Synthesis-type adventurers

Chapter 27 Whispers of the Ancient Gods

Old Hansen huddled in the corner, his gray work clothes, which were always stained with oil, now completely soaked in some kind of black liquid.

His face, as dry as tree bark, was facing the doorway, his eyes wide open, pupils unfocused, and a large clump of still-dry black blood hanging from the corner of his mouth.

"Dead?"

Rod's heart suddenly pounded, and instinct drove him to take two steps back.

In this chaotic place, appearing next to a corpse is an extremely unwise choice.

If caught by the security team or other scavengers, even ten mouths wouldn't be enough to clear their name.

The reason why we can't see a single scavenger today is probably for this very reason.

But just as he turned to leave, a thought inexplicably popped into his head.

The last time I came here, the old man immediately saw through the combined value of those materials.

However, Rhodes was in a hurry at the time, and the process of extracting entries from a large number of scraps had consumed a lot of his mental energy, so he did not check the other party's background.

How could an ordinary scrap yard owner have such a sharp eye?

Moreover, the smell of that black blood...

Rhodes stopped and turned around, his gaze fixed on the figure on the ground.

"Just one look," he told himself, "to confirm his identity. Maybe there's some information I can extract from him?"

[Analysis of Vision] is activated, and the world before your eyes is instantly covered by a strange ball of light.

In that dim field of vision, above Old Hansen's body, what should have been an ordinary gray-white entry suddenly burst forth with a burst of intense orange light that blinded Rhodes.

A dazzling and noble dark orange, yet it also exudes a nauseatingly evil aura.

[Old Hansen (formerly known as Hansen van Aker)]

Status: Multiple organ failure, deep ancient god contamination (active phase)

Entry:

[Depleted Flame of Life (Gray Inferior)]: Life functions have dropped to a critical point and may be extinguished at any time.

[Deep Ancient God Contamination (Gray Inferior)]: The soul and body have been irreversibly corrupted by a higher-level being. It has become a living source of contamination, and any attempt to probe its essence will result in a backlash from the contamination.

[Severely Polluted Alchemy Master (Orange Epic)]: Possesses the truth of material transformation and construction, which is beyond the reach of mortals. However, he peeked into forbidden knowledge that he should not have seen, and the price of truth is the collapse of reason.

[Flawed Mechanical Heart (Blue Excellent)]: A high-level magical heart that was once implanted, but is now inactive.

……

boom!

As the line of orange text appeared, an indescribable feeling of nausea instantly shattered Rhodes's mental defenses.

Countless incomprehensible murmurs and noises reached his ears, like thousands of slippery tentacles crawling into his brain along his line of sight, stirring wildly in his brain.

"Ugh!" Rod groaned, his body swaying and staggering, almost falling over.

Amidst the intense pain and dizziness, he was horrified to discover that a new gray negative attribute had appeared below his own attribute bar at the edge of his vision.

[Temporary Whisper of the Ancient God (Grayish Inferior)]: Having directly confronted the source of chaos from a higher level, your rational defenses have been breached. Some unknown will is rewriting your brain's neural pathways, attempting to reconstruct you into a more "rational" form.

"Damn it!"

Rhodes didn't hesitate at all, and didn't even dare to look at the orange entry again.

He quickly closed his eyes and forcibly cut off the power supply to the [analytical field of view].

"Sever it! Sever it now!" Rhodes roared in his mind.

The world of light-filled words in his field of vision collapsed instantly, the babbling that had entered his brain stopped abruptly, and the temporary negative words also dissipated.

Rod leaned against the door frame, panting heavily, his back instantly soaked with cold sweat.

Too dangerous.

That wasn't some kind of treasure at all; it was a deadly poison that could drive a low-level professional like him instantly mad.

When Rhodes raised his head and looked at old Hansen on the ground again, the longing in his eyes completely disappeared, replaced by deep fear.

Orange entry: Alchemy Master.

This old geezer hiding in the junkyard was actually of the same rank as that red dragon.

Moreover, he is still alive.

Rod saw old Hansen's fingers twitch slightly.

To save or not to save?

Reason told him to turn around and leave immediately, close the door, and pretend nothing had happened.

Being tainted by the Old Gods usually means being burned at the stake by the Church's Inquisition or being sliced ​​up by the Alchemy Guild.

The risk is far too high.

but……

Rhodes's gaze swept over the blueprints and scrap materials scattered on the ground.

If this guy dies, the Gear Brotherhood will send a new administrator to the junkyard, and then Old Hansen probably won't be as easy to talk to.

More importantly, that orange entry...

Although it has been corrupted by the ancient gods and cannot be removed, what if it is a living alchemy master?

If I could learn even a tiny bit from him, or make him owe me a favor...

Perhaps the returns can cover the risks?

Rhodes stood at the doorway, in front of the small house filled with the smell of engine oil and blood, caught in the most agonizing cost calculation he had ever done in this world.

"Cough...cough cough..."

Just then, Old Hansen on the ground suddenly coughed violently, and another gush of black blood gushed out.

His chest heaved rapidly, like the last struggle of a dying person.

If nothing is done, this treasure containing the orange entry will turn into a worthless, polluting corpse in less than three minutes.

Rod gritted his teeth: "To suffer a loss... I've made a rule in my life that I never do business that loses money."

He subconsciously reached for the bottle of [Basic Strength Potion] in his pocket—a supply that Rhodes had secretly obtained when he was still working as a logistics officer for the Anvil Adventurer's Guild.

He originally intended it for his own use, so he didn't dilute it with too much water. It could slightly increase his strength and physical power, and it also included white entries related to energizing.

Even if you sell it on the black market, you can at least earn a few gold coins.

"Wait a minute, this guy's an alchemy master!"

Rod suddenly realized what was happening.

His own bottle of common potion, worth only a few gold coins on the black market, was fine for ordinary adventurers, but not for a big shot like this?

The medicine might be too weak to be effective, or the inferior impurities might even cause some strange chemical reaction with the ancient god's pollution, sending the old man away.

How could an alchemist's workshop not have something that could save lives?

Rhodes quickly shifted his gaze from old Hansen, avoiding the source of pollution, and instead scanned the chaotic room rapidly.

He cautiously activated [Analysis Vision] again, but this time he learned his lesson and focused his gaze only on the bottles and jars scattered on the shelves and corners of the table, resolutely refusing to look at old Hansen.

In the field of vision, a dense array of white labels appeared above the cluttered items.

"Waste engine oil...inferior solvents...not this..."

Rod searched quickly, his forehead beaded with sweat from nervousness.

Finally, a few entries emitting a faint blue light on a shelf in the corner caught his attention.

[High-purity tranquilizer]

Entry: Increases mental resistance and increases sanity regeneration.

[Powerful Cell Activator]

Entry: Grants minor life restoration and accelerates tissue regeneration within 10 minutes.