Volume 2: Empire Chapter 197: First Contact with the Abyss
An important day has passed for Tedega Hills.
Early the next morning, Luke obtained important information from the Black Magic Potion Shop.
The Abyss Apostles are preparing to open a large Abyss rift to allow more Abyss Mages to be baptized by the Abyss energy. After the baptism, the three Abyss Apostles will select four Abyss Mages to fill the number of lost Apostles.
In order to purify the team and prevent traitors from infiltrating the ranks of apostles, a major purge is underway inside the Abyss Temple.
There is news that in this Abyss baptism ceremony, all captured Abyss mages will be offered as sacrifices to the Abyss.
Therefore, the wizard urgently hoped that the Imperial Secret Intelligence Service would rescue him as soon as possible.
Luke received a hand-drawn map by the wizard, marking the location where he was being held captive.
At the same time, the Adventurer's Association also sent someone to deliver a message, and Priest Egbert hoped to get a reply.
The wizard didn't know the exact time of the abyss baptism, but seeing Egbert's anxious look, it should be soon.
Luke decided to meet with Egbert again.
In a secret room of the Adventurer's Guild, Egbert was still dressed the same as last time. But when he took off his hood, only a few strands of hair were left on his head, his skin was dry and wrinkled, and he was in an abnormal state of excitement.
"Have you thought about it?" Egbert's voice was extremely hoarse and his neck spasmed involuntarily.
"I've thought about it." Luke made a decision after careful consideration. He put the bag containing the Nirvana Egg on the table: "Power is something I cannot refuse. Becoming stronger is my adventurous pursuit. Here is the Nirvana Egg. Pay 50 million Reichsmarks first, and the rest will be paid with power."
"Okay..." Egbert reached out to grab the bag containing the Nirvana Egg.
Luke pulled the bag towards him: "How can I trust you? Can you really take me to the abyss?"
Egbert's neck twitched and he replied, "I can arrange for you to join the Abyss Temple as a new backup Abyss Mage. Due to some reasons, the Abyss Temple is very short of manpower during this period.
After entering the Abyss Temple, I will arrange everything for you."
Egbert tried to grab the Nirvana Egg again, but Luke still didn't let go: "I don't live in the Temple of the Abyss, and you can't assign me a job I don't want to do."
"Yes, most low-level Abyss Mages do not live in the temple. In fact, you don't need to worry that I will harm you. Anyone who is willing to accept the Abyss is a brother to us, no matter what your purpose is.
When the abyss comes, I will arrange a good place for you.
I promise that when you look into the abyss, you will become a true believer in it."
Luke pushed the bag towards Egbert: "Thank you, priest, for taking me to a world full of hope. The Nirvana Egg is yours."
Egbert pulled the bag over, took out the Nirvana Egg and checked it again and again. After confirming that it was real, he took out a task completion form: "50 million Reichsmarks are in the account of the Adventurer's Association, and I have already settled the association's commission separately.
I will go back to the temple first, you can come back in an hour and tell me my name when you get to the door."
Luke took the mission completion form and said, "Thank you, Priest Egbert."
Egbert took the bag and left.
Luke transferred 50 million Imperial Marks to his own account at the mission settlement counter of the Adventurer's Association.
The B-level adventurer certificate is also upgraded to the A-level adventurer certificate.
About an hour later, Luke appeared outside the gate of the Abyss Temple in a swagger.
Two Bloodsworn Barbarian guards stopped him, and the Eye of True Sight on the door stared at him.
A sharp voice came from the eyeball: "Who are you? What are you doing in the Abyss Temple?"
Luke replied: "My name is Luke! Priest Egbert asked me to come here. He sensed my yearning , so he planned to introduce me to the Abyss Temple and become an Abyss Mage who serves the Abyss."
The Eye of True Vision continued to examine Luke.
However, before it could speak, a blood-sworn barbarian immediately said excitedly: "Your name is Luke! Are you the human strongman who rushed into the finals in the Hercules Arena yesterday?"
When a person becomes famous, he will have many fans.
Luke replied, "That's me."
The Bloodsworn Barbarian was even happier: “It’s a pity that I didn’t go to the competition yesterday. But I heard that in the competition, no barbarian could match you in terms of strength.
