Chapter 273: Chapter 267: Counting the Spoils and the Otherworld Travel Journal

The setting sun painted the sky a warm, orange-red. Its lingering light cascaded over the ancient bricks of Black Stone Castle, as if coating them in a layer of shifting golden sand.

Raylo landed in the castle courtyard. Baofeng folded its iron feathers and let out a powerful cry, announcing the Lord’s return.

"Ed, tally the casualties and reassure the soldiers."

Raylo ordered as he unfastened his armor.

"Also, have Scribe Evan come to my study."

"Yes, my Lord."

Ed replied in a deep voice and immediately began to organize his men.

Raylo strode through the hallway, the large white cat padding gracefully beside him.

Coal Ball, meanwhile, hopped and skipped along behind Moonlight like a little tagalong.

The study door was pushed open, revealing a roaring fire in the hearth.

Raylo threw himself into a large armchair, his taut nerves finally finding a moment of relief.

Soon, Scribe Evan hurried over.

"My Lord, you sent for me."

Evan bowed slightly.

"The ferry’s dock and boats have been destroyed,"

Raylo said succinctly.

"Draft a repair plan, withdraw funds from the treasury, and get the ferry operational again as soon as possible."

"Yes, my Lord."

Evan bowed and excused himself.

The study door closed once more, and Raylo finally turned his full attention to the spoils from his recent venture.

He took out the Spatial Bag he had confiscated from Graves.

The bag felt heavy in his hand. It was made of some unknown leather, warm to the touch, and embroidered with complex magic patterns in silver thread.

Raylo sank his Spiritual Power into the new Spatial Bag.

The next moment, he was slightly taken aback.

This new Spatial Bag was nearly the size of his bedroom.

’This is something else.’

Raylo couldn’t help but marvel in a low voice.

The Spatial Bag alone, named [Greed’s Maw], was of incalculable value.

With a thought, he began to take inventory of the loot inside.

CLATTER!

First came the Golden Dragons. Box after box of them poured out, quickly forming a mountain of gold on the carpet several times higher than before. The golden gleam was almost blinding.

Coal Ball’s eyes instantly went wide. It let out a cheerful growl, dove headfirst into the pile of gold coins, and began to "swim" through them like a black dolphin, leaving only its round, dark little butt sticking out.

Next were hundreds of assorted Magic Stones and Magic Cores, each radiating the aura of a different element.

Raylo’s breathing quickened slightly.

He knew Domain Level Powerhouses were wealthy, but he hadn’t expected this level of riches.

This fortune was almost equivalent to several decades of income for an entire fief.

After returning these conventional supplies to the Spatial Bag and leaving a few boxes of Golden Dragons for Coal Ball to roll in, Raylo focused his attention on the remaining items.

That was the true prize of this haul.

Raylo set aside the little guy who wanted to stuff everything into its belly, his gaze sweeping past the mundane goods to land on several items radiating powerful waves of Magic Power.

This was the real treasure.

He first picked up the suit of black armor and the thrusting sword that Gaius had stripped off his foe.

[Nightmare Armor]: Forged by a renowned Alchemy Master from the hardest shell of an adult Nightmare Beast, mixed with Refined Iron. This suit of Full Body Armor not only offers extremely high defense against physical attacks but also possesses considerable resistance to Spiritual and Curse-type Magic. Most importantly, it continuously emits an intangible pressure, causing those with weak wills to feel subconscious terror when facing the wearer, as if confronting a nightmare itself.

Under Gaius’s unparalleled assault, the armor had been somewhat damaged and would need repairs before it could be used properly.

[Silent Sting]: The blade is long and slender, a strange grayish-black color that seems to absorb all light. It is coated with the "Soul Withering" poison; once it pierces flesh, the toxin directly affects the soul and is extremely difficult to dispel. The pommel is embedded with a "Demon-Breaking Stone," allowing it to easily tear through protection techniques below Tier Five.

Raylo picked up the thrusting sword and gave it a light swing. It left only a silent trail in the air, swallowing even the sound of the wind.

’What a fine weapon.’

He set the sword down and picked up a pair of leather boots as thin as cicada wings.

[Wind-Stepping Boots]: Made from the core of a Wind Elemental Lord. Wearing them not only makes one’s body technique as swift as the wind but also allows for brief hovering or gliding in the air.

[Divine Blood Talisman]: A single-use Alchemy Marvel. It is said to be a failed product from a Magic Dominator’s attempt to replicate a Divine Spirit’s "Divine Immortality."

It cannot grant eternal life, but it can take the full force of a fatal blow on behalf of the wearer, shattering in the process.

Raylo weighed the talisman in his hand, thinking to himself that if not for Gaius’s overwhelming power, which allowed him to capture Graves without dealing a killing blow, this marvel would have surely activated and shattered during the fight.

[Wraith Whistle]: Blowing this whistle summons a squad of ten fearless skeleton warriors to fight for you for one hour. Can be used once every three days. Although the summons are not powerful, they can be surprisingly effective in specific situations, such as scouting or acting as cannon fodder.

’I didn’t expect Graves to have a Necromancer’s item in his collection.’

[Soul Barrier Talisman]: The pendant is a translucent, deep-sea sapphire containing a sealed Jellyfish Spirit. It can effectively resist most forms of spiritual probing, illusion techniques, and charm-type magic.

When targeted by a spiritual attack, the gemstone will emit a cold sensation as a warning.

For a lord who could face all sorts of bizarre tactics at any moment, the value of this item was self-evident.

[Soul Cage]: A spherical cage the size of one’s palm, woven from countless fine silver threads. This is a wicked alchemy tool that can forcibly imprison a weakened soul within it, to be used for interrogation or as a material for casting.

Finally, there was the item that Raylo considered the most valuable: an ancient-looking notebook.

[Star Realm Traveler’s Notes]: The notebook’s cover was made of some kind of tough leather and had no title. Inside, there were no words, but rather a series of star maps drawn with special ink, along with many disjointed spatial coordinates. It appeared to be the journal of a powerful Space Mage, recording the secret passages and weak points in space he discovered while traveling between the Prime Material Plane and the Star Realm.

For Raylo, who owned the Space Young Dragon, Coal Ball, these notes were of immeasurable value.

Once Coal Ball grew up, they might be able to travel to some of the coordinates recorded in the notebook, which could potentially lead to undiscovered Secret Realms or lost ruins.

After taking inventory of all his spoils, Raylo let out a long sigh of relief. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

The entire fortune of a Domain Level Powerhouse had certainly not disappointed him.

The wealth was secondary. The various pieces of Magic Equipment with their diverse functions, and especially the [Star Realm Traveler’s Notes], were the most precious treasures.

In addition, there were also large quantities of precious potions hoarded by Graves: three bottles of Sky Knight’s Breakthrough Potion, twelve bottles of Earth Knight’s Breakthrough Potion, twenty-four bottles of Great Knight’s Breakthrough Potion, and fifty bottles of Knight’s Breakthrough Potion.

Graves was the commander of the Thorn Knight Order of the Saint Violet Empire. These potions were clearly supplies the Thorn Knight Order used to cultivate its Knights. With Graves’s capture, this precious batch of potions had all fallen into Raylo’s hands, bolstering the foundation of the Black Stone Territory.

Another thing that pleased Raylo was that Graves also had a Tier Five Magic Core in his collection. It was a Wind Attribute Magic Core, cyan-green in color, with a faint breeze swirling around it.

For the foreseeable future, he wouldn’t have to worry about a power source for the Soul Horn.

He looked out the window, where Black Stone Castle was bathed in the warm golden light of the setting sun.