Under Aganon’s guidance, the team continued marching along the right side of the inner circle, keeping an eye out for any promising locations to loot. Hadriana and the twins, Titus and Crixus, were perfectly content to follow the scion of the Solaris Family; after all, the only reliable way to find valuable resources in these ancient ruins was through thorough exploration.
Yet, a silent tension lingered among the Sky Seed Depravitas. They had a specific destination in mind: the Hunter Guild. Unfortunately, the path to that building lay in the opposite direction from the one the others were taking. Worse, it would force them into territory under the control of the Imperial Prince’s faction.
Jormungandr, Ouroboros, and Fafnir each cast fleeting, questioning looks at Vlad, silently hoping that the young man might have co up with a clever ruse to get them where they needed to go without raising suspicion. However, Vlad rely shook his head.
There was no sensible excuse that would allow the Sky Seed Depravitas to abandon Aganon’s group and head to the left side of the inner ring on their own. For now, they had to conceal their true objective and stay with the others, gathering whatever wealth or relics they could along the way.
They continued at a brisk pace for roughly fifteen minutes. Then, the entire group ca to an abrupt halt. There, looming before them, was a sprawling structure so large it towered over the surroundings. Although sheer size did not necessarily guarantee valuable content, it often served as a reliable indication of a building’s significance.
Even Vlad, whose mind was set on sneaking away to the Hunter Guild, felt a pang of curiosity as he read the sign above the main entrance.
"Library."
The term could have many interpretations, but in a city like this, it very likely referred to a repository filled with precious tos of lore, technique, and arcane knowledge.
Aganon surveyed his companions, ensuring they were prepared, then motioned for the group to advance. Approaching with caution, they inspected the main gate. Detecting no sign of active defensive wards, they proceeded inside and found themselves in a grand hall with polished floors and colossal pillars of what appeared to be gilded stone.
A long, imposing desk stood off to one side, large enough to accommodate several people at once. Beyond it, row upon row of shelves stretched into the distance, each lined with hundreds of books.
Aganon, Zalasar, Hadriana, and the twin mages exchanged excited looks. They all hailed from powerful backgrounds, yet they understood that this city had once been governed by Legends—masters whose profound knowledge could shatter boundaries that most cultivators could only dream of reaching. If the library held even a fraction of those secrets, it was worth investigating. Eagerly, the entire group fanned out across the hall, heading for the towering shelves in search of anything that might be a hidden gem.
The initial wave of excitent gradually ebbed as they began skimming the texts. Many were historical records of the Dino People’s civilization—now extinct—and detailed events long past and seemingly irrelevant. Others were basic cultivation manuals akin to introductory knowledge that everyone in the group had already mastered.
Even so, the Sky Seed Depravitas ticulously employed their A.I. Chips to scan and store every book’s contents in their digital databases. It was possible that so obscure passage might prove invaluable later, or perhaps the history of this ancient land could reveal a crucial clue about its sealed-away powers. There was also a change. It would all be useless, but it was better to have it.
Several minutes passed in subdued study. The group felt a mild pang of disappointnt when no especially rare or advanced tos revealed themselves. However, as they moved deeper into the library, they stumbled upon a raised platform set into the center of the floor, surrounded by an intricate array of glowing runes.
No one dared step onto it. Energy visibly rippled across the platform’s surface, and every person present understood that it had the hallmarks of a powerful magical formation.
All eyes turned to Vlad, the group’s Rune Master. He took a asured breath, then approached the platform. Squatting on his haunches, he ran a hand over the carved symbols while his A.I. Chip scanned and analyzed the complex runic script. The rest of the party hung back, wary of interfering with whatever delicate balance existed between the platform’s inscriptions.
Vlad worked silently for several tense minutes, channeling traces of his energy into the formation to sense how it reacted. Finally, he stood and wiped a sheen of sweat from his brow. Aganon, who had been patiently watching, stepped closer.
"Did you manage to grant us access to the higher levels?" he asked, voice hushed.
The rest of the group listened intently. If the formation could be bypassed, they might soon uncover advanced techniques or Legendary-tier knowledge. Vlad exhaled, drawing out a subtle pause before replying.
"Yes and no," he began. A few uncertain looks flashed around the group. Yet one of them rolled his eyes.
"Co on," Jormungandr muttered. "Nobody likes a cryptic douche."
Vlad shot him an exasperated glance but did not rise to the bait. Instead, he continued explaining. "This runic formation is Legendary Tier. In other words, it’s far beyond my ability to simply override. We can’t just force our way past it."
A murmur of disappointnt swept through the assembled cultivators. They had all hoped for a more direct solution. Vlad, however, raised a hand to forestall their despair.
"There is so good news. This particular formation appears to have been designed with a built-in test. If you’re recognized as a mber of this city’s organization, you’re permitted to access the higher floors by passing a specialized ’combat trial.’ That trial scales according to the participant’s cultivation level."
Glances of renewed hope spread across his audience. No one wanted to walk away empty-handed, especially not after glimpsing the majesty of this library.
Zalasar knit his brow. "But how do we beco recognized as mbers if we’re obviously outsiders?"
"That’s the trick," Vlad replied with a faint smile. "I’ve managed to fool the formation into accepting all of us as ’mbers’—at least provisionally. So, if we pass the required combat trial, the wards should grant us entry to whatever lies above."
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