Chapter 713 - 446: Questions and Plans (2)

Chapter 713: Chapter 446: Questions and Plans (2)

"Alright, you’ve asked your three questions. Now it’s your turn to fulfill the covenant. You must bring me a crystal within seven days."

"No problem. Rest assured, my lord."

Zhou Chen gave a formal bow, then chose to exit the cell.

[You have left Frost Giant Begger’s cell...]

The moment he was out, Danika asked anxiously, "Are you really going to help Begger break his seal?"

"I have my own plans. Don’t worry," Zhou Chen reassured her.

In fact, he wasn’t just planning to help Begger break his seal. He was also preparing to help the other three Abyssal Spirits escape their seals, fulfilling their wish of more than twenty centuries.

—And then, once he’d sheared the sheep, it would be time for a swift, practiced backstab.

A plan was already taking shape in his mind.

"You... Never mind. I trust you." Danika ultimately chose to have faith in him. Zhou Chen had already given her too many surprises, and she believed he had his own plan.

"Have you read about the things Begger just mentioned in any of your books?" Zhou Chen asked.

"I’ve only read that Begger and Carol fought for the ’King of the Abyss’ as Abyssal Spirits. I haven’t seen anything else," Danika answered truthfully.

"With the Soul Covenant, Begger can’t lie. As someone who experienced it firsthand, everything he said should be true. Carol was the one who dragged him into it, and the reason Carol was observing that black star was because of the King of Gaia’s suggestion..."

Zhou Chen said seriously, "I have reason to suspect the King of Gaia was once tainted by the Secret. He must have realized it in time, eliminated the taint, and understood the gravity of the situation. That’s why his attitude changed, and he began to see the Black Sun as a serious threat. It wasn’t because he was afraid his throne was threatened, like Begger claimed. Hmm... you have to take everything a completely corrupt and fallen creature from Hell like Begger says and reverse it."

"That does sound logical. But honestly, there’s no point in tracing all this back now. The King of Gaia died long ago during the operation to break the World’s barrier. Whether he was tainted or not isn’t really important," Danika said.

"No, it’s quite important."

Zhou Chen narrowed his eyes slightly. "I have a gut feeling. I just feel like the King of Gaia isn’t dead. If he was in a tainted state back then, it’s highly likely his body was later possessed by an ’Abyssal Incarnation.’ If he wasn’t tainted..."

"Impossible," Danika said resolutely. "For centuries, countless people have believed the King of Gaia wasn’t dead. Innumerable individuals embarked on journeys to find him, but not a single one ever found proof he was still alive... The Satellite Cities investigated as well, and their conclusion was that the King of Gaia is dead."

"But I just have this feeling."

Zhou Chen shrugged. "It’s a premonition from being a gold-medal Operator of the Star Association and a hardcore Player. Of course, citing my status as a Player sounds a bit ridiculous, but who’s to blame when Gaia itself has been gamified? Maybe a big surprise will pop up at the end of the main quest..."

He silently glanced at the quest on his mission panel titled "King of Gaia."

[Quest Type: Challenge]

[Quest Difficulty: Epic of the Ages]

[Quest Objective: Become the King of Gaia, clear Zone 009.]

[Quest Reward: 200,000 Prayer Points.]

[Note from an unknown existence:

—I pray to you from here. Please save our World...]

The Prayer Points as a reward, the note from an unknown existence... all of it indicated that someone was constantly watching Gaia from the shadows, and there was a very high probability that this person was the King of Gaia.

Of course, if the King of Gaia had been tainted, then this person wouldn’t be him. On the contrary, he would very likely have had his body taken over by an Abyssal Incarnation—the King of Gaia was Gaia’s strongest, so the possibility that an "Abyssal Incarnation" would use the opportunity to corrupt and possess him was high.

And besides his gut feeling, another reason Zhou Chen felt the King of Gaia might not be dead was that when he tried to use a Prayer for divination, he couldn’t get a result.

The Prayer Points were spent, but all he got was a string of illogical, garbled text.

