Chapter 261: Ancient Elven Ruins
"Damn it, what the hell is this place?"
Looking at the vast stretch of ancient city ruins before him, Richie Burke instinctively opened his mouth wide.
The ruins were completely hidden in thick mist, and only when standing right in front of them could one notice anything unusual. If it weren't for that strange compass, it would have been nearly impossible to discover the presence of this place.
As a historian who occasionally published columns in newspapers, he had never heard of any ancient elven ruins existing deep within the Allsop Marsh. This had to be an area that no one had ever explored before.
Though weathered by countless years, the place was still magnificent despite its dilapidation. The ornate, extravagant style unmistakably carried the flavor of the ancient Elven Empire.
In the final days of the ancient era, under the leadership of the elven king Alfred, the entire elven race plunged into boundless vanity and madness. Alfred considered himself the ultimate being—perfect, immortal, a living god. Likewise, the elves saw themselves as superior to all other races, possessing the right to rule. Thus, with their alchemy and magical civilization developed to the extreme, they launched wars against humans and every other race.
Twelve hundred years had passed, and the truth of that time had long since been buried in history. Yet in everyone's mind, the ancient elves remained synonymous with cruelty and slaughter. Even without thinking too hard, one could guess this place was filled with traps.
"Are you really sure the person you're looking for is inside here?" Richie Burke forced a smile. "I mean, this place looks a little dangerous… Forget it, don't look at me, I won't say anything more—you call the shots."
He realized that when facing the man before him, he had no confidence to resist, and wisely gave up the idea immediately.
"Absolutely certain." Zhou Ning withdrew his gaze and said with a smile. At this moment, he was actually rather surprised. In his previous life within the game Apocalypse, no player had ever discovered this ancient city ruin inside the Allsop Marsh. Could this be another ripple effect of his transmigration?
At this moment, the compass that never lost its way pointed toward the very center of the ruins. On the overgrown path, Zhou Ning crouched down and spotted the trampled traces of human footprints. They weren't fresh, probably left more than a week ago.
According to the Adventurer's Guild records, the second Voyager he was looking for was a half-elf woman of high standing, said to be a descendant of one of the Four Heroes, the Great Priestess Louisa. Judging by the footprint size, it matched.
Amid the mist woven from life elements, Zhou Ning walked along the city wall for a long stretch. After twenty minutes, at the six o'clock direction, he found the entrance to the ruins—a massive gate that looked decayed and broken.
Ignoring Little Deathwing's furious protests, Zhou Ning recalled the level-15 hatchling dragon back into his inventory, then stretched out his hand and pushed open the gate.
Crunch!
A teeth-grating screech echoed as the gate slowly swung open, revealing the scene inside.
As expected, it was filled with the broken ruins of elven architecture, their colors unusually dim.
And at the moment he stepped inside, the entire sky darkened. It was as if he had entered another dimension, a canopy of darkness covering the heavens, leaving only the ancient ruins within.
[System: You have entered Alfred's Man-Made Divine Realm.]
The players present clearly saw the prompt as well. They looked around curiously, one after another opening their screenshot and recording features.
"This map looks seriously high-level!" XB exclaimed.
"Obviously. It shouldn't be any lower than Waether Tide." Wrath of Thunder-Chasing Winds turned to Jinse and asked, "How much more until you reach level 27?"
"If I stop spending on skills and put everything into leveling, I can already reach 27. I'm less than 120,000 experience away from level 28," Jinse admitted honestly. "Completing this quest should get me there."
Damn, she leveled way too fast. Everyone present, all professional players, couldn't help but feel envious. Like XB, Jinse had been with the protagonist since the earliest days of the public beta. She had already triggered hidden quests before, and now her level and skills crushed others with ease—no wonder she was the hottest favorite to win the pro league championship.
Luckily, they too were participating in a hidden quest this time. They firmly believed the gap would eventually close!
Zhou Ning passed through the gateway into a plaza. Ahead, he spotted a trail of clear footprints extending deeper into the city. All around was an indescribable sense of ruin and gloom, with only the massive pyramid-shaped altar at the city's center standing out.
Wait—what's that?
Gazing into the distance, Zhou Ning suddenly noticed at the far edge of his vision a figure made entirely of shadow slowly drifting into view. It wandered through the ruins, shrouded in black smoke, its features completely obscured.
The pirates trailing behind him were clearly frightened, halting in place and whispering nervously among themselves.
Zhou Ning silently drew in a breath and stopped.
This scene was strikingly familiar. He remembered the unknown artifact in his possession—Damian's Ordinary Mirror. Within that boundless ruin of elven style inside the mirror, countless such shadows had appeared.
They were called Mirror Wraiths.
Could Damian's Ordinary Mirror be connected to these ruins? This world of Apocalypse was truly full of strange mysteries… Zhou Ning could only sigh.
The shadow drew closer. In the faint moonlight above, Zhou Ning could see its body was made of pure, lightless darkness, just like those mirror wraiths, but much larger. And deeper within the ruins, he could make out more such shadows wandering aimlessly.
After a moment's thought, Zhou Ning raised the black ebony and ivory gun, taking aim at the nearest shadow.
Bang!
A bullet flared with dazzling light as it flew out, striking the shadow squarely in the chest. Above its head, the glaring number -749 appeared. With a voiceless shriek, the figure vanished—only to reappear in an instant right before Zhou Ning.
Immediately, the control panel refreshed with the monster's information.
Wraith Guardian
Level: 59
Attributes: Strength 40, Agility 65, Stamina 98, Spirit 48, Willpower 85, Charisma 19
Rank: Normal
HP: 1251 / 2000
They were normal-class monsters, their health low and attributes fragile enough to take down easily. But what couldn't be ignored was their sheer numbers—the ruins crawled with them.
Just as the shadow blinked before him and Zhou Ning prepared to pull the trigger, Richie Burke suddenly drew his large flintlock and fired.
A massive flash burst from the barrel, and the bullet blasted into the Wraith Guardian. In an instant, the shadow froze as though all life had drained away.
Crack! Its body split with fissures before shattering apart.
That gun's firepower was insane… Zhou Ning couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
"At last, my chance to shine." Seeing Zhou Ning's impressed look, Richie Burke couldn't help but feel smug.
After that, Zhou Ning and the others carefully avoided most of the wraiths, only rushing forward to eliminate stragglers. Before long, they had cleared a path. And soon ahead stood the massive pyramid-shaped altar. On it, not only were dozens of Wraith Guardians patrolling, but there was also one especially gigantic wraith, clutching a staff in hand.
"You all wait here." Zhou Ning turned back and spoke to the group.