Chapter 117: Legend (First update seeking monthly votes)

The main entrance to the catacombs is at Purgatory Square near the Intis Observatory. The building containing the entrance is supported by stone pillars, and the high place is a dome covered with stone carvings and reliefs, just like the ground part of a small memorial hall or a huge mausoleum.

When Lu Mian arrived, twenty or thirty people had already gathered beside the stairs leading down. They were dressed differently, but were mostly dressed formally, with both men and women.

Standing at the very front of these people was a man in his thirties wearing a blue vest and yellow trousers. His brown hair was slightly curly, his beard was thick, the corners of his eyes were slightly upturned, and he held an unlit iron-black carbide lamp in his hand.

He said loudly to the twenty or thirty people:

"I am Kendall, one of the managers of the catacombs, and I am responsible for leading you to visit those ossuaries today.

"Is everyone ready with a white candle? If not, please tell me immediately."

Tourists? Lu Mian cast his gaze toward the stone stairs behind Kendall.

That extended downward, submerged in thick darkness, completely unable to see the end.

Not far from Kendall, there was an open heavy door, made of thick wood, with a sun holy emblem painted in golden paint on one half, and a sturdy triangle filled with symbols such as steam, levers, and gears on the other half.

After getting a confirmed answer, Kendall lit the carbide lamp, turned around, and walked underground. Those tourists followed closely, some carrying horse lamps.

Lu Mian lagged behind them by four or five meters, holding the carbide lamp he got from Lamaye, walking down the stone stairs at a pace that was neither fast nor slow.

With his ears obtained through Beyonder enhancement, it was not difficult to hear clearly the introductions made by the catacomb manager Kendall at the very front:

"After walking 138 steps, 26 meters below the Trier city streets, you will see the skeletons of nearly 50 generations of Trier people.

"This is a conservative statement; in fact, it is far more than 50 generations. The history of some ossuaries in the catacombs can even be traced back to the previous epoch...

"Forty-seven years ago, there was no land for the dead to be buried in places like the Innocent Cemetery and the Priest Cemetery. White bones were thrown everywhere, and the stench made the surrounding residents take to the streets to protest every day, wanting the City Hall to move the cemetery out of the city...

"In the end, City Hall chose underground. They connected some burials of the Fourth Epoch with several nearby underground quarries to form a very, very, very large tomb... You can only visit a part of it today..."

Kendall's voice echoed in the quiet and dark stairs that could not see the end, making people naturally feel fear of the tomb and the underground.

Going down layer by layer, Lu Mian finally saw a road separated by stone pillars and clamping walls.

Unlike other places in the underground world, this road was clearly repaired and maintained daily. It was completely impossible to see the existence of pits, flat and wide, just quite eerie, with cold winds blowing from time to time.

On this road, a gas lamp was installed every certain distance. They emitted yellowish firelight, making light and darkness constantly intersect and extend into the distance.

The catacomb manager Kendall, wearing a blue vest, reminded the visitors again:

"You must follow me closely and cannot act alone!

"There are too many areas underground that we lack understanding of. Once you lose your way, it is very difficult to be found again.

"Entering the catacombs also cannot walk around randomly. There are some roads that lead to deeper burial groups. The Fourth Epoch evil spirits hidden in the darkness sleep in such places. Praise the sun, praise the light, only by walking on the routes confirmed by the priests can you avoid all dangers."

Some visitors opened their arms and praised the sun, while others drew triangles on their chests.

After following the catacomb manager Kendall and the others for nearly two hundred meters, Lu Mian saw the catacombs.

There stood a giant stone door arch that was naturally formed and later renovated, with exquisite reliefs such as skulls, white bone arms, sunflowers, and steam symbols on both sides.

The lintel at the very top was written with two inscriptions in Intis:

"Stop!

"Ahead is the Empire of Death!"

The catacomb manager Kendall turned around again and said to those visitors:

"You can extinguish the horse lamps and light the white candles. Everyone must do so!

"If you don't want to enter the catacombs, you can walk around here, but you can't leave too far, otherwise it's easy to get lost, which will be troublesome.

"After entering the catacombs, if you accidentally leave the team, don't be nervous, look for road signs. If there are no road signs, look up at the top, follow the black lines drawn on the top of the catacombs, which continue to the main entrance..."

Not long after, the light of the horse lamps extinguished, and orange-colored candle flames jumped out in the darkness.

Those visitors raised their white candles at the same time and followed Kendall into the catacombs.

Lu Mian watched from afar, as if seeing little yellowish firelight converge into a stream, slowly swimming into the depths of the darkness.

He didn't enter, carried the carbide lamp, and circled the giant door of the catacombs to look for the fake wizard Osta Trull.

