Treasure Hunting System： The Ocean Conquerer
Chapter 88: Enter

Chapter 88: Chapter 88: Enter

"What are we here on this island for?" Alka asked curiously.

After all, the supplies and various items prepared for the Realm of Pitch Darkness had long been delivered by the previous Church merchant ships. They were quite comprehensive, so they didn’t need to worry too much. They had even received dedicated intelligence regarding recent events in the Realm of Pitch Darkness.

"There’s something to do," Andre said, checking his watch. "If you have anything you want to buy, you can wander around now. We’ll meet back on the ship in the afternoon." He then turned towards another path.

The others glanced at each other and went their separate ways to places they were interested in.

Jason and Alka headed together towards the weapon store.

"Oh, excuse me, sir."

"It’s alright. Be careful."

A child bumped into Alka, and Alka turned aside to help him up. He then watched as the child quickly ran away, a smile touching his lips.

Seeing this, Jason couldn’t help but frown. "He might be a pickpocket. Aren’t you going to chase him?"

Hearing this, Alka smiled and showed Jason his hand. "Did you forget about this? I don’t even use a wallet anymore."

Seeing the Ring on Alka’s hand, Jason’s eyes flashed with envy, and he clenched his fist. "Just you wait, I’m going to work hard too!"

Putting the small incident aside, the two arrived at the nearest weapon store. Various types of swords and Vibrating Stone Firearms were on display. Boxes of various types of ammunition were stacked nearby, available for customers to choose from. There were quite a few customers inside, purchasing various weapons. After browsing casually for a while, the two walked out.

"No way, the weapons here are much worse than what we’re carrying," Jason couldn’t help but pout as they walked out.

Hearing this, Alka retorted, "The ones we’re holding are masterpieces, adjusted and modified by Bobby. How could you possibly expect to find something better than these for sale just anywhere?"

Jason couldn’t help but chuckle. "I was just grumbling, haha."

"Alright, I’m going to buy some crafting materials," Alka said.

"Let’s go, let’s go. I don’t have anything else to do, so I’ll accompany you," Jason replied.

Alka intended to buy more Fire Element materials to create Red Cards. The Cross of Righteous Fire was the most powerful of the three cards. However, Alka had yet to perfect its creation, only managing to produce defective or semi-finished versions. While usable, their explosive power was, to put it mildly, underwhelming. So Alka planned to buy some cheap, lower-quality Fire Element materials to practice with and improve quickly. The Fire Element materials on the ship, which he had requested from the Church, were top-notch. Using them for practice felt like too much of a waste and caused him some heartache.

As for the Blue Card and Silver Card, Alka could already make them quite well. After all, their corresponding Spells were clearly a tier below the Cross of Righteous Fire.

After purchasing the materials, the two wandered around for a bit. Finding nothing else of interest, they returned to the ship. The others gradually returned as well. Finally, Andre returned.

"Is everyone back?" he asked.

Alka shook his head. "Chadite hasn’t returned yet."

Andre checked his pocket watch. "Then let’s wait a bit longer for her."

Soon, they saw Chadite hurrying back from afar. With a leap, she jumped directly onto the deck. This exaggerated move didn’t particularly surprise the nearby dock workers; it seemed they were already used to such things.

Watching Chadite jump on board, Alka then noticed a ring on her hand. Remembering what Chadite had said earlier, and recalling the backpack she carried when disembarking, he couldn’t help but ask curiously, "A Pocket Ring?"

Chadite nodded, her face beaming with a smile.

Seeing that everyone had returned, Andre waved his hand, and the sails automatically unfurled. The ship slowly sailed out of the berth, this time heading straight for the darkness in the distance.

"This time we’re going to the Realm of Pitch Darkness," Andre began, having gathered them in his captain’s cabin. "Many of you haven’t been there before, so I’ll explain some important things you need to know about it."

On the ship, Alka, Chadite, Jason, and the new member Gami—a total of four people, constituting more than half of the core members—had never been to this place before. They all sat nearby and listened attentively.

"First, Lighting Stones," Andre continued. "You must always have them on your person. Inside the Realm, you can’t see the sun; it’s perpetually dark.

"If you hear strange whispers while we’re sailing, you *must* tell us immediately. This is critical. Speak up, because it means your mind is being corrupted by the darkness.

"Prompt treatment can ensure there are no lasting problems. But the longer you delay, the more severe it becomes, until finally, it’s untreatable."

