Chapter 17: Blood Night
Star Realm, Soul Grand Library, First Floor.
After the human race arrived here, the hundred-meter-tall wooden amber-grained bookshelves made one feel as if in a land of giants. In this ocean of knowledge and history, an individual seemed insignificant.
In this atmosphere, between the bookshelves on the inner side of the first floor, a lady with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a spider abdomen and arthropod legs did not seem small at all. This was not due to her nearly five-meter height, but because of her aura—the aura of a Supreme Peak powerhouse. If not for the Supreme Being and Tuanzhang, who had both transcended limits, the "Supreme Peak" was originally the pinnacle of individual combat power in the Star Realm.
That's right, this was the Spider Empress. Her long, milky-white hair not only reached her waist but extended all the way down to the spider abdomen below. A few strands of smooth hair lay on the smooth marble floor. Her crimson vertical pupils no longer held the cold cruelty of the past, nor the murderous intent hidden within a smile.
At present, the Spider Empress's gaze was peaceful. While reading an ancient text, she used her other hand to lift the afternoon tea served by a small elf. Her elegant demeanor made one wonder if this was truly the same terrifying powerhouse who had once slaughtered countless beings.
Just as the Spider Empress was enjoying her afternoon tea, two small elves carried a wooden box together and flew over. The wooden box had been sent from outside. Since the recipient was marked as the Spider Empress, the small elves had carefully inspected it. Although they respected the Spider Empress, this was an order from the top floor's manager, the Soul Elder, and the small elves naturally had to obey.
"A gift? Sent from where?"
The Spider Empress spoke with a hint of laziness. She knew full well what this was, and that it had been forged by her old friend, the Molten Giant. But now, she had to pretend she knew nothing. This was her only chance in a hundred thousand years of imprisonment to escape this place.
"It is a gift from the Wind Sea Continent."
The small elf captain replied respectfully and signaled the elf carrying the box to place it on the tea table.
Meanwhile, at the top of the Grand Library, the Soul Sage, whose head was very large and floated like a giant transparent jellyfish, was still sleeping, snoring sweetly. Therefore, the management of the top floor was still handled by the Elf Kingdom's Second Prince, Boboli.
However, two guests had arrived today. They were not outsiders—the Elf Kingdom's Third Prince, the hot-tempered little elf Diagu, and the Elf Kingdom's Fifth Princess, Fenny.
Currently, the Elf Kingdom was ruled by the eldest prince, who governed it in an orderly manner. The Second Prince, Boboli, as the manager of the Soul Library, was both capable and well-connected. If he truly wanted to rebel, the eldest prince might not be able to withstand him.
However, although the Second Prince, Boboli, often muttered that his father had misjudged him and that he was the best candidate, he actually respected his elder brother in his heart.
As for the third child of the elf family, this seemingly rebellious and hot-tempered youth was actually quite accomplished, though he usually looked like a street loafer.
As for the Fifth Princess, Fenny, this elf princess truly gave her two elder brothers, the eldest prince and Boboli, a headache. Other young elf maidens loved nature and botany, but she was unique—she loved Abyss studies.
To make matters worse, she had her unlucky second brother as the acting manager of the Soul Library, which gave her hobby ample room to develop.
The small elf race had two good paths: one was to work at the Soul Grand Library, and the other was to form contracts with others. The Fifth Princess, Fenny, had chosen the latter. The Holy Light Paradise contractor, Emily, who had formed a contract with her, was often tricked into doubting her own existence. Speaking of which, the last time Emily and Fenny's team encountered Su Xiao, just as they were about to die, Emily successfully played her life-saving card: "Offer 200,000 Soul Coins."
The Second Prince, Boboli, glanced at Fenny and asked, "Speak. What are you here for this time?"
"Second brother, I missed you, that's all."
Fenny sat on an ancient book without any ladylike posture, eating snacks. Hearing this, Boboli's brow twitched, and he asked, "Speak. How many Soul Coins do you lack?"
