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Chapter 546 - 543: "Su Ming’an, That’s great.

Chapter 546: Chapter 543: "Su Ming’an, That’s great.

[The quest target has been changed.]

[You have discovered the true quest objective: Defeat the Ancient Castle Guardian—the man in the black robe.]

[The first to defeat the man in the black robe will gain the unique victory.]

...

"—Su Ming’an! I’m here to help you constrain him!" The moment Noel saw the quest objective, he immediately understood that he must ensure Su Ming’an defeats the man in the black robe.

"Shua shua shua—!"

Noel stretched out his hand, and several threadlike strands emerged, transforming into a large net, sweeping toward the man in the black robe.

Lu and Sherry didn’t have much of a reaction, but Herbert and Joy immediately tried to intervene. They not only wanted to kill the man in the black robe but also prevent Su Ming’an from beating them to it.

A pair of sinister bone wings unfolded behind Joy, and with a single flap, as if stirring up monstrous waves, he shredded the spiderweb-like white net into pieces.

Herbert took a step back, his revolver spun, and with a "click" sound, a bullet shot toward the head of the man in the black robe like a silver serpent!

The next moment, the man in the black robe reached out his hand.

Several curse beasts emerged from the shadows. In this ancient castle, the man in the black robe’s strength seemed immensely amplified.

A dense fog suddenly arose.

A Curse Black Beast leapt out of the fog, carrying a strong gust of malign wind. It let out a roar, opened its massive maw, and charged at Joy first.

The beast’s form shook, like black lightning. The clumsy figure changed its previous state, seemingly equipped with a booster, suddenly accelerating.

Before Joy could defend himself, his head was bitten off by the suddenly accelerating black beast, and blood splattered everywhere.

Joy’s death shocked everyone; they didn’t expect the beast to become so strong so abruptly.

The man in the black robe stood atop the black beast, like a conductor waving his hands.

As he conducted, beasts of different colors each found their targets and pounced toward the remaining players.

The players each fell into tough battles, and even Noel struggled to dodge as he tried to distance himself. Every part of the curse beasts bore deadly curses, untouchable by anyone.

... But Su Ming’an noticed that the beast charging in his direction seemed to be a step slower.

He seized the opportunity, immediately used Spatial Displacement, and in an instant, arrived directly in front of the man in the black robe.

He swung his blade fiercely at the chest of the man in the black robe—

This strike was infused with several skills. Such an opportunity without the interference of beasts was once in a lifetime; he had to make sure to kill this slippery black-robed man in a single blow.

...

[Skill (Yellow Rose Lock): Lock onto a player or NPC, and your next physical attack will be unavoidable by the target.]

[Skill (Energy Suppression): You can actively use Mana Points to launch the skill, suppressing surrounding enemies.]

[Passive Skills (Spellblade): Possess melee magic attack ability. Attacks conducted with this Equipment will result in added Magic Series damage.]

...

With this strike, he used almost all his strength, as if condensing his entire being’s spirit and vitality; his Blade of Freedom danced with golden flames, like flowing magma.

At this moment, his gaze was extremely serious, his eyes as if dyed by sunlight.

This infuriating instance was finally nearing its end—

The man in the black robe was completely locked down by him, unable to dodge. Energy Suppression bore down on the man’s back like an invisible massive hand, pushing his form down, down, as if squeezing a mouse crouching in the darkness—

[Su Ming’an is going to succeed!!]

[Number One Player is going to win! Ahhhh!!]

[No other player can stop him! After killing this man in the black robe—only he and Su Rin will be left in Qiongdi—!]

[Number One Player is the best in the world—!]

The barrage roared continuously, the words frantically articulating their excitement.

"Shua!"

The Blade of Freedom approached, and the intense blade wind sliced the mask on the face of the man in the black robe in half.

Su Ming’an’s blade continued to cut forward, eager to see what this face looked like, the face of the Rules Presenter who, like an eel, purposely created Curse Black Beasts.

This man in the black robe, why he had an initial Favorability of 95 points towards him, and why, after being mistaken for Su Rin, it dropped by 5 points.

Under the lock of "Yellow Rose Lock," the man in the black robe had no escape from this strike.

The searing blade wind whipped up Su Ming’an’s hair, and the mask of the man in the black robe shattered like stardust.

—He saw beneath the shattered mask, a familiar face.

The person’s expression was haggard yet not despondent. Due to Gravity Suppression, the lips were pale, like a magnet, and the moment that face was revealed, Su Ming’an couldn’t look away.

"You’ve won," the Black-robed person said.

At this moment, Su Ming’an felt a sense of absurd reality.

"Wait..." He clenched the Blade of Freedom in his hand, trying to stop the strike.

However, the forced lock-on effect still propelled him to continuously thrust forward. He attempted to kick the Black-robed person away, but the other merely grunted, his body as firm as steel, unmovable.

