Chapter 225 Chapter224-The Mystical Stone, Light of Times (2nd update, Cheer me with Power Stones!)
Blue Sea nodded in agreement, "Indeed, we can leave. We've wasted too much time here already."
As they were about to summon their mounts, John abruptly stopped them with a raised hand. "Hold on, our good fortune for today hasn't ended yet."
They looked at him, puzzled.
John moved to the large stone where Treasure Thief Rat had been earlier.
He crouched down, meticulously searching its crevices.
"You might not be familiar with the peculiar traits of creatures like the Treasure Thief Rat. Whenever he's present, there's always a valuable treasure nearby."
"Otherwise, he wouldn't have lingered here for so long. He fled in such a hurry, but he still cast a lingering glance back at this rock."
"It's clear he didn't manage to retrieve what he was after. That means there must be a priceless treasure hidden here."
He examined the stone with enthusiasm.
On the ground, there was a small hole previously dug by the Treasure Thief Rat.
But no matter how he inspected it, all he saw were ordinary dirt and some broken plant roots, with nothing else of note.
Hearing John's words, Blue Sea and Adam grew interested and quickly approached, scrutinizing the rock from every angle.
Despite their efforts, they couldn't discern anything unusual about the stone.
"It's just a regular stone. You can find these everywhere along the road," Adam remarked, slightly puzzled as he gently tapped the rock.
But in the next moment, something entirely unexpected happened.
Where Adam's palm touched, the stone gave way, leaving a deep, clear imprint of his hand.
Adam hastily withdrew his hand, exclaiming in astonishment, "What on earth is this?"
From the side, Blue Sea teased, "Impressive, Brother Adam! When did you master such a signature move? To imprint such a mark on a stone with just one slap, is it some kind of special ability?"
Adam gave a wry smile, quickly waving his hands, "Stop joking around. I didn't use any skills. I just casually gave it a tap..."
"Could it be made of pudding?" someone quipped.
"Or perhaps, I've recently reached a new pinnacle of martial prowess, using a legendary technique to strike from afar..." Adam said, striking a comedic martial arts pose that looked quite amusing.
John, however, was not engrossed in the spirited discussion between the two.
Instead, he went over to the large stone, gazing thoughtfully at the handprint left by Adam.
It was indeed curious – how could Adam's casual tap indent the stone?
Suddenly, a realization seemed to dawn on John.
Clapping his hands together excitedly, he exclaimed, "I've got it!"
Both Adam and Blue Sea turned their gazes toward him in unison.
John smiled slightly and began to elucidate, "The true wonder lies not above, but beneath this stone. The treasure that the Treasure Thief Rat was so desperately trying to excavate might just be hidden below this very rock."
Blue Sea and Adam became even more puzzled.
They reached out, carefully feeling the stone's surface.
"Isn't this just a regular stone?" they remarked.
"The system hasn't provided any hints. Apart from being a bit softer, there's nothing particularly unique about it..."
John unveiled a mysterious smile, posing softly, "Have you ever wondered why this stone has become so fragile that it yields to a mere touch?"
Seeing both of them shake their heads almost simultaneously, John sighed with a hint of exasperation. "It's because some force has altered the texture of this rock," he whispered.
"Come, let's move the stone aside first and then discuss."
Upon hearing John's words, Adam, always eager to display his strength, stepped forward confidently.
"I'll do it. Moving this small stone is a piece of cake for me."
The towering Adam positioned himself in front of the stone, gathering his strength.
With a final burst of energy, he embraced the rock, attempting to heave it upwards.
But the stone remained unyielding, standing firmly in its place.
"Small stone, you say? A slap in the face, isn't it?" Blue Sea burst into uncontrollable laughter on the side.
The two seemed to be the kind of friends who reveled in bantering with each other.
Flushing with embarrassment, Adam roared again, the exaggerated muscles on his arms bulging and veins popping.
Yet no matter how hard he tried, the rock seemed rooted to the ground, not even budging in the slightest.
