An SS-Tier Quest Full of Temptation

Upon reaching the second level of the Grand Mausoleum, it was even colder, and the Yin-Energy Envelopment energy was more potent. The Life Value, stamina, and Divine Might that were previously slowly recovering had all been reduced to zero.

In contrast, the Undead Species summoned creatures seemed to have returned home, bathed in yin energy, and their Life Value, which had been lost in the previous battle, were rapidly recovering.

As the two stepped onto the second floor, a white light suddenly flashed behind them, and a Brightlight appeared, blocking the entrance to the stairs.

"What's going on? Is it impossible to leave the mausoleum without completing the mission?" Li Shuyi asked, puzzled.

Bai Xiaowen frowned. "I don't know yet." He habitually looked at his left wrist.

"The first room on the second floor... seems to be free of enemies." Li Shuyi looked around using the dim, moss-covered light on the second floor and breathed a sigh of relief.

"No, that's not right!"

Bai Xiaowen saw the pattern on the Doom Bracelet —a panicked face! This signified extreme danger; a slight misstep could be fatal.

Before entering combat, Bai Xiaowen immediately recalled all summoned creatures and then began a ranged search using his Divine Might.

Recalling summoned creatures before a major battle is a basic operational habit. This allows for Targeted Airdrop upon entering combat, which can not only block skills but also surround and eliminate ranged enemies with melee creatures, seizing control of the battle's tempo.

Under the Divine Might search, Bai Xiaowen's expression changed slightly.

A slightly smug voice rang out. "I knew a mouse had come in."

From the west gate, three figures emerged: Richard and his two Leader Tier guards.

At the same time, two groups of people emerged from the east and north gates respectively. On the north gate were Dean Melda and the rough-looking nun, while on the east gate were Glandis, Sword Saint Carlisle, and Goliya.

Beside them were several palace guards under Grand Lord Galandis, and a dozen or so Royal Halberd Guard led by Richard.

Eight Leader Tier powerhouses and nearly twenty Elite Tier blocked the three narrow entrances on the second floor of the underground mausoleum.

In this situation, unless an awakened player has items like Return Scroll, they're basically doomed.

Bai Xiaowen knew he had underestimated the abilities of these Boss Tier. Perhaps the ease with which the surprise attack on Northshire was completed had given him a subconscious sense of contempt for this world.

Regardless, the eight Boss Tier were a formidable force that Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi's team could not withstand, not to mention the dozen or so Elite Tier guards who assisted them.

Bai Xiaowen glanced at the steps behind her out of the corner of her eye.

Dean Melda said coldly, "Don't even think about it. I've reactivated the seal on the second level of the Grand Mausoleum. You can't escape."

A soft exclamation rang out, Goliya, on the east side, asked in confusion, "Is that you?"

Under the faint glow of the bioluminescent moss, Goliya's expression was subtle, showing both confusion and surprise.

"Goliya, do you know this intruder?" Dean Melda asked.

Goliya nodded gently. "This person's name is Dio Skellboom."

Dean Melda's eyes suddenly flashed with a strange light, and she said sharply, "Dio Skellboom? Is that the outsider who stole the Evil Soulstone?"

Glandis was standing nearby, also reacted and screamed, "It's you, Dio Skellboom! The wanted criminal from the Northern Frontier, you murdered Baron Elliott Oliver!"

Richard paused for a moment, then a playful smile appeared on his face.

"I never expected the thief of the Soul Stone to show himself. Wasn't stealing the Evil Soulstone enough for you? Now you want to steal more... Hmm, you must have been influenced by the Soul Stone, becoming evil and corrupted."

"Your Highness, this man is a key member of the rebels! During the battle when the rebels breached the Northshire, his hands were stained with the blood of countless Imperial Army soldiers. He's Butcher, an executioner!" Grand Lord Galandis's eyes burned with rage, a cacophony of old and new grudges surging within her. She cried out, "It's truly the Lord of Light's protection that has delivered him to us. Your Highness, we must not let him go!"

"Wait! This is an outsider. We need to make him hand over the Evil Soulstone before he dies!" Melda shouted.

Goliya nodded and said, "Yes, he doesn't belong to our plane of existence. If we kill him, we won't be able to find the Soul Stone on his body. We must make him hand it over voluntarily."

After a pause, Goliya added, "Also, we need to be careful of his ability to teleport across dimensions. Two years ago in the Frozen Ancient Tomb, he escaped from me in this way and returned to his own world."

