The bard fantasized again.

Chapter 75 Dawn Temple (Please continue reading)

The building, shrouded in mist, stood on an open space.

Without the shade of the trees, the bright moonlight shines on the pure white flowers, making the already radiant blossoms even more vibrant.

To avoid attracting attention, Tang Qi extinguished the torches and tied the three horses to the tree trunks in the woods.

By the clear moonlight, he turned around and noticed that Catherine's expression was somewhat ominous:
"Are you ok?"

He thought it was that thin, long scar on his face, which had only been treated with simple herbs, and that was throbbing with pain again.

"do not mind."

Surprisingly, a slight blush appeared on Catherine's cheeks.

She turned her head away, seemingly not wanting the topic to continue.

Tang Qi realized something—

Throughout the journey, the girl held him in her arms, so much so that the softness on his back always trembled as the horse swayed...

Let's not delve into these issues any further.

He quickly approached the building.

This must be a ruined temple.

Tang Qi thought.

It is not grand; it stands on a low stone base and should be made entirely of marble.

The forest's humid climate and the temple's long-term neglect have caused what should have been a pristine white wall to be covered with a thin, dark green carpet—moss and vines.

Dark water stains meandered along some of the exposed gray-white walls.

The walls are devoid of any flamboyant or ornate decorative lines; they are flat and tidy, exuding a simple yet rugged charm.

The dome, which should have resembled a towering cone, has now collapsed beyond recognition.

Without a doubt, it must have had a glorious and brilliant past.

However, the ravages of time have left their mark on everything.

But it is still defying time, so it stands firm.

Even in this boundless forest, it gradually became deserted.

Only outside the temple, the flowers bathed in soft, misty light seem to still record its past.

Like a hero in his twilight years.

"The scent stops here."

Anbi pinched her nose, but could only smell a faint floral fragrance no matter what she tried.

"Have we gone the wrong way? This doesn't look like a place where people deal with corpses. I could believe it if it were a priest!"

"Perhaps he chose this temple precisely because he knew others would think this way?"

The clues were right in front of us. Even if we went in the wrong direction, we should still search carefully before drawing any conclusions.

Tang Qi approached, pressed his palm against the door, and, ignoring the cold, damp touch, slowly pushed it forward.

The rusty door was unlocked, and almost as soon as he pushed it open a crack, he smelled a fresh scent mixed with damp earth, moss, and rotten wood, which chillily entered his nostrils.

Upon fully opening the door, it became apparent that the collapsed ceiling had created a large portion of the space, with rubble mixed in beneath the marble, making the interior less spacious than one had imagined.

However, the dome is very high, and the ceiling is inlaid with thick, transparent glass, enough to allow moonlight to seep into the room and illuminate the hazy grayness before us.

"Water is dripping onto my head..."

Merard rubbed his messy brown hair and forced his eyes upward, where he saw dewdrops dripping down the stone wall into a puddle, making a pleasant "tinkling" sound.

The pebbly boots trod on the mostly damaged red carpet, their sturdy weight even seeming to squeeze out the moisture they contained.
"Now it looks even less like it."

He looked around and couldn't help but mutter to himself.
"It looks quite tall, but it doesn't actually have a second floor or a single room!"
Besides the murals, there was only the destroyed statue and a few rotten pillars.

This place doesn't resemble a church, but it's even less like a place for people to live.

"So what does this place remind you of?"

The dwarf is a skilled builder, and his insights are particularly crucial:
"I don't know, but it looks like a temple where something is enshrined."

indeed.

Tang Qi looked around and found that there wasn't even a single device nearby that could be considered a hidden door.

The statue at the very end was also destroyed, with most of its body mixed in with the ruins, leaving only a stone-carved plate boot.

Behind them was a stone wall with blurry murals on it, making it impossible to tell which deity it represented or which epic story it symbolized.

"Could it be that we really took the wrong road?"

Tang Qi asked, puzzled.

He even suspected that the 'skull' might have deliberately left traces to lure them here, only to return to the camp and wreak havoc... Not daring to draw any conclusions, he could only walk closer to the statue.

Finally, a tiny clue was found on the stone pier at the foot of the statue:

There is no corresponding symbol.

But the inscription on it is...

'Dawn'? What?

"It's all been eroded by water stains, how can you see anything clearly?" the gravel muttered.

Tang Qi could only guess:

"Lord of the Dawn, Losanda?"

"What's that?" Gravel blinked.

"A god of dawn attempting to seize the power of the sun. He is spring, vitality, and innovation."

"Is that recorded in your poets' academy?"

Tang Qi then realized that because history could not be recorded, the footprints of the gods became increasingly distant, causing people to always have an ambiguous understanding of the gods they believed in.

Only the believers in the Holy City, or clergy like Father Lynn, can be certain of which God they worship—

Tang Qi didn't know who it was either, but it certainly wasn't Losanda.

"But people remember Gragas, how come no one has heard of such a famous deity? Or perhaps they don't belong to the same pantheon..."

What are you mumbling about over there?

"I said the dwarves must have smashed this statue."

Tang Qi compared the shoes and boots on the stone block to the height of the dwarf, which was about the same.

"roll!"

Little did the pebbles know that the poet was so petty.

Didn't I almost kick his ass?

Tang Qi then looked at Anbi:
Can't you smell even the slightest bit of odor?

The little girl shook her head, looking very dejected.

“Ambi is useless…”

"You've done a great job."

Tang Qi sighed; he had no choice but to accept the outcome.

But just as he was about to get up and leave, he heard Merad exclaim in surprise:
What do you see on the ceiling?

Tang Qi looked up and realized that although the roof was too high and most things were hidden in the darkness, the slanting moonlight made it clear that there was nothing on it.

However, he then realized that Merard's 'eyeballs' were hovering on the ceiling—

It has the effect of seeing through illusions.

He quickly looked at Kulu:
"Use [Detection Magic] on the ceiling!"

Kuru does not use this spell.

However, the wand it 'inherited' from Nova can.

The kobold then activated the wand's aura, and a faint halo of light burst forth from the tip of the wand, sweeping across the ceiling above, revealing a slight distortion.

In the darkness, large, transparent, round glass panels, embedded in the weight-bearing stone pillars of the temple, were revealed before their eyes.

At the same time, the hidden compartments on the stone pillars also came into view.

"organ?"

Tang Qi approached the hidden compartment and, with a gentle push, it flipped open, revealing a structure made of gears and inlaid bronze...

handle?

"What does this mean? Kuru, check again to see if there are any traps on the handle."

Kuru did as instructed, and quickly shook his head: "No, no trap!"

Tang Qi then gripped the handle with relief, only to realize that he seemed to be able to turn it.

As he tried to do so, he heard a faint grinding sound from gears.

Merard covered one eye, looked at the ceiling clearly, and suddenly shouted:

"That glass mirror moved!?"

(End of this chapter)