Chapter 851: Gargas
Since Hoffman could reveal such an incredible piece of news, it probably meant that the team had discovered something.
A look of insuppressible excitement flashed in Hoffman’s eyes, and he nodded. “Yes, the expedition team delved deep into Lockdamer, and spent about half a year exploring while following the clues. They even lost contact with us for a while. At last, they finally ended up in the huge canyon of Gargas, and made an amazing discovery.”
To be honest, if he didn’t know that Hoffman would never lie to him, Lin Li would have a hard time believing such a ridiculous thing. The conditions in Lockdamer were already considered to be rather harsh in Anril, and those in the huge canyon of Gargas that Hoffman mentioned were extremely terrible. If the High Elves hated the environment in Lockdamer, they would definitely detest that of Gargas.
In the language of the dwarves, “Gargas” meant “insurmountable”, and the huge canyon of Gargas was indeed almost insurmountable. The huge canyon stretched across thousands of miles, and the cliffs on both sides were like swords and axes. They were covered in thick ice that had existed for thousands of years. The canyon was bottomless, and the darkness was daunting. The sounds of the wind howling miserably could be heard as if it was passing through the terrifying Endless Abyss.
The huge canyon of Gargas divided the Dwarf Kingdom and the Breezy Plains into two different worlds, and there was almost no possibility of a linkage between the two. It was precisely because of its existence that almost all the trade between the Breezy Plains and the Dwarf Kingdom had to go through the Ledin Kingdom. That was perhaps also one of the reasons that most of the forces in the Breezy Plains had always refused to integrate into the Felan Kingdom. After all, if they really did that, the authorities of the Ledin Kingdom would definitely cause them to face many more obstacles.
“About two months ago, the expedition team that went to Lockdamer returned, but only two out of the 50 members of the team managed to survive. However, the casualties weren’t in vain, after all. We discovered an amazing secret from the items that they brought back. In the huge canyon of Gargas, there is very likely to be a ruin of the High Elves that is far larger in scale than any that we have ever unearthed.” Hoffman’s eyes glistened, and he could not suppress the excitement at all.
A team of 50 was sent to explore a place based on seemingly absurd clues. That fact alone was enough to show that the Glittergold Trade Union was indeed enthusiastic about exploring the ruins. Those who could join the expedition were probably the most loyal to the Glittergold Trade Union. Given Hoffman’s status, he wouldn’t mention it to an ordinary person.
At this moment, Lin Li could not help but get really interested after seeing the look of excitement on Hoffman’s face. He asked, “Master Hoffman, could you tell me about the amazing discovery?”
“Haha, Master Felic, you’re reading too much into things. Since I want to invite you to a cooperation, I naturally have to come up with something that you can believe.” While speaking, Hoffman took out some items, and placed them on the table one by one.
There were some stones and a few loose pieces of metal accessories, which didn’t seem to have anything peculiar about them. However, Lin Li took a closer look, and saw that some of the stones were carved with patterns, while some had characters of the High Elves’ language carved on them. The metal accessories were also exuding faint magical waves, while the patterns on them seemed to be a part of superior mageweaths.
Lin Li didn’t research much on archeology, but he could tell that those inconspicuous things indeed belonged to the High Elves. Although the mageweaths on the metal accessories could be drawn by the existing Masters of Inscription, drawing on such small pieces of accessories could perhaps only be done by top jewelers. However, jewelers were almost extinct in the Breezy Plains. Lin Li had never heard of any famous jewelers, let alone one of the Master-level.
“These things do seem to belong to the High Elves. However, how did you deduce the scale of the ruins?” Lin Li asked, believing that Hoffman wouldn’t deceive him. Hence, the items of the High Elves should have been able to prove that the High Elves had appeared in the huge canyon of Gargas before. However, Lin Li couldn’t help but pay attention to the scale of the ruins. After all, there would be no point in going to places like the huge canyon of Gargas unless one was motivated by something.
Lin Li looked at it from a technical point of view, while Hoffman relied on his historical knowledge and years of experience in excavating the ruins of the High Elves. After taking out those items, Hoffman took out another drawing of an exquisite accessory. He then placed the pieces of metal onto the corresponding positions of the design, and explained to Lin Li, “Master Felic, please look at the sketch of this accessory, which we found in one of the High Elves’ ruins that we had unearthed. It’s said that the accessory is meant for the High Elves. Can you see anything from these pieces?”
Lin Li leaned forward curiously, and took a closer look at the sketch and the pieces of metal on it. He could not help but be shocked. The drawing on the sketch was definitely larger than the actual object, but Lin Li could accurately tell that the pieces of metal were part of the accessory just by looking at the mageweaths on them.
Lin Li made some judgments about whether the accessory was meant for the High Elves after he looked at the structure of the entire mageweath on the sketch. The mageweath was a Guru-level one that had the function of creating a domain that would cancel invisibility. No assassins would be able to escape the domain unless they were at the Sanctuary-level. Another function was to provide a user with greater protection. Even if the enemies’ attacks were beyond the tolerance of the mageweath, it would still allow the user to resist the attacks, and there was almost no upper limit.
However, what really attracted the High Elves were not those two incredible functions, but the fact that the user’s body would be enveloped in a colorful and brilliant glow once the sacred mageweath was activated. It would allow the user to exude a sacred aura that resembled that of a god during its ascent on earth. That was also the reason that the sacred mageweath could only be used by the royals of the High Elves Dynasty. Even the Highlord Osric, who was second to the High Elven queen, was not qualified to use sacred protection mageweath anywhere.
Hence, Lin Li was sure that the High Elves relics that appeared in the ruins which the Glittergold Trade Union had excavated were likely to belong to a High Elven royal family simply because of the sacred mageweath.
