Chapter 2858: Death and Sunlight

A warm current surged through Su Xiao's body. He could feel his vitality strengthening, and the grogginess in his brain caused by the high heat cleared significantly.

"Woof."

Xiang Ignoring Bubu Wang recovered. It looked around, its memory of the previous moments somewhat hazy. It only remembered walking and then falling asleep, followed by a terrifying scene.

In its half-asleep state, Xiang Bubu felt as if it were inside a giant steamer. When it opened its eyes, it saw its body covered in green onions, ginger, and garlic, scaring it so much it nearly leaked a few drops of urine.

"Phew—the temperature is finally normal."

The Priest walked in from the archway, followed by President Rogsh, Death Shadow Ovia, and the others.

"Since everyone is fine, let's open the door."

Ovia took out the 'Sun Disk' as she spoke. Seeing this, the Priest took out the 'Penitence Thorn Whip'.

President Rogsh raised his hand, and iron-sand energy appeared, forming a scepter within the sand—the 'Judgment Scepter'.

Xixiluo took out the 'Heart Flame' from his bosom and tossed it in his hand.

The four pairs of eyes turned toward Su Xiao. The 'Ouroboros Slate' appeared in Su Xiao's hand.

"This is our first time working together, isn't it? Shouldn't we leave something behind?"

The Priest said with a smile. He wasn't afraid of entering the Sun Gate, but he wouldn't be so blindly confident as to think he would definitely survive inside.

"Woof."

Xiang Ignoring Bubu Wang took out a camera, and the Priest nodded.

"What is that?"

President Rogsh was wary of any item he hadn't seen before.

"A trans-era photographic device."

Baja had Amu step back a bit. Xiang Ignoring Bubu Wang took a photo with a 'click' from the current angle.

In the photo, Su Xiao was shirtless, holding the 'Ouroboros Slate'. Beside him, the Priest wore black clerical robes, and President Rogsh was slightly tilted, frowning, seemingly displeased.

Ovia smiled, one hand resting on Hong Tongnu's head, her black smoke dress fluttering. Hong Tongnu had one cheek bulging, holding a piece of ice in her hand.

As for Xixiluo, he was wearing somewhat tattered shorts, grinning while giving the middle finger.

Before the Sun Gate, Su Xiao embedded the 'Ouroboros Slate' into the door, while the other four inserted or slotted their respective keys.

Hum—

A ripple spread out, and five types of characteristic energy surged from the five keys, converging toward the ring in the center of the Sun Gate.

A sense of repulsion surged from Su Xiao's hand, nearly pushing him back. He pressed his hand against the Sun Gate, pushing with all his might as Azure Steel Shadow energy surged through his body.

Rumble...

The Sun Gate slowly opened. Black tentacles emerged from the Priest's right arm as he pressed against the gate, the veins on his neck bulging.

Bang.

Xixiluo's shoulder exploded; before the blood and bone fragments could even fly into the air, they were incinerated into ash. He said:

"I... can't hold it."

"..."

"You can do it, Xixiluo."

The Priest's face was slightly ferocious; he was also under immense strain.

"I clearly... can't."

"If you can't... then die."

"Then, I definitely can!"

Xixiluo pressed both hands against the gate. He could feel that if he died now, his 'Undying Body' would be useless. The power causing his death was of the same origin as his Undying Body, but of a higher order.

The Sun Gate gradually opened, and blinding sunlight shone through the gap. Flames ignited on the Priest and Ovia; both leaned toward dark characteristics, and the blazing sun was purifying them.

Sparks clung to Su Xiao's body. He felt as if his entire body were about to melt, but as a close-combat specialist, if he couldn't even withstand this, he would have died in battle long ago.

Rumble—

The Sun Gate opened. Xixiluo and Ovia collapsed to the ground, President Rogsh was held up by soul energy to maintain a standing posture, and the Priest was nearly burned to a crisp.

Su Xiao's breathing was rapid. The advantage of a close-combat specialist was evident now; if he were to strike now, he could kill at least two people.

