Chapter 7: White Goat and Dominator
The Maiden of Sorrow looked at the heart in Su Xiao's hand, her expression still unchanged. She seemed to be perpetually smiling, yet carried an indescribable sadness.
"I yearn for it."
The Maiden of Sorrow cupped her hands, pleading with Su Xiao for her own heart.
"I'm used to fair exchanges. What are you prepared to offer?"
Su Xiao extended his hand forward, as if he might release the heart in his grasp at any moment, letting it fall into the Maiden of Sorrow's waiting hands. Unfortunately, that was impossible.
"I have nothing."
The Maiden of Sorrow slowly lowered her hands. Though her expression remained blank, the sense of loss was unmistakable.
"Forgive me, my lord. I have nothing at all."
The Maiden of Sorrow looked at Su Xiao. There was no sorrow in her eyes, no longing—as if there was nothing at all.
"My lord, please let me know your name."
"Kukulin."
"Lord Kukulin, what do you wish to know?"
The Maiden of Sorrow's voice remained as gentle as ever, silently waiting for Su Xiao to question her.
"What are the Old Gods?"
Su Xiao was testing, probing the significance of the Maiden of Sorrow.
"..."
The Maiden of Sorrow's mouth opened and closed. Su Xiao could tell she had spoken, but some unknown force blocked the words. As for reading her lips, that was entirely impossible. Su Xiao had only temporarily gained the ability to speak this world's language. Different pronunciations led to different mouth shapes, and the languages of Primordial Worlds were all unique.
"Where is the Wizard Guild?"
Su Xiao changed his question.
"In the southwest of Heru. The Wizard Guild is the tallest building in Heru. Once you reach Central Street, turn right from Ataha Clothing Store, and you'll find it quickly."
The Maiden of Sorrow turned and used her finger to draw on a wooden cabinet beside her, wiping away dust to create a neat, orderly map. She even used her fingernail to draw a circle around the Wizard Guild's location.
"Who created you?"
"It was Lord Dawn."
"Dawn?"
"Lord Dawn is an Immortal Wizard, right inside the Wizard Guild."
"What's today's temperature?"
"Forgive me, Lord Kukulin, I don't know."
The Maiden of Sorrow bowed her head slightly in apology.
"After each winding, how long can you stay active?"
"?"
The Maiden of Sorrow looked at Su Xiao with 'confusion.' Clearly, she didn't understand what 'winding' meant. After Su Xiao rephrased the question, she understood.
"Seven days."
"Really energy-efficient. Can you fight?"
Baha looked the Maiden of Sorrow up and down. Clearly, this was influenced by Su Xiao—when encountering potential allies, first assess their combat capability.
"Forgive me, Bird Lord, I cannot fight. I cannot harm any living being."
"Bird Lord..."
Baha was speechless. The Maiden of Sorrow answered almost everything without reservation.
"Then what use are you?"
Su Xiao sat on a chair Baha had dragged over, took out a Soul Crystal, and bit off a large chunk with a crunch.
This perfectly normal action caused the Maiden of Sorrow to take a small step back. This made Su Xiao realize that the Maiden of Sorrow wasn't completely devoid of emotion—her feelings were just extremely faint, undetectable without careful observation.
"I can help you dispel the 'Darkness.' Please don't eat me, my lord. I already have nothing—please don't eat me."
The Maiden of Sorrow was almost begging. Clearly, Su Xiao's habit of eating Soul Crystals had frightened her.
At first, the Maiden of Sorrow gave the impression of a puppet, devoid of any warmth. But after brief contact, Su Xiao discovered that what she expressed was clearer and purer than anyone else.
"I have no interest in eating you. Don't flatter yourself."
"Thank you, Lord Kukulin."
The Maiden of Sorrow fell silent again. It seemed that unless questioned, she wouldn't speak on her own, forever standing quietly there in silent companionship.
"If she were alive, how many people would she enchant, tsk tsk tsk~"
Baha was somewhat moved. Aside from Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Beini, it rarely acknowledged anyone else. But seeing the Maiden of Sorrow, it could sense her sorrow and persistence.
Su Xiao didn't share Baha's sentiment. What he wanted to know now was how to trigger the second ring of the main quest. He only had two hours.
"Puppet, where is the White Goat?"
"Forgive me, my lord, I don't know where the Source of Evil is. However, the three lords of the Wizard Guild might know where the Dominator is—an existence equal to the Source of Evil."