A few minutes later, Lu Mian saw a pile of bonfires.

That was located beside a pillar, with quite a bit of wet moss growing on the stone wall above. Behind the bonfire sat a man on a stone, wearing a black robe with a hood, with a high nose bridge, dark brown eyes, and flaxen beard covering his chin, staring at the jumping flames.

Lu Mian walked over and asked directly:

"Are you Osta Trull?"

The man wearing a hood raised his head, looked at Lu Mian, and used a voice that was deliberately suppressed, with magnetism and depth:

"Soul that has lost its direction, why did you come to find me?"

Firelight and darkness jumped on Osta Trull's face alternately, making it impossible to judge his accurate age, only guessing that he might be less than thirty, or close to forty.

Lu Mian said sincerely:

"I heard people mention you, saying you are a magical wizard who can help me solve my problems."

Osta Trull used a low and hoarse voice with a bit of magnetism:

"Witchcraft is a taboo, witchcraft is a curse, I will not provide help at will."

"What do I need to do?" Lu Mian asked urgently.

Osta said in a low voice:

"The principle of witchcraft is equivalent exchange. You first tell me what help you want to obtain."

Equivalent exchange, read too many novels, right? Lu Mian resisted the urge to mock and provoke, and his expression became painful:

"I lost all my relatives, I feel like I have been abandoned by this world, I can't sleep every night, every night, I want to forget these things and start my life again."

Osta Trull observed Lu Mian's expression and didn't find any falsehood.

He nodded gently:

"I have also lost a lot, that is the curse brought by witchcraft. I can understand your feelings and thoughts.

"But forgetting pain is a very difficult thing."

"Well..." Lu Mian sighed long, turned his body, and prepared to leave.

Osta hurriedly called him:

"Wait a minute, difficult doesn't mean there is no way."

"Really?" Lu Mian turned his head suddenly, his face full of excitement.

Osta nodded slightly:

"Have you heard of the Samaritan Woman's Spring?"

"No." Lu Mian shook his head.

Osta looked at the burning bonfire and explained simply:

"In a certain ossuary in the catacombs, there is a piece of turbid spring water. It is called the Samaritan Woman's Spring, also known as the Spring of Oblivion, the Spring of Forgetting. As long as you drink it, you can completely forget all the pain.

"Of course, that is fake. It is a puddle left over from construction errors during the process of building the catacombs, packaged into a legend by those managers."

Seeing Lu Mian's eyes go from bright to dark, Osta Trull further said:

"But as a wizard, I can tell you that in the depths of this underground world, in a certain burial tomb that is suspected to be a Fourth Epoch ruin, there is a real Samaritan Woman's Spring.

"Many corpses there are singing, singing 'Drink the happy water of forgetting, forget the original pain'."

"I can help you get it, but the principle of equivalent exchange cannot be violated. You need to give me 100 Ferkins."

100 Ferkins? Your appetite is too small, right? Searching for legendary things is so dangerous, how can you make people believe it's true without collecting a few thousand Ferkins? Lu Mian had listened very seriously, but the dislocation of the price made him feel ridiculous.

Is such precious spring water not even as good as two months' salary of a trainee waiter?

The legend of the Samaritan Woman's Spring, he had seen in "Psychic" magazine. Aurora muttered a word he didn't understand at the time, the pronunciation was roughly "Meng Po."

"Psychic" magazine also believes that the Samaritan Woman's Spring is a legend actively manufactured by catacomb managers, but they believe that this legend cannot be without a source, and the "Spring of Oblivion" might really exist somewhere in the Northern Continent.

Lu Mian widened his eyes, rushed to Osta's side, pressed his shoulder, and said:

"Really?"

Osta pushed away his palm and nodded steadily:

"This is a wizard's promise."

"Good, good!" Lu Mian answered excitedly, "But I didn't bring so much money, I'll go back now, and come here to find you tomorrow?"

Osta nodded with satisfaction:

"No problem."

Lu Mian thanked him repeatedly, carried the carbide lamp, and left the area excitedly.

After getting out of Osta's sight, he restrained his smile, raised his right palm, and sniffed the not-so-obvious perfume smell.

Before arriving at the Observatory District, he sprayed some cheap perfume on his right hand, and just now he was deliberately contacting Osta's body.

All the way back to the ground, Lu Mian sat behind a pillar, hid his figure, and waited patiently.

The sky gradually darkened, and when twilight was about to arrive, he smelled that faint and familiar perfume smell.

Lu Mian didn't rush to track, waited for a while, then walked out of the hiding place, followed the faint scent left by Osta, and followed far enough that he could barely see the other party's figure.

Carriages passed by his side, and exaggerated mechanical creations appeared from time to time.

PS: First update seeking monthly votes~

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 118 =====

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