Chapter 315: The Heart of the Magic Tower!

"My lord, isn't that the peak ahead?"

More than half an hour later, Gervas and his party were deep within a sea of green.

Like other regions of the Death Mountains.

Along the way, fierce beasts occasionally emerged from the forests below, roaring threats at them.

Of course, when riding Magic Swift Eagles, Gervas and the others had to remain cautiously alert.

But now, riding griffins, they could rest far more easily.

Unless they truly encountered a stronger aerial beast, their safety was assured.

At this moment, a towering peak rose before them.

Its height perfectly matched the intelligence description.

"This must be it. Ascend higher—we'll fly above the clouds and take a look!"

"Yes, my lord!"

Instantly, six griffins plunged into the cloud layer.

Only after more than twenty seconds did six figures reappear above the clouds.

Once above the clouds, the summit of the towering mountain range finally revealed itself.

It was a peak covered in snow.

With winter still two months away, seeing such snow-covered terrain in the south was truly surprising.

"My lord, it's snow! This peak actually has snow accumulation!"

Gervas had access to intelligence systems and understood the principle that temperature drops with altitude.

But Mick and the others had never seen such a strange sight—they immediately widened their eyes in shock.

"Let's go take a look. That snowy peak is our destination!"

Confirming the summit had snow confirmed beyond doubt that this was the peak described in the intelligence.

Soon, as Gervas and his party neared the peak, they spotted a massive cave entrance.

The entrance was on the steepest cliff face of the peak.

The cliff wall was nearly vertical, with a drop of two hundred meters.

Such an entrance was visible at a glance.

It suited the dragon's arrogance—its lair had no fear of anyone daring to covet it.

"Our target is there. Fly straight to it!"

Immediately, Gervas led the group down to the cave entrance.

The entrance had a sizable platform; even with six griffins landing, it wouldn't feel cramped.

After landing, staring into the dark cave, Mick and the others felt a chill.

Of course, the griffins also seemed deeply uneasy, flapping their wings and grinding their claws restlessly.

"Mick, you and the others wait here on guard. Wizard Wood, come with me into the cave!" Gervas spoke to the group.

"My lord, let me accompany you inside! What if there's danger in the cave!" Mick, a loyal guardian knight, sensed the griffins' unease through their master-servant bond and refused to let Gervas enter alone.

"Relax. Moon Chase has already scouted it. There's no danger!" Gervas refused outright.

The cave might contain items left behind by the dragon—fewer people entering was better.

It wasn't that he distrusted Mick—it was simply unnecessary.

Seeing his lord so certain, Mick dared say no more.

Gervas immediately pulled out two glowstones—one for himself, one for Wood—and entered the cave.

"My lord, are you truly certain this cave holds no danger? Normally, such a massive cave would be occupied by a powerful beast!"

Inside the cave, Wood still felt uneasy.

Mainly because the wall markings clearly showed the cave had been expanded by a beast's nesting.

"Wood, Moon Chase sensed dragon aura here—though it's extremely faint."

"So, if my guess is correct, this was once a dragon's lair—abandoned long ago."

"D-dragon's lair!" Wood nearly dropped his jaw.

"Correct. So, Wood, do you think this place still holds danger?"

"My lord, if this was truly a dragon's lair, then unless the dragon itself still dwells here, there's virtually no danger!" Wood finally understood why Gervas was so certain.

Dragons sat atop this world's food chain; nearly all beasts feared them.

So if a dragon had truly dwelled here, no beast would dare reside here for at least centuries.

Only after the dragon's aura vanished completely might another beast take over.

"Now do you understand? Let's see what treasures lie within this dragon's lair. Moon Chase sensed remnants of dragon items inside."

"Yes, my lord!" Wood's fear vanished, replaced by gleaming excitement.

Dragons possessed top-tier combat power—and their wealth was equally top-tier.

Moreover, as innate spellcasters, their possessions were likely even more valuable to mages.

As they advanced deeper, the cave grew larger.

Large enough to comfortably house a viscount's castle inside.

Clearly, the dragon had hollowed out the entire peak.

Fortunately, dragons, unlike humans, didn't bother with bedrooms or parlors.

Normally, they preferred nothing more than one vast cavern.

Thus, locating the dragon's leftover items wasn't difficult.

Soon, Gervas and Wood found in a corner of the cavern a dusty tome and a worn wooden chest.

"This... is a Dragon Language book?!"

Wood snatched up the book first, eyes wide with excitement.

"My lord, this Dragon Language book can only be read by someone who understands Dragon Tongue—but any dragon text is extremely valuable!"

"Even if we don't know its content, the starting price is five hundred gold coins—and many nobles will gladly buy it!"

"Even a novel or biography is worth five hundred gold coins?" Gervas was surprised.

Wood nodded firmly. "Yes, my lord. You don't think nobles buy them to study, do you? They buy them to display their lineage!"

Good heavens! Gervas mentally exclaimed.

But he had Gold Tycoon on hand—he'd need to have it appraised by Gold Tycoon first.

After all, this item came from the intelligence system—he doubted it was truly some mere biography.

After securing the dragon text, the two picked up the wooden chest and slowly opened it.

Instantly, a gleam of silver met their eyes.

"My lord, this is a Mithral silver plate—with intricate runes. It's a magical artifact!" Wood immediately identified it, for magical artifacts were easy to recognize.

"Can you confirm its function?"

"My lord, let me test it. If undamaged, channeling magic power will reveal its purpose!"

Wood immediately channeled magic into the artifact.

He was extremely cautious, deliberately limiting the amount of magic.

Though attack-type magical artifacts were rare—after all, they were inefficient compared to spell scrolls—they weren't nonexistent.

But to Wood's surprise, even the tiny amount of magic he channeled fully activated the artifact.

Hum!

A purple glow erupted violently from the silver plate, growing brighter and brighter—exceeding even the glowstones.

Hum!

Fortunately, the plate wasn't an attack artifact. After several seconds of intense radiance, it dimmed as the plate vibrated once more.

"Huh? Did it break?" Wood relaxed, yet felt puzzled—the dazzling purple light vanished, yet he saw no change.

Only the patterns on the plate still glowed faintly.

Just as he wondered, a slight probe of his spiritual force made him instantly widen his eyes.

"No—wait!"

He sensed magic power rapidly converging around them.

Centered on himself and Gervas, a vortex of magic formed—the local magic concentration began climbing linearly.

After one minute, the concentration stabilized—but here, it reached over five times the normal level.

"My lord, congratulations! The Radiant God favors you—this is... this is the Heart of the Magic Tower!"