From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 452 Iron Hand Temple
The great tomb of the Somme family reeks of death, filled with piles of skulls, making it an ideal battleground for necromancers.

Because corpses, which are used as consumables, are everywhere.

Pushing open an ornate iron gate, a skull, deliberately placed atop a pile of skulls, spoke with its jaws opening and closing: "Nine, Zeril, Minsara! Whoever you are, leave. I will fulfill General Somme's will alone!"

"Demon Mouth Spell. A spell that can be automatically activated to transmit sound." Ivy shot a bolt of lightning from her fingertip, blasting the skull supported by a leg bone into dust.

“Mages always like to play mysterious games,” Minsara kicked away a skull that had rolled to her feet. “Barthazar is especially so, but that also means that the necromancer is deep inside the tomb.”

“Melodia Som.” Leading the way was Shadowheart. She had seemed absent-minded since setting off from the End of Light this morning, but she became somewhat excited when she saw the Som family's great mausoleum.

The name Yingxin uttered belonged to Katheric's wife, who was also the owner of the sarcophagus placed in the central hall of the mausoleum.

Walking around the sarcophagus, Shadowheart picked up a diary from the ground; it belonged to Katheric.

After flipping through a few pages, Yingxin tossed it aside, curled her lip, and began to judge Ketherrick's faith: "His wife and daughter died one after another, and he converted to Lady Shar's faith in order to seek peace of mind. Unfortunately, he changes his faith more often than a prostitute changes her sheets."

“Considering we previously encountered Shar’s temple in the Underdark, we should now look for the entrance to the underground.” Ivy directed the group to spread out. “At the same time, we must be wary of undead creatures and traps; necromancers are very effective in this environment.”

The Somme family mausoleum is very large, with many side chambers for storing ashes and coffins embedded in the walls, in addition to the coffins placed on the ground.

“This is Melkor’s emblem. Two of the three dead gods have already appeared. Will Bane be far behind?” In a side room filled with bookshelves, Gale carefully observed the pattern drawn on the floor with blood and skulls. “Skulls, triangles, and circles… the three dead gods really have no creativity.”

“It’s almost certain that the Supreme God is just a facade created by the Three Gods of Death; even their emblems are identical.” Ivy glanced into the side hall before walking deeper inside.

“There’s an open coffin here.” The evil thought stood before the inscription on the stone coffin, the same inscription on which Melodia’s name had been carved. But the evil thought was clearly having trouble reading it. “Ssussun elgg…oloth?”

"What does this mean?" Xie Nian frowned.

“It’s Elvish.” The Ravenclaw tiara continued to grant Ivy the ability to understand languages, so he easily translated it into Common. “It means ‘light illuminates darkness.’”

“There’s another sentence…” The drow paladin also came to the empty coffin, “This is Isobel’s resting place… Heh, it seems she didn’t sleep very well.”

“So that explains it. Katherrick sought help from the necromancer Balthazar simply to alleviate his pain of losing his daughter. Whether it was turning to Shar to try and forget those memories, or becoming one of the chosen ones of the Supreme God, it was all for this purpose.” Gelmor stroked his beard, saying with some understanding, “However, neither necromancy nor Shar’s faith could bring Isobel back, so he turned to Melkor. The God of the Dead does indeed have the power to resurrect someone. Judging from the result, Katherrick certainly did. It’s just that his daughter seems a bit disobedient…”

“Their family drama was almost the catalyst for everything,” Halsin sighed. “But his act of resurrecting Isobel also gave us an ally, and now I can almost understand what Katheric was doing.”

“Understand?” Minsara scoffed. “Katheric doesn’t need understanding; he needs sympathy. He ruled Resven and the Tower of the Moon for centuries, and he was indeed a respectable lord, but the gods treated him like a plaything—first Shar and Serene, then the Supreme God and the Three Gods of Death behind him… A life ruled by the gods is pathetic, and all of Katheric’s suffering stemmed from them. I only understood this after breaking my oath with Rose.”

