only serve as decoration.

Rhode recalled that equipping three pendants simultaneously also granted an achievement.

After checking the pendant's attributes, just as Rhode was about to close the system log, he noticed an inconspicuous detail in the log: the name of the pendant's previous owner.

"Alot..."

Rhode had heard of this name in his previous life.

Hero Alot was active in the early expansions of the game, especially shining in the Shadow of Death expansion.

Alot's origins were a mystery; no one knew his background. The earliest records of him could only be traced back to the Black Crow Necromancy Magic Academy in Dya. He joined the battlefield as a Necromancer and soon became one of the powerful Undead Lords of that era with his exquisite spells and ruthless methods. Later, sensing the tide of the war turning against them, he disappeared.

The game information from his previous life flashed through Rhode's mind. Rhode took a deep look at the tattered apprentice corpse on the ground.

He, a Hero destined for greatness, had been killed by himself before he could grow. He had already altered the game's plot to some extent.

This meant that the events that occurred in the game in his previous life would generally not change, but they would not be replicated exactly. His gaming experience from his previous life could only serve as a reference and could not be blindly trusted. In the future, he would need to rely more on his own judgment when handling certain quests.

Looking at the pendant in his hand, Rhode fell into thought.

The Bloodline Sense attribute provided by the pendant was not very useful for ordinary people, but for Rhode, who had a soul mission, it was different. Bloodline Sense was an attribute Rhode needed.

Rhode had been worrying about how to find his sister Rowan's whereabouts. With this pendant, as long as Rowan was within a certain range of Rhode, he would be able to sense her.

Rhode put on the pendant. Bloodline Sense only worked within a certain range, and putting on the pendant didn't give Rhode any feeling.

Since Alot's other items were stored in the Space Ring, Rhode's current Mana was insufficient to open it. He would have to wait until his Mana increased before trying again.

The sky gradually darkened.

Perhaps it was due to the forest canopy blocking the light, or perhaps it was due to his complete focus during the battle, but Rhode hadn't noticed anything while fighting the Magic Apprentice. It wasn't until Rhode finished his inventory that he realized it was becoming difficult to see. Looking up, he saw that the sky had already turned dark.

With the stench all around and the dim light within the crypt, Rhode returned to the tree trunk where he had observed the apprentice, preparing to meditate to gain enough Mana to open the Space Ring.