Su Lun had felt it strange before, why there was such an abrupt stele within this twisted space.
This seed to be the only normal thing in this space.
But precisely because it was normal, it was abnormal.
And from a distance, seeing the firm and powerful signature on the stele left by Sir Isaac, it didn't seem so abrupt after all.
Only soone like Sir Isaac, an Alchemical Demigod standing at the pinnacle of planes, could afford to leave a stele here in God's Burial Ground, a place where even ninth-grade beings have no assurance of survival.
Moreover, a thousand years ago, when God's Burial Ground had not yet been sealed by the Dalu tribe, Sir Isaac had gone to the Erald Sanctuary and signed a pact with the Dalu tribe, and both the timing and place matched.
On the deck of "Eternal Night," Su Lun glimpsed the stele from afar and turned to Mr. Mirror, "Senior Sister?"
Mr. Mirror shook her head.
Obviously, she did not know that her father had once been here.
After pondering for a mont, she then spoke, "It is indeed my father's handwriting. But at least before I went into hibernation, my father had never ntioned this experience."
"Oh?"
Listening, Su Lun felt slightly puzzled.
If Sir Isaac had been to such a peculiar space, there was no reason not to tell his own daughter.
At the very least, he would have warned her about the dangers.
Unless Mr. Mirror hibernated before he ca, or there were so reasons he couldn't speak of?
...
"Eternal Night" moved slowly towards that piece of land, not too hurriedly or slowly, and Su Lun kept an eye on their surroundings without spotting any danger.
anwhile, the stele beca clearer and clearer in their vision.
A stele appearing on this sea of blood surely could be hiding so secret.
If it truly was left by Sir Isaac, perhaps there was so deeper significance?
Su Lun had no intention of letting "Eternal Night" get too close; he stopped the ship about a mile away from the stele.
He and Mr. Mirror planned to first explore the crimson-tinted deserted island.
With the flicker of spatial fluctuations, they were already standing in the air, dozens of ters away from the stele.
However, at that mont, sothing miraculous happened.
The stele, as if sensing soone's approach, suddenly displayed a line of text: "My dearest Ophelia, Pestoya, are you both well?"
Upon seeing this, both Su Lun and Mr. Mirror's pupils constricted simultaneously. They felt as if they were being watched by so mysterious force, causing their hair to stand on end.
Ophelia was Mr. Mirror's na, and Pestoya was the Ghost Lady – was the stele... greeting them?
Was the stele alive?
Conscious?
Yet the stele, as if seeing through their thoughts, displayed another line of text: "Oh, I suppose you must be quite surprised, after all, this is a greeting from a thousand years past."
The tone was relaxed, like an exchange between relatives.
Su Lun realized sothing as he stared at the stele, with a glint in his eyes.
For the All-knowing Eye had seen through the essence of the stele – it was actually a biological relic, otherwise regarded by Su Lun as a biological computer of "Isaac the Blaspher."
This nearly confird that the stele was indeed left by Sir Isaac.
Mr. Mirror looked at the stele, her brows faintly furrowed, her eyes thoughtful.
And beside her, Pestoya blinked curiously at the text on the stele and asked, "Are you... Father?"
Another line of text appeared on the stele: "Pestoya, my poor girl, I apologize for the hardships you've endured..."
Pestoya blinked, "Father, are you in the stele?"
Stele: "No, I am not here. This is just so words I left behind using alchemical transmutation. Only when you arrive, will you be able to see them."
Pestoya inquired with curiosity, "Do you know we would co?"
Stele: "Yes."
Seeing this, both Su Lun and Mr. Jing found it quite unbelievable.
Sir Isaac actually knew a thousand years ago that they would co here?
It wasn't the intelligence of the stele that amazed them, but rather a feeling of being bound by fate, making them feel as if their destinies were being manipulated by so unseen force above.
It was as if they were in a play where, from opening to closing curtain, the ending was predetermined by the script.
