Chapter 42: Monarch
Dawn City was completely different from a few days ago. The towering metal walls showed signs of decay, covered in a thick layer of vines, which made it convenient for everyone to enter the city by climbing up along the vines.
On the thousand-meter-high city wall, a warm, fierce wind howled. Su Xiao stood at the edge, overlooking the city. He could see that the front district was divided into two distinct areas, left and right.
The eastern area was lush to the point of distortion. Thick, dark green vines, several meters in diameter, coiled there, covered in undead. The ends of the vines were massive flower buds, from which a viscous, transparent liquid seeped, forming streams on the ground that converged at the center of this area.
This was a blooming vine flower, hundreds of meters in diameter. At its core, within the stamen, was a cluster of purple-pink light, seemingly containing a figure. Presumably, this was the leader-level unit of this area, the Plant Kingdom's Yagowa Princess, Lisiyouni.
Undead that had formed a parasitic relationship with plants roamed among the giant vines and thorn trees of this area. Judging by their appearance, they would be extremely difficult to shatter and immobilize.
Compared to the right side of the front district, the left side presented a starkly different scene. The buildings here were dim, viscous, like soft, rotten wood infested with insects. Darkness and dark red were the dominant colors here.
Upon closer inspection, countless decay insects could be seen writhing in this decay and stickiness. The undead lurking in the shadows of this area were all parasitic hosts. If they were blown up, decay insects would splatter everywhere. Contact with even a single one would result in high-intensity erosion from parasitism, insect venom, and decay.
Without a doubt, one of the four leaders, the Decaying Insect Abomination, Poison Leech, was here.
If one cautiously passed through the border between the "Thriving Garden" and the "Decayed District," they would reach the "King's Approach." On this hundred-meter-wide, several-kilometer-long stone avenue, it was filled with undead whose bodies were covered in metal deformities. They averaged over three meters in height, clad in heavy armor while wielding heavy cold weapons.
At the innermost area of these elite undead stood a figure over seven meters tall, clad in dark golden battle armor. This was the Mad Dragon General, Bashid. The raised, dark red veins on his right arm came from the source blood of the Undead Monarch. Once the Undead Monarch was eliminated, this undead source blood would be activated, allowing the Undead Monarch to be reborn.
Passing through the King's Approach led to a solemn and magnificent hall. A skull over a hundred meters in diameter sat atop this hall. This was the King's Hall, the location of the final boss, the Undead Monarch.
As for trying to sneak around from the back to infiltrate the King's Hall, that was impossible. The entire rear area of Dawn City was a dense forest of stone statues, guarded by the "Colossus Guardian, Ao." This thousand-meter-tall colossus resembled a rock giant from ancient times.
Everyone on the city wall reconfirmed the plan. It had been planned in advance. Each team was responsible for specific enemies. The Demon Scythe Team was responsible for the Princess in the "Thriving Garden." The Priest Team was responsible for the Decaying Insect Abomination, Poison Leech, in the "Decayed District." Haojiu and the Undead Team were responsible for the Mad Dragon General, Bashid, on the King's Approach. The Kane Team was responsible for the Colossus Guardian, Ao, in the rear "Stone Statue Forest."
As for Su Xiao, he was to fight the final boss inside the King's Hall, the Undead Monarch awakened by Xiketo at the cost of his own complete death.
The Undead Monarch had three undead characteristics. The first was an unbreakable recovery ability. Even if its head was blown off, it could instantly repair itself. Its health regeneration rate was a terrifying 300% of its maximum health per second.
With a maximum health of 650%, the Undead Monarch could fully restore its special vitality, or undead power, in less than 3 seconds.
Even more absurd, with the support of the World Force, the Undead Monarch had protective energy equal to five times its maximum health, meaning 3250% of false health. Before this false health was depleted, it was impossible to truly harm the Undead Monarch.
Even more absurd was that the Undead Monarch's exaggerated health regeneration also applied to restoring this false health. It only took 11 seconds to fully restore this ridiculously high false health.
