The Cursed Sword...
This was the treasure they had discovered since arriving at World Scar and searching for treasure in the first area Alka had chosen.
The treasures in the first area Alka had carefully chosen were indeed the ones they had found the most treasures in.
It was also quite fitting.
Now it was finally time to claim this treasure.
One could only hope that it would find a suitable wielder among them.
Otherwise, finding an orange treasure without a suitable wielder would be a frustrating situation even for them, just like the Cloud Staff.
Soon, everyone began to return.
Jason walked in, sat on the sofa, and said, "It seems the books we've distributed are starting to build our reputation."
They were already a well-known presence in this city, and by now, everyone in World Scar should be familiar with them.
Especially Lucilia's account of their experiences.
Once their autobiography spreads throughout the world, they might become one of the most famous treasure-hunting groups in the Vast Sea.
Their treasure-hunting experiences are truly outrageous, and they've obtained an incredible amount of treasure along the way.
And these experiences are traceable.
This also means that the more specialized books written by each of them will begin to spread.
"Rest for a few days, then it's time to retrieve the last treasure."
Alka said, shaking the mirror card in his hand.
Kalande inside seemed to have resigned himself to his imprisonment. He huddled in a corner, lying flat on his back, seemingly sound asleep.
It seemed he hadn't yet grasped the seriousness of the situation.
After a few days of rest, Alka and his companions left the City of Return just as the curtain of night had begun to fall over the sky.
They flew on the floating mirror vehicle toward their destination, which wasn't far from them. After about a day's journey, they finally arrived.
Just like their first visit, the desolate wilderness was devoid of anything of note.
Alka closed his eyes and began to carefully sense his surroundings.
Compared to last time, Alka's perception had heightened due to his strength and the connection between his dreams.
This time, he finally felt it. The space between the layers wasn't a layer within space, but rather between reality and dreams.
But this layer seemed to be protected by something?
"What should we do?" Sofia asked from the side.
Alka thought for a moment.
Between his fingers, he grasped a mirror card.
And within the mirror lay the sealed Kalande.
A crack appeared in the mirror. Kalande's aura began to emanate from the crack.
The sealed Kalande seemed resigned to his fate, but the moment he sensed the crack, he immediately pressed himself against the mirror, as if searching for its location.
Seeking a chance to escape.
As the aura reached them, a noticeable disturbance appeared in the air before them, and a bizarre landscape began to shift around them.
The aura of the dream began to diffuse.
This had clearly once been a weak point leading to the dream. The powerful being who wielded the cursed sword had apparently used some method to transform this weak point into the place where he hid his legacy.
As the disturbance shifted, a thin crack appeared in space.
A broad-bladed longsword pierced from it.
Then, with a gentle downward stroke, the crack completely opened. A figure emerged, dragging a greatsword.
Only then did everyone realize that the one holding the greatsword wasn't a human, but a humanoid corpse.
The corpse still wore armor, but it was worn and rotten, bearing the scars of past battles.
"Kalande... I smell Kalande. Where is this coward?"
A hoarse voice rang out.
It wasn't the language currently spoken in the Scars of the World, but Alka had heard it before. It was probably the common language of the Saralan Empire in the Demon-Proof Fortress.
Though he only barely grasped the basics, he could still make out what he was saying.
Poro Rogerson and the others behind him could only look puzzled, unsure of what was being said.
The corpse's hollow eyes darted towards the card in Alka's hand, then slowly approached, dragging the greatsword.
Alka sensed no hostility from him, so he remained cautious. The hollow eye sockets seemed to still hold eyes, staring intently at Kalande, sealed within the mirror.
Kalande was now facing the mirror, frantically searching, searching for the exact location of the crack.
Looking at Kalande, like a lost dog or a bird in a cage, Alka could clearly sense the emotions emanating from the mummy before him.
The emotions were intense.
"This coward who escaped has ended up like this... Hahahaha."
His voice was unusually harsh, like two pieces of rusty iron rubbing against each other.
The mummy collapsed to the ground, leaning on the greatsword in its hand. It raised its withered head and looked at Alka.
"You are not a demon, nor have you been tainted by the aura of the abyss. You still possess the power of the Virgin Mary.
Young man, did you bring the Kalande Seal here for this treasure?"
The mummy seemed to clearly understand Alka's goal.
