Otherworld Bone Dragon Operation Guide

Chapter 144 Dawn and Dusk Bracelet
Stepping into the mine and looking at the surrounding mountain walls, Su Ming once again felt a sense of familiarity.

"Miss Qiluo, please scout out this place," Zijin suddenly said.

The unicorn appeared behind the two, and the glow of the invisibility spell shattered. "How did you know I was following you? Weren't you wearing forbidden magic cloaks?"

"The dried sweet potato that little girl was holding by the roadside just now suddenly disappeared," Su Ming replied.

"This is my reward for purifying her!" Qiluo chewed the dried sweet potato in her mouth and swallowed it.

She was a little girl, about six years old, dressed simply but cleanly. She didn't have any major problems; she had a few parasites in her stomach, which the unicorn had just done on a whim.

Of course, it's more likely that Kira was just craving something sweet.

Qi Luo explored the area and found it to be calm and peaceful. Su Ming and Zi Jin began to descend the inclined shaft.

The unicorn caught up, "Chestnut Owl Scholar, you invented the insect repellent technique, didn't you?"

"I am the second author; the first inventor is Stacy Green," Violet corrected.

"Scholar Stacy?" Qi Luo thought for a moment. "Hmm, it's a pity. It seems she was captured by the Temple of Light."

"Yes, we are all necromancers."

"So what exactly happened with that ghost incident?" Qi Luo asked. She was naturally curious, and it was quite remarkable that she had been able to hold back until now.

A year ago, major organizations around the world received reports that a large group of necromancers were attempting to recreate ghost magic. Ghosts are a type of inferior undead spirit, but they can transform their targets into ghosts after killing them, causing them to multiply rapidly.

Ghosts are weak in combat and ineffective against elite warriors, but they are absolutely annihilating to ordinary people.

In the ensuing joint operation, Pope Augustus killed the mastermind behind the ghost incident and immediately received the approval of the Divine Favor Scepter. Subsequent joint investigations by various factions revealed that the vast majority of necromancers participated in this research, including top scholars such as Chestnut Owl.

This sparked a global manhunt against necromancers that continues to this day, with Su Ming and Zi Jin being among the few who managed to escape.

"The research on spirits is real; I've participated in the deduction of some of the spells," the scholar replied. "The project is called 'Spirit Cloud,' and the initiator claims it can build a wide-area network based on soul resonance, creating a powerful magical interaction system."

“I’ve read the relevant materials,” Su Ming interjected. “From the perspective of the Chestnut Owl scholars, no, from the perspective of many participants, this research is sound. Its application prospects are very broad, and it can bring about a qualitative change in the scale of collaboration within existing magic.”

“That’s right. But I didn’t expect that ‘Lingyun’ was just the surface; its true core is actually a ghost network,” Zijin continued. “It uses blockchain to make ghosts interact and link together to form an aggregate, thereby greatly enhancing their combat power.”

If the terrifying proliferative capacity of ghosts were to be further enhanced in combat, it would immediately become an insurmountable calamity. No wonder the numerous forces in the other world were shocked and astonished, leading them to issue warrants for the arrest of the undead.

If this succeeds, it will be an absolute catastrophe!
Qi Luo pondered for a moment, "So you were tricked, this was a trap?"

"Pretty much, but there's no way to deny it," Violet sighed. "We did participate in the research, and technology is a double-edged sword."

Research into expanding the boundaries of magic is not contradictory to causing disasters. Just as nuclear fusion on Earth can generate electricity, it can also cause destruction.

"Is it possible that this is a conspiracy orchestrated by the Temple of Light?" Qi Luo offered a guess.

Zijin shook her head. "I don't doubt their intentions. But if they want to confuse us necromancers in academic matters, the priests of the Temple of Light are not qualified!"

****
The three ventured deeper into the cave, where there were no more side caves or inhabitants. Qi Luo snapped her fingers, and the detection fluctuations spread again. "Safe. But as you said, those above the rank of Archmage can still evade my senses."

“That’s enough.” Violet lifted the hood of her cloak and began to look around.

Now that they've entered the underground, the spiritual energy between her and Su Ming will be blocked by the mountain, greatly reducing the distance it can travel, so they don't need to be too careful anymore.

Su Ming also unfastened his cloak, and his senses were quickly released, making the surrounding world clear.

He immediately and keenly sensed the subtle fluctuations around him. "The space here is very active!"

“It seems these things are what attracted you here,” Violet said.

"And what about you?" Su Ming asked the scholar, who wasn't sensitive to spatial fluctuations. "What's attracting you?"

"Something I hate, yet can't help but get close to," Violet hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Death."

Su Ming sensed it. "Undead? There aren't any."

Violet shook her head. "It's a tangible concept of death, which is different from the concept of the undead."

The ground began to level out, the inclined shaft ended, and they entered the first level of the mine. From there, the tunnels branched into multiple passages, extending deeper in different directions.

Zijin turned to Qiluo, "Please wait here for a moment. This invitation should be for us."

"Hey, is it dangerous?" Qiluo asked.