No matter how you looked at it, this super boss was invincible. At least within this world, it was impossible to defeat this terrifying existence. The problem was that the 28 participants this time were also incredibly abnormal.
Confirmed. The Demon Scythe Team and the Priest Team set off. This time, the Priest Team wasn't just Priest alone. There was also the Curse Warlock, the Poison Priest, and Greed, Yutro. The ability systems of these three were all leaning towards dark, giving them higher resistance to decay insects.
It was worth mentioning that since the Gentleman Team currently only had Sea Crocodile left, he was temporarily assigned to the Priest Team. Upon hearing this news, Sea Crocodile tried to refuse, but under the friendly gazes of Priest, Platinum Apostle, Haojiu, and Su Xiao, he laughed and said, "I was just trying to lighten the mood, just kidding," and agreed to the assignment.
The wind on the high wall gradually subsided, but it was still hot. Steel Demon Dragon, Kane, standing at the edge of the wall, looked at Su Xiao. Without a word, he just nodded, then leaped off the wall. His steel dragon wings spread as he circled around to the rear of Dawn City.
Su Xiao took out the pocket watch given by the Holy Maiden, set it for 10 minutes, and then opened the communication list of the temporary adventure group. That's right, that old bastard Priest had somehow managed to create a temporary adventure group. Now, all participants had joined it.
On the high wall, Su Xiao checked the time. The Demon Scythe Team and the Priest Team had already arrived at the Thriving Garden and the Decayed District, ready to attack the Princess and the Decaying Insect Abomination, Poison Leech, at any moment. Now, they were just waiting for the Kane Team to reach the Stone Statue Forest in the rear district, the area of the Colossus Guardian, Ao. Then, all three teams could strike simultaneously.
Without first destroying the three "Core Hubs," Su Xiao had no chance of a decisive battle with the Undead Monarch. He checked the time on his pocket watch again. He had never doubted whether Demon Scythe, Priest, and Kane could handle the three leaders. As for the battle between Haojiu and the Mad Dragon General, Bashid, he also believed Haojiu would win.
He looked up at the sky. This huge cage world belonging to the undead was unexpectedly sunny. Just then, the member of the Holy Light Paradise Witch Team, Black Eye, behind Su Xiao, asked:
"Mr. White Night, will we succeed this time?"
Black Eye's eyes showed worry.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. For some reason, as time passed, he felt an increasingly faint palpitation in his heart. Even when he had fought the Abyssal Shadow, Ximan Aqide, in the past, fighting nearly to the death, he hadn't felt this kind of palpitation.
However, Su Xiao never believed that the Undead Monarch could be compared to the Abyssal Shadow, Ximan Aqide. The Undead Monarch's strength came more from the blessing of this world, meaning its strength lay in its combat mechanics.
To be safe, Su Xiao spoke in the Dawn Adventure Group's channel, telling Bubu Wang, Amu, and Beini to act cautiously. Baha was a bit better off, being a space system, and he instructed Baha to try to save Fenny's life in the upcoming battle if possible. This Absolute Strong level healer from the Apocalypse Paradise might be of great use in the subsequent stages.
Although the current battle was dangerous, the next round would involve stepping into the Dawn Ruins. That was a remnant area of a paradise. Even though the Dawn Paradise was semi-dormant, it was still extremely dangerous.
Su Xiao raised his hand, looking at the hands of the pocket watch ticking away. There were still five minutes until the agreed time. He looked at the captain of the Witch Team, Battle Angel, Zellina.
"Let's go."
Zellina said, then took the lead in leaping off the wall. The few behind her followed closely.