The process of opening the Sun Gate was more dangerous than imagined; it felt as if his entire body were about to be melted by the blazing sun.

After a while, the sun ahead was no longer blinding, and a scene came into Su Xiao's view.

Inside the Sun Gate, several grayish-white withered trees were scattered across the land, still emitting white smoke. The ground was covered in a layer of shriveled debris, dimming the colors of the entire world.

A few blades of grass poked through the ground, half-dead, and dozens of candle-like yellowish-brown melted masses were scattered within a hundred meters in front of the Sun Gate.

Some of these yellowish-brown masses contained weapons, while others contained armor, gemstones, or pendants.

Xixiluo reached his hand into the Sun Gate, felt it for a moment, and smiled.

"Looks like there's nothing wrong."

Xixiluo stepped into the Sun Gate. Baja felt speechless; Xixiluo's brain was getting worse. He had been getting more reckless over the past few days. Even in the Smoke City three days ago, while Xixiluo wasn't smart, he wouldn't have been this reckless.

Now, he was reckless to the point of losing his head; a little bit of reason would have prevented him from entering the Sun Gate like this.

"Yeah, indeed nothing wrong."

Xixiluo kicked a pile of melted debris. It was so brittle from drying out that he picked up a sword, observed it for a moment, and looked stunned.

"Isn't this the 'Sword of Ipufo'? I thought this pile was excrement. Was the 'Sword of Ipufo' stuck in shit?"

Xixiluo searched nearby for a while and found many good items, all weapons or artifacts that had once been famous in the Eastern or Western Continents.

"You..."

Ovia looked on in disbelief. She hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn't reach her hand into the Sun Gate.

"Bas."

President Rogsh spoke, and the masked man Bas behind him lowered his head.

"At your command."

The masked man Bas stepped forward and entered the Sun Gate. He stopped after only two steps, hunching over, his body trembling.

Hiss—

White smoke rose from the masked man Bas. His hand looked like a melting candle; his skin melted first, dripping down like wax oil. Upon hitting the ground, it turned into a yellowish-brown melted mass, identical to the dozens of piles nearby.

Bas clearly wanted to retreat, but he couldn't move at all. A strand of black hair wrapped around his neck and pulled him back.

Hiss—

A charred smell spread from the masked man Bas. His clothes turned to ash, and his body became uneven, as if eroded by the power of the sun.

"President, save me."

The masked man Bas raised his hand tremblingly. A strand of black hair curled over, wrapped around his arm, and threw him back into the Sun Gate.

Hiss—

"Ro... gsh!"

The masked man Bas crawled toward the Sun Gate. President Rogsh just watched him calmly; he wasn't trying to save Bas, but merely testing how long a powerhouse one tier below him could survive in the Holy Land without drinking Sun Potion. The answer was 7 seconds.

A few seconds later, the masked man Bas turned into a pile of yellowish-brown melted debris, with white smoke still rising from it. A ghost mask was wrapped inside the debris, with only half exposed.

"7 seconds."

President Rogsh shifted his gaze to Ovia and Hong Tongnu. Death Shadow Ovia raised her arm, blocking Hong Tongnu behind her.

"You brought her here, not to get rid of her?"

"Of course not."

Ripples stirred in Ovia's heart. She knew that the masked man Bas had followed Rogsh for many years, but today, Rogsh had used him as a test subject.

"Thank you for your service, Bas, for following me for so long just to seek revenge."

President Rogsh whispered. Having said that, he glanced at Xixiluo inside the Sun Gate. As he had imagined, Xixiluo and his sister could enter the Holy Land without drinking Sun Potion.

"7 seconds, huh? More dangerous than imagined. Ovia, shouldn't you fulfill your promise?"

The Priest tore off a tentacle from his arm and tossed it into the Sun Gate to test it.

"One bottle each, just as promised."

Ovia took out four bottles of Sun Potion. The bottles were exquisite, and light particles seemed to be drifting within the pale golden liquid.

【Notification: Hunter has completed Promotion Mission: First Ring. The Second Ring will be activated upon entering the Sun Gate.】

【You have obtained Sun Potion x3.】