Chapter 281: Wave of Adventure, Sword Pointed at the Giant Beast (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

The city gate slowly opened amidst a rumbling, the rusted hinges grinding out a piercing screech as they turned.

When the gap widened enough for passage, a putrid, bloody wind rushed straight into their faces.

After tossing the items dropped by the boss into their spatial bags, Hong Yang and the others looked toward the city interior.

In this second scene, the interior of the Skeleton King City appeared even more eerie than the outside.

What met their eyes was a main avenue paved with vertebrae; on both sides stood lamp posts constructed from stark white bones, within which ghostly blue flames flickered, while the buildings lining the street were also piled high from various types of skeletons.

"Prepare for battle!"

Old Wu slammed his shield onto the ground as a Black Tide of stark white bones surged from the end of the main avenue.

The Skeleton Imperial Guards were attacking.

Their bones were more lustrous than those of the peripheral fodder troops; a phalanx bearing bone shields advanced in lockstep, while archers in the rear bent their spines into full-moon shapes, aiming bone arrows burning with phosphorescent fire at the sky.

A dense rain of arrows broke through the air.

The remaining team members immediately positioned themselves behind Old Wu.

Qi and blood from within Old Wu overflowed through his pores, condensing before him into a translucent crimson barrier.

The moment the rain of phosphorus-fire arrows struck the crimson barrier, they exploded into ten thousand ghostly blue fireballs.

The muscles on Old Wu's arms knotted, veins writhing like earthworms beneath his skin as qi and blood continued to seep from his pores.

The corrosive energy attached to the arrows scorched the blood wall, making it hiss, yet it remained unable to penetrate this defensive line constructed from vitality.

"Old Wu, charge forward!" Hong Yang pointed his spear straight ahead.

"Coming." Old Wu nodded sharply; Gang Qi erupted from his body, enveloping him as he led the charge, piercing the skeleton army formation like a dagger.

Ah Qi's figure flashed between the gaps in the bone shields, daggers dancing like phantoms in both hands; every flash of cold light precisely severed the wrist bones of the skeleton shield-bearers, rendering them unable to hold their shields.

In the rear, Xiao Hua raised a hand and slapped downward; the Void Grip trait activated repeatedly, smashing dozens of skeleton soldiers on the spot into bone powder that scattered across the sky.

At that same moment, Xiao Ye raised his bow, drawing the string to condense arrows and firing in rapid succession.

"Three o'clock direction!" Hong Yang growled in a low, heavy voice.

The team turned their heads to see three skeleton warriors, entirely crimson, charging over the shattered bones of their comrades; the wind pressure generated by their charge caused bone fragments on the ground to automatically gather into a pursuing bone tornado.

Old Wu let out an angry roar, twisting his body with shield raised to meet them; his shield collided with the bone blade of the lead skeleton warrior, the resulting shockwave directly shattering a dozen ordinary skeletons nearby.

The skeleton warrior was also blown away by the impact, pierced through the skull mid-air by a golden arrow shot by Xiao Ye, before crumbling into bone fragments as it fell.

At this moment, Hong Yang retrieved a bottle of "Rage" potion from his spatial bag, unscrewed the cap, and downed it in one gulp.

Instantly, the Gang Qi enveloping Hong Yang ignited with intermingled gold and crimson hues; he swung his spear forward, weaving the Gang Qi into a dense net that shattered every skeleton warrior around him.

Bolstered by the potion, Hong Yang's assault did not cease; he voluntarily broke away from the team, shattering seven skeleton warriors in succession with his spear during the charge.

Just then, Xiao Hua, with her Eagle-Head Demon perception active, detected an anomaly on the ground.

"Watch the ground!"

The moment her warning left her lips, the entire vertebrae avenue suddenly arched up like a living creature.

The bone fragments that had been trampled quickly reassembled, transforming into hundreds of Bone-Binding Hands grabbing at everyone's ankles.

Seeing this, Xiao Hua lightly stomped her foot.

Instantly, the Ice Mist Breath trait activated, erupting with her at the center; all the bone hands were frozen into ice sculptures in an instant.

The other team members also leaped up in perfect coordination; among them, Ah Qi spun in mid-air, throwing twelve clone daggers generated via the Flowing Shadow trait, which precisely pinned themselves into the eye sockets of the skeleton archers in the rear, instantly penetrating their soul fires and collapsing them.

"Stay close."

Old Wu raised his shield and pushed forward; the others followed, advancing continuously for over thirty meters.

However, they discovered an archway constructed from giant skulls standing at the end of the road; inside the gate stood a skeleton spellcaster wearing tattered priest robes, who raised a bone staff embedded with crystals and lightly tapped it forward.

A skeleton star ring over ten meters in diameter formed before it, from which countless sharp bone spears protruded, breaking the wind as they attacked.

At this moment, Ah Qi activated the Extreme Speed trait, his figure dragging an afterimage through the air as his dagger precisely stabbed into the chest of the skeleton mage.