"Gulp, gulp~"
The sound of someone drinking heavily came from Haojiu. He was over three meters tall, bare-chested with a strong physique, his lion-like wild hair flowing behind him. He tilted his head back and downed a large bottle of strong liquor, exhaling a refreshing breath of alcohol. He licked his stark white, hard, flat teeth and said:
"White Night, I have a damn bad feeling."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. He just took a sip of the already opened Elemental Brew. This fine wine, which could rank among the top dozens even in the myriad realms, made the nearby Haojiu, who loved alcohol, swallow his saliva. Seeing this, Su Xiao raised the hand holding the bottle. He didn't speak, but the meaning was clear.
"Haha, hahaha..."
Haojiu awkwardly raised his hand to decline. It wasn't for other reasons. White Night was famous not only for his blade techniques and contracts but also for his alchemical poisons. If he took a gulp, it would be satisfying, but what alchemical poison he would end up with was anyone's guess.
"..."
Su Xiao took a light sip of the Elemental Brew. He didn't look down on Haojiu for his actions. Sometimes, sacrificing some unimportant face to avoid unknown risks was a viable choice.
"Time's almost up. You undead players, follow me."
After leaving this remark, Haojiu leaped out with a bang. He flew high like a cannonball, arcing down towards the King's Approach.
"Tch~, you're the one playing with the undead. So rude."
The smoky-eyed Death Soul Sister muttered, nodded to Su Xiao, said, "This time, it's up to you," and then teleported short-range onto the back of the Frost Dragon.
A hoarse dragon roar sent layers of air waves spreading. The Frost Dragon carried several undead system members towards the King's Approach, to fight the Mad Dragon General, Bashid, together with Haojiu. It wasn't that they didn't trust Haojiu's strength, but that the Mad Dragon General, Bashid, was stronger than the other three leaders.
Time passed second by second. When the pocket watch emitted a crisp *click*, Su Xiao immediately activated the Law-Destroying Teleportation Array under his feet.
*Boom!*
To the shocked gazes of a few nearby support system participants, the teleportation array left a cracked circular imprint on the ground. These few all had long-range enhancement abilities and didn't need to enter the King's Hall with Su Xiao to fight the Undead Monarch.
After a strong and familiar teleportation sensation, the spatial cracks around Su Xiao gradually disappeared. Inside the dimly lit hall, thick black chains, as thick as an arm, hung down from above, converging on a high chair at the center of the hall.
This stone high chair wasn't large, but it was a full ten meters high. A figure, tightly bound by black chains, sat bound on the high chair. It had backward-curving horns, and the dark golden scales on its neck, like armor, seemed withered and cracked by the erosion of time.
As if sensing Su Xiao's arrival, the Undead Monarch, whose body had shriveled like a dying old man, trembled its eyelids and opened its eyes.
"Damn... Xiketo."
The Undead Monarch spoke in a hoarse voice, long devoid of the domineering aura it had when breaking the seal.
"And that... despicable little man... who plays with fate... damn it!"
The Undead Monarch gritted its yellowed teeth, grinding them until they cracked, hating the behind-the-scenes old yinbi who had schemed it into this situation.
"I'm sorry, Law Destroyer... I've been... sealed and trapped... for too long... too eager... to obtain freedom... and I broke my promise... to the Mask."
Saying this, the Undead Monarch, who seemed on the verge of dying of old age, vomited a large mouthful of black blood. The chains binding it tightened even more, even cracking the gray stone seat beneath it.
"Hehehe... in the end... I overestimated myself... thinking I could borrow or even obtain that power of extreme darkness... but in the end... I became a sealing vessel."
The Undead Monarch laughed bitterly, then vomited more black blood. This seemed to open a valve. Black blood began to spurt from its eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. This black blood scattered on the ground, spreading in a regular circle, finally stopping at a diameter of over ten meters.
A familiar and dangerous aura of the Abyss rushed towards him. Su Xiao's expression was calm. The persistent, faint palpitation in his heart finally disappeared. At this moment, he was puzzled about one thing: how many coincidences had been pieced together to create this pit, causing him, Priest, and Haojiu to all fall into it?
As for who dug this pit, if Su Xiao couldn't figure it out by now, he wouldn't have been able to play games with so many old yinbis until today. The one who dug this pit was Platinum Apostle and Xiketo.
