# Chapter 35: Crown
Inside the majestic royal hall that was not overly luxurious, the Sand King stood on the steps before the throne. He wore the Soul Crown on his head, his upper body bare, with scales on his right arm showing signs of spreading. Most importantly, he held the throat of a dried corpse in one hand. This corpse belonged to his most trusted and valued subordinate, his Right Imperial Minister, Kaga.
What outsiders did not know was that when the Sand King first arrived in the Desert Kingdom, powerless and without influence, Kaga had followed him. Until today, Kaga had remained loyal without a second thought. Yet such a faithful subordinate had been killed by the Sand King's own hand.
Before the doors of the royal hall, the Left Imperial Minister, Pewen, who had rushed here upon hearing Kaga's screams, along with dozens of personal guards, stared in shock at what had happened inside the hall. They did not know the specifics, only that their king had killed the Right Imperial Minister, Kaga.
In truth, compared to the Left Imperial Minister and the dozens of personal guards, the Sand King himself was equally bewildered. His last memory was of tossing and turning sleeplessly in his bedchamber last night, then ordering his personal guard to bring the crown. He had picked it up. What happened after that, the Sand King seemed to remember, yet it felt very blurry.
But one thing was undeniable—the barrier that had prevented the Sand King from advancing even a single step for nearly a hundred years had now been broken through. He even felt that if he took two more great strides forward, he could reach the strength of the betrayer.
This made the Sand King think: if his strength could continue advancing at this current pace, then maintaining his forces might not actually matter. From the very beginning, the Sand King had not wanted to become a ruler. He wanted to use the massive resources a ruler could command to give himself a chance to impact the Supreme Strong.
At this rate of becoming stronger, there really was no need to take the long way around—like continuing to expand the Desert Legion, then provoking conflict between the Alliance and the Northern Empire, letting them go to war, and finally reaping the benefits by ruling over the three great territories of the Desert Alliance and the Fierce Winter Land. Wasn't all of that just to reach the Supreme Strong? Now he had a faster way.
Though he had realized this, the Sand King was not ready to immediately abandon his existing influence. He keenly noticed that his breakthrough of the bottleneck that had plagued him for a hundred years came from absorbing the Primordial Life Force and Primordial Power of his trusted subordinate, the Right Imperial Minister Kaga. The combination of these two was called Life Source.
In fact, any living being strong enough had Life Source. However, once Life Source was extracted, it would quickly dissipate. There was one exception—for example, the strange beasts on the Transcendent Primordial World of Wind Sea Continent. Their Primordial Life Force was so massive it reached an extremely exaggerated degree. When these powerful strange beasts were killed, their enormous Life Source would sometimes crystallize upon dissipating. This could be preserved for a long time. White Bull needed this stuff badly to suppress old injuries in his body.
Precisely because of this, crystallized Life Source that could be preserved for a long time was very rare and very expensive.
The Sand King naturally knew what Life Source was. He thought that it was this crown that had given him the ability to devour and absorb others' Life Source. After roughly confirming this, his gaze grew calmer.
As for the guilt of killing his long-time trusted subordinate with his own hands, the Sand King did feel it, but only for a very short time. Then he felt nothing. He had even betrayed his life-saving mentor, Mawen Hua'erzi. A subordinate who had followed him for years meant even less to him.
Crackle, crackle~
The dried and brittle lower half of the Right Imperial Minister Kaga fell, shattering into powder upon hitting the ground. This scene further stimulated the Left Imperial Minister and the dozens of personal guards standing over ten meters away before the hall doors. Though each of them had blood on their hands, the one who had died was the Right Imperial Minister Kaga.
"Kaga, time really can change many things."
The Sand King's tone carried a hint of melancholy. His gaze and expression conveyed a sense of deep sorrow, along with a trace of his former ruthlessness.
"Pewen," the Sand King looked at the Left Imperial Minister. He placed the half-dried corpse of Kaga on the steps and continued, "Find a good place to bury Kaga. Don't bury him near the royal capital. I don't want to see him again."