The Spirit-Sealing trait activated; the star ring, which had been continuously releasing bone spikes, lost its subsequent energy maintenance and instantly dissipated.

The bone spears that had already been fired were blocked by the blood wall released by Old Wu.

Ah Qi circled once around the skeleton mage’s neck with one hand, moving to its back, then drove his dagger—imbued with the Critical Hit trait—precisely into the gap in the skull, churning the soul fire into destruction.

He then kicked off with both feet, leaping backward with an elegant form.

Boom!

Xiao Hua's Elemental Mixed Sphere smashed down, causing the skeleton mage's body to collapse amidst elemental calcination.

Amidst the fierce battle, the battle formation composed of 500 skeleton warriors was completely cleared.

The five of them, having ended the fight, lay sprawled on the ground, drenched in sweat from exhaustion, yet their faces bore smiles they could not hide.

The joy of clearing fodder troops was far more interesting than challenging a boss.

"Pension Fund, get to work; all you know how to do is eat." At this moment, Hong Yang summoned his raised financial pet, "Fat Peach," and issued a command.

Fat Peach stuck its butt out and began working, picking up a Divine Cast Coin in its mouth, bringing it to Hong Yang to drop, then rushing to the next drop point, its figure darting quickly across the skeleton battlefield.

The other members of the team also summoned their pets at this time, activating "Auto-Loot Cultivation Mode."

All five team members had chosen the same pet: Fat Peach.

This was also the first choice for the vast majority of players when configuring their pets.

Although Fat Peach had weak combat power, it was the only financial pet capable of generating continuous income without any restrictions.

Meanwhile, Hong Yang and the others took potions from their spatial bags and drank them in large gulps.

Opening the regional chat channel, they found it extremely lively:

"Take my advice, sisters and brothers, don't choose the Delirium Theater dungeon; it's full of mechanic monsters. Some monsters can only be killed by following specific mechanics. After finishing the first act, I'm exhausted. I definitely won't choose this broken dungeon next time."

"The Skeleton Throne dungeon is pretty good; we've pushed to the boss of the second scene and haven't encountered any mechanic monsters yet. It's been a smooth, satisfying grind the whole way."

"Newbie here got a drop; asking the big shots, how much Sacrificial Power is this thing worth? (Screenshot.jpg)"

"What I find strange is why killing monsters in the dungeon doesn't grant Hunting Rewards, only random refresh rewards?"

"I asked the Guide about the question above; the Guide replied that monsters in spatial scenes are generated by the Blue Lantern Clan using the power of Divine Lamp rules. Being killed essentially just means this portion of power is withdrawn according to spatial rule settings; it doesn't count as a kill. It's all scripted. True monsters don't exist at all. Although some spaces use the real memories of creatures destroyed by the Blue Lantern Clan, these are merely extracted memories."

Scrolling through the discussions in the regional channel, Hong Yang nodded in sudden realization.

Just now, he had harbored similar doubts.

Why was there no feedback when monsters in the dungeon were killed, with only a probability of dropping items?

It turned out this didn't count as a true kill at all.

It was all settings within the scripted spatial scenes.

Rest concluded, Hong Yang began calculating the gains from this battle.

The 500 skeleton warriors had dropped 12 Divine Cast Coins, three Level 2 spiritual plants, and two sets of iron armor; the yield was quite decent.

Rest finished, the team continued deeper along the vertebrae avenue; on the walls piled from skeletons lining both sides of the street, twisted relief sculptures began to appear.

One could vaguely make out scenes of countless bone clan citizens kneeling in prayer.

Every picture on the murals recorded the history of the bone clan.

Ah Qi, who was deeply interested in the background story, began asking the Guide what certain incomprehensible contents on the murals actually meant.

The story of the bone clan also emerged through this Q&A.

In fact, the Blue Lantern Clan did not exist within the bone clan's background story.

According to the Guide's account, bone clan beings were not entirely in skeletal form but were a type of undead life.

They were born from a Great Tomb, special lifeforms created by a being who mastered undead spellcraft.

They possessed pale white skin and gray eyes, endowed with the innate ability to manipulate the power of death.

Their purpose of existence was to fight like cannon fodder under the control of undead sorcerers.

During long years of warfare, the first-generation Bone King awakened self-will through slaughter and devouring, igniting a war of rebellion against the undead sorcerers.

In this war, the first-generation King achieved victory, and thus the bone clan was born.

Thereafter, this King's achievements even surpassed those of the undead sorcerers.

It studied the knowledge and materials left behind by the undead sorcerers, comprehended undead spellcraft, and ultimately accomplished what the undead sorcerers had pursued all their lives but failed to achieve: transforming the rule territory "Great Tomb," where undead were born, into a rule item: March of the Dead.

After this, the first-generation leader led the bone clan to begin their conquest of external worlds; one scene in the reliefs depicted exactly this, with the first-generation leader holding aloft the rule item March of the Dead, shaped like a banner, looking down upon hundreds of millions of subjects below while making a vow.