The Duke also allowed the final match to be held in his Duke's Castle, and he will personally put the gold belt on the champion.
What a great honor! "
Another Bloodsworn Barbarian said doubtfully, “But I heard that you cheated during the competition and won the game by dishonorable means.
No matter how strong humans are, they are definitely not stronger than barbarians."
Faced with doubts, Luke said simply: "Since you doubt it, let's have a competition."
The first blood-sworn barbarian who took the initiative to speak to Luke said, "We have accepted the secret arts bestowed by the Abyss Temple, and our bodies have been blessed by the Abyss. We have increased our strength with the help of external forces. We are not allowed to participate in the strongman competition, and it is not fair to compete with you.
I believe in the referees, they are all barbarians, if you cheat, they will definitely not let you play to the end.
My name is Scatchi."
The Bloodsworn Barbarian Scratch held out his hand, and Luke reached out to shake his.
Who would have thought that although Scatchi said no, his hands were strong. The bloodsworn barbarian was indeed powerful, and Luke used his strength to resist the power coming from his hands.
At this time, the True Eye, who was ignored, said angrily: "Skarchi, it's your duty time now, don't do anything beyond your duties.
Luke is a backup Abyss Mage introduced by Priest Egbert to join the Abyss Temple. The Temple is in need of fresh blood. "
The barbarian Skarchi loosened his hold and said to Luke kindly, "I am amazed by your strength! Go in, the abyss is watching you!"
"The abyss is watching you!"
Luke walks into the Temple of the Abyss.
The Eye of True Vision turned and stared at his back.
"You are a suspicious guy , just as suspicious as Egbert. I will keep an eye on you, and if you show any signs of weakness, I will report to Apostle Victor."
The interior of the Abyss Temple is built like a tomb.
The enclosed stone corridor has mysterious yet incomprehensible murals on both sides.
At intervals, there were stone coffins standing on the walls. Inside were the "Touch of Death", which Qingkong had encountered in the museum in the imperial capital.
All the abyss mages who passed by lowered their heads, looking like zombies.
This is somewhat different from the Abyss Mage in the game.
Luke could sense that the energy of the abyss filled the entire interior space of the temple, and it was affecting everyone here little by little.
Whatever the Abyss Apostles were doing, it was definitely out of control.
A ghostly roar came from deep within the temple.
Luke suddenly felt like he had stepped into a Resident Evil game.
The best decision at this time is probably to turn around and walk out immediately. But if you walk out, you won't know what the secret is.
Luke walked forward.
The clear sky appeared in his consciousness.
"The abyss energy leakage here is very serious. If you stay here for too long, you will definitely be affected by the abyss."
Luke said to Qingkong in his consciousness: "I received news that the Abyss Apostles are opening an Abyss rift, using the Abyss energy to infect a large area of Abyss Mages, and then selecting the strongest from among them to make up the number of Abyss Apostles."
Qingkong said: "The Book of Disaster is a door to the Abyss. It can control the extent of the Abyss energy overflow. But if a crack leading to the Abyss is opened...if the crack cannot be closed, the Abyss energy will quickly pollute the entire Holy Mountain."
Luke thought about it and said worriedly, "I just made a large investment in the Holy Mountain. If the Holy Mountain is polluted, won't all my money be wasted?"
Qingkong laughed: "I like your serious and humorous appearance. In order to protect your investment income, what are you going to do?"
Luke replied: "Right now, the leakage of Abyss energy is only limited to the interior of the Abyss Temple, and the impact on people is still chronic for the time being. For us, this is a good opportunity to study the Abyss.
Lend me the Spirit Orb for a moment."
Qingkong's spirit orb appeared beside Luke.
Luke quickly grabbed the spirit orb and stuffed it into the pocket of the adventurer's vest.
The Spirit Orb is a spiritual supernatural creature with no physical form and nothing unusual can be seen from the outside. The Abyss Energy is collected by the Spirit Orb and then transferred to the Spirit Library to perform an analysis program.
Luke went deep into the temple, and after questioning the Abyss Mage, he found Priest Egbert.
