Nie Yan flew north on his Darkwing Dragon . A small town gradually came into view 10 minutes later .
Crassus, rather than a town, was better described as an enormous manor . Surrounded by fortified wood walls and numerous crossbow turrets, the defenses here were solid .
Frequently besieged by large Lord-class monsters, the residents of Crassus were all fairly strong . The weakest were Level 90 Elites while the mayor was a Level 100 Lord .
This was mainly why Nie Yan chose to lead Phantom Princess Ina here .
Towns below Level 100 rarely had such strong defenses . As for towns Level 100 and up, it was doubtful Phantom Princess Ina would follow Nie Yan there .
Nie Yan had the Darkwing Dragon alight on the outskirts of Crassus . After unsummoning his Darkwing Dragon, he headed into town .
Donning a black cloak, Nie Yan walked through the main gates . He saw shops scattered here and there on both sides of the street . They didn’t appear to have much business, only carrying the most basic consumables, weapons, and armour . He would occasionally cross paths with the odd player . They were all at least Level 70 since the maps in the vicinity were fairly high level . Players generally only came to Crassus if it was related to some quest . The allure of exploring new lands was far greater .
Nie Yan observed the NPCs in town .
“I don’t know how long it’ll take Phantom Princess Ina to arrive . I guess I’ll just have to keep waiting until then . Hmm, what should I do to kill some time?”
Walking along the main street, Nie Yan eventually arrived at the center of the town, where a church which towered over all other buildings caught his eye .
This church was constructed out of white stone and looked fairly ordinary compared to the massive churches and temples in Calore . Nevertheless, it was still the grandest building in Crassus .
Nie Yan had visited this place before in his past life . Back then, apart from the typical furnishings of a church, there was nothing and no one .
“Let’s wait inside . ” Nie Yan walked through the doors . Inside the hall were about a dozen rows of pews . There were no NPCs around . The place was empty . Up at the front stood the statue of a goddess . It was poorly maintained, perhaps due to months or even years of neglect, and covered in a thick layer of dust .
“Well, I guess I have nothing better to do…” Nie Yan sat on one of the pews and patiently waited . He couldn’t leave before Phantom Princess Ina arrived .
Nie Yan understood he was bringing disaster to this small town . He prayed the NPCs here would smoothly deal with Phantom Princess Ina .
About 20 minutes later, an elderly man with a cane walked into the church . He spared Nie Yan a brief glance before continuing forward to the statue . He clasped an old holy book in his hands .
This elderly man was already bordering on ancient . His face was withered up like a dry prune and his hair was as gray as ash . His legs shook unsteadily with every step, as though a gentle breeze could knock him over .
Nie Yan’s eyes widened in surprise . In the previous timeline, even if the number of times he’d visited Crassus didn’t reach a thousand, it wouldn’t be far off . Whenever he had time to kill while waiting for a team, he would wander around town or sometimes wait in the church . In the several dozen times he’d been in here, he never once encountered this elderly man . He had no idea where this NPC came from . Thinking long and hard, he confirmed he had never met him before .
Nie Yan could acutely sense this elderly man wasn’t your run-of-the-mill NPC . “I wonder if I can receive a hidden quest or something from him…”
Nie Yan inspected him with Transcendent Insight . Old-Timer Cranston (Elite): Level 180 Titles: Dragonslayer
“My god!” Nie Yan was taken aback . He never expected this unassuming old man to have such an amazing title .
Nie Yan checked Cranston’s health . It was only around 100,000 .
Cranston’s stats clearly didn’t match his title and level . Nie Yan finally understood what was called a hero past their prime . In Conviction, unless an NPC was an invincible existence like Karsi or Kelowitz, they would eventually succumb to the weathering of time .
Even unrivalled heroes would return to dust, their eras of glory buried in the river of history .
“Sir Cranston, greetings . ” Nie Yan didn’t know if this Level 180 Elite would give out a quest .
Cranston glanced at Nie Yan before turning his attention back to his book .
Nie Yan stood there with an awkward expression . This was the first time he had encountered an NPC who didn’t even bother acknowledging his existence .
Despite encountering a setback, Nie Yan’s determination only grew stronger . He refused to believe this nut couldn’t be cracked . He walked over and attentively listened to the words Cranston was muttering .
Cranston was reading the words from his holy book .
“With a benevolent heart, treat every person with kindness and sincerity . Aspire to be like the Holy Spirit Spring in the Koruns Mountain, supplying life to every tree and never drying…” Cranston spoke in Ancient Common . His soft yet powerful voice carried a sort of cadence that relaxed one’s soul .
Nie Yan was fluent in Ancient Common . These mystical verses gradually calmed his heart .
This was the first time Nie Yan realized that these texts could contain such profound meaning . Each verse left behind a deep impression in his mind .
The more Nie Yan listened, the more entranced he became . He no longer bothered Cranston and simply listened . The text told of one ancient tale after another .
The seconds and minutes ticket away . Nie Yan’s needless worries and doubts washed away . He felt refreshed .
Nie Yan was in no rush . He had nowhere to be, nor was there anything urgent requiring his attention . There was no harm in listening .
About 20 minutes later, Cranston finally reached the last page . He calmly and unhurriedly read out the last verse before closing his book . Turning around, his murky eyes finally focused on Nie Yan . “Passing adventurer, what would you like to buy?”
Hearing Cranston’s words, Nie Yan’s mouth gaped open like a fish . It took a long time for him to regain his wits . What the hell!? This old man is just a merchant! Cranston had only ignored Nie Yan earlier because his eyesight was bad . Only now did he finally get a good look at Nie Yan!
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