"Second brother, do I really seem that unbearable in your heart?!"
Fenny stopped her movements, her eyes moist. Seeing this, Boboli couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. After a round of comforting, he gave her 5,000 Soul Coins. Fenny sniffled and stopped her crying tone.
After dealing with her unlucky second brother, Fenny cast a sly glance at her unlucky third brother and noticed that he was acting strangely today. Not only was he not holding his wine flask, but his expression was unusually serious.
"Second brother."
The usually hot-tempered Diagu spoke, causing his second brother Boboli to look surprised. This was the first time his third brother had called him "second brother" since he was ten years old. Before, it was always "hey," "that guy," or directly calling him by his name, Boboli.
"No matter what happens, don't leave the top floor of the library."
Diagu said in a deep voice. His only purpose in coming to the Soul Library this time was to ensure his elder brother's safety, because he knew that the Spider Empress was about to break free from her cage. This was something no one could stop, just like in the First and Second Eras when the transcendent worlds of Blazing Sun Star, Eternal Light, and Ancient Dragon declined.
Now, the Wind Sea Continent, a transcendent world of the Second Era, would also usher in the beginning of its decline in the Third Era. This beginning was now within the Soul Grand Library. This was fate, this was causality, this was the cycle of the Star Realm. It might be possible to delay it, but it could never be stopped or changed.
On the first floor of the Grand Library, hundreds of meters high, the Spider Empress closed the ancient book in her hand. The words "Love and Forgiveness" engraved on the cover in Void Language did not match her current inner state. She had tried to forgive in her heart—forgive the secret betrayal of the Sea Race and Beast Race on the Wind Sea Continent, and their act of adding insult to injury that had trapped her in this cage for a hundred thousand years.
But the more she tried to forgive, the more it felt like a soul flame was burning inside her, causing the cruelty and violence she had suppressed to constantly erode her rationality, as well as the kindness and compassion she had in short supply.
Now, the Spider Empress appeared elegant and peaceful, but her heart needed an outlet. Only the desperate soul wails of the Sea Race and Beast Race could calm her inner turmoil.
Click~
The mechanism of the wooden box opened. When the box unfolded itself, inside was a pitch-black crown. This pitch-black crown was set with a red gemstone, but the gemstone was covered in cracks.
Not to mention the small elves' inspection, even a forging master would not be able to find any flaws in this pitch-black crown. This was, after all, forged by the Molten Giant, one of the legendary three blacksmiths.
The Spider Empress picked up the pitch-black crown with one hand. Looking at the crown between her fingers, she muttered, "No matter how ancient an existence, there is always a time when it sleeps."
Crack, crack!
Fine cracks appeared on the pitch-black crown due to the Spider Empress's grip, and then it shattered with a bang. She released her hand, and the crown fragments scattered down. The red gemstone was pinched between her thumb and index finger. The crimson glow gradually blooming within the gemstone was the most beautiful light to her.
Boom!
The impact sent over a dozen rows of huge bookshelves flying. The crimson gemstone had actually blasted a jagged spatial hole within the Soul Grand Library. This was the Soul Library, a place with a solid-state spatial sealing zone.
The spatial hole appeared quickly and healed even faster. In the blink of an eye, it was mostly healed. The Spider Empress naturally would not miss this opportunity. Her four arthropod legs stabbed into the edges of the spatial hole. As venom was injected, the space in this area was corroded, crackling and shattering, forming a spatial passage.
The spatial passage was pitch black inside. The Spider Empress stepped gracefully into the darkness on her arthropod legs. A few seconds later, the spatial passage within the Grand Library closed, leaving only the fallen bookshelves and scattered books around.
A hundred meters away, two figures appeared. One was Tuanzhang, wearing a metal mask, and the other was a tall figure with a stag's antlers on his head, draped in a beast-skin cloak like a god. They were looking at the chaotic scene.
