Chapter 175 – Archibald
It took nearly 40 minutes to make rubbings of the nearby inscriptions. Zhou Ning followed along, circling the site as well. He was also literate in ancient Falric, and from what he could decipher, it seemed this ruin was somehow connected to one of the Four Heroes—Archibald.
Most of the inscriptions were severely damaged and needed to be pieced together, but one relatively complete stele read:
"Today, I received a divine oracle from the Mother Goddess. It was a terrifying prophecy: the earth will turn to scorched wasteland, a plague that turns humans into zombies will spread everywhere, the weather will become chaotic, and countless people will die from plague and war, wandering in despair—and the Mother Goddess told me… all of this is because of my brother, my comrade…?"
Upon reading this, several history professors exchanged startled glances. If this stele had been recorded in Archibald's voice, then the "brother…comrade" mentioned—who could that be? The lack of historical records on the Four Heroes left them burning with curiosity.
Only Zhou Ning had a faint idea of the truth. If he wasn't mistaken, that "brother" and "comrade" referred to another version of himself—the Pirate King Zhou Ning.
After the rubbings were finished, the team continued onward. The ruins were far larger than expected, with a stone-paved corridor stretching deep into the darkness.
The sparse snowfall lasted for a while before suddenly giving way to a downpour. To guard against potential acid rain, everyone opened umbrellas crafted by "Blyce."
Under the glow of the lanterns, they could see restless undead wandering everywhere through the ruins. Some retained their human appearances, dressed in ornate clothing, aimlessly roaming about, not attacking—almost as if they lived in a different dimension. Others had lost all reason and lunged at the expedition team.
There were many of these undead creatures, but their strength was average—mostly level 40 standard monsters.
Leandro's blazing greatsword and the unidentified artifact in Edwin's hands were particularly effective against them. Zhou Ning noticed that Leandro's strength seemed to have increased since a few days ago. With his full power unleashed, they encountered no serious resistance along the way. Cress Bradenreiser also began to show her own strength. Like Leandro, she was a warrior and likely had some kind of special inheritance. Her swordsmanship was agile and precise, and her reflexes exceptionally quick. Zhou Ning also took the opportunity to make a few moves himself, harvesting a batch of undead cores.
Not long after, the group had crossed over half the ruins and entered the true core of the area—the region surrounding the ancient structure.
According to Edwin, this ruin was over 700 years old. White trees, unique to Bryston, were planted throughout. The buildings were overrun with weeds and vines, but strangely, there were no signs of collapse—almost as if someone had been maintaining them.
"We're almost there!" Edwin pointed toward a building in the distance, a look of excitement flashing across his face.
Just then, Zhou Ning tilted his head slightly, having faintly heard light footsteps coming from within the ruins.
The footsteps echoed from deep within the mist, close together—clearly more than one person.
"Be careful!"
Zhou Ning immediately gave a warning, and the rest of the expedition team quickly reacted, holding their breath as they stared toward the source of the sound.
Soon, they saw a group of raggedly dressed humans hauling stones through the rain, emerging from the mist and continuing further in.
Zhou Ning took a deep breath. Using his Observation Haki, he could clearly see them—pale faces, rotting skin, no signs of life. They were unmistakably undead.
They seemed to be enslaved by some kind of supernatural force, laboring away at a construction of some sort.
"Two of you come with me to take a look. The rest, stay here," Edwin said grimly after a moment of silence. He turned to Zhou Ning. "Raleigh, Sturwell, you're with me."
He handed them each a potion. "This is a Wind Elixir. It boosts your running speed. If danger arises, don't hesitate—drink it immediately."
Zhou Ning nodded and took the potion. Edwin gripped his umbrella with one hand and carried a lantern with the other as they moved deeper into the fog.
After a while, Edwin suddenly stopped, his face darkening. In front of him was a massive white tree. Through the gaps in its trunk, they could faintly see what lay beyond.
This area had thinner mist, and they could clearly make out a building that was being rebuilt. Likely due to the storm, much of it had collapsed, leaving only high stairs and rubble overgrown with weeds. Countless undead were laboring to move stones, completely ignoring the rain, working like tireless ants—thousands of them, enough to trigger trypophobia.
What stood out most was a hooded figure on top of the tall stairs, radiating a potent aura of death. Even from a distance, Zhou Ning could sense the immense threat he posed.
Though the mist still hung in the air, in a flash, Zhou Ning had already used his long-range sight to clearly see the figure.
It was a man in a black hood, with blue flames burning in his eyes. His black robe was simple but ancient-looking, and on his chest was a large, familiar flame emblem.
"Archibald?" came Molly's stunned voice in Zhou Ning's mind.
What? Archibald?
Zhou Ning was dumbfounded, unable to control his emotions for a moment.
He didn't doubt Molly's words, but it was hard to reconcile this hooded figure with the statue by the Seton River. Historically, the fate of the Four Heroes was a mystery. If this hooded man truly was Archibald, why was he here?
He felt a jolt—like he was peering into history itself, brushing against something long buried.
At that moment, the hooded man across from them seemed to sense their presence. He slowly turned his head—and all the undead halted at once, turning their heads in unison to face the intruders.
The uniformity of the movement made Zhou Ning's scalp prickle.
"Run!" Edwin shouted urgently.
Zhou Ning's heart clenched. He didn't hesitate, immediately drinking the Wind Elixir. A gust of wind swirled around him as his speed doubled instantly.
Behind him, heavy footsteps followed. The undead surged like a tidal wave, flooding toward them. But with the help of the Wind Elixir, the three of them quickly fled the depths of the ruins and rejoined the main expedition team.
"Go! We can't stay here any longer!" Edwin exhaled deeply.
Suppressing his own turbulent emotions, he relayed what they had seen—glossing over the identity of the powerful undead figure, merely emphasizing its overwhelming strength.
Zhou Ning understood why. In the game's lore, Archibald was an apostle of the Earth Goddess and one of the Five Saints of the Temple of Earth. He held great authority, even influencing the royal crest of the Falric Kingdom with the Flame of Justice emblem.
As the current high priest of the Temple of Earth, Edwin naturally had to avoid acknowledging this revelation—whether he recognized the figure or not.
"Let's leave the ruins for now. We'll return tomorrow in daylight," Edwin said darkly. "During the day, the deathly energies won't be as active. The area should be much safer."
The meteorological tide had no concept of time—skies were perpetually overcast—so they checked their watches. It was 9 p.m. They set up camp outside the ruins and rested for the night.
At daybreak the next morning, the expedition team began preparing for a second exploration.
This time, fewer people participated. Most remained camped outside the ruins in relative safety, while only a dozen or so followed Edwin back in.