In the past few years that Lin Li had been in Anril, he explored the Sky Castle, Osric’s mausoleum, and the underground palace. Every treasure that he found was rather significant; hence, ordinary ruins wouldn’t attract him.
However, the incredible relics of the royal High Elves were different. They were considered the nobles among the High Elven aristocrats. Even if they were not famous in history, they were far wealthier than other High Elven aristocrats since they were royals. Unlike humans, the lineage of the High Elves determined the lives that they were destined to live. With greater talents and more resources, they had a far more advantageous position than ordinary nobles in all aspects, and the relics that they had left behind were naturally destined to be extraordinary.
At the thought of this, Lin Li couldn’t help but feel a little excited. Staring at the drawings and the pieces of metals on the table, he said, “If this is really a relic of the royal High Elves, it will really be an unprecedented discovery!”
“Yes, this is exactly what I want to say, but no matter which High Elven royal family this relic belongs to, obtaining it definitely will be difficult. Hence, considering that you have explored the Sky Castle and Osric’s mausoleum, I hope to cooperate with you in exploring and unearthing the ruin,” Hoffman said while looking at Lin Li with anticipation in his eyes as he waited for his answer.
If it were an ordinary relic, there would be no need for the Glittergold Trade Union to share it with anyone or engage in cooperation with their current power. However, Hoffman had no choice but to take it seriously, because it might really be a relic of the High Elven royal family. The Glittergold Trade Union prospered and rose through exploring and excavating ruins. It was the most important for them to be aware of their own abilities not to be muddled up because of the huge temptation. Although wealth would usually be found in dangerous situations, how many could really survive close shaves with death and become wealthy? Perhaps, that could happen once or twice, but Lady Luck would not always shine on them. If anything were to go wrong, they would end up losing everything.
Lin Li leaned back against the chair and looked away from the table while tapping his fingers gently on the armrest. After all, it was a relic of the High Elven royal family, and it would be impossible for Lin Li not to be tempted. Seeing that the catastrophe predicted by Geresco was just round the corner, he thought, Is it really worthwhile to spend some time and energy on this?
After a moment of thought, Lin Li finally turned to look at Hoffman with a smile. “Since you’ve shared this piece of information with me, what reason do I have to refuse?”
Hearing that Lin Li had finally agreed, Hoffman couldn’t help but feel relieved. He continued, “In that case, Master Felic, should we talk about the specifics of our cooperation?” Although there were plenty of forces in the Breezy Plains that would be worthy of cooperating with the Glittergold Trade Union, Lin Li and the Tower of Dusk were the only ones Hoffman could trust.
In this world where survival of the fittest was the rule, those who trusted others easily would often end up dying a horrible death. As the President of the Glittergold Trade Union, Hoffman obviously knew that truth. The temptation of the High Elves’ ruins was too great, and it also meant that the crisis they might face would absolutely be beyond imagination. An incompetent partner would not help at all. Meanwhile, if they were to look for a partner like the Mithril Alliance, they would have to be wary and keep their guard up against the latter during the exploration.
Lin Li was different. Be it the Malfa Family he had cooperated with in exploring the Sky Castle before, or the Alanna Guild of Magic that he had explored Osric’s mausoleum with, Hoffman knew them well, and was aware that they were reliable allies. Although Lin Li had got into a conflict with the Dark Blade, and caused the Legendary Assassin Lansdale and Stephen to die in the process of exploring the Sky Castle, Hoffman knew what had actually happened. He also knew that Lin Li had helped the elven elders when they were evacuating. Hence, in Hoffman’s eyes, Lin Li was the most trustworthy partner to have in the entire Anril.
Now that the two had decided to cooperate, they naturally discussed the distribution of benefits first. A reliable cooperation could only be formed when there was a fair distribution of benefits and interests. Regardless of the friendship between both parties, the issue of distribution of benefits had to be discussed clearly in advance.
Due to the importance of the matter, Hoffman and Lin Li decided to discuss it with each other instead of leaving it to their subordinates. Actually, there wasn’t much to talk about. First, they had to decide on the amount of effort both parties had to put in during the exploration. Everyone knew that it would be impossible to distribute in detail all the items in the ruins. Besides, there might be nothing at all. Hence, they only briefly talked about how they would divide the items.
It didn’t take long for the two to reach an agreement. First of all, they agreed on the amount of effort they would each put in after estimating the scale of the ruins. They also agreed to distribute the interests and gains evenly. No matter what they obtained, they would share the profits with each other. That was the rule of distribution. Actually, Hoffman could be considered to have made some compromise. After all, they agreed to put in equal amounts of effort, but the Glittergold Trade Union was the one who’d discovered the clues leading to the relics. If he were to be calculative about it, it would be reasonable for him to ask for an additional 10%.
Of course, Hoffman’s compromise did not actually mean that he had really suffered a loss. First of all, it would not be easy to look for a trustworthy collaborator in this intriguing world. After all, anything could happen in the ruins, and it was not uncommon for groups and alliances to break up because of trust issues. In addition, the power that Lin Li promised to give was not superficial. Lin Li alone was an extraordinary level-24 powerhouse, and he also had various trump cards like the debris of the stars, the young Elemental Wyrm, the Lord of Nightmares, and many others.
After discussing the cooperation, Hoffman put away the items and continued to chat with Lin Li about the situation in the Breezy Plains, as well as other issues. In particular, Hoffman was rather emotional when he talked about the events that happened in Gran Town the other day. He had not expected the Ashen Warlock, who had been living in Gran Town for thousands of years and was a god in Anril, to be impressed with Lin Li and the Tower of Dusk.