So dangerous? Alka was somewhat surprised. It can even affect one’s mind?

"Next, Sea Monsters," Andre said. "The Realm of Pitch Darkness is teeming with Sea Monsters. Considering our objective this time, we are bound to encounter them, so be prepared.

"Also, you cannot go onto an Island alone, and you must not leave the vicinity of any ship by yourself."

After briefly explaining these precautions, Andre pulled out a map from a compartment below. Everyone looked over. The map clearly showed its age. The cartography style and methods had an unmistakably ancient feel. Additionally, it bore mottled, time-worn marks. All this indicated that it was a very old map.

"This is a map of the Realm of Pitch Darkness before its destruction," Andre explained. "Although the entire realm is now shrouded in darkness, the positions of these Islands haven’t changed.

"As for a current map of the Realm of Pitch Darkness, well, hardly anyone charts this area anymore. At most, you’ll find some individual Island maps."

Hearing Andre’s words, Alka couldn’t help furrowing his brows. Would such a map be useful? Could it show the location of the treasure? But since the terrain hasn’t changed, merely covered by a dark shell, it should be fine.

At this thought, Alka blinked. Instantly, numerous, densely packed spots of light appeared on the map. Only then did Alka nod, reassured.

However, the light spots on a sea region map couldn’t be clicked; they only displayed their positions and representative colors. Alka roughly categorized the maps his ability could process: world maps, sea region maps, and Island maps.

A world map didn’t necessarily encompass the entire world but had to be a large-scale map composed of several joined regions. Such maps would indicate the quantity of treasure in a particular area—like ’abundant’ or ’scarce’—similar to when Alka viewed a world map.

The next level down was a sea region map, like the one he was currently observing, which depicted a specific area. These maps would show various light spots corresponding to the details on the physical map he was observing. These light spots only revealed their exact locations; he couldn’t click them to view specific information.

To get specific information, he needed a map detailed enough to encompass these light spots—an Island map, for instance, or a sea surface map of comparable detail. In other words, it had to be sufficiently detailed. Only such detailed maps could precisely mark treasure locations and even allow him to click on a treasure’s light spot to learn its details.

Then, Andre pointed to a location on the map. "This is where the Destructive Power originated. Consequently, it has become the core area of the current Realm of Pitch Darkness."

That place wasn’t in the center of the map but slightly to the upper right. Then Andre drew a circle in an area near the center, but slightly to the lower left.

"This is our destination for this trip," he said. "We need to search the Islands within this circled area to find where the Holy Artifact might be hidden."

Alka looked carefully. The circle Andre had drawn directly encompassed three Islands. He couldn’t help but ask, "Do we have maps for these Islands?"

"Only for this one." Andre pointed to one of the Islands and pulled out a smaller map from the compartment. The cartography style of this map clearly indicated it was of recent make.

Alka focused his gaze on the small Island map. Six light spots appeared on it: four white, two blue.

Alka took the map and glanced at it, lightly brushing his hand over its surface.

Since the Holy Artifact would only appear as a blue light spot, Alka inconspicuously touched both blue spots. There would be plenty of opportunities for the white light spots later; no need to rush now.

However, both displayed ’Magic Treasure.’

This meant neither of these spots held what they were looking for. Alka already had some understanding of their target; it was unlikely its name wouldn’t even be displayed if it were one of these. If their target truly was in this area, then it could only be on the other two Islands, or perhaps it had sunk to the bottom of the Ocean. After all, the larger sea region map still showed several light spots not on any Island but located in the Ocean.

Andre looked at Chadite and said, "When we reach our destination, your task is to first map the other two Islands.

"That way, even if we don’t have a major find this time, we’ll at least have made a contribution. It’ll stop the Archbishops from chirping about it all day."

What a sly old fox, already planning his retreat, Alka thought.

Chadite nodded readily. This was her primary duty, after all.

Alka felt somewhat reassured. As long as Chadite mapped the Islands, he was fairly confident he could find the treasure. The prerequisite, of course, was that their target was actually here.

At this moment, Andre seemed to sense something and looked outside. Then he announced, "We’re about to enter the Realm of Pitch Darkness."

Hearing this, those who hadn’t seen it before quickly ran up to the deck. They were incredibly curious about the true appearance of the Realm of Pitch Darkness. When they pushed open the wooden door and stepped onto the deck, the scene outside left them stunned.