Chapter 211. Irish Town Ⅱ (9) Irish Sea and Crystal Tower.

     The Magic Cauldron was, quite literally, just a cauldron—a lidded soup pot, fortunately forged to the size of the elves, which matched the normal dimensions for an ordinary human.  

     Apart from its unknown material, it was no different from the ceramic or iron pots found in the kitchens of the Irish townsfolk. Its surface was coated in a layer of dust, crammed into a goblin’s abandoned warehouse.  

     This wasn’t because they were squandering a divine artifact, but because the Magic Cauldron had been cursed after the death of the evil dragon.  

     Ye Mo: “A curse?”  

     The goblin elder didn’t answer the question, simply nodding and letting Ye Mo and the others discover the truth for themselves.  

     Among the three, Watson stepped forward. Under the full protection of Ye Mo and Wang Xue, he took a few steps closer, reached out, and lifted the lid. A rich surge of wood-attributed spiritual energy rushed out from the cauldron, its intensity no less than that of a high-grade wood spirit jade, truly worthy of a semi-divine artifact.  

     Ye Mo focused her mind, absorbing the wood-attributed spiritual energy in the air. But for the goblins, who had long lost their magical talents, it held no meaning at all.

     At the same time, a system announcement rang in the ears of all survivors: 【’Irish Town II’ dungeon announcement: Congratulations to the ‘Wang Xue’ survivor group for successfully finding the semi-divine artifact, the Dagda’s Cauldron. Please continue your efforts to find other artifacts.】

     “!!!”

     “What’s going on? Yet another semi-artifact has gone missing. Can the big boss team please show some mercy and leave one for us?”  

     “The chief survivor, Maria, stayed in Meath City for many days before heading into goblin territory. Dagda’s Magic Cauldron must be there. I lingered in Mis City 30 days longer than them, brushing past semi-artifacts every single day—my heart is bleeding.”  

     “Maria used to be a goblin, maybe she got some information from them early on. They’ve always been on a whole other level, how can we win?”  

     “Only the Stone of Destiny remains. We absolutely cannot let the last semi-artifact fall into the hands of the Chinese.”  

     “Where is the last semi-divine artifact? It’s decided, wherever Maria and the others go, we’ll follow.”  

     “…”  

     The various large and small groups that entered this instance were once again abuzz with discussion.

     Wang Xue could imagine the chatter but couldn’t be bothered by it. Finding the semi-divine artifact was certainly delightful, but one of her teammates had only that pot in his eyes and heart.

     Watson, now deaf and blind to everything else around him, crouched in front of the magic cauldron. He had already pulled out magical materials, a furnace, magic cores, and alchemy tools from his storage ring, scattering them all around him.  

     Every now and then, he muttered to himself as he tossed in a magical herb, a monster part, or some other enchanted mineral into the cauldron, meticulously recording the results.  

     Ye Mo turned to the elder and said proudly, “My friend is an exceptionally talented potions master.” 

     The goblin elder completely understood. As fellow craftsmen, they knew exactly what it looked like when someone became utterly absorbed in their craft—just like Watson right now.  

     For the goblins, who had lost their magic long ago, the magic cauldron was more of a mixed blessing “Tasteless when eaten, yet a pity to throw away.” After all, it was still a semi-artifact. Even if you just randomly tossed ingredients into it, something useful would inevitably come out.  

     The problem was, they had no way of knowing whether these concoctions were life-saving antidotes, deadly poisons, or purely explosive attack agents, only experimentation could tell.  

     The greatest function of the magic cauldron isn’t just brewing potions, but rather improving and innovating potion recipes. Even goblins with no interest in potions could learn from it, which shows the power of this divine artifact.

     In the hands of a true master of magic, its potential would multiply a hundredfold, a thousandfold, even ten thousandfold.  

     Unfortunately, ever since the death of the evil dragon, the cauldron had been cursed, it could no longer brew healing potions, only poisons or useless dregs.  

     Ye Mo suddenly had an epiphany: “Was the curse limited to just the goblins and the Magic Cauldron? What about the other races? The Sword of Light? The Golden Spear? The Stone of Destiny?”

     The goblin elder let out a long sigh. “The elves’ fertility has dwindled. The merfolk lost their dominion over the seas. Only humans, shielded by the Sword of Light, escaped the dragon’s curse. Yet the sword remains eternally embedded in the dragon’s corpse. The Golden Spear has been tainted by dark energy, corrupting its wielder’s deepest desires and dragging them into the abyss. And the Stone of Destiny… it will inevitably lead this world to its doom.” 

     Ye Mo: …All from a single curse? That’s terrifying.

     Watson was equally fascinated by the poisons, busily tinkering with someone else’s semi-artifact. Meanwhile, Ye Mo took the opportunity to discuss craftsmanship and alchemy with the goblins. In a way, this could be considered deliberate guidance on her part.  

     If nothing else, the improved forging tool blueprints she designed were enough to revolutionize goblin craftsmanship.  

     Wang Xue: “…”  

     To Wang Xue, all goblins looked nearly identical. She grabbed a young goblin who couldn’t squeeze into the crowd and lured it with candy. “I heard you have quite a few folk songs? Do you have musical instruments too? I absolutely adore music, could I take a look?” 

     While the survivors outside waited anxiously, Ye Mo’s trio spent over ten days in the goblins’ underground world, bonding so closely with them that they might as well have been sharing the same pair of pants.  

