chsdbacks Chapter 173 The Flame Demon's Nest
Chapter 173 The Flame Demon's Nest
Chapter 173 The Flame Demon's Nest
The vault is located at the very bottom of Moria, and there is a tunnel dug out by the dwarves.
At the end of the tunnel was a treasure vault gate forged from a mixture of mithril and fine iron.
"This is the last intact treasure trove left in Moria," Balin explained to Dui and Gandalf.
"The defenses here are the strongest. The walls of the vault are made of a mixture of mithril and refined iron, and the door is set with a code that only dwarves can crack. Therefore, the Orks cannot enter the vault by digging tunnels, which is why the treasures in the vault have not been plundered by the Orks."
Bahrain was also deeply saddened when this was mentioned.
The Kingdom of Qazadoom, once rich in mithril mines, possessed the wealth of the world, with so much treasure that even a treasury couldn't contain it all.
However, with the awakening of the Balrog and the destruction of Kazardum, although the Balrog was not interested in the treasure, the Orks were very greedy. They not only plundered and seized the treasure, but also continued to mine mithril ore, continuously supplying it to Baradur to provide resources for Sauron's army.
Only the first vault built by the dwarves survived because of its strong defenses.
"It took me several days to finally crack the code of this treasure vault," Balin said excitedly, his eyes shining. "Perhaps Dulin's ancestors had a premonition and specially built this sturdy vault, leaving us a vast treasure."
As he spoke, he pushed open the door and led the group inside.
Upon entering, Dui and Alwen couldn't help but open their mouths slightly and widen their eyes.
Inside the treasure vault, illuminated by the firelight, everything was resplendent in gold and jade.
The treasury was enormous, no smaller than the Dwarf Hall. It was supported by a huge golden pillar in the center, and the floor, walls and ceiling were all covered in gold, making it extremely luxurious!
In addition, the vault was filled with countless gold, jewels and jade, as well as exquisite and luxurious jewelry, handicrafts, etc., piled up like mountains, almost touching the high ceiling.
The treasures here are no less than those on Lonely Mountain.
More importantly, half of the treasure here belongs to Dui, while he only took one-tenth of it when he was at Lonely Mountain.
Gandalf again refused Balin's offer to give him the treasure, only taking some gold coins to buy tobacco from the Shire.
Unlike Gandalf, who regarded treasures as dirt, Dui simply used his spatial bag to collect half of the treasure in the vault.
After all, he has a bunch of people (and pets) to take care of at home, especially a money-grubbing dragon that's waiting to build its nest with even more gold and jewels.
Bahrain showed no remorse or regret that Dui took half of the treasure from the vault.
After all, Moria's true treasure has never been the gold and jewels in the vault, but the mithril ore, which is far more precious than them.
Moria's mithril ore is inexhaustible; as long as one owns this mine, it's only a matter of time before one can amass endless wealth.
After leaving the vault, Balin asked Dui to set up a Floo Net on the fireplace in the first hall, and offered to exchange mithril for Floo Powder, at a price of one gram of mithril for one gram of Floo Powder.
Dui would naturally not refuse such a lucrative deal.
He was even thinking about how to increase the production of Floo Powder without having to do it himself.
"Gandalf, Duir, actually I have another favor to ask you."
Bahrain said hesitantly.
"You may not know this, but the bottom of the mine where the Balrog resides is actually the richest place for mithril. If we want to continue mining, we simply cannot bypass that place."
The problem is that because of the presence of the Balrog, the area has become a land of magma, constantly spewing out poisonous gases such as sulfur. We simply cannot approach it with our current strength.
"So could you please go there and take a look, and see if you can resolve the potential problems there?"
Dui and Gandalf were both somewhat surprised to hear Bahrain's words.
Logically, since the Balrog has been defeated, the flames and lava at the bottom of the mine should have gradually died down.
Could it be that there's a volcano below, and the Flame Demon dug through the magma layer deep underground?
Out of curiosity, Dui and Gandalf agreed to Bahrain's request.
They arrived at the edge of the Moria Mine and flew down to the bottom of the mine on their flying broomsticks.
The mine is very deep, though not as deep as the abyss beneath the Dulin Bridge that leads directly underground, it is still several thousand meters deep.
The two continued to descend, but the temperature was abnormally rising.
Upon reaching the bottom of the mine, one is immediately struck by a river of lava, constantly spewing forth scorching hot magma, accompanied by a strong, pungent smell of sulfur.
Dui cast a bubble-head spell on himself and Gandalf to block the pungent, poisonous smell.
Then, use your staff to cast the Clear Water Spring spell on the lava below.
The spring water gushed out, turning into a flood that submerged the lava below.
The magma and water intertwined, turning into water vapor that shrouded the bottom of the mine in a mist.
