Heart of the Castle

Chapter 501 Interpreting the message on the corpse
"Mumu? Where did you get this thing?" Li Wei moved his hand away from the hilt of his sword. He already recognized the identity of the monster with a huge head from the voice. It turned out to be a small monster from the Miyun tribe, but Wearing a horn helmet that I don't know where I got it.This heavy helmet was really huge compared to the little elf's body. It not only covered the little elf's head, but also made it difficult for him to keep his balance. However, the little elf refused to take off the trophy.

"Master Griffin Lord, Mumu drilled in front and saw the giant sitting on a chair, dead for a long time." Mumu, the elf, replied from behind the helmet, which seemed a little weird and dull, "The giant is wearing a helmet on his head. Take the wood off, and the wood will wear mighty power!"

"It seems that this may be an important clue, Master Levi." Sir Rodriguez's eyes flickered in the darkness, "I hope that corpse can answer our questions."

Then Li Wei and others, led by the little spirit Mumu, went to the secret passage where the corpse was found. Their figures were reflected on the mottled walls by the torches, forming black shadows that were constantly distorted, and the sound of footsteps echoed in the empty castle. It seemed extraordinarily heavy, and the sound spread all the way to the dark depths in the distance.

After passing through a winding stone alleyway, they stopped under the ruins of a tower. This is where the entrance to the secret passage was found. The black hole below, the narrow and steep sandstone steps extend down until the end as far as the eye can see.Li Wei seemed to see a cold and gloomy breath emerging from the entrance of the cave, making even the most sloppy orc warriors unwilling to approach there.

"The four chiefs are waiting below. Lord Griffin, Mumu will lead the way?" Mumu said while holding the helmet that was about to slip off his shoulders, without any hesitation in his tone or in his steps towards the entrance of the cave.This is not because Mu Mu is extraordinarily brave, but because of the character of little elves, there is absolutely no such thing as fear. This kind of character is not only the precious wealth they inherited from the dwarf blood, but also the reason why many little elves died because of curiosity. important reason.

"Wait a minute, Mumu." Li Wei stopped the little elf who was about to run down the stairs, and then asked a crusader swordsman, "Have you investigated this collapsed tower? The original purpose was what?"

"According to your order, we have investigated the buildings here, my lord." The Crusader swordsman said in a muffled voice, "From the remaining parts, the tower above the entrance originally had three floors, and the upper two floors have collapsed for a long time. , could not find any clues, the floor close to the ground should have collapsed within a few months, the reason was that several stone pillars supporting the main body of the tower were cut off by a sharp blade, and we found this among the ruins."

The thing held by the crusader swordsman to Li Wei was as dark as the night, and it was still shining with a dull light under the light of the torch. Li Wei reached out to take it, and the unexpected heavy and hard touch made him Suddenly frowned.

"It's an obsidian carving, it looks like a broken human figure, and there are some vague writings on it, but I don't recognize any of them." Levi observed the thing carefully, and then handed it to Mr. Dish, "This This thing looks old, butler Frederick, what do you think it might be used for?"

Mr. Dish glanced casually at first, and then let out a hum, with some surprise in his tone.In the next few minutes, the old magician looked at the stone carving with a serious expression, and after turning it over and over several times, he finally made a judgment.

"Master Levi, it's no wonder you can't recognize it. It is engraved with a secret symbol created by the black people. It contains the name and life experience of a black leader named Han Gelei Sorrell." Dish The gentleman shrugged his shoulders and threw the stone carving back into the hands of the Crusader Swordsman, "Then this fallen tower should be the Black Tower of the Dead. The bones of the once famous leader of the black people are the burial place that all the black people of the Devil Mountain admire and yearn for."

Li Wei looked at the black hole that was still faintly exuding a cold atmosphere, and said with some reluctance, "I don't want to disturb the peace of those ancient undead, Mr. Dish, are you sure we can find any clues under here? ?”

"Of course not, Master Levi, there may be nothing down here, we can call back the little elves and seal the tomb." Mr. Dish replied with a smile, "If the dead scare you."

Li Wei's lips were tightly pursed, and he gave Mr. Dish an annoyed look, "Of course not, Steward Frederick, let's go down and have a look now, I'll go first."

Mr. Dish watched Li Wei take the torch from a Griffin Knight, and then walked towards the entrance of the catacombs, a faint smile appeared on his face, "Our young master is definitely not afraid of ghosts, so Said he seemed a little afraid of the dark," he said to Sir Rodriguez.

"There is fear in order to be in awe. This is a famous saying that King Arthur I once said." Sir Rodriguez replied calmly, "If Master Levi is a person who does not know what fear is, I would rather worry about it." What kind of head-scratching thing will he do?" After speaking, he also took the torch from a griffin rider, and strode towards the entrance of the catacomb.

"Hey, is it necessary to explain with such a solemn excuse?" Mr. Dish couldn't help muttering, then shook his head and followed.