After all, only this treasure was worth it.
At this, Alka nodded without hesitation.
"Yes, I came for the Curse Sword."
"I don't know how you knew I was hiding here, nor why you knew I wanted Kalande's life. But that doesn't matter." As he spoke, an inexplicable sense of majesty emanated from his hollow eyes.
He asked, "Young man, let me ask you... Have you heard of the Curse Sword Family?"
Alka nodded.
"So... are there any descendants of this family left now?"
Arka nodded again and said, "Yes, and he's still on the front lines fighting the demons, trying to drive them out of this place."
"Hahahaha, that's good. You're worthy of being a descendant of the family."
"It seems you're quite familiar with this descendant of mine."
"Yes, very familiar."
The mummy nodded and stood up from the ground, holding the greatsword.
"If you want this treasure, let me witness the death of this demon."
Hearing this, Arka glanced at the sealed Kalande on the mirror card, thought for a moment, and asked, "Will you not kill your enemy?"
"Oh? Can you still release him and ensure he doesn't escape? You know, he escaped from my hands just like that before, and I lost the chance to avenge my family," the mummy said.
Clearly, to sever even the slightest chance of Kalande's life, the mummy would rather forgo the chance to kill its enemy.
"Of course," Alka said, as a surge of power poured into the mirror's space. During Kalande's impotent period, that power coalesced into chains that pierced his limbs and bound him across his chest and abdomen.
Lusilia, perched on his shoulders, also merged her own power into the mix.
Through Lusilia's power, the chains composed of elemental and dream power even bound Kalande's soul, pinning him firmly in place.
Even Kalande's soul couldn't escape, bound securely to his body, bound by the chains that pierced his body and bound his soul.
Though the process was slow, the sealed Kalande was powerless to resist. After all, the realm where he was truly sealed was the dream. And within the dream, Alka was the absolute master.
Although they couldn't hear Kalande's voice, they could see through the mirror what looked like him roaring and snarling.
The mirror card in his hand shattered.
A large mirrored space expanded beneath their feet, then reversed, enveloping them, including the mummy before them, in the opposite dimension.
Then, cloud creatures emerged one after another, guarding against any unforeseen events.
This left Kalande with no chance of escape, even if he committed suicide.
As the mirror shattered, Kalande appeared before everyone.
He fell to his knees, restrained by his chains.
As he emerged, he roared furiously at Alka.
"Coward, face me, let me go, and I will tear you to pieces!"
Alka ignored his roar. The mummy looked at Kalande and said, "Coward? Are you describing yourself? You deserter among the demons."
At the mummy's words, Kalande turned sharply.
Seeing the mummy and the greatsword in his hand, he seemed to understand everything.
"You damned human! How dare you remain in this world in such an ugly state?"
He had no idea how a demon could possibly have the right to curse the undead.
"Atone for your cowardly actions, for slaughtering the weak."
As the mummy spoke, it unknowingly activated the greatsword in its hand.
The entire sword formed a strange state, and then it pierced the demon's chest.
"Ahhhhh!"
Kalande screamed frantically, his voice filled with screams of pain.
The sword seemed to possess an unknown power that seemed to be extremely powerful in suppressing demons, forcing everyone to observe closely.
The greatsword's power raged wildly, slicing through the demon's soul. Amidst its roar, the entire demon was reduced to ash in a strange, burning inferno. This time, Alka hadn't even seen its soul.
In other words, it had completely slain it.
"This sword... can actually kill the soul directly, even before it destroys the body."
Lucelia, clearly seeing more than the others, said.
This would prevent the demon from escaping into the abyss even the slightest chance.
At this point, the mummy sank to the ground, powerless.
Standing with the sword in hand, he trembled and looked up at Lucelia.
"Haha, little girl, you really have good taste."
"It seems... this sword suits you very well."
He then grasped the hilt with his last remaining strength and hurled it directly at her. Upon hearing this, Lucilia hurried to catch it, but as her tiny body gripped the hilt, she nearly fell with it.
Thankfully, she immediately transformed into a spirit, returning to normal human size, and was able to grasp the sword.
"As expected, it suits you perfectly."
As the corpse spoke, its entire body began to crumble, its body beginning to break and its skin peeling off piece by piece.
He knew his life was coming to an end.