Having obtained the Nirvana Egg, Egbert couldn't wait to start his experiment.
He wanted to use the firebird's ability to die and be reborn again to develop a secret technique that would allow the practitioner to gain this ability of the firebird.
In order to study this secret art, he had done a lot of preparation work. Various materials related to the Firebird could form a small library.
At this time, the Nirvana Egg was placed under a special microscope. Through careful observation, Egbert outlined the patterns on the Nirvana Egg on a piece of paper.
It is a magical language. If you can crack it, you will know many secrets of the Nirvana Egg.
Luke stood patiently behind Priest Egbert and watched the pattern he drew.
Egbert was a very rigorous scholar. Before joining the Abyss Temple, he was a very respected master of the secret arts. It was precisely because of this stubbornness that he eventually developed a psychological barrier and joined the Abyss Temple.
After waiting for about two hours, Priest Egbert finally put down his pen.
When he saw Luke, the smile on his face looked very scary: "This is a perfect work of art. The magic patterns on it alone contain a wealth of magical knowledge.
The Eye of True Vision outside the temple gate didn't give you any trouble, did it?"
"No." Luke looked around the large laboratory, which could accommodate more than a dozen people. Currently, there were only six Abyss Mages helping Egbert. He continued, "This place is filled with a very corrosive energy. I can feel it seeping into my body."
"This is the abyss energy!" Speaking of the abyss, Egbert became excited again: "You should be thankful, if it weren't for special reasons, the apostles would never release so much abyss energy for us to absorb.
Don't reject it, let it enter your body. Your body will slowly become abyssal, preparing for the abyss to truly come."
Luke felt that he had stayed here too long and must leave as soon as possible to assess the impact of the abyss energy and find a way to eliminate it.
"I will accept the gift from the Abyss. Are there any procedures required to join the Abyss Temple? I still have a lot of things to deal with today."
Egbert remembered the reason why he called Luke here. He asked his assistant to fetch a set of Abyss Mage robes. When he handed them to Luke, he said, "I have already completed the procedures for joining the Abyss Temple. Now you are a reserve Abyss Mage. Don't mind this position. I am now highly valued by the apostles and have great hope of becoming a new apostle.
I will stand closest to the abyss."
Egbert was very high-spirited. As his body was turning into the Abyss, his appearance was getting closer and closer to that of an Apostle. He believed that as long as he came into close contact with the Abyss, he would be able to transform into an Abyss Apostle.
Even the Eye of True Vision didn't dare to mock him anymore.
Luke took the Abyss Mage robe and asked, "Do you need me to come to the temple every day?"
Egbert said: "It is best to come every day. Now the abyss energy in the temple is increasing every moment. I don't know when the abyss will descend at the call of the apostle.
You don't know how many Abyss Mages are looking for a good position. Your 50 million is absolutely worth it."
Abuse of power for personal gain and using backdoors, the Abyss Temple is not immune to such worldly human interactions.
As for Egbert, he has passed the dangerous period of purge and has become a reserve apostle.
Arranging for Luke to accept the transformation of the Abyss was just a deal.
Once the deal is done, Luke will leave the Temple of the Abyss and have no stake in Egbert.
As for what Luke will become, that has nothing to do with Apostle Egbert.
Luke replied: "I will report to the temple every day. Thank you, Master Priest. I can feel the abyss giving me strength, but I really need to leave for something."
"You go and do your thing." Egbert was also anxious to continue his experiment: "The abyss is watching you!"
"The abyss is watching you!"
After saying goodbye to Egbert, Luke left the temple without stopping.
He returned to the Fekochik home as quickly as possible, locked himself in his room, and took off his shirt.
In the mirror, tiny black lines appeared on the skin, like blood vessels.
Luke immediately activated his dragon bloodline.
The lightning pupil of the left eye was activated passively, and the right eye turned into a dragon's vertical pupil. Fireworks spewed out of the nostrils, and the dragon's blood prevented the abyss energy from eroding the body.
But it can only prevent it. It will take a lot of time to completely eliminate the abyss energy.
This is just the overflow of abyss energy. If the abyss rift is really opened, it will definitely be an uncontrollable disaster.
