A Bag Full of Treasures

The skeleton with the two axes broke free from the Eternal Grasp not even a minute after its companion vanished and attacked the hideous human as if possessed by a demon.

Like his fallen companion, this one possessed a shred of intelligence and techniques similar to real martial cultivators.

In fact, from the way he caroused with his two weapons, it was evident that he possessed a discrete mastery of them.

It was his first battle against a dual-weapon user for Atlas, and he found it more strenuous than the previous fight.

Mainly when the enemy used the right-hand weapon to block the shield and the left-hand spear to tear his flesh.

One wound after another aggravated the young man's already precarious situation.

Fortunately, the techniques at his disposal were perfect for such a battle. Between regeneration and slowing down the enemy, thanks to the power of gravity, the gaps due to the difference in level gradually disappeared.

In particular, the situation improved when Atlas found the right strategy to counter the enemy.

In fact, four blows were enough to defeat the last enemy.

After the enemy's soul was purified, the young man collapsed to the ground without any shred of Chaos Energy left in his body. Still, from the corner of his eye, he constantly kept the area under control, ready to block a possible lethal attack like before.

BOOM!! BOOM!! BOOM!!

Terrifying explosions kept coming from the distance.

Atlas could clearly hear the old man yelling at someone or something.

"Shameless spirit... how dare you to meddle in the battles of others..."

OMH!!!!

BOOM!!

His voice was filled with anger and seemed to refer to what had happened before.

"... go back to the hell with your corrupt soul!"

Skriii!!!!

A deafening screech shook the air, and then absolute silence returned.

Gulp! Gulp! Gulp!

Suddenly, the young man heard the distinctive noise of that old drunkard and found him looking at his body from top to bottom with a strange expression: "So you are still alive..."

"Apparently…" Atlas replied with a grim expression.

Gulp! Gulp!

"Hehehe… better this way. Since everything is fine, we should go back!"

Drunkum was ready to go back aboard his little boat, but Atlas stopped him by pointing his index finger at his nose: "Old man… wait a minute. I was pierced in the back because of you. Collect all the weapons and pieces of armor in that room, and I'll pretend nothing has happened!"

Thinking about it, Drunkum found his request reasonable, so he vanished for a moment, reappearing shortly after with a giant sack full of goodies.

"Here we go… Let's get out of this place now. We have wasted too much time."

Atlas had already hidden the fearsome spear that had pierced his back in the Space Bag, so he took Drunkum's hand and vanished from that dark place.

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Drunkum said nothing more during the trip and closed his eyes, enjoying the light breeze around them. As for Atlas, he decided to rest and focus on much more important matters.

Enveloped by the tranquility that reigned on the boat, the young man brought out from Nihiste the huge bag containing Drunkum's booty and admired its interior with amazement.

'Great… There are weapons and fragments of various ranks. Truly a big catch. This time, I can satiate my faithful companion to its heart's content! Hehehe...'

Seeing all those artifacts, he was so elated that he began sorting each one of them without further ado.

It was definitely a massive pile of stuff. There were not only weapons and fragments but also a long-reinforced armor and a rather peculiar belt.

Tempted by those two objects wrapped in the purple glow, Atlas set them aside and arranged the weapons and fragments in order.

Before, he had decided to hide the unique power of Astra, but after the last battle and the sincere talk with the old man on the beach, he decided to test his heart. After all, he couldn't wait anymore and needed power now more than ever.

There were many fragments, so he began to devour them immediately, bringing the tip of the pickax closer to the pile.

As the process began, Atlas's eyes moved toward the other old man, and surprisingly, Dunkum didn't open his eyes or even make a slight movement. He simply stood there in silence, enjoying the cool breeze from the front.

'Well... better this way...'

Soon, the first phase ended, and the young man moved on to weapons, which were still intact but slightly rusty.

For an hour, the pickaxe never stopped vibrating as if rejoicing for the delicious meal, and when the pile was almost gone, the few things that remained to be consumed were the two pieces of armor and the two weapons surrounded by a golden glow.

Atlas had left the two weapons last for obvious reasons. Other than requiring a massive amount of Chaos Energy, they both had flamboyant Chaos Runes on their bodies.

The blunt-tipped sword had a brilliant flame-shaped Chaos Rune, which seemed to dance with each thrust, while the small dagger, with the blade chipped in several places, had a very peculiar one that he had never seen.

OHM!!!

The Chaos Energy flowed from his body almost instantly, and the consequences were evident. In fact, the young man felt an intense feeling of tiredness.

Unfortunately, the flamboyant Flaming Rune was lost, and the weapon was disintegrated.

