Ch 69:- Legacy Unknown

Stepping over the threshold, Rayne found himself standing in a dimly lit, vast chamber. With the only source of light being the creeping rays of sun seeping through the cracks of the ornately carved ceiling, casting an ethereal glow over the moss-covered, cracked stone. From the look of it, one could determine that nature hadn't been kind to this old establishment. The scent of damp earth mingled with a delicate fragrance, as if the very essence of nature had permeated every inch of this sacred space.

Despite the limited light, Rayne was able to see the intricate details of the temple's architecture. Pillars rose like sentinels, their weathered stone surfaces adorned with faded symbols, while delicate vines and ivy wrapped themselves around them as if protecting and binding the whole structure together.

Rayne's gaze traveled upward, drawn to what remained of what may have been a grand mural. However, the only discernible image was that of a dragon-like creature. All other depictions had been destroyed by the forces of nature, with the vibrant paint that once adorned them now weathered and mostly unrecognizable.

As he continued exploring the area, the only things he found were a collection of faded stories and symbols carved on the walls and pillars, as well as remnants of a broken statue. It was all that remained in this sacred space. Standing in the middle of the room, he pondered and searched for details that might give some clue as to what this place truly was. After all, this place couldn't be normal, especially considering it had the power to block his Dragon eyes.

"This can't be all that this place has to offer. It took nearly half of my blood aura to push open the door. What am I missing?" Rayne thought, scratching his hair in frustration. Unable to come up with anything, he noticed the demon-tier monkey who had entered with him sitting there, diligently using a stick to dig away the moss and dirt covering the floor. Intrigued, Rayne watched as the monkey's actions revealed a faint carving on the ground, his eyes widening with realization as he understood what it was trying to do.

Rayne immediately used the [Purge] spell, cleaning the floor and removing the dirt and moss, unveiling a beautifully carved floor adorned with a circle embellished with various geometrical shapes, all connected to a smaller circle. He immediately recognized the symbol as he glanced back at the door from which he entered, noticing a similar pattern adorning it. He now knew exactly what it was: a locking array or something similar that required a specific kind of energy to open. The reason he came to this conclusion was because when he touched the door, it absorbed all the energy but didn't open. He had to forcefully open it by enhancing his body to the maximum limit with his Qi, resulting in torn muscles that were now healed.

Rayne kept on watching as the monkey placed its hand in the middle of the small circle, causing it to shimmer and the entire pattern to light up, emitting a soft, bluish-white glow. In the next instant, the ground began to shake and rumble, as if an earthquake of intensity 4 was happening. Rayne struggled to maintain his balance but managed to stay steady and standing.

As he gazed ahead, his eyes widened in awe. The circles shifted and moved, as if a lock was unlocking itself, gradually sinking down and revealing a spiral of stone stairs leading deeper underground, beneath the temple.

The monkey immediately started jumping down the stairs. Seeing it, Rayne followed suit. After about 10 minutes or so, he finally reached the bottom. The whole place looked like some kind of chamber with an uneven ceiling, resembling a cave. Crystal-like structures, similar to the basic tier ones, hung from the top, providing a gentle and calming light source. Other than that, there was an elevated circular platform on which he stood, surrounded by shimmering water and a layer of mist hovering above it. As he looked around the room, he noticed another elevated platform. However, that one looked like it had a fountain in the middle, with water overflowing from it, and five stone tablets surrounding it, each engraved with a glowing pattern.

Curious, he looked at the water. It appeared shallow, with the bed or bottom made up of a crystalline material resembling marble but with unique patterns engraved on it.

At that moment, he spotted the monkey swimming forward toward the elevated platform. He turned his head and looked at the water, contemplating something, before cupping some of it in his hand. As soon as the water made contact with his hand, a tingling sensation spread throughout his body, re-energizing his every cell. Prompting him to retract his hand and look at it warily before using his system inspect skill.

[Fountain Water]

[A water derived from a mysterious fountain...??? No more information available.]

"What is this water? It felt almost as if it is made up of concentrated Qi energy," Rayne thought, before deciding to activate his Dragon eyes. However, as soon as he activated them, he was bombarded with bright radiance, prompting him to deactivate them. But now he had a clue about the water. Based on its ever-changing color and the bright radiance, he concluded that it was concentrated energy diluted in water.

