Chapter 28: The Depths of the Ancient Tower

A shiver ran down Zhang Luan’s spine. If her words held true, then the complexities of this world were far more profound than he had ever dared to imagine.

After speaking, Aruola calmly approached the small pot, cracked an egg into it, and then politely asked Zhang Luan,

“Do you want some?”

Gazing at the bland boiled egg simmering in plain water, Zhang Luan felt a distinct pang of heartache.

“You only eat this much?” Zhang Luan questioned, a hint of disbelief in his voice. “Can this tower even sustain chickens?”

Aruola shook her head.

“Within this tower, only I am unable to leave,” Aruola explained. “Everyone else is free to come and go. This pot and these eggs were brought back by them, though I don’t actually need to eat.”

“Everyone? There are others in this tower?”

“Yes, they are also residual souls who ascended after being blood-sacrificed. My sister conveniently refined them into guardian spirits to look after me.”

“However, my sister hasn’t visited in a long time, so many of them have transformed into malevolent spirits.”

Upon hearing this, Zhang Luan suddenly recalled the entity he had captured earlier. It was clearly a materialized spirit, and an extremely dangerous one at that.

Moreover, this mage tower was perpetually shrouded in darkness, with only Aruola’s room offering a faint glimmer of light. The gloom beyond her room was so profound that even the Starfire couldn’t illuminate it.

This suggested the immense span of time that this darkness had pervaded the mage tower.

He had initially believed his purpose here was simply to acquire some treasures, never imagining it would unfold in such a manner.

In his previous life, this mage tower had collapsed when the leader of the Demonic Bombardment Church, accompanied by thousands of cultists, performed a super-grade blood sacrifice and self-detonated in their dying moments.

Despite being constructed from the finest materials and exhibiting exceptional architectural prowess, the tower had stood for over a millennium without magical maintenance. Its eventual collapse was, therefore, not unexpected.

After its demise, people discovered countless treasures, gold, silver, and various artifacts scattered among its ruins.

While all the rare and high-grade items had lost their efficacy, becoming mere blank slates, one particular item remained special.

It was a legendary magic tool, a truly mythical artifact.

That legendary magic tool was the very objective of Zhang Luan’s journey. Yet, it now seemed that while precious, it wasn’t the most valuable treasure within the tower.

The most invaluable treasure in this mage tower was the emotionless girl before him: a celestial being, Avanyin’s younger sister, and the Spirit of the Ancient Tower.

Aruola quietly ate her plain boiled egg, despite the fact that, as a tower spirit, she had no need for sustenance.

Zhang Luan watched her eat, hesitating for a long time. Finally, he retrieved the God of Cookery’s Spicy Pot from his backpack, placing it before her.

He then pulled out a pile of emergency rations—supplies he had purchased for his adventures outside.

“Is this… a pot?”

Aruola gazed at the God of Cookery’s Spicy Pot with a hint of confusion. As an ancient tower spirit who had lived for a very long time, she could sense the mysterious and unique power contained within it.

“Yes, it’s a pot,” Zhang Luan confirmed. “A pretty useful one, at that.”

With that, Zhang Luan unceremoniously tossed the emergency rations into the pot, giving no thought to whether such a combination would taste good. He knew that anything made in this pot would manifest in only two ways: either incredibly spicy or incredibly delicious.

This was his first time using the pot so boldly. As the large assortment of ingredients tumbled in, the bottom of the pot gradually heated up, and a suitable warmth enveloped the entire vessel.

A red lid materialized out of thin air, settling onto the pot, followed by a series of strange crackling sounds.

Aruola stared at Zhang Luan, her eyes filled with bewilderment.

“This… is a pot?”

Zhang Luan felt a wave of awkwardness. He hadn’t expected such a reaction. Previously, he had only used leaves and branches to create simple buff-granting items. Now, using actual food, it had turned into this bizarre spectacle.

“Don’t worry, it won’t explode. I promise.”

At this moment, Zhang Luan himself didn’t realize that he had lowered his guard against the adorable, emotionless girl before him—an outcome that shouldn’t have been possible.

Throughout his ten years of survival in his previous life, he had witnessed countless cute creatures transform into monstrous demons, slaughtering players. He had also encountered seemingly harmless beings that would bare their fangs and devour him whole if he dared to approach.

Yet, he couldn’t help himself. After all,

‘Is it wrong for a tough guy to love lolis?’

Indeed, she was simply too adorable.

As the God of Cookery’s Spicy Pot gradually settled, its lid slowly vanished. A delightful aroma wafted from within, and Aruola sniffed with her small nose, her voice devoid of emotion as she spoke,

“It smells good.”

Those haphazard ingredients had somehow transformed into an exquisite, delicious soup within the God of Cookery’s Spicy Pot. Who would believe such a thing if they hadn’t witnessed it firsthand?

“Here you go.”

Zhang Luan scooped a bowl for Aruola and placed it before her. She accepted it without hesitation, completely unafraid that Zhang Luan might poison or curse her. She gently blew on it twice, a cool breeze emanating from her mouth into the bowl, transforming the scalding soup into a pleasant warmth.

She took a sip, then set the bowl down.

“It’s delicious. Thank you.”

“As long as it tastes good.”

Zhang Luan also took a sip, and the [Exquisite Delicacy] buff manifested on him. Although his health didn’t drop at all, and the healing effect wasn’t triggered, the fifty percent increase in maximum health filled him with immense power.

Truly, this pot lived up to its legendary status.

Aruola looked at Zhang Luan, then floated up from the ground.

“I don’t think I know your name yet.”

“Zhang Luan. Zhang, as in the bow and arrow. You mentioned earlier that I’m the person your sister is waiting for? Why is she waiting for me? I don’t even know her.”

Aruola shook her head.

“I don’t know. Sister only said that when someone brings a coin into my room, that person will be able to take me out of this tall tower.”

“You mean I can take you out?”

Zhang Luan looked at her, astonished. He had no idea he possessed such an ability—to take an ancient tower spirit, who had lived for an untold number of years, out of this place.

“Yes, that’s what Sister said.”

Aruola nodded with absolute certainty.

Just as Zhang Luan was about to ask more questions, a somewhat grating roar echoed from outside the door. Aruola glanced towards the entrance, then pointed a finger. A terrifying monster stood less than two meters inside the doorway, its posture indicating a strong aversion to the light in the room.

“Are these the malevolent spirits you mentioned?”

“Yes, malevolent spirits. They were all people captured by that mage along with me. After many years, they’ve transformed into this state.”

A rare trace of melancholy appeared in Aruola’s eyes. She stood up, picked up a doll, and threw it out. The instant the monster made contact with the doll, it tore it to shreds, its frenzied state utterly devoid of reason.

“I am the Spirit of the Ancient Tower. With my sister’s help, I possess a little power for self-preservation. However, I cannot kill them, because these malevolent spirits and I share a similar fate source.”

“We all ended up like this because of that mage. Therefore, I cannot grant them release.”

Having said that, Aruola looked at Zhang Luan.

“But you can.”

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