Su Ming shook his head. "If the other party can interfere with concepts, they don't need to go through all this trouble to target us."

Although they hadn't expected a casual stroll to unfold like this, Su Ming and Zi Jin both had a very clear feeling that someone wanted to see them.

Or perhaps, one of them.

The two people and the beast waved to each other. Qi Luo stayed where she was, while Su Ming and Zi Jin continued to walk deeper into the area.

To avoid hindering their ability to explore the surrounding area, they did not use illumination spells. It was fine within the inclined shaft, but once they descended into the alleyway, the terrain became more complex, and Su Ming began to feel somewhat overwhelmed.

Zijin reached out and took his hand, guiding him to adjust their direction. "That's the stone gate over there. Let's go down the main well."

"Why does this feel so familiar?" Su Ming asked. He only had a sense of déjà vu, but the scholar felt as if he were coming home.

“The structure of mines is pretty much the same,” Violet explained. “I got used to traveling through them after I came to the human world.”

This former dragon initially made a living by doing manual labor in mining.

“The mine is a great place. I’m strong, so I earn a lot more money than others,” Violet explained. She found the main shaft and led Su Ming down to the bottom of the mine. “Sometimes when I get tired of shapeshifting, I can easily find a secluded spot and revert to my original form to rest.”

"Is your salary enough to eat?" Su Ming asked, thinking of the enormous unicorn. Even if Zi Jin was still a young dragon at the time, she was probably no match for Qi Luo.

“The food in the mining area is very cheap,” Violet explained. “And you know, I’m good at catching rats. I can just find a dark alley, crawl through it, and have my fill. That copper mine is huge; you could walk around for a month without repeating the same place.”

Su Ming tightened his grip on the girl's hand. He said in a relaxed tone, "You have a deep connection with rats. I remember your first paper was about rats."

"You've read this far," Zijin exclaimed. "Is it 'Genetic Research on Mouse Hybridization' or 'Exploration of Embryonic Malformations'?" she asked. "I don't quite remember which one came first."

Having been thoroughly tested by the information-saturated internet, Su Ming's reading speed is clearly superior to that of scholars. He can finish a book of tens of thousands of words in an hour, and he can skim through the key points even faster.

"Are you testing me? The earliest one must be 'The Mouse's Diary'," he said, puzzled.

In the dim light of the levitation spell, shock filled the scholar's face. "Wait, how did you find that?!" She turned and glared at Su Ming. "I hid it very well!"

"The book with the title 'Principles of Economics' on the cover turned out to be a stack of handwritten manuscripts. It was easy to find."

Zijin covered her mouth with her other hand, her expression incredulous. "No, that thing—I locked it!" During the conversation, the two drifted down to the lowest level of the alleyway.

"The six colors represent different magical elements. Just trigger them according to the elemental order in which you release 'Hexagram Divine Decree'. I thought it was a riddle you left behind on purpose."

Scholars often create puzzles, and Su Ming didn't think much of it when he first unlocked it, wondering why this one was so simple.

Zijin released his hand. "You read it all!?"

"Hmm. It's written in great detail, with the father and mother mice building their nest little by little and raising their baby mice—" Su Ming said earnestly.

Enraged, Zijin snapped off a wooden pillar supporting the mine shaft and hurled it at Su Ming. The latter merely raised his left hand to block it before being sent flying and crashing into the cave wall.

She looked at Su Ming with embarrassment and anger, only to find that he was just standing against the cave wall, showing no intention of fighting.

Zi Jin could only drop the wooden pillar, walk to his side, and impatiently pull his left arm, placing her palm on it and casting a water-based spell to soothe the wound. Although she wasn't going all out, Su Ming hadn't activated any protective defenses either, so some minor injuries were inevitable.

"Didn't we agree on a safe word?" Violet questioned. According to their agreement, using a safe word in this situation would end the battle.

"I went through your personal belongings, so getting a beating is nothing."

Zijin bit her lip. "Although I don't want anyone to see those embarrassing things, they've already been seen, so I can only accept the apology—do you think I'm that unreasonable?"

Su Ming shook his head. "Okay, it was just my own mind that was in turmoil. Actually, I cried for a long time when I saw the manuscript that day."

"I've read your paper, 'Genetic Research on Mouse Hybridization,' a foundational work in genetics. I've also read 'Exploring Embryonic Malformations,' which pioneered the theory and methods for detecting fetal malformations. Later, you reduced the difficulty and cost, making this technology available to all races worldwide. Thinking back to the beginning of all this, it was just a lonely, wandering young dragon, doing hard labor in a dimly lit mine, keeping mice company in its loneliness—"

Su Ming wiped his eyes. "Humans really do love to cry."

"It's not that pitiful..." the veteran miner whispered. "I actually enjoyed that time quite a bit."

She lied, because she too had shed tears when she recalled the past, even when she was still a dragon. In moments of loneliness, when she was young, cold, and hungry, she would lie in the dark, deserted underground, silently weeping. Facing the pitch-black mine, she didn't know where to turn for comfort.

