full
What was she saying? Seeing the malicious smile on the angelic face Liam had a bad feeling. The high priestess's gaze locked on to him, observing him with glee. It was as if she wanted to savour his desperation and misery.
The next second a loud system announcement chimed in.
All the players around the world suddenly found themselves free from the beast horde that had been terrorizing them nonstop for the past couple of hours. The whole event had lasted barely for four hours but it sure did not feel that way.
Huzzah! Everyone started immediately rejoicing. Many people even took the chance to log out of the damned game which was hell-bent on claiming their lives.
The various guilds on the other hand weren't all that happy with this sudden turn of events.
The winners of each kingdom were happy and looked forward to the reward that the system was going to provide but the losers cursed to their heart's content because they felt as if they could have won if they just had some more time.
But in the midst of these celebrations and pity parties, no one expected the next system message which chimed in after a couple of minutes.
Liam's face turned ashen as he slowly read the new notifications.
Unable to believe what he was reading, he looked up at the high priestess in utter dread. The thing that he feared the most had happened and too far sooner than it should have!
"Ha Ha Ha Ha." The high priestess chuckled, thoroughly enjoying the scene. She licked her lips with an unmasked glee as she sneered at Liam. "A first-order cockroach wants to stand up against me?"
"You should have licked my feet and worshipped me like how your bitch here did." She snapped her finger and Mia's head hung low like a puppet.
Liam gritted his teeth. He knew she was lying. Mia was probably tricked. He clenched his fist tightly, anger and regret surging inside. Maybe if he had found out about these people sooner, maybe if he had worked harder.
"Ha Ha Ha Ha!" The woman laughed at his anger. "What are you angry for? At least this way she is living, isn't she? You and I both know what is going to happen to you! Good luck!"
The high priestess revealed a smug ugly grin. She then glanced at Luna and then back at Liam mockingly before she smiled again and all three of them disappeared.
"Priestess, are we really going to leave him just like that?" The golden knight immediately asked. He was not quite satisfied with how things had proceeded.
However, the high priestess seemed to be too occupied to answer him. "A first-order cockroach right in front of me. Who would have thought that this day would come?" She mumbled to herself.
"Someone managed to actually crawl up despite being born in a shitty trash realm. It seems that we have become far too lenient. For the next realm, we need to put tighter controls."
"Hmmm. Yes. That should do it. Just offer the right rewards and the fools will automatically scramble to worship us."
As she continued making plans and adjustments, the golden knight couldn't help but ask her again. "Your eminence… about him…"
"Hmmm. What about him?"
"Changing everything just for him… was that really necessary?"
Yes. It was." She nodded solemnly. "Even though the enemy is a lowly mortal, never underestimate anyone."
"Yes, your eminence." The golden knight bowed. "In that case, should I do anything else?"
"Hmmm. No. Not necessary. He doesn't know it yet, but I have already cut all his legs. Now he has nothing to stand on."
"Ah?" The golden knight hadn't expected this.
"Sure, he has a lot of interesting things like that divine beast. Unfortunately, that's all he has. He cannot take anything out. I made sure of it. I have already shut all of his routes of escape."
"He is nothing anymore. Just a broken toy." The priestess chuckled and then added, "And I am happy with the whole one that I have." She gave a look at Mia and patted her as she smiled.
"What about this nether affinity?"
"Ha Ha Ha. Nether affinity? I don't know how a mere human being came to possess a nether affinity but mark my words. That is not a blessing. That is a curse." The priestess laughed again.
"No human can ever withstand an affinity to the undead. Only a demon would be able to bear the weight of such a curse. Mmm… That kind of power will eat him inside out."
"Yes, your eminence. You are wise." The golden knight bowed, but he was once again ignored as the priestess walked ahead by herself.
"I need to inform the higher-ups about the change in schedule. They won't be pleased." She lifted a white ball in her hands that contained something like mist inside and tossed it up and down in deep contemplation.
"Tch. Tch. It is not even opaque yet. What a poor harvest." A golden glow covered her and in the next instant, she disappeared.
A couple of seconds after she left, the golden knight stopped staring blankly and mumbled something as a divine spell engulfed Mia. She then returned back to her former cold indifferent self, still lacking all her memories.
"Go. Go and do what you are supposed to do." The knight commanded her as if she was a puppet and he then he himself settled in front of the gigantic mirror that currently displayed Liam's horrified face.
The priestess had told him no more actions were necessary but he wanted to make sure of it so that her words indeed were proved correct.
The entire world, which had been celebrating the destruction of the beast horde, began to tremble as they stared at the large notification that had appeared out of the blue.
It was so abrupt and sudden that no one even knew what to make of it. The tutorial is ending? What tutorial? This was a tutorial game?