No matter how splendidly the actors perford, it was not of their own will, but rather they were pulled along by the will of the script.
For Su Lun and Mr. Jing, who were now at the pinnacle of their respective fields, this feeling of being controlled was quite unsettling.
However, what followed was an even more outrageous scene.
The stele seed to know they would be puzzled at this mont and directly revealed a line of text: "Seeing such words appear on the stele, I know that you might be quite perplexed. Do you feel that fate is mysterious but also feel a sense of fear? As if you are being led by an invisible string and cannot escape the bonds of destiny? No, do not think that way. Fate is mysterious, but not in the way you think. It is not a shackle, but rather a fundantal cosmic rule."
"In fact, fate is not as mystifying as you think. It is like the annual rings of the cosmos, with ti leaving circles of marks on all things. If you have a sufficiently high understanding of the cosmic rules, then by following those traces, you will naturally uncover so secrets hidden in the past, present, and future... That is fate."
"So, I knew that you would definitely co."
...
Su Lun and Mr. Jing exchanged glances, seeing the surprise in each other's eyes.
The words on the stele were simple, yet upon reflection, they seed to offer a profound direction.
Sir Isaac's talent was [S-003-Fate Controller], a divine talent mysterious in nature, with a na recognized by few but an unknown function to almost all.
Its sequence ranking was even before that of Su Lun's Reaper of Death.
The ability related to "fate" was, rely upon hearing it, terrifying.
Before the two of them could ponder longer, the stele once again revealed new text: "My dear daughter, you being here must an soone managed to collect all five of my notes, right? Don't be surprised. The notes involve so laws of fate, preventing them from being buried in dust by ti. When soone gathers all five notes, it ans that their cognition and strength have reached the pinnacle presence of the alchemical realm. As a result, fewer secrets of this plane will be hidden from your eyes. But standing at the peak, you will realize it's not that you have no more questions, but new questions arise, deeper ponderings about the truth."
Therefore, you will inevitably search for higher clues continuously, to explain the doubts in your heart. Like the Far West Dragon Kingdom Waters or this God Burial Ground. So, you ca here. Either sooner or later, you would co."
So that was it.
Understood, yet not entirely.
But upon seeing this text, Su Lun and Mr. Jing felt an unexplainable sense of relief, dissipating the uncomfortable feeling of being controlled.
The stele then revealed: "To be able to see the content of my five manuscripts, you already possess the qualification to touch upon this secret. Indeed, this secret is Alchemy's ultimate—the Erald Record!"
Upon reading this, Su Lun and Mr. Jing's expressions beca very grave.
"Erald Record," a term that existed only in legends.
Scattered references to it were found in nurous ancient texts, but no one knew what it was, only that it contained the ultimate secret about the origin of Alchemy.
Su Lun had been aware, since encountering his teacher Sereia at the Dawn Relic, that the end point of the five notes was the "Erald Record."
He had not expected that he would finally touch upon this secret today.
However, Su Lun's expression was slightly odd.
In the past two years, he had painstakingly researched and indeed uncovered the ultimate secret of the five notes, but what he found was just a random jumble of codes without any apparent pattern; he had no idea of their use and had yet to solve them.
Seeing this stele, he imdiately understood that part of the secret was right before his eyes.
The stele further displayed: "Rather than call it my discovery, it would be better to say it's the treasure left for the alchemical civilization by our predecessors from the Dawn Era. Ophelia, are you puzzled as to why I never shared this secret with you? Because it cannot be disclosed. Once known, it may co to the attention of higher beings."
"It's like the beautiful shells exposed on the sand beach, easily picked up by passing fishern. Only by burying it in the sand can it be preserved. This is the wisdom of our forebears. Alchemy has given us eyes to find the truth, and only with careful searching can its existence be seen. You only have the right to touch this secret by coming to this space."
Su Lun and Mr. Jing finally understood.
