studiobondurri Chapter 364: The Species Conservatory
Chapter 364: The Species Conservatory
Bai Shi didn't hesitate to accept Messmer's proposal.
His brother-in-law's attitude had softened considerably. Though their relationship was still a bit stiff, it was progress nonetheless.
After all, from his brother-in-law’s perspective, the sudden appearance of a brother-in-law like him was understandably difficult to process.
Now that they had crossed swords, a certain understanding had been forged. Since his brother-in-law had extended the invitation, how could Bai Shi refuse?
“Alright. As it happens, there’s a lot I’d like to understand as well.”
“I’m quite curious about the Land of Shadow and the events that have transpired here.”
Gazing at Bai Shi’s smiling face, Messmer’s eyes lowered, his expression carrying a cryptic meaning.
“Is that so...”
“If that’s the case, I’m afraid you will be disappointed.”
“In the Land of Shadow, there is only original sin and a hatred that cannot be forgotten.”
“Just as its name implies, it is where the Erdtree’s unspeakable shadow lies.”
Bai Shi shook his head and spoke again.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Where light shines, shadow is inevitable. It’s an objective truth.”
“Only by understanding the existence of shadow can the light be made real.”
“Otherwise, it's just a glamorous facade.”
Messmer neither agreed nor disagreed with Bai Shi’s view. He didn't answer, letting the topic drop.
Beside them, Melina gently shook her head.
It seemed the atmosphere would remain tense for a little while longer.
Messmer silently turned his gaze toward Irena and Lilianna.
Looking at the girl and the pixie, Messmer asked with some curiosity:
“You’re a pixie, aren’t you?”
“I was curious ever since I saw the winged serpent’s phantom.”
Lilianna nodded proudly.
“That’s right, a pixie!”
“And Irena is my contractor.”
Glancing at Irena, who had helped the winged serpent’s phantom dispel the influence of the Frenzied Flame, Messmer gave her a friendly nod.
Though she was influenced by the pixie's power, she was still a true child of the Golden Order. That was good.
The winged serpents on his spear studied Lilianna from left and right, and Messmer too was amazed by the pixie’s wondrous existence.
“How rare. I never expected to see a species here that has been gone for so long.”
“Such a physical structure and unique power... it is truly astounding.”
Lilianna looked at Messmer and asked in return:
“I feel like I sense the aura of the God-Devouring Serpent on you.”
“It was there during the battle just now, only for a brief moment.”
“May I ask what that was about?”
Faced with Lilianna’s question, Messmer crossed his arms, his fingers tapping lightly against his bicep.
Although mentioning the evil serpent was somewhat offensive to him, it was an undeniable fact.
Besides, he had no issue discussing it with the well-intentioned pixie.
Messmer nodded in acknowledgment.
“Yes. It is the sin I was born with.”
“Within my body resides the flame of the evil serpent.”
“I... despise this power.”
Bai Shi raised an eyebrow in surprise.
During the fight, he had sensed that the flames Messmer used at the very end were strange.
They were subtly different from his earlier flames and more powerful, but he had dismissed it as some kind of variation in technique.
Though he had learned from the Black Knight Harold that Messmer possessed the power of an evil serpent, he never imagined it was the God-Devouring Serpent.
Then again, thinking about entities that could be called an "evil serpent," there really weren't many options in the Lands Between.
Bai Shi cast a furtive glance at Melina.
Why were both of these siblings fused with such bizarre powers?
Melina possessed the Gloam Eyes and wielded the power of the Black Flame.
And Messmer had the power of the God-Devouring Serpent.
Unfortunately, Messmer clearly didn’t wish to continue the discussion, so Bai Shi had no way of learning more.
At this point, aside from Ashmi who had long since retreated into Bai Shi’s body to continue digesting the Chalice, Messmer had been introduced to everyone present.
With that, Messmer invited them to the Shadow Keep.
——
Carrying his great spear, Messmer transformed into a streak of fire in the sky, heading back toward the Shadow Keep.
Bai Shi, meanwhile, rode the winds, carrying the others as he followed behind Messmer.
After that brief spar, Bai Shi now had a clear understanding of his capabilities in his current state.
He could only say that having high stats felt incredible.
However, Bai Shi was actually a little dissatisfied with the recent fight.
Although all his attributes in this state had been raised, the power of his techniques hadn't quite kept up.
