Chapter 144: The Yitel Legacy (3/3)

“The lost legacy of the Iter Dynasty?” Zhao Xu asked in surprise. “It’s right there in your hands, Mentor?”

“It’s not in my hands—then whose would it be?” Antinoa replied softly.

“So the authority over that legacy lies with you, Mentor?” Zhao Xu probed cautiously.

“Isn’t it obvious? Who’d dare snatch something from me?” Antinoa showed a rare expression of disdain.

Her confidence stemmed not only from her legendary mage prowess but carried a deeper meaning.

Zhao Xu immediately recalled memories from his past life.

Could it be that in the end, Antinoa was the one who passed the Iter Dynasty’s legacy to Wang Ningwei?

Though he got along well with Wang Ningwei, he never considered handing over his own backpack so willingly.

And that so-called legendary “leadership” specialty—surely it wasn’t about blindly bowing down, was it?

For Antinoa to willingly part with such wealth later on seemed utterly unbelievable to Zhao Xu.

“Are you ready?” Antinoa closed her book, stood up, and stretched slightly.

Zhao Xu glanced around to ensure he hadn’t left anything behind, then nodded.

Antinoa raised her hand, tracing a circle in the empty space ahead.

Suddenly, a powerful magical force surged within the quiet room, coalescing into a doorframe that tore open the calm spatial barrier.

Zhao Xu stared at the unstable frame, shimmering with azure currents that danced incessantly. Through it, he saw a grand stone gate on the other side.

This was the Gate to Another World spell!

“The Gate to Another World originally connects two different planes. Although the Iter Dynasty’s legacy is on Arthur, a massive spatial barrier means only this method can reach it; simple teleportation won’t work.”

Antinoa gazed at the portal she conjured. “Stop daydreaming—go through.”

Zhao Xu stepped through first.

The process was so smooth it felt like walking from one corner of a room to another. Even after passing through, he could see Antinoa crossing the threshold of her office behind him.

He thought to himself that Wang Ningwei’s earlier conclusion—based on a secret rune left in the elevator shaft—about not teleporting might not be entirely accurate.

When Antinoa reached the vast stone chamber, nearly a hundred meters tall, she dismissed the Gate to Another World spell, which vanished into nothingness.

Teleportation or summoning creatures are the two primary functions of the Gate.

“Mentor, if I summon a deity through the Gate, would it succeed?” Zhao Xu asked, curiosity piqued.

The Gate was nearly a spell Zhao Xu himself almost mastered.

“Heh, you can try,” Antinoa said with a slight mocking smile. “Deities can indeed cross the Gate to reach Arthur. But it’s meaningless. Arthur’s primary material plane seals divine power—the stronger the deity, the tighter the seal. That’s why gods usually send avatars instead.”

“Otherwise, gods could just sweep through entire worlds themselves, no need to painstakingly build churches. It’s simply beyond their reach.”

Listening to Antinoa’s explanation, Zhao Xu understood.

Put crudely, Arthur was like an anthill: gods wanting to enter must transform into ants to sneak inside.

Zhao Xu then scanned the immense stone chamber—its floor alone rivaling a football field, its height comparable to a thirty- or forty-story residential building.

Even a massive dragon could spread its wings and soar here.

Directly ahead were two smooth, mirror-like stone doors engraved with a line in Arthur’s common tongue:

“Gods, begone!”

Seeing such blasphemous words, Zhao Xu felt stunned despite not being a level-one priest.

Even the Mage Association wouldn’t dare declare that openly.

No one in Arthur would carve such words at their doorstep—not even heretics worshiping Abyss, Hell, or dark gods would be so brazen.

“Mentor, I thought the fall of the Iter Dynasty wasn’t related to the gods?” Zhao Xu asked softly.

He had now approached the stone door and noticed it was constructed from two enormous blocks of onyx.

In Arthur, gemstones hold stable value since they provide the mystical energy needed for spells—a common onyx gem costs fifty gold coins.

Antinoa stepped forward silently, lost in thought.

“Call me ‘Mother’,” she said.

Zhao Xu turned his face in bafflement.

Why suddenly bring up family ties?

“Only those of the Iter bloodline can enter this treasure.”

“If you don’t call me ‘Mother’ to form that bond, the stone door won’t be fooled. Even if I use Phase Door, you won’t pass.”

“Big sister,” Zhao Xu said helplessly, lacking the courage to say “little sister.”

“Heh, so you’re not that foolish after all,” Antinoa chuckled softly.

She then cast a spell, opening a Phase Door—a spirit realm passage that can bypass all obstacles.

