Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!

Chapter 355: Chapter 354 The Second Team Following Closely Behind

Chapter 355: Chapter 354 The Second Team Following Closely Behind

Looking at the task prompt before him, Fang Zheng felt he had become helpless.

He had forgotten one thing, the requirement of the system task was to “investigate and resolve the secret event at the Peak of Ice and Snow”, which meant that this main quest was actually the same as Fina and her team’s mission. In other words, that peculiar flash was the real deal, and it now seemed… that the Soul Flower he had just sent away was the “mastermind” behind this event?

Despite some inner grumbles, no matter how one puts it, the matter had been smoothly resolved. And, upon closer reflection, if the origin of this matter stemmed from the odd “Soul Flower”, then the battle between them and the Shadow Dragon was clearly inevitable. After all, from the Shadow Dragon’s perspective, it seemed to have come here for the “Soul Flower”, and if Fang Zheng wanted to solve this problem, it was natural that conflict with it was unavoidable.

As for the reward… Fang Zheng could only say, it was passable.

If the conversion ratio of Crystal Energy to Dimensional Points was adjusted to 1:100, it would be about right.

Meanwhile, a faint light flashed from the Dimensional Codex in Fang Zheng’s hand, illuminating the flower, and in the next moment, Fang Zheng saw the flower disappear before his eyes with a “swoosh”. At the same time, all that was left in front of him was a deep pit that was bottomless.

Could this be the origin of those peculiar flashes?

Gazing at the hole in front of him that seemed to be a hundred meters deep, Fang Zheng was also somewhat astonished. He hadn’t expected such a small flower to have a root system comparable to that of a colossal sky-reaching tree, it seemed this Little Flower was truly extraordinary.

When Fang Zheng turned to rejoin everyone, it seemed they had already completed the division of the Shadow Dragon’s leftover spoils. The wealth left here by this Shadow Dragon was not substantial, perhaps because its room arrangement was interrupted so early on, leaving behind only a small amount of Gold Coins and some exquisite pieces of art and Magic Artifacts. One could even say that for the girls, these items weren’t particularly valuable, but they were exciting enough for them.

The reason being, this was their first adventure and moreover, memorabilia obtained from a Dragon Nest. Even if it were just a worn Bronze ring, it was enough for these girls to carefully cherish it as part of their collection.

However, there seemed to be a slight problem with this modest division of Spoils of War, that being that everyone had objections regarding their own share, not because they were too greedy, but because… they were not greedy enough.

“I… I don’t think I need to take so many treasures…” ƒгeewebnovёl_com

Katie was the first to timidly raise her doubt.

“I have not fulfilled my responsibilities, not only did I drag the team down, but I also put everyone in danger… I… I don’t think I deserve these rewards…”

“Me too…”

At this moment, the Astrologer girl also looked dispirited.

“If I had persisted a bit longer…”

“I think you might be misunderstanding something.”

Looking at the disheartened girls before him, Fang Zheng shook his head.

“To be honest, based on the reports from Nymph and Fina, you did very well. Katie, you successfully delayed those Creatures and caused them significant pressure at the beginning, which is why our team didn’t collapse instantly. And Miss M, your shooting also suppressed the Creatures’ further actions, allowing our plan to unfold smoothly. As for the later problems… they don’t count for much, you’ve only just started adventuring, making mistakes is understandable. Or rather, making mistakes is also part of the adventure. Of course, some mistakes may put you and your teammates in danger, but even the most elite adventurers can’t avoid this.”

Having said that, Fang Zheng spread his hands.

“Even a Prophet Mage can be wrong about the future sometimes, don’t stop moving forward just because of one or two failures. On the contrary, you should be glad for your failures, because it means you still have room for improvement. As for these, they naturally belong to you as your reward, you’ve contributed your labor to the team, so you should reap the benefits.”

Eventually, persuaded by Fang Zheng, the girls divided the spoils among themselves. However, there wasn’t really anything impressive among these spoils; apart from a large pile of Gold Coins, most were gemstones and some exquisite works of art, like vases. Naturally, according to the Dragon Race’s standards, these were all shiny objects.

In the end, Molly chose a fresh flower scepter carved from white jade as her spoils. The Stonehammer Dwarf selected a sturdy shield for himself. As for the gemstones, they were divided equally among Hailien, Katie, and the Astrologer girl. Fina, as the Commander of the group, only took most of the Gold Coins, claiming she could donate them to the parish orphanage so that the orphans could have better lives. As for other items, they were not of much significance for a Pilgrimage Priest and could even attract unwanted attention.

While Fang Zheng and Nymph were not much interested in treasures of this level, as “heroes who banished the Evil Dragon”, it would not be appropriate if they took nothing at all. Eventually, Fang Zheng and Nymph casually selected a few diamonds and gems from the treasures as keepsakes.