The real world awaits? Who the hell wanted the real world? Heck, they were playing the game because the real world sucked, and this was a welcome change. Now, why did this announcement mention the real world?
That too the game was permanently shutting down? What did this mean?
Everyone started panicking. Especially the corporations and the big sharks who had invested a lot in this game began sweating, not understanding the heads or tails of what was happening.
Some people even began scrambling to sell their in-game gold coins for dollars, but to their dismay, even that option seemed to be no longer available.
The game began its slow, mysterious demise in the same way it had appeared: without any explanation.
In the midst of all this panic, suddenly another rumor began to spread. Someone called this game a beta test and hypothesized that the actual game would be more difficult and would be released soon.
Moreover, because the gold coins seemed to be sort of blocked now, they said that all characters would retain their wealth and special titles in the new game, which was why the currency transaction was not available.
This quickly started spreading and became the main public opinion. It seemed to put everyone at ease and also sort of hyped up the release of the next version. Everyone began to look forward to this with bated breath, counting just how rich the new game was going to make them.
Like blind sheep, they began celebrating in taverns and brothels in full merriment.
Meanwhile… the selected few who actually knew the truth couldn't relax like this even one bit. They couldn't possibly still delude themselves into thinking that everything was just warm and peachy.
Another game release? Who were they kidding? Now was not the time for new games! Everything was going to become painfully real!
All the Crimson Abyss guild members suddenly found themselves on pins and needles.
At least the core members of the guild knew that this was coming, though the thought of this reality never really sank in, and now it was already here?
It was unbelievable. They almost couldn't digest it. What happened to the guild higher-ups? Why were there no announcements about this? What were they supposed to do now?
There were so many questions and not enough answers. The guild chat group was all the rage. What were the big bosses doing? Everyone wanted to know! Their entire life depended on this!
And right now… these big bosses were in no better condition.
Mia Mia Mia! Alex was in complete shambles. Everyone else also did not understand what was going on. They had just now witnessed something bizarre and crazy!
One second, they were all planning a future in the game, plotting and scheming how to earn millions and settle down rich with many wives, but the next second, the game was going to permanently shut down.
What the hell?
Liam also sat, frozen in place. The golden cage around Luna disappeared, and she dashed towards him and licked him worriedly. "Master, are you okay?"
Liam looked at the clear blue eyes of the fox, who was yet to bind to him. In three hours, they would no longer be together. The same went for the black dragon weapon, the stone tablet, and every single thing in his possession.
He was not prepared for anything. He wasn't prepared at all. Everything he had carefully secured was going to slip away from his hands, and there was nothing he could do about it. The beast horde was also now gone. He had no idea what to do now.
The limit breaker fruit! That's right. If he could go to the Milky Way auction house and get the help of that little girl, maybe something could be salvaged after all.
Liam immediately searched for the white token to go to the auction house, but… somehow that was missing. "No. Impossible." He searched for it again and again, but nothing changed. There was no use. The white token was also gone.
With a dreaded look on his face, he then opened the system interface. A bitter taste already filled his mouth as if he could foresee what was going to happen next.
And just like that… the nether realm portal was also missing.
His system interface option that had the portal skill before was now simply blank. Liam threw his head back and started laughing maniacally. This was it! Everything was over. He was completely cornered!
Kyuuuu? Luna came closer and hugged him tightly with her small paws. She could feel that something was very wrong. What was happening? She did not understand.
She pitifully looked at Liam, hoping it would all be okay. She did not want her master to suffer. She licked him lovingly.
Liam saw the fox, and his eyes reddened. On his other side, Alex walked over to him and slumped next to him. She knelt pitifully and looked at him, tears streaming down her eyes.
"That was Mia… that was Mia… wasn't it? why was she like that? What is happening? What did they do to her?" She sobbed listlessly. She hoped that Liam would say something but seeing the look on his face, she completely broke down.
"Why are you not saying anything? You said that you would take care of everything! You said that we would be fine! You said that you would protect us!" She punched his chest and shouted in agony.
Seeing Alex completely break down, everyone else who was panicking froze. The woman, who had only ever been headstrong and proud in front of them, was now a complete and utter mess. She was crying like a child.
No one knew what to do. They were also close to breaking down. What was going to happen now? They all looked towards Liam, as he was their only hope at the moment.
But the question was… was he enough? In front of the God who had just changed their whole destiny at the snap of her finger, what could even Liam do?
Were they all simply doomed?
In the midst of this noise and ruckus, Liam let out a deep breath and stood up.
Liam gently pulled Alex off of him and stood up. Though he wanted to say something to her to console her, now was not the time for it. Every second at the moment was precious.
He couldn't allow himself to falter now. If three hours were all that was left then that was that. He would still succeed. He had to, but the question was how?