These words were carved onto the relief:

"All who die in battle shall be recast as citizens of the bone clan."

The emergence of March of the Dead completely transformed the civilization form of the bone clan.

As conquests continued, the bone clan gradually differentiated into two major groups.

They were primarily divided into the Living and the Resurrected.

The Living referred to the native bone clan naturally born from the Great Tomb; they possessed pale white skin, silver-blue blood, and pupils that were gray-white with shattered traces, retaining the purest talent for manipulating the undead.

The Resurrected referred to beings revived through March of the Dead after dying in battle.

Among these, there was a further division into two parts.

One part consisted of the bone clan's elders and ancestors; the new generation of the bone clan could even see the first-generation ancestors.

The other part existed as slaves, composed of skeleton servants resurrected from other races after death; they were never released from the control of March of the Dead and would fight for the bone clan in the external world for eternity.

Relying on the powerful power bestowed by March of the Dead, the scale of the bone clan's population grew increasingly massive.

However, the process of expansion was not smooth sailing; there had been several crises of clan extinction, and the first-generation Bone King of the bone clan had died in war.

The Skeleton King City presented in the dungeon's background story was the city established by the eighth-generation Bone King, serving as the core city of bone clan civilization.

The entire city was smelted and cast from the remains of dragon beasts and the bones of ten million races.

On the murals depicting the city at its peak, white peaks pierced the clouds, the Spine Main Hall floated in the firmament, millions of bone clan mages ceaselessly used the power of death to maintain the eternal barrier of the Skeleton Throne, blood river branches flowed through the city, and at the riverbeds settled True Skeleton Blood capable of being refined to create Nether Pills; this was the source of life sustaining the bone clan's survival.

In the city center, eight burial altars operated day and night, nurturing bone clan beings every minute and every second, while ghostly blue soul fires dyed the night sky into an aurora.

The content depicted on the rear murals mainly concerned the Bone Clan during its final era.

At that time, this Bone City had two rulers: the Bone Emperor and the Skeleton Emperor. They were twin monarchs born of the same mother, jointly wielding the supreme authority of the Skeleton Bone Royal City.

It was precisely through the joint efforts of these two kings that the Bone Clan established a super-power spanning five worlds.

However, regarding racial development, the Bone Emperor and the Skeleton Emperor developed severe disagreements, eventually erupting into a war for supreme authority.

This war was incredibly brutal; the Skeleton Emperor personally led Dark Knights in a surprise attack on the main city's barrier, while Curse Mages following the Skeleton Emperor unleashed volleys of cursed arrows, and Abominations and Ghouls charged the city walls without fear of death....

In the end, the Bone Emperor, who wielded the rules of the March of the Dead, won the war, becoming the new generation's monarch of the Bone Clan.

The mural content ended there.

But the Guidance's story continued; it generated a light screen display, revealing content not carved into the murals.

Shortly after the Bone Emperor achieved victory and was about to convene the "Ascension Ceremony," the sky above the Skeleton Bone Royal City suddenly transformed into a diamond-shaped grid pattern.

There were no warnings, no declaration of war, not even time for the Bone Clan to prepare; the Blue Lamp Clan's strike descended.

The floating Spine Main Hall was twisted, the eternal barrier maintained by millions of mages burst like fragile soap bubbles, the skeleton city walls collapsed instantly, and the River of Blood that had flowed for tens of millions of years surged backward.

It was as if a giant foot descended from the heavens onto an ant kingdom, crushing the entire city.

Even though the Bone Emperor, at the last moment, burned his soul fire as a price and, together with his clansmen, refined the River of Blood within the city into a nether-blue pillar of fire piercing heaven and earth, they could not withstand the suppressive power of the Blue Lamp Clan's terrifying Divine Lamp rules.

In the final moment before the city was devoured by the Divine Lamp rules, several phantom figures of Blue Lamp Clan members appeared in the sky; holding Divine Lamps, they were recording the Bone Clan's civilization data, much like humans observing the extinction of bacteria under a microscope.

Finally, the crushed city was reshaped under the Divine Lamp rules.

On the dome of the Main Hall, the Bone Emperor, the monarch of the final era, seemed to have time reversed, returning to his throne, his mouth repetitively speaking the expectations he held for the Bone Clan's future just before the disaster struck:

"We were born of death, yet understand the meaning of eternity better than the living. Henceforth, I shall stand supreme alone; I will use skeletons as shields and bones as swords to build an immortal dynasty with you all."

The memories belonging to the Bone Emperor became an eternal echo within the dungeon.

He was obviously also the final boss of the "Skeleton Throne" dungeon.

But this dungeon, in essence, was a civilization specimen.

Just as humans pin butterflies into specimen boxes, the Blue Lamp Clan had forever frozen this once-glorious civilization at the instant before its destruction.

The entire Skeleton Bone Royal City was perfectly preserved within the Divine Lamp space, like a rare animal specimen soaking in formalin inside a museum.