With that, the Sand King walked toward a side door on the side. His back carried a hint of melancholy—the melancholy of being betrayed by his most trusted man.
Seeing this, the dozens of personal guards in the royal hall guessed what had happened. The Right Imperial Minister Kaga must have secretly defected to the Alliance or the Northern Empire. Now that his scheme had been exposed, he was killed in the royal hall.
The personal guards indeed thought this, but the Left Imperial Minister Pewen did not believe it at all. She knew many things. In her view, Kaga had no reason to betray. It simply didn't make sense.
Even if Kaga had truly betrayed, the current Fengshui Capital would not be as peaceful as it was now. There was only one possibility: Kaga had not betrayed, but the Sand King he followed had killed him for some unknown reason. That was why the scream just now had been so desperate and unwilling.
The Left Imperial Minister Pewen's gaze swept left and right. There was no trace of battle in the royal hall. If Kaga were a traitor, after being discovered by the Sand King, he would at least have fought desperately. But there were no battle marks in the hall, and no aura energy lingered in the air. This showed that the life-and-death struggle had been decided in a very short time.
Suddenly, the Left Imperial Minister Pewen remembered yesterday evening. The Sand King's fury upon seeing the black crown, and his order to behead the quartermaster who had presented it. But that order was changed shortly after. The quartermaster was imprisoned in the dungeon of Saint Sand Castle.
Just now, the Left Imperial Minister Pewen had seen with her own eyes that the Sand King was wearing the black crown presented by the quartermaster yesterday. This was too abnormal. No matter how she looked at it, it wasn't Kaga's betrayal, but something wrong with the Sand King after obtaining the black crown.
The Left Imperial Minister, wearing a silver metal mask, narrowed her eyes. She had already decided on one thing: to immediately leave the Desert Kingdom and go to the Alliance, seeking refuge with her close friend Silver Mask from the Antler Organization for a period of time.
Having made this decision, the Left Imperial Minister walked out of the royal hall. She subconsciously glanced at the side door. Just one look, and she saw in the dim corridor connected to the side door a tall, robust figure standing in the darkness. His eyes, completely pitch black, black to the point of being terrifying, were fixed on her. This made the Left Imperial Minister's scalp instantly go numb. She unconsciously quickened her pace.
"Pewen."
The Sand King in the dim corridor spoke. This made the rapidly walking Left Imperial Minister Pewen stop. Cold sweat had already soaked through her undergarments. Death seemed to breathe behind her like the breath of a giant beast, blowing her soft hair.
"All of you, withdraw. Pewen and I have important matters to discuss."
The Sand King stood in the dim side corridor and spoke. Hearing this order, the group of personal guards quickly withdrew from the royal hall. The lead guard captain, Sowa, slowly closed the double doors. When the gap was very narrow, the guard captain Sowa saw the Left Imperial Minister, her back to the Sand King and facing him, slowly close her eyes beneath her silver mask.
The doors of the royal hall slammed shut. Pewen closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her arms spread to both sides, and two arm blades of the same model as Silver Mask's popped out from above her sleeves.
Pewen turned to face the Sand King. She suddenly noticed that in just one night, the Sand King's changes were enormous. His height had reached at least over 3.5 meters. His originally brown pupils had become completely black eyes with no white sclera. His short, wine-red hair had become long black hair flowing behind him, so dark it seemed profound, as if each strand had a life of its own.
Now wearing the Soul Crown, the Sand King, besides his usual oppressive presence, had gained an added air of evil and sinister. He was like a Mad King whose mind had fallen into the abyss!
"King, I have served you for so long. Now I ask for no reward. Just let me go."
The Left Imperial Minister Pewen spoke in a tone almost pleading.
"Pewen, what are you saying? You are my most beloved and trusted subordinate. If I didn't already have a woman I deeply love, you would surely be my queen."
