Elmau Castle is actually the abandoned castle that Sylvide mentioned before.
There are many legends about this ancient castle, and there are different opinions on the reasons for its abandonment. Some people say that the people in the castle disappeared overnight, leaving only an empty castle. But there is also another theory, saying that it is because of some reason.
An owner voluntarily abandoned this castle. As time passed by its gray walls, vines covered the bricks and stones, and eventually became part of the mountain forest.
But no matter which legend it is, it is full of bizarre stories. In the story, there is unparalleled wealth, legendary secret treasures, and some ulterior secrets buried in the castle.
Most of these rumors, which are difficult to tell whether they are true or false, are actually false rumors. In the early years, some people went to the castle to find out what was going on. But after so many years, there is only an empty shell left in the castle, and rubble buried under the heavy snow.
.
However, since Fang Piao had decided to agree to Ms. Kuisu's request, it didn't matter whether the rumors were true or false. He only let the team rest at the Masonk Creek station for one day, and set off late at night on the third day.
The snow stopped the night before.
But the temperature was even lower. After nightfall, the air was so cold that it seemed to freeze into powder, whizzing down, raising snow dust. Among the group of people were Fang Plover, Alyssa, Siesta, Luo Yu, Ji Ta, and Xiang Xiang.
Naturally, Mr. Big Cat and Miss Tata were with him, while the others were left to guard Mr. Gray Rock.
Sylvide originally wanted to go with them. But there was really too much work waiting for her to complete on the ship, including the arrangement and planning of the next route, as well as the collection and sorting of relevant intelligence. The entire team's paperwork and intelligence
The work almost all falls on her alone.
In the team, only Alyssa and Gita can help Miss Ship Officer when they are free. But Alyssa also has her own air bag maintenance work, and also serves as Attila's deputy, so she doesn't have much time.
So Sylvide is indeed inseparable.
However, she really couldn't worry about the plover, so she asked Siesta to join the team, and told her maid to protect the captain with all her strength.
The latter just glanced at Fang Plover and nodded.
The group of people all wore thick warm clothes, and turned on the magic furnace to maintain the lowest power operation, using the residual heat to maintain body temperature. Fang Plover felt that the winter in Aitaria was much harsher than other regions, at least Kaolin
This is the case in the north. He heard that the winter in Talon is even colder. Once the snow falls, everything in the forest becomes desolate.
But the Shinbone Forest was actually about the same. After night fell, they walked one foot deep and one foot shallow in the snow. There seemed to be only diffuse snow mist all around, and it was biting cold in their mouths.
As the team leader, Fang Yu looked back from time to time to see how others were doing. Jita's little face turned pale from the cold, and she stumbled while walking in the snow. She breathed out white mist, held her hands, and squeezed them tightly.
Your own magic book.
When he turned back, the little girl also raised her head and looked at him, her eyes as dark as ink, and she only blinked slowly. "Are you okay?" Fang Yu reached out and pulled her, and asked at the same time. Ji Ta gently
Shaked his head.
Luo Yu and Alyssa were also in good condition. The girl's rhinoceros leather magic armor had a built-in thermal insulation insert, so she only wore a thin layer, making it easier for a nightingale like her to move flexibly in the snowy wilderness.
She also wore a long scarf to cover half of her face, draped behind it like a blue-gray cloak, and she looked quite chic when walking.
Behind her, Siesta is still dressed as a maid as always, with only a fur shawl added. She walks without any hindrance, making people wonder whether this lady is actually a human being.
Then there are the boxes.
He was already wrapped up tightly, leaving almost only a pair of eyes outside. He was not afraid of the wind and snow, just pretending that it didn't exist. From time to time, he would pull out his rapier and fiddle with the snow on the branches.
The snow fell, making the only sound in the snowy night.
The big cat man is responsible for breaking up the rear. It drags a long thick cloak, takes off the shield and hangs it on its hand, and occasionally glances around. All cats have good dark vision, and Rhett is no exception.
In addition to his tall stature, the snow only covered his ankles, so walking in the snow was much easier than others.
Only then did Fang Plover turn around.
The team passed through the valley and waited at a mountain pass to meet up with the two teams brought by Ms. Kuisu. About a quarter of an hour later, the latter team arrived as promised. Basically, this team was composed of lumberjacks. Look,
He looks round and strong, but in fact he has little fighting ability. He mainly comes to find people.
However, these people's willingness to come together to help is enough to show that they are loyal to the leader, Ms. Su Kui. After all, this is not going into the mountains to cut trees. The area in the Blood Thistle Woodland is gloomy, and because it is close to Elmau Castle, it is not dangerous either.
Low.
In addition, there are two Tesov dragon lizards in the team, carrying tents and dry food on their backs. This medium-sized beast of burden is very good at walking through the mountains and forests, and Fang Plover has been very familiar with them since he was in Dawn Star.
"Is everyone here?" Fang Yu asked the lady.
