Chapter 65: Chapter 65: A Cascade of Rewards!

The sudden transformation within Dean Bruce was far more alarming than the disturbance in the sealing arrays. Instinctively, everyone turned to face him, stepping back cautiously, putting as much distance as they could between themselves and the rapidly changing Dean.

After all the deaths they had witnessed, they understood just how perilous this ruin was.

Their survival had depended entirely on Dean Bruce, and they knew full well the extent of his power. With such a dramatic shift happening to him, none of them dared to approach.

Hum—

A strange, magnetic force began emanating from Dean's body. Though the group could resist it and step further back, the floating ancient runes in the air had no such ability. One by one, they were pulled toward him, merging with his body.

In that moment, Dean Bruce was like a black hole, drawing in every mysterious rune until they were all absorbed into him. His mind plunged into chaos, flooded with countless thoughts and sensations.

Ding!

A crisp system notification sounded, cutting through the mental fog and restoring some clarity to Dean Bruce's mind.

"System Notification: Congratulations to the host for successfully absorbing fragments of ancient magical runes. Refinement is in progress. Current progress: 1%."

"System Notification: Congratulations to the host for successfully absorbing ancient magical runes tainted with dragon energy. You have learned Dragon Speech and acquired a trace of Dragon Energy."

"!!!"

As more of the strange runes were drawn into Dean Bruce, the surrounding sealing arrays ceased their rotation. A faint cracking sound echoed through the air.

"Huh?"

"Look! Cracks are forming on the magic arrays!"

"Step back! Everyone, retreat further! Be careful, don't get caught in whatever happens next!"

Panic spread through the group. They were like startled birds, so jumpy that even the slightest disturbance had them ready to flee.

Crack—crack—

The fractures on the magic arrays became more pronounced, spreading outward until a sharp cracking sound marked the moment they shattered into pieces.

As the sealing arrays crumbled, the silver-white chains wrapped around the enormous black dragon's head shattered as well, disintegrating into dust before vanishing entirely.

The massive dragon head, freed from its bonds, fell heavily to the ground, causing the entire cave to quake violently for several moments. Alita Miller, Lina Jones, and the others struggled to maintain their footing, frozen in place, too fearful to approach.

They kept glancing at Dean Bruce, trying to see through the thick smoke that obscured their view. Unable to discern what was happening, they grew increasingly anxious, not daring to utter a word.

If something happened to Dean Bruce, they all knew—they would be doomed to die in this ruin.

After what felt like an eternity, the dust and smoke finally cleared. Dean Bruce's figure came into view, still hovering in midair. His skin was glowing with vibrant, shifting colors, and ancient runes flickered faintly across his body.

"Those ancient sealing runes... it looks like Lord Dean has absorbed them!"

He shook his head. "We've just finished the battle, and you're already ready to leave without exploring the rest of the ruin?"

"..."

The group exchanged uncertain glances. Alita Miller sighed and said, "The Nine Provinces Alliance has been here for so long—they've probably taken all the valuable things already. The only reason they left people behind was to study the arrays they couldn't remove."

"And now that the arrays are destroyed and the runes absorbed by you, there's not much left for us to research."

Just as Alita finished, another voice chimed in, "Didn't that old Ebner Mondo say his tribe still has treasures hidden away? Why don't we go back, wipe out the natives, and take their loot?"

Lina Jones immediately rejected the idea. "No, absolutely not! Ebner Mondo may have deceived us, but the people of this ruin are innocent and must not be harmed! Besides, everything he said was a lie. His tribe has been oppressed for so long—how could they still possess any treasure?"

"If they had any treasures, he would've used them to fight Borus Kendra!"

Alita Miller and her group, however, were indifferent to Lina's argument. The organizations behind them were far from benevolent—robbing and killing were everyday occurrences for them.

Moreover, they only followed Dean Bruce's commands now.

Dean Bruce, while unconcerned about the fate of the natives, couldn't shake a feeling after encountering the mysterious girl. He had a vague premonition.

The tribes in these ruins needed to survive.

If they were all wiped out, it could potentially trigger a catastrophe.

Thinking quickly, Dean Bruce spoke softly, "We came to this ruin to uncover its secrets, not to kill and steal. Since the Nine Provinces Alliance has occupied this place for years, let's see if there's anything useful we can gather from their remains."

With that, he headed straight toward Borus Kendra's body.

There was something thrilling about searching the body of a powerful enemy—there was always the chance of uncovering unexpected treasures!

Seeing Dean Bruce make his way toward Borus Kendra's corpse, the others wasted no time. Especially Alita Miller and her crew, who were well-versed in this kind of task. They immediately began searching through the bodies of the fallen researchers.

This sight left Lina Jones and her group visibly stiff.

Coming from a temple background, they were taught that the gods cared for humanity, and such actions were far beneath them.

If not for Dean Bruce's leadership and his direct involvement in the looting, they would have reacted with outrage.

Carol Lane let out a sigh, closing her eyes as if she hadn't witnessed what was happening.

Following her example, Lina Jones and the others did the same, closing their eyes and murmuring quiet prayers.

Meanwhile, Dean Bruce rummaged through Borus Kendra's robes, but found nothing significant except for a scroll, a square-shaped insignia, and two rings—one on his right index finger and another on his middle finger.

As Dean removed the rings, he tried to probe them with his soul, only to be met with resistance. He couldn't peer inside to see what was stored within them.

Hmm? I can't examine them? Oh, right! In those novels, powerful figures often place restrictions on their storage artifacts. Now, how do I break through those restrictions?