Chapter 144: It

Han Er stared at the square lantern in Wu Chang's hand, his gaze irresistibly drawn to its golden-tinged red flame and exquisitely ornate body—he knew at a glance it was no ordinary object.

More importantly, the last thing Wu Chang had said.

Let them live a little longer.

Combining this with the Hunguang Sect Sect's signature resurrection ritual, Han Er speculated what Wu Chang had done—but dared not confirm it, asking tentatively: "Is this special oil lamp the sacred artifact you stole… seized?"

Han Er had meant to say "stole," but Wu Chang glared at him, and he instantly corrected himself.

Wu Chang nodded and said: "The flame within this lamp represents the fire of life in the mortal world. Within its glow, vitality increases, death slows, and even the dead may be revived."

As he spoke, Han Er saw the faces inside the coffin beside the Golden Throne contort in agony.

Their faces first turned pale, as if life had been severed, then reddened again under the flame's light—their final breaths, already exhaled, returned once more.

The cycle repeated endlessly; it was clear they longed to die, yet could not.

Prolonging life should bring joy, but for these few, there was none.

Seconds ticked by; as the most vital minute of the Blood Moon's eternal rise passed, its light dimmed, turning into a dull, dark crimson.

This dark Blood Moon energy, if exposed to it, would transform into the monsters wandering the Kingdom's Grand Necropolis.

Sensing the shift in Blood Moon energy, the still-living within the stone coffins emitted primal fear—their bodies trembled, as if striving to awaken and end the ritual.

But in their haste to die, they had nearly perished too completely; their grievous wounds prevented any recovery, even with the will to live.

Just as they all wished to live, Wu Chang retracted the Square Yearfire Lantern.

Without the Yearfire's glow, they helplessly slipped toward death.

Wu Chang sighed and said to the stone coffin of Duke Ruz: "Sorry—the one-minute free trial of escaping death has ended. Subscribe now to continue your life-extension service. Would you like to sign up?"

After waiting a moment and receiving no reply, Wu Chang shook his head, looking regretful as he told Han Er: "Tsk. Another group of freeloaders."

Without the Yearfire's light, the people in the stone coffins held on for less than half a minute before dying completely.

Their corpses, now fully dead, swelled and twisted under the Blood Moon's glow—every vein, every muscle, even every single muscle fiber within each muscle, contorted uncontrollably toward unnatural directions.

Their flesh shapes shifted constantly, like an AI-generated video, randomly morphing—absurd and surreal.

Wu Chang waved at Han Er and said: "They'll be busy here for a while—we'll wait outside."

On the other side of the Kingdom's Grand Necropolis, unblocked by the Eternal Life Necropolis, the Blood Moon's energy spread unimpeded across the entire graveyard.

Within the graveyard, the already rampant undead horde instantly grew stronger and surged toward every guardhouse.

Facing the blood-red sky that looked like the end of the world and the charging wave of undead, even Lei Hu was stunned.

He turned to the ronin beside him and asked: "Are you sure anyone can survive thirty days in this instance?"

"Maybe something went wrong with a certain part of the instance."

The ronin was drenched in sweat—he shouldn't be like this. In his experience, even nearly runaway instances still left players a chance to clear them.

Could it be that B-level instances are different?

No—if even a nearly runaway B-level instance were this insane, why would our employer pay so much to hire us? Leaving it alone would be enough to ensure it went fully runaway.

Lei Hu knew nothing about instance clearing—he could only ask the ronin.

"What should we do now? Just leave?"

The client gave us an item to exit the instance, usable only in non-combat state—we must decide soon. If we stay and defend the guardhouse until combat begins, we won't be able to escape.

The ronin hesitated, then shook his head: "This anomaly occurred after patrol—it doesn't affect our main quest. I suspect it's a sudden event within the instance's dimension, not necessarily a sign of collapse."