The stairs leading to the catacombs are steep and narrow, and have become very dangerous due to disrepair. Some of the stones have been severely loosened. When you step on it, you will collapse with a little force, and roll down with a hollow sound. , has been disappearing below the bottomless blackness.And the steps are just the smallest trouble, the more you go down, the more chills you feel on Li Wei's face. This feeling is not like the biting cold wind that is as severe as a sawtooth whip in the north, but like a breath of cold breath blowing up from the deep underground. Before you know it, it freezes to the bottom of people's hearts.

When the long stone steps finally came to an end and the soles of his feet touched the solid ground, Li Wei let out a long breath involuntarily. He thought that no one would notice his nervousness, but the hot breath that he exhaled evaporated in front of him. Smoke, and the sound is also very obvious in the quiet catacombs.

"Don't be nervous, Master Li Wei, there will be nothing but dead bodies here." Mr. Dish's slightly smiling voice sounded from behind, which made Li Wei feel rather embarrassed, and could only cough twice as a cover.

Heavy footsteps sounded afterward, and Sir Rodriguez walked over with a torch in his hand. The light from the two torches converged to drive away the deep darkness of the tomb, and the flickering fire illuminated the underground hall made of black gravel. Between the thick pillars, the rock statues of the previous leaders of the Demon Mountain sat silently on the stone throne, leaning against the erected rock coffin behind them.

"The black people live forever, and the dead will never die." Mr. Dish's voice echoed in the catacombs, and it became more and more distant and empty, "This is the will left by the first leader of the Magic Mountain. He ordered his successor to take his body Sealed in the erected black rock coffin, the front is carved into a sitting stone statue. The masters of the next generation of the mountain have no habit of bowing their knees to death, even the dark devil Frodo lowered his rebellious head to King Arthur , took over the title of Earl of the Magic Mountain, but he still returned to the Black Tower of the Dead after his death, and stood shoulder to shoulder with his predecessors, never bowing his knees."

Li Wei nodded, and glanced at the stone statues of the leaders of the Demon Mountain. Most of these people had cold expressions, and their appearance was either tyrannical and cruel, or they were resolute and haggard. The thick arms are tightly held.They refused to obey the laws of the kingdom during their lifetime, and they were unwilling to accept the verdict of the Sleeping Leader after death. Although burning, killing, and looting are all evil, it is undeniable that each generation of the leaders of the Magic Mountain is as firm and strong as the black mountains they occupy. And keep your promises, do what you say.

Mr. Disch walked in front of a stone sculpture and paused for a while. The old magician rubbed his fingers, and a silvery-white flame burst out from his fingertips, dispelling the surrounding darkness, and then moved closer to the stone sculpture for a closer look.Levi and Sir Rodriguez followed, looking at the faces carved in stone.

The face of the stone statue looks like a young man, much younger and shorter than the other chiefs of the Magic Mountain, but the unnamed sculptor expresses the stern charm very well. When it is in place, it makes people feel murderous as soon as they look at it.Not only Li Wei and Sir Rodriguez were silent, even the little monster Mumu couldn't help being infected by the atmosphere, and closed his chattering mouth.

"Frodo Gregor, nicknamed the Dark Lord, the last great leader of the Devil's Mountain and the first Earl of the Devil's Mountain, one of Arthur I's twelve blood knights, and the most murderous one among them, he created the Knights of Death He is famous. Frodo died on a night when the sky was falling, at the age of 25." Mr. Dish muttered as he read the words engraved on the side of the stone statue, his expression was clouded by the silver-white magic flame.Li Wei and Sir Rodriguez stood behind him and exchanged some inexplicable glances with each other.

After a long time, the old magician straightened up, smiled wryly, and then extinguished the magic flame in his hand. "Seeing a familiar name, I feel a little emotional." He explained to the unspecified person, his eyes still seemed a little confused, and it was not until a few minutes later that he regained his clarity. "Okay, Master Li Wei, let's move on."

Mumu couldn't wait to move his short legs, away from the oppressive and silent atmosphere, and rushed into the darkness.The tomb was filled with gloomy darkness, and nothing could be seen except by the light of the torches, as if countless ghosts were stalking.However, both goblins and gnomes have the ability of night vision, and the elves who fuse these two bloodlines are no exception. The darkness cannot be an obstacle to them.

"It's almost here, ahead, the four leaders are waiting."

There is no need to explain, Li Wei and others can also see the little monsters not far ahead, because they actually lit a lot of bonfires in the crypt, and the red light illuminates a distance of more than ten meters.These little guys who don't know what fear is are jumping up and down around a stone throne. The leader of the four children and the tallest elf wield a two-handed giant sword of amazing size, and the blade is shaking red from time to time. Shaking across the sides of the other little elves, there were bursts of cheers of surprise and joy.

