Star Forge Titan

Ivan, known as the 'Pirate Captain', turned pale and muttered to himself.

But he didn't care too much about it. When going through a dungeon in the game, wasn't a combat professional like him responsible for walking in the front?

I'm used to it, I'm used to it, but why are the tears flowing?

With a pout, Alvin walked to the door. He didn't try to pry open the lock, which was clearly emitting a magical glow. It was either a magical trap or a dangerous curse attached to it. Several families among the original vampires were particularly good at the latter.

The tall, dark-haired boy raised his hand and pressed against the wall. After knocking to confirm its material, he punched it. The solid wood cabin partitions, though exceptionally thick, were as easy to penetrate as paper for Alvin.

After clearing a gap as high as a person with his bare hands, Alvin walked directly into the captain's room through this "new door".

Apart from the front door, there are unlikely to be any traps in other places in the captain's room, just like ordinary people would not put locks on any place in their house except the front door.

The room was filled with a faint smell of blood, which made Alvin curse inwardly that Count Lesenbra was indeed a frivolous guy.

"Why are these all outdated things from a hundred years ago?" Ka Yang's complaint came from behind.

Just now, the wizard rushed to the bookshelf with great interest, but found that all the information and books about extraordinary people on it were already behind the current mainstream, and he couldn't help feeling dissatisfied.

Although Khayon had burned the promotion information given to him by Lucius without hesitation, it did not mean that he did not really lack those things. As a second-level mage who had fully met the promotion conditions, one day's delay in promotion was a day's waste.

"Vampires were driven out of the continent a long time ago. How much up-to-date information can they have? Their collection of antiques is worth looking forward to." Alvin was not surprised at all.

The writing supplies on the desk alone were all at least thirty years old. For example, the seemingly inconspicuous dip pen, with its pure gold nib and intricately hand-carved walnut wood barrel, would definitely fetch nearly a hundred gold ducats at Lind.

However, the most valuable thing in this room is a small, inconspicuous box placed on the desk.

This small box is about the size of a jewelry box, no more than 15 cm in length. It is made entirely of some kind of wood that emits a faint fragrance, and the corners are reinforced with silver-blue metal.

Alvin recognized at a glance that they were all mithril of extremely high purity, and as for the wood, it was also a special variety from the elven kingdom.

"Shadow Box, the belongings of these vampires are richer than I imagined." Picking up the small box, Ivan showed an expression of amazement on his face.

In the previous game, Palladio was a true simulation of reality, so when players first created their account, they didn't have an inventory like in other games. Every long trip required a carriage and suitcases, and it was easy to lose money or equipment if you weren't careful.

But this does not mean that magic cannot create space equipment.

However, due to the technical difficulty and the rarity of the required materials, those things are extremely rare.

Moreover, excluding high-end 'toys' like high-end pet collars that can hold a piece of paper or a small bag of gold coins, all space equipment with real strategic value in Palladia is extremely expensive.

According to the classification of magic equipment and alchemical items by the countries on the continent, not to mention the "Immortal" level that can be called a national treasure and the other two levels that are basically not seen in the material world, there are only the common, rare, rare, legendary, and ancient levels.

Among them, the cheapest space items have an equipment level of at least "rare", and the larger ones are close to legendary magic items.

Compared with those real space equipment, although the "diplomat ring" in Ivan's hand can hold a pistol and some ammunition, it is completely incomparable with the former as a storage equipment.

Precisely because of this, players often only have the ability and opportunity to obtain such items after becoming high-level extraordinary people.

The magic shadow box in front of you is one of them.

This small wooden box, as small as a jewelry box and able to fit into a coat pocket, actually corresponds to a large box in the shadow plane.

As reflections of the material world, all inanimate objects have identical counterparts on the Shadow Plane, but the latter theoretically cannot interfere with the former.

Even if the latter is destroyed in the Shadow Plane, it will automatically recover after a period of time, just like the reflection in the water will change due to the ripples on the water surface, but will also recover when the waves subside.

However, the mages accidentally invented the technology of reverse interference while studying the shadow plane.

This results in various shadow magics, and the Shadow Box is one of the enchanted equipment that uses this type of magic.

First, the elven druids cultivated special trees that grew in both the Material Plane and the Shadow Plane. Then, human wizards enlarged the Shadow Plane counterparts of small boxes made of special wood using mithril frames enchanted with shadow magic.

After completion, although the two still correspond to each other, the internal volume of the small wooden box in the material world is tens to hundreds of times larger than normal.

The black-haired boy seemed calm and composed, but at the same time he couldn't help but rub his hands together rapidly.

After talking so much, there is actually only one thing Alvin wants to do now.

That is... unboxing! unboxing! unboxing!!!

Chapter 17 Golden White Clouds

Just like a safe used to store important items.

The Magic Shadow Box also has encryption capabilities and is equipped with a magical locking device.

Without the corresponding special key, it is impossible to open the magic box and take out the things hidden inside.

If the box is forcibly destroyed, the integrity of the items inside will be affected by the spatial fluctuations caused by the damage to the enchantment.

To crack such a magic lock, one must be proficient in a lot of relevant magic knowledge, and this is not something that Alvin is good at, otherwise he would have created a wizard account in the game long ago.

