The roar of distant waves crashing against the Magma Sea, combined with the rumbling from the lava's surface, echoed Tang Zheng's words.
Lava Zone!
Terror washed over the faces of all the Gray Dwarf artisans, who recoiled in unison, some losing their footing and falling to the ground.
This was an area even more terrifying than the Great Rift. The Sun Angler in the Magma Sea had lived for countless years and was a Magical Beast known as an Upper Tier species.
Staying here meant risking death at any moment! "Rest assured, everyone. The Sun Angler inside won't bother you. Although it's a bit hot here, it's a very quiet place."
Tang Zheng calmly reassured the terrified Gray Dwarf artisans, raising his hand and waving it towards the Magma Sea behind them. "Thunderball."
Sizzle
Azure electricity gathered in Tang Zheng's palm, coalescing into a Thunderball the size of two basketballs, which he instantly launched towards the Magma Sea.
*BOOM!*
Lightning flashed through the air.
The Thunderball struck the distant Magma Sea with a deafening roar, causing lava to erupt from the surface, but otherwise, there was no other movement within.
"Gulp."
The sound of swallowing echoed through the air.
The Gray Dwarf artisans huddled together, looking at Tang Zheng with a hint of Fear.
"Third Tier Magic · Thunderball."
A faint, nervous voice whispered among the Gray Dwarfs.
Many of the Gray Dwarfs present were knowledgeable enough to recognize that Tang Zheng had used Third Tier Magic. The strongest Magic Caster in the entire Gray Dwarf race could only use Third Tier Magic.
Even those who didn't understand.
The power released by that 'Thunderball' demonstrated that this mysterious human could easily kill everyone present.
What terrified the Gray Dwarfs even more was how he had brought them here without their knowledge! This was the Lava Zone, far from their newly built city, and the journey was incredibly dangerous. Yet, none of them had noticed anything amiss during the entire process.
"You're a human, right?"
"We Gray Dwarfs haven't had trade relations with humans for a long time. Why did you bring us here?"
Among the Gray Dwarf artisans, one with a helmet and a braided, earth-toned beard stepped forward and shouted, "I and everyone else are just ordinary civilians. If you want to gather information about our Gray Dwarf race, you should capture someone with a higher status."
"Gong De." A nervous voice came from the Gray Dwarf group behind him, seemingly reminding the Gray Dwarf who spoke first not to provoke the human before them.
"What's there to be afraid of? You coward."
"This guy brought us here so easily without being detected. He must be very strong. We can't escape anyway, so we might as well get killed."
"Idiot Gong De, didn't you see that we're all artisans? Why would this human capture ordinary people like us if he wants information?"
"I was just wondering why everyone looked so familiar."
"You just realized that, you fool!"
"We're all artisans. This human wouldn't want us to build a house for him here, would he?"
"Maybe he wants us to forge weapons."
"Do humans like living in such a hot place?"
"I don't know."
"Has anyone noticed that everyone here is an artisan who knows Rune Technology?"
"Rune Technology? Why would humans care about such outdated craftsmanship? Don't they have simpler Magic techniques?"
"I still prefer building houses. At least I won't starve."
A chaotic and noisy discussion erupted among the Gray Dwarfs.
Tang Zheng couldn't help but pause, watching the Gray Dwarfs descend into a squabble in the blink of an eye.
He originally thought it would take some time for these dwarves to accept him, but it seems that these dwarves are quite receptive to the current situation.
What a straightforward race.
No, that's not entirely true.
Tang Zheng glanced at the Gray Dwarf Forging Minister beside him. The Gray Dwarf race's personality is obviously more violent and dark.
Even within the same race, there are still quite obvious differences between different subspecies.
Gong De? Tang Zheng's gaze swept towards the dwarf who spoke first. Judging by the name, he should be the dwarf in the anime whom the Undead King encountered first.
He doesn't have much talent in Rune Technology, but his grandfather and father were both chief Rune Artisans in the Dwarf race.
Clap! Seeing the dwarves still arguing, Tang Zheng raised his hands and clapped, interrupting the chaotic noise, "Alright, everyone."
