This assassin is upright

Chapter 428 Encounter, Facing the Enemy

"Stop for a moment."

Yu Zhun spoke in a deep voice, and the crowd behind him, who were struggling to move forward, stopped in their tracks.

“We’re already in a bit of a precarious situation right now.” He turned to look at everyone and slowly began to speak. “The effect of [Sigh Recollection] on players has one characteristic: it can be adapted to over time.”

"We have gone two thousand meters deep without stopping. We have no time to adapt to the weakening of our senses, which is why it is so difficult."

"Not far ahead is the area where the second [Silence Crystal] is located on this route. Because it is deeper, it will be several times more difficult to obtain than the first one."

"If things continue like this, we are very likely to encounter danger in the process of obtaining the [Silence Crystal], which is something I don't want to see."

"So, we'll adjust here, adapt to the current situation, and then continue to delve deeper."

“But…” Glenn hesitated for a moment before speaking. Seeing Yu Zhun nod to signal him to speak, he mustered his courage and said, “Lord Yu Zhun, I understand what you mean. This arrangement is indeed safer and more secure.”

"But we've already wasted some time refining the Heavenly Demon Battle Formation. If we don't speed things up, will..."

"Are you worried that others will arrive at the checkpoint before us?" Yu Zhun asked with a smile, revealing the other person's concern.

Glenn nodded immediately, "Yes, Lord Yu Zhun."

“This worry is actually unnecessary.” Yu Zhun shook his head slightly. “You may not know the purpose of our trip.”

"But we're already comrades, so there's no harm in telling you."

"We came to the Abyss of Sighs to deal with the five near-third-tier divine children of the Fifth Divine District. They are aware of our purpose, which is why they chose this dungeon to attack."

Upon hearing this, Glenn and the others immediately showed expressions of shock.

Before they came, they had only heard that they were to help Helmod conquer the land, but they had never heard that they were to deal with the five divine children!
However, thinking of the powerful Heavenly Demon Battle Formation, the five of them quickly showed eager expressions.

That kind of power seemed completely sufficient to suppress the opponent.

As for their stance, they were originally from the Fourth God District faction, and had been fighting with the Fifth God District and another faction for a long time.

Seeing that Glenn and the others had accepted the arrangement, Yu Zhun then spoke.

"Since the other side intends to choose the battlefield, they won't clear the level before we encounter them."

"Therefore, the speed of our actions is not important."

"The important thing is that the five of them won't let anyone else interfere with our fight."

Upon hearing this, Glenn and the others looked enlightened.

Seeing that no one was still confused, Yu Zhun spoke calmly.

"Just rest here."

After saying that, he sat down cross-legged on the spot.

As the body stabilized, the sensory suppression effect of [Echoing Sigh] seemed to weaken considerably, at least in terms of reducing the discomfort to the senses.

Several hours later, Yu Zhun could clearly feel that he had recovered most of his condition and had almost adapted to the echoes of this place.

Seeing that the others' complexions had also improved considerably, Yu Zhun nodded slightly, "That's about enough, everyone can continue on our way."

Everyone opened their eyes at the same time, and after standing up again, they felt quite refreshed.

"If we could reach the point of completion simply by adapting over a long period of time without having to compete with others, that would be ideal." Helmod shook his head and sighed softly.

Often, the difficulty of a level stems from competition among players.

But in the end, they were unable to reach the finish line.

The human heart is the most unpredictable and difficult challenge.

“The scariest thing is that everyone knows this, but everyone understands that they have no choice.” Yu Zhun continued the conversation, a realization dawning on him.

Perhaps this can be used in future copies I design?
As they chatted idly, they continued deeper into the area. Soon, they noticed that the [Echoes of Sighs] around them were becoming noticeably thinner, a sign that the [Silent Crystal] was located in the vicinity. This caused everyone to tense up.

"Based on the depth and the concentration of [Echoes of Sighs], obtaining the [Silent Crystal] here will be more than 50% more difficult than the previous one."

Helmod spoke in a deep voice, reminding everyone present.

Soon, a [Silence Crystal] appeared before everyone's eyes.

Unlike last time, this [Silent Crystal] is hanging at the tip of a branch extending from the cliff face.

The tree branch that could grow in the Abyss of Sighing Gods was clearly no ordinary branch. It was also a product of twisting and distortion, covered with crimson eyes, enough to send chills down the spine of anyone with trypophobia.