It wasn't that Sir Isaac didn't ntion it, but rather the ti was not right, and it could not be spoken of.
Without the required strength, one had no qualification even to touch the secret, and speaking of it would be pointless.
At that ti, the stele finally revealed its last line of text: "By leaving this stele, I also wish to remind you that this is a seal. This place is the true core of the God Burial Ground. What is sealed here is dangerous, possessing a terrifying existence that could bring disaster to the entire plane. I cannot describe what it is, only that it is beyond human comprehension. If you do not know how to release the seal and enter, then you have no right of entry. The contents of those notes are an existence you are currently unable to reach..."
Then there was no more.
...
Su Lun didn't actually need to look at the last line of text on the stele; his All-knowing Eye had already discerned that this was an extrely clever seal.
It was just that the scale of the seal was very large, and without seeing the whole picture before, he couldn't identify it at a glance.
And this stele was the pivot of the seal, which had been operating for a thousand years, providing the energy needed for the seal's operation.
Su Lun and Mr. Jing landed on the ground and stood in front of the stele at a close distance.
Besides the stele, this "deserted island" was just like a sandy land, bare and desolate.
Stepping on the ground felt like walking on a sandy beach, slightly loose and soft.
For so reason, a line from the stele flashed through Su Lun's mind: "Seashells on the beach?"
He shuffled his feet on the ground, brushing aside the layer of loose sand, and then saw to his surprise that the ground was shimring with a tallic luster.
"Active Silver Ore?"
Su Lun took a closer look and was imdiately stunned by his assessnt.
Looking closer, he realized that the whole island was made of active silver ore!
"So much of it!"
Even soone as accustod to grand scenes as Su Lun was astonished at this sight.
The surprise had co so suddenly.
The materials he had previously used to make the gargoyles were from the Mountain Dwarf race, and though the quantity was considered the greatest in the Alchemy plane's reserve, it was still inadequate for making golems. As a result, the vast majority of Su Lun's more than 30,000 gargoyles were made with many other tals added, resulting in inferior quality.
Limited materials directly restricted the quality ceiling of the gargoyles.
Su Lun had been aning to acquire more, and had made arrangents for secret mining in the Mafa Demon Beast Mountains.
But the yields were incredibly low.
Only a few kilograms could be mined in a year.
The resource he had used previously ca down to good luck – it was the Mountain Dwarves' hoarded reserves from countless years of mining, which had run out after one sweep.
Because the content of [Active Silver] in ordinary rock layers was extrely low, a concentration of one part in a hundred thousand was already considered a rich deposit.
But here on the island, the concentration of silver must be over seventy percent!
The entire island was made of this super-rich ore, and even minimal refining would be enough to create perfect quality gargoyles!
[Active Silver] is said to be a special ore ford when gods fell, their flesh and blood soaking into the land. The higher the level of the god, the purer the active silver ford upon their demise.
Although Su Lun had suspected that the God Burial Ground might yield ore, he hadn't expected such an astonishing surprise, thinking to himself, "If I were to mine all of this, wouldn't I never have to worry about materials for making as many gargoyles as I want in the future?"
Mr. Jing, who stood nearby, also noticed the silver on the ground and understood what it ant, a look of joy passing through his eyes as well.
But obviously, now was not the ti to mine; they had sothing else to do.
No more text was displayed on the black stele.
The two observed the island for a while.
Su Lun spoke directly, "This sealing formation is very advanced, reaching the peak of this plane. But with the [Space-Ti Ring of Urobolos], I could actually enter."
He had identified that the specifications of this seal had nearly reached the pinnacle of the Alchemy plane, so much so that it would be impossible to enter without being a Demigod.
Yet, Su Lun happened to have a "cheat device" – a broken Divine Artifact that could ignore any spatial restrictions.
Mr. Jing listened, seemingly weighing up sothing in his mind.
They could enter, but what ca after that was the big problem.
