I Don't Agree to the Terms-Chapter 1164 - 612: The Golden Ring Amidst the Sacred Fire

"Where are the bodies?" Gu Shanhai looked at the flickering flames in front of him. The bodies of Siegfried and Valkyrie Brünnhilde had already vanished, leaving only a gold ring burning in the fire.

This gold ring was naturally the Nibelungen ring.

"Burned to ashes, of course. How could something like that be left behind?" Mimir said, as if it were the most natural thing.

"You've got a point there," Gu Shanhai replied, thinking it did make sense.

Pure gold doesn't fear fire, after all. People can burn away, but as the saying goes, gold doesn't melt... actually, nonsense, it clearly still possesses divine qualities but is isolated by the flames.

Otherwise, it would have been taken long ago. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Whether human, dwarf, giant, or even the God Race, few can resist the Nibelungen ring's power.

Even Odin would be tempted, let alone anyone else.

Thus, with the flames as a barrier, everything settled down.

"The Nibelungen ring has a powerful enchantment ability. We need to handle it with caution, otherwise..." Mimir didn't even finish speaking before seeing Gu Shanhai casually reach out.

The gold ring was plucked out by him, flames and all, moving with the Nibelungen ring.

"Otherwise, what?" Gu Shanhai glanced at Mimir.

"You weren't affected by the gold ring?" Mimir was extremely surprised.

"Nope, it's been babbling on, urging me to become the king of the world. But with so few of us here, even if I proclaimed myself as king of the world, you wouldn't object, so I just treat it as nonsense," Gu Shanhai thought, finding the ring's intelligence lacking.

However, aside from its babbling, it does have a certain erosion effect, strongly affecting one's mind, soul, and character. If one can't withstand it, they'd become a slave of power seeking only strength.

"Uh..." Mimir, knowing Gu Shanhai surely resisted it on his own, couldn't help but chuckle at his explanation and reasoning.

"The thing is indeed powerful; no wonder even Odin would be tempted." Gu Shanhai held a high opinion of the gold ring, especially now that it's the complete version, unlike the broken one he got from the Hunter King.

This must be the core of the Hunter King.

Otherwise, how would you differentiate the Hunter King from the Ghost Hunter?

The embers, derived from this, have the trait of burning strong souls as fuel, probably originating from here too.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Mimir couldn't help but ask again.

"If you're fine, why would I have any problem?" Gu Shanhai looked at Mimir strangely, wondering why his thoughts seemed so dim-witted.

"Because the flames isolate it, and I didn't directly touch the gold ring, so I'm fine."

"If I touched the gold ring directly, I'd also be influenced and eventually controlled by it."

Mimir figured the thing had a protective layer. Since he didn't break through it, he naturally wasn't affected.

"You sure know a lot." Gu Shanhai jokingly said, then casually pocketed it before continuing nonchalantly, "If it could control even me, it wouldn't be stuck here."

If the Nibelungen ring could indeed control the world, it wouldn't have ended up this way. With such strong powers of seduction, it would control not just Odin but all gods, giants, and more.

For Gu Shanhai, the embers hold great value; the ring itself is valueless. If they weren't bound together, Gu Shanhai wouldn't even glance... ahem, obviously a lie, he'd keep it as a collection piece only.

After putting away the gold ring, Mimir breathed a sigh of relief, confirming that Gu Shanhai was indeed unaffected.

If swayed by power, becoming a ring slave, the current Gu Shanhai would be obsessed and greedy for the gold ring, unable to part ways with it.

One could tell at a glance whether a person was controlled or not.

"What exactly happened back then? How could magic gold from the Rhein River create such a powerful ring?" Gu Shanhai curiously asked.

"Fate; everything was guided," Mimir implied he didn't know.

"Basically, it was sparked by greed and jealousy. If the dwarf Alberich from the Nibelungen Clan hadn't been twisted by love, this wouldn't have happened."

Mimir spoke with a hint of helplessness.

"Well, I'm not interested in this hearsay." Gu Shanhai interrupted, knowing when he heard Alberich's name that this was the Legend of the Nibelungen. Though he wasn't familiar with the details, he got the gist.

It's just a tale of failed courtship leading to stolen gold, forged into a ring, followed by various twists and turns.

Ultimately led to Siegfried's death.

