Following Zhongli's prompts, the traveler finally lit up all the elemental obelisks after going through some twists and turns.
"Look, the seal has really been opened, as expected of Mr. Zhongli!"
When the traveler and Paimon returned, Wan Yan, who was standing in front of the seal, couldn't help praising Zhong Li's erudition; Clement curiously poked his head into the bottomless pit, as if he wanted to determine what was inside.
Famas, whose real body was slime, was also standing next to the circular pit. He keenly noticed the traces of fresh salt stains on the edge of the ruins, and there was also some inactive slime slime on them.
It seemed that uninvited guests had entered the ruins of the Salt God before them.
The young man glanced at Zhongli, who was still deep in thought, and pretended to be casual as he came to the inactivated slime. He waved gently and covered any traces that might reveal his existence with the soil.
"I only know a little bit about it... Now it's time for people to know the secret that has been sealed for a long time..."
Zhongli obviously didn't notice Famas's actions. He just responded to Wan Yan's praise with emotion, and then looked at Clement.
"But before entering the ruins, I have a suggestion to avoid unnecessary quarrels."
Perhaps because Zhongli had broken the seal, Wan Yan and Clement both nodded politely and waited for Zhongli's next step.
"Please sign a contract between the two of you. The content of the contract is: [Take the items in order, one piece at a time]."
"To show sincerity, you can just choose, there is no need to include me in the sequence."
As soon as Zhongli finished speaking, the traveler actively raised his hand to indicate that she and Paimon would not participate in the selection of antiquities.
After all, she and Famas had just taken away the reward for dealing with the vortex demon god Osel in the warehouse of the Hall of Rebirth earlier.
"Hey, hey... Ying, such a good opportunity, don't give up so quickly!"
Paimon protested in a low voice, and Famas, who had cleaned up the traces, walked out from behind everyone and spread his hands slightly, indicating that he did not need the Salt God's relics.
"Ugh, why are you two like this!"
Paimon pouted his lips in protest. In addition, there was also the greedy Clement who opposed this contract.
"I don't agree! Does this mean... I want to share the harvest equally with this half-baked archaeologist?"
"Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
Seeing Clement's greedy face, Wan Yan was no longer happy and clenched her fists angrily.
"Hmph, this fool will only destroy the cultural relics left by Lady Heulia, right? I...I can't accept it either."
Zhongli didn't react much to the two people's protests and just nodded indifferently.
"Then...if the contract cannot be established, I will no longer serve as a consultant. What treasures and traps are hidden in this ruins will depend on the experience of the two of you."
Hearing that Zhongli was no longer prepared to continue performing his duties as a guide, Clement panicked and hurriedly changed his mind and agreed.
"This, this... oh, okay, since it is the sealed relic of the Demon God of Salt, even if you can only get half of it, it will be enough profit."
Adventurers and scholars who have been exploring various ancient ruins all year round know that the presence of a knowledgeable person like Zhongli who understands various mechanisms will greatly reduce the difficulty of exploring ancient ruins.
Wan Yan was also a little shaken, hesitated for a moment, and gritted her teeth in embarrassment.
"It's fine if I agree to the contract... I have only one request, Mr. Zhongli... If you discover the truth about Lady Heulia, please make a fair judgment, even if the truth is detrimental to Morax. "
Zhongli Shiran nodded and rubbed the golden thumb ring on his right thumb.
"This is the exchange condition, I can accept it, then, let's go."
Zhongli led the way down the steep rock wall, and the traveler and Paimon hurriedly followed.
"Fortunately, these two guys are self-aware and know that they can't get anything by themselves..."
Paimon whispered in Yingmei's ear, and Famas, who had experienced the war between demons and gods, looked at the familiar architectural style in the ruins, feeling quite confused.
Although the salt earth at that time was ruled by the Gale Demon God in the north, and the twin kings of Gui and Li in the south were conquering the coastal waters, none of the surrounding demon gods looked down upon the barren land of Salt in the Earth.
The young man also led troops and was stationed in the salt soil. At that time, although the salt in the ground was not vast, it was still prosperous and prosperous due to the salt trade, and it was full of vigor and prosperity.
Nowadays, the ruins of the Salt Demon God are dark and oppressive, without any vitality.
Under the dim light that came from nowhere, the salt stains covering the ground and the white statues standing there gave people an indescribable sense of weirdness. The ruins were filled with scattered wood and dilapidated stone walls, and one could only vaguely tell that this place was. A settlement.
"Eh? These brittle-looking statues seem to be made of salt..."
Paimon stretched out his little hand and tried to touch the lifelike salted statues, but Famas, who was following behind, stepped in front of Paimon and raised his hand to pinch the back of the little mascot's neck.
"Don't touch strange things, Paimon."
"Are these really statues?" Wan Yan walked around the salt pillar statues curiously. "They look very exquisite, but the atmosphere here is too bad."
"...No, they were living humans."
Zhongli told the horrifying truth with a calm expression, which frightened Paimeng into screaming. He didn't have time to blame Famas for pinching the back of her neck and quickly hid behind the boy.
Clement didn't care about this. He approached a kneeling salt sculpture with interest and carefully observed the movements of the sculpture.
"Huh? Is this posture praying to something?"
"Ah, by the way, this is the ruins of the Demon God of Salt, so are they the believers of the Demon God of Salt back then?"
After Clement said this, he kept gesturing to Wan Yan behind him with his eyes, seeming to imply that he believed in the Demon God of Salt and would end up with the same fate as this statue.
"Then... why did they become like this?" Paimon still covered his eyes and did not dare to look, "Wow, this look! It's even scarier than finding a corpse!"
Wan Yan was also shocked by the tragic situation in the ruins. She did not respond to Clement's provocation and muttered to herself as if she had lost her soul: "What on earth happened back then...?"
Everyone carefully walked through the salt boulders of different shapes and walked up the stone steps. There were still mottled salt stains and dilapidated buildings along the way. It was easy to observe that the entire city was destroyed in an instant, and again in the passage of time. Gradually weathered appearance.
At the end of the steps is a hall where a stone bowl is placed and surrounded by salted believers.
"Rather than kneeling down devoutly, it's more like you're afraid of something, right?"
Clement commented as he walked that there were more and more salted statues deep in the ruins.
Until everyone came to a room that was obviously an altar, and found a salt cup on the eucalyptus platform for worship.
