Chapter 82: Mocking Words

Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Mocking Words

Suddenly, the orb of light halted in mid-air. It spun twice in place, its body blinking continuously as if giving a signal.

Jeremy landed, retracting his Sacred Weapon wings. Stepping forward a few paces, his gaze pierced through the dense fog, spotting a sharp, pitch-black spire thrusting through the sea surface like a spear. The entire main body of the tower was submerged deep beneath the freezing water. Without this light leading the way, one could likely search for a whole year and still never find it.

Lucius stepped up beside Jeremy. Lucius’s gaze swept over the dilapidated spire, his tone carrying its familiar mockery, "This little thing went through all the trouble to lure us here; perhaps there’s a cage waiting for us down below."

Upon hearing those words, the orb of light immediately reacted. It bounced up and down violently, emitting ear-piercing "Bloop bloop bloop!" sounds, seemingly extremely dissatisfied with Lucius’s slander.

Leon crossed his arms over his chest, leisurely leaning against a nearby rock, and smirked, "We’ll know as soon as we go down there."

Jeremy reached out his hand. Contrary to its previous evasiveness, the orb of light swooped in a circle before obediently nuzzling against Jeremy’s fingertips. The cool and soft sensation was incredibly bizarre. Jeremy gave his hand a light flick, "Lead the way."

Understanding the command, the orb instantly plunged into the water.

Jeremy focused his mind, applying the water-filtering magic that Griffin had just taught them a few days prior. A transparent bubble quickly enveloped his entire body, providing the necessary oxygen supply. Without hesitation, Jeremy decisively jumped straight into the sea. The four behind him immediately channeled their magic as well, following closely on his heels.

Once submerged in the water, the tower’s full panorama truly displayed its grandeur. That sharp peak jutting above the sea surface was a mere thousandth of the colossal structure plunging straight down to the bottom of the abyss. It was a tower hundreds of stories high.

The structure was constructed from a pitch-black, glossy crystal, bearing the breath of ancient epochs. Seaweed and strips of coral clung tightly to the stone walls, concealing the brilliance of its golden age. In this wasteland, any ruin had a lifespan measured in millennia, radiating an ancient, decaying aura.

The five quietly swam deeper into the sea. The orb came to a halt in front of the only entrance, but the path was completely blocked by the wreckage of a massive sunken ship and jagged reef rocks. The ship was battered, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading across the rotting hull; it seemed as though a mere touch would be enough to crumble it into dust.

However, the craftsmanship of this vessel was extraordinarily exquisite. Driven by a survivor’s instinct, Jeremy didn’t let the opportunity slip by. He squeezed through the debris and swam into the ship’s cabin in search of some loot. Unfortunately, time had corroded everything. Books had been reduced to a thick layer of mud, and rusted weapons shattered the moment they were touched. Not a single item retained any value.

Jeremy let out a heavy breath and gave up. He was just about to turn around and call the others to clear the wreckage to open a path, when a violent tremor slammed straight into his eardrums.

"Boom!"

The water current churned violently. Lucius had just swept his hand, and an explosive blast of magic directly blew the massive boulder and half of the obstructing wreckage into tens of thousands of fragments. The tower’s entrance was instantly revealed—a pitch-black iron door, sitting half-open like a giant maw waiting to swallow its prey.

Amidst the murky water, Lucius’s gaze shifted toward Jeremy. The corners of Lucius’s lips curled into a faint smile, his sharp eyes glinting with a trace of amusement, "Shall we go in and take a look?"

"Yeah," Jeremy replied curtly. Kicking off the ship’s hull for momentum, Jeremy glided past Lucius and darted straight into the tower.

Inside was nothing but pitch-black obscurity. Daylight could not penetrate the fathomless depths of the water. Jeremy was just about to raise his hand to condense a fireball when the orb of light hovering outside suddenly swelled to the size of an apple. It flared brilliantly like a miniature sun, illuminating every nook and cranny of the space.

The scene laid out before their eyes made all five of them frown.