The sound of flesh tearing filled the air, blood splashed on Su Ming’an’s hand that held the knife, and his gaze violently trembled.

... The Black-robed person remained silent as ever, with that familiar stubborn look on his face.

Su Ming’an’s hand kept thrusting forward, almost feeling the heart just inches away, hearing the faint sounds of blood coursing.

The next moment, his hand inevitably pierced through, the Black-robed person grabbing it and pulling him to thrust it in, going right through his back.

But fortunately, Su Ming’an’s angle was slightly off, missing the heart.

In front of his violently trembling pupils, blood burst forth.

A vast sense of suffocation overwhelmed him.

...

["Su Ming’an"]

[Lv Shu hesitated for a moment]

["I mean, if it were Noel," he said, "...would you let him follow?"]

[Su Ming’an understood what he meant.]

[Sure enough, Lv Shu felt his usefulness was diminishing.]

...

["I understand," Lv Shu said.]

[His expression remained calm, and Su Ming’an didn’t know what he’d understood.]

...

["Sigh, some people are just outdated. Worse than Noel by who knows how many times, even Yuanyuan who became an Observer is more useful than him..."]

["Hanging around without leaving, what is he thinking, it’s fine to just be there during the Fifth World, but in the Seventh World, he’s not only taking up a spot on the team but has also dragged that useless Lin Yin along. Mo Wen who hasn’t shown up from the start still claims to be an explorer-type Player... Lv Shu is really taking himself too seriously."]

["He was already doomed not to keep up with the Number One Player, forcing himself to stay just looks bad."]

["It’s better to leave on his own early, a world-class sycophant... still unaware with a ranking of twenty-something..."]

...

The green Mantis is called Bi, the red Butterfly is Xiao Hong. Hence, the black giant beast is called Xiao Hei, the white giant beast Xiao Bai.

... In the cave, the Black-robed person had already exposed such familiar naming methods.

The Black-robed person closed his eyes.

"I gave up my Player status to become the final boss," he said, "In doing so, against you, I could be of help, like Yuanyuan. I have helped you... just like Yuanyuan."

He repeatedly emphasized "like Yuanyuan."

Perhaps, he thought this was the kind of help Su Ming’an wanted.

He wasn’t Noel, unaware of Su Ming’an’s ability to rewind death.

He didn’t know Su Ming’an could try over and over again, his margin for error inherently limitless.

He only knew that by doing so, he could help.

Why this person was so stubborn to the point of sacrificing his life to do so, Su Ming’an still did not understand.

It’s just, Lv Shu called him ’a good person.’

So he wanted to help him.

...

["Su Ming’an, you’re a good person, leading the vast majority of people to rely on you, to have faith in you, to believe you will never fail--this will definitely help your Perfect Pass."

"...You do not need to worry about what others think, because you are the future."]

...

"Roar—!"

Various cursed beasts pounced on the Players below, their blood radiating to cover the stone bricks, gushing out like waterfalls.

Lv Shu stood tall above the Black Beast, like a pillar piercing into the black mire.

His figure was so thin, yet distinctly unwavering, firmly standing atop the Black Beast—slender, straight, as if he had arrived in the Mortal World bearing only his soul.

Too obstinate, too fervent, too narrow-minded...

...too sincere.

Su Ming’an had never met anyone like Lv Shu.

He remained motionless, hot blood dripping from the back of his hand.

...

[Su Ming’an, I’ve helped you.]

...

"But, I don’t even—" As if a string in his brain had suddenly snapped, he suddenly roared, "—I don’t even want you to—for me—

Whether it’s Yuanyuan or you... all... Lv Shu, do you understand? Do you understand—"

He couldn’t say he had death rollback; he didn’t need others to sacrifice themselves for his passage.

All he could do was clutch at Lv Shu’s collar, roaring.

Time’s flowing river brought some people to him and irrevocably took others away, leaving not a single one for him in the end.

Utterly empty.

Except for the white mark on the back of his hand, he had gained nothing.

Yuanyuan, Sherrod, Nailuo... Lv Shu.

Who else could remain behind...?

"Lv Shu—do you understand? I don’t need any of you to do this for me, you—" he coughed a few times, his throat severely sore:

"Enough."

"It’s... enough."

His finger veins bulged, his fingertips red from squeezing too tightly.

But soon, after a few roars, his eyes gradually calmed down, and he took a deep breath.

After quickly adjusting his emotions, he opened his eyes.

"Is there any way to salvage this?" he asked, "The mission only required me to defeat you, and you’re not dead yet."

Lv Shu shook his head.

"These past few days, for ’energy’... I’ve bred many Curse Black Beasts, constantly accompanied by curses, and indeed... it’s time for me to pay the price, my body can’t hold on any longer." he said, "After I die... you can kill these behemoths and take their cores as ’energy’ to give to Xiber... she still needs ’energy’, right? The three elements of godhood, I, I also know a bit of the plot; I’m... not a useless outsider..."

