Quadruple split.

Chapter 2757 The Agent's Commission
“Spirit of the artifact… curse… self-exile…”

Sharia slowly repeated Dagran's words, her eyes filled with curiosity as she looked at him, her tone becoming increasingly urgent: "So, Uncle Dagran, does that mean your group of gray dwarves weren't driven out of the Dwarf Mountains, but left on your own?"

"..."

Dagran, clearly still wary of the topic, stroked his beard and didn't answer Sharia's question, instead taking small sips of his drink in silence.

Of course, everyone could see that he wasn't unwilling to speak, but rather engaged in an internal struggle that was destined to end with "keeping talking." Mo Tan was very familiar with this kind of human nature, so he considerately refrained from urging the gray dwarf uncle with complicated feelings.

Unfortunately, although Mo Tan was a kind and understanding young man, Xia Liya, whose thirst for knowledge was practically overflowing, seemed to have completely disregarded 'etiquette'. Seeing that Dagran did not give her an answer immediately, she hurriedly urged, "So what exactly happened!"

"You little brat, can't you be a little more patient?"

Dagran glared at Sharia and said irritably, "Our clan's affairs are very complicated. Even though it's a special time now, I plan to cooperate with Black Brahma to treat this special case. You can't treat our past like a bedtime story. You have to be serious, respectful, and maintain a serious demeanor..."

"What are you mumbling about?"

Sharia frowned and interrupted her impatiently, "I'll send someone to deliver a bottle of [Crystal Berry Black Forest Fire Spirits] that the Wealth Cult is supporting for our city of Dunbua, so stop talking nonsense and get to the point."

"You rude girl! I'm telling you about the darkness and suffering of our clan's past, and you—"

"Two bottles."

"Ms. Sharia, you may not know this, but even when our clan left the mountains, the people of the other branches of the clan loved and respected us very much."

Dagran sat up straight with lightning speed and meticulously explained to the impatient 'Underground Queen of Dunbua City', Sharia Ain, "This story goes back to a long, long time ago. Back then, the king who was still the ruler of [Burning Furnace City] and also the leader of our Grey Dwarf lineage, 'Burning Hammer King' Northeron Blackstone, received a visitor late one night, an unexpected visitor."

Seeing that the other party had started telling the story honestly (even with great emotion), Xia Liya stopped urging her. Instead, she quickly pulled a bottle of soda and a handful of dried fruit from her pocket and placed them on the table (Jenny immediately picked up some dried fruit and started eating). Then she took out a small booklet and a quill pen, taking notes and nodding as she said, "Hmm, very good, very good. Take your time, don't rush, try to be clear and detailed."

"Got it."

Tempted by the Crystal Berry Black Forest Fire Spirits, Old Daglan, who had no obligation to keep the secret, nodded vigorously, stroking his long beard as he continued, "My grandfather told me that, according to legend, the visitor came from the mysterious Tianzhu Mountain in the Northwest Continent, and was a man who called himself the Agent."

"what?"

This time, although Xia Liya didn't react much, Mo Tan, who was eating dried fruit (which Yi Zou had swiped across from Xia Liya) while listening to gossip, subconsciously let out a soft gasp and asked in bewilderment, "You mean the proxy of Tianzhu Mountain?"

Dagran, who was suddenly interrupted by the Black Brahma priest, was stunned for a moment, then nodded vigorously and said, "Yes, I remember very clearly, it should be the agent of Tianzhu Mountain."

"hiss……"

Mo Tan smacked his lips, then casually picked up a peeled nut and stuffed it into his mouth, saying as he ate, "Tell me in detail, tell me in detail."

"Uh, okay, although I don't know it in great detail either."

Dagran nodded, then said with an even more serious tone, "Although the Dwarf Mountains and the Elf Forest are similar in that they are relatively closed-off settlements, unlike the rigid and inflexible Elf Royal Court, 'Burning Furnace City' has always had an open policy. It not only doesn't mind those who want to venture out and explore leaving the dungeon, but also welcomes those who have no ill intentions."

