After Shibiert shouted those words, a massive, dense golden light circle began to expand from beneath his feet.
In an instant, the grains of sand turned from yellow to gold, and every inch of sand transformed into pure gold. It was as if a strange light covered the entire earth. Moments later, the boundless desert was completely transformed into a dazzling sea of gold.
This golden sea, reflecting the distant golden city, emitted an unbelievably noble and radiant glow, as though an ancient kingdom, recorded in fairy tales, had come to life. Even though Ronan knew this was merely a dream, he still felt a deep sense of shock emanating from his very soul.
The shock didn't only come from the sight before him, but also from what Shibiert had said to him:
Just because he had heard a story as a child, he took action and really created a golden kingdom with his own hands!!
It was so "Shibiert," Ronan thought.
He didn't even know how to describe the feelings rising within him.
At this moment, the only things that weren't golden, that weren't made of gold, were himself, Shibiert, and Shibiert's dog, named "Yitai."
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
Shibiert returned to Ronan's side, standing beside him, squinting his eyes as they gazed at the golden city in the distance.
"I spent my entire life to realize this dream, a dream that seemed absurd and unreasonable to others when I was a child."
Ronan's lips moved slightly, and he spoke, "But you still made it happen, didn't you?"
"Yes."
Shibiert sighed lightly but shook his head. "Actually, I didn't fully achieve it, there's still a lot missing. Unfortunately, I no longer have the time."
"Just like the ambitious old king in the story, he eventually died of old age on his golden throne without waiting for the true immortality."
"Even you cannot resist time?"
Ronan muttered under his breath.
"Me?"
Shibiert smiled lightly and said softly, "I'm still far from it. Perhaps the true 'Shibiert' might have been able to."
"What do you mean?!"
Ronan froze for a moment.
He had always believed the young man before him was the legendary wizard "Shibiert," but now, from what he said… it seemed like he wasn't!?
Shibiert looked at Ronan and slowly began, "A long time ago, a wizard imagined a place in this world—where there was infinite time, infinite space, endless resources, and all the beautiful things one could imagine.
He spent his entire life searching for the entrance to this place. Along the way, his spirit and philosophy inspired many, and a number of wizards joined him.
They followed the first wizard's will, striving to find, or rather, to build such a place.
This place was called—Shibiert!"
"...Later, 'Shibiert' also became the name of this organization."
"There are countless legends of 'Shibiert' across the continent, but very few know that..."
Shibiert spread his hands helplessly, "'Shibiert' never referred to just one person."
"Of course, calling me 'Shibiert' is not wrong, because every wizard of 'Shibiert,' when traveling outside, would refer to themselves as 'Shibiert.'"
"Buzz—"
Ronan's mind shook. This truth hit him just as hard as when the ancient golden kingdom rose in front of him.
He had always thought that Shibiert was a legendary wizard with unmatched talent and power.
Now he realized that "Shibiert" was not a single individual, but a name that represented a dream, a place from an ancient fantasy.
He had heard and even interacted with many legends of "Shibiert," and they spanned across numerous fields: alchemy, forging, runes, potions, spatial magic, metals, illusions—he was skilled in every aspect.
But thinking carefully, it made sense. A single person's time, energy, and wisdom couldn't possibly cover all these areas.
But a group of people working together—it made much more sense.
Ronan fell silent for a long while. Shibiert watched him quietly, seemingly waiting for him to digest the news.
After a long while, Ronan's voice rang out again.
"So..."
He raised his head and looked calmly at the young man before him. "When two or more 'Shibiert' meet, how do you address each other?"
"Uh..."
The young man blinked, then smiled. "Are you asking my real name?"
"You can call me—'The Alchemist.'"
"The Alchemist..."
Ronan muttered the name, looking around at the golden sea and feeling that this name suited the person in front of him, who had spent his life chasing the golden dream.
"So, what I'm seeing now... is fake?"
Ronan spoke.
The young man nodded, and in his gemstone-like eyes, there was a hint of weariness. He answered softly, "My appearance, my voice, everything is shaped based on your imagination. Because you think I should look this way, I became like this.
As for what I really looked like..."
The young man shook his head. "It's been so long, so long that I've even forgotten what I originally looked like."
"Perhaps, I was a grumpy old man with a beard that reached the ground."
The young man laughed, as if thinking of a very amusing picture, his eyes and brows curving up in joy.
