Mage Legend

"If they are Constructed Creatures, wouldn't that make them smarter than Norton?" Morgan said, "Lynch, why don't you teach them the Dwarf Language or the Common Language, so I can say a few words too? I only know a little bit of the Tribe Language."

"Not to mention whether they can vocalize like dwarves," Lynch replied, "if they talk to you, your rambling style would completely confuse their minds!"

"Alright, let's see if we can find a way up." Zilvra pointed upwards and then said, "If not, we can have them carry us up. They won't get tired anyway. Lynch, your gemstone stock is still large, don't be too stingy."

"How do you know I still have gemstones?" Lynch was slightly surprised and then understood, "Those are essential casting materials and crucial for making Magic Equipment, not something to be fed to Rock Spirits. Also, next time, don't randomly search through my things; I've set up magic protection in many places."

Zilvra didn't say anything; she just smiled and signaled to the Mage with her eyes to "quickly go solve the Rock Spirits' problem". Lynch stepped forward, began gesturing, and explained their current situation with spittle flying everywhere. The Rock Spirits kept asking questions to better clarify certain points.

A few stones gathered together and conversed in their own way. The thumping sounds continued without pause, but this time it was as dense as raindrops in a storm, not slow like at the beginning. Lynch wanted to test how much he could understand when suddenly overwhelmed by the flood of information.

The Rock Spirits eventually decided to carry the three of them upwards. They were powerless against the gigantic staircase, so they helped lighten their friends' burden instead. Lynch found the largest stone to sit on, leisurely enjoying the effort-free ascent.

Along the way, aside from enduring some bumps, Lynch didn't forget to inquire about everything here. Apparently, the Rock Spirits hadn't seen other creatures for a long time and finally found someone to confide in. Through continuous communication, both parties increasingly mastered their method of interaction, and even some difficult-to-define words began appearing in their sentences.

However, the Rock Spirits didn't know who the palace belonged to or why it was built. They were born to maintain its cleanliness and continually expand it. Having never seen the sun or stars, the Rock Spirits never slept due to fatigue. They had no meaningful way to keep time. They continued to exist in this cave, even after all the original residents had died in internal strife, executing their initial orders — the only ones they had ever received.

When asked questions like "Who lived here?" communication faltered. Limited by their vocabulary, the Rock Spirits couldn't specifically describe the residents' appearances, and the species' names were not strikingly visual. Lynch used Illusion Techniques to simulate characteristics of various species, creating images. Upon seeing the ever-changing images, the Rock Spirits finally managed to tell the Mage about the situation here.

To everyone's surprise, it seemed all species lived in this gigantic palace. Lynch racked his brain, recalling illustrations he had seen in the Mage Association, trying to stump the Rock Spirits. But apart from Dark Elves and some newer species with shorter histories, the Rock Spirits claimed to have seen all the others. The Mage found it hard to imagine how Angels and demons could live in the same place or how Fire and Water Elements could work together. However, that might have been the main cause of the conflict.

Lynch asked who managed the place, and the Rock Spirits again ran into communication difficulties. They could only answer, "The manager manages this place," without expressing more. The Mage requested the Rock Spirits to take them to the manager's room but was refused. The Rock Spirits couldn't go against orders to enter that area and could only tell Lynch how to get there.

Stopping at the boundary, Lynch and the others bid farewell to the Rock Spirits. Since they discovered the palace was long unguarded, with nothing but the Rock Spirits that could move, the Mages had no fears. The buildings were still enormous, making Lynch feel the path was exceptionally far. Without Rock Spirits to clean this area, thick dust, like dunes, blocked their direction of travel.