The magma cooled and solidified rapidly, turning into bright silver mithril lava.
It turns out that these magmas were actually melted mithril ore, and very pure mithril at that. After the magma cooled and solidified, the river of magma instantly turned into a silvery-white mithril river.
However, neither of them was paying attention to the priceless Mithril Galaxy at the moment. Instead, they were looking at a lava tunnel where the temperature was so high that even water could not extinguish or cool it, and it was still constantly spewing out Mithril magma.
Looking at the deep lava tunnel, the two of them guessed at the same time that this was the cave of the Balrog.
The lava tunnel was extremely hot, as if flames were flickering inside.
To prevent any accidents, Dui took out two bottles of fire-retardant potion. He and Gandalf each drank one bottle, and then cast a protective spell before heading into the lava tunnel.
The lava tunnel was extremely deep, seemingly leading to the underground. Lava was constantly overflowing from the surrounding cracks, making it appear as if it were a volcanic lava passage that could erupt at any moment.
The two walked deeper and deeper into the lava tunnel filled with magma, where the surrounding temperature was high enough to melt the hardest metal.
If it weren't for the fire-retardant agent, they would have been roasted to a crisp by now.
Just when they were about to doubt whether it led to the depths of the earth, the lava tunnel suddenly opened up and became bright and hot.
They finally arrived at the lair of the Balrog.
The Balrog's lair is a huge circular cavern with lava and burning flames below, and a large, unmelted black boulder platform in the center.
To Dui and Gandalf's surprise, the cave walls were covered with a thick layer of red, transparent crystals, making the cave look like a crystal cave.
These red, transparent crystals resemble the magic crystals of the Balrog, radiating a scorching heat and brimming with fire elemental magic.
Moreover, it is because of the presence of these red crystals that the magma at the bottom of the mine has not cooled and solidified.
"What is that?" Dui looked at the red crystals on the cave wall with surprise and curiosity.
Gandalf was also very surprised. He replied, "This is a fire crystal, formed under the influence of the Balrog's fire and magic. It takes thousands of years to form."
He then smiled and congratulated Dui, saying, "It seems you're very lucky to have encountered a Flame Crystal. It's even more precious and rarer than Mithril. Not only can you use it to forge fire-attribute weapons, but it also grants immunity to fire damage. It's an invaluable magical material."
"We were lucky!" Dui corrected happily.
Gandalf smiled and shook his head. "Just break off a small piece for me to use as a flint later. I don't need the rest. You can collect them yourself."
Seeing that Gandalf really didn't need it, Dui didn't insist anymore. He then happily began to use the spear Aegros to pry out the fire crystals from the rock wall little by little, and then put them into a mithril box that had been enchanted with a smudge-proof stretching charm.
These flame crystals are extremely hot; even with fire-retardant agents, Dui could still feel the heat when he held them in his hands.
If placed in an ordinary metal or stone vessel, the high temperature would be enough to melt and burn through the contents.
Only boxes made of mithril can not only insulate against heat, but also prevent them from being melted by fire crystals.
Seeing Dui tirelessly using the spear Aegros to pry open the fire crystal, Gandalf also came to help, borrowing Dui's flaming sword to dig along with him.
After all the fire crystals in the Balrog's lair were finally collected and sealed in a mithril box, the temperature in the cave noticeably decreased.
Of course, this kind of drop is like going from tens of thousands of degrees Celsius to a few thousand degrees Celsius, which is still very hot.
However, without the fire crystals, the temperature here will decrease over time, and eventually the magma will cool and solidify, eventually turning into cold mithril ore.
This process, without external intervention, can last for decades or even centuries.
But since Dui and Gandalf had promised to help the dwarves resolve their situation, they naturally wouldn't stand idly by.
Gandalf and Gandalf joined forces to cast a spell, using the Freeze Charm to freeze the scorching magma directly.
The temperature inside the cave dropped rapidly, and the magma cooled and solidified quickly.
The two stopped fighting only after the lava was completely extinguished.
After it's finished.
Gandalf chuckled as he took a small piece of the fire crystal, intending to use it as a flint to light his tobacco.
With a gentle touch of his finger adorned with the Ring of Fire, the fire crystal seemed to lose its heat and transform into a red gemstone.
He casually put the gem into his pocket and said to Dui, "These fire crystals were born from the Balrog and are tainted by its evil aura. Remember to purify them of their evil power when you go back."
"How can we purify them?"
"The simplest way is to expose them to the sun; the sunlight will slowly purify the evil power within. Another way is to use the Light of Eyarendil in your possession. Of course, using both together will be even faster."
"I understand, thank you for your advice, Gandalf." Dui nodded and thanked Gandalf.
(End of this chapter)