On the sorcery front, only the Crystallian spells were still potent; the rest were hardly different from those of any ordinary high-level sorcerer.
In the game, a character with these stats would have a spell list packed with legendary sorceries like Comet Azur or Founding Rain of Stars, or at least highly effective ones like Comet or Meteorite of Astel.
As for incantations, although Bai Shi had mastered extremely advanced Ancient Dragon incantations, he faced a similar problem.
Aside from the potent Dragon Communion and Ancient Dragon incantations, the power of his other abilities was far too weak by comparison.
While raw power isn’t the top priority for landing combos, which relies more on the seamless chaining of attack startups and recoveries, having incantations and sorceries powerful enough to change the tide of battle was an absolutely indispensable part of his arsenal.
Because of the path he had taken, he hadn't yet collected some powerful incantations and sorceries.
Moving forward, he would need to start collecting all sorts of magic and incantations befitting his current state and complete his transition into a true jack-of-all-trades.
——
The journey from the valley floor to the Shadow Keep was quite long, spanning nearly a third of the Land of Shadow.
Even at Messmer and Bai Shi’s speed, it took some time.
Bai Shi mentally calculated the time.
It seemed that after the battle in the valley, Messmer had rushed over without a moment's rest.
After a while, Bai Shi finally spotted the magnificent Shadow Keep on the desolate plateau.
Seeing the full view of the Shadow Keep from the air, Bai Shi was utterly stunned.
Not only did the Shadow Keep cover an immense area, but its vertical construction was also astonishingly exaggerated, with an inestimable height difference between its highest and lowest points.
Behind the Shadow Keep, a tower stood proudly, soaring into the clouds.
Conversely, looking down from the sky, the keep also had a vast network of structures beneath the plateau that connected to other regions.
Moreover, Bai Shi could clearly see that this place was the true transportation hub of the Land of Shadow.
From the sky, it was visually obvious that the Shadow Keep provided access to several other major areas of the Land of Shadow.
Bai Shi looked at the tower behind the Shadow Keep, which rose straight to the heavens, and couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration:
“Truly magnificent. Both its scale and design are breathtaking.”
“In the Lands Between, perhaps only the Royal Capital, Leyndell, could surpass it.”
Hearing Bai Shi’s praise, the faintest hint of a smile appeared on Messmer’s face.
Clearly, Bai Shi’s praise was to his liking.
No matter what, Leyndell, a city built by his mother's own hands, would always be number one in Messmer’s heart.
If Bai Shi had claimed the Shadow Keep was grander than Leyndell, he might have actually been displeased.
“We’ve arrived. Follow me.”
With a wave, Messmer was the first to descend from the sky.
Though he could fly directly to his residence, it was Bai Shi and the others’ first time here, and it was uncertain if Melina even retained her memories of the place.
Messmer decided to give them a brief tour first, so they could use it as a base of operations later.
Many military camps were situated at the main gate of the Shadow Keep, with soldiers stationed there as guards.
Upon seeing Messmer return, the soldiers all came to greet him, lining up neatly along the roadside.
Bai Shi and the others followed behind Messmer, observing silently.
The soldiers here seemed to be in much better spirits, still able to perform their duties guarding the city gate.
They followed the road through the main gate, then rode a lift all the way up to the Shadow Keep's formal entrance.
Stepping into the square, a towering statue of Marika completely dominated everyone's field of vision.
However, just like the other statues in the Land of Shadow, the head of this massive Marika statue had also been destroyed.
If it were still intact, it would undoubtedly be a divine statue that would inspire awe in all who entered the city.
Melina stared at the headless statue, opened her mouth to speak, then lowered her head again.
After a moment of hesitation, Melina finally decided to ask Messmer:
“Brother... all of Mother’s statues in the Land of Shadow are headless...”
“What happened?”
Without turning his head, Messmer answered flatly:
“I did it.”
“The Holy War, the purging of the Horned people, the sealing of the Land of Shadow—all of it was for Mother, and to prevent the truth from being exposed.”
“To allow Mother to completely distance herself from this, all malice directed at her had to be erased.”
“But how can malice simply vanish into thin air? Someone has to bear it.”
“So I severed all ties to Mother and directed all the hatred toward myself.”