This shrouded the King of Gaia’s whereabouts in an even thicker fog of mystery.

Danika didn’t want to argue with him further and instead asked, "Where are you planning to go next?"

"The Cultists here are useless now. I’ll get rid of them first."

·

「Three minutes later.」

In the office, the middle-aged Priest was beheaded by the Silver White Sun Unrivaled Blade, his face a mask of shock. Faced with Zhou Chen’s sudden attack, he had no power to resist and was killed instantly.

After picking up the Artifacts, Zhou Chen returned to the hall, which was now littered with corpses, only to find that a bonfire had somehow appeared there.

’So, since I’ve cleared out the small fry in the stronghold, I can use this as a safe house to save my progress...?’

He didn’t waste any time. He lit the bonfire and saved his progress.

Then he opened his map, checked the distance to his remaining targets, and teleported away.

Next target—Fear Snake Babakar.

·

The Snake of Fear’s seal was located in a forest region.

As soon as they arrived in the vicinity, Danika sensed the presence of a large-scale Illusion Technique.

Among the Magic he had "borrowed" from the Magic Academy was the Spiritual Vision Magic for seeing through illusions. After casting it on himself, the beautiful, scenic forest before his eyes instantly transformed into a foul, stinking swamp.

The lush trees became gnarled, withered Demon trees, the clear river turned into a bubbling, foul-smelling marsh, and the cute little animals became ugly, deformed Abyssal Monsters... The entire aesthetic of the World had changed.

A large, crudely built wooden cabin stood in the distance. It was the Desecration Church’s stronghold here.

Zhou Chen entered using Invisibility. This time, he didn’t waste words and went straight for the kill. Within a few minutes, he had eliminated all the Cultists, including their Priest, and then made a Prayer to find the exact location of the Snake of Fear’s cell.

[Prayer Points -1000]

A marker appeared on the map.

Zhou Chen went straight there. What appeared before him was a stone Magic Array, identical to the last one.

[Enter the cell of Fear Snake Babakar?]

[Yes]

[Entering the cell of Fear Snake Babakar...]

[You have entered the cell of Fear Snake Babakar.]

The sky was shrouded in gloomy, dark clouds, and occasional flashes of lightning brought fleeting moments of light. The ground was rugged and covered in dried bloodstains.

A great serpent, pitch-black with a spine full of sharp spikes and a pair of Wings on its back, was bound tightly by iron chains. These thick chains were carved with ancient runes, their ends piercing into the Fearful Great Serpent’s body, winding around its bones and Soul, binding it for all eternity.

Sensing someone’s entry, the chains rattled. The Snake of Fear uncoiled its body and rose up. Its cavernous mouth and two pairs of wings near its head snapped open, creating a powerful visual impact as a hoarse voice echoed directly in Zhou Chen’s mind:

"Who are you?!"

"Lord Babakar, I’ve finally found you!"

Zhou Chen, currently disguised as a Desecration Cultist with an extremely dense Abyssal aura, shouted, "I have come on the orders of Lord Frost Giant Begger to help you break your seal!"

"Break my seal?" Hearing this, the Snake of Fear’s heart stirred with agitation.

It had been sealed here for more than twenty centuries, and not a day went by that it didn’t miss the outside World. Now that someone claimed they could help it get out, how could it not be overjoyed and excited?

"Hmm... I smell the aura of a dragon on you." The Snake of Fear suddenly lowered its massive head. The thick chains rattled and strained, restricting it to a certain area.

Its serpentine eyes, burning with black flames, stared intently at Zhou Chen.

Even after being sealed for so many long years, with its Power and Life Force almost completely worn away, the Fearful Great Serpent still exuded an immense sense of pressure. A primal, unknown fear inexplicably welled up in Zhou Chen’s heart, making it pound wildly. A debuff called "Frightened and Flustered" appeared in his Status Bar.

’The aura of a dragon...’ Zhou Chen immediately thought of the jade stone that could dispel the dragon corpse’s miasma, so he took it out.

"My lord, are you talking about this?"