These eyes, filled with resentment, turned to look at Yu Zhun and the others the moment they approached.

In an instant, Yu Zhun felt a jolt in his heart, immediately stopped and stared intently at the branch, a wary expression on his face.

"This isn't good," Lu Wen said in a low voice. "This thing gives me a very strange feeling. It's best to test it before going any closer."

"Hmm." Yu Zhun nodded slightly, about to say something, when suddenly his expression shifted slightly as he looked at the other side of the branch.

In the darkness, another team of raiders slowly approached.

The other party was originally talking loudly, but their expression changed instantly after they saw Yu Zhun and the others, and their voices stopped abruptly.

A deathly silence fell over the arena. After a moment, the opposing captain spoke up loudly, "Friends in front, your strategy has only just begun."

"At this point, if we fight to the death, it will only benefit others."

As he spoke, the captain noticed the number of people in Yu Zhun's group, his heart sank, and he couldn't help but curse under his breath.

There are only 20 teams in total, yet teams still managed to team up!

Feeling apprehensive, his tone softened considerably.

"Although you have the advantage in numbers, it is probably impossible for you to take us down without suffering any casualties."

"How about we give you this [Silence Crystal] as a token of friendship?"

"What a fine way to make friends." Yu Zhun chuckled. "We're all sensible people, so let's not talk such nonsense."

He pointed to the [Silence Crystal] in front of him, "If you want it, then each of you has to rely on your own abilities to take it."

Seeing Yu Zhun speak so bluntly, the smile on the other side's captain's face immediately vanished. He gave Yu Zhun and the others a deep look before slowly speaking.

"In that case, we won't be polite."

After saying that, he gave another assassin teammate beside him a look, and the latter flashed away, quickly heading towards the tree branch in front of him.

"Are we just going to watch?" Helmod raised an eyebrow and lowered his voice. "What if they actually get it?"

"Then they're just unlucky." Yu Zhun smiled slightly.

Just then, a sudden change occurred. The assassin was almost able to reach the [Silence Crystal] on the branch when all the eyes on the branch turned around and stared at him. In the instant that all the eyes were fixed on him, he let out a cry of surprise, and then his body suddenly froze on the spot.

Before anyone could react, a sharp claw shot out from a crack in the rock at the base of a tree branch, instantly piercing the opponent's chest.

A flash of white light, and a level 90 player was easily eliminated.

"This..." The captain of the raiding team's pupils suddenly contracted, and his expression changed drastically. At this moment, he finally understood why Yu Zhun and the others did not go to retrieve the [Silence Crystal], but instead sent them to do so.

Those branches with the [Silence Crystal] hanging on them are extremely dangerous!
"Withdraw!" After shouting, the captain led the remaining three team members away without hesitation. Before leaving, he kept a wary eye on the direction of Yu Zhun and the others, fearing that they might make a move to leave them behind.

"They run pretty fast." Yu Zhun shook his head slightly, then couldn't help but look at the branches covered with blood-red pupils.

The opponent's swift and decisive attack had also surprised him greatly.

Although the distance was quite far, Yu Zhun could still clearly feel the power that the other party unleashed at that moment. That power was somewhat strange, and even he might not be able to break free from it, ultimately falling victim to it.

More importantly, according to Helmod's previous speculation, obtaining the [Silence Crystal] here should not have been so difficult.

Is it...

A thoughtful look flashed in Yu Zhun's eyes, and he shouted in a low voice, "Form the formation!"

what?
Everyone was stunned at the same time.

We've only been in the dungeon for a short time, and it's already time to use the Heavenly Demon Battle Formation?

Although they were surprised, they reacted quickly.

The moment Yu Zhun finished speaking, the auras of the ten people converged, and a Heavenly Demon hundreds of meters tall appeared out of thin air. Its astonishing aura, comparable to that of a third-stage cultivator, swept around like a whirlwind, even silencing the sighs.

Yu Zhun's face appeared above the Heavenly Demon. He controlled the Heavenly Demon to raise one hand and grab fiercely towards the tree branch.

At that moment, the previously still branches suddenly began to twist wildly, and streams of energy burst forth from the darkness at the base of the branches, rushing away from the Heavenly Demon like arrows on a string.

"Hmph, just as I thought!" Yu Zhun snorted lightly, and his hand, which had been grabbing the tree branch, suddenly turned and fell rapidly towards the fleeing person like a dark cloud.

"boom!!!"