“I did this to make the soldiers believe I was responsible for everything, but I didn't expect so many to still follow me.”
Though outsiders were present, there were no soldiers here, so Messmer didn’t mind revealing the truth to Melina.
Turning his head, Messmer gave the conflicted Melina a slight smile.
“But don’t worry, there are still statues inside the Shadow Keep for the two of us to revere.”
Melina had assumed the destruction was the work of resentful believers who felt abandoned, never expecting this to be the truth behind it.
Melina sighed, her heart a whirlwind of emotions.
“Brother... you’ve endured so much.”
Messmer was unconcerned, not thinking it was any great matter.
“Our duty as siblings has always been thus. You know that.”
Bai Shi took it all in, and his opinion of his brother-in-law improved considerably.
Such loyalty to Marika—he was a good son.
Moreover, for the majority of his soldiers to still follow him after such events, he must hold a high reputation among them.
Among his many forces, only the legion of Black Knights had rebelled.
And their reason was not Messmer's actions, but the fact that his evil serpent nature defiled the Erdtree.
Just then, a massive creature bounded out from a corner of the main square.
As Bai Shi looked at it, his expression grew increasingly bizarre.
The creature had a sharp, pointed head crowned with a large, golden horn resembling that of a rhinoceros.
The rest of its body, however, looked very much like a giant hippopotamus.
Prior to this, the creature had been standing quietly in a corner of the square, enjoying a constant stream of water pouring over its body.
Messmer held out a hand, and the giant beast obediently stopped before him.
Looking at the strange expressions on everyone’s faces, Messmer took the initiative to introduce it:
“This is a Golden Hippopotamus. My pet, I suppose.”
“They were very common in ancient times, but now they’re a protected species.”
“Thankfully, it still has some strength, so it’s decent enough at guarding the main gate.”
Unfortunately, not everyone could appreciate the charm of this particular pet.
Aside from Irena, who approached the Golden Hippopotamus with polite curiosity, the others reacted with a distinct lack of interest.
Messmer shrugged, then turned to dismiss the Golden Hippopotamus before leading the group out of the left side of the square.
After a long, ascending flight of stairs, they arrived at the true core of the Shadow Keep—the Species Conservatory.
Leading them inside, Messmer finally allowed a hint of pride to show on his face.
He turned, spreading his arms toward the group, and announced:
“The Species Conservatory, the Shadow Keep’s most proud accomplishment.”
“It serves as both a repository for preserving species and as a library. Its collection is arguably the most astonishing in all the Lands Between.”
After speaking, Messmer gave Bai Shi a subtle look.
Perhaps still not entirely satisfied with his brother-in-law, Messmer felt a strange sense of competitiveness at this moment.
He somehow felt... that Bai Shi’s background wasn't quite worthy of his sister.
Although Bai Shi sensed the odd desire to compete in his words, he had to admit defeat.
Back in the valley forest, he had been awed by the mansion filled to the brim with books.
But that place was filled entirely with texts, very few of which Bai Shi would ever read. He only felt it was a shame, without any real sense of its scale.
But this Species Conservatory, filled with specimens, was completely different.
Even ignoring the transcribed books and stone tablets, just viewing this place as an exhibition museum was incredible enough.
This was especially true when Bai Shi realized that this entire towering structure, like a veritable Tower of Babel, served this single purpose. He was utterly shocked.
He had to admit, his brother-in-law’s family treasures ran deep. He wondered if he might be able to get some loot out of him later.
He didn't care about runes; he was mainly hoping for some incantations, sorceries, or talismans.
The moment he stepped into the Species Conservatory, Bai Shi was completely captivated.
Looking at the specimen by the entrance—a deer-like beast covered in interlocking horns—Bai Shi felt a familiar power emanating from it.
He couldn't help but ask:
“Is this creature related to the Divine Beast Dancing Lion?”
Messmer smiled with pride as he explained:
“This is one of the many beings the Horned people called a local deity.”
“Though this isn’t the most widely worshipped lion, it is a creature of similar status and power.”
“It is also one of the most precious pieces in the Conservatory’s collection, which is why it’s placed right where you see it upon entering.”
Miquella’s Great Rune being shattered is a means in the game to mark a certain stage of progression at a specific location. Logically, it should have shattered after Miquella discarded it. In the novel, Miquella's story has not yet reached that point, so it remains intact for now.