He racked his brain as his gaze swept across the guild members around him. Everyone was in utter shock and no matter what plan he thought of, every single thing needed more than 3 fucking hours.
Luna… Mia… Derek… what was he going to do now?
The woman had made sure that there was nowhere he could go and no one he could turn to. So what was he supposed to do now?
The only strength he had at the moment was his soul minions.
As he thought about it, suddenly Liam felt an alarm go off in his brain. Yes, he had his soul minions. They were not something that someone could just ignore.
They were strong and powerful creatures who could hold their own. Besides, he was able to take them out of the game. So… why didn't the woman do anything about them?
The more he thought about it the more it bothered him. Even if all his others strengths were stripped clean, these minions were more than enough. They were a terrifying force. When he had his army to face the apocalypse, what else did he need?
But still, she didn't seem all that bothered about them. The woman who went out of her way to make sure he had no place to escape, completely ignored these minions.
Was there something else that he had missed? Why was she so confident that he would fail even when he had his soul minions with him?
Liam had a feeling that something was not right. And then it struck him. What if there was something really off about his assumption? What if he was not able to take his soul minions out once the game shut down?
No, he clutched his head and shook it vigorously. Because of all the uncertainties and the impending doom, he was driving himself crazy. He was able to take the soul minions out right now so he should be able to do it after the game also. After all, they were all a part of his soul.
But then why did she leave them alone? She did not even kill them once while she was here as a part of the grand show she had displayed. The woman was so hellbent on demonstrating just how strong she was.
She went out of her way to make sure that Liam knew the difference between her and him, where they stood in the food chain and what was their respective positions in this world and the outside world.
So why did she leave his soul minions? He couldn't shake this thought off at all.
Nevertheless, he decided not to dwell on it. He needed to calm down. Calm the fuck down. Liam reprimanded himself. He snapped himself out of it. There was no use thinking about these possibilities now.
This was not the first life-or-death situation he had faced. The world had always been cruel to him and it was no different now. He needed to accept the harsh truths, what he could do and what was out of his control.
Blasphemous putrid was a Level 80 dark element temple that was on the northern mountains, just above the Rock Temple dungeon. The whole territory was extremely dangerous and it had a lot of high-levelled beasts, but Liam didn't care about that right now.
He needed to be there and take this risk. Now was the time for taking risks.
Luna as well understood this. She could feel that something was wrong. She prepared to use her full power, full energy.
"Master…"
"We have 3 hours Luna, everything depends on it. Let's go. We need to make this count."
While the entire Xion realm was in complete disarray over the announcement of the game shutdown, one fox alone blurred in and out of the clouds in the sky as she sped across the Kingdom, heading to the northernmost border.
Liam and Luna arrived at the Blasphemous Putrid dungeon safely in just a few minutes, thanks to the fox who was using her blur skill like there was no tomorrow. She had exhausted herself so much that when they arrived at the destination she was panting hard.
With a sigh, Liam patted her but he did not say anything else. He directly walked into the Level 80 dungeon and summoned his soul minions.
In an instant, the entire dungeon was flooded with all sorts of creatures. They seem to outnumber even the mobs that originally belonged to the dungeon.
All sorts of plagued creatures popped out of the nook and corners of the dungeon but the wyvern unit and the barbarian unit simply slaughtered everything in sight.
And since they were all of the undead race, the poisonous fumes of the dungeon did little to nothing to them. They completely ignored everything about the dungeon and cleared the whole place in just a few minutes.
Big chunks of experience points chimed in as this was a Level 80 dungeon after all and some of the soul minions levelled up but this was not why Liam had chosen this specific dungeon. He had selected it for its dark element attribute!
The dungeon was enriched in dark element and partially nether. Next to the nether realm, this was probably where he was strongest at the moment. This was exactly why he was here.
After he received the dungeon's clear notification and the vanity first clear announcement which rang loudly across the world informing them about his current location, he immediately dismissed his soul minions.
He was not particularly concerned about the system outing his location because first of all, he was in the dangerous northern terrain where several powerful creatures lurked. If anyone wanted to come here, it would require time and sufficient strength.
Moreover, there were only two and something hours left before the game shut down. If anyone still wanted to waste their remaining time and come find him for trouble, he wouldn't mind spending some seconds dealing with them and adding them to his army.
Nevertheless, he still dismissed his soul minions to head outside the dungeon. Not to stand guard and not let anyone lie in wait for him but to continue farming experience points by hunting in the area. Every second was precious right now so it had to be used to the fullest.
Meanwhile, Liam settled down in the dungeon itself and without any hesitation took out the stone tablet from his inventory.
The high priestess left these few items alone without tampering with them. Liam doubted if it was because she had forgotten about them. Rather she probably didn't have permission to meddle to that extent.
