331: Chapter 331 The Legend of Iron Mountain Fortress

"So that's how it is. It doesn't seem to be that impressive."

After listening to Old Bogge's narration, Nie Ning rubbed his chin and whispered softly.

Tier 5 strength might be powerful, but with his current abilities, even if he couldn't win, escaping wouldn't be a problem.

Moreover, a Rogue Wizard force was indeed inferior to wizards of the same tier who possessed strict heritages.

Taking Amelia as an example, one could see the clues regarding her strength just from the last battle against the demon descent.

Had it been Nie Ning himself, he couldn't have done any better than Amelia.

However, when these words reached the ears of Old Bogge and the others, Nie Ning's image instantly rose several points higher.

They originally thought Nie Ning was Tier 4 at most. They hadn't expected him to say such things; could he actually be a Tier 5 Transcendent?

Berly's face, already pale from the blood loss in her thigh, turned even more bloodless.

"My Lord, I know a secret! It's definitely worth my life!"

Feeling that her life was coming to an end, Berly shouted loudly with a face full of urgency.

It didn't matter what Nie Ning's strength was; she only wanted to survive.

With her face now completely ruined, she could only hope to escape death by offering something that might catch the eye of such a powerhouse.

"My Lord, you must not trust her words lightly."

Upon hearing this, Old Bogge hurriedly stepped forward to advise him.

"Earth Wolf Valley is notoriously cunning in this region. They're the type to take money and do nothing. Otherwise, we wouldn't have resorted to such a desperate plan."

As he finished, the others chimed in to agree.

If Earth Wolf Valley had been even slightly useful, they wouldn't have needed to painstakingly construct a Tier 4 barrier.

But that group not only took money without working, they would even snatch treasures from other Transcendents. They had only done this to be safe.

"My Lord, it's about the xielin turtle shield! It's our Valley Master's secret; I only obtained it by accident!"

Seeing the situation turn against her, Berly, who was hanging upside down by the Ice Chains, grew anxious and spoke up hurriedly.

"My Lord, she..."

Old Bogge and the others wanted to continue, but Nie Ning waved his hand to interrupt them.

"I will decide for myself whether she can be trusted."

Nie Ning spoke with an indifferent expression.

It didn't cost anything to listen anyway; he'd treat it as expanding his knowledge.

Hearing this, Old Bogge and the others all showed expressions of helplessness, secretly complaining in their hearts.

'Who knows what's wrong with these powerful Transcendents? The moment they hear about some treasure or secret, it's like they lose their minds.'

"Speak then. But you'd better think carefully before you talk. If I'm not satisfied, then it's just your bad luck."

Nie Ning turned his head to look at Berly and said.

"My Lord, should we step away for a moment?"

Old Bogge couldn't help but ask cautiously at this point.

He wasn't interested in those secrets at all.

After all, he was quite old and didn't have the energy for such things. He'd rather think about what to do if Nie Ning really let Berly go.

"No matter."

Nie Ning had no intention of letting them leave, then signaled for Berly to speak directly.

Berly didn't dawdle either and hurriedly began to recount the so-called secret.

In reality, it was about the origin of the xielin turtle shield.

The xielin turtle shield was not crafted by the Earth Wolf Valley Master himself, but came from a certain Transcendent's ruins.

Supposedly, it came from a local power called Iron Mountain Fortress.

Iron Mountain Fortress was an alchemy and forging sect. Similar to Yishi Mansion, it was a neutral power that rarely made enemies.

However, compared to Yishi Mansion, this Iron Mountain Fortress was much wealthier.

After all, they were in the arms business; how could they be poor?

There were three rumors regarding the disappearance of Iron Mountain Fortress.

First, they got involved in the struggles of certain powers and were eventually discovered and wiped out.

Second, rumor had it that Iron Mountain Fortress crafted an extraordinary, heaven-defying treasure, but because it couldn't withstand the baptism of the lightning tribulation, the sect was dragged down with it.

The third point was similar to the second, but instead of failing the lightning tribulation, outsiders found out they had crafted a transcendent artifact, and they were destroyed by a powerhouse who came to snatch the supreme Transcendent treasure.

Just over ten years ago, the Earth Wolf Valley Master found one of Iron Mountain Fortress's forging sites and obtained treasures like the xielin turtle shield from it.

But because his strength was low when he obtained the treasures, the Earth Wolf Valley Master was severely injured and never went back to that place again.

Because of this injury, the Earth Wolf Valley Master was unable to break through to Tier 6. Recently, he had set his sights on those ruins again, wanting to get some treasures to exchange for healing pills.

...

...

After listening to Berly's narration, Nie Ning fell into deep thought.

It wasn't because he doubted the truth of the story, but because Berly's malice was too obvious; a Tier 3 Wizard couldn't hide their mental fluctuations from him at all.

So that Iron Mountain Fortress was likely real, but it was definitely extremely dangerous.

"My Lord, I've said everything I should. Please, let me go."

Berly spoke with a slight sob in her voice.

Nie Ning raised his hand and dispersed the Ice Chains, causing Berly to fall to the ground.

Because of her severed leg, Berly bared her teeth in pain, but she didn't dare make a sound, fearing she would provoke Nie Ning's dissatisfaction.

"Given your good attitude, I won't kill you."

As soon as Nie Ning finished speaking, Berly repeatedly kowtowed to him in thanks.

"Thank you, My Lord, thank you..."

Suddenly, Berly's expression changed.

The ground began to freeze, and then the ice rapidly spread onto Berly's body.

A bone-chilling cold invaded Berly's body, as if her entire being was about to be frozen solid.

"No! My Lord, you said you would let me go!"

Berly shouted loudly with a terrified expression while using her mana to resist the cold.

"I did say I would spare your life, but your malice is far too obvious, so I'm administering a small punishment."

Nie Ning snapped his fingers with a cold expression. Terrifying frost eroded Berly's body, instantly spreading to her Mana Source.

*Crack~*

As the ice crystals on Berly's surface shattered, her Mana Source as a wizard shattered along with them.

Berly's eyes widened in disbelief.

The shock from the dissipating mana injured her internal organs. Berly couldn't help but spit out blood, and her complexion instantly withered.

"Spread the news about the appearance of Iron Mountain Fortress. That way, you shouldn't have any more problems from now on."

Nie Ning ignored Berly and instead looked at Old Bogge and the others.

The worry on the faces of Old Bogge and the others turned into bewilderment.

They had been terrified, fearing that Nie Ning would kill them to keep the secret, but after all that, he just wanted them to spread the news?

Or was it that Nie Ning had considered so much just because he wanted them to survive?

"My Lord, your kindness..."

Old Bogge's eyes grew moist. Just as he was about to say a few sentimental words, he was ruthlessly interrupted by Nie Ning.

"Don't talk so much nonsense. A lot of time has already been wasted. Do not disturb me while I am resting."

Nie Ning raised his hand, and the spatial tool on Berly's body flew into his palm. Before leaving, Nie Ning gave Old Bogge a meaningful look.

...