"I suggest we retreat to Serina District, ride out this crisis, and wait until tomorrow night. If the anomaly hasn't calmed by then, we leave. That way, even if the client holds us accountable, we have an excuse. Otherwise…"

The ronin didn't finish, but Lei Hu understood his meaning.

The client paid such a high price and even prepared an exit item—they clearly intended for the Midnight Necropolis to go runaway.

If we withdraw before knowing the outcome, and the instance does go runaway, fine—but if it doesn't, the client will never let us go.

No need to guess: the client who posted this task is someone powerful. If things go wrong, the Iron Armor Clan won't protect us two.

Lei Hu sighed and agreed: "Then let's go now!"

They made no move to call Guang Zhi, Oda, or the half-orc—slipping away quietly from the guardhouse.

For mobility, they'd bought two horses in town yesterday—never thought they'd use them so soon.

They mounted up, ready to ride off—when the ronin suddenly tugged the reins and stopped.

Lei Hu frowned: "What's wrong?"

The ronin said: "Guang Zhi and the others are wary of us, sticking together—hard to strike. But that kid from the Bureau is alone. I plan to kill him in the chaos—before he uses his own exit item and exposes us after leaving the instance."

"Can you be sure?" Lei Hu frowned—he knew the ronin's words sounded noble, but were really just revenge for what happened in Quiet Town.

According to the ronin, the Bureau kid was low-level—before the instance, he'd been hiding behind Xiang Jianxing, soaking up XP. Killing him wasn't hard; the problem was the danger now. The ronin's level was low—even weaker than the half-orc. He couldn't afford to fail.

The ronin said: "I'm confident—but Brother Lei Hu, if you're…"

"If you're confident, good. We'll meet in Serina District." Lei Hu cut him off, turned his horse, and rode off.

He had no grudge against the Bureau—he didn't want to get tangled in this mess. Success brought no reward; failure meant disaster.

Seeing Lei Hu leave, the ronin understood. After orienting himself, he headed alone toward Wu Chang's Tomb 44.

Killing Wu Chang wasn't a sudden idea—it was the result of days of planning.

Last night and today, he had surveilled Wu Chang.

Last night, the guard who'd been with Wu Chang left with Hunguang Sect members—then, immediately after, the Hunguangda Sect suffered an incident; the entire Hunguangda Cathedral was sealed, and the former guard couldn't return anytime soon.

Today, while watching, he saw Wu Chang never moved during daylight—staying alone in the guardhouse, occasionally stepping out to sunbathe or breathe fresh air, then retreating inside.

A pure rich-young-master-type player—used to leeching off teammates, utterly lacking any sense of urgency in the instance, only wanting to hunker down in a safe spot and coast through Main Quest One.

Now that the Blood Moon has risen and the undead are rioting, the guardhouse can't hold. Wu Chang will flee outside—this is the perfect moment to kill him.

At the Quiet Town instance, nearly all those Bureau novices under level ten survived—yet of our Iron Armor Trio, only I remain.

Those Bureau people are innocent—I don't believe it for a second.

Since we can't determine who's responsible, we must kill everyone who participated that day—to honor the spirits of my two brothers.

As the ronin gritted his teeth, preparing to ramp up the pressure on Wu Chang and force him to reveal what had happened in the Quiet Town instance, he suddenly felt a rush of wind behind his ear.

He instantly used the Deng Li Cang Shen technique, shifting his body off the saddle just as several kunai appeared where he had been sitting.

Dodging the attack brought him no relief—he saw that behind each kunai, several high-explosive grenades were tied.

What the hell, a modern version of the ignition talisman?

Boom!

The massive explosion reduced the horse to a cloud of blood mist.

On the roadside, hidden behind a tree trunk, Oda crouched with thermal goggles on and a sniper rifle in hand, searching for the ronin's trail.

Before he could spot any suspicious heat signature, a chill suddenly prickled his back—he leapt up and flew backward in haste.

In the next instant, a crescent blade of light, like a full moon, severed the tree trunk Oda had been crouching on; even though he retreated in time, the blade's edge split his sniper rifle cleanly in two.

