Wizard: Starting from the Skill Tree-Chapter 544: The Source

Duke checked his own condition, confirmed all his protective spells and emergency measures, and then like a fish blending into the darkness, he cautiously began to descend along the steep rock wall towards the endless abyss below.

He adjusted his aura to become more restrained, almost merging with the surrounding dim seawater. Like a weightless falling leaf, or a cautious shadow, he began to slide down the nearly vertical cliff.

The deeper he went, the more completely the light vanished, until even the occasional glowing moss was no longer visible, and true absolute darkness descended.

Duke put away the lighting technique, relying entirely on his own dark vision and spiritual power to observe the surroundings, avoiding unnecessary attention from overly bright light.

In this world of silence where even sound was distorted by immense pressure, only the faint hiss of water currents passing by and his own steady heartbeat were clearly audible.

Water Flow Shadow continued to operate, with spiritual power scanning the area below and around like the most sensitive tendrils.

Duke saw marks of ships that had long since sunk, crushed and corroded by pressure and time, leaving only twisted metal skeletons silently narrating past tragedies.

Near these wrecks, there were often some peculiar deep-sea creatures that lived on detritus.

The descent was slow and agonizing, with time losing its meaning here, only the constantly jumping numbers on the depth gauge and constantly consumed spiritual and magic power reminding him of his progress.

It was unclear how long it had been, perhaps just a few hours, yet it felt as long as a century, when Duke’s feet finally touched a relatively flat surface, reaching the bottom of the abyss.

Here lay a vast sea floor, covered with thick silt and debris.

The touch underfoot was soft and cold, surrounded by impenetrable darkness, as if countless eyes were staring in the dark.

At this point, the unique blue energy fluctuation from the direction of the target became clearer.

It was like a faint fragrance in the darkness, still weak but unwaveringly guiding the way.

Duke didn’t rush forward, he stayed in place, once again fully operating Water Flow Shadow to conduct a more detailed and deeper scan of the seabed within hundreds of meters around.

This time, he captured some new details.

Beneath the silt in that area, there seemed to be more large, unnatural structures buried, some resembling broken stone columns and stone slabs with blurred carvings.

These imprints were unimaginably ancient, almost worn smooth by time and sediment.

The source of the blue energy fluctuation indeed came from within a raised structure blocked by a mass of collapsed rocks and silt, consistent with the cave entrance he saw in the shadow scan.

Information recorded by the water flow also showed no signs of powerful creatures inhabiting or frequently moving here in the near term.

Duke also found several huge bones in the nearby silt, seemingly from some large deep-sea demon.

These huge bones emitted a faint energy, completely lifeless, dissipating over time, with no undead or resentful remnants attached.

The cave entrance blocked by collapsed rocks and silt appeared very natural, like the result of some geological movement or long-term erosion, with no signs of intentional blockage by external force.

"There’s actually... no protection?" Duke’s heart not only did not relax but instead arose a bit of doubt.

It seemed that there should be some kind of treasure inside, so how could it be exposed at the bottom of the abyss without any defense? This was illogical.

He conducted a more thorough investigation again, and also conducted further reconnaissance of the shadow space aspect with the Eye of Darkness.

But the result was that no problems were discovered, here there was no trace of any defense mechanism at all.

"Is it that too much time has passed, and all the defenses have been completely worn out by time? Or is the existence method of this treasure itself a natural protection?" Duke pondered silently.

Perhaps the treasure had extremely strong ability to conceal its own aura, if not for him possessing the Water Flow Shadow magic, no one could find its trace beneath this immense abyss and endless silt.

Alternatively, the treasure might have a repelling or concealing characteristic towards non-Water Element extreme affinity individuals.

Duke remained vigilant, suppressing his aura, maintaining a concealed state, like a slippery fish, swiftly and quietly traversing the last distance, reaching the buried raised structure.

At close range, even through thick rocks and silt, he could feel more clearly the summoning of that blue energy fluctuation, with the Water Elemental Power in his Spiritual Sea subtly resonating with it, even making him feel a sense of comfort.

He extended his hand, gently pressing against the cold, silt-covered rock, beginning a meticulous manipulation of magic power to carefully remove the obstructions blocking the entrance.

His movements were light, trying to avoid causing major disturbances, while still maintaining vigilance on the surrounding environment just in case.

As the rocks and silt were removed bit by bit, the blue light gradually shone through the gaps, rendering the surrounding murky seawater with a dreamlike hue.

With the last piece of obstructing rock gently removed, a narrow entrance just enough for a person to pass through was revealed.

In an instant, a more intense, pure blue light surged from within the cave, illuminating the seawater around Duke into a fantastical blue gemstone liquid.

He cautiously ventured into the cave. The cave’s interior was not large, with walls as smooth as if polished by flowing water over eons, while the center housed a naturally formed stone platform resembling white jade.

And lying quietly atop the stone platform, was the source of that light, a large and beautiful shell.

Its shell was about half a person’s height, elegantly shaped, with a texture smooth as the finest mutton fat jade, yet presenting a deep blue as if containing the entire starry sea.

The surface of the shell naturally bore silver patterns like moonlight scattered on sea waves, which subtly twinkled with the pulse of light, breathtakingly beautiful.

Duke could sense that the magnificent and pure essence of the Water Element, along with an ancient will, emanated from within this closed shell.

He slowly approached, with vigilance and curiosity intertwined in his heart, as knowledge from the past flashed through his mind, searching for material that matched the thing in front of him.

"Could this be the Beauty Shell?"

Duke thought for a long time and found that everything about this shell matched the descriptions of the Beauty Shell.