Chapter 119: The Blood Magic Legacy Beneath the Ruins 2
Basilisk Isles, Tear Island, Ruins of Gorgai
"Crack... Thud..."
As a Three-headed Hellhound swatted aside a skeleton blocking the way, Jon noticed that the passages here were actually filled with skeletal remains.
From the scars and the extent of damage on these skeletons, it was clear that these people had suffered through incredibly cruel torture before they died.
Moreover, besides human remains, there were also the skeletons of various non-humanoid creatures on the ground. Jon even found several Minotaur skeletons among them, though they didn't seem as large as the one outside.
It seemed that after the plague broke out, the monsters and slaves here managed to survive for a while, though it was unclear whether humans or monsters had destroyed the massive outer gate.
But none of this mattered to Jon anymore. The demon hounds that had descended first were already clearing the path ahead; this slave pit was littered with the remains of slaves.
Even after all this time, the stench remained unbearable. Fortunately, most of the dust had settled on the bottom floor; otherwise, the accumulation over the years would likely have formed a layer of quicksand.
Endless resentment and death energy were perfect for crafting necromantic staffs. Thus, Jon didn't stay idle as he walked, continuously gathering the terrifying undead energy around him.
"Hiss, hiss, hiss..."
Just as Jon stepped into the fifth level, a series of strange hissing sounds reached his ears, seemingly coming from the massive pit below the passage.
The slave pit here featured a spiral staircase. Below the fifth level, there appeared to be another massive pit. God only knows how deep those Valyrian Blood Mages dug when they built this place.
Judging by the surroundings, this was likely the waste disposal outlet for the fifth-level testing grounds, as a humanoid corpse still lay on a slide-like apparatus.
There were three more of these slide designs, and some severed limbs remained on the ground, likely left uncleaned from back then.
After glancing at the pitch-black passage and the broken gate, Jon took out a whale oil lamp from his space. This special whale oil lamp was an item exclusive to the nobility of Tyrosh.
Thanks to the special light-diffusing glass, the whale oil lamp provided sufficient illumination. Although Jon could use the demon hounds' vision to move forward, he wouldn't be able to see certain unique items that way.
Things like gemstones couldn't be detected by the demon hounds' senses, as they could only perceive living or moving objects. That wouldn't help Jon find what he was looking for.
As Jon walked across the thousand-year-old black stone floors of these ancient ruins, he couldn't help but marvel at the creativity of the Valyrians.
The pillars in this testing ground were all constructed from black stone, most carved into the shape of dragons. On the left claw of each dragon sculpture was a glass cover, which seemed to be where candles were once placed.
Behind these dragon pillars were partitioned black stone rooms, each labeled with various names in High Valyrian.
Materials Room, Laboratory, Incubation Room, and Observation Room. The iron-barred doors of some rooms had been broken open, while others remained sealed.
"Creeeak..."
Amid the harsh grinding of the old iron gate, Jon opened a door that still emitted a faint aura of life. As the whale oil lamp's light poured inside, the room's interior was revealed.
It was a sealed room of about fifty square meters. The first thing that caught Jon's eye was a massive black stone shaped like an egg, and that strange life aura was emanating from within it.
This giant black stone stood quietly in the center of the sealed room. To the left of the iron gate entrance was a row of shelves and a desk.
Scrolls were scattered messily across the desk. These Valyrian scrolls seemed to be made from the skin of some special creature. Jon had seen many before, but he often couldn't decipher the text on them.
At the time, Jon suspected these might be special Valyrian magic spells that couldn't be recorded on ordinary materials, so the Blood Mages used phonetic transliteration to record them.
After searching for a while, Jon stored them all in his space, leaving behind only something that resembled a journal.
(The bloodline purification experiment was very successful. Under the influence of dragon blood, Subject No. 4...)
(This morning, a slave covered in red spots was sent down...)
(My health is deteriorating. Now I have...)
...After reading the journal, Jon gained a general understanding of what had happened in Gorgai back then. After the plague broke out, the Blood Mages seemed to have fallen into a frenzy of experimentation.
Left without control, the plague spread rapidly among the slaves in the pits. By the time the Blood Mages realized the situation, it was already too late.
"Valar Morghulis!"
This phrase seemed to represent the fundamental law of this world. Even beings as powerful as the Valyrian Dragonlords ultimately perished in the Doom of Valyria.
After putting away the bloodstained journal, Jon sighed inwardly. The people of this world had such a shallow understanding of their own reality.
This was precisely why the cycle of rise and fall continued endlessly.
Jon did not know what the future would hold, but he understood that he had to continue moving forward and becoming stronger. Only by transcending mortal limits could he avoid being bound by such fate.
"Now, let me see what you are."
After understanding the situation, Jon looked toward the massive stone egg before him.
It was made of Valyrian black stone, and even after countless years, it still emitted a powerful aura of life. That alone was enough to be considered miraculous.
"Thump, thump, thump..."
After tapping it lightly with his finger, Jon heard a dull sound, indicating that it was not hollow. Judging by the sound, there seemed to be some kind of liquid inside.
The Valyrians had an extremely deep understanding of Blood Magic. Their Blood Mages could use specific magic to fuse human bloodlines with those of other creatures.
Based on Jon's own research over the years, the Dragonlords of the Valyrian Freehold were very likely products of such magic.
Because they shared bloodlines with magical creatures such as dragons, they were able to control and communicate with them.
"Bang... Bang... Crack..."
If the records in the journal were correct, Jon was certain that the Blood Mages of Gorgai had conducted experiments involving Dragonlord bloodlines here—and that those experiments had succeeded.
The being inside this stone egg was very likely a subject that possessed the bloodline of a Dragonlord.
Thus, the next step was simple—Jon only needed to open the stone egg to see what was inside.
Dark Sister truly lived up to its reputation as a Valyrian steel sword. Not a single mark appeared on the blade as Jon struck the stone egg.
Unsure of the shell's thickness, Jon did not use excessive force. Instead, he carefully shaved away the outer layer of the stone egg bit by bit using Dark Sister.
As Jon continued, a crystalline substance began to flow out from beneath the shell. From this, he could estimate the thickness of the outer layer.
"Splash... Crack..."
As the stone egg completely shattered, the milky-white liquid inside spilled across the ground.
Once the contents had drained, Jon saw a naked, silver-haired woman.
She appeared to be around twenty years old, with a perfect figure and skin far smoother than that of the typical Valyrian-descended peoples.
Since some of the milky liquid had not fully drained away, part of her body remained submerged, but in that brief moment, Jon had already seen most of her upper body.
With the stone egg broken, the powerful surge of life energy from her body became even more apparent.
Even after countless years, the immense vitality she possessed caused Jon's heart to pound.
However, no matter how powerful she was, she was currently unconscious and posed no threat.
Without hesitation, Jon lifted her out of the broken shell.
After retrieving some clothing and a stretcher from his space, he placed the woman—who likely possessed the blood of the Dragonlords—onto it.
A Three-headed Hellhound was roughly the size and strength of a bull. By attaching the stretcher to it, Jon ensured she could be transported along with him.
During the subsequent exploration, Jon did not find much else of value.
Although he discovered similar stone eggs in other rooms, the life within them had long since disappeared.
However, he collected all the research materials present.
Combined with the records he had previously obtained in King's Landing, Jon was now capable of perfectly reproducing certain forms of Blood Magic.
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