Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 37

In the midst of a ruined wall, thousands of enemy soldiers lay defeated. They had once ravaged this land, and now they repaid it with their own flesh and blood. The resentment of countless ghosts was appeased, and the dark clouds that had lingered dispersed. Above the sky, stars and the moon reappeared. Beneath this starry canopy, Jiang Yuqing stood tall, revealing an exceptionally handsome and pleasing face.

After a while, Jiang Yuqing felt warmth in his palm. He quickly let go, then swiftly grabbed Zhou Qian’s hand, finding the bandage on his wrist soaked red with blood.

Jiang Yuqing frowned immediately. “Bei He, you’re injured!”

Indeed, Zhou Qian was suffering. Having stormed his way here, his stamina was completely drained. Moreover, intentionally dropping his health to below 10%, the excessive blood loss made his head spin.

At this moment, he had a deeper realization about his ultimate ability—he was literally burning his own life force to summon the power of vengeful spirits.

With the support of his ultimate ability, Zhou Qian could still walk and shoot. But now, its effect had ended, and he was struggling. Feeling drowsy, Zhou Qian unconsciously leaned forward, but Jiang Yuqing took a step and steadied him, allowing Zhou Qian’s head to rest on his shoulder.

As Zhou Qian’s consciousness faded amidst a haze of red, he still managed to ask with a smile, “Hey, you could barely stand, and yet you’re supporting me?”

Elsewhere. Inside a gaming room booth. In front of a flat screen.

Mu Sheng watched everything unfold with a nearly malicious grin on his lips. “Ha, as I expected! Sacrificing one’s own health for power… Foolish. Do you think it’s over?”

Hearing this, Priest, who was next to him, raised an eyebrow and calmly responded, “If it followed the original settings of this level, it would have ended.”

“It’s different now that I’m here! It’s not over! I’ve been waiting for this moment! Zhou Qian… your health is at 9%, and your teammate’s mana is almost depleted! I want to see how you can win now!”

“No one can take away my sister. I want you dead! You’re going to die!!!”

With that, Mu Sheng quickly pressed a button on the screen, accessing the system menu with the privileges of a high-level gambler, and opened the item bar.

[Advanced Gambler Mu Sheng used the item: Joyful Modifier]

[Effect: Can forcibly change the storyline; an extremely rare item.]

[Note: Please follow system instructions and input your desired changes within a minute.]

[Advanced Gambler Mu Sheng used the item: NPC Loader.]

[Effect: Can load your consciousness into any NPC; an extremely rare item.]

[Note: NPCs have a hard life. Choose wisely; you have 30 seconds to change your mind.]

……

Seeing Mu Sheng’s actions, Priest frowned. “I advise you to consider carefully. After all, you’ve never been a player, never been to the real game world. Do you really think… you can adapt?”

Mu Sheng replied, “Now is the perfect chance to kill Zhou Qian. I can’t miss it! Zhou Qian, I will repay you in your own coin!”

Priest sighed softly. “Mu Sheng, I think you’ve truly gone mad.”

Before loading into the game, Mu Sheng turned to Priest with manic eyes. “I’ve gone mad, just as you’d like, right?”

……

Inside the game.

The entire playground had turned to ruins.

In the center of this destruction, two figures leaned on each other, resembling the most trusting of comrades or the most intimate of lovers.

Zhou Qian felt more and more dizzy.

After a while, he heard He Xiaowei’s voice. “Qian’er, hey, I’m here. Are you okay? I have a tiny bit of mana left, enough for a basic healing skill. It doesn’t heal much, but it’s better than nothing. Let me try! Wait… Oh my god! What… What is that?!”

Yun Xiangrong’s voice deepened. “My God…”

Situ Qing, usually composed, exclaimed in shock, “How can this be?!”

The voices of his teammates filled with extreme surprise and profound fear echoed around. Zhou Qian blinked tiredly, and then a deep rumbling noise surrounded him, reminiscent of distant thunder. This thunderous sound carried a dangerous aura, like the deep roaring from the sea before a terrifying tsunami.

Raising his head with difficulty, Zhou Qian looked over Jiang Yuqing’s shoulder and gazed ahead.

The situation had indeed changed.

Countless corpses of the S Army, whether intact, twisted, or fragmented, surprisingly stood up under the influence of some invisible force.

The scene was incredibly bizarre because it didn’t conform to the settings and logic of the instance.

In a reasonable game, hints for passing the level would be discreetly embedded in advance. Players could find ways to pass by searching for clues and understanding the storyline. It shouldn’t suddenly introduce a life-threatening monster without any prior clues or methods to defeat it.

So… What on earth was happening?

The next moment, an even stranger event unfolded before the four players.

After countless S Army skeletons stood up, they rapidly converged mid-air, forming a tremendously large humanoid monster.

