007. Ghost Rider and the Lady of the Lake
"Here it comes!"
Li Aozi slid low, expertly ducking under obstacles as he moved. In a split second, he glanced back and saw a tall man slowly emerging from the shadows, moving step by step, his body hunched like a hound. His limbs touched the ground, and he was wrapped in bandages and broken armor. A brass chain hung from his neck, and his long confinement had twisted his form. He crawled forward, raising his head, revealing six eyes crammed into his deep, hollow sockets.
The moment their gazes met, Li Aozi felt like he could barely breathe, as if the air had turned icy, filled with a bone-chilling cold.
"(Felician) …Leave this place."
The deformed knight on all fours slowly approached the spot where the maggot-infested sword had struck. Raising a third arm, he grabbed the sword from the ground. The twelve eyes rotated continuously, as if trying to focus on Li Aozi.
He didn't pursue actively, merely flicking the maggot-infested sword— and in the next moment, Li Aozi saw countless human arms suddenly extending from every crack in the walls, floor, and ceiling, all grasping at him!
"(Felician) You should not disturb the warriors' rest!"
Each arm exuded the stench of decay, though the flesh looked disturbingly plump. Yet on closer inspection, the 'flesh' was nothing but masses of maggots clinging to the bones.
[Entering combat mode, evaluating…]
[Based on your level, you will see the following enemy information:]
[Name]: 'Heroic Warlord' — Liderwens (Warning! Extremely dangerous!)
[Race]: Wraith
[Gender]: None
[Age]: ???
[Template]: High Lord-type NPC (HP +100%)
[Faction]: Felicia Civilization
[Total Level]: lv.100
—[Primary Class]: Destruction — [Knight of the Doom] lv.80 (MAX)
—[Secondary Class]: lv.15 [Swordsman]/lv.5 [Warlord]
[HP]: ???
[MP]: ???
[Attributes]:
(Due to the tier difference, you cannot see the enemy's attributes)
[Talents]:
Class Talent • Omen of Death — You are the most ruthless hunter, the most merciless reaper. Your obsession with death allows you to channel death's power through sheer will. Every time you learn a [Warrior]-exclusive skill, you will immediately gain a skill from the [Eerie] class.
Epsilon • Advanced Effect: Your willpower inflicts soul damage.
Racial Talent • Spirit Entity — You permanently receive 88% physical damage reduction, but when facing fire or holy damage, you take an equivalent amount of true damage.
(Due to the tier difference, you cannot see more information about the enemy)
[Specialties]:
(Due to the tier difference, you cannot see more information about the enemy)
[Skills]:
(Due to the massive attribute gap, combat-related skills from the primary class are not displayed)
[Tier]: Epsilon (Ε, the fifth Greek letter)
——————————
"Long time no see, Professor Liderwens!"
Li Aozi quipped.
This guy had been a 'great teacher' back in the day, instructing players on how to navigate maps and memorize attack patterns. Many had fallen to Liderwens, tortured by the endless supernatural phenomena he summoned.
The maggot-ridden hands continued to grasp at Li Aozi, while the air temperature plummeted. Even some wandering souls began transforming into wraiths, lunging toward him.
In an instant, Li Aozi was hit by three [Constitution] checks. Even though this body had 100 points in [Constitution], he failed the third check, and his health plummeted rapidly.
But Li Aozi remained unfazed. With practiced ease, he dodged dead ends and long paths, focusing on shortcuts. Effortlessly, he flipped off walls and jumped behind a statue, where his view opened up— revealing a hidden shortcut leading outside.
Li Aozi casually escaped from Liderwens' grasp.
The cold night gleamed softly, like a thin veil, draped over the garden. Sunflowers with human faces frowned, mumbling in their sleep, swaying their branches as they cried out.
A woman dressed in white silk sat quietly in the courtyard. Half of her face was decayed, while the other half was angelic. Her golden hair swayed gently in the evening breeze, and her misunderstood song echoed through the wilderness, lulling ghosts into dreams:
(Felician)
The boat drifts, the moon far away, the lake ripples gently, whose heart quietly burns.
There was a maiden who met the dawn amidst laurel and blossoms,
A cunning sorcerer used tricks,
Leading the girl onto the Lady Nabiru,
She traded her purity for the symbol of a lie,
She traded her youth for beatings and roars,
She cried, she cried, the lake ripples gently, whose heart breaks and wavers.
There was a young lord who, under the dark moon and sleepless night, reached the lonely isle,
He called himself a collector, asking for nothing in return,
Rescuing her from the sunken prison at the lake's bottom,
He was a dashing man with a cane and one leg,
His gemstone eyes and brown hair so handsome,
Yet he never showed affection toward the maiden,
The wind rises high, the stars distant, the lake ripples gently, whose heart remains lonely?
.........
Tap.
Li Aozi strode in without hesitation, shattering the tranquility of the place. The woman in white slowly raised her head in the peaceful garden, half of her uncorrupted face turned toward Li Aozi as she calmly said:
"I do not know why you wish to disturb this peace."
As she spoke, she slowly stood up:
"Everything here belongs to the warriors who bravely sacrificed themselves to end all wars and atrocities— the Blood of Men Saraka Legion!"
She stood tall, slowly picking up a scythe from the garden beside her:
"Though the evil blood has corrupted their souls, it could never taint their will."
The evening wind lifted her white veil, making it impossible to tell if it was a funeral shroud or a wedding dress. The fusion of death and joy caused a profound psychological impact.
"Even I— Sophia Marlin— will not allow you to disturb their rest."
Sophia said, carefully raising the scythe, her lips barely moving:
"I'm not much of a fighter, please forgive my lack of skill."
——————————
[Entering combat mode, evaluating…]
[Based on your level, you will see the following enemy information:]
[Name]: 'Lady of the Glimmering Lake' — Sophia Marlin (Warning! Extremely dangerous!)
[Race]: Wraith/Collectible
[Gender]: None (Psychologically female)
[Age]: ???
[Template]: Chief Lord-type NPC (HP +100%, can execute targets with less than 5% HP)
[Faction]: Felicia Civilization
(Due to the tier difference, you cannot see more information about the enemy)
[Tier]: Zeta (ζ, the sixth Greek letter)
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