"The ruins of this temple... are still 20 meters deep."
Sofia's voice was filled with confusion.
She had already scanned this area of ruins thoroughly; it must have been a large temple.
The building had almost completely collapsed, but the manner of its collapse was somewhat peculiar.
It was as if someone had struck it in the middle, breaking it into three sections and tumbling into one heap.
That meant the pile of ruins alone was a good 20 meters high, and with the spire at the top, which was relatively well-preserved and upright, the entire ruins were likely around 35-40 meters high.
Excluding the well-preserved spire, a height of over 20 meters was already quite high. And that was just the height of the ruins. If it had been a solid structure, the temple would have been at least 100 meters tall.
Based on this height, the estimate was:
Of all the buildings they'd built, the only one that could rival this height was the statue of the Virgin Mary in the center of the cathedral.
That statue was much taller.
But one is a statue, the other a temple; the two are clearly different.
Not to mention, these ruins date back who knows how many years.
"Twenty meters high?" Alka thought for a moment, then asked, "The ruins after the collapse?"
"Yes."
By that calculation, the building's height is truly outrageous.
And judging by the information in the treasure, it certainly can't be the tallest in the entire city-state.
Because the ruins of this temple were clearly just a research institute, one among many other temple ruins used for research.
The height of a building can also indirectly reflect the level of development of a civilization.
Especially in a world filled with islands.
And so on.
A sudden thought struck Alka, realizing he'd reached a dead end.
Who says these ruins must be from a civilization dating back to the War of Gods?
After realizing this, a lot suddenly became clear.
"Don't worry about it. Let's see what Lucilia can analyze."
"Scan more. We might even need to dig deeper."
Sofia nodded, concentrating on his work.
Although much of the ruins had been exposed, it was clear that not much was clear and useful.
After carefully examining everything, Lucilia spoke, "The Sapphire Temple was once the ruins' name, but there are numbers 3 and 2 after it. I don't know what they mean.
There's also a person named Vita, known as the Grand Master.
We haven't found much. Dig a little more and see if I can find more information."
Hearing Lucilia's words, Sofia had already begun marking more marks and outlines as he dug deeper.
This time, they had to be even more careful to avoid causing further damage to this ancient ruin.
The excavation continued at a brisk pace; with some experience, no damage was done.
Although the building had collapsed, it hadn't completely collapsed into a heap of debris.
Because it collapsed in three sections, the main structure of each section remained relatively intact.
After completely excavating the top section, they entered through a broken hole.
But even if it hadn't been crushed by the collapsed ruins, it was still empty.
Countless things had long since vanished under the passage of time.
Only some patterns and text on the surrounding walls still contained information. Though still blurry, they were much better than those outside.
Arka and the others didn't enter, instead letting the smaller puppet girl enter to avoid further damage.
"This place seems to have been used for some kind of research, focusing on gathering magical energy. That person named Vita seems to be the one leading this project."
This time, Lucilia had clearly gained more information.
After hearing this, Arka felt they had enough information and immediately took out the map to examine it.
[Treasure Information: Vastwa 3-6 Project, research conducted using Grand Master Vita's Sapphire Temple as a research center.] The research topic is how to gather magic power stably and efficiently, and filter it into a higher magic factor that is more suitable for absorption.
Using the secret code, they entered the temple's overlapping space, where the completed first version of the product was stored.
Sure enough, with the information Lucilia had obtained twice, the information about the treasure was basically complete.
We knew what the treasure was, its origin, and its location.
Then, crucially, the method of obtaining the treasure became the most difficult part of the expanded information.
But in some cases, it was also the least important, as the map markers could skip this process.
For the treasures Alka and his team had recovered, the complete acquisition process for more than half was unknown.
Because most treasures are easily obtained once their hiding places are known.
As for the specific information about the treasure, in some cases, it is actually unimportant.
Unless the treasure itself was deliberately hidden, in which case, even knowing the exact location would make it difficult to access it.
For example, the classic Twelve Treasure Houses.
In reality, however, most treasures are relics left behind by their original owners due to accidents.
"Superimposed space..."
Mumbling softly, Alka couldn't help but think of the temple ruins that had inexplicably activated upon their arrival on this island.
They had also been suddenly transported to another location at that time, and similarly, they had recited a secret code.
However, that void was likely underground, not some so-called superimposed space.
