Five minutes later,
Ji Xiaodao expressionlessly left the bedside, and with a gentle wave of her hand, two thin black lines suddenly tightened in the shadows, firmly closing the main house's door.
"Although I don't know if his words are true or false..."
The Dark Elf girl turned to look at those deep, calm black eyes and said coldly, "But I'm really curious what kind of expressions those naive young masters and ladies will show when they see the true face of 'Sin Duke'."
"It's expected that Cedric would come to show goodwill on behalf of the Digory family." Mo Tan didn't pay attention to the Dark Elf girl's teasing, only saying indifferently, "The main intelligence source for Fara's demise came from Garros and Galahad, and their two battle groups. I, a mere Sin Duke, don't have the qualifications to have the third-ranked intelligence officer visit me in person. He's just going through the motions."
Ji Xiaodao leaned gracefully against the table, wiping the slender sword at her waist, which was more decorative than practical: "William had originally prepared to let this matter settle. If you hadn't half-deadly collapsed in a wheelchair to stop it some time ago, Faraosis's treason would have already been known to everyone..."
"All I needed was the fact of Fara's demise itself." Though the face beneath Mo Tan's mask was still somewhat pale, it no longer showed any signs of illness. He stood up and slowly walked to the closed door, narrowing his eyes slightly: "Since the goal has been achieved, the rest is irrelevant. As long as the person is dead, there's no difference between treason and an unsolved case."
Ji Xiaodao chuckled softly: "Your words today seem to be more than before. Is it because you're afraid I'll hold a grudge?"
"I just don't want you to frequently bother me with these foolish questions in the future." Mo Tan looked back at her coldly, his face devoid of any expression: "Especially these questions you already know the answer to."
The Dark Elf girl shrugged, her long, fair index finger gently stroking the sword, a smile playing on her lips: "I heard that men like to show off their superiority by answering some irrelevant, foolish questions."
"There shouldn't be any other arrangements today." Mo Tan had already lost interest in continuing to chat with her, only asking indifferently, "Has the magic array that Garros set up earlier stabilized?"
Ji Xiaodao casually put away her slender sword and nodded, "It stabilized this morning and can be activated at any time. However, the current situation is still quite sensitive. Are you really going to confirm it yourself?"
"Let's go."
Mo Tan simply replied with two understated words, then pushed open the door and left the main house first.
【Requesting William to delay Fara's judgment with Garros and Galahad, besides clearing suspicion, also had this reason... Because he hasn't been convicted yet, that place won't be entered by court mages for now... Hmph, a terrifying fellow.】
Ji Xiaodao pouted, then silently followed behind him, leaving the room and walking towards the large house that always made her feel uncomfortable.
...
Ten minutes later,
Teron, Osiris Mage Tower, Seventh Floor, Teleportation Room
This was the former residence of the deceased God of Law, Faraosis, and one of the largest and most complex Mage Towers in the entire Southwest continent. The teleportation room alone spanned over a hundred square meters, adorned with Prosperity Star-like arcane sparks. Mysterious circuits brimming with magical power glowed on the floor, which was entirely made of magic-conductive stone. Three extremely rare Void Amber endlessly circled, and several spatial magic runes solidified within them tirelessly stabilized the surrounding environment day and night.
Even Ji Xiaodao, who had been here twice, would involuntarily be awestruck by this exquisitely beautiful space. Although it wasn't a poetic and picturesque fairyland, this magical sanctuary, in the eyes of most people, was often more astonishing.
Because this was not a gift of nature, but the crystallization of wisdom and knowledge.
Especially for players whose world style was completely different from this one, the impact would only be greater.
However, to her regret, Ji Xiaodao, who had been carefully observing Mo Tan, found that he showed no ripple of emotion. His expression, mood, and gaze were all exactly the same as his usual calm demeanor.
"In reality, you're not some anti-social monk who joined a terrorist organization, are you?" The girl couldn't help but blurt out.
But Mo Tan completely ignored her, merely casually surveying his surroundings.
【How boring...】
Even Ji Xiaodao, who was often secretly teased as the 'Low-Pressure Three-No Queen', couldn't help but think this, and after a soft snort, she fell silent.