"Now I finally know why those alchemists would refuse to let the little elves serve as their assistants." Levi sighed and said, "Sir Rodriguez, I am afraid that even the bravest knight would not be able to do so in such a dark tomb." Will it be affected to a certain extent?"

"I'm afraid that's not bravery, but the lack of fear." Sir Rodriguez shook his head with a very serious expression on his face, "Only by overcoming fear with a will of steel is true courage. And people who don't have fear, they make the worst choices."

"You're right, the little monsters don't know how to live and die." Seeing that the little monsters were playing more and more thrillingly, Li Wei suggested with a wry smile, "If we don't hurry over, maybe there will be bad results. "

Several people quickened their pace, they came just in time, the little elf leader Si'er's hand slipped, and the huge sword fell towards a little elf immediately, if it wasn't for Sir Rodriguez, he rushed up in time and reached out to grab the blade , almost chopped the guy's head in half, but the little monsters were shaking with excitement, clapping and cheering, and shouting at the same time to do it again.

Li Wei and the others had a tacit understanding and no interface, but instead focused on the stone throne—or, in other words, the tall corpse sitting on it.It can be seen that the deceased must have experienced a fierce battle before his death. The rough steel plate armor is full of traces of sword chopping and spear stabbing. Even though he has been dead for a long time, the corpse still has a tragic murderous look.

"God of War Balud!" Li Wei was so shocked that he could hardly speak, "How is it possible? I read it right, this corpse is..."

"Black Death Clemennon Gregor, Earl of the Devil's Mountain!" Sir Rodriguez let out a breath, his face becoming more serious under the light of the fire, "Master Levi, that's the guy, that's right. The person we saw in the capital is exactly the same."

"Then why did he die here?" Li Wei's tone seemed a little unbelievable, his eyes fixed on the pale face of the deceased, and he hoped that he was wrong, but Sir Rodriguez couldn't see it the same way. wrong. "Perhaps this is a substitute for the Earl of the Magic Mountain. Don't many wealthy nobles have their own substitutes?" the young Griffon Lord speculated hopefully.

"I'm afraid this is the Earl of the Magic Mountain himself." Sir Rodriguez shook his head, and pointed to the two-handed giant sword that the elves had just used as a toy. "That sword is the Wife of the Demon Mountain. It is a legendary weapon forged from pure gold and cold steel. It is extremely sharp. I blocked it with my hand just now. If it was held by a random knight instead of a little elf, I might think about it now." There is a way to sew up the severed palm."

"Sir Rodriguez, do you mean that the blade of this giant sword can easily penetrate Tianhua, who has reached the peak of fighting spirit?" Li Wei's eyebrows couldn't help trembling. "Then how did he die?"

"It's too easy to solve this problem." Sir Rodriguez said, "Old Dish, didn't the body you are using originally belonged to a lich? It wouldn't even bind the soul or awaken the dead. Can't even use magic?"

"It's a way, it's worth a try." Mr. Dish nodded, and then opened his hands. The butler's uniform was corroded by the strong black undead weapon, and his eyes also glowed green. It looked extremely eerie.

"The law of the soul, call, answer, the gate of the negative realm opens, and the dead return!" As the muttered incantation sounded, the tall corpse sitting on the stone throne began to tremble violently, and a faint green glow emerged from under the closed eyelids. It seemed as if he would stand up again at any moment.

This is the first time that Mr. Dish has performed undead magic in front of Li Wei. The young griffin lord has some weird feelings in his heart. The old magician who is shrouded in the dark green undead power seems to make him feel particularly special. strangeness.

"There is no response. There is no trace of soul left on this corpse. The magic to awaken the dead can only create a high-level zombie at most." The dark green flames were then extinguished in Mr. Dish's eyes. The trembling also stopped at the same time.

"Is it possible that his soul has been destroyed by magic?" Levi proposed a new possibility.

The old magician thought about it carefully, then shook his head and made a judgment, "Impossible, even if you use magic to purify or disperse the soul, it will leave corresponding traces. If there are no traces left, then there is only one reason It's—the man's been dead for a long time."

"How long is a long time?" Li Wei asked, frowning.

"Two months at least," said Mr. Dish, confidently.

"How is that possible?" Li Wei couldn't contain the surprise in his heart, and exclaimed involuntarily, "It's been less than two months since the Dragon King led his army. At that time, we clearly saw Gregor, Earl of the Magic Mountain, leading The Death Knights appeared in Fermeyer! If this corpse belongs to Earl Gregor, then who is that person? Besides, the weather in Westwind County is not as cold as that in the North. If he has been dead for several months, I am afraid that this corpse If the corpse hadn't been eaten up by rats and bugs, it would have rotted into a smelly mass of rotten flesh."

"There are many reasons why the corpse does not rot, not only the effect of magic, but also drugs, curses and grudges." Mr. Dish snorted, "There are often some unusual marks left on the corpse, That is the last word of the dead. Sir Rodrigues, come and examine the body, and see if you can find anything unusual?"

(End of this chapter)