The moment he entered, Bai Liu fell into the ocean.

This looks like an extremely deep sea area. Bai Liu felt the tremendous pressure coming from all around him. If it weren't for the inhumanly high quality of his current panel, his body would have been squeezed and exploded by the water pressure the moment he was teleported to this sea area.

The deep sea was pitch black everywhere, but the occasional waves told Bai Liu that there must be some large fish swimming nearby.

All in all, it's not a place to stay for long.

Bai Liu turned his gaze and looked towards the only source of light in the deep sea - a huge city sunk to the bottom of the sea.

Or maybe the word "city" isn't accurate enough. Bai Liu was floating high above the seabed. The city was all below him. He couldn't even see the border. What was even more bizarre was that the city was wrapped in a huge semicircular glass protective shield - this shield looked very familiar to Bai Liu. When he was captured and taken to the Bureau of Heresy before, the shield outside the Bureau was of this style.

Normally, one should be able to see what's going on inside through the glass shield, but there was golden dust floating in the sky above the entire city, and one could only vaguely glimpse the magnificent buildings in the city.

This looks like a once prosperous city, but for some reason, it is now covered with a protective shield and sunk to the bottom of the sea.

Looking from above where Bai Liu was, the city exuded a warm golden light, and the golden dust inside seemed to float up and down like snow. It looked like an oversized snow scene crystal ball with a fairy-tale texture.

——This should be the [Lost Kingdom of Gold].

[System prompt: Players please enter (The Lost Kingdom of Gold) to unlock the main quest.]

Bai Liu swam downwards and soon touched the top of the protective shield. The moment he touched it, he fell into the golden kingdom under the sea.

The sky full of golden dust suddenly rushed towards Bai Liu. He steadied his body and fell down, finally landing on the roof of a high-rise building. The roof was covered with strange golden powder, which made people slippery when they stepped on it. Bai Liu lowered his eyes and looked at the golden dust that seemed to be floating endlessly in the sky. He reached out his hand to catch some and opened his mouth.

The texture is so fine, it feels like you can breathe in.

The ground was covered with this fine gold powder. From the magnificent and solemn dome palace building in the sky to the building in front of us, it was all shrouded in a layer of strange golden dust. The ground was also covered with gold powder, and it was so bright that people could not see clearly. The whole city was silent. Not to mention human voices, even the birds could not be heard. It was so quiet that the only sound was the falling dust.

[System prompt: Please ask the player Bai Liu to find a fairy tale book widely circulated in the Kingdom of Gold to understand the background story of the dungeon and unlock the main quest.]

Bai Liu jumped down from the rooftop with great ease. After landing, he found a landmark building nearby and sent a message to his teammates, asking them to gather there. In less than three or four minutes, all four team members arrived.

"We didn't encounter any NPCs or monsters on the way." Tang Erda put his gun behind his waist and said with a frown, "We didn't meet anyone from Golden Dawn either."

"I originally thought they would attack us as soon as they entered the dungeon, but I observed the dust on the ground along the way and didn't see any footprints of anyone other than us."

"Yeah." Mu Sicheng looked at the strange environment of this dungeon and rubbed his arms, which were covered with goosebumps. "I was ready to run away, but no one came to chase me."

"It may be related to the game settings of this instance." Liu Jiayi looked up and opened her system panel. "Because the background explanation and main quest of this instance are different from the previous ones. They are not given to you when you enter, but you have to explore on your own. The other party may be ready to unlock the main quest first before taking action, just like us."

Mu Ke nodded in agreement: "But overall it's not a bad thing for us. It gives us some time to recover."

"I don't think so." Bai Liu shook his head and denied. "Golden Dawn is not a team that plays speed battles. Playing speed battles is our countermeasure. They like to slow down the pace, but slowing down the pace is not good for players like us who have skills with cooldowns."

"The overall idea is still the same as before, a quick victory."

Bai Liu lowered his eyes and looked at the gold dust falling on everyone, narrowing his eyes slightly: "I always feel that this copy itself is more threatening to me than the Golden Dawn."

"Let's find some fairy tales first."

"yes!"

Led by Bai Liu, a group of people walked into the nearest building. The building was also full of floating gold powder. The notice board at the front desk was so covered with gold powder that it was unclear. Liu Jiayi squatted down and wiped off the thick gold powder on the notice board before she could see the content on it.