"Aren't you going to interfere?"
The Stag God spoke in a deep voice.
"Why interfere? Stag God, this is no longer our era. Besides, we... lost back then."
Hearing Tuanzhang's words, the Stag God's eyes narrowed slightly. He then retorted, "You didn't lose. It was a draw. You even knocked a piece of your nemesis's brain out back then. Speaking of which, is it really okay for that piece of brain to be in the hands of that Hunter from your Reincarnation Paradise?"
"It's fine."
"Give me a reason not to go retrieve and seal that piece of brain."
"He is the Chosen One. Although not yet the only one, I, the former Chosen One who lost, will just wait for the final result."
Tuanzhang spoke with a hint of emotion. The Stag God didn't follow up on this but changed the subject and asked, "How is that world you're creating coming along? If the darkness really does come, can that world you're building really withstand it and become the final sanctuary?"
"It can."
"Is that so? Then, after the darkness comes, will that world you created become a kingdom ruled by you?"
"No. That world belongs to the weak beings who can preserve the sparks of civilization from these three eras after the long darkness."
"It seems you didn't even leave a place for yourself. Then you certainly wouldn't leave one for me."
"Do you need one?"
"Of course... not."
The Stag God's tone was resolute. If Tuanzhang had said he left a place for him, the Stag God would have immediately broken off their friendship. That would be an insult to him.
"You have time to create that world. Why not directly deal with Arcane Eternal Star? They are the root cause of the Abyss's invasion."
"They are not."
There was a hint of amusement in Tuanzhang's tone.
"So, the natural elemental depletion in the Void has another cause?"
The Stag God's interest was piqued. When talking with others, he was the silent one, but when talking with his friend Tuanzhang, he was the talkative one.
"No, Arcane Eternal Star is the culprit."
"Then why did you say they are not the root cause of the Void being invaded by the Abyss?"
"It is desire. As long as people still desire the power of the elements, today's situation is inevitable."
Hearing this, the Stag God was speechless. He couldn't argue with Tuanzhang, so he simply stopped discussing this point and said, "If you gathered your forces to wipe out Arcane Eternal Star, you might be able to avert this catastrophe. Your condition has recovered well. You're probably back to the level when you led the team to attack Dawn Paradise, right? You should be on par with the Supreme Being..."
Before the Stag God could finish, Tuanzhang rarely interrupted, saying, "Stag God, in the Second Era, if you had to face any one of those Law Destroyers, would you have been confident in winning?"
Hearing this, the Stag God chose silence.
"I am not from that era. At that time, you were not as strong as you are now. But I have never believed that the spellcasters of the Second Era could defeat those ancestral Law Destroyers. Not even by ganging up on them."
"You mean..."
"The Law Destroyers of the Second Era were actually killed by the Supreme Being himself. Those spellcasters were only responsible for surrounding and hunting down the ancestral Law Destroyers who were already severely wounded and on the verge of death."
Tuanzhang looked at the spatial rift that had completely disappeared in the air and continued with a sigh, "This time, I don't need to get involved personally. No matter the outcome, I only need to wait. My life has been exciting enough. Such an exciting life should not end in a desperate struggle. So I will just watch, and be a qualified observer."
Tuanzhang stepped onto the spiral staircase. After reaching a landing, he pushed open the door to the chamber where the Ancient One was. Inside the chamber, overgrown with tree roots, the Ancient One was sleeping.
"Stop pretending to sleep, old friend. That Law Destroyer I recommended is pretty good, isn't he?"
A few seconds after Tuanzhang spoke, the Ancient One among the tree roots opened his left eye and said in a hoarse voice, "He... has contributed more to the library than you."
"That's... probably not wrong. What exactly is the structure of Bai Ye's luck and fate? He actually sealed five Original Sin Objects."
Mentioning this, even Tuanzhang fell silent. Even with his vast experience, he felt like he had lived long enough to see everything.
