Reborn as the Genius Son of the Richest Family

Chapter 961  Lamp

Large, horizontal pillars emerged out of the walls, forming a sort of jenga-esque collection that formed up to the top of the mineshaft.

Michael saw Aubility Power threads controlling these pillars. Aubility Power that was beyond the Body Formation realm.

It wasn’t long before a sudden change happened in the air. There was a palpable pressure permeating the entire mineshaft. It was subtle, but it was there. It felt like there was a very thin, diaphanous sheet of silk wrapping around his entire body.

He looked up, seeing the source of that strange power.

The pillars then moved back into their positions in the walls, locking into place as if they were never cut in the first place.

What was left in the air was what looked to be an ordinary oil lantern. Except, there was no fire inside. But that didn’t seem to stop the lantern from emanating a red light that painted the entire mineshaft a warm crimson environment.

“This was our heirloom. We call it the Red Lamp. Any GodForge piece that is near the light of this lamp can duplicate itself.”

Michael jolted. “WHAT?!”

“Yes,” Jot’un answered. “GodForge pieces under the influence of the Red Lamp will be able to grow its own mass as if it was a crop. Only, GodForge pieces need a drop of Soo in order to grow.”

Although Jot’un explained it to him, Michael still couldn’t quite wrap his head around what he was saying.

GodForge pieces can be grown? That simply didn’t make sense. It was impossible.

“Of course, only GodForge pieces that are out in the open can be eligible to grow. Those that are in a living person’s heart will not be affected, as well as GodForge pieces that are trapped inside container boxes. That’s why we use cadavers. Fresh ones. If we don’t, GodForge pieces will just burn through to the bottom of the Earth, leaving the Red Lamp’s zone of influence.”

Still, Michael was not convinced. It wasn’t that he believed Jot’un to be a liar, but the premise of this whole thing seemed bogus from the get-go.

“I… I can’t believe it until you show me how it works,” he said.

Jasper shook his head in disappointment. “Unfortunately, venerable Keo, we can’t. The Key to the Red Lamp is missing. It’s been stolen.”

“This Red Lamp needs the key to work,” Jot’un explained. “Without it, the GodForge pieces won’t grow no matter how many Soo drops we put into the soil.

So now you understand why everyone is so frantic. Without that key, we won’t be able to produce any more GodForge pieces in the meantime. By our estimation, our stockpile will run out before the end of the year.

But that’s not the only reason why we’re so rattled by the heist. How did they know about the key?”

The Key was the only thing stolen. They could have robbed numerous other, more valuable artifacts in the Thunderfoot compound, yet they only took this Key.

Whoever they were, they must have known about the Key’s special importance. If so, they would have also stolen the Red Lamp.

It was possible that they might not have known about its actual use, but they knew that it was important to the Thunderfoot company and their uncanny ability to keep selling GodForge pieces when everyone else was struggling to get even a few kilograms.

“That’s…”

Michael had no words. He might not believe the Red Lamp’s ability to spontaneously grow new GodForge pieces, but he was starting to believe its importance.

If the Ersatz were interested in them enough, then perhaps it was true.

It would explain how the Thunderfoot company could sell hundreds of kilograms of GodForge pieces without batting an eye.

I guess… if it’s an heirloom from the Ancient Era, it would make sense…

Despite his skepticism, he was now fully onboard with the idea of retrieving the Key.

He needed to take it back from the Ersatz. Their plans cannot come to fruition.

“Alright, I’ll help you with the Key,” Michael declared.

This sent joy and relief to Jot’un. “Oh, thank the gods! Really? That’s great, Jasper!”

The butler still didn’t know how the historian’s protege could help them with the retrieval of the key, but he didn’t question it.

“What should I do? Do we go and use advanced detective techniques to track down the thieves?” Jot’un asked, excited like a golden retriever.

Michael shook his head. “Nope. We’ll do nothing.”

“WHAT?”

“These guys are professional. You won’t find a trace of them. At most, you’ll see that they covered themselves in an all-dark outfit with a hood, right Jasper?”

Surprised, the butler nodded. “…yes! How did you know that?”

Michael nodded. “You’re not the first one they’ve attacked,” he said. “For now, we can’t do anything.”

Unlike the incident with Lyra’s kidnapping, they didn’t have a convenient picture to point them in the exact location of the Stronghold.

But… he had other plans.

“Give me the 700 kilograms of GodForge pieces,” he said, manifesting the chest back in front of them.

“Certainly,” Jasper said, hurrying to retrieve the GodForge pieces stored in the mounds of soil. Perhaps, Keo really could help them with the retrieval!

“Will you use it to lure them out? Will this help with catching those guys?”

Michael shook his head. “No. I’m going to give this to my guys who can.”

Perhaps, it was now the best time to truly turn the Shadows of Reborn into a force worth looking out for. 700 kilos ought to be enough.

Jasper, with utmost speed, collected all 700 kilos of GodForge pieces in 70 container cubes, giving it to Michael who stored them in his shadow inventory.

Then, Michael turned to Jot’un. “Meet me in the Archery Competition.”

“Really? I wasn’t even planning on going there because of the robbery!”

“They’re going to be there,” Michael said, his implication heavy.

Hearing this, Jot’un immediately nodded his head and agreed. “How about you?”

“I’m going to deliver these. You go on ahead.”