It was an absolute wasteland of garbage. Shattered weapons and stark white bones were scattered everywhere. Rotting wooden shelves were piled high with parchment scrolls and bamboo slips that had been raggedly gnawed on by magical beasts. The walls and floor were splattered with dried, dark bloodstains, foul-smelling and filthy to the extreme.

"Bloop bloop!" The orb of light seemed to lose its leisurely demeanor, blinking on and off in a hurried frenzy.

Jeremy withdrew his gaze and slowly followed after it. They navigated a seemingly endless corridor, ascending winding staircases to reach the upper floors. From the first floor to the fiftieth, the scenery remained entirely unchanged. Once they passed the fifty-first floor, the garbage lessened, but it was replaced by something that left them not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

This place had already welcomed countless visitors!

The crystal walls were riddled with carvings left by every conceivable race on the Sylvanor continent. Jeremy could easily read a few lines written in the Empire’s language: *"The great [Name] has swept through here!"* or *"There’s absolutely nothing here but dry bones!"*

After nearly an hour of climbing stairs, they reached the ninetieth floor. Looking up from this height, only a dozen or so floors remained. It was highly likely that those who had come before had scraped the place entirely clean of any treasures, because along the way, Jeremy hadn’t found a single speck of dust worth keeping.

Jeremy’s footsteps halted, his profound eyes glued to the orb of light. Was this thing simply playing a prank on them?

Suddenly, a line of text deeply carved into the stone wall caught Jeremy’s attention. He stepped closer, running his fingertips over the forceful strokes of the Empire’s language.

*[To those who come after: that orb of light is a pure, unadulterated bastard! I turned everything upside down from the top floor all the way down here and got absolutely nothing for it! If you’re reading this, get the hell out of here quickly, don’t waste your youth!]*

Right below that resentful message was a series of comments from subsequent visitors: *"+1", "Deeply relatable", "What a total scam."*

Jeremy: "..."

Jeremy darted his eyes to the other sections of the wall. Sure enough, not only humans but various other races had also left countless curses in all sorts of languages. They all shared the same sentiment: they thought they had stumbled upon a life-changing opportunity, only to be made a fool of by a gemstone.

Leon, Lucius, and the others read it as well. The four men fell into silence simultaneously, trying to ignore the humiliating sting of being deceived. Having climbed all the way up here, turning back now would truly be a bitter pill to swallow.

The higher they climbed, the denser the profanities carved into the walls became, eventually even spilling over onto the floor. Judging solely by the sheer volume of writing, this orb had offended thousands of powerhouses from every race. The fact that it had survived until now was truly a shameless miracle.

Clinging to his patience until the very bitter end, Jeremy swung his arm and stepped onto the 102nd floor—the highest floor. However, cruel reality slapped him right in the face: the place was entirely empty.

The walls were so densely covered in carvings that there wasn’t a single blank space left, and even the white bones on the floor were gone. The number of people tricked into coming here who had left their marks was countless; the number of those who had died with lingering grievances was likely even more horrifying.

Leon interlaced his fingers, his gloomy gaze pinned straight onto the orb of light that was hovering there, pretending to be innocent. "It seems we truly have been made a fool of by a rock."

Jeremy sighed, lightly massaging his forehead, "...That’s very clear."

The orb of light was more than capable of understanding human language, but at this moment, it chose to play the fool.

"Bloop bloop bloop bloop!"

It bobbed in the air, weaving through the rows of resentful texts, and came to a halt in a hidden corner obscured by a massive pile of skeletal remains. It pressed its glowing body flat against a pitch-black section of the wall.

Jeremy’s gaze darkened. He stepped forward and launched a kick, sending the pile of dry bones flying to the side and completely clearing the narrow area. Once the wall was fully exposed, Jeremy brushed the orb aside and narrowed his eyes to observe.

Beneath the layer of dim dust, interspersed among the ancient texts of the Sylvanor continent, were incredibly exquisite, deeply engraved lines... A Totem.