Upon hearing these two sentences, Dean Melda's expression immediately became much more serious.

"Don't worry," Richard said slowly. "Our royal family also keeps records of outsiders... First of all, interdimensional teleportation isn't arbitrary. These outsiders must meet certain conditions before they can cross dimensions; otherwise, they must use some kind of precious magical item to forcibly cross. Secondly, forcibly crossing dimensions and returning is a terrible option for these outsiders; it's as if some kind of punishment will befall them."

Li Shuyi's expression was somewhat unpleasant; this Richard seemed to know quite a bit about the Awakened.

Bai Xiaowen, on the other hand, was quite relaxed and said with a smile, "Coincidentally, I happen to have the kind of precious magical item you mentioned."

As he spoke, Bai Xiaowen showed the Return Scroll in his hand. At his prompting, Li Shuyi also showed her Return Scroll.

Melda frowned and looked at Grand Lord Glandis beside her, her eyes filled with a hint of inquiry.

Glandis felt a pang of reluctance, but after carefully sensing the energy, she could only nod and say, "That's right, I can sense fluctuations in spatial energy from those two magic scrolls. There's a greater than 90% chance that they are the items His Highness mentioned, the ones that forcibly cross dimensions."

"Okay, I think we can talk," Bai Xiaowen said with a smile.

The basis for negotiation is that neither side has the ability to eliminate the other, yet both sides have interests to pursue in the other.

However, Richard scoffed, "I have nothing to talk to you about. Gentlemen, let's not waste any more time. Kill these two invaders... or at least force them out of our world."

The two Leader Tier guards behind Richard were itching to make a move.

"Wait!" Dean Melda said urgently, "Since we can't seize the Soul Stone by force, I think negotiation is necessary. Goliya, what do you think?"

Goliya nodded and said to Bai Xiaowen, "Please hand over the evil Soul Stone, and I will ask His Highness the Prince for permission to leave this place."

Bai Xiaowen shook his head. "Let me leave? I can leave anytime. You can have the Soul Stone, but the price you've offered is almost zero. I see no sincerity whatsoever."

Goliya took a breath and tried to persuade her from another angle, "Why are you so obsessed with the evil Soul Stone? You are not inherently evil. When I first met you, you stood up to protect your friends, facing a powerful being of unknown origin... This is a virtue that many knights lack. A moment of Greed led you to steal the Soul Stone, but its power is too evil; it will only corrupt you, making you as mad as Farga."

Bai Xiaowen laughed and said, "Miss Goliya, do you think I'm crazy right now?"

Goliya gave Bai Xiaowen a careful look.

Bai Xiaowen's charm worked its magic once again. The young man before him, with his long, slender eyebrows and bright, star-like eyes, exuded an aura of "handsomeness," making it difficult to equate him with the madman Farga.

Goliya lowered her eyelids. "I... can't tell yet."

Bai Xiaowen smiled and said, "The Soul Stone only gave me power. Power itself has no distinction between good and evil. If I use it for the good, it is righteous; if I use it for the evil, it is evil."

Dean Melda said in a deep voice, "True evil often doesn't show on the surface."

The rough-looking nun behind Melda spoke up loudly, her voice booming, "Yes, Goliya, don't be fooled by this boy. The nun once said that the more handsome a man is, the more likely he is to lie."

Bai Xiaowen was just about to try and fool Goliya, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, when the rough-looking old woman saw right through him, leaving him in an awkward situation.

Dean Melda: "Enough with the small talk, what will it take for you to hand over the Soul Stone?"

Bai Xiaowen discreetly observed his surroundings, replying casually, "Then we'll have to see how sincere you are."

Dean Melda took a breath and said, "I can trade you the ' Divine Gift Page '!"

This statement shocked everyone present.

Goliya couldn't help but say, "Dean, didn't you tell me that the Divine Gift Page is no longer available? Because of this, I had to interrupt my mission..."

Dean Melda said calmly, "Even if you were given another chance to cross dimensions, you still wouldn't be able to complete the mission. The Divine Gift Page is so precious, I don't want to waste it."

"Wait... shouldn't you tell me first what the Divine Gift Page is?" Bai Xiaowen, of course, never refused this kind of free information.

