Yang Qizhou was munching on snacks left behind by Little Bean. Hmm, the taste of freeloading is simply unbeatable.
"How odd. Harriet, as the Guard Captain of Bright Outpost and the current leader of the Northern Realm Clan, is such a conspicuous presence no matter where he goes. How could he be missing?"
"Did he decide this place was beyond saving and just bailed out? Haha, just kidding."
"Let’s see what happens next in the plot."
Putting aside the doubts in his mind, Yang Qizhou refocused his attention on the ga. Soon, the text refreshed anew.
...
...
"Your soul, as practiced in shalessness as ever, has returned to the edge of the River of Death."
"You once again feel the gaze of an unknown entity and hear those repeating ravings, like a voice caught in a loop."
"You used the Destiny Fire Bottle, reigniting the extinguished blessing power. The force of destiny rewrote the ending of your death."
"You opened your eyes once more in the Bright Outpost."
"In your heart, you cursed relentlessly... You people have inherited your sacred duty, standing in for the King of Nature to guard the Bright Outpost, to fend off the evil forces from the Endless Abyss from corrupting the land. Brave, honest, fearless, kind warriors—how could you set a trap?"
"That’s just downright wicked."
"After venting, you felt a bit better and started pondering seriously."
"The Northern Realm Warriors no longer act with straightforward honor; they’ve turned to sneaky, despicable thods. Who knows how many traps could be hidden in this seemingly upright Bright Outpost? Charging recklessly is definitely not the way to go."
"Ti to find soone to ask."
"You began searching for a suitable person. You saw Sarshit’s shadow."
"Thanks to your previous experiences in this destiny tiline, you’re well aware that this fourteen-year-old boy isn’t as normal as he appears. His soul has long been twisted, corrupted by the Endless Abyss. To ask him about Harriet’s whereabouts would be a far cry from a wise decision."
"You kept searching."
"You spotted a thirteen-year-old girl wearing coarse clothes, holding a wooden staff, her face slightly grubby, training hard in secret techniques with determined effort plastered across her face."
"This little girl is so cute and hardworking—surely she won’t be a problem."
"You settled on your decision."
"Rather than revealing yourself imdiately, you followed the little girl from behind. Once she was alone with no one around, you deactivated the Hidden God’s Clothes effect."
"Who’s there?"
"You heard the little girl’s slightly tense questioning. A faint glow surrounded her, mystical elents manifesting around her."
"You tried to put on your friendliest smile... ’It’s ! Don’t you rember ?’"
"The little girl clearly rembered. Seeing you, her face lit up with excitent... ’I rember! I rember! Of course I rember! You’re the Holy Envoy from the Divine City. We’ve all been hoping for your return!’"
"Being seen as a hero feels pretty amazing."
"Your vanity was imnsely satisfied."
"After a bit more casual chit-chat, you brought the topic back on track, asking the little girl, ’Where’s Harriet? I’ve been searching high and low in the outpost but haven’t seen a trace of him.’"
"You watched as the little girl’s mood suddenly grew somber, her voice tinged with sadness... ’Harriet, he, he, he...’"
"An uneasy feeling welled up in your chest."
"Don’t tell he’s dead."
"You urgently grabbed the little girl’s shoulder... ’What happened to him?’"
"The little girl replied despondently... ’He’s sick. He’s recovering at Yar’s, and we don’t know how long it’ll take for him to get better.’"
"Can you not be so dramatic? From the way you were talking, I almost thought Harriet had died."
"You grumbled internally, exasperated."
"You urged the little girl to take you to see Harriet. As the Holy Envoy from the Divine City, and the hope of Bright Outpost—the sole savior—you carried a prestigious status. With such authority, the little girl had no hesitation in agreeing to your request."
"On the way there, you slapped your forehead, secretly chastising yourself for being so hasty just now."
"After all, Harriet isn’t a native Northern Realm Clan mber. He has mysterious origins, and when faced with deadly threats, an exalted power within him awakens. There’s no way soone like him would die so easily."
"Led by the little girl, you arrived at Yar’s house..."
"Suddenly, black snakes coiled around your limbs. A tal ball was shoved into your mouth. You couldn’t move, couldn’t speak, couldn’t do anything at all."
"What’s going on? Your mind was filled with question marks."
"While lost in confusion, a skinny, childlike figure erged from the room—it was Sarshit."
"You glanced around. Four or five kids were present—the sa ones who followed you and Harriet secretly in the prior destiny tiline. These, too, are the children corrupted by the Endless Abyss, aren’t they?"