A moment later, Mo Tan nodded, then looked back at Ji Xiaodao, whose expression had grown even colder: "That thing should be on the third floor, right?"
"Mm."
"Take me there..."
"You're quite the grand lord, needing a guide for something that's only a few turns."
Ji Xiaodao glared coldly at Mo Tan, then familiarly started walking: "Follow me. Although this place isn't really complicated, if you accidentally touch something, even you would suffer, wouldn't you? Garros had quite a rough time the other day..."
Mo Tan did not respond, but quietly followed behind the girl, leaving the teleportation room.
...
Fifteen minutes later,
Osiris Mage Tower, Third Floor Storage Room
This was an area more than ten times larger than the teleportation room, where Fara usually stored his belongings. Countless nameless items were displayed on rows of semicircular wooden shelves, almost stretching endlessly. From here, one could see Fara's miraculous spatial magic attainments; he had almost directly moved the space of an Epic storage equipment into reality, while also ensuring its stability and safety. In the eyes of those who understood, this was an unimaginably grand project.
However, Mo Tan's focus wasn't on these things. He simply walked straight to a metal humanoid in the center of this circular storage room and examined it closely...
【Assistant Puppet】
Manufacturer: Luther King
Category: Special
Quality: Unique Excellent
HP: 30000 / 30000
Mana Reserve: 5950 / 6000
Enchantments: Mid-Tier Fire Resistance, Mid-Tier Lightning Resistance, High-Rank Physical Damage Reduction
Core: Level 20 Arcane Spirit
Activation Restriction: Any Profession Level 35, 900 Mana
Usage: After activating the Arcane Spirit, the Assistant Puppet will obey the activator's commands.
Traits: Mana Driven, Low-Tier Immunity, Reinforced Defense
Skills: Low-Tier Position Construction, Mid-Tier Rune Duplication, Mid-Tier Magic Array Drawing, Mid-Tier Mold Crafting
【Note: This is an assistant-type assistant puppet for an assistant to assist. Suggested retail price: 30,000 gold coins】
"Garros even thought this puppet was made by Fara." Ji Xiaodao also walked to the Assistant Puppet and chuckled softly, "I can see the item description, but I can't explain the player's perspective to him."
Mo Tan reached out his right hand and pressed it on the Assistant Puppet's head, shaking his head slightly: "Luther King is an underestimated person. Perhaps he didn't realize until his death that if two people had the same strength, Garros wouldn't even last ten minutes in front of him. Of course, for Garros, this premise itself is unfair..."
Ji Xiaodao's cool expression became somewhat puzzled. She felt that from any angle, Garros was much stronger than Luther, so she found Mo Tan's statement difficult to understand. However, the girl didn't ask further; it wasn't that she couldn't bring herself to, but simply that she knew he wouldn't answer even if she did.
A few seconds later, two wisps of purple light lit up in the Assistant Puppet's empty eye sockets; the spirit inside was activated.
【He really has a profession over level 35 already... Seriously, is this even human...?】
Ji Xiaodao watched impassively as he effortlessly activated the thing in front of her, finding her own heart surprisingly calm.
Mo Tan merely commanded the activated puppet indifferently: "Stand up."
The latter obediently stood up, bowed respectfully, and then...
A puff of black flame suddenly ignited within the puppet's skull. Ji Xiaodao only heard a harsh 'crackling' sound explode in her ears, and then saw the puppet fall heavily to the ground, twitching once before becoming still.
"You..."
The Dark Elf girl froze for a moment, then looked at the expressionless Mo Tan with some confusion: "Was it trying to rebel just now?"
"No, I was just checking if this puppet was intact." The latter shook his head, single-handedly grabbing the Assistant Puppet's neck to lift it, then took out a completely black crystal bottle from his satchel: "Of course, I really don't think that Arcane Spirit, which is only level 20, could have any effect."
Ji Xiaodao blinked her eyes in confusion, then looked at the small bottle in his hand, which she vaguely remembered, and was slightly stunned: "What are you going to do..."
Buzz!!!!
