Suddenly, Dr. Blank's eye muscles began to twitch wildly. He pulled an ancient, worn, and rustic animal hide from his pocket and said in an almost howling tone, "Do you know about Vikings? Do you know about Viking civilization?"
"Huh?" The burly man who was drinking widened his eyes. "Great Doctor, as far as I know, they were a group of pirates from Europe between the 8th and 11th centuries... uh, a bunch of scum!"
Blank shook his head and said, "Listen! Listen up! The Vikings were Norse pirates who raided the European coast and the British Isles from the 8th to the 11th centuries, their influence stretching from the European continent to the Arctic. This period in Europe is known as the 'Viking Age'! The powerful Vikings, using advanced shipbuilding technology and martial prowess, carried out terrifying island raids on Europe! Later, they even occupied and settled important regions of Europe. As heretics, they would not hesitate to kill priests and plunder church property. Ordinary people feared their ruthlessness and brutality; they were like devils from hell." At that time, they were exceptional craftsmen, sailors, explorers, and merchants. They built their own culture and their own empire! They were incredibly wealthy! Their footprints even reached North America! People often believe that Columbus was the first Old World person to discover the continent. This is incorrect! The Viking Leif Erikson discovered the continent more than 500 years before Columbus landed in America. It is said that after reaching Greenland, they continued westward to what is now Canada. There they discovered many useful resources, including timber, grapes, furs, and so on… They plundered! They plundered like mad! Gold coins! Diamonds! Gems! Agate…”
By this point, Blank's voice was already hoarse!
The flame of greed in his eyes burned ever brighter.
His men's breathing also became heavy. Summarizing Blank's words, a rather simple fact emerges... In ancient times, a powerful group of pirates plundered Europe and the Americas, amassing vast amounts of incalculable treasure.
“Then… esteemed doctor,” the white woman’s perpetually cold expression finally softened slightly. She said excitedly, “If I’m not mistaken, Viking culture has long since vanished into the annals of history. Does all that you’ve said mean…”
"Yes! This map will guide us on our vast Arctic expedition! We can find the once-glorious Viking Empire!" Dr. Blank exclaimed frantically. "You must know, the Viking empire and civilization were built in the Arctic! The mysterious Arctic!"
"hiss!"
Upon hearing Dr. Blank's words, his elite men all gasped in shock!
It's important to know that there are numerous islands surrounding the Arctic, all of which have ownership rights and belong to Nordic countries such as Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Additionally, North American countries like Canada and the United States also own some islands.
However, the so-called Viking civilization could not possibly have existed on these already developed islands!
Therefore... it must be the interior of the Arctic!
The harsh climate will be a major challenge for explorers venturing into the North!
"Doctor, are we going to go deep into the Arctic?" the one-eyed man asked tentatively.
"Yes! According to the map, we are going deep into the Arctic!" Dr. Blank exclaimed. "I swear, this is the greatest expedition of my life, and the last! You must know, if we find the ruins of the Viking Empire, it won't just symbolize wealth, it will symbolize civilization! It will symbolize the excavation of civilization, understand?! I, Blank, will make history!"
Blank waved the map in his hand and shouted in a roaring tone.
Of course, Blank and the others would never have guessed that while they were talking about the secret of this treasure hunt, several level 1 ghosts were eavesdropping all along!
…… …… ……
Gao Jianfei and Song Ying ate and drank in the tavern for a while, feeling warm and comfortable all over.
During their drinking, Gao Jianfei also inquired with the timid and cowardly Eskimo women. He learned that there were inns in the town specifically for adventurers.
After eating and drinking his fill, Gao Jianfei needed to find an inn, then enter the Ghost Den to attempt the mission.
Just as Gao Jianfei stood up, intending to leave with the women...
"Bang!"
A gunshot suddenly rang out outside the hotel!
Yes, that's right, it was a gunshot!
"Huh? What's going on?" Gao Jianfei's heart tightened. He thought to himself... "Could it be that the Americans have come here? No way?"
Gao Jianfei quickly rushed out of the tavern.
A large crowd had already gathered outside!
"Roar! Roar! Roar!" The Eskimo husky also started barking wildly!
At this moment, Gao Jianfei breathed a sigh of relief... It wasn't the US military that had tracked them down. Instead... a group of Eskimos were facing off against a group of armed mercenaries under Blank's command!
On the ground lay a corpse, an Eskimo man. There was a bloody hole in his head, from which blood was gushing out.
A large number of Eskimos surrounded them, holding their weapons... harpoons, darts, and shotguns.
Meanwhile, hundreds of armed mercenaries, showing no sign of weakness, loaded their guns with bullets, sneering disdainfully.
The laborers, on the other hand, stood by dumbfounded, watching in terror.
At this moment, several Eskimo women from the tavern where Gao Jianfei had just left also ran out. They communicated in the strange Eskimo language, saying something angrily and then crying.
Then look over there, the Eskimo men holding weapons want to rush over and surround the group of armed mercenaries, but they seem to have some reservations and dare not.