Liu Jiayi stared at the words for a while, then waved her hand: "Mu Ke, I can't understand these characters."

"I'm here." Mu Ke walked over and stared at the notice for a while. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "It's a very ancient language. I can't understand it all, but I took an elective course on the modern language that evolved from it, so I can still understand the general meaning."

"This notice says that there are still 13 households that have not paid their water, electricity, gas and gas bills this month. One household is seriously in arrears, owing a total of about 500g in water and electricity bills..."

"Gold?"

When Mu Ke saw the last phrase, his tone was obviously hesitant.

"Wow?!" Mu Sicheng squatted over with great interest, "The utility bill for a pound of gold. What did this family do at home? Did they raise goldfish?"

"Compared to this, I was more surprised by other places." Mu Ke flipped the sign forward, his expression becoming more and more strange. "This place does not have its own currency. The general equivalent of their daily transactions is gold. They pay water and electricity bills with gold, and they also buy daily food with gold. Three apples cost 2 grams of gold, and a whole leg of smoked beef costs 12 grams of gold."

"...Using gold for daily transactions?" Mu Sicheng was shocked. He silently calculated in his mind, "The prices are ridiculously high. The people here are really rich."

"Gold can be used as a trading currency, and prices are so high. This must be a place with a developed economy. They were indeed very rich in the past." Mu Ke frowned, "But it must not have been recently. The rent of this building has increased four or five times, and the unit price of various water, electricity and gas supplies has increased by nearly forty times. The price of food can basically be said to be raised on the spot, and the price changes every day."

“That’s why there are residents who owe a pound of gold in water and electricity bills.”

"The prices of various things are rising." Mu Sicheng asked hesitantly, "Shouldn't this mean that people in this place are getting richer and richer?"

Mu Ke glanced at Mu Sicheng and said, "It depends on what the price has increased."

"If the price increases are for non-essential items that are already heavily overpriced, such as luxury cars and watches, which are toys for the rich, then it means that everyone has money to enjoy things that are not essential to life. This situation is indeed a phenomenon that only occurs in regions with increasingly prosperous economies."

"But judging from the announcement of this building, the prices of some slightly higher-end foods, such as cheese, are falling, while the prices of necessities such as smoked meat, apples, water, electricity and rent are rising. This can only mean that the money or gold in this area has flowed into survival products. This shows that people in this area are having a very hard time, which is why they are panic-stricken and hoarding necessities, causing the prices of necessities to double."

"What I saw is basically the same." Mu Ke pointed at the bulletin board. "There are more and more tenants in this building who can't pay their rent."

"But it's hard for me to imagine that a place that uses gold as currency would have such a high premium on necessities." Mu Ke spread his hands. "As long as there is a port in this place and they are willing to use gold for foreign trade, I believe there are many places in the world willing to sell them 400 apples for 2 grams of gold, but I don't see any trace of foreign trade."

"One pound of gold is already the living expenses of many families for several years, but it is only the water and electricity bills of this building for a few months."

"There are many people in the world who are madly hungry for their gold, but they are hoarding it here, unwilling to trade with foreign countries, allowing prices to rise wildly."

"Perhaps it is because too many people want their gold that they are unwilling to give it to you." Bai Liu squatted down on one knee and looked up at Mu Ke who was stunned for a moment. "What's the matter with the local language you are speaking?"

"This is also one of the strange things about me." Mu Ke pondered for a while and replied, "I learned a very rare language that is used in very few countries in the real world. The origin of this language is a civilized language that only exists in legends."

"It is said that more than a thousand years ago, there was a very prosperous ancient country beside the ancient Luo Sea. Although this country was not very large and was only a small coastal country, it was very rich. It was so rich that even the floor of their palace was paved with gold. It was known as the "Golden Country Favored by God". At that time, it was almost the center of economic exchanges in the world. The surrounding small countries were very eager to come to this country. They imitated the language of this country, and it has been passed down to this day. It is the small language I am learning now."

"But everything about this country is inferred based on existing historical documents from some neighboring countries. There are no real relics or historical data to prove that this country really exists, nor is there anything to prove that the language I learned originated from this golden country."

"But now it seems." Mu Ke looked at the gold-dusted display screen, radio, and several modern cell phones next to the front desk, "This country really exists."

"And it developed silently for a thousand years in a place we couldn't see, until it died out."

Mu Sicheng felt very complicated after hearing this: "...Why did you learn such a foreign language?"