Su Kui nodded: "That's all these people, but if we go to the south, there are more people who are willing to come with us. Mainly because some people are either the only children in the family, or their stars have faded, and I don't want them to come and join us."
I'll take the risk together"
"It doesn't matter," Fang Yu glanced at the team behind Su Kui. "Since we are all here, let's start early."
"So is there anything we need to pay attention to?" Su Kui asked. Although she also led a team to travel around and visited many places over the years, the work of the adventure group was different from that of the lumberjacks. She understood that sometimes this was a
Work that faces life and death.
Fang Yu took out something from his arms. "Don't make too much noise and follow me closely." He looked at the others and added: "If there is a battle, let others not panic too much."
, hide behind us."
Then he let go of his hand. Only then did Su Kui see that it was a golden copper ball. It opened its four wings in Fang Plover's hand with a click, and then flew into the darkness.
Then she was a little surprised and turned back to look at Rhett.
Su Kui had been a little worried before. This big boy always gave her the feeling that he was too young and unreliable, but the big cat didn't tell her that their captain was an alchemist.
Facing her gaze, the lion-man only showed a look of normalcy and shrugged. Trust is mutual, and so is the relationship between employer and employee. Adventurers are different from other jobs and sometimes require some extra trust.
.
The process of negotiation between the two parties is actually a process of building trust.
If the other party is unwilling to trust that they have this ability, then no matter how much you talk, it will be in vain. It is better to let the employer see with his own eyes, which will build a stronger trust relationship.
Just as he thought.
Su Kui felt a little relieved at this moment. "You can become the leader of an adventure group at such a young age. You really have a lot of skills." She thought to herself.
The abandoned castle is located south of the Masonk Creek Station. Follow the valley and enter the mountain forest. After walking for six or seven hours, you can see the moxa standing on the solitary peak under the first ray of light before dawn.
Fort.
It is built of gray bricks and stones, with a black spire. The west wall has a gap that can be clearly seen for miles. Below is a valley with fir and cypress trees, and forest plants along Tibia Creek.
There was no difference, except that the forest was now covered with silver-gray snow, and it looked completely white from a distance.
The lonely castle stands on the gray cliff, overlooking the mountains in the valley and the thin clouds in the sky. The lead-gray sky looks even more cold and desolate in this bare winter.
This area has entered the scope of the blood thistle woodland. The reason why this woodland is named is because a shrub as red as blood grows in the mountain forest. Even under the cover of snow, it looks dark red from a distance.
Moreover, the trunks of the trees in the forest also have a faint dark red color, like dried blood. The locals believe that this is the blood of the devil, so they are increasingly reluctant to approach this place.
When entering the forest, the lumberjacks were a little nervous and whispered for a while. However, as they continued deeper, people gradually became quiet.
Because the forest is quite peaceful, it seems to be no different from before
Along the way, they were much luckier than the adventure group they rescued in Tibia Creek two days ago. They encountered almost no trouble. They only saw a dire bear that had not had time to hibernate in the distance.
Wandering on the frozen river, I avoided them all the way.
There was only one accident during this period, when several skeletons crawled out from under the snow.
However, these things were so common in Tibia Creek that even the lumberjacks could not be frightened. They swung their sticks three times and knocked these lowest-level undead creatures to the ground.
After this battle, the lumberjacks gradually relaxed.
But while the others relaxed, Fang Plover keenly felt some changes in his surroundings.
In fact, he had always felt like this after entering the Blood Thistle Woodland. The surroundings became quiet, and the falling snow made no sound. The snow seemed to absorb the sound of footsteps, making everything in the forest completely silent.
There seems to be something special in the air.
But it was Tata who discovered this first. "There is something weird here, Mr. Knight." Miss Goblin hid in the collar of his coat and said to him in her heart.
"What's wrong?"
"The distribution of magic power here is a little strange."
"Magic distribution?"
Tata nodded calmly.
She seemed to be looking for something in her knowledge, and then said: "Do you know about the Gray Mark, Mr. Knight?"
Fang Plover nodded. That place was on the gray plains in the south of the Oshu Empire, where a great battle took place between the Empire and Harina. Both sides of the war used battle-level spells.
The terrifying spell left an irreparable scar on the plain, a gaping canyon filled with unpredictable magical turbulence. Later generations called that place the Gray Scar.
It means scars on the earth.
Tata slowly blinked his emerald green eyes. "Some of the books on the Silver Tower describe that place, and this place is somewhat similar to that place."
"Here and the Gray Trace?"
"It's all an irreversible event that changed the distribution of magic power."
Tata replied: "There must have been a huge change in the magic power here in history, leaving the scene like today. The dark red color of the trees in the forest is not naturally formed, but the magic power is concentrated on the plants.
Performance."
"Mr. Knight, you can go check and see if there are any crystals inside them."
Fang Yu did as he was told and used a dagger to cut open a branch. Sure enough, he found that there was crystallization in the branch. He placed these red powders in the palm of his hand. These powders were actually crystal dust, and their essence was the same as those of magic crystals.
