Chapter 98: Chapter98-Abyss White TreeThe moment Daniel saw the full effects of the [Anygate], he was instantly tempted.

    While it was true that teleportation arrays existed in the human realm, they came with numerous downsides. Not only were they astronomically expensive to construct, but the costs associated with using them were also prohibitively high. Moreover, the range of these teleportation arrays was extremely limited. The number of people and volume of goods they could transport were strictly constrained by capacity.

    Because of this, even though teleportation arrays were technically available, most people in the human world still preferred to travel by airship. After all, the cost of taking an airship was merely 1% of the cost of teleportation.

    In harsher environments—such as Winterhold Castle—even setting up a teleportation array was completely impossible. The terrain and ambient energy disruptions rendered such efforts futile. Even the mighty Human Emperor himself had no choice but to ride the Snowdragon Beast for over a dozen hours just to arrive there.

    But the [Anygate]?

    It didn’t have any of these limitations. Once a location was bound to it, it could be revisited an unlimited number of times. Even more astonishing—it didn’t require massive amounts of resources to operate.

    For the human race, the importance of something like the Anygate was self-evident.

    And it was precisely at the moment Daniel’s heart was moved that Sarko, standing beside him, noticed it.

    Although Sarko couldn’t probe Daniel with detection spells, he was still able to read his microexpressions with precision. In the brief second when Daniel’s eyes widened in surprise, Sarko had already caught on to his reaction.

    However, Daniel didn’t mind this.

    He had already planned to use [Time Stream] to return to a previous point in time soon. No matter what Sarko observed now, it would be rendered meaningless in the grand scheme of things.

    With that mindset, Daniel turned his attention back to the nearby [Anygate] structure. It wasn’t unguarded—there was a monster stationed right beside it.

    [Anygate Guardian: Blom]

    [Level: 158]

    [Talent: Guardian (Grade A)]

    [Description: Responsible for guarding the Anygate. To use the gate, one must wager 50 tokens and win a gambling challenge against Blom. Win, and the gate is yours to use. Lose, and you forfeit the 50 tokens.]

    [Friendly Reminder: The current Anygate is privately owned by Blom. However, due to the blueprint being lost in a bet, the gate can only transport to a limited number of destinations.] Sear?h the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    "Hm?"

    Daniel narrowed his eyes, his curiosity growing even stronger. Without hesitation, he activated [Eye of Insight] to examine Blom more thoroughly, hoping to unearth more hidden information.

    And indeed, with the overpowered effects of the [Eye of Insight], new details were revealed:

    [The blueprint for the Anygate can be redeemed from the marketplace. Cost: 10,000 tokens. A successful gamble is required to obtain it.]

    [Blom’s Current Win Rate: 30%]

    "So... the Anygate can be privately owned?" Daniel’s eyes gleamed as a new realization dawned on him.

    That meant he didn’t necessarily need to acquire the blueprint from Sarko. With enough tokens, he could simply go to the abyss marketplace and win it through a gamble. And it only cost 10,000 tokens? Apparently, the Anygate wasn’t even considered a particularly rare or precious artifact in the abyss.

    But from a human perspective, the value of the Anygate was incalculable.

    If the human race managed to acquire just one Anygate, it could bring about a revolutionary transformation!

    Daniel recalled how, when the Terra Fortress collapsed, the lack of teleportation arrays in the southern territories made disaster relief extremely difficult. The few existing teleportation nodes were too far apart to be of much help.

    But with an Anygate, that would be a completely different story.

    More than that, the Human Emperor’s ability to manage and control the entire human realm would also take a massive leap forward.

    Take a simple example: delivering supplies from the capital to Winterhold Castle currently took several days. But with the Anygate, that time could be slashed to mere moments.

    Daniel even began wondering: if the cost of the Anygate wasn’t too high, wouldn’t it be possible to construct one in every single human stronghold?

    If that became reality, travel between any major city or fortress could be instantaneous.

    After pondering all this for a moment, Daniel refocused and suppressed his excitement, unwilling to linger too long on the thought. There was still much more to explore.

    Sweeping his gaze across the landscape, Daniel quickly grasped the general state of this Abyss Kingdom.

    Aside from the Anygate, he discovered an abundance of rare materials scattered throughout the realm—resources that had never even been recorded in human records. But what truly drew his attention was a certain kind of tree.

    These trees were commonplace here, like the decorative trees lining urban boulevards in the human world. No one seemed to pay them much attention.

    But Daniel recognized their value immediately.

    [Abyss White Tree]

    [Effect: Capable of absorbing abyssal corruption]

    Daniel’s eyes lit up the moment he read that.

    The old saying was true: "Within seven steps of any poison, there is always an antidote."

    He never imagined that within the abyss—a land synonymous with corruption and pollution—grew a tree that could purify the very contamination that plagued human invaders.

    In truth, the reason humans struggled to explore the abyss wasn’t the power of the abyssal races. The real challenge was the pollution.

    Most Awakener warriors simply couldn’t withstand the overwhelming corruption. While some alchemical potions could suppress it temporarily, prolonged exposure without purification would inevitably result in disastrous consequences—mutations, or even full conversion into abyssal beings.

    Unfortunately, abyssal pollution was complex beyond belief. The vast majority of purification spells had no effect on it at all. Only a rare few worked—and those came with extremely high costs, often requiring massive amounts of divine energy or sacred relics.

    And yet here, growing in abundance, were these unremarkable-looking Abyss White Trees—natural purifiers. A solution to what had long been one of the human race’s most unsolvable dilemmas.

    Daniel felt his luck had finally turned.

    After all, his personal fiefdom was located on the northern frontier of human territory—an area that had already begun to suffer from abyssal contamination. If he could bring some of these Abyss White Trees back, it would undoubtedly improve the situation drastically.

    Right then, Daniel was reminded of a [God Rank Skill] he had recently unlocked: [Abyssal Summoning Spell].

    He had already prepared most of the required materials for the spell. Only one critical component was missing: the core of abyssal pollution.

    But therein lay the problem.

    What even was an abyssal pollution core? He had searched extensively, but hadn’t found any promising leads. It was a mystery.

    However, now that he had ventured deep into the Abyss Kingdom, his instincts began to whisper a new possibility. Somehow, he had a strong feeling that the pollution core he sought could be found right here, in this very realm.

    Determined not to waste the opportunity, Daniel began marking down every valuable material he discovered. Many of these materials were incredibly rare—or completely unheard of—in human lands.

    Chances were, these resources could only be found within the abyss itself.

    And realistically, looking across the entire human realm, who else besides Daniel could even make it this far into the Abyss Realm?

    To most, even entering this place was nearly impossible.