"Because my father wants me to learn. As a son who cannot inherit the family business, I can only be used as a display board. When I learn something that people around me don't know, he will feel proud. So I learned a lot of things that I think are useless but he thinks are very stylish. Minority languages ​​are one of them." Mu Ke replied with a smile, "You can understand this as the bored vanity of rich people."

"But it's not completely meaningless now that it can be used."

"So the system wants us to explore why this country perished?" Liu Jiayi frowned and said softly, "[The Golden Country Blessed by God], it sounds very——"

She didn't continue talking. Bai Liu looked at each other, and everything was understood without words.

——It sounds very much like Bai Liu.

"You want us to find fairy tale books, right?" Tang Erda carefully searched the front desk address book. "Residents with children are more likely to have fairy tale books in their rooms, right?"

"There are three households with children on the second floor, and there are also some on the third floor."

Tang Erda turned around and looked at Bai Liu with the address book in his hand: "Shall we go up and look for him?"

Bai Liu nodded: "Let's go."

The process of finding the fairy tale book was not difficult. When Tang Erda pushed open the door of the second room, they successfully found a fairy tale book on the table covered with gold powder.

"It's called [The Golden Kingdom Favored by God]." Mu Ke took the book, read out the words on it, and then looked up at everyone, "This should be it."

"You translate it and we'll listen." Bai Liu sat on the small stool next to the sound, assuming an attitude of listening attentively.

"I may not be able to translate everything correctly." Mu Ke took a deep breath, "but I will try my best."

He opened the first page of this thick fairy tale book covered with gold dust.

"A long, long time ago, perhaps a thousand years ago, there was a beautiful coastal country beside the Ancient Roman Sea called Ancient Luoren."

At the same time, George stood in the palace, he lowered his eyes to look at this familiar yet strange place - after a lapse of ten years, he once again set foot on the country of Ancient Lorenzo that he had sunk to the bottom of the sea with his own hands, the largest and most expensive heretic that he had guarded by the sea for a full ten years, his only homeland that he would never forget.

This palace, this gorgeous palace covered in gold, is where he was born and grew up. He still remembers that when he was ten years old, the whole country celebrated his birthday. The young boy stood outside the palace platform, tiptoed and looked down from the fence that was taller than him. The square was full of people cheering for his growth.

They set off fireworks, scattered gold dust, and called out his name loudly and affectionately:

"Georgia!"

"Georgia!"

Gold dust and fireworks fell on Georgia's shoulders. The eyes of the people reflected the most beautiful light in the world. He leaned on the railing in a daze, looking at all the prosperity, and whispered softly: "Am I really worthy of all they have done for me?"

His father, the King of Guloren, laughed and held his shoulders: "You are the heir to the throne of Guloren."

"You are the king who will lead them into a more glorious golden age in the future, and will protect them and uphold their kingdom."

"Of course you deserve it!"

"But what if..." Little Georgia clenched her fists hesitantly, "What if I can't do it well?"

"You will do well." The king stroked his forehead lovingly. "You are the best prince, I know that. Although you look cold and strict, you are actually a good child who has a strong sense of responsibility since you were old enough to understand. What you fear most is to disappoint these people who are looking forward to you so enthusiastically."

"And a person with such fear will surely become a good king."

"Hey." Seeing that Georgia was frowning all the time, the king awkwardly smoothed his brows, "My child, do you still remember that fairy tale?"

"When there comes a day when you really fail to do something, we are a golden country favored by God, and we can still seek God's help."

"But what if God doesn't help us?" Georgia couldn't hide his worries, which made him look a little mature. "No one will help us all the time without reason. If God helps us, it will definitely cost us a price."

"How could that be?" The king laughed innocently. "The meaning of God's existence is to make believers who believe in Him happy!"

"Captain?" Chris asked softly, "What's wrong with you?"

"The system prompted us to find fairy tale books, and you brought us all the way here. Is this a place familiar to you?"

——The existence of Heretic 0073 is the top secret of the three bureaus. Except for Georgia and Lu Station, almost no one knows what Heretic 0073 looks like.

Georgia closed his eyes and gathered his thoughts. When he opened his eyes again, he saw the calm and dignified captain of the Third Bureau: "Yes."

"I remember there was a fairy tale book here, but I forgot where it was. You can search somewhere else in the palace."

"Yes, Captain!"