"It's indeed not a good thing, and it's already happened, so it has no meaning." Upon hearing Gu Shanhai's words, Mimir didn't continue but changed the subject: "Then shall we proceed to the Silver Hall in Asgard?"

"There's no urgency. Let's first collect some data on Frost Star; follow-up research and reviews also need to be done. Otherwise, what if something goes wrong midway?"

"At this stage, Frost Star hasn't completed a single revolution. Even though the data on paper and preliminary operations seem fine, we must still proceed cautiously."

Gu Shanhai knew that, despite Mimir following him for so long, he hadn't developed the corresponding mindset. At least in terms of meticulousness, there are still quite a few issues, like assuming success means no further observations are needed and believing there won't be any problems.

However, this isn't Mimir's fault but the limitation of the era.

He resides in a mythological era, which may seem grand and noble at first glance, but in reality, it's sometimes synonymous with being primitive, ancient, and backward.

This results in his thinking not being as thorough and impeccable.

More importantly, Gu Shanhai also discovered that the pollution within Mimir was starting to manifest.

Mimir hasn't realized it yet, but he should soon notice the issue with his head.

Symptoms of pollution include sluggishness, confusion, and memory decline, among others.

Gu Shanhai has been continuously recording Mimir's condition, which allowed him to analyze the problem through the data.

Moreover, these are probably just initial symptoms; Gu Shanhai is uncertain how it will develop further.

"You're quite thoughtful; the Silver Hall and Supreme Throne won't disappear, but if Frost Star encounters a problem that isn't addressed promptly, it will certainly bring a great crisis upon us." Mimir also agreed with Gu Shanhai's approach.

They sought the fire due to fear of its extinguishment, which compelled them to come, but the Silver Hall and the Supreme Throne in Asgard are very sturdy, eliminating worries about damage.

Besides, even if it is damaged, there are replacements available, unlike the fire, which, if damaged, would force risky use of the World Fire.

The Double Star Celestial Body Plan essentially involves adding flour to water and water to flour.

It's a way to find a balance point that ensures the survival of the world, and the approach is not about convoluted reasoning.

"You might as well stop calling yourself a Wisdom Giant; instead, call yourself a Head Giant." Gu Shanhai suspected that pollution had long caused issues with Mimir's thinking and cognition.

Otherwise, this situation wouldn't have occurred.

"I actually never claimed that, and there's no such giant race as the Wisdom Giant." Mimir said honestly.

"That's really a shame," Gu Shanhai expressed regret.

Soon, Gu Shanhai caught up with Frost Star; as this celestial body passed through the sky, the burning World Fire was suppressed by the low temperature. Though it didn't extinguish it immediately, the arrogance was gone.

"There is indeed a gap between Fimbulwinter and the burning World Fire." Mimir looked at this scene, feeling somewhat satisfied.

A single revolution couldn't solve the issue; then multiple revolutions should be enough.

"Frost Star has just been born; achieving this level is already quite impressive. A child able to simply suppress an adult displays extraordinary talent." Gu Shanhai knew, this was just the beginning; the current gap would eventually be filled.

If it weren't for their elemental incompatibility, making another celestial body from the burning World Fire would be impossible. Otherwise, it ought to be used to suppress Destructive Frost.

These two are actually on the same level.

Grading is actually quite fascinating; besides Destructive Frost and the burning World Fire being at the same level, the next rung down places Fimbulwinter on the second tier, while the fire is on the third tier.

However, if the fire is turned into a Hunting Star, it could leap to the same level as Destructive Frost and the burning World Fire.

"It's unfortunate that I didn't bring auxiliary equipment, making it impossible to effectively observe Frost Star." Mimir regretted it somewhat.

"No problem; it doesn't matter if you can't observe it. As long as I can, it's fine." Gu Shanhai didn't mind at all.

As Frost Star ran its course, Gu Shanhai, through recording and comparing data, quickly completed an inspection.

"Frost Star's overall operation and data show no issues. The likelihood of subsequent operations following the data on paper is as high as ninety percent, though periodic checks are necessary since it's the first run; next time, we won't have to worry." After packing up his equipment and records, Gu Shanhai provided a conclusion.

"So who will handle the recording and comparison next?" Mimir asked.

"Definitely not me; we'll see who from Vidar's group is available later and have them do it. Initially, Gu Shanhai sets an example, but it won't be him handling it later. He just needs to receive the reports, as it's not particularly challenging work; with equipment aiding, it's quite easy." Mimir stated.