Chapter 150: A Symbol of Energy Scarcity, the Dragon Bone Tower
The Forest Cabin!
The Traveler was momentarily taken aback, quickly sifting through his memories.
The Staff? The Remains? Or perhaps the Red Heart?
None seemed to fit!
It didn't resemble Black Forest or Night Owl either.
Suddenly, a flash of realization struck the Traveler. He blurted out:
"You must be the Player!"
Not long ago, the Night Owl had contacted him, inquiring about his absence from meetings.
He recalled Night Owl mentioning a new Forest Cabin member named Player, described as a powerful third-level wizard apprentice.
Could it be this person before him?
"It seems you've heard of me from Night Owl, which makes things easier."
Sunan spoke, producing the distinctive key of the Forest Cabin, shaped like a trading house.
Seeing this unique key, the Traveler confirmed Sunan's identity, relaxing as most of his wariness faded.
Regardless, as members of the Forest Cabin, even if they weren't friends, they certainly weren't enemies.
"You saw the battle just now?" the Traveler asked.
"I happened upon it," Sunan replied, taking a seat opposite the Traveler.
"Then you must have heard: those two are with the Immortals."
The Traveler gave Sunan a searching look.
"You're aware of the Immortals' notorious methods. Approaching me now isn't exactly safe. You didn't seek me out just because we're in the same organization, hoping to play the hero, did you?"
Sunan chuckled, "I came to you for information about this ecological park."
"You've been here for quite some time, haven't you?"
The Traveler's ability to silently lure the Multi-Necked Dragon and find this canyon without pause indicated his familiarity with the area, suggesting he'd been around for several months.
The Traveler nodded, acknowledging Sunan's inference.
"Time is short, so I'll get straight to the point."
"I can share what I know about the ecological park, but in exchange, you must help me fend off Black Hand and Bloodmouth, ensuring I can leave safely."
"Deal!" Sunan agreed without hesitation.
The Traveler was surprised by Sunan's swift agreement, thinking Night Owl's words were true: the Player's strength must be formidable, or he wouldn't be so confident after witnessing Black Hand and Bloodmouth's power.
The two promptly entered into a vow contract.
With the contract sealed, the Traveler felt a weight lift from his shoulders.
Finally, he could breathe a sigh of relief.
With a powerful ally, even if Black Hand and Bloodmouth returned, they stood a fighting chance.
Even if they couldn't win, they could likely escape.
Reassured by the vow contract, the Traveler fully relaxed around Sunan and resumed his meditation.
About two hours later, the Traveler opened his eyes, now bright and clear, indicating his mental power had fully recovered.
"Can you tell me about the ecological park now?" Sunan asked.
The Traveler laughed heartily, standing up.
"Words alone won't suffice. I'll show you a few things while we talk."
They exited the cave, rising above the canyon.
After orienting himself, the Traveler led the way forward.
"From my exploration, this ecological park seems divided into three distinct zones."
"The outermost is Zone 1, primarily inhabited by sub-dragons, with the Multi-Necked Dragon at the top of the food chain."
"We're heading to Zone 2 next, where the creatures are far stronger than those in Zone 1."
Stronger than high-tier sub-dragons?
Sunan's heart skipped a beat.
Could it be pure-blooded dragons?
If so, entering Zone 2 would be suicidal for them.
Adult pure-blooded dragons are a challenge only formal wizards can handle!
Yet, seeing the Traveler's relaxed demeanor suggested otherwise.
Noticing Sunan's puzzled look, the Traveler smirked, teasingly saying:
"You'll see when we get there."
Before long, the Traveler pointed ahead, "Beyond that is Zone 2."
Following his gaze, Sunan observed a barely visible membrane in the void a few hundred meters away.
In the sunlight, it was almost transparent, indistinguishable without focused attention.
From afar, the scene beyond the membrane appeared no different, still a lush forest.
But passing through the membrane, the scene abruptly transformed.
From vibrant forest to desolate wilderness.
Cracked ground like a spider's web, sparse barren trees, and pale bones.
Everything in sight exuded a deep sense of desolation and silence.
A stark contrast to the vibrant Zone 1.
Separated by a mere membrane, the change was so abrupt that Sunan was momentarily stunned.
He looked to the Traveler, who shrugged.
"It was like this when I arrived in Zone 2."
"I haven't identified the exact cause, but it's likely related to an energy shortage."
Sunan mulled this over, landing beside a bleached skeleton for closer inspection.
Upon seeing it, his eyes widened in shock.
"Dragon bones!"
This time, the Traveler was the one surprised.
"You've seen dragon bones before?"
He knew these were dragon bones from prior intelligence before entering the park, but how did the Player know?
Pure-blooded dragon and sub-dragon bones are hard to distinguish by appearance alone.
"I read about it in a book," Sunan replied casually.
For someone with his 'vast experience,' distinguishing between sub-dragons and true dragons was straightforward, given their many subtle differences.
The Traveler clearly didn't believe such a flippant excuse, but seeing Sunan's reluctance to elaborate, he didn't press further.
"So, the creatures you mentioned in Zone 2, stronger than sub-dragons, are these dragons?" Sunan asked, indicating the bones.
"Correct." The Traveler nodded, surveying the area with some melancholy. "Zone 2 was likely intended for dragon cultivation. Due to energy depletion, this area gradually withered, and the dragons eventually died out."
Sunan raised an eyebrow, "And the barrier we passed?"
The Traveler understood, explaining, "I tested it. Only humans can pass; sub-dragons cannot. The same likely applied to the deceased dragons."