Every wandering skeleton guard was a warrior who, facing the crisis of world-ending destruction, followed the Bone Emperor to burn out their life force in hopes of continuing their civilization.

The Bone Emperor on the throne was also forever frozen at the last second before the Blue Lamp Clan's descent; at that moment, he was spreading his arms to announce a new era of civilization to his ministers, his eyes still solidified with expectation for the future.

When humans create animal specimens, they preserve the animal's most characteristic posture.

But when the Blue Lamp Clan creates civilization specimens, they completely recreate the most desperate moment of that race.

In essence, this dungeon was not a virtual creation designed by someone, but a real civilization turned into an eternal three-dimensional animation.

Every time it was challenged by beings of other races, it was displaying the moment before this extinct civilization perished.

The adventurers played the role of the destroyers.

The difference lay in the fact that the civilizations casually destroyed by the Divine Lamp Clan were woven into adventurer dungeons that required passing through layer upon layer of challenges to clear.

After understanding the background story of the Skeleton Bone Clan, Hong Yang and the others walked into the city.

Passing through a skeleton corridor covered in spiral carvings, they arrived at a circular plaza where stood a hundred-meter-tall statue; this was precisely the final master of the Skeleton Bone Royal City, the "Bone Emperor."

"If this weren't a fictional scene, I could smash this thing up, sacrifice it all to Di Zhao, and still sell it for quite a bit of money," Ah Qi said, looking up at the Bone Emperor statue with a regretful expression.

"Your idea reminds me of the warships the Black Wind Clan brought when they invaded the Colorful Mist Coast back then; we smashed them all and sacrificed them to Di Zhao, and I made over 800 points of Sacrificial Power from it," Old Wu said with some nostalgia.

"What is the Black Wind Clan?" Xiao Ye asked curiously.

"A race that unlocked the Arena gameplay Cultivation Mode; back then, if it weren't for the Black Wind Clan, we players wouldn't have been able to access the Ancient God Arena...."

As Old Wu narrated, a piece of history known only to veteran players unfolded in the minds of Hong Yang and the others.

Just as the story ended and the team reached the center of the plaza, ghostly blue soul fires suddenly appeared in the sky, falling like rain.

Amidst the trembling ground, spiderweb-like cracks split open, oozing foul-smelling black mist, while the sound of grinding bones came from overhead.

Then, a huge shadow spiraled down from the dome; Hong Yang and the others looked up to see a massive creature with a gray-white body writhing segment by segment, resembling a flayed giant python, or perhaps a centipede with a white exoskeleton.

It crashed heavily into the center of the plaza, sending shards of stone flying and knocking Old Wu, who was closest, off his feet.

The second scene's boss made its entrance at this moment.

Its form was assembled from gray-white body segments; sharp bone feet extended from both sides of each segment, its head swelled into a ferocious skull cap, three eyes arranged in an inverted triangle burned with ghostly blue soul fire within, its lower jaw protruded like a guillotine densely packed with serrated fangs, and it possessed two bone arms, each holding a bone scythe, while a spiral bone thorn protruded from the tip of its tail, dripping corrosive black liquid.

As Analysis swept over, relevant information surfaced.

[Skeleton Executioner · Thousand-Segment Burial Bone]

Hunting Rank: 74

Target Introduction: A weapon of war voluntarily forged by the fusion of twelve Imperial Guard Knights of the Skeleton Bone Royal City; wandering the Skeleton Bone Royal City in the guise of an executioner, it executes those Resurrected Ones who dare to defy the monarch's will. Death Runes personally engraved by the monarch are embedded in its joints; whenever an execution is performed, these runes glow with crimson light, decomposing the soul and body of the condemned into pure death energy, becoming nourishment for the "March of the Dead."

"Xiao Hua, Xiao Ye, retreat and create a safe distance!" Old Wu, having landed after being knocked flying, roared, then suddenly hoisted his shield and charged toward the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone.

At this moment, the black mist rising from the ground suddenly boiled, transforming into countless bone claws that coiled toward everyone.

Old Wu's shield slammed down, shaking the lunging bone claws into dust.

Hong Yang leaped up closely behind, his spear carrying a sound of tearing air as he stabbed at the monster's body.

However, the moment the spear touched the gray-white exoskeleton, it emitted a piercing metallic grinding sound; the side feet of the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone suddenly swept horizontally, and Hong Yang barely managed to flip away, yet five bottomless gashes were carved into the ground.

"Xiao Hua, crowd control!"

Ah Qi's voice came mixed with the sound of a dagger cutting through the air.

Having retreated to the rear, Xiao Hua's fingertips burst with blue light; an ice mist spread from her position toward the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone, turning into frost that rapidly spread and covered upon contacting its body.

The monster raised its head, its roar vibrating painfully against everyone's eardrums, shaking off frost as it thrashed its body.

The spiral bone thorn at its tail tip suddenly lashed out, stabbing toward Ah Qi who was attacking from behind.

Whoosh!