"Su Ming’an, I just wanted..." Lv Shu said, "...to find inner peace. You don’t need to feel burdened."

Su Ming’an: "..."

"—For some reason, Su Ming’an seems to be frozen in place!" the Players below shouted:

"Now’s our chance, let’s kill the robed guy!"

"Who is the robed guy, can’t see clearly from this angle—!"

"—Lu, none of you better try to stop me!"

"..."

Lv Shu glanced down, his gaze indifferent.

The peak Players he could never beat before now seemed as insignificant as ants.

"Actually." Lv Shu said.

His usually expressionless face unusually held a smile, as if all the radiance was emanating from the depths of his eyes.

"...I am a bit sick, psychologically, even before the game started, I always knew, many people told me so." Lv Shu said, "I’ve persisted till now just to cure the disease, to find inner peace—that’s the reason I’ve been clinging to. But it’s odd, after doing all this, it seems that suddenly, the illness is gone."

"Su Ming’an." Lv Shu said, "For this world... we’ve all gone mad, you’ve gone mad, I’ve too, madness is the theme of humanity, we can’t restrain ourselves from going insane..."

"This game mocks us, as kindling, we can only fight against... or rather, adapt to it." Lv Shu said, "But you are different, you’re not like the rest of us, you’re a torch."

"Su Ming’an." Lv Shu said, "I’ve been good at reading people since I was a child. I think... you’ve always been the most suitable for this world."

"You are, the best."

Su Ming’an: "..."

"Noel said something a few days ago, I actually heard it; he said, me following you was with an ulterior motive." Lv Shu said, "Now I’ll prove to you... that I didn’t, never have."

"Alright." Su Ming’an said, "You proved it."

At the moment Su Ming’an spoke those words, the brightness in Lv Shu’s eyes gradually faded.

He gasped for breath hurriedly, the darkness around him suddenly paused, then spread rapidly—

Like ink merging with water, his figure leaned back, his eyes still firmly fixed on Su Ming’an.

...

[NPC (?) Favorability: 100 points (Life-and-Death Friendship)]

...

The NPC died and couldn’t be resurrected.

Su Ming’an had never felt so oppressed, as if a pair of hands reached inside his chest and violently tore it open, leaving him bleeding profusely.

"Immortality," he immediately activated the skill.

With a flash of red light, Lv Shu didn’t immediately decay and die.

But once this skill was activated, it meant that a person’s life was at its end.

If possible, this skill should never be successfully activated.

Because of Lv Shu’s fall, Su Ming’an heard the system prompt:

[You have defeated the man in the black robe.]

[Ancient Castle Mystery·Mission Completed.]

[You have become the victor.]

The news of victory.

Only made it sound grating to him.

As the white light surged, the remaining players all disappeared, losing their qualification to continue in the war.

Looking down at the empty grand hall of the ancient castle, Su Ming’an suddenly laughed out loud.

"Ha, hahaha, hahahaha..."

His laugh was one of relief, helplessness, and gratitude. His emotions collided in his chest, pressing heavily on his heart.

He was helpless that he would end up here.

He was grateful that he still had a chance to make amends.

"...Then there’s only one choice left," Su Ming’an said.

"Lv Shu, you’re at full favorability," he said. "Become my ’follower’."

Lv Shu’s expression stiffened slightly.

"To be honest," Su Ming’an said, "this is the first time I am glad I became a Ruler."

...

[You have activated the Ruler’s Skill·Follower.]

[(Lv Shu) has accepted your invitation.]

...

Followers are different from Observers; they are like Rulers and Supervisors and can participate in the game.

They are still fundamentally considered Players.

By becoming a follower, Lv Shu would not take up a teammate slot for Su Ming’an, which means he could, from then on, openly and forever be Su Ming’an’s most trusted team member without concern for anyone else.

...But is this really what Lv Shu wanted?

Su Ming’an wasn’t sure, but Lv Shu’s expression seemed to tell him it was.

He offered him the loyalty of a man who never had faith before.

Some people are stubborn, perplexing, and never regret a thing in their lives; they never look back.

Su Ming’an didn’t understand why someone as ordinary and selfish as himself could be liked by so many people, whether it was Nailuo, Sherrod whom he met by chance, or Yuanyuan, Lv Shu whom he had spent a long time with.

But their lives, at the moment of making a choice, were incredibly brilliant. Light and heat never left them.

In a world riddled with disasters and pain, they were born out of some faith, they died for that faith, they wielded their will for that faith, and they sought their way back because of that faith.

On this irreversible path,

Some see the world as their destination,

Others see him as their destination.

...

"Su Ming’an," Lv Shu coughed up a mouthful of blood, his eyes bright, "...that’s great."

...

...

[Perfect Completion Progress: 95%]

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