First of all, Xiketo, who was qualified to be an opponent of the group leader in the past, naturally wouldn't be afraid of death. Moreover, he had long been in a state between life and death.
If he couldn't defeat the Chosen of the same era, then burying the Chosen of this era in this cage world that had trapped him for many years seemed like a good choice. However, this lacked an opportunity.
The appearance of Platinum Apostle gave Xiketo this opportunity. Both were Violators, and one had once possessed the "Forbidden Mark: Fate Mark," while the other was currently possessing it. When they first met, there was an unspoken understanding that others couldn't comprehend.
Even more wonderful was that Platinum Apostle had once been a subordinate of the group leader. In fact, when the group leader fought against the Violator Alliance, including Xiketo, Platinum Apostle had participated in this grand confrontation as the group leader's subordinate. Although Platinum Apostle was a second-rate figure at the time, Xiketo still remembered such a person.
Fate was so wonderful. When the two met, they had an unspoken understanding. Such a clever conspiracy was hard for even Su Xiao and Priest to avoid, because neither of them was omniscient.
What was worse was that the Undead Monarch wasn't trapped in this world. It had once been a sealer, but it was gradually eroded by the existence within the seal, losing its mind. It wanted to abandon the seal and leave this place, achieving the delusion of dominating the void and myriad realms that had been brewing in its heart. But in the end, under multiple measures, it was forced to become a vessel.
This meant that the Undead Monarch, without knowing it, had silently cooperated with Platinum Apostle and Xiketo, making their plan even more seamless.
Speaking of which, the Undead Monarch was also once on the group leader's side. This old brother's entire clan died from the Abyss invasion, leaving him nearly heart like dead ashes. His hatred for the existence of the Abyss made him accept the group leader's commission.
In the empty King's Hall, there seemed to be an intangible whisper from an unknown place. The Abyss energy here was rapidly becoming dense. Drop-shaped black water droplets floated around.
[Warning: This area is being invaded by Abyss power!]
A series of bright red Apocalypse Paradise warning prompts appeared. It seemed that this area was given a very high danger level by the Apocalypse Paradise. Su Xiao closed these warnings. As for why the Reincarnation Paradise didn't give him a warning, he guessed it might be because he often entered Abyss areas or frequently fought against Abyss system enemies, making his judgment threshold for this aspect particularly high.
Su Xiao looked at the dark blood area ahead that was gradually boiling. He didn't interrupt. That existence had already successfully broken the seal. Attacking now would only speed up its escape.
A pleasant smell of fresh rain and earth filled the air. This made Su Xiao frown. He had spent over 100,000 ounces of Space-Time Power to upgrade his "Top-Tier Abyssology," which was no decoration. This omen meant that the Abyss existence about to appear must have been a particularly powerful Abyss powerhouse in the past.
The communicator in his pocket vibrated. Su Xiao took it out, unhurriedly lit a cigarette, glanced at the circular dark blood area, and answered the call. Priest's voice came through:
"It seems... it's Platinum Apostle."
"Mm."
Su Xiao spoke. Sometimes, temporarily cooperating with an old yinbi was quite comfortable. At least you didn't have to explain to them what was happening.
"What's that thing on your end? Troublesome?"
"Very."
"I see. Well, it seems I can only live and die with you."
Hearing Priest's words, Su Xiao's hand paused. He flicked away the remaining half of his cigarette. The half-cigarette flipped in the air, leaving a few wisps of blue smoke as it fell into the dark blood area, instantly evaporating.
Su Xiao was silent for two seconds, then said, "What, is the world outside the hall collapsing?"
"Hehe."
Priest laughed without answering.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. He just privately sent the information of an item to Priest through the temporary team channel. This was [Defiled Fate Blood].
"You finally got it."
Priest sighed, as if his weakness had been seen through. But Su Xiao wouldn't believe that this old bastard was so easily controlled.