He laughed for a moment, then looked at Ronan and spoke, "Alright, enough about me and the story of 'Shibiert.' Now... it's time to talk about you."
"Me?"
Ronan froze, a look of confusion crossing his face.
To be honest, he still didn't understand how he had ended up here, in this dream of the "Alchemist" Shibiert.
He only remembered fighting with the Ashen Witch Morril for the golden magic box in the Mechanical Heart ruins, both of them falling under some powerful metallic curse, transforming into two golden statues.
Later, Morril managed to break free from the curse before him. She seemed to want to kill him, but failed, so she tried to use the power of the golden curse to do so.
"...All these years, you're the first one to make it this far and witness the gates of the Golden Kingdom with me."
"Thank fate for bringing you to me. If you had come any later, my consciousness would have completely vanished."
The young man looked at Ronan with a gentle gaze, "Would you help an old man with a beard reaching the ground with a small task?"
"What?"
Ronan looked slightly startled.
The young man looked around at the golden sea, his eyes deep with yearning, "Help me complete the Golden Kingdom. Though I can no longer see it."
A faint sadness and regret filled the air.
Ronan, moved by this emotion, looked at the endless, brilliant golden city in the distance. After a long pause, he couldn't help but ask, "Can I go inside and take a look?"
The young man turned his head to look at him, shaking his head helplessly, "I'm afraid not... The true Golden Kingdom is not here. This is just a simple projection."
"Because of the fading of my consciousness, I can't even restore one-tenth of its original appearance."
"Alright."
Ronan felt regretful. He realized that the dream of the "King, the Boy, and Gold" might be nearing its end.
He stopped at the gates of the Golden Kingdom, unable to enter.
"Your luck is good, or rather, my luck is good. What remains here is the inheritance of the Golden Fire Spirit Mo Ye, which perfectly aligns with the spells you are currently mastering."
The young man looked at the distant golden city, pointing in a certain direction. "Do you see that? That's Mo Ye."
"It was something I created in the mist phase. Though it's a bit rough, looking at it now, it's still quite beautiful."
Ronan followed the young man's gesture, seeing seven towering, radiant structures in the magnificent golden city. He recognized one of them as Mo Ye.
Because of the golden light, he couldn't see the full grandeur, but he could faintly feel a sense of ancient, noble, and majestic presence, much like when he had faced "Hekarto."
"Golden Fire..."
Ronan focused on the "Mo Ye" figure that the young man had mentioned. He suddenly realized and hesitated, saying, "But I'm currently mastering Ice Magic."
He began to doubt whether the young man had made a mistake.
The young man laughed and replied, "I know.
That's why I said Mo Ye is your best choice now.
You will eventually walk the path of mastering both Ice and Fire. The Golden Throne is not surrounded by frost alone."
"Dear Ronan, the connection between the energies of different elements in the world is much more intricate and marvelous than you can imagine.
A long time ago, they even had the same name—Ether."
The young man said, glancing knowingly at the black dog, "Yitai," at Ronan's feet.
"Understanding this early will be helpful for your future path.
Start trying to let Ice and Fire coexist peacefully. Mo Ye will teach you in my place. 'Yitai' will be the best bridge for you to communicate with them."
"Ice and Fire coexist."
Ronan murmured the words, feeling as if a new door was slowly opening before him. Yet, at the threshold, many mists rose.
These concepts and knowledge were still too profound for him to understand.
"Take it slow, step by step, don't rush..."
The "Alchemist" patted Ronan's shoulder, comforting him. "Your journey is still long. You are still far from the gates of the Golden Kingdom.
First, head to Golden Town. That's where the key to open the gates of the Golden Kingdom lies."
"Where is the road to Golden Town?"
Ronan's confusion grew. He couldn't help but look at the "Alchemist."
The latter just pointed to his own palm and smiled, "The signpost to Golden Town has always been in your hand, hasn't it?"
Ronan froze, instinctively looking down at his hand.
When he opened his clenched fist, a golden apple core lay quietly in his palm.
It was the core of the golden apple the "Alchemist" had given him earlier.
At that moment, the golden core emitted an overwhelming golden glow, so bright that Ronan could hardly open his eyes.
Suddenly, he noticed the surroundings beginning to blur and twist. It felt like a force was pulling him away from this place.
Ronan quickly reached out to grab the "Alchemist" by the arm, but the latter had already turned away, no longer looking at him.
