Chapter 107: The Sealed History of the Former Civilization

Ace watched all of this. It was completely unexpected. Heracles’s father’s soul seemed to use some mysterious technique to carry Heracles’s soul away.

“I still know too little about this supernatural world, especially concerning the soul and its destination. Regardless, Heracles the Fearless, you are a respectable opponent. Without the sacrifice of the mirror image and the pre-designed trap, I would have been unable to defeat and kill you.”

Ace took out the sealed finger from the Monster stomach pouch, casting the incantation “Preserve Freshness” on it. The effect was to keep the organ fresh for 24 hours. The spell could be continuously recast.

“This is an important acquisition. Perhaps I can analyze the secret of Heracles’s regeneration from it.”

Ace murmured. The Mana fluctuations of the entire underground city were now completely chaotic. The Mana-inerting environment had become unstable. The steel dome was precarious, damaged by his Super Potent Infrasound Resonance quasi-spell effect.

“I must leave immediately, or I will become a casualty of this abandoned city. It is unfortunate that I didn’t get to explore the ruins of the high tower. That millstone that siphoned and converted Mana and even souls was also destroyed by Heracles.”

Ace sighed internally as he rapidly traveled using Flash Teleportation.

This was likely the most painful thing for a researcher: watching their potential research subject vanish before their eyes.

He finally reached the dilapidated iron door. The entire underground underpass was shaking violently, seemingly unable to hold up. Ace ran halfway down the underpass. Boom!

He quickly rolled, dodging the collapsing giant rock. The Mana-Crystal Protection Membrane Spell Model in his Soul Sanctuary flickered. Mana gathered, forming a shield around him, similar to an eggshell. Subsequently, he and the Mana-Crystal Protection Membrane were crushed beneath the collapsing passage.

“It shouldn’t be too far from the surface. I can use Flash Teleportation to drill through the ground. I’ll get out eventually!”

Ace thought to himself. He was in no hurry. He had expended a severe amount of Mana during the battle. He planned to maintain the Mana-Crystal Protection Membrane, meditate for a period, recover some mental power, and replenish his Mana.

A few days later, somewhere in the Larr Mountains.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A filthy hand stretched out, followed by the entire earth-covered figure leaping out of the ground.

“I’m out! The days of living like a groundhog are finally over.”

It was Ace, covered in dirt, who had crawled out from underground.

He chanted the incantation, “Fresh and Clean!”

Accompanied by the Mana pulse, the dirt and grime vanished from his black robe, making it look like a well-washed old garment. Ace, too, looked as if he had just bathed, radiating a dry, clean aura.

“This journey to the Larr Mountains was very fruitful! The blessing ritual was successfully completed. My mental power is nearly 10 Mental Power Units, and my overall physical constitution has also greatly improved. At the Pseudo-Hero level, I am extremely powerful based purely on my body and mind, even nearing Hero-tier strength.”

“I also acquired many magical items for research: the dreamlike crystal, the unknown stomach pouch, the live-point map, and Heracles’s severed finger, as well as the gear fragment from the underground high tower. Coupled with the former civilization’s books copied by the Spirit of the Book, it is time to return to the laboratory and get to work!”

Ace walked toward the Northern March Fortress, hunting powerful low-level Monsters along the way, preparing modified Glycerin Magic Tubes, and avoiding any Monsters whose strength exceeded his own.

He had already gained a huge amount. Without sufficient preparation, he could not continue to attempt over-leveled challenges; otherwise, he would inevitably suffer a disastrous failure.

With a mindset focused on consolidating his gains, Ace’s return journey to the Northern March Fortress was very peaceful. During this time, he began to flip through the former civilization’s books copied by the Spirit of the Book.

In The Chronicles of the Augustin Empire, Ace learned the detailed, glorious history of this destroyed former civilization. Augustin Kronos was the son of God-King Kronos and a mortal woman.

The mother, though called mortal, was actually a powerful Legendary Hero and the female leader of the strongest tribe at the time. She conceived by the God-King and gave birth to Augustin, who was born a Legendary Hero. She died after exhausting her life force.

Because his birth caused his mother’s death, Augustin was disliked by the tribe and driven out by the tribal elders. He traveled extensively, gaining notoriety among the various tribes.

During a great Demon invasion, Augustin, relying on his bravery and wisdom, saved several weaker tribes. These tribes decided to form an alliance and supported Augustin as their leader.

In the tribal era, Augustin was like the Son of Destiny, or perhaps he was the Son of Destiny (the son of the God-King). He led the people to defeat the Demon invasion and thwart the Devil’s conspiracy. He himself grew to become the pinnacle of a Legendary Hero, an Eternal Epic Hero.

An Eternal Epic Hero is so named because their power does not diminish even without the people’s singing or memory. They perpetually maintain the peak strength of a legend.

Augustin was not satisfied. He craved more: conquest, power, fine wine, beautiful women, and, most of all, greater strength—the power of a Demigod.

He truly was the Son of Destiny. Relying on his victories against Demons and the subversion of Devil conspiracies, he unified the Kaya Continent with irresistible force. People enthusiastically began calling him the Great Emperor.

From then on, the former civilization transitioned from the Tribal Alliance Era to the Imperial Era, marked by the emergence of a powerful empire infused with barbarism and a strong drive for progress.

This great empire was ruled solely by Augustin. Over nearly a thousand years, the civilization evolved from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age, from the Iron Age to the Classical Age, and from the Classical Age to the Steam Age.

Augustin consistently governed with an enlightened mindset, fully utilizing the wisdom of the people. The thousand years of waiting were finally rewarded in the Steam Age.

Steam mechanics began to be used extensively. People discovered that inscribing runes onto machinery with supernatural materials could unlock unimaginable power. However, the ordinary mortals, who formed the largest base of the empire, actually restricted the empire’s development potential.

At this point, an agronomist presented the Great Emperor with a grand suggestion. This agronomist had spent nearly 50 years cultivating superior seeds, greatly increasing the yield of the imperial farmlands. Augustin greatly respected him and listened patiently to his advice.

A few days later, a stark policy named Universal Divine Blood Policy began implementation. Divine Descendant families were prohibited from being insular. Male Divine Descendants were required to take at least 20 mortal wives.

With 20 years defined as one generation for a person to reach maturity, the goal was to divinize the bloodline of the entire populace over 30 generations!

Ignoring the protests and unrest of mortal men, the entire empire gradually became divinized over the course of several hundred years. After 300 years, there were almost no pure-blooded mortals left in the empire. Everyone was strong as an ox and could leap three times their height. They utilized their innate abilities, manipulating Mana-imbued machinery for production, daily life, and combat.

This was an era of universal supernatural power!