Fortunately, thanks to Count Lesenbra, who has a casual style.

Because he left in such a hurry, he didn't even take the key to the Shadow Box with him. At this moment, the small silver key was inserted directly into the keyhole in the center of the box.

This is not a good habit, and you should definitely not learn from it.

The black-haired boy rubbed his hands together calmly until his skin began to turn red before he raised his hand and grasped the secret key.

Then, a circular magic circle emitting blue magical light appeared above the magic lock. The runes containing magical power slowly rotated around the magic circle, outlining a geometric pattern with two inner and outer circles interlocking and locking with each other.

Alvin slowly turned the secret key, and the geometric pattern outlined by the rune changed immediately. The inner circle and the outer circle gradually separated, and the magical light as agile as water began to flow freely in the magic circle.

Click, and the lock of the magic shadow box was released.

Ivan's breathing couldn't help but quicken a little. Ka Yang, who noticed his actions, was stunned for a moment, then showed an annoyed expression.

However, the Necromancer quickly came over with shameless curiosity. He also wanted to know what the Vampire Pirate King would put in it.

The lid slowly opened, revealing a bizarre black and white scene within, a scene unique to the Shadow Plane. Unlike its compact, no more than 15 centimeters in the material world, the Shadow Box's true size in the Shadow Plane was as large as a bicycle garage.

Although it is not as exaggerated as the highest-level space equipment, it is at least a rare-level magic equipment second only to "Legend".

Through the opened lid, one could see four rows of tall shelves lined the walls, one side filled with a variety of expensive jewelry and magical materials. A rough estimate put the value of these items at roughly the same as the entire tax revenue of an earldom in several years, not to mention that many of these items were scarce and unsold.

The owner of the box does not need to get in to take these things out.

After all, except for some extraordinary people who mastered special professions, the Shadow Plane was not suitable for ordinary creatures from the material world to enter. If humans entered the Shadow Plane, they would be like drowning land animals, finding it difficult to survive due to the different plane rules.

The mages who created the Shadow Box had already thought of the most appropriate solution.

You can reach out and grab the things on the top shelf, and inside the box, there is a puppet golem that doesn't take up much space when folded and can be awakened at any time.

Its shape is like a dwarf statue with two long arms. As long as the remote control device installed on the inside of the ender box lid is used, this puppet golem can be remotely controlled to pick up items.

As for the control method, it is a bit like a claw machine. However, there is no need to worry about the puppet golem's arms being too "weak" to lift even the slightest heavy object.

After activating the dwarf-shaped puppet golem, Ivan tried to manipulate it a few times inside the box before looking at the other three shelves. At this time, Khayang, who was standing next to him, was almost gleaming with excitement.

He didn't care about the treasures, but the other three shelves were filled with various documents, books, and ancient scrolls that looked very historical!

Obviously, this is the most precious part of the extraordinary information possessed by the original vampire Lesenbra family.

"Captain, it's time to enjoy the fruits of victory!" Kayang said righteously.

"I advise you not to have too much hope. After all, these vampires were driven to the sea hundreds of years ago." Although he said this, Alvin still quickly controlled the puppets to move out all the books and scrolls.

Soon, the vast office that once belonged to Count Lesombra was completely occupied by precious documents, books, and ancient scrolls that had also once belonged to the vampire Count.

The two of them began to browse the information separately and quickly picked out the part that belonged to the file.

Although there is evidence that Count Lesenbra is secretly colluding with other forces, the vampire Count himself and a group of his clansmen have been wiped out by the Fen family. When the time comes, they will be handed over to the former sheriff, so that the Minister of Security under Emperor Lind will have to worry about it.

What Ivan and Khayon were really interested in were the books and ancient scrolls about the extraordinary.

Most books about supernatural beings are from over a century ago, but some are rare and valuable. While some of the ancient theories on supernatural beings discussed in them have been disproven, others are still used today. There are also travelogues and biographies that record various interesting anecdotes, which can be used to broaden your horizons.

On the other hand, due to their age, there are few ancient scrolls that can be used directly, but the large amount of precious magic recorded on them is of great reference value. It is entirely possible to optimize and replace it with modern new magic theory and release it in a more efficient way.

This part is more useful for Khayon, but Ivan can also use the talent of [Reshaping the World] more effectively by learning the knowledge about the use of magic.

But what really caught Alvin's attention was a piece of information about the ancient supernatural profession - the Ash Knight.

The rank of this profession is not high, only level two, and the professional talents and skills involved are also very straightforward and single.

"Immortal body, magic blood, ash armor... This profession seems interesting." The black-haired boy thought for a moment, and the more he looked at it, the more he felt that this profession was very suitable for him.

Since the modern extraordinary system has developed gradually, the Ash Knight profession, like other ancient professions, is not perfect. The talents it possesses are very single and one-sided, and it cannot allow the incumbent's life form to change in order to be promoted to a higher level.

This is another characteristic of ancient professions, because people at that time did not deduce the high-level extraordinary characteristics of the fourth and fifth levels, which would drive the forced evolution of the body after fully stimulating the power of the soul.