This kind of life only improved after she met the great scholar Gilbert. He was amazed by Violet's research on mice and led her onto the path of a scholar.

Zijin looked up at Su Ming. Though there was no light, they could clearly sense each other. Previously hidden emotions were brought to the fore in the darkness and silence.

Even her mentor, Gilbert, hadn't seen these manuscripts. At that time, she wasn't very good at writing; half the paper was covered in scribbles, and her vocabulary was awkward and immature. It was fortunate that Su Ming, whose native language wasn't Common Language, could understand them.

She suddenly felt that some things no longer mattered; it didn't matter if this person saw her deepest, most painful past. Su Ming didn't mock her. He understood her academic work, appreciated her achievements, and empathized with her situation.

Even those in academia, while forced to acknowledge her achievements, secretly gave her the nickname "Chestnut Owl," using the owl to create a pun on the mouse. This infuriated her so much that she subsequently had to wear many burlap sacks over her head.

****
Just as Zijin was about to speak, Su Ming suddenly straightened up. The girl stopped the treatment, and the two stood side by side in the middle of the dark alley, looking around warily.

There was nothing unusual in his field of vision, but Su Ming sensed that the activity level of spatial elements was constantly increasing.

"It seems they're looking for you." Even Zijin, who couldn't sense spatial elements, noticed the anomaly.

Su Ming nodded slightly, closed his eyes, and calmed his mind. Space is a very special concept, and even though he inexplicably became a space mage and studied it for so long, he still found it difficult to grasp its profound depths.

The fluctuations grew stronger, so Su Ming emptied his mental energy. Space, devoid of energy, is the foundation upon which all matter exists and cannot be altered like ordinary elements.

Boundless, eternal!
The surrounding turmoil suddenly stopped. He opened his eyes, and the surrounding blackness was like a mirror. He wanted to move forward, but his own reflection appeared in front of him.

He tried to look up, and the same mirror image appeared above him.

I'm still in the same place.

He looked at his left hand, where he was holding someone's hand, and that person was looking at him in return.

Something changed; space flipped at a certain moment, and the person looking for him had arrived.

"So, what do you want from me?" Su Ming asked.

A figure appeared directly in front of him, face to face, but the one to his left hadn't disappeared either. This wasn't movement or duplication; it was all just spatial reflection.

The colors have faded, leaving only black and white in the world. The figure before her is a beautiful girl with a slender figure and long, flowing hair, wearing a flowing cloth dress.

However, from the necromancer's perspective, Su Ming glimpsed a different truth.

"Archlich, the Great Lich!"

The great lich girl suddenly raised her wrist, where a bracelet was worn. She took off the bracelet, presented it to Su Ming with both hands, and then looked at him quietly.

Is this to be handed over to him?

Su Ming examined it closely; it was a very simple bone bracelet, divided into twelve sections by a minimalist pattern. Unlike the ethereal Great Lich, its existence was solid, and it was the only thing with color here, as if the power of the entire space had been concentrated on it.

The inside of the bracelet is engraved with two characters: Dawn and Dusk.

He reached out to take it, and the moment he touched it, the Dawn and Dusk Bracelet shattered and disintegrated, causing the lich's hand to ripple as well.

It felt as if the other side was in water!

Su Ming withdrew his hand, and the form before him reformed, along with the bracelet. He suddenly realized that all of this was not in the same space as himself!
The lich's expression was indifferent yet gentle. She tilted her head, cupped her hands in front of her, and gestured for Su Ming to take it away quickly.

Although Su Ming had a lot of questions in his mind, the priority was to obtain the bracelet. And he was very experienced at retrieving things across space!
Runes flowed, spells were rapidly constructed, and Su Ming unleashed "Summoning of All Things".

Magic power poured out, and the concept of the bracelet's existence began to unfold. Clearly, the bracelet was no ordinary object; Su Ming discovered that the scale of his spell was quickly reaching its limit, unable to handle the amount of information.

A tiny bracelet, yet it far surpasses Earth devices that are much larger than itself.

Su Ming concentrated his mind and began to exert all his strength. A large number of runes unfolded around him, constructing nested, multi-layered magic arrays that meandered across the space on his side. He had only just mastered this technique; it wasn't a skill from otherworldly magic, but rather incorporated the concept of recursion. By amplifying his control through rune calculations, he could sweep up resources exponentially to construct the spell.

But it still wasn't enough; Su Ming was still unable to touch the essence of the bracelet. Even the lich opposite him was becoming somewhat anxious.

Su Ming steeled his heart and refocused his thoughts on the feeling he had when he first entered this place.

The perception enters the boundless in an instant, and the originally quiet spatial elements suddenly leap and create a strong resonance.

In the boundless cognition, distance and barriers lose their meaning. Su Ming's consciousness touched the bracelet, activating all the spells.

"Infinite Style: Summoning of All Things!"

The Dawn and Dusk Bracelet in the Great Lich's hand shattered and dissipated, while Su Ming held something in his hand.

The next moment, a tsunami-like magical backlash swept over, plunging Su Ming into darkness.

(End of this chapter)