Chapter 420 - 333: The Feathered Serpent God’s "Collection
Chapter 420: Chapter 333: The Feathered Serpent God’s "Collection
Shire had no idea where the Heaven-Reaching Tower was, but based on the name, it had to be an incredibly tall structure. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be called the Heaven-Reaching Tower.
But such a magnificent building had never been seen by anyone. Even Shire himself had only first learned of its name in the Bear Goblins’ cave.
The tower existed only in legends known to very few, far too remote a concept for commoners or even some nobles.
Now, having found a second fragment, Shire was starting to form some new ideas.
He had found a Key Fragment twice in a row, and both times it had been buried in the ground. If they hadn’t faintly called out to him, he doubted anyone else would have ever found them. Shire felt as if everything was being orchestrated. He got a feeling like he was in "The Truman Show." He was just like Truman in the movie, who had to reach a certain corner and say specific lines or perform set actions to "trigger" the events of his day.
At first, he wondered if it had something to do with him being a follower of the God of Night and Destiny. After learning the secrets of the "God War" and the "Divine Chosen One," he’d even naively believed he was the Chosen One of the God of Destiny. However, he quickly dismissed that notion with a bitter smile. ’Who’s ever heard of a Divine Being choosing a goblin to be their Chosen One instead of a human? Besides, even if I were the Chosen One, where’s my Church entourage? Where are all my trusted followers?’
The Night and Destiny Church would never abandon their Chosen One like this, unless they had given up on the God War from the very beginning.
Therefore, Shire concluded that he had no connection to the God of Destiny whatsoever. He had only gone to church with his father to humor Bishop Konrad. Although the Bishop often had them stay for a so-called "Holy Meal," honestly, it tasted very plain. It couldn’t even compare to the spiced grilled fish from the old, established shops in Torch City.
’It’s probably still that "Forest Whisper" thing,’ Shire mused. He was convinced the root cause had to be that ancient voice from the Darkness. ’I wonder what it really is... A hidden Demon Lord, or the slumbering Creator God?’
He felt the chances of it being a Demon Lord were higher. After all, he was way out of the Creator God’s league. Besides, there were six Demon Lords, and he had already come into contact with Lust, Envy, and Anger. It might just be one of the other three.
"Greed? Pride, or Sloth?" Shire smiled, wondering which one it could be. He leaned toward Sloth. That Demon Lord was mysterious; the major Churches only knew of its existence, but almost no one knew any specifics. ’Based on my previous contact with Lust, the owner of this mysterious voice has never shown themself, not even a hint of their presence. That’s just too lazy.’
Another reason he thought it was Sloth was that ever since he’d become aware of its existence, it hadn’t even offered him a contract, nor had it mentioned any future benefits. It was truly the epitome of lazy.
But there was one thing Shire couldn’t figure out. He had unexpectedly commanded Lust to fight the Feathered Serpent Evil God, and Lust hadn’t resisted at all. Logically, these Demon Lords shouldn’t care about the lives of humans, let alone a bunch of goblins.
Yet, at the time, Lust had just obediently charged in, completely compliant. Even after being beaten until it was torn in two, it hadn’t displayed the imposing might one would expect from a Demon Lord.
’Could Sloth’s rank be that high? Higher than Lust’s? Do Demon Lords also have ranks like Baron, Viscount, and Count?’ For the moment, Shire couldn’t be sure of the situation back then. ’Forget it. I’ll just put this Key Fragment away for now. One day, I’ll find out the truth.’
After finding the Celestial Tower Key Fragment, Shire stood with his hands clasped behind his back, waiting as the others searched the cavern. The place was filled with shattered bones and dry, brittle Snake Sheddings. He wondered if there might be any other "treasures" to be found.
He waited for nearly half an hour as the goblins kept rummaging through the bone fragments with a constant CLATTER, but they found nothing. This couldn’t help but make Shire frown.
’You damned flying noodle, you’re cut from the same cloth as the Bear Goblins. Their caves were full of all sorts of trashy equipment, but you’re one step further—you don’t even have equipment, just literal trash.’ Shire shook his head in irritation, his opinion of the Feathered Serpent sinking even lower. ’Some Evil God. Just a freeloader hiding in a cave, eating and waiting to die. If the goblins hadn’t been "raising" you, you’d have kicked the bucket ages ago.’
The fact that his subordinates had found nothing left Shire feeling a little down. He had originally hoped to find something good here. At the very least, he’d thought they might get some Magical Beast "parts." Those could at least be given to a Magic Artisan to craft various simple Magic Items.
But now, all they had were bone shards and dried-out, rotten skins. Oh, and one Divine Level Item, but Shire had dug that up himself. It wasn’t part of the Feathered Serpent God’s collection.
Just as he was about to order one final search before leaving, the High Priest’s voice called out from a distance, "Chief, there’s an opening over here!"
The shout immediately caught Shire’s attention. He quickly ran over, the shattered bones CRUNCHING under his feet. "An opening? What’s inside?"
"Not sure, it’s very dark inside." The High Priest was standing at the entrance to a tunnel about half a man’s height, waiting for Shire to arrive.
"The opening is only this high?" Shire estimated its height and found it was about five feet high at most. If you weren’t looking for it specifically, it would be completely obscured by the piles of bones on the ground and the dim rock wall.