Upon hearing the word "divine artifact," Dean Bruce couldn't help but feel a stir in his heart.
The Judgment Blade of Thunder God was merely a sealed divine artifact, yet it had proven its exceptional power. It had easily slain a ghost and even severed the final mechanism statue in the Flowing Sand Secret Realm. If he were to obtain a complete divine artifact, wouldn't that significantly boost his combat strength?
Furthermore, Fedler Tiramifdin's request was not particularly difficult. It was more about investigating certain matters rather than facing off against powerful foes.
With this thought in mind, Dean Bruce no longer hesitated. He asked directly, "What was the name of the mercenary group you formed back then?"
"Starry Sky Mercenary Group!" Fedler Tiramifdin sighed as he spoke. "Back in the day, the five of us earned a formidable reputation in the New Moon Empire. Who would have thought that after only a brief period of time when my avatars were recalled... by the time I descended again, the New Moon Empire had vanished, and my friends had disappeared without a trace."
Upon hearing these names, Dean Bruce fell into deep thought. Unfortunately, the books he had read did not contain any records of them.
Dean Bruce spoke up, "The ancient texts I've studied do not mention anything about them."
After a brief pause, he continued, "Besides that, do you know the names of any other empires? If there are records, it would be helpful to know what era that period belonged to!"
"By the way, what were the names of your four friends?"
Dean Bruce looked directly at Fedler Tiramifdin, his curiosity piqued. What kind of individuals could be recognized by the gods themselves?
"They were..." Fedler Tiramifdin sighed softly, his voice quiet as he said, " John Myster, Shanniak Baldeg, Batru Oka, and Eloy William!"
"As for the names of other empires, the one that stands out the most in my memory is the Golden Empire!"
Upon hearing the name "Golden Empire" and the mention of "Eloy William," Dean Bruce's heart skipped a beat. The surname "William" was not a common one—could it be related to Nicholas William?
Not only that, but the ancient relics that Nicholas William had taken him to explore belonged to the Golden Empire. Could it be that the Golden Empire mentioned by Fedler Tiramifdin was the same one?
Fedler Tiramifdin smiled and said, "It seems like you already have some guesses in mind."
"Indeed, but I'm still not certain," Dean Bruce shook his head and replied. "I can agree to your request, but when will you give me the divine artifact you mentioned? If I have to wait until I've fulfilled my part of the deal, I expect some additional benefits!"
Dean Bruce wasn't foolish enough to help someone without securing something in return first.
Fedler Tiramifdin chuckled. "I'm a second-tier god, after all. Why would I deceive a mere human like you?"
As he spoke, Fedler Tiramifdin waved his right hand lightly. Golden light flickered and gradually formed into a small bowl, which then floated toward Dean Bruce.
Reaching out, Dean Bruce took the golden bowl, and the crisp sound of a system notification immediately echoed in his ears.
"Ding!"
"System notification: Congratulations, host, for obtaining the god-tier treasure—Lord of the Golden Sand!"
Upon seeing the notification, Dean Bruce couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. A bowl—calling it the "Lord of the Golden Sand" seemed somewhat absurd and hard to imagine.
At the same time, he was slowly absorbing the gathered magic power. Even though his cultivation talent wasn't particularly remarkable, the dense concentration of magic in this environment allowed his magical growth to progress at an astonishing rate.
Time passed slowly.
Inside the Flowing Sand Secret Realm, there were no stars, no moon, no passage of days and nights—it felt like both an instant and an eternity. Eventually, the magic around him began to show signs of change.
Dean Bruce opened his eyes, and the magic had gradually coalesced into a swirling vortex of light, with a strong pulling force emanating from it.
Sensing the spatial fluctuations within the vortex, Dean Bruce realized that this was a teleportation portal. Without hesitation, he allowed himself to be pulled into it, yielding to the force.
Whoosh—
Soon, he felt the solid ground beneath his feet. The sound of whistling winds and the hum of bustling voices reached his ears.
Opening his eyes, he saw hundreds of figures before him. Scanning the crowd, Dean Bruce spotted Hannah Fields, Carol Lane, and others, and a look of derision appeared on his face.
Clearly, despite Madrid Haru's show of arrogance and dominance, he was actually too afraid to take action against anyone else!
If Dean Bruce had died, Madrid Haru might have dared to fight to the death, but with Dean Bruce stepping into the Ninth Level, Madrid Haru wasn't sure whether he could stop him. He couldn't afford to let this information leak.
If Dean Bruce managed to escape and reveal what happened here, Madrid Haru would be hunted by everyone—except for the Nine Provinces Alliance and the military!
Especially with Hannah Fields present. It was entirely understandable that Madrid Haru wouldn't dare to make a move without being absolutely sure he could silence everyone.
Whoosh—
Just as Dean Bruce was contemplating this, the sound of air splitting echoed, and Madrid Haru suddenly leaped into the air and left the area without hesitation.
There was no choice. When facing Dean Bruce, Madrid Haru hadn't said much, but he had made it clear that he was aligned with the Nine Provinces Alliance. As a traitor, how could he dare to stay?
The others all held positions in various factions, but they prioritized the tasks assigned to them, with some being more urgent than others.
Madrid Haru had come here as the leader of the War God Temple, but to carry out a mission for the Nine Provinces Alliance, he had killed one of his own. How could he not be considered a traitor?
It could be said that Madrid Haru's identity was now useless!
Cough, cough, cough!
A sudden coughing sound broke the silence, and Nelson Paprik leisurely walked up to Dean Bruce's side, his eyes filled with surprise. He spoke, "Elder Dean, would you have time to visit our Alchemist Guild sometime?"
"You want to ask me the secret to entering the Ninth Level?" Dean Bruce countered with a question.
Nelson Paprik chuckled awkwardly. "Discuss! Let's all discuss it! If we can figure out the pattern, it will be beneficial to all of us! After all, we're all from the same continent!"
As he spoke, Nelson Paprik's gaze swept over Prolo Hawthorne and the others behind Dean Bruce, his expression becoming more astonished and even tinged with a hint of greed.