"No." As a religious person, Yingxin strongly disagreed with Mingsala's view. Usually in the group, the two of them argued the most, even more than the conflict between Leezer and Yingxin. One of them thought she understood the situation best, while the other still buried her head in Shar's arms.

“Mrs. Shar’s embrace is peaceful! It was because Katheric betrayed Mrs. Shar that he met such an end.” Shadowheart’s round, long ears twitched warily.

“Shar’s followers will surrender their painful memories in order to gain so-called peace.” Minsara tapped her temple with her finger. “But Ketheric, who converted to Shar, did not become stronger because of it, because Shar’s divine power has already drained him, and it is about to drain you as well. You know what I’m talking about, little girl.”

"Ms. Shar loves me! I must become her..."

Shadowheart's declaration was interrupted by the sound of a mechanism coming from the wall. Ivy used magic to move the hidden door, and the entrance to the Temple of Shar was finally revealed. Two statues of Shar guarded a circular platform, and a purple gem was shimmering in the center of the platform.

There was a similar device at the entrance to the Temple of Shar, which adventurers used to look down from the cliff in front of the Adamantite Forge. It was a magical elevator platform, and it looked to be in good condition.

“Focus on the mission, ladies,” Ivy said calmly. “Those religious disputes can wait until we set up camp.”

Ivy had always held considerable authority within the group, a direct result of his constant companionship and strategic advice. Although Yingxin still seemed resentful, she didn't say much. Ivy believed the girl was determined to prove herself on the journey ahead.

As the last teammate stepped onto the floating elevator platform, Ivy activated the purple gem used for energy storage.

The platform led the adventurers through a pale purple mist, and a magnificent building appeared before them.

"The architectural style of the Temple of Shar still possesses a certain beauty, even if it was sculpted by the hand of shadows." Gale always viewed everything he saw with an academic eye, even though he himself had no fondness for the Shar faith.

“Yes…” Yingxin murmured, as if her mind had been completely captivated by the magnificent Temple of Shar. “I am certain that this is the legendary lost Temple of Iron Hand.”

"It's unbelievable that we've actually found the Dark Lady's sacred trial grounds... In the distant past, only the most outstanding and devout believers could pass every trial of the Night Chanter and become a glorious Night Judge..."

Ivy turned her head to look at Yingxin's profile. Besides longing, there was also a hint of fear hidden beneath her slightly fanatical expression.

"The Iron Hand has a dual meaning—it signifies both the severe trials that must be overcome and the armored fist that Lady Shar uses to embrace those of value. Those who survive the crushing weight of the Iron Hand Temple will receive the embrace of the Nightsinger at its heart..."

Yingxin finally noticed Ivy's gaze. She turned her head and wiped her face with the back of her hand: "What's wrong? Is there something on my face?"

“No. I was just wondering, if the temple used to judge the qualifications of a Night Judge has been lost for so long, how do you in the Baldur's Gate monastery determine whether a believer is qualified to become a Night Judge?” Ivy shook her head slightly. “I remember you once said that the nuns in the monastery prevented you from applying for the Night Judge trial.”

“It’s rare that you still remember.” Yingxin smiled. “Now it’s much simpler to join the Dark Judge; all you need to do is kill a Serene follower.”

Killing a Serenne follower? That's an incredibly simple trial. If Shar truly loved Shadowheart, she would have allowed her to complete this trial long ago.

Ivy was almost certain that it wasn't the nuns from the convent who were stopping Shadowheart, but rather Shar herself.

Because the first Serenne follower killed by Shadowheart must be someone of significance, not just some random cat or dog on the street.

The offering that Shar prepared for Shadowheart was none other than Selenne's daughter.

As they spoke, the elevator platform had already transported the adventurers to the true entrance of the Iron Hand Temple.

Compared to the great tombs of the Somme family, the Temple of the Iron Hand appeared more solemn. Similar to the Adamantite Forge, it was paved with deep purple stone bricks, and the stone paths were decorated with gold thread as guides. Gale was right; the temple's aesthetics were indeed unique.