A chaotic storm suddenly erupted. Ji Xiaodao was thrown high into the air before she could even clearly see what was happening. At the same time, a thin black crystal appeared behind her, absorbing most of the impact and gently lowering the girl's immobilized body to the ground.
She tried to look up and see what was happening, but she couldn't control her body at all. If it weren't for the crystal barrier behind her, Ji Xiaodao might have already been shattered against the wall by the successive impacts.
A Thunder-like roar exploded not far away...
"How dare you! How dare you! How! Dare! You!!!"
A violent dizzying sensation swept over her. Ji Xiaodao actually lost nearly 30% of her health from that roar, and the black crystal behind her transformed into a spherical barrier the next moment, engulfing her within it.
In the very center of the storm, brimming with rage and killing intent, the slender black figure leaned comfortably behind a divine statue, an indescribable madness and malice overflowing from the slightly upturned corners of his mouth: "Why wouldn't I dare?"
Under the protection of the 【Fallen God Statue】, his health descent rate was less than 1% per second.
"It's barely a scratch..."
Mo Tan gently adjusted his mask, then reached out and made a grasping motion in mid-air: "But it seems this thing really can't hold you. Well, that's good, otherwise I'd be very disappointed."
"I curse you! I curse you to be consumed by endless karmic fire! I curse you to suffer the torments of purgatory! I curse you to be forsaken by everything in this world! I curse your sinful soul to never find peace..."
Boom!!
A dark red crack, over ten meters long, suddenly appeared in the center of the storage room, severing the silent storm, stifling the malicious curse, tearing apart the space that had been solidified countless times, and ending this not-so-long conversation.
"Less than a tenth of it..."
Mo Tan looked down at the puppet's shattered remains, which had broken into dozens of pieces, then reached out and put the constantly trembling small black bottle back into his satchel, gently stomping his foot: "Still far from enough."
The 【Fallen God Statue】 vanished silently, and the quietly rising dark flames swallowed the metal fragments scattered around.
"And you're just stating facts, it doesn't even count as a curse..."
...
Five minutes later,
Ji Xiaodao, who had been sealed in darkness, regained her five senses. She swayed as she stood up, looking at the man in front of her with a complex expression, and asked in a low voice, "You failed?"
"Evidently." Mo Tan snapped his fingers, dissolving the black crystal behind the girl into nothingness, and said casually, "Later, have Garros collect alchemy, engineering, or magic puppets through various channels, the higher the level, the better. Also, try to recruit talented individuals in related fields, judging only by ability, regardless of background."
Ji Xiaodao sighed, "I'll tell him."
"Very good." Mo Tan straightened his collar, then looked around: "Also, have him pack everything here in batches and take it away, temporarily storing it in the Duke's mansion basement, and add some of his own collections to it. Try not to make it too obvious."
"Are you sure those future court mages won't suspect anything?" Ji Xiaodao frowned and shook her head, "I don't think they wouldn't notice the big difference between the collections of a Grand Magister and a dual-system sage."
Mo Tan smiled silently, then turned and walked towards the entrance: "It doesn't matter. The royal family obviously wants to drag out Fara's matter for a few more days. If he really is convicted one day and his house is raided by those court mages, it won't matter, because by then we should no longer need to fear such things."
【We... huh...?】
Ji Xiaodao gave a wry smile and shrugged, laboriously moving her stiff body to follow behind him, and whispered, "I understand... Also, thank you just now."
"No need. Saving you was only because your value is temporarily more important than your life."
"Though it's a bit ill-timed, your line really sounds too villainous, and a bit chuunibyou..."
Ji Xiaodao rolled her eyes, but Mo Tan didn't pay any attention to her complaint.
"Also..."
The girl stopped, hesitating to speak.
"Hmm?" The black eyes under the mask were filled with indifference and impatience.
"Aren't we supposed to go back from the seventh floor? Why are you walking towards the magic core?" The Dark Elf girl asked in confusion, "Is there anything worth noting there too?"
Mo Tan was silent for a moment, then gently adjusted his mask...
"Nothing, let's just go back this way."
"Alright, but even if we just take a look over there, it shouldn't be a big deal..."
"No need, let's go."
"Alright, as you wish."
Chapter 220: The End