Beneath the fallen tree, the ronin sheathed his nearly two-meter-long Wu Shidao, staring at Oda with surprise.

"How is it you?"

He had assumed Wu Chang had discovered he was being watched and set a trap to ambush him—but the attacker was none other than the silent ninja, Oda.

Is this bastard insane? Why attack him?

Judging by his own motives, the ronin quickly filled in the blanks—could Oda be an enemy of the Iron Armor Corps?

The ronin rubbed his temples. He knew his own crew well: the Iron Armor Corps' arrogance in the Wasteland Realm was such that even a dog passing by might get kicked twice—saying they had enemies everywhere wasn't an exaggeration.

Every member of the Iron Armor Corps expected, when bullying small factions and solo players, to be ambushed out of nowhere or beaten in the dark—only Oda's timing was terrible. "I'm in a hurry. Can you let me go today?" the ronin pleaded.

Oda removed his thermal goggles; his already cold eyes instantly brimmed with murderous intent.

"You found out."

The ronin: "?"

What the hell are you talking about? Found out what?

Before his question could leave his lips, Oda moved.

Oda split into three—summoning two clones, each holding a rocket launcher, a rifle, and a smoke grenade.

As the smoke grenades hit the ground, acrid smoke instantly engulfed the ronin; the two clones donned thermal goggles, opened fire, and advanced into the haze.

For most clone skills, even physical clones possessed negligible combat power.

The correct use of clone skills was to wield modern weapons.

Though the ronin specialized in clearing instances, he was still from the Iron Armor Corps and had trained often with other players—he had no shortage of combat experience.

!

"Golden Bell!"

He activated his protective item at once—a golden bell inverted over his body, blocking every bullet and explosion.

Then he kicked off his wooden geta, stepped barefoot on the ground, closed his eyes, and felt vibrations through his soles.

Deep breath.

Zing!

His long Wu Shidao flashed out—its blade aura sharp and unstoppable, cleaving the rifle clone in two from five meters away.

This was his signature skill: Iaijutsu!

Zing!

This time he drew his short Wu Shidao, slicing apart the clone draped in grenades, ready to detonate and take him with it.

Seeing the grenades on the clone already sparking, he vanished in a flash, appearing before Oda's true body, who held the rocket launcher, fifteen meters away.

He spun his body rapidly—the blade slicing through air, igniting sparks from friction, using the air itself as a sheath to unleash another Iaijutsu.

Iaijutsu: Twin Slash.

Oda had no time to react—he was instantly cut into three pieces.

Remembering Oda was an agility-type player, the ronin muttered: "Human speed can't match the blade."

"Shi mi ma sai…"

Oda's severed head suddenly twisted into a grotesque grin; his three body segments surged upward, wrapping tightly around the ronin's arms and legs.

The next instant, the ground beneath the ronin collapsed, revealing a ten-meter-deep pit lined with sharp spikes.

The moment he fell in, the pit snapped shut like a iron maiden.

Amid the sound of cracking bones, blood gushed from the sealed Kong Dong.

The underground cavity reopened. Oda looked down at the ronin, now pierced like a sieve and barely alive, and said:

"Sorry. We serve different masters. I won't let you clear this instance—this instance must go out of control."

On the brink of death, the ronin had been lamenting his inferior skill—until he heard Oda's words. He forced one last breath into his lungs, a final flash of lucidity.

What the hell did you say? You won't let me clear it?

So you're not here for revenge—you're like me, you want the instance to go out of control?

Gathering his last strength, the ronin screamed hoarsely: "I f***ing kill you!"

The next moment, he coughed up a great cloud of blood mist and died.

In a place neither could see, the expelled blood mist coalesced into a deep crimson resentment, drifting past Oda at the pit's edge and vanishing into the woods.

Inside the woods, Oda in optical camouflage scratched his neck, puzzled: "Was that a mosquito?"