No difference.
The subsequent failure of Luo Yu's magic furnace further illustrates this point.
When the latter accidentally checked his magic furnace, he found that the pressure gauge had increased. Although there was only a slight difference between the two readings, it still attracted Fang Plover's attention.
After some inspection, he found that it was not the pressure gauge that had a problem, but the concentration of magic power in the surroundings that affected the reading of the magic furnace. The concentration of magic power in the blood thistle forest was obviously higher than outside. And after he passed
After testing, we found that the closer we get to Elmau Castle, the more obvious this phenomenon of magic concentration becomes.
This made Fang Yu couldn't help but think of the legend about this castle. What happened in it in the past?
However, huge changes in magic power are often not invisible. Just like the collision of battle-level spells, it often brings about huge changes in external form. But he saw that the gray-white castle in the distance had nothing but age.
In addition to being in disrepair, there seemed to be no traces of rape.
But he didn't tell anyone else about it.
After all, except for Luo Yu, I am afraid that no one else can understand what this means, especially the lumberjacks. Moreover, there are always places with abnormal magical powers in this world, which do not necessarily represent danger, but at best represent what happened in history.
It’s just something.
What's more, this abnormality in the Blood Thistle Woodland was not formed in a day. This mountain forest was already like this before they came to this place, and many people came to this place to explore after that.
Everyone continued to move forward in the mountains and forests.
Not long after, Alyssa, who was scouting ahead, brought back news that she found a trace left behind after camping in the woodland.
When a group of people rushed to that place, they discovered that the campsite had been abandoned in the wilderness for at least several days. The originally cleared open space had been re-covered with snow and shrubs, and you would not notice it if you didn't look carefully.
After Alyssa waited for him to arrive, she gently pushed aside the bloody bushes, revealing several makeshift wooden wedges underneath. "At least five tents, Mr. Ed." She whispered to him: "From the shape of the tents
Look, they are standard medium-sized tents available on the market, each produced by Stargate Port can accommodate four to five people."
She pulled out one of the wooden wedges, handed it to Fang Plover, and added: "Aborigines generally like to make their own tents to save money. This type of tent is only used more often by the chosen ones; Alice and I used to work in the Rain Listener
When traveling, I often use a small standard tent like this."
This is the benefit of having a Nightingale in the team.
Not to mention that when the Clockwork Goblin flew over here earlier, he didn't even notice that there was a camp under the bush. Moreover, the Clockwork Goblin has magic power restrictions. It is not a big problem to monitor the battlefield during a battle, but it cannot
Be on alert around the clock.
Moreover, analyzing the previous clues from these clues is something that a half-baked ‘scout’ like a battle craftsman cannot do.
Buried in the snow on the other side were campfire ashes that had already been soaked in snow. The girl only used her hand to explore and told him that the owner of the camp had been away from here for at least three days.
But three days didn't quite match the time it took Su Kui's son to leave the Masonk Creek station.
He found the lady and asked who the people who went to this place with her son were, but the latter actually couldn't tell clearly. "I was not in the town at the time, and I only learned about this after I came back.
Something." Su Kui replied with a somewhat sad expression.
"I heard that it was a group of people from outside who were looking for a guide in the town, and my son just happened to fall in love with them."
Fang Plover, Alyssa, and the big cat people looked at each other. This information was indeed too little. However, he asked about the number of people in the other party and learned that the group was only seven or eight people. They were obviously at odds with the owner of the camp.
No number.
The owner of this camp should be an adventure group that came to this place recently, and it should be mainly the chosen ones.
He was still a little surprised: "Is the Blood Thistle Grove so lively? Ms. Su Kui, didn't you say that not many people are willing to come to this place?"
Su Kui was obviously equally surprised. She was also a veteran. When she picked up the charcoal from the bonfire, she knew that what Fang Pliong and Alyssa said was true. "It's true. I've been looking for people to go to this forest recently.
But I have never heard that a team of this size has entered the Blood Thistle Grove." As she said this, she raised her head and looked forward, and couldn't help but frown.
However, there were only this few clues in the camp, and everyone could not find anything more, so they had no choice but to move forward beyond this place.
Although Elmau Castle can be seen from this place, it will take at least two or three hours to actually reach the nearby valley. They traveled to this place at night and starry, and it would take most of the day on the road.
Fang Plover hoped to arrive at the abandoned castle before noon, and then spend a whole day looking for people. He could only find a safer place to camp at night. Then he would continue to look for people the next day, and try to find people the next day.
Leave this place before evening.
In this case, they only need to stay in this place for one night to minimize various potential risk factors as much as possible.
He also agreed with Su Kui that they would have to leave no matter whether they found someone or not. In two days, they had an explanation for the lady's promise, and after two days, not only the supplies they brought were exhausted
, it is also a full moon night.
Although there might be a storm and snowfall at that time, they might not be able to see the moon in the castle.