Now truly agitated, Adam thought to himself: with the strength bestowed upon him at his current level, it wasn't just this stone - even a building made of stone could be effortlessly demolished by him.
"I refuse to believe this! Today, I will move this stone come what may..."
Adam's gaze shifted as his body began to radiate streaks of pure, white light.
The dense and sanctified power of the Holy Light gradually enveloped him.
Soon, a full set of armor materialized around Adam.
The helmet's face shield descended, covering Adam's handsome and domineering visage.
The aura emanating from him screamed danger, warning all to keep their distance.
Blue Sea, observing from the side, clicked his tongue in amazement.
To think that, in order to move the massive stone, Adam would manifest his epic armor set in its entirety!
Armored from head to toe, Adam exerted himself once more.
At last, the massive stone showed a hint of movement, albeit a slight wobble.
To truly shift it remained an almost impossible task.
Exhausted and drained, Adam sat down, panting heavily.
Disbelief filled his eyes as he exclaimed, "Damn it! This stone defies the laws of physics. It feels so soft to touch, yet it's completely immovable..."
John approached with a faint smile and gently patted his shoulder, saying, "Don't strain yourself any further. This seemingly ordinary stone holds mysteries within."
"With your current levels, moving this stone is virtually impossible... And look, the imprint you made earlier has completely vanished."
Adam stared in astonishment, finding the reality precisely as John described.
The indentation he had made on the stone had, unbeknownst to them, seamlessly reverted to its original state.
"What on earth is going on?" Adam and Blue Sea exclaimed in unison.
John, appearing as though he held the answers to the enigma, confidently stated, "I'm certain that there's a treasure resting atop this stone. "
"And its properties are incredibly unique... I don't know if you've heard, but within the world of 'Godslayer', there's a substance which the native NPCs refer to as the 'Soil Blessed by the God of Time and Space'..."
"But in reality, the Godslayer Continent has no deity in command of time and space. And even if one existed, it certainly wouldn't bless a mere clump of soil... This substance is a natural material born alongside the ORDER of the universe," John explained as he slowly approached the massive stone.
"If this stone could be easily moved, the Treasure Thief Rat we encountered earlier wouldn't have gone through so much trouble trying to dig from its edge..."
A shadow of obsidian light flitted across John's eyes.
Without a sound, his right hand settled onto the stone, and he suddenly exerted force.
To Adam and Blue Sea's astonishment, John's body seemed to warp momentarily, as if his limbs were detaching.
But after blinking and refocusing, they found John standing perfectly intact.
A split second later, a sharp, piercing scream echoed, and the stone shot out to the side.
Casually dusting off his hands, John looked down with a smiling gaze.
Beneath the stone, an unknown object emitted a dusky, brownish glow.
The tiny granules coming together in that hue made it easy to understand why the native NPCs might refer to it as soil.
But John knew better; this substance had nothing to do with soil.
Curiosity drew Adam and Blue Sea closer.
The three of them bent down, their heads hovering over the brownish "soil."
John seemed unaffected, but after only a brief glance, Adam and Blue Sea felt the world spin around them.
They quickly averted their gaze, taking several moments to recover.
With a mix of astonishment and apprehension, they looked at John. "Galewind, just what the hell is this?" they asked.
John replied with a serene smile, revealing a name, "Light of Times."
Adam and Blue Sea exchanged puzzled glances.
No matter how hard they thought about it, they couldn't reconcile this name with the substance before them.
The brownish glow, the soil-like granules — none of it seemed to correlate with the word "light" in any way.
"What does this thing do?" Blue Sea inquired. "Why did we feel dizzy after just a short glimpse?"
John calmly responded, "That's because the Light of Times has the ability to manipulate both space and time."
"Although its range is significantly limited, it touches upon the two most mysterious ORDERS of time and space."
"Given your current levels and capabilities, it's no wonder you can't gaze upon it directly."
"In a sense, its stature is comparable to that of a deity, perhaps even akin to a higher-level god... And just as a deity shouldn't be directly observed, neither should this."
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