"Let me introduce you, this is a Gray Dwarf, a subspecies of your Dwarf race, and a master Rune Artisan."
"The reason you are here is that I want to ask you to help me forge a piece of Rune Script-powered armor."
Hearing what Tang Zheng said, many dwarves curiously looked at the Forging Minister. It was their first time seeing a Gray Dwarf. The color of their skin was indeed different from theirs, and their appearance was fiercer.
At the same time!
Some people were also concerned about the matter of forging Rune Armor.
Gong De and others frowned.
"Human, perhaps you don't know much about Rune Technology, or perhaps you heard rumors about Rune Technology from somewhere, which led you to this idea."
"To tell you the truth, Rune Technology is an outdated technology compared to your human Magic Technology."
A dwarf with a longer beard and a serious expression stepped forward and said loudly, "Rune Technology is different from your human Magic Technology. The key lies in the magical Rune Script, and these scripts are basically lost."
"What we have mastered are some mid- and low-level scripts. Even if we help you forge a piece of Rune Armor, it may not be comparable to a Magic Item."
These words, although somewhat boosting others' morale and diminishing their own prestige, were the truth.
A group of dwarf artisans were somewhat silent.
Gong De's thick eyebrows furrowed, he let out a soft snort, turned around, and looked at the group of dwarf artisans somewhat angrily.
Whether it was his father or grandfather, they were both chief Rune Artisans of the Dwarf race. He indeed didn't have talent in this area, but he didn't want to see this technology being so belittled.
Especially by his own people!
"So, it's because of ideas like yours that this technology continues to decline!"
"It's simply utterly foolish!"
Gong De said angrily, then turned his head to look at Tang Zheng, seemingly to prove the value of Rune Technology, "Rune Technology also has its advantages, that is, it doesn't cost money!"
"Your human Magic Technology, although far surpasses our Rune Technology in terms of productivity, requires extremely high costs in Magic engineering."
"But Rune Technology doesn't require extra material costs!"
The dwarves looked at the somewhat agitated Gong De, looked at each other, shook their heads slightly, and were not angry at what Gong De had just said.
They all knew Gong De's personality very well.
Moreover.
No matter how excited Gong De was, he couldn't deny that Rune Technology was already an outdated technology.
However! A happy laugh came, causing all the dwarves to stare blankly at the human who was laughing.
"Isn't that just fantastic?"
Tang Zheng looked at the excited Gong De with a smile on his face.
The reason why the Undead King cared about Rune Technology was because Rune Technology didn't require extra spending, which was also what Tang Zheng cared about.
To be precise!
It's just the "money spending" aspect. In fact, it's not a big problem. The key is that the other world is not a game, and there are no advanced materials to forge those top-notch equipment.
The level of Magic Items manufactured by Rune Technology depends on the "Rune Script."
Coincidentally.
He had a set of armor with four high-level Rune Scripts in his hand, which was also the pinnacle of the Gray Dwarf race's craftsmanship.
Gong De stared blankly at Tang Zheng.
"What's your name?" Tang Zheng asked.
"Gong De! Gong De Fayabiode, I am a Rune Technology Developer." Gong De said loudly, his face flushed slightly.
A few low laughs came from the group of dwarves behind him.
"A development expert? Sounds like a remarkable concept." Tang Zheng nodded, then his gaze swept over the other dwarven artisans. "It seems that you all understand that I have no malicious intent. What I need your help with is not to create a brand new Rune Item, but to replicate one."
As he spoke.
Tang Zheng waved his hand, and a piece of armor that looked tattered, with several marble-sized holes, appeared in his hand.
He handed the broken armor to the Forging Minister beside him.
The Forging Minister solemnly took it and walked towards the other dwarves under their gazes. Finally, he fully unfolded the armor, exposing it to the view of all the dwarven artisans.
Gong De was the first to look over with curiosity.
His first thought upon seeing the armor, aside from its dilapidated state, was that the material used to make it was a mineral he had never seen before.
"This is..."
"Rune Scripts I've never seen before!"
"And there are four of them. These scripts aren't in the low-level scripts, are they mid-level scripts?"
"Not sure?"