Based on the text left on the stele, the creatures they had previously encountered were just appetizers; the real danger lay beneath this seal.
Yet, there was also "Green Jade", related to the ultimate secrets of Alchemy, below.
For a Magician, particularly one who already stood at their height, the chance of glimpsing the truth held an irresistible allure.
Originally, if they had a few more decades, they might have been better prepared to explore this perilous place.
But now, with the plane invasion imminent, they no longer had the luxury of waiting.
If possible, even at the risk of so danger, they had to give it a try.
The two exchanged a glance.
Su Lun didn't fail to understand Mr. Jing's intention; he couldn't suppress the thought himself and suggested, "Senior sister, let's have Mr. Raven check it out first."
Mr. Jing nodded, glanced at the black raven on his shoulder, and said politely, "Then we'll entrust this task to Mr. Raven."
Mr. Raven seed quite pleased with this arrangent and gladly accepted.
Su Lun didn't delay. He notified the crew of the Eternal Night in the vicinity and then, with a pinch of the sorcerer's seals, a spatial rift appeared before him.
The Space-Ti Ring bypassed the seal's restriction and opened a rift in the space below; Mr. Raven dove right in.
However, at that mont, a sudden change occurred!
No sooner did the spatial rift appear than Mr. Raven instantly disintegrated, and a terrifying pressure burst from the crack like a breached levee.
This was a divine presence stronger than any monster they had encountered before!
Su Lun's expression suddenly turned grim.
He quickly altered the Illusion Technique, trying to repair the rift.
But at that mont, a terrifyingly large hand shot out from the rift like lightning, preventing it from closing.
As the hand appeared, the entire space trembled violently.
The hand tore at the rift, looking to widen it and erge.
Mr. Jing acted imdiately, casting several sharp beams of mirror light at the hand. However, it had little effect, rely scratching a few fissures on the hand without stopping the monster.
If this monster kept blocking the spatial rift's exit, they couldn't close the rift, potentially attracting more and more monsters.
Su Lun identified the true nature of the monster and made a swift decision, "Pull it out!"
Almost coinciding with the end of his words, Mr. Hei's legion of sorcerers on the sea surface acted, "Legion Technique·Strength of the Dragon!"
As the legion technique condensed, an invisible dragon claw ford by the domain field imdiately seized the hand inside the spatial rift.
The monster, already struggling to co out, was forcibly dragged out by this pull.
On closer inspection, it was indeed a magical arm of the Hundred-Ard Giant King Briareus, over one hundred ters long!
Su Lun, seeing this, quickly closed the spatial rift, severing the connection with the sealed space.
The monster was imdiately isolated without support.
Although formidable, the Dawn Group had sufficient experience in dealing with giants and possessed plane-ceiling-level battle power.
In an instant, Mr. Jing split into nine, and a large-scale nine-pointed star formation lit up beneath his feet; the distant legion of sorcerers changed their technique, and a series of Holy Light Chains locked up the giant hand...
It was just one monster, but as long as it hadn't crossed the divine threshold, it wasn't an unconquerable existence for the current Dawn Group.
Su Lun and the others, familiar with their roles, began coordinating their efforts, employing various controls, burning with the Death God's Fire, piercing with the All-knowing Eye...
Despite the series of harrowing events, the giant hand monster was ultimately outnumbered and slain on the spot, and then refined into a substantial amount of rule threads.
The sudden appearance of the monster had thrown the Dawn Group into disarray for a mont, but after killing it, Su Lun also ca upon a new idea.
Ice-fishing?
Digging a hole in the thick ice, then fishing them out one by one?
The quality of the monsters under the seal was extrely high, and the quantity of the extracted rule threads was also very satisfactory. Luring them out one at a ti would minimize the risk.
And if they were to fish out all the monsters below, wouldn't that an the danger would decrease even more?
Perhaps they would have the chance to see what the ultimate secret of alchemy really is?
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