Chapter 221: The Godforge Society

Before pushing the door open and entering, Gao Jing first summoned his Battle Armor to protect himself.

Better safe than sorry; he hadn’t forgotten the previous lesson.

Although the house’s owner was long dead, traps and mechanisms within a Shaman’s dwelling were perfectly normal, so caution was necessary.

The ground floor hall of this small villa was nearly empty, with sparse furniture. A faint musty smell hung in the air, as if it hadn’t been cleaned for a long time.

The room was dim, but the light radiating from his Flaming Battle Armor was enough for Gao Jing to see into every corner.

The hidden traps he had expected weren’t there.

Gao Jing noticed that just as he stepped into the hall, the engraved wooden plate in his hand emitted a faint glimmer.

He vaguely sensed that his identity had just been acknowledged by this house.

The feeling was strange, but not unbelievable.

Even so, Gao Jing still proceeded to explore here cautiously.

Beyond the main hall were the kitchen and a storage room, both thick with dust and clearly unused.

Outside the kitchen was a small garden, choked with weeds and thorns, looking desolate.

He went upstairs to the second and third floors.

Master bedroom, guest room, study, bathroom, washroom. Gao Jing even discovered a sealed meditation chamber.

The upper rooms were relatively cleaner. Surprisingly, both the bathroom and washroom had working taps; pulling out the stopper made clear, sweet water flow out continuously.

Of course, there were drains too.

The former owner of this villa lived a rather messy life. The bedroom was chaotic, clothes scattered all over the floor, and the smell wasn’t pleasant.

Undoubtedly the neatest room was the study. Two wooden bookshelves stood to each side, filled orderly with books bound in animal hide.

This was an unexpected find for Gao Jing.

He randomly pulled out a few to flip through. Some were “professional” texts about Shamans and magic, others were miscellaneous writings like notebooks and travelogues, and there were reference books about plants, animals, and minerals!

For Gao Jing, these books were undeniably precious, greatly aiding his understanding of the underground world.

Just to be safe, Gao Jing moved all these books into his Storage Space.

Finally, on the desk, Gao Jing found a thick diary.

The diary lay open. Next to it rested an ink-dipped quill pen still wet.

It seemed the owner had been writing when something made him leave in a rush, without time to tidy up.

Flipping through a few pages, Gao Jing knew the diary’s owner was none other than the Black-robed Sorcerer he himself had shot dead!

So he sat down at the desk and placed an LED desk lamp powered by an internal lithium battery on it.

He began to read carefully under its light.

In this diary, the Black-robed Sorcerer called himself “Owl,” a higher-ranked Witchcraft Scholar.

According to power levels, Totem Witches were mainly divided into Witchcraft Scholars, Shamans, and Grand Shamans.

Within each rank, they were further divided into lower, upper, and higher positions.

“Owl” came from Wuzhi Abyss City, born into an ordinary family. Because he possessed Bloodline Essence of the “Spirit,” he became a student at the Wuzhi Wizard Academy at twelve. Later, he even entered a Sorcerer Tower as a trainee apprentice.

But his talent was mediocre, and he had no important background or connections. He struggled to secure enough cultivation resources, so he always remained at the bottom of his peers.

The first dozen pages of the diary were filled with “Owl”‘s resentment towards his fate and jealousy of his wealthy, influential classmates. He venomously cursed the prodigies and the mentors who treated him like a slave.

After making a mistake in an experiment and offending a powerful figure, “Owl” was expelled from the Sorcerer Tower and could not even remain in Wuzhi Abyss City. He fled to Blackwater City.

As a higher Witchcraft Scholar nearing the level of a true Shaman, after joining the Yuancheng Alliance, he quickly established himself in Blackwater City by completing various tasks. He also bought this house in the Upper District as his home.

But “Owl” didn’t want to just wait around idly in Blackwater City. He wanted to advance to a higher realm, gain greater power, and exact revenge on those who had once scorned and trampled his dignity.

Yet Blackwater City had neither a Wizard Academy nor a Sorcerer Tower. A wild Shaman like him, even with some cultivation resources, found it very hard to find a path to advancement.

Then, by chance, “Owl” secretly joined the Godforge Society!

The Godforge Society was no ordinary organization; it boasted a history of thousands of years and was deeply mysterious within the underground world.

This secretive group had been considered heretical ever since its founding!

It was said the founder of the Godforge Society was a High Sorcerer called “Wu Du.” His life’s greatest wish was for the Abyss Dwellers living underground to return to the Great Wilderness and establish a kingdom upon the land.

This wish sounded normal, as even ten thousand years ago, many Abyss Dwellers had returned to the surface, with frequent interactions occurring with the Great Wilderness Humans.

The Great Wilderness was vast and boundless. If Abyss Dwellers wanted their own nation on the surface, they could just find some unclaimed land.

But this Grand Shaman knew very well such an idea was completely unrealistic.

Because the weak Abyss Dwellers couldn’t possibly resist the powerful Wild Beasts and Monster Beasts; establishing a surface kingdom was pure folly.

Furthermore, Wu Du believed that while the Great Wilderness Humans saw Abyss Dwellers as fellow humans, in the eyes of the Giants, Abyss Dwellers were little different from ants or insects. Talk of equality and dignity was pointless.

This Grand Shaman founded the Godforge Society precisely to change this situation completely.

He planned to create a mighty god, commanding countless Abyss Dwellers to return to the land, conquer the Great Wilderness Giants, and make them slaves.

To establish a Heavenly Kingdom on Earth!

Wu Du’s idea was utterly mad, but his doctrine won over many Abyss Dwellers, including numerous Totem Warriors and Shamans.

These people joined the Godforge Society, secretly expanding its power, amassing wealth and resources for the purpose of researching paths to godhood.

Wu Du’s personality was extreme; he often resorted to any means necessary to achieve his ends.

The god he sought to create was himself. He didn’t hesitate to unleash violent storms across the underground world, leading most Abyss Cities to reject, oppose, and fight him.

The Godforge Society suffered several heavy defeats. Wu Du himself was killed in a battle, struck down by a combined effort of several Grand Shamans.

But his doctrine lived on. The Godforge Society retreated into the shadows, silently gathering strength.

After joining the Godforge Society, “Owl” received vital Shaman resources and knowledge he dearly needed.

Of course, these resources weren’t free. Besides being the “teeth” planted in Blackwater City for the Godforge Society, he also had the secret task of collecting “Objects of Faith.”

The Guru Idol Gao Jing was offering a high reward to acquire just happened to be one of those Objects of Faith!

This unintentionally made Gao Jing “Owl”‘s rival.

Originally, “Owl” could have bought the Guru Idol for an extremely low price, but now a powerful competitor had abruptly appeared.

How could he not feel annoyed!