Though that person seemed to be in control of a lot of things, clearly she also had to follow certain rules and guidelines. Otherwise, Liam was pretty sure he wouldn't even be breathing at the moment. It would have taken her all of 2 seconds to completely erase him.
But he did not have time to figure these things out at the moment. What she was able to do and not able to do was none of his concern. He was alive and still breathing, he was here so he began his work.
He placed the stone tablet on the ground and the next second, the world around him started changing. He was back to the familiar barren terrain with nothing but a puddle of swirling fire essence.
Another puddle next to the fire essence puddle suddenly popped out and in this new one, dark element essence started accumulating bit by bit. The stone tablet had already begun its work! It had started refining the essence of the dungeon and storing it within.
Liam observed this and nodded in satisfaction. It was still working the same. She had really not been able to tamper with it at all.
"Even when she listed out all the strong points I had, she said nothing about this stone tablet and also the rabbit." Liam pondered out loud while rubbing his chin. "Did she think that I will forget about them just because she hadn't mentioned it?"
,m Maybe before he was cautious about using this stone tablet but now there were only 3 hours left! All bets were off! He was going to siphon off as many dungeons as possible if that was what was needed.
As the essence from the dungeon was slowly drained and absorbed by the stone tablet, Liam tried to sense the same and adjust his condition. However, there was still a problem. The concentration was not enough just yet.
"Damn it. This is too slow." He stood up and directly saw down right in the puddle. He then tried to sense his mana core and once again found himself staring at the shackles that held him down. This was it. This was why he was here.
Before he started the rest of his plan, he first tried to feel these shackles thoroughly and probed the full weight of their presence. He could only barely do it for a couple of seconds before his head started throbbing with pain.
How pitiful! This was his current status and within these three hours, he needed to get from here to completely shattering apart these shackles. How the hell was he going to do it?
Liam already knew that this was a difficult or rather probably an impossible task and he had no delusions about it.
But no matter how impossible it was, he was not going to give up. He was still going to give it his best shot! It was time to put his plan into motion and drag himself across that finish line come hell or high water!
Steadying his mind, Liam took out a black bead, not one of the empty ones and not the one that had the dragon's or the lizardmen's souls in them. Instead, he took out the black bead that was already completely filled with human souls.
This was one of the items he had acquired from the dark mages who had sacrificed the villagers. The souls of the villagers were essentially trapped inside.
Perhaps the right thing to do here was to release the innocent souls and put them to rest, but unfortunately, he was not in a position to do the right thing at the moment.
Liam did not hesitate as he broke and shattered this bead, pulling out all the souls within the bead in a single move.
The next instant, white mist exploded from the bead, just like when Dimitri, the dark elf, used the attack on him. But the him now was much stronger than the him back then. So he did not twitch and convulse in the pain as the numerous souls banged against him from all sides.
Instead, he silently felt them and accepted their presence. He held onto his breath as the wailing of the souls echoed in the stone tablet world and bore the pressure they relayed.
For a second, the souls seemed extremely unsteady, as if they were going to blast apart and dissipate, but soon they started becoming stable.
Just like the fire element essence and the dark element essence swirling in their own respective puddles, these souls as well started forming another puddle and swirled within that puddle.
"I knew it." Liam grinned. His guess had been correct. Just like back at the fort where they had imprisoned the dragon princess, the stone tablet was also a special place. The souls were still stable here without dissipating.
Naturally, this was a huge risk he had taken as he could have simply lost all these souls, but at this point, there was no longer any sense in holding back. He needed to jump in with both his feet and tried anything and everything that made even a little sense.
Sensing the numerous souls around him, Liam stood up from the dark element puddle to sit in the middle of this soul essence puddle. He then took a deep breath and let everything go.
Haaaa. He could feel the abundant energy rushing into him, and he felt as if he was in the most comfortable spa. These soul essences were truly nourishing for him.
Feeling completely pumped from top to bottom, Liam then took yet another shot at his mana core and the shackles that bound him. He sucked in a big breath of air, held onto the chains that kept him down and once again rattled them.
RUMBLE RUMBLE!
RUMBLE RUMBLE!
The chains started creaking and groaning.
The thick metallic shackles that were immovable before were now shaking and trembling as he commanded them to break apart.
"Break for me." Liam gritted his teeth and used the full strength of his mana core to blast them into smithereens, but… how could it be so easy? This was the extent of his current ability, even sitting immersed in soul essence.
"Come on. Break." He gritted his teeth and tried, only to fail again.
"It's fine. I know how to push it further." Liam stopped struggling with the stubborn shackles. He was just beginning. After all, there was no need to push anything just yet. For now, he had confirmed what he wanted to confirm.