This creature was made of a pile of corpses, so immense that it seemed to step on the ground and touch the sky. Surrounding it was a gray mist-like substance—the spirits of the deceased S Army!

He Xiaowei couldn’t help but exclaim, “What the… What the hell is this?!”

Yun Xiangrong was almost holding her breath. “This skill looks like Zhou Qian’s! It’s as if… someone copied Zhou Qian’s skills and power?!”

“But that’s impossible. I’ve cleared so many instances and never encountered this,” Situ Qing began, her face turning pale as she seemed to recall something, clenching her fists tightly.

Soon, the giant monster began to move. It twisted its grotesque and incredibly heavy head from side to side, then fixed its gaze on the players. With a menacing intent, it took heavy steps toward them. Each step was accompanied by a loud rumbling sound, shaking the ground as if the entire city would be destroyed beneath its feet!

“This isn’t logical!”

“What’s happening?”

“It’s raising its hand!”

“It seems to be targeting Zhou Qian! It’s going to attack him!!”

Amidst the cries of his teammates, Zhou Qian seemed somewhat indifferent.

He looked ahead, his eyes cold as ice, but he didn’t move.

He truly had no strength left.

Zhou Qian had no ability to counter such a monster. All he could do was think quickly and consider any possible means of survival.

But he couldn’t think of any.

Before the game started, he had observed the trading hall for a long time and hadn’t bought items like the [Universe Teleportation Mirror] that could allow him to teleport instantly. Even if he had, it wouldn’t be of much use against such a gigantic beast.

The teleportation range usually didn’t exceed a thousand meters, which was a distance that the giant monster could catch up with within a few steps.

He Xiaowei was always loyal. He quickly ran to Zhou Qian’s side, holding his guqin. Despite his fear, he said, “Qian’er, I’ll try to heal you. I also have protective items like cloaks and arm guards. Hold on, I’m giving them to you now.”

Yun Xiangrong, standing behind He Xiaowei, turned completely pale.

It’s useless. Zhou Qian’s ultimate skill is limited. With only 9% health left, if he can’t kill the monster instantly, he’ll be killed by it.

He Xiaowei knew this too. As he looked at Zhou Qian’s pale face, tears welled up in his eyes. With a swift pluck of the guqin’s strings, he used up the last of his mana.

[Player Zhou Qian’s HP restored to 13%]

It’s over.

Zhou Qian is finished.

All of us are probably done for.

Suddenly, He Xiaowei noticed a figure with a rifle rushing to the front from behind him.

It was Situ Qing!

Compared to the gigantic monster formed from thousands of spirits and corpses, Situ Qing seemed utterly insignificant, as tiny as an ant or even a speck of dust. Yet her advancing figure seemed fearless and determined, as if she was ready to fight this immensely powerful creature to the death!

This act clearly enraged the giant creature.

It roared, causing the entire ground to shake violently.

The monster then raised its palm, and a whirlwind formed in its grasp, striking fiercely towards Zhou Qian.

In that moment, it seemed as if the gods, in order to punish the criminal who committed a heinous crime, unleashed a wrathful force from the heavens, intending to obliterate him with a single strike.

Under such divine might, no one could find redemption.

He Xiaowei’s heart thudded wildly, as if about to burst. Realizing something, he quickly turned his gaze to Zhou Qian, wanting to assist him in his last moments. After all, it was thanks to Zhou Qian that he had come this far.

But then, an unexpected event occurred!

At a glance, He Xiaowei saw Jiang Yuqing, seemingly dead, devoid of any life force, collapsing backward unexpectedly.

Ignoring Jiang Yuqing’s situation, He Xiaowei rushed to support Zhou Qian by the shoulder, trying to prevent further damage from a potential fall.

Suddenly, the earth trembled even more violently!

Weak and exhausted, Zhou Qian could no longer withstand the shaking and passed out. Seeing this, He Xiaowei instinctively shielded the unconscious Zhou Qian with his body. As the palm formed by the vast grudge force brutally descended, he couldn’t help but let out a desperate scream, which was immediately swallowed by a terrifying storm.

However, moments later, the anticipated divine-like destructive power didn’t arrive.

Surprised, He Xiaowei quickly straightened up and looked up. Along with the shocked cries of Yun Xiangrong and Situ Qing, he saw a dragon!

Its origin was unknown.

Hovering high in the sky, it resembled a deep blue lonely moon, casting a faint blue veil over the entire sky and land, fluctuating with the wind.

The dragon’s tail was incredibly long, covered in deep blue scales, reminiscent of a flowing galaxy or the most beautiful ribbon floating in the air.

With a slight movement of its tail, a strong gust formed into the shape of a blade. This blade faced the storm created by the monster and split the black whirlwind in half, vanishing it in an instant; the next moment, the blade whirled forward and hung over the creature’s head for a split second before slashing down—

The monster was literally bisected alive!