The Sand King grinned as he spoke, revealing stark white teeth. His pitch-black eyes seemed to be looking at bait that had fallen into a trap.
The next second, the Sand King appeared before the Left Imperial Minister Pewen.
Pfft!
Pewen's right arm blade stabbed into the Sand King's chest. But she felt the stabbing sensation was wrong—too tough. She looked closely and saw that only the tip of the arm blade had pierced the flesh, less than a centimeter deep. Her full-force strike had only caused a flesh wound to the Sand King.
Pewen's arm blade failed to seriously wound the Sand King, but the Sand King's large hand had already grabbed Pewen's head from the side. The Sand King, over 3.5 meters tall, had hands large enough to easily grip Pewen's head with one hand. The silver mask she wore creaked under the pressure. More terrifyingly, she felt her entire body becoming incredibly relaxed while rapidly weakening.
"In this world, besides that Abyssal Shadow, no one can kill me. Not Hui Guang, not that self-proclaimed Abyss leader, that Abyss Spawn called Xiluweisi."
As the Sand King spoke, the Left Imperial Minister Pewen's entire body had already dried up, turning into sand that scattered on the ground. Only a silver mask remained, held in the Sand King's hand.
"Antler Silver Mask."
The Sand King exerted force in his hand, crushing the silver mask flat. The metal mask was like something chewed up, turning into a lump of residue.
The Sand King now felt that he was the 100% perfect fit user of this Original Sin Object. He had completely possessed this Original Sin Object called the Soul Crown. He was not being controlled by it; rather, he was using it.
"Sowa."
The Sand King spoke. The guard captain Sowa, waiting outside, pushed the door open and entered. Though the guard captain Sowa noticed the sand on the ground and the lump of metal that looked like it had been chewed, he didn't immediately realize this was the remains of the Left Imperial Minister Pewen.
"Go find the person who presented the crown. His name is..."
"Kaisa, my lord. That quartermaster is called Kaisa. He has served as your quartermaster for over ten years."
The guard captain Sowa respectfully reminded.
"Mm, go find him. Wait, lift your head and look at me. Do I look any different from before?"
The Sand King, casually sitting on the throne, spoke. Hearing this, the guard captain Sowa nervously lifted his head.
Kneeling on one knee, the guard captain Sowa carefully looked up at the Sand King for a while. His true thoughts were: 'King, even your hairstyle has changed. What do you mean by any different?'
"King, I don't see any difference. I just feel that you... have become stronger."
The guard captain Sowa had long noticed something was wrong, so he naturally went along with the Sand King's meaning.
"Mm, very good. You may withdraw."
The Sand King was quite satisfied. His subordinate's answer made him more convinced that he was controlling the crown, not the crown controlling him. The blank period in his memory from last night to now was probably his adaptation and integration period with the Soul Crown.
Had the Sand King's IQ suddenly dropped? Of course not. The Sand King's current state was very normal. This was the terrifying aspect of the Soul Crown. This crown never forcibly controlled its holder. Instead, it made the holder mistakenly believe that they controlled the crown. Then they would subconsciously rationalize any unreasonable aspects in their mind.
For example, the blank period in the Sand King's memory from last midnight to this morning. In the past, the Sand King would have immediately become alert. But now, wearing the Soul Crown, he naturally rationalized this matter.
"Someone come."
The Sand King ordered a dozen personal guards to enter the royal hall and follow him to the larger training hall. He meant that his strength had improved and wanted these personal guards to surround and kill him to test the extent of his power increase.
An hour later, when the guard captain Sowa brought Kaisa and pushed open the training hall door, they saw the ground covered in sand, empty armor, and weapons with various damage marks scattered about.
Seeing this, the guard captain Sowa's heart seized up. But he calmly knelt on one knee and said, "King, the person has been brought."
"Very good."