All’s well that ends well. Fang Zheng also took the opportunity to explain to the girls about the flashes. Of course, he did not directly reveal that the matter was related to the Soul Flower but blamed it on the Chief Dragon instead, claiming that the flashes were produced while it was building its nest.

Nobody had much doubt about this, and the dead Dragon certainly couldn’t pop out of its grave to accuse Fang Zheng of false accusations with its decaying vocal cords—by the time Fang Zheng handed its corpse over to Mirune, it is likely that it wouldn’t have vocal cords to speak with anymore.

Afterward, the contented group left the Dragon Nest… The Stonehammer had already promised to report everything they had done to the Dwarf King. Although they hadn’t achieved the great feat of slaying a Dragon, the fact that they had driven one away and resolved the annoying flash issue underground was enough for it to be considered a complete mission for the girls, as long as the Dwarf King recognized it.

However, to everyone’s surprise, shortly after leaving the Dragon Nest, they encountered a group of familiar faces they had not anticipated at all.

“…I really didn’t expect to meet you guys here.”

Looking at the people before him, Hucks didn’t even have the energy to sneer anymore; he looked exhausted, covered in bloodstains all over.

“It seems you also encountered an attack from that group of creatures… It’s truly a miracle you’re not dead…”

“Did you also come here to undertake an assessment task?”

Looking at Hucks standing before her, Hailien’s expression was far from pleasant, but it softened when she saw the blood and battle scars covering his body. Hailien had also experienced firsthand how terrible those creatures were, so now that she saw these people had fought with them, in her eyes, they were her “comrades-in-arms.”

“Of course, I’m really fed up, nothing has gone smoothly since we arrived here…”

As he complained, Hucks glanced at Molly, who was standing behind everyone, looking bored and inspecting their surroundings—Hmm, this trip wasn’t a total waste after all; at least he had seen an elf maiden from the legends!

“Then I wish you good luck.”

Having completed their assessment task, Hailien naturally had no interest in talking further. She simply nodded in greeting and planned to turn and leave with her companions. However, Hucks wasn’t inclined to chat more with Hailien either. He exchanged a look with Bolt, his companion, and then continued to walk upwards with their group—But at that moment, suddenly, Fang Zheng stretched out his hand, blocking their path.

“Excuse me… Sir Knight?”

Feeling a tremor of fear at Fang Zheng blocking their way, Hucks thought about the fat sow that couldn’t join them on the mountain due to her physique and the previous taxing battle. If she were here, they would definitely have big trouble, but if Hucks had to choose, he wouldn’t want to provoke a Grand Knight who would readily eliminate a scion of one of the most powerful families in the Kingdom of the Holy Church over trivial disagreements. While Hucks considered himself an important figure in his family, what good would that do? You only have one life, and even if your family sought revenge after your death, wouldn’t you still be dead?

Cherish life!

“If you don’t mind, could you tell me what your assessment task is?”

“This…”

Hucks didn’t understand why Fang Zheng suddenly took interest in their assessment task, but he still summoned the courage to answer.

“Our commission is quite simple; all we have to do is place an item at the Peak of Ice and Snow as instructed by our employer.”

“Oh?”

At this, Fang Zheng raised an eyebrow.

“So, may I take a look at what that is?”

“Mr. Fang Zheng?”

Fang Zheng’s reaction left not just Hucks and his companions puzzled, but also Fina and the others found it strange. After all, Fang Zheng always seemed to dislike initiating conflicts, let alone now when Hucks hadn’t incited any dispute, making it unnecessary for Fang Zheng to detain them without question.

However, Fang Zheng didn’t care about the others’ doubts. He just smiled and looked at Hucks, as he didn’t intend to get involved with these people initially. But for some reason, upon seeing this group, Fang Zheng had a sudden uneasy feeling. So, for safety, he had specifically stopped them to ask about it.

“This…”

Facing Fang Zheng’s request, Hucks looked at Bolt uncomfortably, who shook his head slightly, and Hucks could only sigh.

“Of course, there’s no problem.”

As he spoke, Hucks pulled out a cloth pouch from his waist, containing a fist-sized metal box that looked quite refined, like a jewelry box.

“This is the item entrusted to us by our employer. We just need to place it at one of the locations on the Peak of Ice and Snow…”

“What’s inside it?”

Fang Zheng scrutinized the box, and the moment Hucks took it out, Fang Zheng’s inner sense of foreboding almost screamed an alarm!

“I’m not sure, Master. According to the rules, we can’t open the employer’s item without their permission.”

“…Nymph, check it out.”

After thinking, Fang Zheng gestured to the Little Angel beside him, who nodded at her master’s command. She stepped forward, eyes widening in curiosity, and looked intently at the box. After a moment, the Little Angel’s expression abruptly changed!

“Master, I feel a very strong necromantic energy inside!”

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