He controlled his distant clone to confirm the ronin was dead beyond doubt, then turned his gaze toward Grave 44.

With the ronin—the strategist—gone, Lei Hu was no longer a threat. He didn't need to act further.

Since he was already here, he might as well pay a visit—see how things stood with Ruifuzhu Sect.

If he could secure both the Blood Moon Eternal Life and the Wang Zuo, it would greatly assist Hearing Zhanghuo's plan.

By the way, if he remembered right, the gravekeeper guarding Grave 44 was also a player—he'd overheard Lei Hu and the ronin chatting privately, saying he was the son of the Strategy Bureau, a player who leveled up just by lying around, and who had been only around level ten last instance.

If nothing unexpected happens, he should be here too—the Bureau's Sword Star, who just killed a substitute Holy Son of the Church. Since they've returned the favor, I might as well take out this guy too.

Achoo!

Inside the eternal tomb of Michael I, Wu Chang suddenly sneezed. He rubbed his nose and glared at the Golden Wang Zuo and the rows of stone coffins.

Who's the little cutie muttering about him? Hope he doesn't catch them.

"Time's up. Let's go see how things are." Wu Chang said, sliding a single card into the pile and walking toward the Golden Wang Zuo.

After a period of Blood Moon purification,

the people lying inside the stone coffins were gradually stabilizing.

Some were becoming less human, while others were improving, regaining a semblance of humanity.

Just like the first Blood Moon Immortality, some turned into monsters, but others, like Ruz, retained their human form and will, and awoke before the second Blood Moon Immortality.

According to the Purifying Soul Banner, the three colors—black, white, and red—within them were slowly merging into a single, stable state.

This state could no longer be resolved by the Purifying Soul Banner alone.

But one thing was certain: Ruz had been hiding something. Missing the first minute of the Blood Moon did not kill them outright—it only corroded their souls, making them abnormal.

Wu Chang couldn't help but click his tongue. He hated dishonest people the most.

Seeing that Ruz and the others were at risk of recovery, he picked up the horn Ruz had given him before falling asleep.

"Item Name: Resonant Horn"

"Item Type: Dungeon Item"

"Item Rank: C"

"Item Skill: Voice of Encouragement"

"Skill Description: Blow the horn to forcibly awaken a targeted individual, freeing them from mental control and placing them in an Encouraged state. The awakening effect depends on the user's Insight. Cooldown: 120 seconds. Encouraged State: Strength, Agility, Endurance, and Will increase by 10%; pain perception decreases by 10%. Duration: 3 minutes; cooldown: 120 minutes."

"Note: If the target's mental control level is B or higher, there is a chance they will fall into a Confused state after forced awakening, attacking indiscriminately regardless of ally or enemy. Use with caution."

"Everyone, time to wake up!"

Wu Chang took a deep breath and blew the Resonant Horn.

The deafening sound echoed through the underground tomb, nearly piercing Han'er's eardrums.

Amid the powerful sound, the people inside the stone coffins were forcibly awakened.

The Blood Moon Immortality ritual was only halfway through, especially for those whose deaths had been delayed—their consciousness was still foggy.

Theoretically, even if you blew the Resonant Horn until it shattered, you couldn't awaken them.

But the problem was: the awakening effect of the Resonant Horn depended on the user's Insight. With Wu Chang's 98-point Insight, even a fully dead target might have their soul blown back—let alone these few.

Amid pained groans, the people inside the stone coffins awoke, forcibly ending the Blood Moon purification.

The consequence of forcibly ending the ritual was that Ruz and the others, whose conditions had just stabilized, now collapsed entirely, transforming fully into monsters.

Before fully regaining awareness, their eyes turned blood-red as they glared at each other with malice—clearly afflicted by the Confused debuff.

Whoa, now this is going to be fun.

Wu Chang pulled Han'er toward the tomb's entrance. As the people inside the stone coffins transformed into monsters, Michael I on the Golden Wang Zuo slowly opened his eyes.

(End of Chapter)