It’s not that people at that time were misled, at best it was just a limitation of the times.

In addition, the Ash Knight possesses a special talent called 'Undying Body·Magic Blood', which allows the incumbent to convert his own magic power and vitality into each other with extremely high efficiency.

This talent has two stages. The first stage, 'Undying Body', allows magic power to be converted into vitality to repair damaged bodies. The second stage is just the opposite, converting the vitality contained in flesh and blood into magic power for use.

Simply put, in the game, the blue bar and the red bar can transform and replace each other.

As for the profession-exclusive skill 'Ashes Armor', Alvin has not looked at it in detail for the time being, but from a rough overview, it can be inferred that it should also be a special skill that relies on magic power to greatly increase defense capabilities.

Overall, the talents and skill combination of this profession will make the incumbent a very durable shield.

In contrast, although the Ash Knight can obtain a large amount of magic power and vitality at the same time after being promoted, the two can also be converted into each other.

However, this profession also lacks the talent and skills to control magic power for output. Under normal circumstances, it can only passively take a beating and cannot use magic power to launch effective attacks. This means that the Ash Knight must cooperate with other extraordinary people to be truly used in actual combat.

But these shortcomings are not a problem for Alvin.

As a descendant of the Titans, he could also achieve the sublimation and transformation of his life form by purifying his own bloodline and then gradually performing the ritual of the foundation of the original world. And in terms of magic control, what talent could compare to [Core: Reshaping the World]?

This means that the characteristics of Titan blood can make up for the shortcomings of Ash Knight as an ancient profession.

Taking into account the attribute improvement brought by the transformation secret ritual and the defense bonus of the additional talent [Invisible Scales], after activating the Ash Armor to further strengthen the defense, Alvin in that state is equivalent to a humanoid battleship with self-repair function, super magical defense, the ability to launch high-powered artillery attacks, and explosive core engine power.

"Isn't that a bit exaggerated?" The black-haired boy's mouth twitched.

Even if I successfully advance to the Ash Knight, I would only be a second-level Knight at that time... right?

Just as he was lost in thought, Khayon's words brought Ivan back to his senses.

"Something's wrong. Someone has contacted the vampire pirates to attack the Linde coastline. There must be a bigger conspiracy here."

Chapter 18: Coastal Adventure

"Are those vampires crazy?"

This was what Ivan thought the moment he heard Khayang's words.

Although Linde's social environment has been turbulent due to the technological revolution, this does not mean that their overall national strength has declined.

On the contrary, while using magic engineering to try to build passenger and cargo steamships, the Lind Navy is also developing new warships propelled by magic engines.

Although, judging by the timeframe, they likely haven't yet found the most rational design, inevitably resulting in a variety of bizarre experimental vessels, even some "retro" types with rams, they are not something a few vampire pirate groups with their few old-generation sailing warships can provoke.

Moreover, he did not remember that in the version of Rise of Nations, Linde's side had suffered a large-scale pirate attack.

Could it be the butterfly effect I caused? But this is too fast, isn't it?

"Who contacted them?" Alvin asked immediately.

"It's not noted on the letter, but there's a familiar feeling between the lines." Khayon frowned and read over and over again the letters that Count Lesenbra had carefully stored in the magic shadow box.

The originals of these letters have been destroyed, leaving only copies that the count copied himself to preserve the information. There are still traces of wax seals on them, which obviously have other uses.

"It's a turbulent time." Ivan said in a low voice.

Without more information, he could not make any speculation for the time being and could only pay more attention to this aspect after arriving in Linde.

With the huge changes in the entire country of Elrond, the future direction of the world of Palladia will inevitably become very different from that in the previous life game. This is something that Ivan had anticipated before making the decision.

However, he did not expect that the butterfly effect would happen so quickly.

"By the way, what are you looking at?" Ka Yang came closer curiously.

"The materials needed for the Ash Knight's promotion ceremony, Ashes of Annihilation, Burning Dust, Light of Heavenly Fire...are all ancient professions so difficult to obtain?" Alvin scratched his hair in annoyance.

The value of these materials may not be sky-high, but each one is harder to find than the other, and they are all ancient materials that are rarely seen on the market today.

"That's normal. Don't you think about the fact that those are extraordinary professions that were born many years ago, and many of their raw materials have even become extinct?" Ka Yang said with a sneer.

Then, he suddenly frowned:

"Wait, are you planning to choose this as your second-order sequence?"

"Most ancient professions have flaws and lack the various basic conditions required for advancement to modern high-level professions. You don't think that ancient professions are as valuable as antiques, do you?" The Necromancer said in a seemingly sarcastic but actually advising tone.

"It's just because it's suitable." Alvin shook his head without explaining in detail.

"Where is the fit? Although as the original knight sequence of Elrond, the Ash Knight can allow humans to surpass the limits in magic and vitality. But these ancient professions cannot sublimate their essence, and their talents and abilities are also very single." Khayon emphasized.

"If you really have to choose, you might as well become a Silver Knight. Anyway, with your relationship with Frey, the Gusmith family will definitely be willing to open up the entire career sequence." When he said this, the young wizard's expression twisted slightly.