Elden Ring, building a legion of ashes

Chapter 81 The Teleportation Array at the End of the River

The Third Church of Maryka is in a state of disrepair.

There wasn't even a proper roof to shelter from the rain, unlike the previous pilgrimage churches which were much better.

Fortunately, the statue of Marika in the center of the church is still relatively intact, barely preserving the dignity of this goddess.

Xia Tong illuminates the blessing point at the Third Church of Maryka.

Kenneth Hyde, on the other hand, was "kindly persuaded" by Xia Tong to set up the camp.

This includes rough work such as cleaning the ground, setting up tents, gathering firewood, and starting a fire.

Kenneth Hyde was initially adamant about not doing these menial jobs.

However, when you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head.

Under Xia Tong's threat that he would leave without helping, he finally moved his noble body and clumsily got to work.

However, after finishing all this, he was exhausted and collapsed in the tent, falling into a deep sleep.

After all, he had fought with the demi-humans, was injured, and walked for several hours, so he was already exhausted.

Xia Tong then began searching the entire Marika Third Church.

Finally, a glimmer of light was discovered inside a huge stone basin in front of the Marika statue.

It was a golden bottle.

Xia Tong picked it up and gently stroked it in her hand.

It has a metallic texture, warm and mysterious.

The Holy Grail Bottle.

This is a valuable ingredient; it can be used to concoct various elixirs with special effects.

Moreover, next to the elixir jar, there was a red crystalline object.

Red crystal dewdrops.

"This thing can restore half of your health in one go; it's truly a life-saving miracle drug."

"And this way, we can free up some of the Holy Grail Bottles to allocate to the Blue Dewdrop Holy Grail Bottles."

In addition, Xia Tong also obtained a new Holy Grail Dewdrop under Marika's statue.

Xia Tong's Holy Grail Bottle has already had its usage increased by one each using two Golden Seeds.

With this latest use, the healing amount has been enhanced three times over using the Holy Grail Dew.

It can be said that the battery life has been greatly improved.

Before it got completely dark, Xia Tong immediately took out the huge rune bear skin from the Blessing Space.

He took the bearskin to the shallows of the river next to the church.

Use a sharp Gurkha knife to scrape away the bits of meat, fat, and fascia that were not properly cleaned.

Then came the most important part – the brain marrow of the Rune Bear.

This is something Xia Tong deliberately preserved, besides her liver.

Xia Tong cut open the skull of the Rune Bear, took out the brain marrow inside, put it in a pot, added water, and boiled it.

Until it becomes a thick, white broth.

Then carefully apply this white liquid to the inside of the bear skin.

This ensures that the bearskin rug will remain soft and rot-free, and won't feel like cardboard when used as a cover.

After applying the ointment, Xia Tong set up a frame and placed the bear skin on it to dry.

Xia Tong finally breathed a sigh of relief after getting everything sorted out.

Xia Tong was unaware of these procedures and only understood them after consulting the all-knowing Melina.

........

"I didn't expect there really was one." Xia Tong quietly looked at the stone platform in front of her.

Above it is a circular stone ring, its surface covered with ancient etched patterns, with a murky grayish-white magical fluid constantly flowing within its center.

Xia Tong could sense magical fluctuations while cleaning the bear skin, but he only had time to walk to the end of the river after everything was taken care of.

"Never mind, never mind." Xia Tong glanced at it and prepared to leave. He didn't want to be teleported to the Beast Temple in northern Galid.

With his current strength, he would probably be instantly killed by the Black Sword Familiar as soon as he stepped out the door!

After leaving the end of the river and returning to the campfire, Xia Tong took out the two enormous bear paws, carefully processed them, and prepared to roast them.

Seeing Kenneth Hyde snoring softly, Xia Tong didn't wake him.

He simply removed the black fur from the bear paws, cleaned them, then made a few cuts, sprinkled some coarse salt and spices, and then pierced them with sharpened branches, placing them over the campfire to slowly roast.

Bear paws are rich in oil and collagen.

Once heated by the flames, it began to sizzle in no time.

Golden oil droplets fell into the fire, sparking bright flames and white smoke, filling the air with a fragrant aroma.

"It's a pity I didn't have any honey on my hands, otherwise it would have been so refreshing to put some on."

As the bear paws were gradually roasted...

The rich, irresistible aroma of meat finally roused Kenneth Hyde.

He twitched his nose, suddenly waking up from his dream. He got up and wiped his face with the sleeve of his exquisitely beautiful robe, which was covered in dirt.

Then they saw the two shiny bear paws that Xia Tong was roasting over the fire.

His eyes lit up instantly, and he was practically drooling.

"Brother Xia Tong... um... could you give me some?"

Kenneth Hyde would normally disdain knowing Xia Tong's name.

However, impressed by his swift and decisive elimination of the Kaidan mercenaries, and by the care he had shown him along the way, he set aside his pride and humbly inquired about the matter.

After obtaining Xia Tong's approval.

Ignoring the heat, Kenneth Hyde tore off a large piece of bear paw meat with his bare hands.

"Click."

Beneath the crispy outer layer lies a mouthful of piping hot, juicy, soft, and chewy gelatinous substance.

Although the meat of the Rune Bear is a bit dry, it is very chewy.

The aroma of the oil exploded in Kenneth Hyde's mouth, and the satisfaction brought tears to his eyes.

As the legitimate son of Lord Nymgford, what delicacies hadn't Kenneth Hyde eaten before?

However, he had never eaten the Rune Bear Paw more than a few times.

Because this thing is too difficult to hunt.

Although Kenneth Hyde was a very proud man, every time he went hunting rune bears for his own appetite, some of his loyal soldiers would be injured or even killed.

This was something his pride and principles could not tolerate.

Therefore, he hadn't enjoyed such top-quality wild game so much in a long time.

After finishing his bear paw, a satisfied Kenneth Hyde fell into a deep sleep again.

At that moment, Melina's figure slowly materialized.

She stood before Marika's statue, looked at Xia Tong, and said softly:

"The Third Church of Marika also has its own proverbs belonging to Marika. Would you like to hear them?"

Xia Tong nodded gently.

He still needs to understand these fragments of history.

Melina closed her eyes and repeated the goddess's words:

"My king, my warriors, I will take away your blessings."

"When your eyes grow dim and lose their luster, I will banish you beyond the borders—"

"Fight beyond the borders, live, die."

Under the silent night sky.

Inside the dilapidated Third Church of Marika.

The ancient proverbs belonging to Marika rose with the smoke from the campfire, merging into the endless night sky.

.........

Early the next morning, Kenneth Hyde was cruelly dragged out of his warm tent by Xia Tong to work.

After drying overnight, the huge rune bear skin was half-dry.

But to turn it into a soft mattress, one final step is needed—stretching.

Xia Tong found a relatively smooth stone pillar in the ruins of the Third Church of Maryka.

Then the two men each grabbed one end of the bearskin and, like sawing a large saw, used the stone pillar as a fulcrum to repeatedly rub and pull it against the pillar.

"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"

Although Kenneth Hyde complained that "this is not work for nobles," he did not slack off.

Fortunately, he was not some pampered and powerless lord. As a nobleman who had received proper training, he was still quite strong.

Xia Tong remembered that this guy could even use some basic prayers from the Golden Tree, which required a certain level of faith and physical strength.

Finally, feeling that the leather had softened enough, Xia Tong stopped, satisfied.