A qi-and-blood arrow sliced through the air, accurately striking the joint of the bone thorn, allowing Ah Qi to escape.

The black liquid at the tail tip splashed onto the ground, corroding a deep pit with a "hiss-hiss" sound.

In a fit of rage, the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone thrashed its body, the deathly arcs carved by its bone scythes forcing everyone to retreat repeatedly.

Old Wu's shield collided with a bone scythe, the resulting shockwave crushing the plaza's stone slabs.

Taking advantage of the fact that the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone's main attack target was Old Wu, Hong Yang seized the opportunity, thrusting his spear straight at the monster's lower jaw, while Ah Qi also flashed above the spear, leaping in relay to viciously stab his dagger into the monster's left eye.

The ghostly blue soul fire within one eye suddenly exploded; the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone twisted wildly, flinging Ah Qi into the air.

It then raised its head, opened its bloody maw, intending to swallow Ah Qi whole in one bite.

Seeing it was too late to support, Old Wu decisively activated Taunt, attempting to draw the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone's aggro.

But facing the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone, which was not equipped with memories, the Taunt trait was completely nullified.

In this critical moment, Hong Yang threw out Soul Blood Tether, yanking Ah Qi away one second before he was swallowed.

Snap!

The Thousand-Segment Burial Bone's mouth snapped shut with a crisp sound.

Old Wu also decisively retracted his Taunt trait, using his shield to smash violently at the monster's body.

Meanwhile, Hong Yang used Soul Blood Tether to spin Ah Qi around, then threw Ah Qi at the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone again.

The dagger, imbued with a Critical Hit trait, suddenly hammered into the second eye.

Stung by pain, the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone twisted its body frantically.

"Take my spear!" Hong Yang shot upward, driving his spear into the joint gaps of the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone.

But the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone still possessed formidable combat power; after only a brief shriek, it launched another offensive.

Hong Yang and the others, who were already struggling to hold on, decisively consumed potions to recover health.

This battle lasted for over ten minutes.

Finally, amidst constant kiting and entangling attacks, the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone let out a wail, the stripes branded on its body cracking inch by inch.

The soul fire within its head was finally pierced by Xiao Ye's volley of arrows; the massive body crashed to the ground with a boom, turning into fragments of white bones scattered everywhere.

With the battle ended, Old Wu collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily, his health bar already nearly empty.

"I'm exhausted; this thing's health bar is truly thick," Hong Yang also fell down, recalling his spear into his body in an instant of thought, leaning back to lie on the ground, his chest heaving violently with rapid breaths.

"Time to open the chest," Xiao Ye's call attracted everyone's attention.

Old Wu and Hong Yang also decisively turned their heads to look.

They saw a semi-transparent orb of light manifest where the Thousand-Segment Burial Bone had appeared, with faint glimmers of fine gold shimmering within.

As the orb of light trembled slightly, four reward items floated out from it.

As Analysis swept over, the first reward was a Level 3 spiritual plant, crystal clear throughout, named "Nether Cold Lotus."

The second reward was a black energy crystal stone carved with mysterious patterns, called "Death Tempering."

The third reward was a cape-like bone armor; Analysis displayed its name as "Executioner's Verdict," assembled from tiny white bone scales, with pale purple-white bone flames burning along its edges.

The final reward was a uniquely shaped scythe-like weapon called "Soul Devourer"; the blade was dark red, like congealed blood, covered in fine barbs, and the hilt was inlaid with a ghostly blue soul bead.

After calculation, the total sacrificial value of these four items was 4,938 points of Sacrificial Power.

In the Trading Hall, energy crystals and spiritual plants could likely be sold at a premium of over 30%.

As for weapons and equipment, they could only be sacrificed to Di Zhao.

Keeping them in players' hands was useless, but one could slightly raise the price and try listing them on the Trading Hall for sale to those players who do not use Rune Resonance weapons.

Although such players were few, they did exist.

They felt that Rune Resonance weapons consumed too much Sacrificial Power, and it was better to use that Sacrificial Power to strengthen themselves, choosing to continue using ordinary Mall weapons or Spirit Artifact weapons for combat.

With the battle concluded, Hong Yang and the others began to rest on the spot.

They purchased potions through the Mall to replenish stamina and qi-and-blood, preparing to advance to the third scene.

At this moment, the mist outside the plaza automatically dispersed, revealing a road leading to the inner city.

But whether they could clear the third scene, they had no confidence in their hearts.

With their squad's strength, challenging the second-act scene boss was already a struggle, nearly costing them a member.

It was highly likely their dungeon run would end in the third-act scene.

Three hours later.

Hong Yang's squad encountered the boss of the third-act scene.

The difficulty of this engagement had risen significantly; without suspense, all five squad members were killed and eliminated, their souls returning to Di Zhao.

During the resurrection cooldown, Hong Yang began browsing the forum.

At this moment, every discussion on the forum revolved around the dungeon.

Many powerful teams were crafting speed-run guides.