Facing the golden city, he began to sing a child's song in a chant-like tone.
"...The son of the stableman
Had golden dreams
He buried golden seeds
In the golden hillocks
With a heart as hot as gold
Watered by golden sunlight."
As the endless, passionate, and youthful voice filled the air, everything in front of Ronan shattered.
His consciousness fell into darkness, and everything drifted farther away.
When Ronan slowly opened his eyes, he found himself standing quietly on a ruined, golden street.
Everything around him was golden, emanating a golden light.
It was still the Mechanical Heart.
But now, the Mechanical Heart had completely turned into a cold, golden-cast ruin, with all the metals transformed into gold.
There was no sound, and everything was in absolute silence and peace.
Ronan looked down and found that the golden apple core he had been tightly gripping in his dream had now become a golden rune stone.
The golden magic box that he had fought so hard for had already been opened.
It lay at his feet, and inside the box were a red rune stone and a fist-sized irregular black metal chunk.
Ronan fell silent for a moment, then quietly picked up the golden rune stone and examined it.
The rune stone only recorded one rune, named—[Shibiert's Golden Edict]!
"This is the road to Golden Town?"
Ronan muttered.
He bent down and picked up everything on the ground.
Inside the opened golden magic box, the other rune stone contained a complete set of metal spell inheritances.
They were—[Mo Ye's Black Steel Touch], [Mo Ye's Silver Body], [Mo Ye's Brass Head], [Mo Ye's Diamond Heart], and [Mo Ye's Golden Soul].
The names of the five spells clearly indicated a deep connection, forming a complete metal magic system when combined with the previous [Shibiert's Golden Edict].
"This is the inheritance of the 'Golden Fire Spirit Mo Ye' that the 'Alchemist' spoke of?"
Ronan thought for a moment, suddenly realizing.
The "Alchemist" had spent his life constructing the dream of the Golden Kingdom, which might not just be a golden kingdom.
It also represented an ancient and powerful metal magic system.
The name of this system was—[Golden Kingdom]!
Ronan stared at the entire set of metal spell inheritances in his hand, remaining silent for a long time.
This was perhaps the most ancient, profound, and powerful inheritance he had obtained to date.
It came from the legendary "Shibiert," an ancient wizard of unknown level but undoubtedly powerful, who had devoted his life's work to creating a completely new metal magic system!
Though it was not complete yet, and only a piece of the[Golden Fire Spirit Mo Ye]inheritance was obtained.
It was just a piece of the puzzle of the[Golden Kingdom].
Ronan still needed to go to Golden Town, obtain the key to open the Golden Kingdom, and collect the remaining pieces of the puzzle. Only then could he sit on the Golden Throne and bring back the ancient glory of the[Golden Kingdom].
As he thought of the majestic, brilliant, and grand Golden Kingdom standing on the golden sea in his dream, Ronan couldn't help but tremble and feel excited.
But soon, this excitement was deeply hidden again.
With unmatched inheritance came equally unmatched trials.
Behind the opportunities lay tenfold, even hundredfold risks.
"When gold appears in the world, greedy treasure hunters will come in waves... Even the dwarven civilization of the Mechanical Heart will worry about their Thunder and Flame Hammers being stolen by goblins, dragons, and cyclopes."
The entire inheritance of the[Golden Kingdom]would attract even more 'treasure hunters.'"
Ronan took a deep breath and put away the two rune stones and the golden magic box. He thought, "Until my strength reaches a certain level, I cannot let others know that I possess the inheritance of the[Golden Kingdom]."
Thinking this, Ronan picked up the irregular black metal chunk that had been lying next to the golden magic box.
Upon touching it, he realized that this black metal looked almost identical to the "Yitai" black dog he had seen in his dream.
"Did the 'Alchemist' even prepare the metal medium for casting the[Golden Kingdom]spells for me?"
Ronan weighed the black metal chunk in his hand, muttering, "It seems that this 'Yitai' has a relatively low grade, and there's not much of it."
Ronan shook his head and casually put the metal chunk away, then surveyed his surroundings.
The vast Mechanical Heart, under the influence of the golden curse power released by the golden magic box, had completely transformed into a golden city-state. The wandering puppets and metal element life forms had all disappeared, and all the metals had turned into gold.
"In the mundane world, gold might still have some use, but for wizards, it's not as valuable as the previous dilapidated, rusted ruins. At least there, I could still refine some precious metals."