The Sand King opened his pitch-black eyes and examined Kaisa, who looked somewhat cunning and sleazy. For some reason, compared to their last meeting, the Sand King found Kaisa much more pleasing to the eye this time. Especially thinking about how Kaisa had brought him the Soul Crown, he found Kaisa even more agreeable.
"You are very good. From now on, you will serve as the Left Imperial Minister."
The Sand King immediately promoted Kaisa, jumping from quartermaster directly to Left Imperial Minister.
"Thank you, Great King."
Kaisa beamed with joy. The Left Imperial Minister of the Desert Kingdom was in charge of finances, which was much better than the position of quartermaster.
"As for you, Sowa."
The Sand King looked at the guard captain Sowa. His gaze was like looking at a delicious meal with great nourishing effects. The guard captain Sowa barely stopped his legs from trembling violently.
"Don't disappoint me."
The Sand King spoke meaningfully to the guard captain Sowa, clearly not ready to kill this guard captain yet, but keeping him for use.
"Yes, yes, yes. Your servant will swear loyalty to the king unto death."
"Mm, your family has already been moved to the large mansion in the rear district. The living conditions there are better."
Hearing this, the guard captain Sowa's scalp nearly exploded. His plan had been to leave the palace this time, take his parents, wife, and two children, and flee the Desert Kingdom. Now, he dared not flee. He truly was not afraid of death, but he was terrified of his family meeting misfortune.
"Thank you for your great kindness, King."
The guard captain Sowa changed from kneeling on one knee to both knees, his forehead pressed against the ground.
"Hahaha, hahahahaha!"
The Sand King laughed abnormally. His long hair seemed to have a life of its own, climbing and moving on the throne.
'Mad King!'
The kneeling guard captain Sowa gritted his teeth and thought this word in his mind. At this moment, calling the Sand King a Mad King was perfectly fitting.
"King, your servant knows of several talents skilled in treasure hunting. I wish to recruit them."
Kaisa spoke with a smile, rubbing his hands. Hearing this, the Sand King showed interest. Kaisa introduced these talents in detail, then suddenly said at the end:
"Oh, look at my memory. There's also a healing-type talent I wish to recommend."
"Handle it yourself."
The Sand King spoke without even lifting his eyes. Kaisa repeatedly nodded, thanking the Sand King for his trust. In truth, the treasure-hunting talents were just a distraction. The real purpose was the last sentence—recommending a healing-type talent.
While Kaisa was speaking with the Sand King, over ten kilometers away at the farm estate, the dining hall table was covered with various freshly cooked dishes. Dray, Silver Mask, Veronica, and Red-Eyed Girl were eating heartily. Even Red-Eyed Girl, who usually cared about etiquette and maintained a ladylike demeanor, was chewing unusually quickly. The energetic Veronica had already started using her hands; she was nearly starving.
Based on the coordinates Silver Mask had received, they had traveled all the way from the Northern Border. Along the way, there was not only no sign of human habitation, but barely any animals. Combined with the high physical exertion of traveling at full speed, Veronica had been starved to this state.
"Look at you, so hungry. Eat slowly. Also, where did the Beast Knight go?"
Baha spoke. Veronica, holding a lamb leg, looked at him suspiciously and asked, "What Beast Knight?"
Hearing this, Baha felt puzzled, but waved his wing, letting Veronica continue eating.
Su Xiao emerged from his meditation state and opened his eyes. He had naturally heard the conversation, especially Veronica's words, 'What Beast Knight?' This was too suspicious.
Currently, the Platinum Archbishop and the High Priest were not present, having gone to investigate the situation at Saint Sand Castle. The Ghost Clan Prophet acted as if he hadn't heard anything.
What was truly puzzling was that after Veronica said 'What Beast Knight,' Dray and Silver Mask around the dining table also looked confused, as if they didn't know why Baha had mentioned the Beast Knight. They had never heard of this person before.
Red-Eyed Girl was similarly confused, as if she also didn't remember there ever being a Beast Knight.