He was stronger and able to forge higher beasts in the presence of souls, so he assumed that he also had the best chance to break these shackles in the presence of these souls. This told him that he was on the right path. Just that his soul was not strong enough.
Liam sucked in a breath, and without any other choice, he started working on his plan B. He took out another black bead and broke apart that one as well.
While the earlier bead contained the souls of weak human villagers, this one was completely different. It did not have any weak souls. It collectively held the souls of numerous lizardmen.
These strong vengeful souls swirled around Liam, echoing in agony and pain. For a moment, he felt his body shiver, but he quickly steadied himself. He couldn't afford to let himself be affected by just this much. He still had a lot to face.
The strong souls clashed against him wave after wave, and Liam continued to bear everything.
The wyvern souls and the dragon souls were challenging as they were a singular, extremely powerful entity. Even though these souls were not as strong as them, they still had the numbers on their side. Facing the whiplash of these numerous souls was not a simple matter.
But this was also what Liam wanted. As seconds ticked by, he started feeling completely drained and exhausted. His head was throbbing, and his body was trembling. However, he continued to hold on by drinking the water from the Milky Way pond.
After a certain point, even that stopped working as the pain started increasing exponentially. At this moment, Liam started pulling in energy from the very souls that were attacking him.
This, in turn, made his own soul a little bit stronger. Only a little bit. So he was continuing to struggle nevertheless.
Liam patiently withstood everything and started repeating this same thing, again and again, each time slowly strengthening his soul. At the same time, his other soul minions were running wild outside the dungeon and farming experience points, slowly increasing his overall strength.
***
Back at the divine temple in the Eastern Empire, the high priestess sat on her throne with an annoyed expression on her face. Her meeting hadn't gone well.
The useless good for nothings who were above her just because of their status dared to point fingers at her and called her names. They said she had become lazy and incompetent to let something like this happen.
"As if any of those idiots are capable of managing an entire realm like me!" She scoffed angrily. Adding to her bad mood, the mirror in front of her suddenly stopped displaying Liam's whereabouts.
"What happened? I want to know what he is doing at all times!" She angrily clenched her fists. If she could, she would have already crushed this pest that was causing her a headache thousand times over.
But unfortunately, her hands were tied, so she could only watch. "Your eminence, I am not sure what happened." The golden knight bowed and regretfully answered.
"Useless. Utterly useless. Can't you even see this? He should be using that stone tablet. That's why we are not able to observe him." She rubbed her temples and mumbled, the frown on her face deepening.
"Useless idiot is probably just making more of his soul minions. Trash. Doesn't know the value of the treasure he is holding in his hands. Come to think of it, just how did the demons come in possession of something like this?"
"Hmmm... I need to prepare more for our next project. It looks like I cannot underestimate these demons. Thankfully, in 3 hours, I don't have to deal with this insect again. Without him incessantly buzzing around, I will be able to focus on other important things."
"Yes, your eminence."
"That's enough. Get out now. Take this mirror with you and keep an eye on him. I have some other things to take care of."
"Yes, your eminence."
"And remember, I don't care what happens to him. He is not worth my time. Just get me that stone tablet as soon as that vermin is kicked out of my world. That is more important."
"Yes, your eminence." The golden knight obediently bowed without daring to raise his head.
Liam stared at the soul essence puddle he was currently sitting in. He was finally accustomed to it, but he could still feel the weight of the numerous lizardmen's souls, just that it was not enough to harm him anymore.
He was stronger than that now. So it was time to move on to the next step.
Though there were several things he could do at the moment, the current path he had chosen to take was very simple and straightforward. What doesn't kill you will make you stronger.
Now that the villagers' souls and the lizardmen's souls had already strengthened him, it was time for the next test that he needed to face.
Liam took out the two black beads that contained the dragon souls. He did not know if he was ready for this or not. He was probably not.
But his main intention here was not to forge these two souls. He wanted them to forge him instead. Just like he used the souls of the villagers and the souls of the lizardmen, he was prepared to throw away these two souls as well to make his own soul stronger.
This was the only way out of his current predicament. If he couldn't break his shackles just yet, maybe his soul just wasn't strong enough. Right now, this was all he had. Just ifs, buts and maybes. So he was going to use everything he had to try and survive.
Liam placed one black bead down and held the other in between his thumb and index finger. He then gritted his teeth and started pulling out the dragon's soul again.
Groan. Liam's body trembled at the enormous pressure which instantly assaulted him. He had only done this an hour back when he brought the entire soul under his control.
But now that he was repeating the same thing again, it did not get any easier. He once again had to go through the same pain and agony as the dragon's soul clashed with his own.
Meanwhile, the time was ticking. Liam downed one health potion after another as he persevered through the ordeal. Soon after the first few seconds, the soul slowly returned back to his control. Of course, not without damaging a part of his own soul first.