Xia Liya nodded slightly, stroking her chin as she speculated, "I see. So, because Tianzhu Mountain has always had a good reputation on the continent, your 'Burning Hammer King' named Northron Blackstone wasn't too wary and started chatting with him, ultimately leading to his cursed end?"

"It's a pity that although I would prefer this development, the reality is not like that. Neither Tianzhu Mountain nor that agent has any intention of harming us."

Old Dagland sighed and said with a wry smile, "As far as I know, the agent only brought a commission, a commission that would only benefit us."

Mo Tan and Xia Liya nodded in unison, saying in unison, "Explain in detail—"

"Um……"

Under this suffocating and mysterious sense of oppression, Daglan nodded hurriedly and subconsciously quickened his pace: "The agent brought four weapons: a one-handed sword, a longbow, a spear, and a pair of longswords. His request was simple: to have our king, or rather, the craftsmen of 'Burning Furnace City,' completely destroy these four weapons."

Jenny, who had been sitting elegantly with her legs crossed, smoking and snacking, muttered thoughtfully with a flicker in her eyes, "Interesting."

"It doesn't seem interesting to me."

Old Dagran sighed and said in a deep voice, "In the words of that agent, the craftsmanship of those four weapons was too special. Looking across the entire continent, apart from Tianzhu Mountain, only the most outstanding craftsman in 'Burning Furnace City', that is, the king named Northron at the time, was able to lead people to completely dismantle them, which is why he came to us."

"Ok?"

Sharia blinked and asked curiously, "So, why did you insist on sending your ancestors to risk their lives when Mount Mingzhu already had the ability to dismantle those weapons? Isn't there some kind of conspiracy at play?"

"When I first heard this story, I actually had similar suspicions, but it turned out that the other party probably didn't have any bad intentions. The fact that things escalated to the worst point was entirely our own fault."

Dagran shook his head slightly, and continued to explain with a somewhat dejected tone: "In the words of that agent, for some reason, those four weapons were not suitable to appear in Tianzhu Mountain. Under this premise, his first reaction was to come to 'Burning Furnace City' for help, and the reward he could offer was the materials left over after those weapons were destroyed."

Sharia clicked her tongue and sighed, "So the materials used in those weapons must be very precious."

“It’s not just about being precious. It’s said that those things contain a large amount of substances that we can’t explain, so much so that even though we can destroy them, we can’t understand the principles behind the materials at all. Not only that, the materials are also imbued with a very terrifying mystical blessing.” Daglan spoke with a look of longing on his face, muttering as if he were drunk, “I heard that it’s a blessing that can be retained in the materials even if the weapon itself is destroyed. In other words, after successfully fulfilling the contract and destroying those weapons, as long as we are willing to recast the remaining materials, the finished product can still retain those blessings.”

"Um……"

Although he had discussed these things with Dagran, Elgar, who hadn't listened very carefully at the time, leaned forward slightly and asked, following his instincts as a skilled warrior, "So what kind of blessing is it? Is it a very powerful one?"

"Pseudo-Never Wears Out, Pseudo-Increased Damage, Pseudo-Ignore Mystery, Pseudo-Armor Penetration, Pseudo-Conceptual Defense, Pseudo-Divine Killer, Pseudo-Curse Breaking."

Dagran, without batting an eye, recited a series of terms that sent chills down the spine of the veteran Elgar, and said with a forced smile, "That's not even all."

Mo Tan, not understanding, asked, "What does 'so many fakes' mean?"

"It means it's not absolute. For example, if a weapon really has the trait of 'never wearing out,' then even the greatest craftsman can't dismantle it until that trait is destroyed."

Dagran raised his index finger and shook it, then added, "Of course, a truly great craftsman can find a way to erase this trait, but it's impossible to apply it in combat. As for 'pseudo,' it means that although the materials supporting these weapons possess those traits, they haven't been used to their full potential."

Jenny, who was standing next to her, blew a smoke ring and then asked, "So it's not that impressive?"

"No... this is definitely quite impressive."