Now, the treasure clearly stated that to obtain it, one must utter the secret code.
Apparently, it was the key to activating the ruins.
So, the question was, what could the secret code be?
Could it be that, like with the temple before, simply stating its name would suffice? Looking at Shadaiti and the others who were still preparing to continue digging, Alka immediately said, "Wait."
Hearing this, everyone turned to look at him.
Alka looked at Lucilia, thought for a moment, and said, "Lucilia, please translate what I say into the island's language."
Hearing this, everyone understood what Alka was trying to do.
"You want to activate this ruin? Is that okay?" Shadaiti asked from the side.
Alka nodded, "Don't worry."
Hearing Alka's words, they stopped talking.
Lucilia brushed the dirt off herself and jumped onto Alka's shoulders. "Go ahead."
"Vastva"
As Alka finished speaking, Lucilia quickly translated.
But it was clearly ineffective.
"Fourth God."
Useless.
"Vita."
It was useless.
"Sapphire Temple."
Still useless.
...
The two of them continued translating back and forth, speaking a variety of words, even combining them.
But Alka's mouth was dry, and the ruins remained motionless.
Frowning, he gazed at the ruins before him, pondering.
"Why don't we keep digging?" Sofia consoled him.
But Alka was worried that even if they dug deeper and gained more information, they wouldn't necessarily know the secret code.
Clearly, the information gained from the ruins alone wasn't enough to complete the treasure's details, especially with this final wave.
This expansion required a deep understanding of the treasure.
Alka wasn't optimistic about simply studying the ruins.
Thinking for a moment.
Alka spoke again.
"The place of Grand Master Vita."
Lucelia translated the words again.
"It worked!" Julia, who had been waiting nearby, said immediately.
The surrounding magic power was rising.
This time, no ripples spread. Instead, Alka and the others standing on the ruins disappeared in an instant.
A trance and a sense of weightlessness brought everyone to the ground.
The surrounding environment also changed with the momentary darkness.
A faint glow clung to the surrounding walls, illuminating the entire space and allowing everyone to clearly see their surroundings.
Alka turned and took in his surroundings.
It was a rectangular space, seemingly quite large.
The walls were carved with very regular patterns, and the light emanated from these patterns.
Along the walls, various instruments and tables were placed, each holding an unknown object.
The walls were also covered in various papers, making the surroundings appear somewhat cluttered, yet remarkably well-preserved.
Arka immediately spotted a blue object nestled among the scattered objects on a table at the very front of the room.
It lay casually on the table, looking no different from the surrounding instruments.
Porollo reached out and touched the paper on the wall.
With his touch, the paper instantly crumbled into ash, vanishing into thin air.
Watching this unfold, Porollo's hand froze in mid-air.
"This place is so old. Even without dust, the passage of time is still causing changes," Julia said, surveying the surroundings.
As they entered, the air that flowed in, along with the subtle movement of their breathing, was already causing some of the paperwork on the tables and walls to dissolve.
"Don't move. Let me record it. Whatever I can, the better," Lucelia said, fading into the shadows.
She hoped this wouldn't disturb the surroundings.
Everyone else stood still, almost completely holding their breath.
Lucelia quietly emerged from the shadows and began recording the papers on the wall that hadn't been completely damaged.
There were quite a few on the table, too, but unfortunately, most of them were piled up.
Under such circumstances, she didn't dare touch them, and could only observe those that lay on the surface.
The papers began to slowly dissipate, and the collapsing airflow had already begun.
Lucelia could only try her best to memorize them in her mind.
Until the surrounding papers, once used to record information, completely turned to ash, no longer visible.
"I wonder how much time has passed here for this effect to occur. All this air has rushed in since we entered this space."
Julia said nearby, feeling the excavated space.
Everyone began to move around in the space.
Alka looked at the unknown instrument on the table next to him. He touched it with his hand, and it immediately shattered into pieces, falling onto the table.
The table also began to crumble with the movement.
Watching this, everyone froze in their tracks.
Alka waved his hand, "It's okay. These instruments are broken. They're already so fragile, they're useless even if they're left like this."
If they shattered with the slightest touch, what good would it gain from just looking at their appearance? They weren't meant to record anything.
After hearing Alka's words, everyone began to observe the surroundings with curiosity.
As they touched, various objects began to chip and break.