The banners that once hung throughout the temple had been reduced to tattered strips by time, but the chandeliers on either side of the vaulted ceiling still emitted a strange purple flame. Ivy was certain it was some kind of magic, but the source of the magic was different from the magic nets used by most Faerûn spellcasters.

In Ivy's arcane vision, the magical light of the chandelier appeared even more indistinct and obscure. If she was not mistaken, the source of this purple flame's magic power was none other than Shar's Shadow Demon Net.

Although the purple flame in the chandelier looks vigorous, the area it can illuminate is always limited, but the shadows it casts are just as numerous.

"It's too quiet here." Asdallen's eyes darted around, wary of any demon that might leap out of the shadows at any moment.

“Indeed.” Ivy nodded. “Considering that besides the necromancer Balthazar, there is also a Blood Armored Demon in the temple, this quiet atmosphere is indeed quite unusual.”

The dark stone door, decorated with gold thread, spun open, revealing a statue of Shar standing on one leg. Shar, with her graceful figure, was pointing a golden dagger in her right hand at a tray in her left palm.

A thick shadow surrounded the statue.

“Praise be to Lady Shar…” Yingxin murmured to herself, immediately preparing to step forward and pray.

Ivy reached out and pulled her back: "Don't rush to pray."

Although puzzled, Yingxin stopped in her tracks.

Ivy pulled a gold coin from her pocket, flicked it with her finger, and the spinning coin flew through the thick shadows, about to land on the tray in the statue of Shar's hand.

A pale purple shockwave exploded outwards, sending the spinning gold coin flying even faster.

As the shockwave exploded, all the adventurers witnessed the two rings of glowing runes around the statue, but as the shockwave dissipated, the magical runes disappeared once more.

The evil thought leaped high, reaching out its prosthetic hand to catch the gold coins that had been thrown by the shockwave. After rubbing them for a moment, it stuffed them into its pocket: "How did you discover this hidden trap?"

“Because I’ve enchanted my eyes, which allows me to notice magical auras in my environment.” Ivy gestured in front of her eyes, “Those two circles of runes are very noticeable to me.”

"Wow!" the evil thought exclaimed. "It sounds perfect for finding hidden magical items."

“The answer lies hidden in the darkness…” Yingxin noticed the inscription board at her feet. “This is Ms. Shar’s test for the believers! We just need to turn off all the lights around us, and we will definitely find a way to pass.”

Although Shadowheart had already found the clue, Ivy was already standing below the Shar statue through the gap in the magic runes.

There was a gemstone there, standing firmly on the ground within a bronze frame.

With Ivy's touch, the true gates of the Iron Hand Temple were also opened.

After passing through a somewhat dilapidated corridor, the adventurers finally saw the entire Iron Hand Temple.

The massive water gate, resembling a fine gold furnace, faces a huge arched structure in the space directly opposite the temple gate. Deep purple and gold decorations are everywhere, but their presence is all to highlight the statue standing in the very center.

Her posture was the same as the one the adventurers had just seen, but she did not have the same disc in her left hand.

Because the disc suspended in the air is right in front of the platform where the adventurers are; it is both part of the statue and the only way to reach the Iron Hand Temple secret realm.

As a follower of Shar, Shadowheart was almost speechless, overwhelmed by the solemn atmosphere of the Iron Hand Temple.

Staggering forward a few steps, Yingxin stood before a circular altar surrounded by rings of gold threads and glowing inscriptions. There were also two circular recesses on the altar, one of which was occupied by a crystal ball shrouded in heavy shadow.

“Boldly face Lady Shar’s harsh trials. Conquer her trials and rise as a judge of the night…” Reciting the inscription on the altar, Shadowheart turned to Ivy with excitement and said, “I’ve dreamt of this place. This is my destiny—I must complete this trial.”

“You know me better than most people—but I need to know I’m worthy. Will you support me, Ivy?” Yingxin asked, a mix of nervousness and relief in her voice.

“I will,” Ivy replied softly, “but remember, I’m not supporting Shar, I’m supporting you.”

Yingxin smiled gently, completely relaxed: "You can't let other Shar believers hear this! But... I like it very much."

(End of this chapter)