# 1276
Chapter 1277: "Gjallar"
Hearing these words, Lin Qiye's brow furrowed tightly.
"What do you mean? The two of us have to decide who lives and dies?" Lin Qiye果断 shook his head. "That's impossible. Wait here, I'll use the [Holy Grail] to bring you out."
Lin Qiye pulled out Mumu. Just as he was about to speak, Si Xiaonan interrupted him:
"The King's [Holy Grail] requires a sacrifice each time it's used. You should save it for a critical moment... Don't worry, I just need to die once."
Lin Qiye: "...?"
Si Xiaonan explained weakly: "I can first fabricate a 'trick' to deceive my body, causing my physiological functions to fall into a death state. Once we leave here, I can undo it and revive. It can last about ten seconds or so. Feigning death isn't difficult for me."
Lin Qiye stared at her in astonishment. "Is that really possible? Nothing will go wrong?"
"It won't." Si Xiaonan flipped the dagger into her palm. A strand of black silk drifted out from her heart, quickly weaving something.
"See you outside the arena."
A pale smile curved her lips. She猛地 thrust the dagger into her own heart. Her body convulsed. Bright red blood gushed from the corner of her mouth.
Lin Qiye下意识 reached out to stop her, but it was already too late.
As her eyes gradually glazed over, her heart finally fell into complete stillness.
In the gray-white world, only Lin Qiye stood rooted in place, staring in a daze at Si Xiaonan's corpse in the pool of blood.
Bang!
A soft sound echoed from the sky. The gray-shrouded dome shattered like broken glass, fragmenting inch by inch. Everything around Lin Qiye began to distort.
Detecting that only Lin Qiye remained as the sole survivor within this world, the [Gray-White Arena] automatically dissolved. Lin Qiye felt the world spin around him before his form returned to the dense forest.
The destruction caused by the battle with Phil seemed as though it had never happened. Towering trees swayed gently in the wind, rustling softly. Scattered on the ground nearby lay several corpses of agents, utterly devoid of life.
Lin Qiye's eyes remained fixed on Si Xiaonan, who lay dead beside him. His heart climbed into his throat.
He silently counted the seconds in his mind. When he reached ten, the black rune on Si Xiaonan's chest suddenly shattered. The "trick" broke apart. The wound where the dagger had pierced her heart vanished as if it had never existed, and the organ began to beat slowly once more.
Si Xiaonan's eyes snapped open. She gasped desperately for air, her face deathly pale without a trace of color.
Her gaze slowly drifted to Lin Qiye beside her, who had松了口气. She smiled and said, "Qiye... can you carry me on your back? I can't move a single finger."
Without a word, Lin Qiye lifted Si Xiaonan onto his back. His spiritual sense swept over her body, and his expression grew grave. "How are your injuries this severe?"
"...It's a long story." Si Xiaonan's voice was barely audible, like a mosquito buzzing in Lin Qiye's ear. Her eyes couldn't help but drift shut. "I... need to... sleep for a while..."
Before she could finish, Si Xiaonan's head lolled and she fell into a deep slumber.
After confirming she was temporarily out of danger, Lin Qiye exhaled deeply. Carrying Si Xiaonan on his back, he picked up the [Gray-White Arena] fragment from Phil's corpse nearby and fed it to Mumu. Since this was a fragment of a divine artifact, it would surely be useful someday.
Having finished this, Lin Qiye first draped a layer of transformation magic over himself, reinforcing it with perfect disguise. Only then did he carry Si Xiaonan and swiftly make his way out of the dense forest.
...
Mist.
On the raging sea, a pixelated cruise ship cut through the waves, sailing slowly through the darkness.
"We're almost there."
Inside the cabin, the knight held a map in his hand, his gaze fixed on the sea beyond the glass, his voice low.
"Is this Asgard?" Jiang Er asked curiously.
"No. This is the entrance to Asgard's 'Human Enclosure,'" the knight shook his head.
"'Human Enclosure'? But weren't Qiye and Jinian captured and taken to Asgard? Why are we going to the 'Human Enclosure'?"
"Asgard is the divine realm of the Norse Gods. There's no way we can enter through the front," An Qingyu pushed up her glasses and explained seriously. "That place isn't the Abandoned Paradise and Hell, nor is it the long-destroyed Takamagahara. Asgard houses hundreds of deities. Charging in from the front would be no different than walking into a trap."
"Exactly. And before he left, the president left word that the Bifröst, Asgard's only passage to the outside world, has been sealed. Even if we wanted to enter through the front door, we couldn't. The only way is through the 'Human Enclosure,'" the knight paused, then continued. "And this route works better for us anyway. After all, the Oath Society has infiltrated many 'Human Enclosures' of the various divine realms over the years. Traveling through the 'Human Enclosure,' we have confidence we won't be detected by the Norse Gods."
"But even so, we'll still need to enter Asgard in the end," Baili Pangpang spoke up. "How are we going to rescue Qiye and the others from the Norse divine realm? Do you have a plan?"
An Qingyu turned to look at the knight, seemingly waiting for his response.
Since the Oath Society dared to propose rescuing people from Asgard, they must have some依靠. Otherwise, all the humans combined wouldn't be enough for even two or three gods to kill.
The knight fell into contemplation for a moment, then turned toward the bow of the pixel cruise ship.
At the very front deck of the ship, four silhouettes stood silently in the mist, gazing at the distant sea. They varied in height and build, their black garments fluttering in the wind. The only thing they had in common was that each wore a different pale mask on their face.
One a smiling face, one a weeping face, one a furious face, one a sorrowful face.
"They are..." Cao Yuan sensed the terrifying aura emanating from them and asked, puzzled.
"They are the four special envoys of our Oath Society." The knight introduced them. "Our Oath Society has thirteen envoys in total, but only the top four are true top-tier powerhouses—the highest combat force beneath the president himself. Even working together, even the president might not be able to defeat them."
An Qingyu's brow arched. "Apex-level combat power worthy of the Human Apex, indeed rare. But forgive my frankness—it's still far from enough for what we're trying to accomplish..."
"I know."
The knight nodded. He walked to a spot on the deck and reverently retrieved a half-person-tall black chest from a hidden compartment.
He set the chest on the table and pressed the latch. The lid popped open automatically.
A dark golden, massive horn lay quietly inside.
"This is..." Baili Pangpang asked, confused.
"This is the 'Supreme' divine artifact of Asgard—the [Gjallar]."