Everything here had become incredibly fragile with the passage of time.
Alka walked directly to the innermost part, looking at the object with a blue outline.
He was afraid that his touch would shatter the blue object into pieces.
After all, the surrounding objects had also been shattered by the passage of time.
If the blue object did the same, it would be somewhat embarrassing.
After all, it was something they had worked so hard to obtain.
He walked over and gently touched it with a finger. The object shook a few times with his touch, but he could feel its solidity.
This object had not become as fragile as the surrounding objects, which had become brittle with the passage of time.
Alka immediately picked it up.
It was an object resembling a diamond-shaped crystal, its edges edged in bronze metal.
Aside from that, the entire object was remarkably plain. Even the interior of the crystal didn't sparkle, appearing rather dull.
"Your thing isn't broken? What is it?" Jason, who had been touching nearly everything he could, asked curiously, looking at the diamond-shaped crystal in Alka's hand.
Everything around him, including the table, shattered at the slightest touch, but the object in Alka's hand remained perfectly intact.
"This is our target, a magical item."
Upon hearing this, everyone gathered around, curiously examining the crystal in Alka's hands.
And wherever they passed, the tables and objects shattered into fragments, and dust from the debris began to fill the air.
"These things... have been corroded by magic to this point. How long would it take for this to happen?" Simon sighed, seeming to discover the reason for the objects' fragility.
He couldn't imagine an object being corroded to this extent by magic. It would have taken an unimaginably long time.
He shook his head, observing the expressions of the others, and then followed suit, examining the lone object in Alka's hand.
After such a long time, this object had surprisingly remained intact.
It must be an extremely sophisticated magical item, perhaps even able to autonomously absorb the surrounding magic. Otherwise, it wouldn't have survived such a long period without damage.
Ordinary objects and magical items placed in a magical environment would naturally behave differently over time.
This completely piqued his curiosity.
"So what is this thing?" Lucelia asked from the side.
Hearing this, Alka looked at her curiously and shook his head. "Shouldn't I be the one asking you?"
After all, Lucelia was the only one who had seen the information on the drawings, and only she could understand it.
The specifics of this object should have been recorded on those documents.
"Oh, yes." Lucilia patted her head in a daze upon hearing this. She had simply forced the words on the paper into her mind.
She began to recall the words she had just seen and decipher them.
Seeing Lucilia's expression, Sofia smiled and couldn't help but complain, "Your memory is so poor."
It seems to be mismatched with my memories."
"Hehe, this is my most proud skill. I can remember it just by looking at it once."
Lucille said with a smile, then replied, "This object should be the finished product described in the materials. According to the materials, it seems to be the first successfully manufactured item. It's called a Magic Gathering Stone, also known as a Magic Concentrator.
The records above seem to be related to the gathering of magic power, but the specific function is not described in the materials I saw."
After all, she had only seen a small part; the rest of the stacked materials had long since been blown away by the wind.
Alka looked at the crystal in her hand, thought for a moment, and asked, "Should I... give it a try?"
"I suggest we use it after we get out. There's not much magic power left in this space. If we absorb it, it could very well destabilize the entire space." "Julia suggested from the side.
Everyone nodded immediately after hearing this.
It was best to listen to Julia on matters like this.
"Lucelia."
Lucelia nodded at Alka's call and was about to recite it backwards when she suddenly saw something in front of her and jumped over.
"Wait a minute, there's something like a booklet over there. It hasn't disappeared." "
He then let her take it and held it in his arms.
He then recited the spell they had just entered in reverse.
After reciting the unknown language in reverse, everyone immediately disappeared from the spot.
Some magic power was consumed, some was carried away, and the magic power in the space dropped significantly again.
Only the space with little remaining magic power remained, on the verge of destruction, with dust filling the air and debris strewn on the ground.
The same trance-like feeling, coupled with a sense of weightlessness, was felt again.
As their vision went dark, they were once again back above the ruins.
It was exactly the same place they had entered.
But it was clear that the air outside and the flow of magic power were much better than in that space.
"Crack!"
Hearing this sound, Julia immediately shouted, "Back off! The space we just left is shattered! "
Hearing this, the people who had just emerged immediately rolled back without a second thought.
Then a cracking sound rang out, followed by the appearance of something like a crack in the air.
Everyone immediately moved away.