"Oh! I think I know why this research team is so unpopular in Barrow Town." Gao Jianfei glanced at the armed mercenaries, their faces flushed from drinking, their eyes gleaming with wildness and defiance; then he looked at the Eskimo man's corpse lying on the ground. "Haha, it seems I can get this town to my mission! Very good! Very good!"
Chapter 480 Birthday present received!
Chapter 480 Birthday present received!
Gao Jianfei infiltrated Dr. Blank's research team, and on the first night after arriving in the town of Barrow, an unexpected incident occurred!
An accident that concerns life and death.
Blank's mercenaries were almost locked in a standoff with most of the native Eskimos of Barrow town. Gao Jianfei, as an observer, stood by with the other laborers, taking a neutral stance and watching the spectacle. In fact, as members hired by the expedition team, these laborers should have sided with the gunmen, duty-bound to assist them in teaching these Eskimos, armed with hunting rifles and harpoons and leading huskies, a lesson. However, the gunmen had no intention of involving these frail laborers in the trouble. The laborers watched, occasionally whispering amongst themselves.
Through the accounts of several laborers who happened to know the situation, Gao Jianfei roughly understood the cause of the conflict… These armed mercenaries, after arriving in Barrow Town, went to the taverns to drink, behaving wildly and unrestrainedly. After a few drinks, the mercenaries' words and actions completely broke free from the last vestiges of restraint. They began to harass the Eskimo women in the taverns. In fact, they probably did this frequently. In one tavern, the husband of an Eskimo woman who had been harassed happened to return home and witnessed a bearded mercenary roughly forcibly kissing his wife. And so, tragedy struck! After a heated argument, the bearded mercenary shot and killed the Eskimo man at the tavern entrance.
Now, thousands of Inuit have surrounded the hundreds of mercenaries, neither side willing to yield. The still-bleeding Inuit corpse on the ground tells its people… revenge!
However, the mercenaries, equipped with superior weaponry and rich combat experience, were outnumbered but refused to back down. Their bullets were already loaded, ready to fire and kill the town's inhabitants, the Inuit.
Just as the tension between the two sides was about to escalate into a large-scale melee, Dr. Blank, the eccentric scientist, and an old man from the Eskimo side appeared simultaneously. Through their words, they defused the farce from turning into a bloody massacre.
Next, Blank reprimanded his men, and the mercenaries obediently gave up their drinking and merrymaking, and began to properly enter the simple inn in town to rest and recharge for tomorrow's departure.
Gao Jianfei and his group of laborers also entered the makeshift inn one after another. Gao Jianfei, for $200, led the women into an inn built of stones. The inn was only about a dozen square meters in size, with ten cots laid out on the floor. A fire was lit in the stove, which was enough to keep them warm.
Gao Jianfei, along with Li Yun, Song Ying, and other women, made do with the place for the night.
The women were exhausted and didn't care about anything else. They lay down and closed their eyes to sleep. Soon, they were emitting sweet, lovely, and soft snores.
Once the women had fallen asleep under the warm glow of the fireplace, Gao Jianfei began to attend to his own business. He slipped directly into the haunted house.
In the den of ghosts.
"Dear user, welcome to your ghost's lair. May I ask how I can assist you?" the intelligent program said in a courteous voice. After a pause, she continued excitedly, "Dear user, do you remember your birthday? January 21st! Ah, what a sacred day! As the intelligent program of this super ghost device, I am also excited about your birthday! Uh... the current time is 11:56 PM on January 20th! That means you have 4 minutes left before you receive your birthday gift from the system! This is also your first birthday gift!"
"Oh? I completely forgot my own birthday!" Gao Jianfei chuckled. Indeed, lately he'd been so busy dealing with the US military's large-scale investigation and the mission to hunt down Holman that he'd basically lost track of time. Only now, with the AI's reminder, did he suddenly realize… he was turning 23 in just 4 minutes!
"Alright, I'll just wait here for my birthday present!" Gao Jianfei had originally come in to handle the tasks in this area of the intelligent program, but now that he knew the system was about to deliver his birthday present, he simply pulled up a chair, sat down, and started smoking while waiting.
Time passed second by second.
With such immense anticipation in his heart, even four minutes seemed to stretch on endlessly. After Gao Jianfei quickly smoked a cigarette, a "ding!" finally rang out from the ghost den.
Then, the entire haunted house changed!
It was directly enveloped by a peaceful light! A corresponding burst of intense light also emanated from the ghost's lair!
A spatial portal appeared out of thin air in the central part of the first floor of the Ghost Den.
It shimmered with seven colors of light, a truly magnificent sight.
Gao Jianfei stood up abruptly from his chair, his gaze fixed on the gate of light, feeling somewhat dazzled and mesmerized.
At this moment, the intelligent program's sweet voice spoke in a serious and earnest tone: "Dear user, please accept your birthday gift! As per your request, a spatial gate has been opened in the Ghost Nest! Inside the gate lies a vast space with mountains, rivers, plains, glaciers, oceans, canyons, deserts... its area is infinitely large! You can freely bring animals into this spatial gate!"
