"Wizard, Adventurer, Mercenary, Collector, Merchant..." Her tone carried a subtle sigh:
"—Even those drawn by the Abyss’s allure, the mad ones. Some seek wealth, some seek power, some seek knowledge, and some..."
Her voice lowered, "Seek to escape their past."
Ron noticed a fleeting shadow pass through Lady Allen’s eyes when she mentioned the last group of people.
"The town has at least seven or eight renowned inns, each with its own characteristics."
Lady Allen waved her hand, changing the projection. A lively tavern appeared before them.
Inside, it was packed with people of all sorts, laughter and conversation seemed to emanate from the projection.
"’Drunk Cat’ is a favorite gathering place for adventurers, with cheap drinks and fast information flow, but the environment is noisy and dirty."
In the projection, a bartender was pouring drinks for a group of adventurers dressed in varying outfits, with a beaming yet vigilant look.
The projection changed again, revealing an elegant three-story building with uniformed waiters at the door and a sumptuous interior.
"’Silver Moon Hall,’ preferred by wealthy tourists, quiet and neat with attentive service, but prices exceed regular inns by more than thrice."
At this point, Lady Allen suddenly smiled, as if recalling an amusing memory. Her eyes glittered, and the wrinkles on her face smoothed out a bit.
"I stayed there a few times. Once, the next room was occupied by someone claiming to be a ’Descendant of the Flame Demon,’ boasting daily about his control over Abyssal fire."
The projection showed a figure cloaked in black, continuously morphing strange purple flames in his hands.
"Until one day, his room suddenly burst into indelible purple fire. Two hours later, only a pile of ashes and a bizarre crystal remained."
In the projection, the entire room was devoured by purple flames, leaving only a blackened area and a crystal glowing with purple light.
"After that, ’Silver Moon Hall’ set a rule—prohibiting any use of Abyss-related items or magic inside the inn."
Her lips curled in a faintly mocking smile.
Lady Allen paused, her fingers hesitated for a moment as if pondering, and the projection halted, forming a still image in the air.
"There is another place called ’Nightmare Inn’..."
Her tone became cautious, and the projection showed a building with an ordinary appearance but a strong unsettling atmosphere.
Windows were tightly shut, and a shabby sign reading "Nightmare Inn" hung at the door.
"It specifically caters to travelers already affected to a certain degree by Abyssal contamination. The inn’s owner is rumored to be a Wizard of Moon Level, who found a way to delay the spread of Abyssal contamination, albeit at a high cost."
The projection showed the interior of the inn—a series of special rooms with walls engraved with suppression runes.
On the beds lay travelers with gray faces and hollow eyes, their skin crawling with eerie black patterns.
A flicker of complex emotion crossed her eyes as she waved her fingers gently, and the projection returned to the panorama of Ashen Town:
"Over a hundred years ago, when I last left Ashen Town, it had expanded three times, with the number of guest rooms multiples of what I first saw. The meaning behind this number, you should understand."
Ron nodded thoughtfully, his fingers unconsciously tapping the edge of the teacup:
"It sounds like Ashen Town itself is a place worth researching."
His mind quickly turned, already thinking about how to maximize his profit and safety in that environment.
"Indeed."
Lady Allen agreed, and the projection shifted to a group of residents of Ashen Town, their appearance slightly different from ordinary humans—skin slightly gray, eyes glinting with unusual light.
"Ashen Town is an excellent place to study the effects of the Abyss. The residents there have lived under a slight influence from the Abyss for a long time, showing some subtle yet undeniable changes."
The projection showed a close-up of a resident, with faint gray patterns on the skin and eyes emitting a soft glow in darkness.
"The skin appears slightly gray, as if covered by an indelible dust;
the eyes have an unusually strong adaptability to darkness, almost able to see in complete blackness;
some begin to develop peculiar abilities, such as perceiving fluctuations in Abyssal energy or foreseeing impending dangers."
Her tone suddenly became a warning, as the projection turned to a scene of a bloody fight—two people fiercely battling over a small crystal, ending with one stabbing the other’s chest:
"But don’t be deceived by the outward calmness of Ashen Town. The rules there are different from the Black Mist Jungle, more brutal and direct. Under the Abyss’s influence, the darker side of human nature often manifests more easily."
Lady Allen’s voice turned exceptionally grave, her eyes bearing a weariness from witnessing too much darkness:
"I have seen someone stab an old friend’s chest over an insignificant Abyss Crystal; and a seemingly gentle merchant pour molten lead down the throat of a boy attempting theft."
In the projection, these violent scenes unfolded one by one, though silent, the visual impact was nauseating.
Disgust and concern flashed in Lady Allen’s eyes:
"The worst part is, such events no longer count as unusual news in Ashen Town. People talk about them as casually as discussing the day’s weather."
Ron nodded, committing these insights to memory.
He could feel the twisted atmosphere from the projection, this real-world experience being far more valuable than any written record.
For a newly promoted Official Wizard, excessive confidence is often the greatest weakness.
He needed these warnings to stay alert, avoiding unnecessary dangers.
"Now, we shall begin with the core content about the shallow Abyss Edge area."
Lady Allen continued, her voice turning more serious, eyes flickering with vigilance.
"The curse effects are relatively weak, most professionals with extraordinary power can endure it for a short period.
The mutants there are also relatively weak, mostly low-level creatures mutated by Abyssal energy pollution—such as Six-eyed Worms, Radiation Toads, or Bone Claw Rats.
Many Schools often send advanced apprentices there to capture these mutated creatures for experimentation and research."
The projection displayed the images of these low-level mutants:
A large worm with eyes covering its body, constantly secreting corrosive liquid from its surface;
A large toad with multiple tumor-like sacs on its back, occasionally spraying toxic gas;
A group of Bone Claw Rats, their claws sharp as knives, capable of slicing through metal with ease.
Lady Allen shook her head slightly, a look of sarcasm on her face.
The projection showed those creatures intertwined with human explorers, forming an eerie tableau:
"Many first-time explorers of the Abyss tend to linger too long in the Edge Area, feeling a false sense of security.
They don’t understand that this is merely the Abyss’s ’gentle trap’—first letting you adapt to weaker curses and dangers, then gradually drawing you deeper, until you can’t escape."