"Finally... what a pity." It was unclear what he was lamenting, but he looked up at Alka and said.
"In that dimension, in the dimension I'm staying in, there are some family items left.
I hope you can pass these on to future generations. Thank you..."
Amidst his words of gratitude, the corpse completely crumbled to ash.
Observing this, Alka waved his hand, a breeze swept up, and the ashes fell into the container Alka had prepared.
It was a square urn, improvised by Alka using Earth and Fire cards.
It bore no pattern.
After packing it up, he placed it in his pocket ring. He then placed the remaining broken armor in the same pocket ring, waiting to hand it to Greyfor.
The world flipped, and they returned to reality.
The crack remained.
Alka fixed it in place, preventing it from being repaired by the surrounding environment.
Then he looked over to see Lucilia, her spirit in a normal humanoid form, clutching a greatsword.
Only then did Alka have time to examine the blade closely.
The handle was slender, and at the end of the handle was a large, fist-sized crystal.
Strange carvings could be seen within the crystal, though the overall crystal was rather dim.
But just now, when the mummy wielded this weapon, the crystal was twisting, a shimmer of light emanating from it.
The handle was wrapped in a grayish-white cloth, upon which were carved rows of blue incantations.
Followed by a wide guard, a full 30 centimeters wide.
The base of the blade was also approximately 20 centimeters wide, exceedingly broad.
The blade narrowed as it ascended, reaching its tip. The blade's overall shape was triangular.
The blade was densely inscribed with incantations, as if a book had been inscribed directly onto it.
"Try it out," Alka said.
After all, this artifact clearly displayed some spiritual characteristics, clearly suited to Lucelia.
Upon hearing this, Lucelia nodded and immediately channeled her magic power from her current soul state to the blade.
The entire blade immediately began to feel different. First, the large crystal at the base began to twist and emit light.
The spells on the cloth strips on the handle began to glow, and those on the blade also began to illuminate one by one.
The entire weapon did not reject Lucelia's magic at all, but instead readily accepted it. Clearly, this artifact was perfectly compatible with Lucelia. The entire process of mastering it seemed incredibly simple, without any exaggerated special effects.
As Lucelia mastered the artifact,
She also learned some of the artifact's abilities, but it was obviously impossible to demonstrate these abilities to Alka and the others in person, so she could only describe them.
"This sword can sever the bond between a living being's body and soul, separating it into soul and body.
It can also kill the soul without harming the body, or the body without harming the soul.
It can also enhance the power of certain spells."
This treasure appears unusually plain and unpretentious, its abilities simple, yet its power is considerable.
No wonder Kalande escaped.
Clearly, if this treasure were used, it would be a sure-kill sword for demons.
After all, a demon's soul succumbed to this blade and would undoubtedly never return to the Abyss.
Even if it dragged its remaining soul back, it would be mere food for other demons, practically guaranteeing its own death.
It's a shame that the general who possessed this treasure perished at the very beginning.
It's hard not to wonder if he had been targeted long ago.
"Let's go in and take a look."
Ah As Alka spoke, he led everyone through the crack and into the interior.
This space was not unlike reality, though closer to a dream, making the surroundings somewhat bizarre, but not overly abstract.
Within this bizarre space, Alka and the others saw a large number of demonic bodies.
They were scattered in piles all around.
These demonic bodies were completely devoid of souls, only their shells remained.
In the distance, a large pile of ashes could be seen. Those were the ashes of souls, and the source of these ashes was clearly these demons.
"That's impressive," Jason couldn't help but exclaim.
After all, they had been dealing with demons for so long that they could easily deduce their strength in life from their bodies.
From these bodies, it was clear that none of them were below the fifth stage.
Alka even saw several seventh-stage demonic bodies scattered around, as well as several gigantic Titans.
These could clearly form an entire demonic army, but the general wielding the cursed sword had slain them all.
"Let's split up and see."
With that, the group dispersed.
Soon, Alka found a small box and opened it. It contained family portraits and small, seemingly commemorative items.
There were also historical records that constructed the family epic and some unique family spells.
Clearly, the items inside represented the continuity and honor of a family.
He put them away in his pocket ring.
Looking at the numerous demonic bodies around him, Alka began to toss them one by one into the space.
They were all so well-preserved, they were all materials.