Volume 1: Stranger in a Strange Land Chapter 20: Temple of the Skull
Sigmund looked around as if he was very nervous, but unfortunately there was no light on the way down the elevator, so he couldn't see anything clearly.
"Don't mention that here."
He lowered his voice and whispered to William.
"Why?"
Seeing this, William also lowered his voice.
The other party was silent for a while, then said.
"I'll tell you when we get down, don't tell me now."
After a few minutes, the elevator stopped with a "click" of gears. Ten beams of orange light flashed from the hands of ten miners on the elevator, illuminating the originally dark mine.
The main passage of the No. 9 mine tunnel looks like it can accommodate three trains running side by side, and the main passage is divided into many branches like the branches of a tree, and each branch entrance has a simple sign.
On the stone walls of the mine, there are spots in some places, which flash a faint silver light under the illumination of the mining lamp. Those are the ores containing source silver.
"Today we are in charge of Channel 3. Everyone should pay attention to the brightness of their magic crystal mining lamps. Don't go too deep into the channel alone. If the lamp goes out, return along the original route. If you get lost, remember to shout for help. Those who are looking after the golden-tailed bird must always pay attention. If anything unusual occurs, notify everyone ."
Before getting off the elevator, Sigmunds reminded everyone like this. Everyone responded to him sporadically and then walked away.
Sigmunds watched everyone walk away, then spoke to Colter, whom he had been holding the hand of.
"Your leg is injured, don't work too hard . Come in with me, I will help you complete your work quota for today."
Colt shook his head.
"No need, Uncle Sigmunds, it's just a leg injury, and it's just a superficial wound, it won't have any impact."
"That's fine. You can come with us to the depths of the mine today. You can come with us too."
He patted the boy's head, then turned to William.
"Don't bring it up in front of those people . A lot of their friends died in that accident."
"Accident? The collapse of tunnel No. 7 mentioned earlier?"
William also asked simply.
"It's a nightmare. I think the entire Silver Stream Mine should be sealed off until the cause is found."
Sigmund replied.
"About two months ago, we dug up a bone burial site in Mine No. 7."
"Burial site?"
"At first, someone claimed to have seen a ghost in the mine. In fact, this kind of thing is not uncommon. After all, people die in the mine every year due to various accidents. The bodies that died down there cannot be buried in the large cemetery in Thorn City, so ghosts often appear. After a lot of times, everyone got used to it. In addition, every year the church sends clergy to organize two large blessing ceremonies... I'm getting off topic, anyway, someone has witnessed ghosts appearing several times at a certain location in the No. 7 mine tunnel."
In this world where magic and gods really exist, there are several destinations for mortal souls after death.
Most of them will return to the Wheel of the World to have their memories erased and be reincarnated. If you are a saint, or meet certain conditions of the gods, such as glorious death in battle, you may also enter the kingdom of the god you believe in and gain eternal life.
Of course, if you sign a contract with some Void Kings, or if you are targeted by a Void King because of certain traits, your soul may be snatched away to the Moon Realm.
Leaving behind a ghost after death is a special state. When a person dies because of some blessing or curse, or because of too strong obsession, his soul may leave a residual image in the world after death.
Since they are afterimages, ghosts are nothing more than memories of the past. All they can do is repeat past words and deeds. Apart from being a highly credible piece of evidence in court, they basically cannot have any substantial impact on the present. Even without the help of magic to stabilize their existence, they cannot stay in the world for too long.
"Are you saying that the ghosts are dressed in the style of the Black Water Kingdom?"
William asked in surprise. According to the history that Liliana had taught him before, the Riel Empire conquered the Blackwater Kingdom about 800 years ago. In other words, those ghosts have existed for at least 800 years.
For ghosts to exist for more than 800 years, there must be something with powerful magic acting as a medium.
"Yes, at first we thought those ghosts were the resentful spirits of the miners who died in the mines. But later we discovered that they were dressed exactly like ancient people, a bit like the traditional costumes of the Blackwater Kingdom that people wear during the New Year's Day every year."
Sigmons continued.
"Although we reported it to the higher-ups, it didn't seem to attract much attention. Later, we tried to dig in the direction where the ghost appeared. Finally, after digging up a layer of shale, we found a huge burial ground. Tens of thousands of fossilized skulls were piled up to form a temple, and the ghosts we saw earlier were worshiping something there."
When Sigmunds thought of this, his expression became a little dazed and he fell into memories.
"A few of us who were brave enough walked in, and I was unable to stop them. The ghosts ignored them at first, but when they approached the skull temple, all the ghosts crashed into the skull temple. An earthquake occurred in the entire No. 7 mine tunnel, and they were instantly submerged by countless skulls."
He said and ruffled Colt's hair again.
"The aftermath of the earthquake caused the collapse of tunnel No. 7. The rest of us were able to escape thanks to Colter's father, who lifted up the broken support frame. For this, one of his legs was broken and one of his eyes was blinded by flying stones. Your father is the savior of all of us, Colter."
“So the place was blocked off later?”
William asked.
Sigmunds nodded.
"Later, the Duke sealed off the entire Silver Mine for a month and sent people to investigate. It is said that after losing a team of Thorn Black Guards, the Duke sent three groups of adventurers to explore. The first two groups failed to return, and the third group was the most prestigious Black Thorn Mercenary Group in Thorn City. Among them, only Chief Cass Durant came out alive. Of course, you should have heard about what happened later. He became a madman who killed people indiscriminately."
William recalled the warning that Cass had given him when they met previously.
The Soul-Eating Spider Demon first appeared from the Silver Mine.
"Finally, the Duke ordered the closure of the No. 7 mine tunnel and the activation of the No. 9 mine tunnel, which was previously considered more difficult to mine. That's what happened. Now, may I ask you a question?"
Sigmund stopped and looked at William.
"What is your true identity?"