...
Blazing Sun Star, Twilight City, Inner City, South City Back Street Mansion, Second Floor Living Room.
"I'm not listening! I'm not listening!"
Morei covered her ears with both hands. This was, of course, not acting cute but a firm refusal to the invitation to "stock up."
Since they were going to the Soul Academy to stock up, they naturally had to go through the faction shop. And involving the faction shop meant involving Void Tree Reputation.
A sufficiently high Void Tree Reputation was a prerequisite for "stocking up" at the faction shop. But among the four going this time—Su Xiao, Kaisa, the Toad, and the Violent Rat—which of them had a Void Tree Reputation above 0 points?
None at all. Not only could the four of them not scrape together even 1 point of Void Tree Reputation, but their negative scores were off the charts.
So, dragging Morei onto this pirate ship was a necessary condition for this stock-up trip. However, Morei was currently in a state of: "You can beat me to death, but I'm not going."
As a little rich girl from Apocalypse Paradise, Morei lacked neither money nor resources. And because her impulsive and reckless personality often got her beaten up by Su Xiao, she had now successfully upgraded to a state where she could be reckless even after getting her legs broken.
Under these circumstances, beating Morei until she was lame was useless, but she could be tricked into it. Su Xiao sat on the sofa and pointed to the single sofa opposite. Morei hesitated for a moment and then sat down.
"Last time I went to Tianwang Star, I noticed a very interesting phenomenon."
The Tianwang Star Su Xiao mentioned was Morei's hometown, the real world where she lived. All her relatives were in that real world.
Su Xiao began to teach Morei basic Abyss knowledge. At first, Morei listened with great interest. But after a while, she became increasingly confused. She could understand every word Su Xiao said, but when they were put together, she felt those sentences were so unfamiliar.
Seeing Morei's increasingly bewildered expression, Su Xiao simply said, "Your hometown, Tianwang Star, shows signs of Abyss seepage. It's still very mild now. Your father, the monarch of the Atlantis Empire, along with the rulers of the Eastern Federation, the Northern Alliance, and the Archipelago Alliance, are secretly cooperating to deal with this matter."
Hearing this, Morei looked suspicious and asked, "Doesn't Apocalypse Paradise interfere with this kind of Abyss invasion? This is the place where Apocalypse Paradise selects contractors and Battle Angels."
"The paradise does not interfere with the normal operation of the world. Besides, that level of Abyss seepage is fundamentally different from Abyss erosion. There won't be any Abyss passages."
"Shouldn't our top Battle Angels from Apocalypse Paradise handle it?"
Morei asked the doubt in her heart. Seeing this, Su Xiao knew that Morei had taken the bait. He didn't directly answer her question. Baha on his shoulder explained, "The seepage of Abyss energy poses no threat to contractors and Battle Angels. The resulting surge in dark creatures is actually beneficial to contractors. But it is a huge burden for the local major powers. For example, the Atlantis Empire your father rules. Once dark creatures run rampant within the empire, your father would have to spend at least two-fifths of the empire's finances to exterminate and contain these dark creatures. In the end, it's the local forces and residents of Tianwang Star who suffer. Understand now?"
After Baha's explanation, Morei gradually realized the seriousness of the matter. Although she didn't know how to govern a vast empire, she knew that spending nearly half of the finances to exterminate and contain these dark creatures would lead to disastrous consequences.
Seeing Morei lost in thought, Baha tempted her, "Morei, we know you don't like to show off. But you can get a set of gear to hide your identity, and then we'll teach you how to completely resolve the Abyss seepage in that area. Imagine, a hidden master. If your brothers, sisters, and younger siblings found out about this identity... tsk tsk, how cool would that be? And even if they don't find out, just knowing that you are the hidden master yourself is a... particularly pleasant experience, isn't it?"