Even more meticulous teams had gathered recently posted clearance data from the forum to compile a dungeon clearance record leaderboard.

For the same dungeon, entries were ranked by clearance time.

Even the Shentanggong Society had participated in this dungeon challenge; their top-tier five-hundred-person team had already consecutively secured clearance achievements for three Level 6 scenes.

Their strength was simply not on the same level as his squad.

Monster intensity in Level 6 scenes had reached around level 80, with over a dozen bosses guarding each scene.

In terms of start time, they had entered the dungeon at roughly the same moment as his squad; judging by this pace, they were essentially clearing the dungeon by plowing through everything from start to finish.

If not for the dungeon's participant limit, which capped capacity at five hundred people.

Had the Shentanggong Society deployed their strongest ten-thousand-person war Cultivation Mode to tackle the dungeon, they could probably have cleared it even more easily.

Filled with curiosity, Hong Yang clicked on one of the videos.

In the footage, the Shentanggong Society's five-hundred-person team rolled through the dungeon scene like a steel torrent.

A triangular arrowhead formation composed of one hundred damage-soaking tanks led the way, smashing through even the golden city walls within the dungeon rather than using the main gate; behind them, two hundred magic-system players constantly unleashed attacks—Ice Mist Blizzard, Ink Flame Meteor, and Thunderstorm—three layers of celestial phenomena overlapping and erupting above the golden city, instantly clearing a vacuum zone stretching a thousand meters.

Meanwhile, their tactical coordination was terrifying: as the triple-element celestial phenomena from the magic players dissipated, one hundred archers immediately followed up with firepower; arrows tore through the air, tracing energy trajectories like precision-guided shells, accurately bombarding monsters even farther away. With each volley of arrow rain, the ground became carpeted with dense clusters of golden monster corpses.

Twelve assassin-build players tasked with decapitation strikes were arguably the MVPs of the entire operation; before the main team could even catch up, they relied on Shadow Stealth to reach the scene's endpoint, employing an exploit to execute a textbook encirclement and kill against the guarding boss.

During the boss fight, each of the twelve assassin-build players generated twelve clones.

Throughout the battle, they continuously swapped positions, targeting not only each other but also the clones of other assassin players.

The boss could not even touch the original bodies of the assassin players before being pinned dead to the ground.

By the time the main force crushed the mobs and arrived, the assassin team's players had already entered the second-act scene.

In contrast, his team had to exhaust themselves just to take down a single scene boss, while the Shentanggong Society's team seemed to be playing on speed-run Cultivation Mode.

Keep in mind, this was a Level 6 dungeon, whereas his team couldn't even clear a Level 4 one.

After watching the video, only two words remained in Hong Yang's mind: Awesome.

If not for the time wasted traveling, given the Shentanggong team's kill efficiency, they could probably have farmed an entire dungeon even faster.

The niche Minghun "Wind Breaker" performed exceptionally well in this dungeon Cultivation Mode.

The movement speed bonus provided by its aura was practically a divine skill for teams aiming to speed-farm dungeons, significantly saving travel time.

After watching several speed-farm videos in a row, Hong Yang even felt as though he and the Shentanggong members weren't playing the same game.

It also reignited his desire to challenge the dungeon again.

Once the resurrection cooldown ended, Hong Yang and his teammates appeared in the Teleportation Plaza.

Before departing, Hong Yang signaled his teammates to wait a moment.

After activating Shield Cultivation Mode, his mind was filled with Challenger notifications; players kept messaging him privately, asking if he was willing to sell Rule Fragments.

As for offers, prices ranged wildly.

From as high as 500,000 Sacrificial Power down to a mere 50 Sacrificial Power.

Although tempted by some of the offers, he decided to consult his teammates first:

"Regarding the 'March of the Dead' fragment, do you plan to sell it, or keep it for our own use?"

"Sell it. This thing has too many restrictions. We players devour monsters directly upon killing them; where would we get corpses to summon skeleton servants? My suggestion is to sell to the highest bidder. Investing large amounts of Sacrificial Power into Pseudo-Rules is meaningless, unless it's an extremely overpowered Pseudo-Rule like those of the Pain Brothers—in that case, attempting to craft it into a Minghun might be worth it."

Hearing A Qi's response, Hong Yang turned his gaze to Xiao Ye, Old Wu, and Little Flower.

"I also agree with selling. How can Pseudo-Rules compare to the existing Minghun system? Exchanging them for Sacrificial Power to boost our strength is the true path," Old Wu immediately stated his position.

"This item is only suitable for exploration-focused players—sightseeing to find alien ancient tombs and raising an undead army through grave robbing. But an undead army cannot be brought back to the Novice Village; it's ultimately an external force. So I also agree with selling it for Sacrificial Power."

Hearing all his teammates suggest selling, Hong Yang nodded, summoned his contact list, and began comparing prices.

Among the players who privately messaged him, the highest offer was 500,000 Sacrificial Power.