As the intelligent program explained, the light in the ghost's lair gradually dimmed, and the light gate transformed into a small door with metal trim, about the size of an ordinary bedroom door, cast entirely from a special metal. The door had a handle, and its surface was engraved with mysterious runes.
On the surface, it's just an ordinary door, and there's nothing mysterious about it.
Gao Jianfei walked to the door and hesitated.
"Dear user, you can try pushing open the door and walking in. You will see a very mysterious world!" the intelligent program's voice encouraged.
"Hmm." Gao Jianfei nodded, and slowly extended his right hand to grasp the armrest. Instantly, a peculiar sensation came from the armrest, a strange sensation that felt connected to Gao Jianfei's bloodline.
At that moment, Gao Jianfei had a strange feeling... "This door belongs to me, and the world inside the door also belongs to me!"
Gently pushing open the heavy-looking door, Gao Jianfei was immediately struck by the sight of the surroundings inside!
Stepping inside, one is greeted by a vast, verdant plain covered in grass. Along the plain, besides the carpet-like grass, there are also countless colorful and unnamed flowers that exude a delicate fragrance.
And there was a breeze. A gentle breeze carried the refreshing fragrance of flowers to Gao Jianfei's nose, enough to make him feel relaxed and happy.
Gao Jianfei couldn't help but step into the doorway. The soft, comfortable lawn under his feet felt wonderful. He subconsciously walked forward and looked out at the lush green mountains and snow-capped icebergs.
If you listen carefully, you can hear the babbling of a stream or river.
Following my instincts, I finally saw crystal-clear streams, and even waterfalls and pools.
Of course, Gao Jianfei was also pleasantly surprised by the kiwi trees laden with fruit resembling peaches, pears, and apples. He rushed over, picked a few fruits from the orchard, and found them to be thin-skinned, tender, and sweet—truly more delicious than any other fruit on Earth!
"What a paradise this is!" After wandering around for a while, Gao Jianfei sighed with heartfelt admiration.
"Dear user, please don't be sad. This place belongs to you! This is your 23rd birthday present!" the intelligent program's voice said sweetly.
"Okay! I'm extremely satisfied with this birthday present!" Gao Jianfei nodded emphatically. After a pause, he asked, "Then, is it possible for me to bring the animals I want into this world through some special means?"
"Dear user, it is like this! Bringing animals from the outside world into this world is the essence of this birthday gift!" the intelligent program replied. "Then, dear user, from now on, you can conduct experiments at any time. When you leave the ghost den and face an animal that you want to take in, I will explain to you in detail how to bring it into this world."
“Alright! I’ll try bringing some animals in tomorrow.” Gao Jianfei smiled slightly. Then, his expression turned serious, and he said, “Okay, I have to say, I didn’t just enter the Ghost Den today to accept this birthday present. Listen, I also have some missions! This is Barrow Town, and I want to get some missions here to earn some experience points. Tonight, a murder occurred in town. And I believe similar murders have happened before! So I speculate that missions can be found here! Alright, let’s give it a try!”
"As you wish, esteemed user!" the intelligent program replied politely. Then, it added, "So, esteemed user, what level of task would you like?"
"Well, there's no point in doing missions below level 4. So, let's just do missions at levels 4, 5, and 6!" Gao Jianfei said directly.
A difficult level 4 quest is worth 1 experience point...
A difficult level 5 quest is worth 10 experience points...
A challenging level 6 quest, worth 100 experience points...
Currently, Gao Jianfei is just 35+ experience points away from successfully advancing to Level 5 Exorcist. Therefore, he's not asking for many, just a few challenging Level 5 quests. Of course, if there are Level 6 quests, that would ensure Gao Jianfei levels up quickly!
"Well then, esteemed user, I can perform the task you desire for this area, but please first learn the language of the local natives," the AI program said.
This is a necessary step before embarking on a mission. This is because most of the missions here are issued by deceased Inuit people. Therefore, to receive their missions, one must first learn the Inuit's native language.
Okay, this isn't a very difficult thing.
Gao Jianfei first summoned a level 2 ghost. This guy was an American archaeology PhD in his previous life, and he was fluent in Eskimo. Gao Jianfei spent several hundred exorcism points to summon the PhD, and then spent another hour learning Eskimo.
Immediately afterwards, Gao Jianfei randomly assembled and contained 500 wandering Level 1 Eskimo ghosts from a radius of over ten kilometers, enough to fill one level of the ghost den.
"Alright, dear user, I can now perform the task for you!" the intelligent program smiled sweetly.
Soon, gurgling radio waves began to appear on the large screen displaying the taskbar.
Gao Jianfei took out a cigarette, sat down in the chair, and waited anxiously while smoking.
Two minutes later, the AI program spoke up: "I'm sorry, esteemed user, there are no deceased individuals nearby who have issued Level 6 missions. I am now initiating a Level 5 mission..."
The radio waves on the display screen were fluctuating more and more.
Ten minutes later, the AI program spoke again… “Dear user, I have assigned you three level 5 tasks… Please wait a moment, I will now assign you level 4 tasks…”
Ten minutes later, the AI spoke again… “Dear user, there are quite a few Level 4 tasks, 17 in total…”