"Is it sad?" EeDechi asked.
Dragon Endbringer had once fought shoulder to shoulder with Dragon Emperor, resisting the Eight Greed Kings. But now, times had changed and the world had moved on—Dragon Endbringer had become a spirit, while Dragon Emperor had been forged into golden remains, forever trampled beneath the statue of the Eight Greed Kings.
"Not really sad." Dragon Endbringer let out a barely noticeable sigh. "My memories were all stolen by the Eight Greed Kings. The recollections of the past are like snapped spider threads—impossible to piece back together."
EeDechi patted his shoulder in comfort.
After reflecting on the Eight Greed Kings' former imperial might, the Last Defender of the Way team skirted around the statue and ventured deeper into the ancient city.
In one corridor, Barrett brushed aside the yellow sand, picked up a jade amulet, wiped the dust off it, and slipped it into his spatial ring.
Click.
The mechanism's triggering sound was unusually sharp. From both ends of the passage, two massive fireballs came hurtling straight at them! Scorching heat waves baked the ground, the fireballs about to smash them into charred pancakes.
EeDechi stepped forward, her palm chopping down from on high, shattering one fireball with a single strike. On the other side, Barrett pulled out his huge tower shield and, relying on his tough physique, blocked the fireball—the flames exploded on impact.
"Is this supposed to be an ambush?" EeDechi vaguely spotted a withered yellow skull flash by in the depths of the passage, vanishing in an instant.
"Even if it is an ambush, it's pointless. The treasures of the Eight Greed Kings have already thrown open their doors to us!" Barrett cracked his knuckles, geared up for a real showdown.
EeDechi pushed open a sturdy bronze door, ready to search for the small copper can. She glanced around—no sign of the copper can, but she did spot a diamond-studded, gold-plated chest on the ground, its surface caked in dust.
EeDechi picked up the chest and wiped away the dust on top. The chest's decorations were incredibly ornate, with intricate gold and silver patterns woven together, hitting her with a wave of luxurious courtly vibe.
On one side of the chest, a line of fancy script was engraved:
"Imperial Year 1337, Commemorative Piece for the One-Year Anniversary of the Eight Great Emperors Ruling the World."
EeDechi cast 5th Tier Magic: Artifact Appraisal. Lines of text flickered into view in her eyes:
[Item Name: Aetherial Secret Coffer
Material: Unknown.
Quality: Divine Artifact
Function: Large magical storage device, with an internal space the size of a palace—dozens of times bigger than a regular spatial ring—and it can hold living things. That's something spatial rings can't touch.
Remark: Stuff a whole royal palace into the box, even lock up a beautiful, highborn princess inside, carry it around, and fuck her whenever you want. The Eight Greed Kings' wicked invention.
Function Two: Within 20 thousand meters, if the owner calls for the Aetherial Secret Coffer, it can fly over on its own.
At the bottom of the box, wipe out the old owner's name and carve in your own to become the new master of the Aetherial Secret Coffer.]
EeDechi checked the bottom of the chest and sure enough, spotted a metal plate with someone's name etched on it. She pondered for a bit, then pressed her thumb hard against the name and swiped, her immense strength erasing the original owner's mark.
Next, EeDechi used her fingernail to scratch her own sloppy name onto the metal plate.
Somehow, EeDechi sensed a connection forming between herself and the Aetherial Secret Coffer. She tossed the chest aside with a flick of her hand and commanded, "Aetherial Secret Coffer, come here!"
The Aetherial Secret Coffer shuddered for a moment, then flew straight into EeDechi's hand. Barrett exclaimed in awe, "Captain, you're badass—snagging a high-level item that quick, and wiping the name worked like a charm."
EeDechi smiled gently. "From now on, we can stash all our supplies in one box."
Click. EeDechi opened the chest, and in a flash, hundreds of sharp blades burst out from inside!
The instant the lid flipped, hundreds of razor-sharp swords shot out like lightning, ready to turn EeDechi into a pincushion.
It all happened in a split second. Drawing on her seasoned combat skills, EeDechi immediately let go of the chest and reacted on instinct. She snapped her head back, flipping her body in a backward somersault, just barely dodging the hundreds of chilling gleams—the cold light of the blades grazing the tip of her nose.
The hundreds of swords stabbed at nothing, rocketing skyward like fireworks, then abruptly twisted in midair and dove down like a meteor shower, plunging straight at EeDechi in a piercing assault!
"You dare mess with me?!" EeDechi flipped her hand and drew her giant sword, meeting the oncoming barrage head-on, her giant sword slashing like a whirlwind.
Clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang clang... The clash of metal on metal was fiercer than a torrential storm.
In the end, every sword that could track EeDechi was battered into scrap by her strikes, the twisted and bent blades scattering across the ground like a junkyard of discarded weapons.
As the chaos settled, EeDechi let out a breath of relief, but then she heard a faint sigh echoing from the depths of the ancient city.
"Ah..."
The sigh was hoarse and ugly, like it came from a rotting set of vocal cords. From the sound of it, it seemed to lament that the swords in the chest had failed to kill EeDechi.
EeDechi furrowed her brows slightly. Without a doubt, an enemy was lurking in the Eight Greed Kings' desert, like a sneaky poisonous scorpion, ready to strike a fatal blow at any time.
The swords inside the Aetherial Secret Coffer had vanished. EeDechi carefully opened the chest once more. This time, everything was normal—no more bizarre sneak attacks.
EeDechi peered through the opening, scanning the interior of the Aetherial Secret Coffer. Sure enough, it held a vast expanse of space.
And indeed, a magnificent palace stood inside the box. There was not only a stone-built courtly courtyard and a spacious plaza, but also fountains, silver benches, and withered tree trunks—of course, the fountain water had long dried up.
However, after centuries, the internal space was blanketed in dust, reeking of aged decay everywhere. What's more, several rotting corpses lay sprawled in the palace courtyard, dressed in tattered gauze skirts, all shriveled and desiccated.
A cloud of dust hit her in the face; EeDechi waved her hand in front of her nose and stopped looking at the scene inside the box.
"We need someone to go in the box and clean it up," EeDechi said to Barrett and Franco.
Barrett and Franco both stepped back, making it clear they weren't interested. Franco twisted his brow and chuckled slyly, "Don't we have a ready-made maid?"
"A maid? Where'd we get a maid?" EeDechi asked, while turning her gaze to Antilene. Antilene snorted coldly, striking a haughty pose of refusal.
"It's Mare."
Franco pulled a black-and-white maid outfit from his spatial ring, dressed Mare in it, then untied him and ordered him to get to work properly, cleaning up the Aetherial Secret Coffer—or else he'd subject him to enema and anal-bursting torture.
Mare was close to tears but had no choice; he put on the maid skirt and obediently got to it, crawling in and out of the Aetherial Secret Coffer, hauling the garbage and corpses from inside to the outside.