"You turned your gaze back to the little girl—where was the kind, cute appearance from before? Goat horns sprouted from her head, her expression twisted, her face a masterpiece of horror artistry, her eyes were bizarre serpentine pupils brimming with distortion, strangeness, and madness."
"You tried to say sothing, but your mouth was gagged, rendering you speechless."
"Your eyes were covered."
"You were lifted by these Northern Realm Clan children."
"Faintly, you overheard their discussions. ’There’s no issue on Harriet’s end, right?’ ’Don’t worry. With Yar and Rona watching him, there won’t be any problems.’ ’What about this traveler from Asgard?’ ’Dig out his eyes, cut off his ears, rip out his guts, and offer him as a sacrifice to the Great Divine.’"
"Before long, you felt a chilling sensation on your skin. You seed to have been placed on a stone platform."
"Your eyes were gouged out. Your ears were cut off. Your guts were extracted. You beca the Northern Realm Clan’s sacrificial offering to the Abyss Old God."
"You died."
...
...
Dead again?
Yang Qizhou’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Damn it! The death rate today is off the charts. Even when attending the secret gathering of the Naless or harvesting Black Abyss Flowers in the Valley of the Silent, it wasn’t this humiliating. Appearing as a sacrificial offering is just too much.
Last ti I ca to Bright Outpost, the storyline wasn’t like this at all.
How did the difficulty level spike?
Grumbling aside, Yang Qizhou refocused on the plot.
"Judging by Sarshit and the others’ conversation, Harriet seems to have been captured by those Northern Realm Clan mbers corrupted by the Endless Abyss. No one knows where he’s being held."
"That’s likely why the Ga Character couldn’t find Harriet."
"Speaking of which, last ti the Ga Character left Bright Outpost, didn’t they warn Harriet, ’In the common sense you know, deception may already exist.’ It was spelled out that clearly, and they still got outplayed."
"So pathetic."
With the plot barely advanced and two Destiny Fire Bottles wasted already, Yang Qizhou was nothing short of furious.
Scowling, lips pursed, he continued clicking away at the screen.
"Damn it, I’m not giving up yet!"
...
...
"After enduring a lengthy session of snarky insults delivered by the Narrator, you burned through another Destiny Fire Bottle, rewriting your death through destiny’s power."
"You used the False Road Marker..."
"You reopened your eyes outside the Bright Outpost."
"The dread lingered in your heart; after all, having your eyes gouged out, ears cut off, and internal organs removed isn’t a particularly enjoyable experience. Compared to that, getting your kidney taken would’ve been preferable."
"You took a long mont to pull yourself out of the shadow of being sacrificed."
"You fell into contemplation."
"Harriet has already been imprisoned sowhere, location unknown. Finding him might reveal so hidden truths about the scheming forces in the North Realm Abyss."
"But..."
"Bright Outpost is riddled with traps. Charging in recklessly might result in another humiliating setback. But openly revealing yourself could invite hostility from Sarshit and other kids corrupted by the Endless Abyss."
"Without dying a few more tis, it seems impossible to locate where Harriet is being held, let alone rescue him."
"Always relying on cheats, revives, and sneaky tactics for gains, the explorer finds yet another crossroads of destiny appearing before him."
"Do you see Harriet as your dearest family, your sworn comrade, essential to rescue, and resolve to help him?"
"Or will you decide to leave him be, bypass Bright Outpost, and pull off a daring infiltration into the depths of the North Realm Abyss instead?"
"Please make your choice."
...
...
The ever-popular "choice" mont again.
Yang Qizhou grinned ear to ear, his smile beaming with delight. Choices ant save points. Save points ant regret-free options. It ant cheats could be used once again.
What’s there to be afraid of?
"Dearest family, sworn comrade... Sure, add more money. Without extra pay, who’s going to save you?"
"Hahaha."
.Côm-cσ๓
"That first option is a hard pass. Bright Outpost is a death trap now, deep enough to drown soone. Guard Captain Harriet missing and imprisoned by Sarshit didn’t even stir up chaos. That alone is suspicious enough, not to ntion those kids—are they human or wolves?"
"Heading to the North Realm Abyss is definitely safer."
"Alright, option two it is..."
After settling on his choice, Yang Qizhou quickly carried out the corresponding actions.
...
...
"You figured that you’re not all that close with Harriet. There’s no point risking a few more lives to save him. You’d be better off checking out the North Realm Abyss first."
"You activated the Hidden God’s Clothes effect."
"You grinned, pulling out a gauze-like garnt—the Devil’s Disguise."
"This ti, the evil forces from the Endless Abyss won’t be able to corrupt you."
"You chuckled evilly."
"You snuck into the North Realm Abyss."
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