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nChapter 116: Mithril, Argos (2)

nTranslator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

nIt seemed that the merchants who dared to cross the sea to trade were all quite capable.

nJi Chen nodded.

nThis map was very useful to him. Although he would not get lost in the ocean, he needed a direction to go in before he got lost.

nOtherwise, if he didn’t even know the direction, it would be meaningless to get lost.

nJi Chen put the map into his backpack and continued searching.

nAfter confirming that there was nothing else of value, he left with Anina.

nBack on the second deck, the Naga warriors were still digging hard in the mud. It seemed that it would take a long time to dig out all the Mithril.

nHe decided to return to the ship first and wait until he was done digging before coming down to collect it.

nAfter instructing Anina to supervise the scene, he wrapped himself in the seawater and quickly floated up. With a splash, he broke through the sea surface and jumped onto the deck.

n“My Lord, you’re back. Did you find anything in the sunken ship?” Alice asked in surprise.

n“A ship of Mithril, a magic map, and a box. The Naga warriors are still digging below.”

nJi Chen smiled and took out the metal box.

nIt began to shake.

nThere wasn’t much inside, and as it shook, it made a dull sound.

nIt didn’t sound like coins or gems.

nCurious, he congealed water into a saw and began to cut the box. The water saw was even tougher than metal with the support of his magic power. The friction with the box made an ear-piercing sound.

nConsidering that he could not destroy the things inside, he sawed very carefully and did not dare to use too much force.

nTen minutes later, one side of the metal box was sawed off, revealing what was inside.

nThere were only three things inside.

nAn ancient compass, a diary, and a strange gun.

nHe was slightly surprised to see these items.

nIt wasn’t gems or gold coins, but these objects?

nHe picked up the compass with a curious expression and examined it.

nThe compass was made of copper and was engraved with some strange words and patterns. There was a small button on the top and a transparent crystal shell on the surface.

nIt was strange that, when looking through the crystal casing, there was no seafloor visible. Instead, there were intricate gears and hinges interlocking with each other, giving it a steampunk-style appearance.

nOn the side, there was a diamond-shaped crystal connected by copper wires.

nIt was evident that this was not an ordinary navigational compass but rather some kind of alchemical mechanical creation.

nAlchemy Compass

nLevel: Special

nUsage: Able to direct the way to Argos

nArgos?

nJi Chen frowned. What was this place?

nThe information panel of the compass in front of him could not provide any more information.

nHe turned his attention to the diary.

nNot long after he entered this world, he was instilled with the common language of this world. Not only was he able to hear, but he was also able to understand the words easily.

nHe casually opened the waterproof leather cover and flipped to the first page.

nHowever, he quickly skimmed through the following pages because they were filled with miscellaneous details of the captain’s maritime life.

nBut through those few pages, he learned some information about the ship and the captain.

nThe ship was named the “Ocean Adventure”, and the captain’s name was Zolt Roa.

nZolt was not a merchant, as he had initially assumed, but rather an ocean explorer. His ventures included but were not limited to developing new sea routes, exploring dangerous waters, undertaking commissions to find rare and precious items and researching marine creatures.

nHe engaged in highly perilous activities.

nHowever, he had accomplished quite a few remarkable feats.

nFor instance, he had established two major sea routes between the northern and southern continents, successfully explored a treacherous region resembling a stormy sea, and completed numerous commissions, earning himself a considerable reputation on the continent.

nBut as the saying goes, “If you play with fire, you’ll get burned”.

nThe ultimate outcome was evident: the ship sank, and he and all the crew members met their watery graves.

nAfter flipping through about two-thirds of the pages, Ji Chen’s hand stopped.

nWhen he saw the content on the page, his heart skipped a beat, and he began to read it carefully.

nFrom this point onwards, it was the record of Zolt’s final voyage.

nThe first sentence at the beginning made him tremble with excitement.

n“This voyage of the Ocean Adventurer is to find the legendary underwater city, Argos.”

nArgos, the place mentioned on the psionic compass, was actually an underwater city?

nJi Chen was surprised, but he quickly collected himself and continued reading.

n“Strange coincidences exist in the world, which may happen yesterday, today, or tomorrow, but now it’s happening to me.”

n“Just when 1 was contemplating what the next meaningful voyage would be, I unintentionally caught a compass while fishing. It had some peculiar characters on the back. Through my investigation and the remnants of ancient books by the seaside, I discovered that there once existed a highly advanced civilization in the Mid-Ocean called Argos. The characters on the back of the compass bore a striking resemblance to the Argos script mentioned in those ancient texts. So, I suspected that this compass could guide me to the location of this lost civilization.”

n“…And so, another challenging and magnificent journey began. After making all the necessary preparations, 1 set sail with over a hundred brave sailors, hoping for good luck…”

n“…Across endless seas, guided by the compass, we finally arrived at our destination. According to the legends, Argos was located underwater. To ensure our success, 1 invested heavily in the production of dozens of special alchemical garments capable of diving into the depths…”

n“…The search process took longer than I had imagined. I hope that tomorrow the sailors will find what we’re looking for, or else our food and fresh water might not be sufficient for the return journey…”

nSeveral days passed between the two paragraphs.

nThe slightly hasty handwriting revealed Zolt’s excitement.

n“After countless nights of enduring severe sea conditions and evading dreadful marine creatures, we have finally found Argos!”

n“When we saw it, we could hardly believe our own eyes. It was a magnificent city encased in a crystalline shell, surrounded by a ring of mithril columns. Through the shell, we could catch a glimpse of a city adorned with peculiar towers and buildings, bearing traces of alchemical technology…”

n“There is no doubt, this must be the legendary lost civilization of Argos! Now, the next step is to find the entrance to the city…”

n“…We have been unable to find the entrance to the city, but our food and fresh water have almost run out. If we don’t leave soon, the consequences would be unimaginable… Therefore, we unanimously decided to take one of the mithril columns outside the shell with us. Each mithril column is several tens of meters high, and there are hundreds of them. It’s truly an astonishing treasure…”

n“Of course, we need to break down the column into smaller pieces before we can transport it back… Oh, by the way, we also found a uniquely shaped alchemical firearm nearby. Its precision is unlike anything I’ve seen in my life…”

n“…The transfer of the mithril is complete, and we are now on our way back. Once we return to the mainland, this earth-shattering discovery will surely make me renowned across the continent… Yes, that alchemical firearm will serve as the best evidence…”

nHe flipped another page and the notebook stopped abruptly.

nUpon seeing this, Ji Chen let out a deep breath.

nHe didn’t expect Captain Zolt to actually rely on the compass to find the so-called underwater city of Argos.

nMoreover, the large amount of mithril on the ship was obtained from there.

nAccording to the description in the log, this amount of Mithril was only broken down from one of the hundreds of Mithril Pillars.

nSuch an astonishing amount of Mithril was enough to make any native force go crazy.

nHowever, the final outcome was both laughable and heartbreaking.

nAfter traversing countless seas and discovering Argos aboard the Far Ocean Adventure, they were not deterred by the arduous journey, nor were they defeated by storms or marine creatures. Yet, it was on their way back, on the verge of reaching land, that they struck a reef and sank.

nSuch is the irony of life.

nHowever, it was through this unfortunate event that they made the discovery and obtained information about the lost civilization of Argos.

nArgos… alchemical technology… mithril columns…

nA glimmer of excitement flickered in Ji Chen’s eyes as his thoughts began to take shape..

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