“Roar—!”

The severed beast howled and, under the resentment, quickly reformed. It leapt towards the dragon in the sky.

The dragon, still hovering high, simply swished its tail again, creating another blade of wind. This time, the sharp blade struck the monster head-on. In an instant, the massive creature, formed by countless corpses and spirits, as well as the many buildings and trees behind it, were all turned into dust! Large sections of the city’s ground were lifted, inch by inch!

Even the vast ocean in the far west was affected by the wind blade, as giant waves surged and countless ships were caught in the waves, on the verge of sinking…

This was the true thunderous force—a nearly world-ending power!

In the nick of time, staring at the rising waves in the far west, the dumbfounded He Xiaowei realized something and shouted at the dragon in the sky, “Stop! We still need the ships to clear the level!”

The wind ceased.

The monster vanished, and all the corpses of the S Army turned to dust. Most of the city was completely leveled.

The world fell into silence.

After a while, the dragon in mid-air lowered its gaze, seemingly looking at the center of the playground.

Sensing something, He Xiaowei quickly embraced Zhou Qian again, guarding him closely. Feeling the responsibility of being the only “healer” on the team, he watched the massive dragon warily.

Although it seemed to have helped them earlier, who knows the real intention behind such a terrifying creature?

Suddenly, the dragon vanished from the sky, only to reappear right in front of He Xiaowei. The luminous tail swiped towards him, but without any force, simply nudging He Xiaowei’s hand away.

The moment He Xiaowei touched the frosty dragon tail, his whole body shivered, and he was immediately repelled by an invisible force, landing on his ass in a nearby pit.

Brushing off the dirt as he stood up, just as He Xiaowei was about to question the dragon’s intentions, he saw it coil its tail on the ground of the playground, then wrap Zhou Qian entirely within its lengthy tail.

It was at this moment, due to the close proximity, that He Xiaowei realized it wasn’t entirely a dragon. Its body and tail resembled a dragon, but its ears didn’t. Instead, the ears looked like those of elves from Western fairy tales.

The horns on its head didn’t seem to be those of dragons either. Those twin horns were incredibly sharp, shining coldly in the night, as sharp as knives.

So, it’s not a dragon but rather a dragon-like… monster?

At this moment, Zhou Qian seemed both awake and sleepwalking.

He unconsciously raised both hands, continuously sliding them over the dragon’s scales, occasionally pinching one and flicking it as if intending to rip it out. After playing with the scales in one area, he moved on to another, seeming to enjoy himself immensely.

Zhou Qian’s actions made He Xiaowei’s heart race.

The dragon would feel pain if played with like this, right?

What if it gets angry? Wouldn’t it annihilate us in seconds?!

Yet, the dragon seemed very patient. Regardless of how Zhou Qian toyed with it, its icy-blue eyes merely gazed at Zhou Qian with a gentle expression.

After a moment, its tail wrapped tighter, bringing Zhou Qian up to the area around its neck. In his drowsy state, Zhou Qian naturally leaned in and hugged its neck tightly.

Then the dragon did something that almost made He Xiaowei’s jaw drop.

It bowed its head, gently pressing its lips to Zhou Qian’s forehead, as if tenderly kissing him.

He Xiaowei immediately exclaimed, “Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing?! Zhou Qian! Qian’er, wake up! You’re being taken advantage of—”

Suddenly, a cold gaze from the dragon swept over. He Xiaowei found himself unable to speak. The next moment, a chunk of wall flew from somewhere, embedding itself into the ground before him, blocking his view completely.

He Xiaowei: “…………”

……

Zhou Qian felt as if, in a daze, he had fallen into a sweet dream.

It was as if he were sinking deep into the sea or floating among the stars.

He was surrounded by deep blue. The blue should have been cold, but Zhou Qian felt safe.

Zhou Qian often felt exhausted.

Always having to think, always being on guard against others. But now, he felt relaxed. There were no schemes, no guards up; he just needed to sleep peacefully. He wasn’t sure where this sense of safety came from, but he instinctively let down all his guards.

It seemed Zhou Qian dreamt of playing with stars. After some time, a cool yet gentle sensation touched his forehead, and all his pain was healed in that instant.

……

In the virtual game hall.

Mu Sheng was ejected from the system, collapsing on the ground, bleeding from all his orifices. However, only his spirit had entered the game hall, so he wasn’t dead yet, giving Priest a chance to temporarily save him.

Priest gave Mu Sheng a pill and sighed. “You could have been a talent if you weren’t so obsessed. Such a pity…”

As Mu Sheng coughed up blood, he grabbed Priest’s wrist. “What… What power is that?”

