Chapter 324: Departure and Demise

The centaur didn’t answer Luo Ge’s question. Instead, he glanced at the Golden Sand Venerable Lord’s corpse on the ground, mulled something over, and then spoke.

“Did you have a grudge against him? Why did you kill him?”

There was no accusation or anger in the centaur’s voice, only what seemed to be simple confusion.

Before Luo Ge could answer, he spoke again, his expression serene.

“I was waiting for him to provide me with a sufficient energy source. It appears he can no longer do that.”

His reaction made Luo Ge frown slightly.

‘This centaur seems a bit… off. Why is he giving non-answers? And he’s sort of muttering to himself… Very strange.’

“Wait,” Luo Ge said, raising a hand to interrupt. Once he was sure he had the centaur’s attention, he continued, “Since we both have questions for each other, how about we start with introductions?”

The centaur met Luo Ge’s inquisitive gaze, considered it for a moment, and then nodded. “That is very logical. I agree.”

Without any sign of waiting for Luo Ge to go first, he began speaking, laying out all his information.

“My creator called me Wisdom Core Navor, but my students were accustomed to calling me Navor. You may call me that as well.”

“The place I once lived was called the Cizton Gorge Area. At a certain point, it was subjected to an irresistible force and transformed into a state I cannot comprehend. It might be what is commonly understood as ‘destruction.'”

“I have wandered through many different regions, seeking…”

At this, Navor suddenly paused. His brow furrowed, as if frustrated by his inability to recall the relevant information.

After rapping his knuckles against his head twice—THUMP, THUMP—he gave up.

“…My apologies. My memory crystal device sustained significant damage during my travels. Some information cannot be retrieved.”

“In any case, I arrived here during my wanderings. The master of this Sand Castle and I had a mutually beneficial arrangement, so I stayed.”

Navor’s candor surprised Luo Ge, who was also taken aback by his origins.

‘Judging by the information he’s revealed, he doesn’t seem like a modified life-form, but more like a special being created through some kind of technology?’

‘Wisdom Core… As in, an intelligence core?’

At this thought, Luo Ge couldn’t help but glance at the brass device on Navor’s back, falling silent for a moment.

Although Navor hadn’t mentioned his relationship with [Gaelguda], Luo Ge felt there had to be a connection between them.

‘And the tech tree in this world… seems to have developed to a frightening degree.’

‘They can even manufacture a centaur-like being…’

‘However, he seems to have sustained quite a bit of damage on his journey. I wonder if that’s why he’s so… peculiar now…’

It was worth noting that Navor’s strength was considerable, at least equivalent to the “Dust Flame” Tier. This was very likely the reason he could coexist peacefully with a mentally unstable individual like the Golden Sand Venerable Lord.

However, Luo Ge used the word “equivalent” for a reason—he had to acknowledge Navor’s unique nature.

Unlike the Warfire of ordinary beings, Navor was sustained by a form of energy that was similar to Warfire, yet the Power of the Spirit Candle could sense a distinct difference…

Luo Ge could probably figure out the specifics if he burned Navor to cinders and analyzed the remains, but that was obviously not part of his plan.

Pulling his thoughts back, Luo Ge looked at Navor. After a moment of deliberation, he began to speak, briefly explaining his own situation.

He also subtly mentioned that he could provide a stable energy source and that the territory under his control was continuously expanding.

‘After all, it wasn’t just him; the little players were also drooling over the technology in those Prosthetic Limbs…’

After listening to what Luo Ge had to say,

Navor thought for only a moment before asking bluntly.

“Luo Ge, may I go to the territory you control? I require a stable energy source.”

Luo Ge was taken aback. Navor was certainly direct. He had spoken up before Luo Ge even had a chance to make an offer, saving him the trouble of a sales pitch.

“Alright. But I have a request of my own. I need you to share the technology you’ve mastered.”

“I can do that,” Navor replied without hesitation.

‘To be honest, Luo Ge was starting to like this straightforward way of doing things. It was refreshing.’

“We have an agreement. Please wait a moment. I will be ready to leave once I have gathered my tools.” After speaking, Navor prepared to head to a room below to retrieve his things.

“Wait,” Luo Ge said, stopping him. He still had more questions. “How much do you know about the Golden Sand Venerable Lord—the master of this Sand Castle—and the situation in this region?”

This region was suffused with all sorts of bizarre powers, but the strongest was the Power of Painful. It was the first time Luo Ge had encountered such a Power, so naturally, he wanted to learn more about it.

And Navor gave Luo Ge a concise response.

Combining what Navor said with his own prior observations, and adding some speculation, Luo Ge pieced together a rough understanding of the Golden Sand Venerable Lord’s story.

After losing his food source, the Golden Sand Venerable Lord had been desperate to find a way to survive, and had tried many things.

Among these attempts, naturally, was eating the contaminated fish and crops.

But that led to disaster.

Overcome with hunger, the Golden Sand Venerable Lord’s child ate the food and descended into Madness, losing all sanity.

One night, the child devoured its mother—the Golden Sand Venerable Lord’s wife—and turned into a monster. When the Golden Sand Venerable Lord returned home, dejected, it tried to eat him as well…