There are only four people left in the entire ghost story world. They thought they could pass the game by collecting all the fragments of the cross, but who knew there would be more to come.
"I hope it doesn't start like this, where 'it's only just beginning'!"
"Whether it is or not, why don't we just go up and take a look?"
Jiang Ran stepped onto the stairs leading to the top floor of the Holy Church.
Pushing open the heavy stone door, several gargoyles pounced out. Jiang Ran was prepared and slashed them all with his sword before entering the top floor of the cathedral!
This is a solemn room filled with a sense of dread. Unlike the dilapidated state of other places, the stone bricks here gleamed as if they were brand new, and even the huge cross sculpture was spotless, as if it were surrounded by holy light.
A skeleton sat on a golden stone chair, its right hand outstretched as if to grasp something.
Jiang Ran assembled the fragments into a complete cross and placed it in the skeleton's hand. The skeleton's fingers clenched almost imperceptibly, and a beam of holy light pierced through the roof of the church, striking the endless black mist in the sky!
The entire cathedral shook violently. Jiang Ran braced himself against the wall to steady himself. Through the window, the two could see the fog in the sky rapidly dissipating, and the dazzling light made it difficult for them to open their eyes.
This is not sunlight; rather, it resembles the light emitted from the eye of some indescribable thing.
At the same time, all four of them received a notification that they had successfully survived for the first day, indicating that the timeline of the entire island had been forcibly pushed back to the second day.
Yamagami also chose to leave without hesitation. Getting the SS-level world's first-day reward was already a huge blessing for Sakura.
The mountain also looked up meaningfully.
"Jiang Ran, our final battle won't be here." He tossed his hair. "Unfortunately, it's unavoidable. Well then, goodbye."
Aransta, sitting on the stairs, also received the notification.
But he did not choose to leave the world; instead, after a moment's thought, he chose to stay.
"Jiang Ran, what exactly happened between my brother and you in that instance?" He lowered his head. "I know that it's all about winning and losing, and I know that victory or defeat depends entirely on one's own strength, but how can I calmly deal with the murderer who killed my brother?!"
As if all the emotions that had been suppressed for so long were about to burst forth, Aransta gritted her teeth and said, "Jiang Ran, why didn't you tell me? Is it because I'm not good enough for you right now? Since you're unwilling, then I'll find out for myself!"
"I will prove my strength!"
"Replace your talent!"
In the previous stages, Aransta killed other people or strange creatures using the Scythe of Deception, never consuming any of his talent's uses, so he now has a chance to replace his talent.
"Wait! That's it!"
Under the reflection of the two golden cards, the talent card at the very center shimmered with a crimson-gold light!
SSS-level talent!
After four worlds, the White Eagles have finally welcomed another SSS-rank ghost storyteller!
"Aransta! I knew he could do it!"
The old man who had previously recommended Aransta slammed his hand on the table and stood up, ignoring his aching hand, and burst into laughter in front of everyone!
Even if an SSS-level person doesn't participate in high-level worlds, having him at home is still a status symbol!
"Haha, it wasn't for nothing that we kept him participating in the high-level worlds! Sure enough, the probability of refreshing high-level talents is much higher in the high-level worlds!"
"That's right, it would be great if Aransta could also clear the game while he's at it..."
At this moment, the White Eagle leadership suddenly realized that the world was not over yet! Even with an SSS-level talent, they could not be careless; only by surviving could they achieve victory!
"Whether we clear the level or not is secondary, Aransta, you must come back alive!"
Don't follow in Fan Che's footsteps, a dignified SSS-level, dying like that.
Only now are they starting to care about Aransta's life or death, fearing that this "treasure" they just got their hands on will be gone!
"This talent... could it really be predetermined?"
Jiang Ran and Ye Ye definitely did not choose to leave the world. In the holy light, the mist dissipated completely. In the next moment, the holy light went out, and a black substance spread into the sky, gradually obscuring the light in the air!
"That's... the River Styx?!"
The Styx River, which encircles the entire island, rises up like a giant semi-circular dome, covering the island until the last gap disappears, plunging it back into darkness.
The sound of pattering rain began, and Jiang Ran knew that it was the Styx River in the sky turning into a heavy rain. As long as they came into contact with this black rain, their bodies would be corroded into a puddle of mud!
The cathedral quickly began to crumble under the corrosive influence of the black rain. Ye Ye raised his right hand, and an invisible shield protected the two of them. The huge stone pillars collapsed, causing the entire floor to become unstable!
"We'll be buried here!"
"There's no other way! Keep going down! Otherwise, once the upper structure is completely corroded, we'll be exposed to the black rain!"
"Cough cough!"
Amidst the billowing dust, the scythe spun above Aransta's head, shielding him from falling debris as he made his way into the basement!
"What on earth did Jiang Ran do?!"
After an unknown amount of time, the entire cathedral had become a pile of ruins. Jiang Ran no longer heard the sound of rain, presumably because the Styx River had been depleted.
Gwen pushed aside the stones that were pressing down on everyone and peeked out. The black mist that had disappeared had once again enveloped the island. If it weren't for the Soul Lamp, it would be back to the state of being pitch black.
"Huh? So all our efforts just ended up being nothing but loneliness?"
"Don't think like that, at least we destroyed the Holy Church..."
The cross must have been damaged by the black rain, and even if it wasn't, finding it now would be extremely difficult!
"So—" Ye Ye stood up and stretched, "what should we do next?"
[Rule Fourteen: The black mist seals the souls of the sinners. Do not allow the spirits of the Holy Empire of the Pope to see the light of day again. Protect the four Soul-Suppressing Nails on the edge of the island. Do not allow anything to pull out the Soul-Suppressing Nails! Otherwise, all life on the island will face annihilation.]
[Rule Fifteen: The Holy Empire of the Pope will surely regain its former glory. Please pull out the four Soul-Suppressing Nails on the edge of the isolated island, free the souls of the saints, and when glory returns, they will never forget your help.]
[Rule Sixteen: Ignore any unseen wails coming from the black fog. If you encounter someone crouching on the ground crying, do not approach them to investigate, and absolutely do not see their face.]
[Rule Seventeen: Do not utter your real name in the black mist! Do not call out anyone else's name in the black mist, nor respond to anyone else's calls. Remember, when the Soul Lamp's light turns black, cease all your current actions.]
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