"And," the Traveler pointed to the bones, "you'll notice the essence has been entirely extracted from them."
Sunan checked and, as the Traveler noted, the bones' essence was gone, crumbling at a touch.
He felt a pang of regret.
Pure-blood dragon bones are valuable materials, but they were now worthless husks.
Then again, if they weren't, the Traveler would have collected them long ago instead of leaving them here.
"My theory is this park was constructed by wizards a millennium ago, and the creators likely perished, leaving the park behind."
"The park probably has a formation to extract energy from deceased creatures, using their soul and physical energy to sustain itself."
"This near-perfect energy cycle allowed the park to operate for a thousand years."
"Yet, even the most sophisticated cycle incurs energy loss over time. Eventually, the park's energy diminished, forcing it to reduce supply, causing Zone 2's high-energy species to die en masse, their death feeding energy back to sustain Zone 1."
The Traveler spoke confidently.
His deductions stemmed from intelligence gathered outside and clues within the park, forming a hypothesis he was sure was close to the truth.
He expected Sunan to be shocked by this revelation.
But when he glanced at Sunan, he found him calm, as though he already knew.
"...You don't seem surprised?"
Sunan glanced at him, responding coolly, "I guessed as much when I saw the dragon bones. Do you have any more information?"
The Traveler was speechless.
He was utterly astounded.
Spotting the dragon bones might have been luck, but deducing the park's truth from a few clues couldn't be mere coincidence!
The Player must have deep knowledge of such large-scale cultivation facilities!
He might have obtained wizarding tomes on ecological parks, just as the Traveler had.
In truth, Sunan had suspected the park's thousand-year operation after observing the crimson light and Troodon corpses.
The dragon bones only confirmed his theory.
"We're heading to Zone 3 next, the park's center and energy system location."
Coming back to his senses, the Traveler cast a complex glance at Sunan before flying deeper into the wilderness.
Bones littered the ground, appearing every few dozen meters, hinting at how bustling and lively Zone 2 once was.
Could there have been thousands of dragons here?
Sunan's estimation of the creator's rank rose.
To manage so many dragons, it had to be a True Spirit Wizard!
"The entire park mirrors the energy scarcity across the Starlight Continent."
"Had those wizards been trapped on the continent without the means for multiverse expeditions, they might have faced the same fate as these dragons."
About half an hour later, they passed through another barrier.
The environment shifted again, from desolate wilderness to lush grasslands.
In the distance stood the silhouette of a tower.
Too far to discern its details, Sunan observed.
"That's the park's core," the Traveler pointed to the distant tower.
They flew towards it.
As they approached, Sunan discerned the tower's true form, realizing with shock that it was a colossal skeleton!
A massive dragon skeleton towering over a thousand meters!
The bones spiraled like a giant tower, the dragon's skull and horns pointing skyward, exuding a majestic aura.
The hollow eye sockets seemed to gaze at him, imbued with a lifelike presence, as if truly watching him across time.
"This Dragon Bone Tower is likely the park's control center, but without the key, I can't enter due to formations inside."
The Traveler expressed regret.
Sunan approached the Dragon Bone Tower.
Below the skull was a columnar spine, ending in a sealed bone gate.
Sunan summoned a Stone Golem, ordering it to open the gate.
Upon touching the gate, flames erupted, engulfing the golem.
The sulfurous fire incinerated the golem instantly.
Sunan's eyes narrowed.
The flames were far stronger than the Sword-Crystal Dragon's breath!
Even an elite golem would be reduced to ashes instantly!
"It's futile. The Dragon Bone Tower's defenses are formidable. I've tried many times but can't break through."
The Traveler's gaze swept over Sunan's hands in surprise.
Where did he retrieve the Stone Golem from?
Even low-tier spatial magical items can't hold a Stone Golem, can they?
Sunan wasn't surprised.
Given the park's creator was likely a True Spirit Wizard, the defensive formations set by such a powerful being were beyond the capabilities of third-level apprentices or even formal wizards to breach easily.
This was likely just the outermost defense.
Breaking through by force was possible for Sunan—using the simplest, albeit crudest, method.
Deploying a horde of golems to drain the park's energy until the defenses failed.
Yet, despite the park's energy shortage, the remaining energy was vast. The number of golems required would be astronomical.
Even combining the base and the Starlight Duchy's resources wouldn't suffice.
Alternatively, he could wait a century or more for the park's energy shortage to worsen before acting.
But doing so would devastate the park's ecosystem, and more importantly, the Immortals had discovered this place.
Even without thinking, Sunan knew they wouldn't leave the park alone!
It would be best to seize control before the Immortals intervened.
"I'll need the key to enter."
Sunan mused.
But where was the key?
He turned to the Traveler, who shrugged.
"Don't look at me. I told you, I don't know where the key is."
"How did you find out this information?" Sunan inquired.
The Traveler wasn't like Sunan, with his advantageous position. He shouldn't have been able to gather so much information on the park.
Bound by the vow contract, the Traveler didn't hide it, replying candidly:
"I stumbled upon a wizarding tome describing ecological parks, which led me to this place after extensive searching in the underground world."
"But the book didn't mention the key's location, or I'd have taken control by now."
Sunan found this believable.
If the Traveler had the key, he'd have many ways to drive off Black Hand and Bloodmouth, sparing himself their relentless pursuit.
At that moment, both sensed something and turned simultaneously towards the direction they'd come from.
In the distant sky, two figures were rapidly approaching.
It was Black Hand and Bloodmouth, who the Traveler had shaken off not long ago!
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