Zhao Xu had already used this spell to reach the mysterious projection space of the final scroll, so he stepped through without hesitation.

As he walked, he asked, “If future Iter descendants can’t reach the ninth circle and cast eighth- or ninth-level spells like Gate to Another World or Phase Door, does that mean they can’t even try for this treasure?”

Antinoa followed through and replied, “Without even legendary status, possessing this treasure only leads to a dead end.”

Having reached the far side, Zhao Xu looked out over nearly boundless underground pits and was utterly shocked.

Countless rows of densely packed magical automata stood stacked beneath him, so numerous he couldn’t even begin to count.

Zhao Xu found it hard to imagine—was Ernest really copying Qin Shi Huang’s terracotta army idea?

He shook his head silently as he inspected the front rows—these were mithril and adamantine automata, or rather, legendary automata.

This army alone could found a country with ease, let alone conquer Arthur.

Zhao Xu now confirmed that Earth’s forces in his previous life only obtained a fraction of this legacy; otherwise, they would have been invincible.

He also recalled Ryan’s words—that Ernest’s secret hoard was nearly ten or twenty times larger than this fake one.

Suddenly, Zhao Xu felt childish for coveting Antinoa’s 1.44 million gold coins worth of +12 legendary intelligence headband.

This left him puzzled.

“Mentor, what god did the Iter Dynasty offend that even with this automata army they couldn’t restore their kingdom?”

“Who told you the Iter legacy was meant for restoring their kingdom?” Antinoa retorted.

Zhao Xu wanted to say “legend,” but the very person from the legend stood before him, so he wisely stayed silent.

“Let’s go,” Antinoa took his hand. “Once inside, we can teleport. You won’t be able to treat these automata as mere magical pets.”

After a brief spatial distortion, Zhao Xu found himself in a small chamber.

Historically, great dynastic treasures were stored in vast halls filled with gold and riches.

But this time, he was in a modest room lined with shelves holding various items.

“There are about a hundred rooms like this,” Antinoa said. “This one holds the finest treasures. Though I took plenty, what remains is still impressive.”

“You can only take one item, though,” she added with a smile.

Choosing a single treasure from a mountain of riches can be more tormenting than choosing none at all.

Zhao Xu scanned the shelves, admiring potential magical pets for the future.

Antinoa noticed him picking up a box of ivory cards in a leather case and chuckled, “If I were you, I’d put that down quietly.”

“Artifact?” Zhao Xu immediately withdrew his hand, placing the ivory cards back respectfully.

“The Cards of Everchanging Destinies,” Antinoa explained. “Whatever you draw, you must bear the consequences. There’s the Ruin card that strips all wealth, the Void card that imprisons the soul, and the Moon card granting one to four wishes. It involves aspects of the fate deity. I don’t dare draw either.”

Zhao Xu shook his head, recognizing the danger.

“What’s this? Can I take it?” he asked, pointing to a black stone.

Antinoa glanced over. “Alchemist’s Stone. It can turn a thousand pounds of lead into gold, or if you crack it open and mix the magical mercury and potions inside, pouring it on a corpse works like a ninth-level divine spell—Complete Resurrection.”

Zhao Xu thought it useful but not suitable for him.

Suddenly, his eyes caught the top shelf.

He inhaled deeply.

A whole row of nine Dragon Orbs.

Including the Golden Dragon Orb in Antinoa’s dimensional bag, there were orbs corresponding to ten types of dragons—from chromatic to the five metallic dragons.

In his past life, what could Ernest have done to the dragon clan to force him to forge these Dragon Orbs?

“Mentor, the number of artifacts here is terrifying,” Zhao Xu said. “How much more dreadful must Ernest’s real hoard be?”

Antinoa turned away, facing an undying eternal flame that had burned for who knew how many years.

“Back then, Ernest felt he was about to leave this world. But he worried about being alone, so he drained the magical empire that once ruled all of Arthur, stockpiling countless resources in his secret hoard.”

“As payment to the gods, so that after his departure, the one he cared about could survive.”

“This Iter Dynasty legacy is what Ernest truly wanted to leave for the person he entrusted—it’s why there are relatively more artifacts.”

Zhao Xu scrutinized Antinoa. “Mentor, could that person be you?”

“You’re overthinking it. Hurry and choose,” she said. “If it were me, you’d hear a different story.”

Zhao Xu thought that would be absurd—if Antinoa traced back before the first Magical Goddess’s ascension, that would be too much.

Suddenly, his gaze settled on an item tucked away in the corner of a shelf.

He realized he had found his true objective.