He looked ahead once more and this time saw the monkey standing on the elevated platform, looking in his direction. He sighed before climbing down into the water, which reached up to his waist. He made his way through the water, soon reaching the platform and climbing it. His eyes were immediately drawn to the stone tablet with magical patterns and symbols carved on it before looking in the direction of the fountain. The fountain looked like a giant circular bowl made of dark marble, snugly placed on a 4-foot-tall stone column. It stood in the middle, overflowing with a thin, silk-like stream of water along its circumference.

Peering inside the bowl, he saw a rainbow-colored crystal sphere resting at the bottom. It was about the size of a golf ball, with swirling colors and various white dots, as if it contained the colorful representation of the universe, like a nebula within itself.

Rayne immediately commanded his suit to extend and cover his hand, forming a glove, before grabbing the sphere and taking it in his palm, examining it closely.

[Item: Nest Crystal]

[Description: A crystal that is said to have an infinite amount of energy...??? No more information available.]

Seeing what was written, Rayne raised a brow, surprised that it didn't provide much information about it. This was the second time today that he encountered something unknown. At that moment, he noticed that the water in the fountain had become still and was no longer overflowing like before. But that wasn't the only unusual thing he noticed. The water inside the chamber was also receding at a rapid pace, revealing a hidden pathway, a tunnel that was previously submerged and he had missed it due to its excellent camouflage.

He jumped down from the platform, creating splashes of water. Making his way forward toward the pathway while keeping the crystal ball in his pocket, he soon reached it and ventured into the tunnel, following its straight path. Glowing crystals stationed along the tunnel walls illuminated the path with a dim bluish hue. Finally, he arrived at the end of the tunnel, facing a steep wall with a rusty ladder. Looking up, he spotted a hatch.

Suddenly, he felt something jumping on him, pushing his head down a little before jumping up

once again. As he looked up, he saw the monkey land on the ladder and nimbly climb it, reaching the top and effortlessly punching the hatch open. He sighed once again before crouching slightly and jumping straight up through the opening, landing on the floor with a gentle thud. Looking around, he realized he had arrived in yet another chamber, but this one looked different. It resembled a mixture of a library, workshop, and study, with a long stone chest adorned with various inscriptions and drawings—clearly a sarcophagus.

"Whoa, this place is so cold and weird," Rayne said out loud, eyeing the monkey looking solemnly at the sarcophagus.

The workshop area contained an array of apparatus and chemicals stored in containers, along with worn-out notes and diagrams adorning the wall. Adjacent to the workshop, there lay a forge reminiscent of the medieval era, featuring various weapons and ornaments. Once again, a bunch of worn-out notes lay there, written in a strangely familiar language. "Latin!" Rayne exclaimed.

His eyes then lingered on the worn-out wooden chair and table, which seemed to have seen better days. He moved around a little, fiddling with everything, hoping to find a hidden compartment, but alas, there was none. Then, he went to the bookshelf and started perusing the general content of the books. The more he read, the dizzier he became by the sheer number and variety of them.

"Holy shit! These are not normal books; these are ancient and could even be considered tomes! What the fuck is this? Gravity magic, thaumaturgy, earth magic spells, general concepts of mana, fundamentals of mana, teleportation tomes..." Rayne said aloud as he continued to browse through the books. There were even notes and scribbles written in Latin, making improvements in spells and recipes. Frantically, yet carefully, he kept flipping through the pages and checking the first page of each book, as if looking for something common in each of them. There were even some bamboo scrolls that he opened, as if searching for something. His hand shakily released the bamboo scroll, and it fell to the floor, its sound resounding through the chamber.

"This can't be happening! This can't be happening! How can this happen?" Rayne said aloud, frantically looking around. Then his eyes fell on the sarcophagus. He immediately scrambled towards it, his body shaking due to the extreme adrenaline rush and excitement he was feeling.

He reached the sarcophagus and immediately pushed away the top, revealing a shriveled mummified corpse covered in grandiose silk cloths, holding a leather-bound diary tightly to its chest. Shakily, he grabbed it, feeling giddy in his stomach, and gently removed it from underneath its hand, opening it to reveal the first page with a name written on it.

"Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci."

*****

Sorry for the short chapter.