With a deafening explosion that echoed throughout the canyon, the five players who tried to escape perished instantly in the blink of an eye.

The tree branch fell silent, all the blood-red pupils closed, and the power they had before vanished.

After dismissing the Heavenly Demon and casually plucking the [Silence Crystal] from the tree branch, Yu Zhun led the group towards the scene where the five had just perished.

The others only gradually came to their senses at this moment.

"So, a raiding party was lying in ambush here just now?" Glenn couldn't help but ask.

“That’s right.” Yu Zhun nodded. “The other side didn’t ambush us on purpose, but rather ambushed all the attackers who came for this [Silence Crystal]. They must have some special abilities or methods, which is why they were able to completely hide and greatly strengthen that tree branch from earlier.”

“However…” Yu Zhun reached out and grabbed the equipment and items that the other party had dropped, “These things are now ours.”

After searching for a while, he quickly found a bottle of dark gray liquid.

“This is…” Helmod leaned closer, and after examining it carefully, he showed a surprised expression. “It’s actually a magic fluid.”

"This thing can be applied to non-player units, causing them to become corrupted and their strength to increase significantly."

"They must have used something like this to alter the power of that branch." Helmod couldn't help but sigh. "That's incredibly audacious. Aren't they afraid of being killed on the spot after increasing the guardian's strength?"

"They really are highly skilled and daring."

At this point, Helmod couldn't help but laugh, "I think the moment the Heavenly Demon appeared, they must have been completely overwhelmed."

“Now that you mention it, it’s true.” Yu Zhun also laughed, looking at the two [Silence Crystals] he had just obtained, and then his gaze moved to the lower levels. “Next, let’s continue to go deeper.”

Stop and go, go and stop.

Yu Zhun and his group continued to venture deeper into the Abyss of Sighing Gods. Time seemed to slow down here, along with their senses weakening.

They encountered several extremely dangerous situations during this period, but with a powerful weapon like the Heavenly Demon Battle Formation, these crises were nothing.

Finally, the group arrived at a sea of ​​stone trees, formed by converging stone spikes and growing on a cliff, resembling a forest rotated ninety degrees.

“We’re almost there.” Seeing this sea of ​​stone trees, Yu Zhun said in a deep voice, “This is where all the paths converge.”

"Continue down, and you'll reach the depth required to complete the game."

"If nothing unexpected happens, they're here." As he spoke, Yu Zhun's gaze drifted towards the interior of the Stone Tree Sea.

There seemed to be an overwhelming aura and murderous intent brewing within.

"Let's go!" A smile appeared on his face. "Let's go meet them."

The group of ten people turned into afterimages and crossed the final distance in an instant. In the very center of the Stone Tree Sea, five figures sitting cross-legged opened their eyes at the same time.

They cast their gazes at Yu Zhun and the others, their eyes filled with a chilling and contemptuous look.

"Hermod, more than twenty years have passed, and your power remains as weak as ever." Palai, the leader of the Fifth Divine District, sneered. "I heard that you were directly designated as the strongest divine child by that person from the Fourth Divine District?"

"Such a weak strongest divine son, what a disgrace."

"A defeated opponent, still as noisy as ever." Helmod's calm voice rang out, causing the smile on Palai's face to vanish instantly.

"I was going to give you some face and let you go if you just knelt down and begged for mercy, but I didn't expect you to be so ungrateful."

Palai's voice echoed softly, "Did you think bringing five more useless people would make you comparable to us?"

"Boom boom boom——"

His aura soared into the sky, as if he were about to break through the critical point of the second transformation, causing the surrounding void to tremble uncontrollably.

"I'll tell you how ridiculous that idea is!"

“Palai.” Yu Zhun, who had been silent until now, suddenly laughed, his arms crossed. “It’s been over twenty years, and your eyes still aren’t healed.”

Palai's face darkened, and he looked at Yu Zhun with a cold expression.

More than 20 years ago, he looked down on Yu Zhun, a kid from the Wushen District, but he was trapped by Yu Zhun's hand and could only watch his teammates collapse.

When they met again more than twenty years later, he once again deliberately ignored Yu Zhun and only talked to Helmod, which was obviously intentional.

"A mere ant from a godless region, die!"

“I think you’ll be the one who dies.” Yu Zhun shook his head slightly.

"Formation!"

With a low shout, the aura of the ten men instantly converged in Palai's astonished gaze, and then transformed into a celestial demon that attacked him.

(End of this chapter)