The odds of success were not very high, but he was not discouraged and instead switched to the last weapon, the dagger with the incomprehensible Rune.

The process was the same as before, but the dagger's Rune was successfully obtained this time.

Next to the two Chaos Runes, something new had appeared.

Incredibly, the power of the Rune in the weapon had been fully absorbed by Astra, making that very common pickaxe even more lethal.

Now that it appeared on the pickaxe's head, its purple features were more evident.

It had a shape very similar to a small bell-shaped flower, with the base of the petals tending to violet and the top as white as snow...

Seen in its entirety, the young man, who had a fair knowledge of the alchemical field, immediately realized the origin of the Rune.

"Incredible… has a very similar shape to the jimson weed, and from what I remember, Grandma also called it the devil's snare for its gruesome properties in the field of poisons."

His assumptions were not far from the truth.

Indeed, as soon as he recalled the information about the plant, Chaotiss's vast knowledge filled his mind with an enormous load of details.

"...Imbued with the evil whisper of a demon, the Rune's power wears the enemy's mind and leads them to eternal rest. Each blow can corrode the enemy's mind. So, this is the Chaos Rune Devil's Fang, created from the seeds of thousands of cursed flowers and the blood of a demon..."

"...Definitely lethal against living creatures. But in this world where only cursed spirits reign... it will be pretty useless."

The young man was excited about the new magical power but also annoyed because he could not immediately test its effects.

In fact, he had to wait to fight against living creatures because it was well-known that the evil spirits had high resistance against poison.

The advancement of the pickaxe was complete, so now the only thing left was to discover the two objects brought back by Drunkum.

At first, the young man was more inclined to unravel the armor's mystery, but in the end, he grabbed the belt made from a strange skin.

At first glance, it did not seem anything special. On the contrary, thinking back that the last owner of the treasure was a damned skeleton, the battered conditions did not affect him that much.

To the touch, it was rather particular because it was not smooth but followed a specific pattern, probably because of the magical creature's skin.

The outer part was made up of tiny red thorns with blunt black tips like the night.

In addition, in the position of the hips, there were two small bags, ideal for storing items for quick use, such as potions, coins, or hidden weapons.

He had already been captivated enough by the shape, so he tried to unveil its origin.

While staring at the object, the soul of the Mad Saint delivered a lot of information again...

"So... this belt is made of Blazerus's leather, a descendant of the Magma Infernal Salamander. It's an excellent object. It guarantees high resistance to elevated temperatures and is almost indestructible against Fire Techniques. Truly a worthy Primordial Artifact."

Satisfied with the first item, Atlas moved on to the next one, the reinforced armor.

The upper part was mainly made of rigid and elastic black leather.

The lower part, on the other hand, was rather particular because it had the inner part made of a very delicate cotton, probably also of a magical creature, and the outer part formed by intricate conjunction of tiny metal plates, firmly connected to each other by a blue thread almost imperceptible.

"Hmm… Small plates of Merutium connected with robust silk produced by a creature of the arachnid family. Interestingly, it offers excellent elasticity while guaranteeing indisputable resistance. What a fine piece..."

The teachings of the old dwarf turned out to be really useful.

In fact, he could quickly determine the armor's great potential.

"The leather of Viperia... ensure excellent protection from lacerations and high resistance to poisons. The Meritium plates, held securely by Araniu silk, can withstand and wedge the tips of the deadliest weapons in the same rank... What a marvelous Primordial Artifact..."

The Viperia was a fearsome magical creature of the East, with three horns on its head, two with the tip arched towards its long tail, and one placed centrally as the tip of a spear, a creature similar to a nocturnal lizard.

Even the Araniu was not a magical creature to be underestimated. In fact, some books tell strange stories about them.

In particular, from Old Mold, the old dwarf of the village of Nevery, he had heard that these strange creatures of the arachnid family lived inside dark caves in the North and that, surprisingly, the Dwarves of the Fortified City of Drakuun possessed a large herd of them.

They are one of the largest producers of this material, which is primarily used for the continent's finest clothes.

Owning armor made up of such rare items was a more unique than rare opportunity, especially for Atlas, who hadn't shelled out a penny to get it.

The young man was delighted, and the gaudy smile on his face was proof of this.

Thanks to the sleeping spirit Chaotiss, the mysteries that enveloped the objects had been revealed. It was time to change those trivial clothes of little value and wear more powerful magical artifacts.

First, he removed the adventurer's armor, which had two large holes on either side, and then unfastened the belt.

He obtained much more protection and power with the two new items.

The weapon had evolved...

His clothing had been slightly renewed...

The only thing left for him to do now was to understand the origin of that lethal black spear that almost took his poor life...