Chapter 7: The Mysterious Key

Eli could conjure objects out of thin air.

Naturally, this was because Eli possessed a supernatural treasure for spatial storage.

Items of this kind were quite rare and uncommon.

Everyone's gaze fell upon the exquisite black briarwood chest.

Yet in their minds, they were pondering the so-called "mysterious key" that Eli had mentioned.

"A mysterious item?"

Hei Luo, who was usually taciturn, rarely spoke up to ask.

"Yes, but also no." Eli lowered his voice.

"About two months ago, I came into contact with a surviving member of an adventurer team through a special channel."

"Within this team, there were true transcendents, but this adventurer team that possessed transcendents was nearly wiped out in Howling Canyon."

Howling Canyon.

Upon hearing this, the few of them all showed solemn expressions.

The Transcendent Wasteland was not a place anyone could easily set foot in.

Not to mention the dangerous areas, even the transcendent magical insects with various special abilities, transcendent beasts, and even transcendent ghosts that could not be countered by ordinary means were enough to leave ordinary people dead within three days in the Transcendent Wasteland, their bones gone without a trace.

And in the Otto Mountains, there were dangerous areas inhabited by ancient civilized tribes and remnants of ancient goblin civilizations.

These civilized tribes and ancient remnants were all located in transcendent lands.

Among them, the "Howling Canyon" was a magical place where transcendent forces dwelled, and also the site of the remnants of one of the four ancient civilized tribes.

It was said that many adventurer teams that ventured deep into Howling Canyon vanished without a trace, disappearing into thin air.

That Howling Canyon is a highly dangerous area.

It is said that deep within Howling Canyon, there is a magical house called the Howling House.

It will lurk in places you would never expect, opening its wide mouth to wait for adventurers to enter. If some unfortunate adventurer goes inside, it will close its mouth.

When it opens its mouth again, that adventurer will have completely vanished, and in their place, inside the Howling House, a new decoration will appear—perhaps a painting, a bouquet of flowers, or a new towel.

This is an extraordinary place occupied by such 'magical items' that defy all common sense.

It is not a place that ordinary teams of超凡者 can enter.

Even ordinary teams of超凡者 dare not venture there lightly, let alone a team of apprentice超凡者 like Gune and the others.

"And the one who managed to escape alive was scared out of his wits; he dared not approach the Howling Canyon again."

"So, he sold me the only thing his team obtained from the Howling Canyon—a magical key."

"And under a fair contract, that fellow also signed his blood pact; the key is genuine, not a forgery."

After listening to Aili finish speaking, the few of them looked stunned and exchanged glances.

Exploration and adventure are not the same as seeking death.

Although they were full of adventurous spirit and a desire to probe mysterious places, they were self-aware enough to know better than to go into areas with extremely high death threats.

At this moment, Gune was also slightly surprised.

The vast mountainous wilderness north of the Sugg Ruins City was all extraordinary wilderness; the areas they had previously explored had all avoided those truly dangerous extraordinary places.

Even so, in those ordinary extraordinary wildernesses, they had encountered many dangers, even suffering the miserable experience of escaping with severe injuries.

Just the ordinary wilderness was already like this.

If they were to go directly to those truly deadly 'extraordinary places,'

It would be like throwing a meat bun to a dog—gone forever!

The few of them were all silent, the atmosphere somewhat oppressive.

As his gaze swept across everyone's faces, the tight-faced Ai Li suddenly let out a soft laugh.

"There's no need to worry too much," Ai Li said with a smile.

"I have a fairly clear understanding of our group's strength. Would I do something as foolish as venturing deep into the Transcendent Realm?" The precocious Ai Li was clearly not on the level of a delusional adolescent when it came to self-awareness.

"You all know that the outskirts of Howling Canyon aren't much different from ordinary Transcendent Wastelands."

"This mysterious key in hand points to a specific area, but only within the outer region of Howling Canyon."

"Though there is some danger, our team isn't weak—not even inferior to ordinary Transcendent teams. Plus, we have the detailed guidance of the key."

"I think the risk of conducting some exploration is not high. If there's real danger, we can retreat in time without much issue."

"Secondly..."

Ai Li paused, then spoke softly.

"We all know that even if we have families backing us... the number of Transcendent Relics is ultimately very scarce."

"Even if those Transcendent Relics that can guide us onto the Transcendent path are obtained by our families, we are clearly not the first—or even among the top—choices for inheritance."

"We take risks time and again, venturing deep into the wilderness, all for these Transcendent Relics, Transcendent Equipment, and even those magical items more precious than Transcendent Relics."

"This time, it's a very good and promising opportunity."

"What do you think?" With that, Ai Li looked around at everyone.

After a moment of silence, Yulai'er spoke first.

"If it's just the outskirts, we can do some exploration. But if we have to go deep, I oppose."

"I think so too," Paul agreed.

"Same," Gunie said succinctly.

The others expressed similar opinions.

Transcendent Relics were indeed what everyone hoped to obtain. Though the chance wasn't great, one wouldn't know without trying.

"Well, since we're all agreed, the exploration plan for this time is set."

"The week after next is the Wilderness Practice Class, lasting one week. I'll apply for independent action under the team's name as usual."

"Then we'll go explore the mysterious place guided by this magical key."

Half an hour later, after finalizing the details, everyone got up and ended the small group gathering.

Leaving the Duolan Club.

The night was deep.

The yellow and red gas lamps along the road illuminated the surrounding area with a somewhat distorted light, but enough to see clearly.

Ai Li, dressed in aristocratic attire, boarded his carriage. With the sound of wheels grinding against the bluestone pavement, he soon disappeared into the depths of the night.

In the shadow of a nearby lamppost, Gunie, who had been watching from start to finish, rubbed his brow.

"I feel something's off, but I can't put my finger on it," Gunie muttered to himself.

Under the night shrouded in darkness and mist, a gust of wind made Gunie feel a slight chill.

Gunie turned up his collar.

"Preparing more contingencies—better safe than sorry is the way to go."

"The Wilderness Practice Class is only ten days away. That's enough time for my Knight Breathing Technique to enhance my physical body to some extent."

"At Mentor Olock's, my points are almost enough. Though the Source Pool Expansion Method can't truly cultivate the source pool, it can allow my body to store more source energy. After all, my physique is far from ordinary."

"Once I have enough spell source energy..."

A hint of a smile curled at the corner of Gunie's mouth.

"A human turret... have you ever seen one?"