"Let's join forces. Until the end of this Paradise War."
Priest's tone was rarely without his usual kind and amiable smile, but instead carried a hint of seriousness.
"Alright. To be safe, let's sign a contract."
As soon as Su Xiao said this, Priest immediately fell silent. After a moment, Priest said with rare seriousness, "Don't joke like that. If I'm not mistaken, that big guy is about to come out. You're the expert in this area. What are our chances?"
"No chance."
As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of the communicator being snatched came from the other end.
"Hey! White Night, don't be so pessimistic. Can't a group of us take down an Abyss existence? Even if we can't kill it, we can seal it, right?"
Haojiu's voice came from the communicator. It could be heard that there were quite a few people on Priest's side. It was estimated that the sudden change of the Undead Monarch had made the four leaders all outwardly strong but inwardly weak. They relied on the blessing of this world, appearing particularly intimidating, but their flaws would show once a real fight started.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't speak. He wasn't exaggerating. Just a few seconds ago, the gray stone high seat belonging to the Undead Monarch was cracked by the black chains. A pitch-black greatsword revealed itself slightly.
This greatsword was about four meters long, with a medium-width blade. It looked both heavy and sharp. At the pommel was a dark blue gem. The dark blue light particles inside pulsed like a heart, flickering on and off.
Su Xiao had seen this greatsword more than once. To be precise, he had seen its imitation before. This was:
The Abyss Greatsword!
The former weapon of the Lord of the Abyss.
Su Xiao didn't think that what was sealed here was the previous Lord of the Abyss. It wasn't that he looked down on the Undead Monarch, but even at its peak, it indeed wasn't qualified.
Even so, what was sealed here must be an existence only one tier below the previous Lord of the Abyss, one of its right-hand men. Otherwise, it wouldn't be qualified to hold this representative Abyss weapon after the Lord of the Abyss disappeared.
*Gurgle!*
The dark blood on the ground boiled. A strong arm reached out from the dark blood, and with a *smack*, it pressed down on the blood surface.
*Bang! Bang!*
As the black chains in the hall shattered one by one, a nearly ten-meter-tall, pitch-black, four-armed giant stood up from the black blood. It had beard-like tentacles on its lower jaw, wooden, messy horns on its head. When its eyes opened, the secondary eyes on its sides also opened. The lower half of its face had an exoskeleton mask with fine pores.
*Whoosh!*
The four-armed giant took a deep breath. A whirlwind formed in the entire hall. The airflow converged towards the giant, causing ripples in space due to the suction.
"How long has it been... this feeling of being real in the material world."
The four-armed giant breathed deeply, intoxicated. It glanced at Su Xiao and said with a hint of mockery, "Oh? A disciple of Mawen. Last time, he made me slumber for many years. Although he's a bastard, he's not an arrogant guy. He wouldn't let a disciple come alone to challenge me. It seems it's a coincidence."
The four-armed giant, no, the Abyss Guard Captain, grinned, revealing a mouthful of stark white teeth. The previous Lord of the Abyss had two right-hand men. One was the Abyss Governor, who leaned towards strategy, and the other was the representative of force, the Abyss Guard Captain.
At this moment, Su Xiao and the others had to face the Abyss Guard Captain, who had just broken the seal and possessed the Abyss Greatsword.
Good news: This world was suppressing the Abyss Guard Captain's combat power limit, preventing it from reaching above Absolute Strong, meaning the Supreme level.
Bad news: This world was gradually collapsing due to the Abyss Guard Captain's escape.
Even worse, this was a cage. Before it completely collapsed, no one could escape. Moreover, during this Paradise War, six Paradise factions and the Void Tree were notarizing this place. It was still possible to enter midway. As for leaving, even with Priest's immortality, it was impossible to achieve this.
The truth was so wonderful. Su Xiao, Priest, and Haojiu, who should have been mortal enemies, could only join forces now, or they would surely die.
There will be two more chapters later.