Sacrificing to Di Zhao would yield 468,000 Sacrificial Power.

Calculated based on the Sacrificial Power premium quoted by forum players, the estimated value of March of the Dead was around 600,000.

However, since this item was related to Rules, even though fellow players would likely find it useless, there were always players who enjoyed researching strange things; it might actually fetch a higher price.

After discussing with his teammates, Hong Yang listed it on the Exchange Hall for 800,000 Sacrificial Power, planning to lower the price only if it failed to sell.

At minimum, he could secure a profit of 500,000 Sacrificial Power.

What he didn't expect was that less than five seconds after listing the Rule Fragment, a Challenger notification rang in his mind:

[Challenger Notification: The item "Rule Fragment - March of the Dead" consigned to the Exchange Hall has been successfully sold. Sacrificial Power gained: 760,000.]

"Holy crap, it sold already?"

Summoning his Spatial Satchel to check his balance, Hong Yang's eyes widened instantly.

He truly couldn't comprehend which wealthy "sucker" would buy this thing for 800,000 Sacrificial Power.

The Minghun in his own Star Vein combination were cheap and offered nothing but advantages compared to March of the Dead, without various restrictive conditions.

Meanwhile, March of the Dead came with a heap of problems.

First, you needed corpses; second, even after resurrection, they only possessed partial strength, with combat power severely weakened.

So, what use could this thing possibly have?

"Boss, did it sell?" Seeing the change in Hong Yang's expression, A Qi asked curiously.

"Sold. Snatched up in seconds for 800,000. The speed was so fast I feel like I lost a hundred million; I keep thinking it could have fetched an even higher price, but I can't figure out what use anyone could have for this thing." Hong Yang shook his head, then activated the squad trade Cultivation Mode.

He transferred 152,000 Sacrificial Power to each of his four teammates.

"Maybe an Arms Merchant Society bought it for research, or perhaps the Jinbishang Society snapped it up; just now, a brother from the Jinbishang Society contacted me, offering 500,000 to buy it."

Just as the squad members began discussing this heatedly.

On the Earthquake Continent region, Xiao Xiao Fashi, upon hearing the Challenger notification confirming the successful purchase, retrieved the March of the Dead fragment from his Spatial Satchel, a smile floating across his Iron Face.

Buying this thing for 800,000 was an incredible bargain.

Rule Fragments with too many restrictions indeed held little value for players.

But for the Lingxizu, it was essentially free opportunity.

The Lingxizu were currently worrying about how to begin crafting Rule items; March of the Dead could be used for research perfectly.

More importantly, he could use Sacrificial Power to refine March of the Dead into a Pseudo-Rule.

For the Lingxizu, the value of Pseudo-Rule items was far beyond what ordinary resources could compare to.

Ordinary resources were everywhere in the Monster World, including many spiritual plants and spiritual ores once considered rare by the Lingxizu; these too were visible everywhere in the Monster World.

But obtaining Pseudo-Rules? That was difficult.

Although even genuine Rules were plentiful in the Monster World.

Yet whether Rules or Pseudo-Rules, they could only be acquired through warfare, seized from the hands of other races.

And warfare meant risk, potentially even leading the Lingxizu toward destruction.

This was the greatest difference between the player perspective and the alien race perspective.

Many items of ordinary value in the eyes of alien races, or even resources they couldn't utilize, could generate huge amounts of Sacrificial Power once in players' hands.

For example, back when the Jinbishang Society traveled to alien islands to procure goods, they used Mall items to acquire many high-value spiritual resources from aliens, then resold them on the Exchange Hall to earn substantial profits.

Conversely, Pseudo-Rule fragments that players deemed worthless were unimaginably high-value items to alien races, especially for weak alien races lacking Rule blessings; possessing a Pseudo-Rule could grant their clan's future far more possibilities.

For this thing, let alone 800,000 Sacrificial Power; even at 1.8 million, he would be willing to buy.

With the Rule Fragment secured, the Lingxizu's plans to research Rules, and even create Rules, could finally proceed.

On the other side, Dream Island.

A Lan, having just come online, learned that a player was selling a Pseudo-Rule and decisively added them as a friend to make contact.

Upon learning the Pseudo-Rule fragment was sold for 800,000 Sacrificial Power, he sighed helplessly in his heart.

As someone engaged in alien trade, he knew very well that this item indeed held no value within the player system; ordinary players would never spend Sacrificial Power to buy it, but its value elsewhere was entirely different.

When he came online and learned of the Rule Fragment's availability, his first thought was to launch several rounds of promotion in Dream Island's trading market.

Then, he would host an alien auction, selling the Rule Fragment to the highest-bidding alien race.

He felt selling it for resources equivalent to 3 million Sacrificial Power would be no problem at all; indeed, certain clans might be willing to exhaust their entire clan's resources to purchase it.

Possessing a Rule meant possessing a future and growth potential; such a thing could not be valued based on the price Di Zhao offered for sacrifices.

Di Zhao's procurement only considered the essence of the sacrificed item.