Liam winced from the gut-wrenching pain, but he held on strongly to the huge football-sized dragon soul swirling in front of him. This was where he was previously interrupted, and now he was going to forge this soul to perfection.
However, he did not rush things right from the get-go. If he forged the soul as is, it was sure to explode out of his control and mix in with the other soul essence swirling around him, permanently lost to him. He first needed to heal.
This was also one of the very important things that he wanted at the moment. With a smile on his face, Liam patiently felt the full extent of the injury that his soul suffered, thanks to the dragon's soul.
He then started using the surrounding soul essence to heal himself. He seeped the random soul essence into his own and slowly made himself whole again and, in the process, a little bit stronger.
Only after that he attended to the football-sized dragon soul that was squirming in his grasp. However, he only barely started and summoned the mana hammers to bang on the soul when it started once again revolting, lashing out at Liam.
"Damn it." Liam shuddered as waves of pain started assaulting him once more. Instead of going step by step from 1 to 100, he had directly jumped from step 10 to step 100, so naturally, he had expected this. He needed to withstand this pain at all costs.
Liam used every ounce of willpower in his body to muster the strength and courage to keep going on. His mana core also churned wildly to give him the strength that he needed.
He was tapping into the core more than he had ever done. He was pushing himself more than he had ever done. He had no other choice. He needed to do this. He needed to survive and come out alive at the other end.
As if listening to Liam's wishes, the stone tablet was also churning out the dungeon's essence faster than it usually did. Mana inside the stone tablet sky-rocketed, and Liam suddenly found himself with surplus mana that he could use.
BANG! He immediately made the mana hammers a dozen times bigger, and nine giant hammers thrashed the unruly dragon soul from nine different directions.
While Liam continued struggling with the dragon soul and also racing against time, Luna curled up in the fire essence puddle and started her own training.
Meanwhile… the rest of the world wasn't all this calm and steady. Most players were running around like headless chickens. Fights broke out, and guilds started waging wars against each other.
Players crowded around the big cities of the various kingdoms and did all sorts of things that they did not dare think of before. Daylight robbery, unprovoked PVP, cornering, molesting and raping female players and NPCs, all hell broke loose.
Some of the guilds even dared to loot NPC-run shops and, in the end, got pathetically thrown into prison. But mostly, the players got away with whatever they did because the NPC population in the city simply couldn't handle the full population of the player base.
Amidst this mass hysteria, only a handful of guilds at the moment acted sane and sensible. In Crimson Abyss, Shen Yue stepped up and took care of all the administrative duties with the help of Mei Mei, Rey and a few others.
Alex was unfortunately too disturbed to do anything at the moment. Rey, on the other hand, was surprisingly more reliable. No one expected it, but he managed to struggle and hit Level 50 even with his late start in the game.
Not only that, but he also formed his mana core after using the body cleansing elixir and now was helping Shen Yue handle things. With Mia and Alex the way they were, his usual playful nature was completely gone, replaced by a mature, reliable person.
the next dreaded message arrived.
There was now only one more hour until the game completely shut down! Even more panic and chaos spread online!
"Filthy! Disgusting! This is the true nature of these vile creatures." The golden armoured knight spat out as he watched the mayhem in the realm. Standing next to him, Mia indifferently kept staring.
"You don't think so?" The golden armoured knight turned to ask her, curious about her silence. Perhaps she felt lenient as they were her own kind?
However, Mia unexpectedly shook her head. "They are not worth my attention." She pridefully answered without batting an eye. The golden armoured knight looked startled for a second, but then he continued watching the disaster that unfolded in front of him.
The priestess was not wrong. In fact, he also had no interest in watching these insects. As for the person who had piqued his interest and really wanted to observe, he was still hidden from his vision.
"What is he doing? Her eminence mentioned that he possessed not just wyvern souls but also dragon souls, but could he have really somehow managed to forge the dragon souls?" The golden armoured knight silently pondered to himself.
"No, what am I thinking? Ha Ha." He chuckled to himself. He was definitely overthinking. Something like that was definitely not possible.
For a person from the trash realm, already his achievements were applaudable. Anything more than this could only be a dream and not a reality. That was the harsh truth. No one was above this.
However, unbeknownst to him, at the exact same moment… two majestic creatures roared loudly, their thunderous roar and powerful aura crackling the very air surrounding them.
Liam panted as he stared at the two dragon soul minions standing in front of him.
One was a lightning beast whose every breath crackled with power, and the other was an ice beast whose mere presence froze the land around it.
The two dragon undead minions were only Level 10 and Level 12, respectively, but their aura was something else. They stared down at Liam, their gaze filled with myriad emotions.