After several team members responded, they began a well-trained carpet search of the entire palace.

After a brief stay, George headed towards the prince's bedroom in the palace. He walked steadily and solemnly, just like the day he became the crown prince. He walked past the platform where the people cheered and rejoiced, past the meadow where he learned archery, past the flowerbed where Armand was knocked, and finally arrived at his bedroom.

Everything here is as rigid and standard as it was back then. Thirteen bows of different specifications are mounted in belts and hung on the wall. The huge bookshelf opposite is filled with various books classified into different categories. Many of them have been read and have golden leaf bookmarks inside - these were specially made for him by his father.

Most of these books were professional books on state governance, and they were obscure and difficult to understand. When he was young, he would fall asleep while reading them. In order to force himself to read more, Georgia secretly hid an ice basin under his bed. When he felt sleepy, he would stand barefoot in the ice basin for a while, relying on the low temperature to keep himself awake and force himself to read more.

After being discovered by Armand and reported to his father, Georgia was punished by his angry father.

[The body is the foundation of governing a country.] His father severely rebuked him, [You are so eager and utilitarian to learn things, and you can't stay calm in such a stable environment. How can you let the people follow you with peace of mind?!]

At that time, Georgia was punished by not being allowed to read. Although he knelt down to accept the punishment and looked calm, he was also filled with uncontrollable anxiety in his heart.

——It seems that if this country, which is favored by God, loses even a little bit of his attention, something terrible will happen.

At that time, the only book Georgia was allowed to read was the fairy tale "The Golden Kingdom of the Divine's Own".

This book is a well-known fairy tale book in ancient Rome.

But Georgia didn't like this fairy tale book and was very reluctant to read it, but he still read it at that time.

Georgia walked to the head of the bed and slowly sat down on the bed covered with gold powder. There was a family portrait on the bedside table. He wiped the portrait clean and saw Armand, who was only a few months old, himself with a stern face but a hint of smile in his eyes, his father who smiled a little foolishly, and his mother who was sitting on a chair with a bright smile.

——When Armand was four years old, their mother died. After that, his father never recovered and gave himself the title of Prince in advance.

So this is one of their few family photos and also his favorite one, so he has always kept it at the head of the bed. But when the Guroleng sank, he was in such a hurry carrying the unconscious Armand that he didn't even have time to take the photo away.

I didn't expect to see you again after so long.

Georgia was silent for a moment, then he turned over the pillow and saw the fairy tale book he had hidden under it. He turned to the second page:

"The people of Guloren are hardworking and kind. Although their territory is not vast and the land is not fertile, each of them lives a happy life by relying on their hard work."

"At that time, everyone was pursuing gold, but there were no gold mines in the ancient Roman Empire, so they could not get gold. So in the end, they got used to a stable life and reproduced from generation to generation."

"Although the people in Guloren were poor, they lived so happily that this happiness attracted the attention of God. He came before the King of Guloren at that time and said with a smile, "Are you willing to make a deal with me?"

“The king asked, God, we are a poor country and have nothing to trade with you.”

“God smiled and said, ‘Yes.’”

"——That is the happiness in you."

"You give me happiness and pay for my pain. In return, I will give you countless, inexhaustible gold mines, enough for you to enjoy for a thousand years."

"But after a thousand years, you will pay me back in pain."

"The king thought about it for a long time. He called the people together and asked for their opinions. The people were all excited. No one would dislike gold, especially gold that fell from the sky. Everyone agreed to God's deal."

Mu Ke turned to page 6 and continued reading softly:

"The ancient country of Loren has undergone tremendous changes."

"This land that was once devoid of gold became a land of gold. Farmers dug everywhere and large tracts of gold appeared in the soil. Fishermen scooped out stones that the fish in their nets spat out, and they were all gold. There was no need to forge gold. Soon, Ancient Lorenz became the richest country in the world."

"But this wealth attracted many countries with ill intentions towards Guloren. They wanted to wage war against Guloren and seize its gold. In desperation, the clever king found God again and said to Him, 'Oh, the almighty God, please hide us and leave only a small hole so that we can sell the gold.'"

"The god agreed and hid the ancient kingdom of Loren from the world. No one could find any trace of the ancient kingdom of Loren anymore."

"In this way, Gu Luolun lived in peace and prosperity for a thousand years, and it was time to pay the price."

Mu Ke turned another page and the fairy tale ended.