The Great Thief

It was possible that everyone who came to the Ravenholdt Manor would have a different examiner. Lu Li had never read about Bath’ra the Windcatcher before and so he didn’t know what level he was.

However, after seeing him get tossed so far and get up like nothing had happened, it couldn’t be that low.

”Do you really want to share the bomb’s secrets with me?” Bath’ra asked again.

”Yes, Mr Bath’ra, I have answered your question for the eleventh time and we have already signed an agreement which has been confirmed by the Institute of Engineers.” Lu Li was quite annoyed.

The Troll was quite chatty and was incapable of being quiet.

”As you know, Master Ivy was a genius. He was a Master of his own time and still is now, even though he was always a joke to his peers and disciples. I didn’t think that I would get to see some of his work.” Bath’ra was filled with emotion.

”Would a genius kill himself?” Lu Li disagreed.

”This…I heard a secret that Ivy didn’t actually die,” Bath’ra said embarrassedly.

”That’s impossible.” Lu Li wasn’t like the other players; he had keenly read all the legends and stories about Dawn’s lore. For Ivy in particular, he was confident enough to make this point.

”I have no reason to lie to you,” Bath’ra said then explained, ”A Lich can separate its soul and go into hiding. As long as not all of it is destroyed, it cannot truly be killed…”

”Ivy wasn’t a Lich; he wasn’t even a Mage,” Lu Li said as he shook his head.

”Of course I knew that, but young man, do you know that Engineering is a great art? It is broader and more profound than any other art. Other than bombs, Ivy also studied the soul…” Bath’ra seemed to worship Ivy. Perhaps to those who were keen for Engineering and wanted to continually pursue it, Ivy was forever the true God.

”Please, Windcatcher. I remember someone saying that it was because of his studies into the soul that he went crazy and made a bomb that could destroy a mountain, which ultimately resulted in his death.”

”Please do not question the Godlike Engineering Master,” Bath’ra shouted angrily; his voice was much louder than the Mechano-Hog.

Lu Li withdrew and warned himself not to discredit an idol in front of their fans again.

”Actually, I really like engineering and have spent quite some time on it.”

”Then why are you still just an Intermediate Engineer?” Bath’ra politeness had vanished after Lu Li’s display of arrogance.

”I had only spent a month in my free time, and I was still young at the time,” Lu Li shrugged.

Players were quite richly blessed in this regard. While there were things they may not be able to learn in life, all they needed to do in Dawn was gather the Trade Skill EXP.

”Never feel like you are still too young – if you wait, it might be too late.” Bath’ra’s sigh could be heard by Lu Li even over the thundering vehicles.

The Mechano-Hog increased movement speed by 120%; it was one of the fastest ground mounts. Before Long, Bath’ra and Lu Li appeared in front of a cave.

”The Ravenholdt Manor is in the mountains?” Lu Li thought that this was a little strange.

”Oh, oh no, I…” The Troll’s face turned purple before shouting, ”I should have put you to sleep. Dammit, I forgot…”

Lu Li: …

Not only did this guy discriminate between races, he also made silly mistakes

The road here had many hills and the terrain was complex.

However, once players had come here often enough, they would eventually remember the directions. Lu Li wasn’t Hachi Chan – if he had to, he could definitely navigate his way here.

Poor Bath’ra was so distracted by Ivy’s Bomb that he had forgotten to put him into a coma.

It was a complete mistake.

Nothing like this had ever happened to the Ravenholdt Manor in thousands of years. The simplest solution would be to kill the offenders.

However, Lu Li was an adventurer and he knew that Dawn’s rules stipulated that adventurers couldn’t be killed. The most they could do was reduce his EXP by 20%.

”I can keep a secret. In fact, I just woke up,” Lu Li said.

Virtual reality had been developed for 200 years and had gone through several stages.

50 years ago, the development of artificial intelligence also became mainstream.

In the recent 50 years, technology kept advancing and more man-power was freed up. In particular, agricultural production was almost exclusively coordinated by artificial intelligence.

The same was true of video games; Dawn’s monsters had some level of artificial intelligence.

If they didn’t need to consider playability, then they would give all life in the world full intelligence.

Bath’ra the Windcatcher’s intelligence was quite high, so he seriously considered Lu Li’s proposal.

If Ravenholdt Manor found out about this issue during the trial process, they wouldn’t accept Lu Li, but it would also cause him some trouble. As a member of the organization, he knew the level of their strength.

”Do you have any demands?” Bath’ra asked.

”Not really – I don’t have a need for an informant. I also don’t want to offend a Master Engineer.” Lu Li had a bit of a headache at this point.

Knowing the real location of Ravenholdt Manor wasn’t much use to him.

”No, you have to have a demand,” Bath’ra said as he seriously stared at Lu Li.” I hope to make this secret a deal, and not something that can be used against me at any time.”

”The Mechano-Hog… how about you teach me about its blueprint?” Lu Li thought for a moment and decided to take the opportunity.

”The Mechano-Hog is actually a quest that I can’t give you directly. You must first reach Expert level before finding me to accept the quest. After completing the quest, you will receive the blueprint. You can only make the Mechano-Hog after you reach Master level,” Bath’ra bitterly said.

”Then just teach me about a blueprint.” Lu Li was speechless; he didn’t expect it to be that difficult.

”What do you mean, a blueprint?” Bath’ra’s face flushed red again.

Was this young man about to ask about the legacy and Ivy again?

”Nevermind. I shouldn’t offend an Engineering Expert,” Lu Li quickly praised him. ”How about you promise to answer my questions about Engineering when I’m free?”

”Alright, I promise,” Bath’ra sighed.

Now that this matter had been settled, Lu Li and the Master Engineer’s relationship had been solidified.

A Troll and a Night Elf then snuck into the cave.