Melda said, "The Divine Gift Page are actually sacred parchment imbued with the Divine Might power of the Lord of Light. These pages contain immense energy and can be used to create exceptionally powerful magical scrolls. With the Divine Gift Page, even a third-rate inscriptionist can create works comparable to those of a great inscriptionist, while a highly skilled great inscriptionist can even use the power contained within the Divine Gift Page to create miraculous scrolls that can break through dimensional barriers..."

Bai Xiaowen was startled, for he had received a notification from the Spirit Realm Rules:

"You learned important information about the Divine Gift Page from the Spirit Realm."

"Special Elite Tier Side Quest: The Scavenger, now open."

"Mission Objective: Locate the sealed hand bone within the Bright Pass and destroy the Sealing Incantation."

"Mission Difficulty: SS"

"Mission Deadline: None (equivalent to your remaining time in the Aaron Plane World)."

"Quest Reward: Ancient Divine Power Residue"

[Ancient Divine Power Residue: The embers of a fallen god's power. Use increases the awakened individual's potential, instantly granting free attribute points equal to the user's level, and randomly increasing by 1-3 additional free attribute points with each class level increase. Bind on Pickup.]

Bai Xiaowen took a breath; the reward was indeed quite valuable. Leaving aside the directly added free attributes, the later-stage growth potential alone was incredibly tempting. If you were lucky enough to get lucky, it would be equivalent to gaining an extra 3 points of growth with each level up.

Reaching the Advanced Awakened stage, 3 points in attributes isn't exactly overpowered, but it's important to note that the attributes gained from leveling up are all "basic attributes"!

Many high-level planes drop extremely rare Gold Equipment, but the requirements for base stats are also getting higher and higher. Often, base stats are insufficient, and even with Enhancement Potion, there are times when you reach the limit and can't make up for it. This makes increasing free stats very valuable.

Receiving the mission notification and thinking about these things seemed to take a long time, but in Bai Xiaowen's mind it only took 0.1 seconds before he immediately accepted the SS Elite Tier difficulty Scavenger mission.

Melda clearly saw the interest in Bai Xiaowen's expression, but she had obviously misunderstood him— Bai Xiaowen wasn't interested in the Divine Gift Page, but rather in the rewards for the Scavenger mission!

"The Divine Gift Page is at the Bright Pass. If you agree, we can go directly to the Bright Pass to trade. However, first we must draw up a contract and swear an oath to the gods," Melda said.

To Bright Pass?

Bai Xiaowen couldn't ask for more. However, Bai Xiaowen absolutely could not agree to swear an oath to the gods—that is, to Spirit Realm Rules Notarization. Putting aside the importance of the Black Soul Stone to him, even if Bai Xiaowen wanted to give it, he couldn't hand over the Black Soul Stone as his exclusive equipment.

Bai Xiaowen could only resort to deception. "I can agree, but I can only swear an oath after I see the Divine Gift Page."

"Good..."

However, Melda was abruptly interrupted after only uttering one word.

"He won't give you the Soul Stone!" Richard snorted heavily. "This kind of deal is a complete waste of time. I want to complete my mission as soon as possible. Only after I've verified that the seal is intact will I lead my army to reclaim Northshire."

This statement was clearly Grand Lord Galandis.

Melda's expression changed, and she tried her best to stop him. "Your Highness, we should be more patient..."

Glandis took a breath. "North Palace Guards, heed my command, kill these two rebels!" In the end, her goal was merely to use Richard Richard's power to reclaim the Northshire; the Evil Soulstone meant nothing to her.

Several palace guards rushed over. At the same time, the Royal Halberd Guard under Richard also surged forward.

Bai Xiaowen laughed loudly, "You lot can't stop me!"

An extremely strong Overawing Presence spread out, and Bai Xiaowen instantly activated his Intimidation skill! While everyone was stunned, he and Li Shuyi rushed straight towards the north gate, which was where Dean Melda was located.

Advanced Boss all possess resilience skills, and their Intimidation lasts for a very short time. By the time Bai Xiaowen approached the north gate, the Boss Tier in the arena had gradually recovered from their fear/stun status.

"Stop him!" Richard roared.

However, Melda and the rough-looking nun, while seemingly rushing forward to meet Bai Xiaowen, actually slightly sidestepped and watched as Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi rushed through the doorway and disappeared into the darkness.

"Dean Melda, our deal is still valid!" Bai Xiaowen laughed heartily, his voice fading into the distance.

Richard Richard's face was ashen. "Melda, I need an explanation!"