After saying this, Baha found that Morei was still hesitating, so he immediately delivered the finishing blow, "Imagine your tenth sister, who has always thought you were unambitious, who both feels frustrated with you and considers you her most important relative. How shocked would she be to learn that her sister is such an awesome figure? And before that, you can keep up the act of pretending to be a fool while hiding your strength. Just picture it."
Under Baha's narration, Morei couldn't help but smile. She weighed the pros and cons and finally gritted her teeth and asked, "How much Void Tree Reputation will I lose for helping you stock up at the Soul Academy?"
"How much do you have now?"
Hearing Baha's question, Morei chose to check her Void Tree Reputation and then said, "15,860 points."
"?"
Su Xiao, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha all looked at Morei. This made Morei a little embarrassed, and she asked, "Is that a lot?"
Morei seemed puzzled, as if she thought that at Rank 9, having a Void Tree Reputation over ten thousand was normal.
"Ahem... how did you do that?"
"I didn't do anything special. This kind of reputation just increased on its own after I advanced to Rank 9."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. He glanced at his own Void Tree Reputation of -?? and felt that after this stock-up trip, it would probably return to -???.
Under Morei's insistence, the group did not use the "Law-Destroying Teleportation Array" to go to the Academy Tower. Instead, they first arrived at the outer city of Twilight City and came to the 90th District, which had become a cemetery. Many trees had been planted here. Even during the day, the place was misty and dark, with a gloomy atmosphere.
Morei took out an ancient bronze bell, hung it on a tree branch, and tapped it with her index finger.
Clang~
The sound of the bell came, stirring up layers of soul ripples in the air. After a brief silence, the sound of horse hooves and a carriage rumbled. A pitch-black carriage appeared, with two green flame lanterns hanging on the front, pulled by five undead horses. This was the Nether Carriage.
This carriage had a significant origin. It was said that it could be summoned anywhere and would take passengers to their destination. As long as there were enough Soul Coins, this metal beast-like Nether Carriage would dare to charge even into Abyss-eroded areas to pick up passengers from such dangerous places. It was said that this was a service under the Nether Bank.
Speaking of the Nether Bank, one had to mention its old rival, the Giant Bank. Looking across the myriad realms, even the Void Bank, which had Arcane Eternal Star as its largest shareholder and all major Void forces as shareholders, could not match either the Nether Bank or the Giant Bank.
The Giant Bank's deposit business was definitely number one in the myriad realms. The fact that the high-ranking Arcane Eternal Star official, Dean Guya, stored his items there showed the strength and reputation of the Giant Bank.
The Nether Bank was not located in the Nether Realm. This force was so domineering that it bought an entire world, named the Golden Ring Star. The entire Ring Star had a total of 16 habitable planets, on which 160 world-level teleportation arrays were set up. As for the main business of the Nether Bank, it was loans.
Loans were available without collateral, and no one dared not to repay. The Nether Bank wouldn't even send debt collectors. When the loan period expired, the Nether Bank would start collecting the debtor's luck and fate. They didn't want collateral; they determined the loan amount based on the customer's luck limit. When the time came, they would collect the luck. It was a sure profit.
There was an exception to everything. The only customer blacklisted by the Nether Bank in the entire Star Realm was the infamous fraudster, Nicholas Kaisa. Kaisa had previously fleeced the Nether Bank so badly that they were left dumbfounded.
Speaking of which, the three richest forces in the myriad realms—the Goblin Merchant Guild, the Nether Bank, and the Giant Bank—all suffered from varying degrees of Kaisa-phobia.
After the Nether Carriage stopped, Morei pressed her hand on it, and the door opened. The group boarded and found that the carriage's interior was a different world. The interior space was at least 20 square meters and was very luxurious. The dining table in the middle was fully stocked with various delicacies, drinks, and so on.
The door closed automatically, and the carriage began to move. There was almost no feeling of bumpiness, and the carriage's soundproofing was excellent. Morei sat down at the dining table, ready to enjoy lunch.
