Chapter 476 - Song of the Bramble Bird

Nie Yan picked up the cloak. It was raven black, the collar delicately embroidered with the design of a golden bramble bird. It could completely cover him, like a mantle.

Nie Yan’s eyes widened in surprise. This bramble bird design was quite unique, originating from all the way back in the Dark Era. It had a long and rich history, the symbol of the Eight Thieves—the Bramble Birds. Their goal was to rescue enslaved humans from the clutches of the dragons, killing hundreds of dragon race nobility in the process. On their last mission, the Bramble Birds succeeded in assassinating Dragon Archduke Kotni, but at the cost of their lives. That event became their defining moment and swan song.

Bramble birds were ugly little birds, treated as pests and eyesores by the general public. They would only sing a single song their whole lives. From the moment they left their nest, they would tirelessly seek out a bramble tree. Upon finding one, they would impale their delicate bodies on the longest and sharpest thorn, and chirp out a song as they bled to death. A truly heartbreaking sight. The beautiful melody, akin to the red clouds at dusk, eclipsed any sound in the world! After exhausting their vitality, they would die with their song.

Their lives were tragic suffering molded into everlasting beauty.

The Eight Thieves were bramble birds, sacrificing their brilliant lives to create an everlasting legend. Their achievements were engraved in the minds of countless people.

“Legends speak of the bramble bird, singing only once in its entire life.

Yet the song was more beautiful than any sound in the world.

The moment they left their nests, they would tirelessly seek out a bramble tree.

After finding one, they would impale themselves on the longest and sharpest thorn.

On that deoslate branch, they would chirp their hearts out.

In their dying moments, they stood aloof from their suffering.

Their melody even put the nightingale and skylark to shame.

This was an incomparably beautiful song, the last embers of a fading life.

However, the world quietly listened. Even God was smiling from up above.

Because the most beautiful thing could only be borne from the greatest suffering.”

—(Bramble Bird)

The Eight Thieves took on the suffering and sorrow of countless people. After their passing, the design of the bramble bird was no longer used by anyone else. Their story was passed down from generation to generation. The wandering bards sung of their tales, sharing it with all those who would listen on their travels.

You have discovered the Shadow Walker Cloak. You gently wipe off the dust and let out a sorrowful sigh. May the departed rest in peace. May the painful memories be lost in the wilderness of time. Let us wait for the dawn after the night. Follow the footsteps of the heroes, and let the bramble bird freely sing...

Nie Yan felt there was more to this notification. But since no quest was triggered, he could do nothing about it. He examined the properties of the cloak.

Description: A relic of the Dark Era, passed down by the Light.

Properties: Hides all the information of the user. Allows the user to keep their name hidden when attacking other players.

Dark Dancer: Cloaking +300%, Makes the user immune to inspection, but they can still be detected. Skill is broken if user is attacked or makes physical contact with an enemy. Duration: 10 minutes. Cooldown: 3 hours.

The Shadow Walker Cloak didn’t give any direct stat bonuses, but its properties were extremely useful. For example, the ability to keep his name and information concealed from inspection would save him a lot of unnecessary trouble. The Dark Dancer skill would also come quite in handy when doing quests or exploring.

Nie Yan put on the Shadow Walker Cloak. It could be tied to his leather amour and worn around like a mantle without inhibiting his mobility.

This would probably be his go-to item for when he wanted to set out on a journey in the future. He could use the Shadow Walker Cloak to shake off his pursuers.

Nie Yan began investigating the hall, searching behind the statues to see just how those people triggered the mechanism. He look behind the statue of a Demon Beast, carefully inspecting every inch. Six minutes later, he found a hidden spot with a peculiar recess. Curiously sticking his hand in and touching it, the hall began shaking as layers of dust fell off the statue and drifted down the floor.

The statue was awakening!

This spot was well hidden and easily overlooked if one wasn’t specifically looking for it. If someone hadn’t accidentally triggered the mechanism, Nie Yan would’ve never known these statues were monsters.