“It’s the power of a God Rank player,” Priest said. “A God Rank player entered the instance as Jiang Yuqing. He’s selecting his shepherd.”

Priest sighed again. “There’s a game rule. To select a qualified shepherd, a God Rank player can create some challenges for players without violating the original character design, game plot, rules, and settings. However, they are not allowed to help the players or go out of character.”

“In other words, they can only increase the game’s difficulty, but not reduce it. But there’s an exception—”

“That exception is, when someone outside the game uses an item to forcefully change the game’s plot and significantly increase the difficulty, God Rank players can help the players with their own power. That’s why I said… you really brought it on yourself.”

Priest laughed, glancing mockingly at Mu Sheng. “But I should thank you. Thanks to your actions, I now know who the God Rank player interested in Zhou Qian is.”

Mu Sheng, who had fallen to the ground, coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. He clutched Priest’s calf with both hands. “I promise you. I’m willing to go to Zone X. I’ll accept the transformation! Let me… let me become a God Rank player! I can’t stand being just a gambler hiding behind the scenes! I want to be a player!”

……

Inside the game.

When Zhou Qian woke up, the sky was already tinged with the rosy hues of dawn, marking the end of this lengthy night.

As he stood up from the playground, he felt slightly dazed and somewhat lost. Frowning, he opened his palm and saw a deep blue, shiny scale.

Hmm, so that dragon… wasn’t just an illusion.

It saved him again.

After staring at the scale for a while, Zhou Qian put it away. Looking up, he saw He Xiaowei treating Jiang Yuqing’s leg wound nearby.

The bullet hadn’t hit the bone but had passed through the calf, making it relatively easier to deal with.

Not too far on the other side, Situ Qing and Yun Xiangrong were both lying on the ground, asleep. They must’ve been exhausted, not minding the fact they were resting amidst piles of corpses.

Zhou Qian looked to the west and noticed that a significant portion of the city had been destroyed. Tall buildings that once stood tall were now reduced to mere rubble.

The battlefield was in disarray, but at least the enemy was completely wiped out.

The city awaited the people who could breathe life back into it.

Zhou Qian then approached He Xiaowei and Jiang Yuqing. On seeing him, He Xiaowei exclaimed, “Qian’er! Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Zhou Qian replied, then asked, “What happened… while I was unconscious?”

At that moment, He Xiaowei really wanted to blurt out something he had been holding back.

“Qian’er, it seems you were molested by a dragon… ah, no, rather, a monster! It’s weird; there were two beautiful ladies there, but the creature didn’t even glance at them. Why did it go after you, a man? I must tell you, that was no ordinary dragon…”

But recalling the look the dragon gave before it disappeared, he refrained.

So, He Xiaowei simply said, “A dragon appeared and saved us! What the hell is this instance? Or what’s going on in Jiang Yuqing’s consciousness? In any case, the strange monster made up of thousands of S Army corpses was defeated by the dragon. None of us were harmed… Maybe it was some cutscene in the game? Anyway, it doesn’t matter to us clearing the game, right? Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense!”

Thinking of the scale in his hand, Zhou Qian didn’t say much but cast a thoughtful glance at Jiang Yuqing. Then he asked, “Mr. Jiang, are you alright?”

Jiang Yuqing nodded. His pale face still showed signs of weakness. He whispered, “Thank you, Bei He. I’m fine now.”

Zhou Qian smiled at him. “I’m glad we managed to save you. Let’s rest a bit and then take you to the west pier.”

An hour later, He Xiaowei, Situ Qing, and Yun Xiangrong were walking ahead while Zhou Qian, supporting the injured Jiang Yuqing, followed.

After another two hours, they reached the sea.

The clouds over the sea had completely dissipated. The dawn was glowing red, and the vast sky and boundless sea were painted in layers of red and blue, blending into different shades of purple, ultimately merging with the horizon in a distant gray ribbon.

While the other teammates went in search of an intact boat, Zhou Qian and Jiang Yuqing sat on a rock by the sea.

Zhou Qian turned to him. “He Xiaowei told me that when the dragon appeared, you passed out. He was scared and thought you died.”

Jiang Yuqing seemed to not understand, lost in the game’s character setting. He replied, “Thank you, Bei He, and the Falcon Squadron, for everything you’ve done for me and our people.”

Zhou Qian added, “After looking into your eyes, I’m even more convinced that you resemble someone I know.”

Jiang Yuqing blinked as if he still didn’t comprehend.

Turning his gaze back to the vast sea, Zhou Qian said, “This dungeon was really dangerous. But I vowed to get out alive. I dug up his ashes and even took down his tombstone. So, I must live to see if the tombstone I ordered has been prepared, so I can give him a proper burial. Otherwise, if I meet him in hell—”

 Zhou Qian turned back, looking deeply into Jiang Yuqing’s eyes. “What if he blames me?”

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