The current situation was not that the Beast Knight had been killed by an enemy or anything else. Rather, aside from Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha, no one else remembered the existence of the Beast Knight.
Su Xiao thought this was probably a consequence of the 'Fallen Fire Land' mission. Because he had passed the Sun Trial, arrived at the Sun Temple, and seen that stone tablet, this situation had occurred.
Su Xiao was sure of this because of the shelter's recording function. Previously, when he and Sacred Poem had delved deep into the Fallen Fire Land and spent a day in the shelter, strange scorpions had come and laid eggs outside the shelter. A Sun Knight in heavy armor had used a scepter to smash all the scorpion eggs clinging to the outside of the shelter. Before leaving, he made a gesture praising the sun. That tall figure in armor looked very much like the Beast Knight.
Now the Beast Knight had suddenly disappeared. Su Xiao couldn't figure out the specifics. Regarding the missions related to the Fallen Fire Land, it wasn't that he had skipped too many steps—he simply hadn't accepted the mission at all. The key mission item, the Temple Key, had been replaced by a direct kick.
Why did everyone else present not remember the Beast Knight, while Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha all did? Su Xiao determined this was because of the certification of Reincarnation Paradise. The power that made everyone forget the Beast Knight was of a very high rank, but not higher than the certification of Reincarnation Paradise. As for Sacred Poem, who also had Paradise certification, she had not been traveling with the team before and had never had much impression of the Beast Knight.
After weighing the pros and cons, Su Xiao decided not to meddle in other people's affairs. As long as he could confirm that the Platinum Archbishop was a trustworthy collaborator, that was enough. As for other aspects, he shouldn't dig too deep. Everyone had secrets. Constantly prying would most likely lead to a rift.
Su Xiao had made up his mind. Sacred Poem, sitting next to him, was feeling a bit panicked because she had suddenly received several notifications.
...
Seeing these notifications, Sacred Poem's gaze grew more solemn. If she were of another combat system, she could infiltrate the enemy and deal a heavy blow at a critical moment. The problem was, she had just advanced to Ninth Rank. Her combat abilities hadn't developed yet. Only her healing abilities had reached the upper-middle tier of Ninth Rank. Having a healer infiltrate behind enemy lines—this didn't seem like part of any plan.
If it wasn't part of the plan, Sacred Poem thought she must have fallen into an enemy trap. And the hunter sharing the room with her—she probably couldn't defeat him.
"Bai Ye, what if there's a traitor among us?"
"Kill them."
"What if that person became a traitor for no reason?"
Sacred Poem's expression was already quite interesting as she spoke.
"..."
Su Xiao turned his head to look at Sacred Poem beside him. After a moment of silence, he said, "Did Kaisa successfully get you into the Desert Kingdom camp?"
"You... arranged this?"
"Yes."
"What would a healer like me do joining the enemy camp?!"
"When I fight to the death with the Sand King, you heal him."
"What?!"
Sacred Poem was confused, very confused. She carefully savored this sentence. After confirming she hadn't misheard, she looked at Su Xiao in bewilderment.
"You'll know when the time comes. You're the protagonist of that life-and-death battle."
Baha spoke somewhat mysteriously, making Sacred Poem even more puzzled. Just then, the Ghost Clan Prophet, who had been dozing on a lounge chair, sat up. He sat there, staring blankly ahead.
At the same time, on the top floor of Saint Sand Castle, the Sand King stood before an altar. On the altar was a trough that somewhat resembled a coffin. Inside lay a desert beauty, but she was sleeping. This was the Sand King's queen, a powerful fortune teller.
The Sand King cut his palm and pressed his bleeding hand onto the crystal ball at the front of the trough. The next moment, light blazed. The beauty in the trough's eyebrows trembled slightly. A few seconds later, she opened her eyes.
"I've encountered some trouble. I need you to divine for me."
The Sand King helped the queen sit up from the trough. When the queen got past the confusion of just waking up, she immediately noticed the Sand King's enormous changes and the crown on his head.