Nie Yan immediately ordered the four Demonsmith to surround and attack the Demon Beast. Lil’ Gold also blasted it from afar. Several minutes later, it collapsed to the ground and dropped a gem.

Nie Yan awoke the statues one at a time, then killed them.

Time ticked away. After about two hours, almost all the statues were cleared away. The hall appeared desolate. There were ley lines all over the ground, forming an enormous geometric design. It appeared to be a magic formation of some sort.

Nie Yan continued taking down the statues while inspecting the design. However, his knowledge of magic formations was limited. He had no clue what this one was used for. He took a picture of the design and contacted Guo Huai.

「Help me find out what this magic formation is used for.」

「Alright, I’ll get back to you in a bit,」Guo Huai said. After receiving the images of the design, he immediately got in touch with the Enchanters in the guild. Nie Yan was currently in the middle of a quest. Solving this formation would be a big help to him.

After receiving Guo Huai’s orders, the Enchanters of Asskickers United immediately started their inspection of the design. They discovered extremely complex formulas, requiring at least six Advanced Enchanters 20 minutes to solve.

Just where did Nie Yan find such a magic formation!?

The formulas were headache inducing. However, since the orders were from above, the Enchanters didn’t dare to dally and quickly went about solving them.

Nie Yan continued awakening and killing the statues. Several minutes later, the hall was cleared of all monsters but one—Mine Slave Igrin. He didn’t dare to approach it easily.

If Mine Slave Igrin awakened, Nie Yan was done for. He was absolutely no match for it.

After roughly 20 minutes, Guo Huai contacted Nie Yan.

「How’s it going? It’s solved?」Nie Yan asked. He was quite puzzled. Wasn’t it just an ordinary magic formation? Why did it take so long? However, he was a layman in regards to magic formations. Even in his past life, he had very little contact with them. At best he only recognized a few simple formations. From his memory, whenever he brought his equipment for enchanting, the Enchanter would only need to draw a simple design, and that was that. It appeared magic formations were a lot more complicated than he originally thought.

「The Enchanters told me to tell you, “From the starting point of the star region, go in a straight line in the direction of the stellar fire toward the terminus. Then from the center of the moon region, go in a semicircle...」Guo Huai repeated the information the Enchanters passed down to him ad verbum.

「The Enchanters didn’t say anything else?」Nie Yan asked doubtfully.

「They said this is a sealing formation. If you follow their directions, you’ll be able to undo it.」

Nie Yan pondered for a moment. There was no harm in seeing if he could undo this magic formation.

“Starting point of the star region, stellar fire toward the terminus, straight line...” Nie Yan followed the instructions of the Enchanters, an ash gray line appeared in the places he walked over.

This line continued on until it formed a complete design. It looked somewhat peculiar. In the next moment, the lines lit up with a brilliant radiance, flooding the entire hall with white light.

A thick heavy book floated up at the center of the magic formation. Beside it was a large golden key about the size of a hand. It looked extremely delicate and was covered with all sorts of runes.

Seeing this key, Nie Yan immediately thought of Golden City’s treasury!

No doubt, this was the treasury’s key!

Nie Yan walked over to the two items. As he reached out for them, they lost their glow and started falling

Nie Yan reached out his hands and caught them. He examined the key first.

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

A notification popped up. Nie Yan checked it.

Quest Progress: Use this key to unlock Igrin’s Treasury and search for Abak’s Cape of Ruin.

Nie Yan had previously obtained Abak’s Gloves of Sealing and Abak’s Bloody Dagger. The Cape of Ruin would mark the third piece. The treasury was precisely located behind Mine Slave Igrin. With the key, he could unlock it!

As for the book, it was ash gray. On the cover was the image of a bramble bird. This book’s title, written in Ancient Common, was “Song of the Bramble Bird.”

You have discovered an ancient book. It is somewhat damaged and worn. Flipping to the first page, you read a single line: “The most beautiful things are born from the greatest suffering.” Seeing the story of the Eight Thieves, you let out a deep sigh and gently close the book.

This book told the story of the Eight Thieves. It was probably a quest item. Nie Yan would have to search for clues inside. However, now was not the time. He put away the book in his bag.