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While Tia was focused on something else, although the altar was tall, it wasn’t cylindrical but spiral-shaped like a conch shell. Therefore, even though they were beneath the altar, they could still see what was on top of it. She quickly noticed something peculiar: "Look, what’s that?"

Following her gaze, everyone immediately saw a green light, about the size of a human head, floating about a meter above the ground in the center of the altar. At the center of the green light was a ring embedded with a black gem the size of a thumb, slowly rotating.

A treasure of the undead? A death artifact?

Although they knew the situation was somewhat eerie and that they might be a bit greedy, upon seeing an ancient and mysterious ring presented in such a manner, everyone couldn’t help but feel a tingling curiosity.

"Ahem, since we’re here, let’s uncover the secrets of this altar. Toji, Anyelle, check for any traps or mechanisms," Enrico was the first to snap back to reality, quickly waking the dazed group. He then instructed the two hunters to scout for nearby dangers while he himself gathered his magical energy, softly chanting a spell: "Wanderer of the ever-present shadows, heed my call, reveal all deadly spirals and traps—"

A faint red glow enveloped the altar, but nothing happened. Enrico couldn’t believe such an important altar had no defenses, so he cast several detection spells, with Tia joining in, but the results were the same. Meanwhile, the hunters who were scouting the vicinity returned with the same conclusion—there was nothing unusual.

Faced with this situation, Enrico and Tia couldn’t help but hesitate: "This... if there were dozens or even hundreds of vicious curses here, along with a thousand or two undead warriors lying in ambush, and a few self-destruct mechanisms, I could understand. But the absence of anything here is even more unsettling."

No sooner had he spoken than a sudden change occurred.

"Boom—"

With a loud explosion, seventeen pale blue spectral flames erupted from the dragon bone altar, startling everyone. However, these flames did not attack but instead illuminated the entire temple like torches. Then, a hoarse and aged voice slowly emerged, and in front of the green light where the ring floated at the center of the altar, a phantom in a black robe gradually appeared.

"Heirs of darkness, eternal seekers of death and souls, phantoms arriving on this land blessed by the underworld. Although it has been countless years, since you have reached here, it signifies that darkness has once again driven away the light, and the children of darkness have regained the right to walk freely upon the earth..."

Although the figure on the platform spoke with great vigor, it was clear that he, or it, was just a phantom, and the words were pre-set long ago, having no real connection with those below. Even if the Pope of the Radiant Temple were standing below, he would hear the same speech. So, while everyone listened, they also whispered among themselves.

"That... looks like a Lich—no flesh, just bones," Tia said, her face somewhat pale. Although she was a dark mage, it didn’t mean she liked things like skeletons. In fact, her magic was more focused on curses, and she stayed far away from any necromantic summoning spells.

Enrico nodded and said, "Indeed, this seems to be a relic left by a Lich, but I think the owner here is no longer present. Otherwise, what we would see now should be the owner’s projection from afar, not such a residual image. But something about this feels off."

The image left by the Lich continued to ramble, and everyone gradually understood the mystery of this temple. According to the Lich, who called himself Andisraktana, he arrived on the continent during the undead war. But after the undead army suffered a crushing defeat, he was also severely injured and knew he was doomed. So he fled back to this temple he had built, sealing it with a powerful dark spell, isolating it as a separate space. It would only reappear when the light power within a radius of several hundred kilometers disappeared and dark power emerged.

"Heirs of darkness, since fate has brought you here, then please accept the legacy of a forerunner. The deceitful light will never concede defeat, they will continue to fight against you. So, for the glory of the underworld, I bequeath to you my most powerful servant, awaken, Barotharak—"

"Boom—"

Although they had long known that what the Lich left behind was definitely not ordinary, Enrico and his companions did not expect that what awakened with the phantom’s call was the massive dragon skeleton coiled around the altar, now crystalline black.

No, it should now be called a "bone dragon."

The enormous skeleton, about fifty meters long, had fully extended. Within its black crystalline bones, something seemed to flow, with faint lights flickering. Countless black mists continuously surged from the joints of the bones, obscuring most of the dragon bone in fog. Only the dragon’s eye sockets, with two eerie ghostly flames, pierced through the black mist, directly striking at the heart. The dragon’s wings were mere empty skeletons, but as the black mist coiled between the bone wings, each flap unleashed a chilling storm.

"Later generations, please inherit my magic ring 'Eternal Eye' and my servant 'Black Crystal Bone Dragon,' and deliver the most severe blow to the despicable servants of the Light God—"

Without further ado, the green-glowing ring on the altar, under the voice of the Lich’s phantom, suddenly flew off the altar and swiftly slipped onto Enrico’s finger. Then, red light flickered on the forehead of the Black Crystal Bone Dragon, converging into a red oval light bead similar in structure to the gem on the ring. After a few resonant flashes between the light bead and the ring, the massive black crystal bone dragon dissolved into a beam of black light and entered the gem of the ring on Enrico’s hand.