Ronan had originally planned to collect more usable high-grade metals for spell mediums from the Mechanical Heart, but now that plan had fallen through.
However, he had obtained the most precious inheritance from the entire Mechanical Heart. The Thunder and Flame Hammer on the metal obelisk in the central square couldn't compare.
At least Ronan thought so. He didn't believe that a magical tool forged by dwarves could rival the lifetime work of a legendary wizard from "Shibiert."
Most importantly, Ronan had a strong intuition—there was a high probability that the Thunder and Flame Hammer forged by the Mechanical Heart dwarves wasn't even in the Mechanical Heart anymore. It might have already been moved.
"I should have asked the 'Alchemist' about it in the dream."
Ronan felt a bit regretful.
But anyway, he had achieved his goal for coming to the Mechanical Heart. Now, he had lost his desire to continue exploring the now completely transformed golden ruin.
Finding the exit was the most important thing now.
"Considering the time, the competition for the Hramus Genius Seat is about to begin."
Ronan's eyes flickered slightly. After a quick search, he decisively summoned "Dodoer III" from his space ring.
The Mechanical Heart had changed, and he wasn't sure if the entrance he came through was still intact. Even if it was, going back the same way would take quite a bit of effort. Having "Dodoer III" find an exit nearby was undoubtedly the quickest and most convenient option.
"If that Ashen Witch Morril knew that by handing me the golden magic box, not only did she not kill me, but she also gave me the inheritance of the[Golden Kingdom]... her expression should be quite interesting."
"Haha~~"
Far off in the distance, high in the sky, a certain witch, sitting with her legs crossed on her red lotus staff and flying quickly, lightly rubbed her nose, suppressing the urge to sneeze.
"It must be that damned Selena talking bad about me behind my back again."
Morril bared her teeth and, somewhat angrily, urged, "Hurry up, Vivienne, I've already missed one chance to humiliate her. I can't miss the second one..."
"Yes, honored Miss Morril."
A voice from behind, containing a respectful tone tinged with indulgence, responded, followed by Vivienne turning into a giant black vulture, lifting Morril into the air and flapping her wings. In the blink of an eye, they became a small dot in the sky.
In the vast wilderness at dusk, the giant setting sun at the mountain peak poured its last golden rays with all its might.
A giant serpent, more than a hundred meters long, with a single horn on its head and scales resembling blue ice crystals, swam silently and swiftly toward the last rays of the setting sun.
On top of the ice crystal serpent's head, a tall, straight figure sat quietly.
It was a young man with fair skin and handsome features.
The icy wind that carried snowflakes blew the hem of his robe. The glow of the setting sun gently bathed him, giving him a layer of orange-gold glow.
He slightly lowered his head, looking perfect, as if crafted by the heavens, with an alluring charm.
It was Ronan, who had left the Mechanical Heart long ago and was now heading toward the ruins of the Fairy Ancient City.
"Crunch, crunch—"
At this moment, Ronan was carefully feeding a metal plate, about the size of a washbasin, slightly rusted, to a large mass of black metal
in front of him.
The metal moved like a liquid, constantly wriggling. In its center was a huge shark-tooth mouth, munching on the metal plate Ronan was feeding it, making a "crunching" sound, just like eating cookies.
A gray, shaggy-legged goat, wearing a golden name tag around its neck, stood to the side, watching the black metal's mouth devour the metal plate, occasionally glancing up at Ronan with a hopeful expression.
Ronan was getting annoyed by the goat's gaze and, occasionally, threw a few bright-colored metal blocks for it to eat. The goat would leap with joy, bleating happily as it devoured the food.
"Buzz—"
After the entire metal plate had been "eaten" by the black metal, it emitted a strange energy fluctuation. Then, it suddenly expanded, and sharpness emanated from within it, as if it had just consumed the metal plate.
"tsk"
Ronan saw the changes in the black metal's aura and volume, his eyes gleaming with insight. He murmured, "No wonder the 'Alchemist' named it Yitai.
In ancient times, Ether represented unknown elements and infinit
e possibilities.
And Yitai's property is to continuously evolve and level up by devouring metals.
In this regard, it really has infinite possibilities, just like Ether."
"This is a metal that can grow."
"And it's the perfect medium for me, the best fit for the[Golden Kingdom]spells!"
"Although I'm not sure if it has an upper limit, at least for now, it's enough for me."
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