"This armor is too damaged, the power of the Rune Scripts has been completely lost."
"Only four Rune Scripts, what's so great about that? The legendary treasures of our dwarven race have 12 Rune Scripts."
"..."
As the four never-before-seen Rune Scripts on the armor appeared before the dwarven artisans, all the dwarves crowded around.
"Hmph!"
The Forging Minister snorted lightly. Even under the effect of All-Race Charm, he still spoke with an arrogant tone. "Don't use your clumsy brains to contemplate the greatness of this armor."
"These are four of the highest-level Rune Scripts!"
The air suddenly stilled, and all the dwarven artisans widened their eyes, looking at the Forging Minister in disbelief, as if to say, 'Are you kidding me?'
After a brief silence.
The clamorous voices of the dwarven artisans instantly echoed around them, and Gong De was squeezed out of the crowd.
But soon! Gong De crawled on all fours, using his head to force a path through the crowd, and crawled to the front of the armor, his eyes shining as he looked at the four highest-level scripts on the armor.
These were Rune Scripts that they had already lost!
At this moment, the dwarven artisans had long forgotten the Fear they had felt when they had just awakened and the thought of leaving. Everyone was gathered around the armor, eagerly discussing it.
The Forging Minister occasionally spoke, explaining some Rune Technology methods to prepare for replicating the armor.
Seeing this scene.
Tang Zheng knew that these dwarves probably wouldn't be quiet for a while. He also needed to use the Forging Minister to make these dwarven Rune Artisans understand how to replicate the armor.
Letting the dwarves argue with the Forging Minister.
Tang Zheng led the Evil Spirit Dog to the nearby mountain wall, waiting while taking out a water bag from his Item Box.
As soon as the water bag was taken out, it began to emit bursts of steam. The material of the entire water bag was made of sturdy cowhide, which was exceptionally Tenacity.
But in such a short blink of an eye.
The water bag actually began to show signs of softening, as if it couldn't withstand the power of the liquid inside, and it seemed like it could burst at any moment.
This was the water bag that Tang Zheng had used to hold the Dragon Blood that had splashed out when the Ancient Fire Dragon died.
Tang Zheng picked up the water bag and poured it into his mouth. The red liquid flowed out, and the rich, fishy smell and scalding temperature entered his body down his throat.
After drinking all the Dragon Blood in the water bag in one breath.
Next moment! Tang Zheng felt a surge of heat suddenly rising within his body, perhaps due to the abilities of 'Fire Attribute Nullification' and 'Curse Complete Resistance'.
This heat wasn't intense, but it was extremely powerful, though it didn't cause Tang Zheng any impact or harm. It simply spread randomly within his body, causing his aura to surge and vibrate slightly.
Thump! Thump! Tang Zheng seemed to hear the sound of his heart beating violently, silently sensing the effects of the Dragon Blood. A thought flashed through his mind as he looked at the stats page.
Logically, experimenting with the effects of directly drinking Dragon Blood should be done on other creatures first.
But just observing the negative effects produced by the Evil Spirit Dog drinking a tiny amount of Dragon Blood, Tang Zheng already knew that ordinary creatures couldn't withstand the power of Dragon Blood at all.
What's more.
A large amount of Dragon Blood contamination could very likely cause a curse, so Tang Zheng could only personally experience this change.
To the side.
The Evil Spirit Dog trembled all over as it lay on the ground, its eyes filled with Terror. The power emanating from the Dragon Blood in the water bag had made its entire body limp.
Time passed bit by bit.
The stats, which had been still, changed again.
...
『HP:449→450』
『Physical Defense:248→249』
『Magic Resistance:263→264』
...
Tang Zheng narrowed his eyes. HP, Physical Defense, and Magic Resistance had all increased by one point simultaneously.
The last time, not much Dragon Blood had entered his mouth, so it only increased the HP stat. This time, drinking a large amount of Dragon Blood had increased Physical Defense and Magic Resistance at the same time.
"It didn't trigger a class, it's just an increase in the three stats for now."
Tang Zheng thought silently, sensing that the chaotic, powerful heat within his body hadn't dissipated, and continued to watch the stats.
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