Chapter 106: Chapter 105: Ancient Secret, Clue to the [Hidden Quest]

However, faced with a Dwarf Blacksmith whose true strength was above the Official Level—and who was dead set on completing his gesture of thanks—Jon’s attempt to help him up proved rather useless.

He grabbed Sutton’s arm and tried to lift, but it wouldn’t budge...

’This is awkward...’

So, Jon could only give a wry smile and half-squat beside the Old Dwarf, his attempt to pull him up turning into merely supporting him.

"Sir, why are you so insistent on thanking me like this? You have to explain it to me clearly. I can’t just accept this without knowing why!"

"And that is the other thing I wanted to talk about."

The Old Dwarf straightened up, his gaze burning as he stared at Jon.

"Please, tell me, how exactly did you obtain these ore crystals?"

"Well..."

"If it involves some of your secrets, it’s alright if you don’t say."

Seeing Jon’s slight hesitation, the Old Dwarf immediately added.

"But I still hope you can reveal some of the less-secret information to me. It would be a great help to my research."

Hearing this, the wry smile on Jon’s face faded, replaced by an even stronger sense of self-deprecation.

"It does indeed relate to some of my secrets. But if I can’t even trust you, Sutton, then who in this world can I trust?"

With that, he didn’t waste any time. He directly pulled a round metal case, about the size of a baby’s fist, from his coat and held it out to the Old Dwarf.

"This is the reason for everything."

He briefly recounted the story of how he had entered the mine to search for ore, discovered the Scorpion Mother’s unusual activity, and launched a surprise attack. He explained how the Scorpion Mother had then swallowed a mysterious gem, turning from silver to gold, which led to a bitter fight he ultimately won.

The Old Dwarf listened with rapt attention, not reaching out to touch the case. After Jon finished speaking, he gestured for him to open it.

"I don’t want to take your things. Just let me have a look."

"Alright."

Jon nodded, pressed a spot on the case, and the tightly sealed container sprang open. A dim, earthy yellow light bloomed forth, illuminating Sutton’s face and eyes.

Bathed in this light, the Old Dwarf froze as if he’d been hit by a petrification ray.

After a long moment, his hands began to tremble as they regained function, and a strained sound came from his throat.

"By the beards of my ancestors... This... this is... a relic of an Ancient God...?"

Jon blinked and asked,

"A relic of an Ancient God? What’s that?"

"That... that’s a complicated story..."

Sutton, trembling, steadied himself against a nearby table. He took a few deep breaths to calm his emotions before he began to explain.

"You grew up in this remote little village, so there might be some things you don’t know."

"All the Deities of the present age are new gods, created by the Creation Goddess Yino after the [Ancient God Era]."

"And as for the so-called [Ancient God Era], according to our Dwarf Race’s [Ancient Stone Book], it was a time in the endlessly distant past when the entire world was in a state of chaos. Back then, there was no Human Race, nor were there any Elves. There were only our Dwarf’s earliest ancestors—the Stone Spirits."

At this point, the Old Dwarf couldn’t help but show a hint of pride on his face.

"We can say with complete confidence that we Dwarves are one of the oldest races in this world."

Hearing this, Jon was secretly amazed.

’The Dwarves are descendants of a super-ancient race?’

’This information was never unearthed by players in *Yino*, otherwise I’d definitely remember it!’

The novelty of hearing such an ancient secret made him press on.

"So, sir, what does this have to do with the Ancient God you mentioned?"

"Of course it has a connection!"

Sutton glanced at the gem in Jon’s hand, which was emitting a gentle and profound glow, and twitched his beard.

"Back then, the entire world of Yino was supported by the Ancient Gods—countless and nameless! And our Stone Spirit ancestors were created by the one Ancient God who wielded the power of the earth! This connection is rooted in our very bloodline; it can’t be faked!"

"That’s also why when I saw your gem just now, I felt a calling from my bloodline, and that’s why I couldn’t move!"

"Your gem is definitely related to an Ancient God!"

Even though Jon had been through many grand and perilous quests and faced many terrifying and powerful enemies, after hearing the Old Dwarf’s words, he couldn’t help but widen his eyes slightly.

It wasn’t just because he was amazed that he had obtained such an impressive item on his first Dungeon run, but also because after the Old Dwarf finished recounting this secret history, a line of text popped up before his eyes!

[You have heard an "Ancient Secret" and obtained a mysterious clue]

[View clue?]

These two short lines of text signified something extremely rare, even among players whose footprints covered the entire continent—a [Hidden Quest]!

This was the exclusive Domain of top-tier players. As a former Ordinary player, he could only experience a fraction of the magnificence and mystery of the world of Yino by watching the recap videos made by the pros afterward.

And now, a special accessory he had regarded as a reward for his first Dungeon clear not only had such a grand backstory, but it could also trigger a hidden quest!?

Jon looked at Sutton’s sighing and emotional expression, then back at the [Blood of the Earth] in his hand. In the end, he couldn’t resist the temptation and touched the prompt with his consciousness.

He had never actually experienced what a hidden quest was like!

’It’s just a clue. Taking a peek should be fine, right?’

’Confirm view!’

[Playing clue—]

At that moment, the system’s notification sound seemed to stretch out infinitely.

Immediately after, a vast and complex stream of information, like a cold steel needle, stabbed into his mind!

It was a fragment of "memory" that didn’t belong to him.

In his vision, he seemed to have sunk into the endless darkness deep underground, surrounded by suffocatingly thick layers of rock and soil.

Here, time and space lost all meaning.

Then, Jon "saw" it.

A behemoth that defied description was quietly curled up in the depths of the Earth Core, as if it were one with the entire planet.

It had no fixed form, at times towering like a mountain range, at others flowing like molten magma.

Its every breath caused the earth to rise and fall faintly, like a pulse.

And that [Blood of the Earth] was merely a tiny flake "shed" from the behemoth’s body in its slumber, an insignificant crystallization of its vast Life Force.

This crystal had slowly drifted upward over countless years, eventually reaching the abandoned mine and attracting the rock scorpions to nest there.

The memory fragment ended abruptly there.

[You have obtained a clue: Unknown Object]

[Hidden Quest Triggered: The Earth Slumbers]

The system prompts snapped Jon back to his senses. He lurched backward, like a drowning man suddenly gasping for fresh air.

This sudden movement naturally drew Sutton’s concern. He steadied Jon’s hand and helped him sit down on a low stool.

"Jon, my boy, what’s wrong?"

"It’s... it’s not..."

Jon clutched his chest, his heart still pounding with fear, his gaze fixed on the [Blood of the Earth] in his hand.

"Just now, after I heard what you said... I think I saw the earth Ancient God you were talking about!"

"What!?"

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