Chapter 479 Gruesome
Chapter 479 Gruesome
Amidst the towering peaks of the Greyscale Mountain ranges, Adam stood at the edge of a jagged cliff, the cold wind whipping his robes around him like tattered wings.
Mist was formed every time he exhaled a breath. He couldn't help but grumble under his breath, "Did the Brotherhood have to build a safe house in such an inhabitable zone? Haa, this is ridiculous!"
He surveyed the series of cliffs stretching out before him, each one a dangerous leap away. He gathered strength in his legs and launched himself from the cliff's edge, soaring through the air effortlessly.
As he landed, the ground trembled beneath his feet, but he maintained his balance. Without a moment's hesitation, he repeated this process, vaulting from one cliff to another until he finally spotted his destination.
It was a narrow, hidden crevice in the side of a mountain. He landed smoothly at the cave entrance, looking around curiously.
"According to the map Elrick sent, this should be it."
The youth cast a simple illumination spell and ventured deeper into the cave, his footsteps echoing softly off the stone walls. The path twisted and turned, leading him deeper into the depths of the mountain.
Eventually, he arrived at the bottom of a pair of towering stone doors, adorned with ancient symbols that glowed faintly in the light.
"Runes!" Adam marveled as he gazed at the intricate patterns carved on the stone doors.
Once I complete this mission, I can finally get my hands on rune magic. No matter what difficulties I face in this mission, it will be definitely worth it in the end! He thought to himself, his eyes flashing with resolve.
He approached the stone doors while gathering mana in his palms. Then, he placed his hands on the door, causing the runes to light up with a resplendent light.
The next moment, he waved a series of complex hand gestures. Finally, the doors began to rumble, dust and small pebbles falling down as the ancient hinges groaned under the strain.
As the door parted, a sliver of light pierced the darkness, causing Adam to squint. When his vision cleared, he was finally able to behold the interior of this secret cave, causing an excited smile to bloom on his face.
It was a sprawling laboratory hidden within the mountain's heart!
The laboratory was a grand chamber, its high-vaulted ceiling supported by stone pillars. Along the walls, he could see shelves carved directly from the rock.
They were filled with collections of glass vials containing herbs and ingredients, ancient tomes, and even magical artifacts.
Of course, the vast majority of these shelves were placed under a magical lock. One required a password—which was usually a string of complex hand signs—to unlock them.
Adam couldn't help but think to himself wistfully, Only if these shelves weren't locked, I would have raided the whole place clean. Haa, just the amount of money I could have made from selling these things…
As he moved deeper into the laboratory, the stone door closed behind him. He walked toward the spacious metal table in the near distance with purposeful strides.
He had come here with a clear objective - to experiment on the werewolf corpses!
The area around the table was dimly lit. Adam first burned several incense sticks and placed them around the table. The smoke wafting from it allowed him to enter a calm state of mind.
He waved his hand and two naked corpses appeared on the table. One belonged to a male, and the other female.
In the last couple of days that it had taken him to arrive at this safe house, the werewolves had already reverted back to their human forms.
Now that Adam looked at the two corpses closely, he found that they quite resembled each other.
"Siblings?" He ventured a guess.
His gaze subconsciously shifted to the corpse of the woman, causing him to involuntarily gulp. The next moment, however, he slapped his cheeks and muttered, "Focus!"
He took a few deep breaths and when he opened his eyes again, they were sharp and cold. Then, he grabbed a silver scalpel from the various tools placed beside the table.
Adam stabbed the scalpel at the center of her chest, dissecting it. The chest cavity slowly opened to reveal the complex muscles and bones. He then carefully separated the tissue, exposing the organs underneath.
"Fascinating," he mumbled, carefully lifting a section of the werewolf's muscular tissue. "The muscle fibers are denser than a regular human's. Clearly designed for raw power and strength, yet still remarkably similar in structure."
A quill hovering beside him began to take down notes on a levitating goat-skin parchment paper. Every word that came out of Adam's mouth was written down by the feathered quill.
"The skeletal structure is almost identical to humans, but the bones are thicker and more robust," he said as he moved to the skeletal frame.
"Hmm, reinforced to withstand the transformation process, perhaps."
Adam then paused to examine the organs, carefully extracting the heart. "Amazing! The heart is larger and capable of pumping more blood at a faster rate. Her basic anatomy is not so different from our own."
He then took a sample of the werewolf's blood and began analyzing it. "Hmm, the blood is darker, richer in certain proteins and enzymes that I have yet to identify.
"It possesses regenerative properties far beyond human capabilities. This could explain their rapid healing abilities."
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed and he mumbled, "There also seems to be the existence of a type of venom in their blood. If I can study it in detail, I will be able to understand a lot about these creatures…"
At this moment, Adam's hands were covered in blood as he continued to study the werewolf's corpse.
It was definitely very gory and macabre in nature, yet the curiosity and wonder shining in his jet-black eyes indicated that he enjoyed every moment of it.
His enthusiasm grew with each new discovery.
This contradiction between the gruesome scene of the dissected corpse and the expression on Adam's face showed the duality often found in the relentless pursuit of knowledge.
The youth was able to detach himself from the horror of the task at hand and instead focus on the intellectual and arcane discovery that lay within.
Amidst the scene of blood and flesh, Adam's eyes twinkled with childlike excitement.
This reflected his belief that every discovery, no matter how it was obtained, brought him closer to mastering the arcane arts and unlocking the secrets of the world!