"Morei, are you a VIP customer of the Nether Bank?"
Baha looked around the carriage's interior, quite amazed by this Nether Carriage.
"No, I'm not."
"Then how did you summon this Nether Carriage?"
"Oh, this. I'm actually a shareholder of the Nether Bank."
"Pfft~!"
Baha had just taken a swig of wine from the bottle when he choked and sprayed it out of his nose. He stared at Morei across from him in disbelief. Suddenly, a thought struck him. There were quite a few miners in Apocalypse Paradise. Morei, in terms of mining, was only luckier than others. She didn't have any special skills, unlike Yueshitu, who had a large number of moon-type summons to help her mine.
She wasn't outstanding in strength, nor in mining ability. She relied on luck to open treasure chests, but the returns were definitely not particularly exaggerated. Under these circumstances, how could Morei become the richest of the three little rich sisters? It simply didn't make sense.
Now, it made perfect sense. Even if Morei only had 0.01% of the Nether Bank's shares, the Soul Coins she received each quarter would be an unimaginable fortune for an individual.
"How many shares do you have?"
"Very few, 0.012%."
Hearing this, Baha was dumbfounded. He thought for a moment and then sincerely asked, "Morei, tell me the truth. What color sack do you like? We'll prepare it quickly and try to kidnap you as soon as possible to ransom you to the Nether Bank."
"You wouldn't do that."
"Oh? You trust my boss's character that much?"
"Mm. If you guys would harm your collaborators, I would have been silenced the first time Bai Ye extorted Soul Coins from me. I've been extorted by you about... eight times? Hmm~, anyway, too many times to remember clearly. I'm still alive, which means Bai Ye also has a weakness. His weakness is that he won't harm his collaborators. Haha, this princess has seen through you! Now, quickly kneel before me!"
A moment later, Morei, with a bruised right eye, stood by the dining table and said in a somewhat unconvinced tone, "I'm sorry, I got carried away just now. I'll dare to do it again... ah no, I won't dare next time."
Just then, the carriage stopped. When the door opened, a large city appeared ahead. This large city was about the size of one district of Twilight City, but don't underestimate its area. If the buildings were reasonably distributed, it could easily accommodate a population of several million.
The towering city walls could not hide the tall tower in the city center. That was the Soul Tower, the location of the Soul Academy. However, the sun was already hanging at the edge of the sky. Although it was only dusk, the sky was pitch black.
Entering the city went smoothly. After all, the Soul Academy had invited Su Xiao to deal with the two "Immortal, Undying Abyss Spawn." However, the problem was that night was about to fall. The nights on Blazing Sun Star were terrifying.
There were four tiers of night: Dark Night, Black Night, Blood Night, and Eternal Night. Among them, Eternal Night was the most terrifying. Once it descended, it was a sign that Blazing Sun Star was about to collapse. The next tier, Blood Night, was so dangerous that even Absolute Strong powerhouses dared not move through the wilderness during a Blood Night.
When the sun completely set, a blood-red moon hung high in the sky. Blood Night... had descended.
Suddenly, a long, beast-like howl came from afar. Hearing this howl, Su Xiao's heart thumped violently. It wasn't fear that caused his heart to tremble, but a strange sense of resonance. It felt as if the Abyss existence that had let out that long howl was destined to fight him to the death, and it would be tonight, during this Blood Night.
[Warning: The Immortal, Undying Abyss Spawn, Abyss Second Son, Uvaliuto, is approaching you.]
[Abyss Second Son, Uvaliuto has designated you as his Nemesis (This hostile relationship means that before the end of this Blood Night, he will definitely fight you to the death).]
[Abyss Second Son, Uvaliuto has summoned all dark creatures and dark spawn within this large area to surround and kill you.]
[Due to this unexpected event, you have successfully triggered the following trial. You may choose one of two.]