The one who answered her was not Dagran, but a highly learned clergyman from the Knowledge Sect, separated from her by Mo Tan. Sharia's expression was solemn, and her tone even carried a hint of awe: "Think about it carefully. These traits are not simply the traits of a 'weapon,' but rather the traits of the 'materials' that make up those weapons. Therefore, it can almost be regarded as a kind of raw material that is ridiculously powerful even without the blessing of a craftsman, and the kind with both an ridiculously high upper limit and a ridiculously high lower limit."

Mo Tan and the others immediately realized what Xia Liya meant by "powerful." Simply put, it was the difference between "forging a longsword and then using enchantment and engraving to make it able to be ignited with flames" and "forging a longsword from burning refined iron." Although they sounded similar at first glance, there was a decisive difference in quality.

"Then what?"

To prevent Mo Tan and the others from continuing to interrupt, Xia Liya immediately asked, "Wasn't this a good thing? How did it turn into a curse?"

"Because of greed..."

Dagland gave a wry smile, then corrected himself, "Or perhaps it's because every exceptional craftsman has that 'obsession' to leave behind some great works; that might be a better way to describe it."

Xia Liya nodded slightly, not urging him any further. Instead, she gripped her quill pen tightly and stared intently at Old Dagran, who was organizing his thoughts, as if he might turn into Mudkip and run away if she wasn't careful.

"The process is roughly like this..."

Before Xia Liya (and the onlookers like Mo Tan) had to wait long, Old Daglan took a deep breath and said solemnly, "After about two days of espionage, the king agreed to the agent's request, leaving behind the four weapons, and immediately began preparations, gathering all the best craftsmen in Burning Furnace City and even the Dwarf Mountain Range to plan the destruction process for these four weapons."

Su Rui Renyu raised her eyebrows and asked curiously, "Huh? So a lot of people were dismantling things together back then? Then how come only you drab little dwarfs got cursed? The other dwarfs were fine?"

"I'm talking, don't you fucking interrupt me."

Dagran glared at his colleague, then cleared his throat and continued, "During this process, the agent from Tianzhu Mountain stayed in Burning Furnace City to help. He was a legendary-level expert with great supernatural powers. Although he knew nothing about forging and smelting, he was able to help with many physical tasks."

This time, everyone ate their snacks quietly while patiently waiting for the next installment (Elgar and the others also received snacks from Sharia) —

"Everything went smoothly, although the process was arduous and many problems were encountered. But under the leadership of Northron, who was undoubtedly the greatest craftsman in the world at the time, the king of the Grey Dwarves, and the lord of Burning Furnace City, the four weapons were finally destroyed one after another."

Dagran rubbed his hands together nervously, then rested his chin on his hand and whispered, "And the agent received a summons from Tianzhu Mountain just before the fourth weapon was about to be destroyed. So he stayed for another two months, but after witnessing the completion of his mission, he did not stay long and returned to Tianzhu Mountain that same day."

I guess~

Jenny, who seemed to prefer reasoning to divination, smiled slightly and said softly, "Your Lord of Burning Furnace City had a trick up his sleeve, didn't he?"

"His Majesty Northron did indeed keep his promise and completely dismantled the four weapons as agreed, however..."

Dagran sighed, his expression troubled, and said, "During the dismantling process, Northron, as the core master craftsman, made an unexpected discovery. Because this discovery was unrelated to his 'deal' with the agent, he didn't reveal it until the other party left."

Jenny turned her head and blew a smoke ring in Mo Tan's face (Mo Tan: ?), and let out a pleasant and satisfied laugh: "I knew it. After all, there have been countless disasters in history caused by such 'petty thoughts'. To be honest, if someone could really memorize every detail of the more than nine thousand years of the Holy Calendar, he could probably be considered half a great astrologer."

"Say less."

Mo Tan glanced at Jenny with annoyance, then said somewhat awkwardly to old Daglan, whose face was gradually turning liver-colored, "Excuse me, so what exactly is His Majesty Northron hiding?"

"Spirit of the artifact."

"what?"

"...Four artifact spirits."

Chapter 2748: The End