For instance, if one threw a real-world Celestial Dome Weapon System at Di Zhao for recycling, Di Zhao would only appraise it based on the quality and weight of the metal materials, completely ignoring the advanced engraving techniques used to build the weapon system, as well as the time and labor costs invested in its creation.

This was also why forum players joked that Di Zhao's buyback prices were always quoted as scrap value.

Pseudo-Rule fragments could also be regarded as items with high technological content; selling them outside for exorbitant prices was entirely possible.

Regrettably, the Pseudo-Rule fragment had already been sold, and it was unclear who currently held it.

Otherwise, he would be willing to raise the price to buy it back.

After remaining silent for a long while, A Lan decided to post on the forum, raising the acquisition price to 1 million.

Naturally, this price was not his true target.

But as long as the player who bought the Rule Fragment contacted him, the price could still be negotiated.

What A Lan did not know at this moment was that even if he offered a higher price, it would be impossible to purchase another "Remnant of the Dead Army March."

Because the one who had purchased the remnant was precisely the "Alien Faction" in his eyes, a force desperately craving power related to rules.

Just as all the players were enthusiastically participating in the Dungeon Cultivation Mode.

Emperor Tomb Mountain Range, Tianyuan Domain Node.

Mental Communication Network.

Ghost Tooth: Where did those beastly players go? Why hasn't a single one appeared at any of the five nodes? Perhaps they've finally given up under our combined assault; our hard days are finally over.

Blood Vein: Don't be careless; they might be gathering strength to wage a large-scale war against us. I feel the players won't give up so easily.

Rotten Heart: They must have given up. We haven't seen a single one during this period, so they certainly won't return. We are liberated, but the alliance cannot disband. Boss Di Nian is too powerful; I still need to continue learning from him.

Iron Spine: Old Four, you've only learned the mental taunt tactic; what else have you learned?

Rotten Heart: Iron Spine, may your mother spiral into the heavens! Who are you calling Old Four? Don't use player lingo to disgust me; scram!

Di Nian: Stop arguing. The players will not disappear. I have been in contact with the Player Clan for a very long time, so I know this is merely a phenomenon that occasionally occurs with the Player Clan. They frequently vanish for a period, but soon return with an even stronger posture. I suspect that during this phase, the players are undergoing some form of strengthening.

Iron Spine: No way, they're coming back? I'm almost tired of fighting them. To be honest, no matter how strong the players get, I fear them not. Before descending into the Monster World, I visited four Minor World battlefields. Every time I started at a disadvantage, yet every time I turned the Black Tide against the odds and crushed the Minor World. But the players are truly different; even when swallowed by the Black Black Tide, those beasts fail to produce a single shred of Black Black Tide energy. I have never in my life seen such stingy living beings.

Di Nian: Brothers, do not worry. What we must do now is utilize this period of the players' disappearance to develop rapidly. We shall launch external expansion campaigns, striving to become stronger during the time the players are gone, so we may confront the Player Clan with an even mightier posture.

Rotten Heart: Boss Di Nian, do you have any suggestions regarding development? Should we develop separately at our respective nodes, or concentrate our resources to expand from a single node?

Di Nian: Whether to separate or concentrate, each has its advantages. Developing separately can accelerate the pace of expansion, while concentrated development makes it easier to break through the blockades of powerful enemies. Let me first examine the environmental information around the five nodes.

Having spoken, the Evil Spirit Di Nian opened its eyes:

"Evil Eye, I want information on the five nodes."

"OJBK." After nodding, Evil Eye input the shared environmental information of the other four nodes into the mind of the Evil Spirit Di Nian.

After reviewing the information from the four nodes, it felt that developing separately seemed more appropriate.

None of the other four nodes were surrounded by powerful enemies; it could fully invest Black Black Tide energy into the other nodes to assist them in plundering and expanding.

Just as it was preparing to make a decision, Evil Spirit Di Nian paused, suddenly recalling a faction located to the east of the Emperor Tomb Mountain Range.

When the Horizontal Development Plan was initially launched, the first direction of expansion it chose was to push eastward, ultimately halting its devouring steps before the Golden Ocean Domain.

Upon investigation, it discovered that the Golden Ocean contained a vast number of giant creatures; the Black Black Tide under its control could not fight them at all.

It was precisely this investigation that severed one of its routes under the Horizontal Development strategy, forcing it to choose development toward the west instead.

In the future, who knows when a powerful enemy blocking the path might also appear in the western direction.

By then, it would be besieged on all sides, unable to go anywhere.

It felt it could fully combine the strength of the other four nodes to gnaw down this Golden Domain; doing so was also considering its own future.

Although there were other nodes available now to assist its development.

Yet having one more path out was always better than being trapped in a desperate situation.

With its intention clarified, the consciousness of Evil Spirit Di Nian reconnected to the Mental Network:

"Everyone prepare your Black Black Tide energy, descend to my node, and let's start the Black March!"

(End of Chapter)