Liam gaped at the magnificent creatures standing in front of him, not in their flesh and blood but in their soul form. This was it. He was done. He had actually managed to forge two dragons.
Their levels were on the lower side, and there was some soul diffusion during the forging process, so he had let some of their soul slip through the cracks, but in the end, it was done.
The proof was in front of him. He had withstood everything that these two threw at him and forged them as best as he could.
Liam tiredly panted and heaved as he continued to gaze at the two creatures in stupefaction. He then shook his head and snapped out of it. Unfortunately, he did not have the time to admire them right at this moment.
Two hours had gone by in the blink of an eye! Now there was only one more hour left!
And there was still so much for him left to do…
He took a deep breath and started the next part quickly, the part where he healed his currently damaged soul. In the last couple of hours, he had not only forged these two dragon souls, but he had also forged himself in the process.
His soul was now essentially much stronger. He could just feel it.
"I can do it. I can break it this time." Liam's gaze filled with resolve as he hurriedly tried to heal himself back to his most optimal condition.
Forging the two dragon souls went by well, but right here, this was the most important step. He needed to do it this time. He needed to break the shackles. No matter what.
With just one hour left, Liam hurriedly inhaled the souls around him like a maniac.
After dealing with the dragon's souls, the weak villagers' souls and the slightly stronger lizardmen's souls were simply a nourishment to his injury. They no longer affected him. This in itself proved that he had become stronger.
Liam grunted as he felt his soul heal rapidly after the hour and a half of intense forging. He as well urged it as best as he could, and in the next few minutes, he was once again back to his former self.
He then took a sip out of the Milky Way pond canister to adjust his mental fatigue and shoved some food into his mouth just for the sake of it and was finally ready to attempt the awakening again.
Liam closed his eyes and felt the abundantly rich mana all around him. He steadied his mind and his breathing and started reaching down to his mana core.
Almost immediately, he gasped in surprise as he flashed open his eyes. Even though he tried to stay calm, he couldn't do it. His mana core this time felt completely different from before. It was unfathomably deep and profound. More so than he had ever felt it before.
He had undergone brutal hellish training with the old elf but forging these two dragon souls completely topped all that training. The change he noticed now couldn't be compared even with the results of that hellish training.
"Does this mean I am close?" Liam couldn't help but feel excited. After all, this was a matter of life and death and not just his own.
He once again took a deep breath and dove in again. He knew it. He was going to do it this time. He was going to blast away those chains and awaken his mana core!
As the condescending domineering face of the high priestess appeared in front of him, Liam grunted again and reached back down to his mana core.
"BREAK!" He shouted out loud, completely engrossed in his own world and scaring silly the fox sitting next to him who was also training very hard.
Luna blinked her clear blue eyes and stared at Liam intently. She could also feel that her Master was extremely excited at this moment, as if he was on the cusp of achieving something extraordinary.
As the two dragons and the fox continued to stare unblinkingly at Liam, he gritted his teeth and shouted loudly for the fifth time.
"BREAK!"
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
This time shockingly, the mana in the stone tablet world started churning wildly. The mana reserves that had not been affected in the least while Liam forged the two remarkable dragon souls now unexpectedly showed signs of dwindling!
Luna immediately became worried. Will her Master have enough mana? She could sense that he should not be interrupted at the moment. He was in the middle of a breakthrough, but unfortunately, there was nothing she could do about it.
The mana around them continued dropping at an alarming pace, and she was completely helpless. She snarled silently in anger as she got back into the fire essence puddle and focussed on her own training. Useless! She was too useless!
Unbeknownst to her and Liam, surprisingly, the dragon soul minions also had similar expressions at the moment. They did not seem quite as unemotional and unattached as the rest of the soul undead. It was almost as if they were not dead.
However, even more shocking than this was the behaviour of the stone tablet at the moment. As the mana inside the space started dwindling, the stone tablet started churning the essence of the dungeon even more wildly.
Normally, a Level 80 dungeon should have lasted for 2 entire days if compared to the behaviour of the stone tablet previously, but now with the way things proceeded, the essence of the dungeon seemed as if it was going to be depleted any second now.
The golden knight who was observing all of this without blinking dropped his jaw on the floor. Just what the hell was happening inside that space? He clenched his fists anxiously and stared at the mirror.
Was something huge going to happen? His heart pounded loudly as he waited and watched for things to be revealed. Unfortunately, that was all he could do at the moment. That and pray that nothing unforeseen happened.
If something did happen… the priestess… she would not be happy.
But the next second, BOOM!
A loud explosion rang out as the dungeon that previously existed was no longer there. "NOOO!" The golden knight shouted as he jolted to stand up in shock. What just happened? Did that human being manage to break through?
He peered through the mirror with his face so close to it as if he simply wanted to dive into the mirror himself. And it looked like he did not have to wait any longer!
