Chapter 373: Chapter 373: Secret Stone
Thunk!
Dumps snapped his fingers immediately.
The high-temperature flame enveloped all the food on the table.
When the surface of the dishes was burnt, one could also see that the inside of the food had deteriorated in a short time, with tender objects resembling tentacles forming inside.
Ordinary contaminants couldn’t do this.
The ability to morph organic matter must come from exceptional life forms outside the city.
The one emitting this peculiar pollution was a dark grey coin stored inside a stone box, its material unrecognizable.
Click!
After everyone had seen the uniqueness of the coin, Abe immediately closed the stone box again. Otherwise, if the contamination continued to spread, the Adventure Guild would come knocking.
“Abe, where did this thing come from?”
Han Dong could sense an aura of corruption from the surface of the coin more potent than that of the former Great Lord Stuart, which was highly likely to be a demon.
“I temporarily joined a special training group, completely different from knight training… There was no fixed training place, and we had to move every day, somewhat like a small expedition activity.
About ten days ago, our team found a demon den in the Broken Stone Canyon.
The leading Knight Regiment ordered us to suppress and occupy the den completely.
However…”
At this point, Abe’s expression began to change.
“What happened?”
Everyone at the table was curious about this incident, which was tied to the peculiar stone box and coin that Abe brought out.
“Only a few low-rank evils that had been born less than a year ago were inside the cave. According to the explorations of the sentries, it seemed that there was also a strange aura inside the cave that didn’t belong to the interior.
At the same time, we found a very deep hidden path at the bottom of the cave.
The secret path extended to the Holy City and was connected to the already abandoned Old Sewers.
According to the inspection, the barrier set at the entrance in the Old Sewers still existed…”
“But the other party broke through?” Han Dong intercepted.
“Yes… demons and their subservient evils somehow broke through the barrier; they have completely infiltrated the Holy City.
They might be hiding in the abandoned sewers or disguised and hidden in the civilian area.
The information has been passed back to the Holy City, and the knight regiments have been taking action during this period..the Adventurer’s Guild has also posted many tasks on investigating the civilian area.”
“They haven’t found it yet?”
“No… there’s been no substantive progress in this matter.”
By the time Abe said this, Han Dong had some ideas.
He and Dumps, who was sitting across from him, looked at each other, and they seemed to agree completely on some point of view.
“There should be an ‘insider’ in the Holy City, right? First, they received ‘visitors from outside the city’ in the abandoned sewer, then they provided them with normal civilian identities.
After all, many people die of diseases, suicides, and strange incidents in the Civilian Area every day.
If the bodies of the dead are secretly disposed of without reporting, an ‘identity’ can be freed up.”
Abe nodded, “Indeed, I believe the Knight Regiment has also noticed this.
Therefore, they are now gradually checking one household at a time…but they still haven’t found anything.”
“Haven’t found anything at all? Only a thorough investigation can reveal the situation.” Han Dong didn’t have much information at present, so this was all he could infer.
“Captain Abe, let’s talk about the stuff you have in hand. Isn’t this thing closely related to the guy hiding in the Holy City?”
“The stone box and coin…it’s a bit embarrassing to say.
Due to the injuries I sustained during the special training and my poor condition, I didn’t follow the main force into the underground tunnel but stayed in the cave to keep watch.
Because I was exhausted, I had to keep myself in the owl stance to increase my alertness… It was because of this that I accidentally noticed a mechanism in the cave, corresponding to a secret room.
Before I informed the others, I secretly took the stone box that was placed on the altar in the secret room.
During the special training, many people like me were stealing little things to gain some extra benefits.
If I had handed this thing to the knight regiment, it would undoubtedly have boosted my overall score in this special training… But I thought about it, maybe we could ‘absorb it internally’.
So I called everyone here to discuss this matter.”
Han Dong asked, “That is to say, about the stone box and the coin, no one knows?”
Abe nodded, “Yes…. If we can use this special evidence to find the demon lurking in the Holy City, we will surely be rewarded.
This is the large-scale bounty order issued by the Adventurer’s Guild. You go ahead and take a look.”
‘Large-scale bounty’: Secret Stone Incident
Location: The Holy City surface, all civilian areas.
Details: A stony evil community infiltrated the Holy City and lurked in the civilian area through special means.
Difficulty: Undetermined (except for the ordinary evils that are involved in this event, it also involves a demon. The highest difficulty is beyond the scope of an Apprentice Knight.
If you suspect that you have found a demon, please withdraw from the scene immediately and send the information to the Knight Regiment as quickly as possible.)
Scale: Large (this bounty task can be shared by multiple teams, and rewards will be determined based on different teams’ kills of the evils and the leads provided.)
Time limit: None.
Completion requirement: Until the Knight Regiment officially confirms and announces the death of the invading demon.
Task Reward:
1. Killing and bringing back an independent piece of evil stone will get a reward of 50 coppers.
2. Providing correct demon information to the Knight Regiment will get a reward of 1000 coppers per person.
Note: 1. This event has a high chance of getting ‘contaminated’, so be sure to wear [Goggles] to carry out the task.
2. After the task is completed, you must go to a nearby church, Law Enforcement Agency, or other places to undergo purification and ‘Pressure’ release
There was also a picture at the bottom of the bounty order, seemingly of an evil (Secret Stoneman) that had been discovered. Its facial skin was slightly peeling off, revealing the grey stone structure underneath.
……
As long as they can provide the correct information about the demon, everyone will receive a reward of 1000 coppers, which is a significant fortune for an Apprentice Knight. (Do not compare with Dumps man)
Han Dong squeezed his nose, “The situation is not as simple as it appears on the surface. If we want to delve into this incident, the risk is extremely high.”
“How so?”
“Captain Abe, didn’t you say before that you detected another odd aura that didn’t belong to those secret stones when you went into the cave? This incident may involve more than one demon…
Not to mention, someone in the Holy City even welcomed them… The secret hidden behind may be deadly.”
“Shall we, without delving deeper into this, hand these things over to my grandfather and let the Knight Regiment handle it?”
“That’s a bit wasteful. Now that it’s brought back, we might as well investigate a little… Abe, everyone in your special training group has returned, right?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, I’ll go and call two ‘reliable’ friends to come over. Wait a moment… We can divide into two groups later and investigate from different angles.
If we come across any danger, we stop immediately.”