     Of course, the goblins still generally disliked humans, but Ye Mo and her companions didn’t count. They were just those exceptionally clever, kind, warm, and generous humans from the Eastern Continent, after all.  

     …

     After more than ten days underground, Ye Mo and her team finally emerged, greeted once again by sunlight.  

     Wang Xue touched her face and let out a long sigh of relief. “Finally back above ground. Any longer down there, and I would’ve lost my sun-kissed glow.”

     “A little more sunbathing will fix that.”

     The trio first stopped by the Chinese team’s tavern, bidding farewell amid congratulations, before boarding their flying tiger demon and leaving Meath City behind.  

     This time, they had quite a few survivor “tails” following them. Their leisurely pace was in stark contrast to the others’ hurried travel day and night, making them even more aware of the importance of equipment like flying mounts.

     The Magic Beast forest south of the Irish town was the smallest of its kind. After crossing just two or three mountains, one could see the endless expanse of deep blue ocean.  

     Watson studied the familiar rugged coastline, examining the minerals and vegetation along the shore, before concluding with certainty: “The Irish Sea, the body of water that separates Ireland and Great Britain, eventually merging into the Atlantic.”

     Wang Xue paused. “Can we take a boat along the coast back to China?”

     “Go back and ask the Supernatural Investigation Bureau or the King Cobra Intelligence Agency. I don’t believe they don’t have survivors doing research in this area,” Ye Mo replied.

     They turned their gazes back to the deep blue ocean, home to a very powerful race.

     According to the goblins, merfolk and dragons used to belong to the villainous races.

     Merfolk were similar to pirates, and they were murderous pirates at that. They would engulf all ships crossing the sea, kill everyone, and devour their property. That’s why they always appeared as demons in Celtic mythology.

     It was precisely because of this that Mayor Fintan’s sudden alliance and even marriage with the deep-sea merfolk had caught Mis City completely off guard.  

     Ye Mo took back the Flying Tiger Monster, and took out the water-attributed Stegosaurus, and diving straight into the deep sea.

     Maybe because the mermaid lady had given instructions, they proceeded smoothly without any obstacles.

     However, the little tails behind them weren’t so lucky. The formidable deep-sea merfolk could learn their every location through the information in the seawater and launch attacks.

     !!!

     In less than two hours, Ye Mo and the others reached the deep sea beneath the center of the Irish Sea and saw the Crystal Tower, a crystal-clear tower standing tall on the seabed.

     Around the Crystal Tower, many survivor groups, large and small, were stationed. Due to the immense pressure of the deep sea and the threat of the deep-sea merfolk, those who could safely stay here possessed considerable strength.

     Almost every so often, survivors from different groups would enter the Crystal Tower, only to return empty-handed.

     There is no doubt that the arrival of Ye Mo and her group attracted the attention of all the survivors. They almost glued their eyes on them, paying attention to their every move.

     But dare not act rashly.

     Some survivors have speculated that even if all the survivors were to fight together, they might not be able to defeat Jing/Maria because the difference in strength is too great. As long as the semi-artifact falls into her hands, all they can do is pretend that the semi-artifact has disappeared.

     Ye Mo walked towards the headquarters of the Chinese Group headed by Zhang Qihua to exchange information.

     “Congratulations.”

     Zhang Qihua’s first words upon meeting them were once again this phrase. He already knew the general experiences of Ye Mo’s group in Meath City. The magic cauldron being in the hands of goblins without magical talent was something he hadn’t considered at the time, but upon careful thought, it was indeed possible.

     Ye Mo shared the goblin’s story again and then asked, “What’s the situation now?”

     “The Crystal Tower is where the deep-sea merfolk store their treasures. The survivors who landed in this area and the earlier group of survivors engaged in fierce battles with the deep-sea merfolk. Both sides suffered countless casualties. Even though these treasures can’t be taken out of the instance, the survivors still almost completely looted the tower’s treasury. It’s now completely empty inside.”

     Ye Mo then asked, “And then everyone gathered here, not going anywhere else to look?”

     Mentioning this, Zhang Qihua frowned worriedly. “The main reason is that the Knights of Arthur Merlin and the King Cobra group seem to have deciphered some secrets of the Crystal Tower. They entered the Crystal Tower in a hurry and haven’t come out since. This indicates that the Crystal Tower definitely holds secrets, and there’s a very high possibility of treasure.”

     Before Ye Mo and her team found the divine sword in the magic beast forest, most survivors believed the treasures were in the Crystal Tower and were reluctant to leave this place.

     “Lani Shannon and her group—” Wang Xue gestured with her chin towards a certain direction, indicating the only all-female team, which was also a large one, making them quite conspicuous among the survivor groups.

     If the divine spear could indeed induce the deepest desires, then Lani Shannon forming a women’s group immediately upon exiting the instance would be completely understandable. Her inner desires, at least, brought something positive to Earth.

     Zhang Qihua said, “The answer of the deep-sea merfolk is always the elusive fate. They probably don’t know the reason either, otherwise Lani Shannon wouldn’t be stuck here like us. According to firsthand intelligence from our people who have been near the Crystal Tower, only those two groups disappeared inside.”

     “Only—” Ye Mo felt like she had overlooked something. With a questioning look, and under the watchful eyes of everyone, she stepped into the mysterious Crystal Tower for the first time.