When the dust and smoke cleared, the person that was hidden from his vision all this time finally revealed himself. Liam sat there, his head drooping low and his hands bleeding.
For a second, the golden knight looked stunned as he looked at the two undead dragon soul minions, but then his lips curved into a sneer as his attention landed on the human being.
His gaze dragged on Liam from top to bottom to confirm what he felt, and this sneer widened. "Paha! Of course! A lower-realm trash will be a lower-realm trash! I am just thinking too much. Ha Ha Ha!"
"Ok. There is no point sitting here and watching this human any longer. There is only less than an hour left. What could he possibly do with that time? Make more soul minions? Pa ha ha ha! The priestess was correct. He is just a fool who is in over his head."
"On the other hand, I have a lot that needs to be done before everything closes down." With a sigh, he stood up and left the hall.
Before leaving, he turned to glance at the mirror one last time, only to find Liam still sitting like a statue, a broken and desperate one at that. "He is completely done for." He laughed loudly and continued walking.
Meanwhile… the person he was watching indeed looked listless at the moment.
Liam's eyes betrayed his disappointment as he kept banging his fist against the cold hard ground with his bleeding fists. He had failed. He had actually failed!
Even with all of the efforts he had made, he failed again. No, he could not accept this. He would not accept this. He stopped punching the ground and tried again. He kept trying again and again and again, only to fail every single time!
"Damn it!" Liam shouted loudly like a maniac, his agonized yell breaking the silence of the rocky forest around him. He had gambled all the time he had into forging these two dragon souls, and yet he had failed.
He neither accomplished anything in his legacy nor broke the shackles which stood in the way of his awakening. He had failed completely and utterly in every single thing. He had tried so hard, and yet the result was a big fat zero.
If this was not enough, then what else was he supposed to do? Was this impossible for him after all? No, that was not acceptable.
Instead of punching the ground beneath him, he punched himself in the face the next second. "Calm down. Damn it. Calm down. Think."
That's right. It was still not time for him to give up and accept whatever happened. Until he had the last second inside the game, he was going to try and keep on trying. That was all that he could do now.
Liam stood up and steadied his turbulent heart and mind to the best that he could. He was on the right path. He was sure of it.
The last time he tried, he was definitely closer to breaking those goddamn chains. He just needed more soul strength. He just needed to become a little bit stronger. He was there. Almost there.
But now the problem was he no longer had any wyvern or dragon souls in his possession to further train his soul. What was he supposed to use now?
"Damn it all." He shouted in exasperation. It was fine. So what if he did not possess any more draconian souls? This mountain range was full of high-level beasts! They might not be wyverns or dragons, but they had to suffice!
He was going to hunt down and massacre every single one of these terrifying elites and use them as stepping stones to climb up to the top. He had come too far now to lose everything.
Ordering his soul army to follow him, Liam sped along the mountains on Luna's back, searching for the uncrowned kings of this territory. The fox blurred in and out crazily, and within a few seconds, the first sacrifice promptly showed up in front of them.
It was a six-winged lion, an adult, fully grown six-winged lion and a Level 95 beast at that.
Normally, a beast of this level and stature would stand tall and proud and stare down at its enemies with arrogance in its eyes, but this one suddenly started trembling as it gazed upon the army that descended in front of it.
Naturally, it did not care about Liam, who was a mere human being. Rather its gaze locked onto the terrifying creatures who landed right next to him. An army of wyverns? Just what were these big shots doing on its territory?
And before the six-winged lion could even blink, a multitude of attacks landed on it like meteorites. All the wyverns opened their mouths and rolled out their attacks one after the other.
The 2 million health points of the six-winged lion looked like a joke in front of these monsters. However, it was not enough to completely erase its existence. It was still alive.
I better get the fuck out of here. The six-winged lion did not have any intentions of fighting back. It just simply wanted to get out of there and run for its life.
It was confident in its speed and knew that it could buy time by summoning a golden shield. But just as it was about to turn tail and flap away at lightning speed, another two giant attacks landed on it.
The six-winged lion gaped in shock as its eyes finally landed on the perpetrators of this attack, the two smaller draconian beasts who landed at the forefront of the soul army.
Dragons? Its mind reeled as it took its last breath and collapsed. The poor lion did not even get a chance to fight back as it was completely overwhelmed by beasts beyond its imagination.
And to its dismay, it did not find peace even after death. It had only barely closed its bulged eyes when Liam stepped in front of it. He grabbed the beast's soul in its entirety and started hammering it with giant mana hammers.
Even if he was not able to break his shackles, the mana he was able to wield now was on a completely different level. With everything in his grasp, he banged onto the soul that shivered and quivered under the full impact of the mana hammers.
The soul was forged in a minute!