The moment the Maiden of Sorrow finished speaking, Su Xiao received a notification.
[Main Quest: Dominator (Second Ring)]
Difficulty Level: Lv.55
Quest Information: Find the Dominator and kill it (the Dominator has over 50% chance of being located somewhere in Wizard City).
Quest Duration: 10 days.
Quest Reward: Epic Weapon Chest (weapon type can be specified; the Epic weapon produced by this chest is permanently max-rated and set with 1-2 gems of the same grade).
Quest Penalty: Forced Execution.
...
A smile appeared on Su Xiao's face. With just a simple conversation, he had obtained very useful information: the Source of Evil, the White Goat, and an existence of the same rank—the Dominator.
From the Lv.55 difficulty, the Dominator was definitely a major boss. This was only the second ring, and he already had to face an enemy of this level. Heaven knows how dangerous the subsequent two rings would be.
The clues pointed to the three Immortal Wizards of the Wizard Guild. According to the old wizard, those three Immortal Wizards were three great pitiful souls. The specifics were unknown.
Su Xiao walked toward the room's exit. Just as he reached the door, he looked back at the Maiden of Sorrow.
"Don't just stand there. Follow."
"Forgive me, Lord Kukulin. I cannot leave this place. I will wait for you here, forever here. When you return, I will dispel the 'Darkness' for you."
The Maiden of Sorrow leaned against the wall. She could already tell that this visiting lord was not easy to deal with.
"Dispel the Darkness..."
Su Xiao pondered for a moment but ultimately chose not to forcibly take the Maiden of Sorrow away.
Pushing open the door, it was nighttime. There were no pedestrians on the streets. On both sides stood stone buildings, all with pointed roofs, their outer walls blackened. Signs of daily life could be seen at street corners and alley ends.
From this, it was clear that Heru City wasn't as terrifying as imagined. At least commoners could live here, engage in farming, trade, etc. Although most people were in a state of starvation, being alive in this world was already good enough.
Hunger brought unrest, unrest bred chaos, chaos equaled crime. How chaotic the public security of Heru City was didn't need to be witnessed to be imagined.
Walking down the street with Bubu Wang and Baha, they hadn't gone far before Su Xiao spotted a tavern still lit by candlelight, with laughter coming from inside. In this world, only the wealthy could afford wine.
After passing seven streets, Su Xiao realized that Heru City was much larger than he had imagined. The population here was at least several hundred thousand. What puzzled him was that these commoners, who couldn't even fill their stomachs, all lived in two- or three-story standalone stone houses. Or rather, these buildings weren't built by them, which was why the outer walls were so dirty and dilapidated.
Following the directions the Maiden of Sorrow had given, Su Xiao soon arrived near the Wizard Guild headquarters. This was a building nearly a hundred meters tall, covering a large area, almost forming a complex of structures.
Just as he entered the main gate, Su Xiao encountered a man in a gray-black robe with thinning hair and eerie green pupils. This was a Gray Wizard.
The Green-Eyed Gray Wizard glanced at Su Xiao but ultimately passed by him in silence, gloomy.
Inside a long corridor, Su Xiao had just reached the end when he was blocked by a short figure. From the build, the figure was about a meter tall, wearing a hood, with exposed skin showing a light green color.
"Lord Kukulin honors us with your presence. I've failed to welcome you from afar, hehehe~"
The short figure let out a strange laugh. Su Xiao's hand rested on his sword hilt. The last person who laughed like that had been cut in two by him and thrown into a river.
"Woof?"
Bubu Wang looked at the short figure in bewilderment. Its scent was somewhat familiar.
"You're not going to chop me, are you? Haven't changed at all, still so dangerous, my dear friend."
The short figure pulled off his hood, revealing a light green face full of smiles.
"You are... Kaiser?"
Su Xiao was momentarily stunned. Of course, he remembered Nicholas Kaiser. The other party was an ally he had made during his first War World—a goblin who embodied treachery, cunning, and sleaze. But he should have been a Plot Character, yet here he was in a Sixth Rank world.
"Bleach World, Sixth Division's Reputation Shop. That old man was you in disguise, right?"
Su Xiao looked at Kaiser. A scene from the Bleach World had puzzled him for a long time. With his astonishingly low Charm Attribute, he had actually received a warm reception and even been allowed to exchange items first.
"Hehehe, of course it was me."
Kaiser's smile was as sleazy as ever, but this time he appeared in his goblin form.