Chapter 236: Welcome Back to Your Castle, Your Eminence

This dungeon expedition had finally concluded perfectly before the arrival of the Mana Tide.

After dividing the loot, the Pope stored the Ark of the World Tree into his Card and exited the dungeon with everyone else.

[Ding! Congratulations to Lan Qingyou, David Angel, Gu Xiaobei, Esmeralda, Li Huai, Vivian Nadasdy Bathory, Ingrid, and Nemo. The eight of you have completely cleared the "Undead Bay" dungeon. The dungeon is now closed. Please keep up the good work.]

Once everyone had grabbed onto the bubbles and left the dungeon entirely, the teleportation gate slowly closed behind them, followed by the voice of the World Will.

"What is going on?! Did they just clear a whole dungeon?"

"If the dungeon closed directly, that must mean they beat it completely, right?"

"Holy crap, look at their levels! Every single one of them is over level fifteen!"

"Can a single dungeon really give that much experience? That is unbelievable!"

"They must have reaped a massive harvest, then?"

"I teamed up for a dungeon once before. There were so many ore veins inside that my squad is still busy mining them."

"Does that not mean you made a fortune?"

"More than just a fortune. Our entire squad has already replaced all our gear with brand-new equipment."

"I am so jealous."

"Stop being jealous. Right now, I just want to know what kind of amazing loot the Witch and her team got for completely clearing the dungeon."

"Huh, now that you mention it, I took a closer look at their names. They all seem to belong to Tarot Manor."

"Are they all in the same guild? That explains it. They probably just divide all the spoils internally."

"Who knows? But I heard Tarot Manor has quite a lot of collaborations with the Supreme Council. Was the Star Dragon King's Blood Essence from before not the perfect example?"

"They latched onto some huge backing. Now I am even more jealous."

"Really? I feel like it is still up in the air as to who is latching onto whom."

"Bro above, do you have some inside information?"

"I would not call it inside information, but I heard the Supreme Council took on over a decade of debt just to buy that Star Dragon King's Blood Essence."

"Huh? The Supreme Council, taking on debt? For over ten years? Why does that sound so incredibly niche?"

"After all, it is an item that can trigger the evolution of hundreds of thousands of people, so they have to hand over a batch of materials to the Witch every single week."

"A batch every week?"

"Envy and jealousy cannot even begin to describe this. The Witch is practically making bank in her sleep."

"Haha, then come join our exploration team! We assembled specifically to search for ancient bloodlines, and we have quite a few outstanding members."

"Really? Can I join too?"

"Of course you can. As long as we find an ancient bloodline, we split the profits evenly."

"I want to join!"

"Me too! What is the recruitment process? Are there any other perks?"

"Does an organization like that actually exist? Count me in!"

The world channel was bustling with excitement, but it had little to do with Lan Qingyou and the others. After exiting the dungeon and hearing the World Will's notification, they immediately jumped onto the Pope's bamboo raft.

Even though the Pope now possessed the Ark of the World Tree, the vessel had not yet undergone its tuning—which meant a comprehensive inspection and integration as a Shelter—so it could not be used just yet.

"Well then, Pope, we will be taking our leave."

"Alright, safe travels. I also need to hurry back to the coast and drop anchor. Otherwise, I will not be able to withstand the Mana Tide when it arrives."

The main Teleportation Array was originally located right on the Pope's bamboo raft, so after boarding, everyone took turns bidding him farewell.

The Pope simply watched them go with a beaming smile.

Who was he kidding? A world-class item, and a ship—his absolute specialty, no less! It was safe to say that everyone had made an absolute killing on this trip.

"Gu Xiaobei, are you coming directly back with me, or are you heading home first so I can pick you up later?"

As everyone else departed one after another, Lan Qingyou turned to ask Gu Xiaobei.

"Let us go straight to your place, and then you can drop me off later."

Gu Xiaobei waved her hands nervously, her eyes darting repeatedly toward the Magic Broom beneath Lan Qingyou.

"Could it be..."

"Huh?"

"Are you afraid of heights?"

"N-nonsense! How could a full-grown adult like me be afraid of heights?"

As if her secret had been laid bare, Gu Xiaobei waved her hands even more frantically.

"Is that so? Good, then."

Choosing not to expose the chef's lie, Lan Qingyou simply nodded and flew over to the Pope, handing him a folded piece of paper.

"What is this?"

Slightly confused, the Pope took the paper and looked it over.

"These are some of the details regarding the Ark of the World Tree that I managed to appraise. Take a look, so you have a general idea of what to expect."

"So that ship is called the Ark of the World Tree. Quite fitting... Hiss..."

When the Pope read the enchantments, blessings, and functions of the Ark of the World Tree recorded on the paper, he could not help but suck in a sharp breath of cold air.

His absolute favorite attribute among them was the blessing known as "Favor of the Sea," which ensured the ship would never capsize no matter how violent the waves became.

"Is... is this real?"

The old Pope could not help but raise his head, staring at Lan Qingyou in absolute awe.

"It is real. At least, this is what my Magic Eye managed to appraise. As for whether there are hidden functions that even my Magic Eye could not detect, I have no idea. After all, a helmsman truly understands a ship's worth only after sailing it upon the open sea."

"True enough."

The Pope wholeheartedly agreed with Lan Qingyou's statement.

As an experienced angler who spent his life at sea, he was fully aware that one had to get a hands-on feel for a vessel to truly know its quirks and flaws.

The Pope wholeheartedly agreed with Lan Qingyou's statement.

As an experienced angler who spent his life at sea, he was fully aware that one had to get a hands-on feel for a vessel to truly know its quirks and flaws.

Shortly after, Lan Qingyou and Gu Xiaobei waved goodbye to the Pope and became the final group to step into the Teleportation Array.

...

Whoosh!

A flash of blue light swept across the paper-based Teleportation Array.

Vivian, the High Priestess, slowly opened her eyes.

The first thing to greet her sight was the familiar layout of her Gothic room—dominated by black tones and accented with beige and deep crimson shades. Standing quietly to the side was her white-haired female steward, dressed in a form-fitting skirt of black and gold, paired with immaculate white gloves, black stockings, and long boots.

Draped over the steward's shoulder was a black half-cloak, elegantly embroidered with a white four-leaf clover.

She radiated an aura of utmost competence and professionalism.

"Welcome back to your castle, Your Eminence."

Upon seeing Vivian materialize, the steward delicately pinched the hem of her skirt and dropped into a graceful curtsy.

"Lilith, did I not tell you to stop calling me 'Your Eminence'? It makes me sound like some sort of religious leader."

Greeted so formally the moment she returned, Vivian rolled her eyes at her steward before walking straight toward the tall, high-backed chair in the room, which featured a carved four-leaf clover on its crest.

"Phew... Finally, some peace and quiet."

Sinking into the chair, Vivian let out a long, heavy sigh of relief.

To be honest, the harvest from this expedition had been exceptionally bountiful.

Not only had her level increased by quite a few margins, but she had also obtained a massive haul of valuable items and crucial intelligence.

However, truth be told, she was exhausted.

She had always possessed the personality of a shut-in who disliked socializing. Suddenly being forced to interact with so many people had inevitably made her quite uncomfortable.

Fortunately, the members of the Manor were all quite interesting. After spending several months together, her initial fear and apprehension toward strangers had gradually faded away.

During their interactions over the past few days, she had even managed to become close friends with Gu Xiaobei, who was around the same age as her.

"Oh, right. Take these items and store them in the vault. Hand them out to whoever needs them, just make sure you properly register the names of those who claim them."