Meanwhile, at the farm estate outside Fengshui Capital.
The Ghost Clan Prophet, who had been sitting blankly on the lounge chair for a moment, spoke: "Law Destroyer, promise me once more. You will kill the Sand King."
"Either he dies, or I do."
Su Xiao's tone was calm. He didn't make a strong promise. His tone was even somewhat plain. But it was this plain tone that made the Ghost Clan Prophet feel it was trustworthy. He had seen too many people who made grand promises, even swore poisonous oaths, but then didn't follow through.
"Very well. You take care of killing the Sand King. I'll take care of eliminating the strongest fortune teller in this world."
The Ghost Clan Prophet's hand opened. Space fluctuations appeared. A ten-centimeter-tall crystal vial fell into his hand. It was a vial of abyss energy so concentrated it was in liquid form.
The Ghost Clan Prophet pulled out the stopper, tilted his head back, and drank the liquid abyss energy in a few gulps. He knew his time was short. He immediately pulled off his braided beard and extracted a strand of hair from it. This was the hair of the Desert Kingdom's queen.
"Sand King, this is just like when you took my wife from me back then."
The Ghost Clan Prophet smiled. His body had withered to skin and bones in a short time, making him look like a vengeful spirit. His ten fingers interlaced, tightly clamping the strand of hair between his palms.
Slap!
Blood splattered from all over the Ghost Clan Prophet's body. He was not only a fortune-telling type but also a causality type that people feared. This was why the Ghost Clan Prophet believed so firmly that Su Xiao could kill the Sand King. As a causality type, the Ghost Clan Prophet had already sensed that causality-type abilities had no effect on Su Xiao.
At the same time, on the top floor of Saint Sand Castle, the newly awakened queen, after absorbing the Primordial Life Force of everyone within one kilometer except the Sand King, her gaze became lively. She immediately reached out to grab the crown on the Sand King's head.
Slap!
Blood and flesh splattered everywhere. The queen shattered before the Sand King, splattering him all over with blood and flesh. This scene was remarkably similar to when he had casually used his ability to shatter the Ghost Clan Prophet's wife, splattering the Ghost Clan Prophet all over. Suffice it to say, unless necessary, never provoke a causality type.
Why hadn't the Sand King eliminated the threat completely? That wasn't possible. The Sand King didn't even remember there was such an insignificant person.
Even with the Sand King's composure, he was startled by the scene before him. He wiped the flesh and blood from his face, looked at the blood on his hands, and quickly calmed down. If he could backstab his life-saving mentor, a beloved queen naturally couldn't touch his heart. Moreover, he was about to become the Mad King.
The Sand King picked up a wet towel and wiped the blood from his face. He walked to the window and looked down at the several hundred personal guards in the rear courtyard of Saint Sand Castle. He no longer needed these claws that had done so much dirty work for him. Before the window, his black hair fluttered. The Sand King grinned, a smile that was terrifying.
...
At the farm estate outside Fengshui Capital.
Drip, drip~
Black blood dripped from the Ghost Clan Prophet's fingertips. He had fallen into a drowsy and dazed state. At the moment of his passing, the Ghost Clan Prophet's trembling hand reached into his bosom, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to Su Xiao. He said weakly:
"You must... make that... arrogant bastard... pay the price."
"Mm, I will."
Hearing Su Xiao's assurance, the light in the Ghost Clan Prophet's eyes completely dimmed.
Su Xiao lit a cigarette and had Amu, Dray, and Silver Mask go bury the Ghost Clan Prophet. There were many flower fields nearby, which made for a decent resting place.
Receiving this notification, Su Xiao materialized the Hunt List: Blood Pact and saw that the original entry, "Turncoat (Sand King) · Bounty 800 ounces of Space-Time Power," had disappeared. Instead, it now read:
"Mad King · Bounty 1300 ounces of Space-Time Power."