“I have done what I promised, now it’s your turn.”
Unlike Jorah, Paiya knew how powerful Lu Xuan was. At least the little magic she had restored was completely ineffective against him.
“Of course, please follow me.” After saying that, Paiya led Lu Xuan and the others to the back of the Immortal Palace, where there were many supporting buildings. Paiya opened one of the warehouse-like buildings and handed the key to Lu Xuan.
"Everything in here is yours now."
Lu Xuan glanced at the contents inside and spoke.
"This contains the accumulation of your life's work over thousands of years. Are you willing to part with it?"
"Heh, we were once just like those bloated merchants, indulging in a life of extravagance. For this, we amassed a vast fortune. But as magic declined and the number of wizards dwindled, this wealth became increasingly meaningless to us."
As long as we possess magic, the entire city belongs to us. So what does it matter? It's all yours now, but I must remind you, your time is limited. Once the city calms down, you won't be able to leave so easily.”
Lu Xuan turned his head and glanced at Jora, who was still in a daze.
"What are you all standing there for? Notify the others and start moving."
Jorah's stunned silence wasn't without reason. The wealth before him was simply too... Jorah wasn't unfamiliar with money. He had once won a tournament and received a reward of 40,000 gold coins. But this warehouse alone seemed to hold at least a million gold coins. And that didn't even include the various gold and silver artifacts.
Perhaps due to its great age, the warehouse contained no silks or spices, only solid gold and silver. Most of it was covered in dust, its luster dulled. However, when you gently brushed the dust away, the brilliance of the gold would be dazzling.
Lu Xuan directed the dozen or so centaurs behind him to step forward and begin packing all the Radiant Coins into boxes. Various gold and silver utensils were also stuffed into bags.
"Sir Jorah, take these things to the docks. Find the five easternmost ships. They are all loaded with food and water, and have a small crew. Load the things onto the ships, and then wait for us there. I originally intended to have twenty ships, but the wizards have been in decline for too long and have very few ships."
Jorah instinctively wanted to refuse.
“Ago and the others can lead the team. They are Khaleesi’s blood sworn guards, absolutely loyal. I’ll stay here and wait for Daenerys.”
"Listen, I have no doubt about the Blood Guard's loyalty. But this isn't the Dothraki Plains. I've placed mercenaries there to keep watch. They'll be leaving with us. Although we've recruited as many lone wolves and small mercenary groups as possible, trouble is still inevitable if they discover this wealth."
Centaurs aren't very bright and might not react quickly enough to situations. Therefore, I need you there to ensure stability. I'll stay here, and I promise you, I'll bring Dani back to you safe and sound.
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Chapter 245 Illusion and Flame
Deep within the Hall of Immortality, Daenerys found herself surrounded by no one. Suddenly waking, she found herself standing in a vast, empty hall.
Torches were burning around, providing a little light to the dim hall. But for some reason, Dani still felt it was very dark, and everything around her seemed somewhat blurry.
She tried to take a step forward, but suddenly everything changed. A strange scene appeared before her eyes.
A very beautiful woman lay naked on the ground. Around her, four ugly little men were wantonly humiliating her.
This bizarre scene startled Dani, who retreated in a panic, only to have the view change again.
It was a feast of corpses. All the participants had been slaughtered. The bodies were scattered and mangled, with ownerless hands clutching blood-soaked cups, wooden spoons, roast duck, and bread. On the throne above sat a dead man with a wolf's head.
The bloody and horrific scene filled Daenerys with terror. She turned, trying to flee. But as she turned, everything spun around her. The next second, a little girl appeared before her. Daenerys froze for a moment, then recognized her—it was herself as a child…
After Jorah directed the centaurs to pack up all the valuables, Lu Xuan followed Paiya to the entrance of the Immortal Palace.
"Wizard Grant, would you like to go in for a look?" Paiya's face practically screamed ill intent. But Lu Xuan merely smiled and actually walked into the Immortal Hall. Paiya, standing quietly at the entrance, didn't follow, but remained motionless, seemingly waiting for something.
As soon as Lu Xuan entered the Immortal Hall, the scene before him changed drastically. The original entrance hall had transformed into a straight, endless passageway. Looking back, the gate behind him had vanished, turning into endless darkness.
"hehe."
Lu Xuan stared at the illusion before him, closed his eyes, and continued walking forward. Suddenly, several male sorcerers dressed in magnificent silk robes appeared around the hall. They slowly approached Lu Xuan, revealing short swords in their hands.
Well, so far, they can't use witchcraft to directly kill people. They can only create illusions and use prophetic magic. I wonder if this is to differentiate themselves from the popular D&D/DreamSky universe in the West. Authors like Tolkien, representing this group of fantasy writers, all create fantasy worlds, but there's no magic in them... Even if there is, it's only for lighting (dual-wielding berserkers?), prophecy, or curses (actually, I'm wondering, is a fireball spell more difficult than prophetic magic that glimpses fate?)...
Therefore, if these male sorcerers wanted to kill Lu Xuan, they could only do so by using daggers at close range.
However, just as their bodies drew close, Lu Xuan suddenly opened his eyes.
"Haiya never said that so many people came to greet me?"
"That was his dereliction of duty, Your Excellency the Wizard." Seeing that Lu Xuan wasn't fooled by the illusion at all, the male wizards naturally sheathed their short swords and daggers. It was as if they weren't the ones who had approached with swords earlier. This stark contrast in their expressionless faces amused Lu Xuan. Indeed, if I don't feel awkward, then it's others who are...
The illusion did have some effect, confusing him for about three to five seconds. If they had attacked during that moment, they might have actually injured Lu Xuan. Unfortunately, these male sorcerers were far too cautious.
Seeing the male wizards vanish one by one like illusions, Lu Xuan didn't give chase. He was actually quite interested in these wizards. After all, they were among the few beings in this vast fantasy world who had ever used magic.
Continuing forward, Lu Xuan soon sensed a sudden increase in the surrounding magical energy. He found himself entering a large hall, where Daenerys was standing in the center.
Her eyes were closed, and her facial expressions kept changing, clearly indicating that she was trapped in some kind of illusion. Lu Xuan did not step forward to rescue her, but instead carefully examined the hall.
There was a vast amount of energy hidden in the air, though it was somewhat chaotic, and most of it was being used on Daenerys.
Lu Xuan bypassed Daenerys and walked to the deepest part of the hall, where a torch burned. Unlike the torches around him, this one was larger, the flame was brighter, and it faintly emitted a ghostly blue glow.
Daenerys was now entering the next illusion. She saw a great hall, at the far end of which stood a throne, an iron throne forged from the melting of countless swords. Seated on it sat a person, his face blurred, his identity indistinct.
Daenerys stepped forward, wanting to see who it was. But the next second, the scene before her changed again. A silver-haired, blue-eyed man named his son Aegon, saying he was the "prince of prophecy" and that "dragons have three heads."
A voice rang in Dani's ears. It was like a blend of countless voices, slowly telling her a story.
“Daenerys, you are a descendant of the Targaryens, the Mother of Dragons. But you are not yet complete. You do not understand dragon language and do not know how to communicate with your dragons. Stay here, and we can teach you dragon language so that you can become a true Mother of Dragons, or even the Queen of Dragons.”
"I don't need your help, just let me leave." In this situation, Daenerys certainly wouldn't believe such words. However, she couldn't see the way back.
"Daenerys, do you know? Your fate has already been marked by the gods. You think you are free, but you are merely a pawn in the gods' game."