This assassin is upright

Chapter 434 Waiting for the Move
"【Clarity Crystal】can temporarily reduce the mental weakening of Elegy, but after the effect ends, the rate of mental weakening of Elegy will be permanently accelerated. It's like drinking poison to quench thirst. Unless you can obtain 【Clarity Crystal】indefinitely, the more you use, the faster you will die."

"On the contrary, the [Slaughter Crystal] can not only temporarily reduce the mental weakening of the Lament, but also permanently slow down the rate of mental weakening of the Lament. However, once it is used, a new kill must be completed within the specified time until the Lament leaves the [Tower of Eternal Sleep] area."

"If the required kills for the [Kill Crystal] are not achieved within the fixed time, all previous [Kill Crystal] effects will be instantly cleared, including the reduced Elegy Spirit debuff..."

As Yu Zhun planned, he pondered how to use his slightly modified rules to create a greater advantage for himself.

"On the first floor of the Tower of Eternal Sleep, there can be more dungeon monsters to create the illusion that there are endless dungeon monsters inside the Tower of Eternal Sleep. Once they enter the second and third floors, the number of dungeon monsters will decrease sharply."

"Players who choose [Clarity Crystal] will find it increasingly difficult to obtain [Clarity Crystal] to maintain their own state."

"Oh right, we also need to add a rule to the [Tower of Eternal Sleep] that prevents people from returning to the previous level after entering the next..."

"In the end, the number of [Clarity Crystals] will be insufficient to maintain the players' condition, and conflicts and battles will break out between the players. That's when the [Killing Crystals] will start to take effect."

Thinking of this, a mischievous smile appeared on Yu Zhun's face.

"Then let's give them another little trouble."

"Killing players inside the Tower of Eternal Sleep will continuously increase the player's aggro level, and this aggro level will bring a new weakening effect to the player in the third unit of the dungeon, the Zenith String."

"Hmm... it's decided then."

As Yu Zhun spoke, he strolled towards the top of the Tower of Eternal Slumber, eventually standing on the ninth floor.

Pushing open the door to the ninth floor, what appeared before Yu Zhun was no longer an endless wilderness, but an island floating in the air.

Beneath these islands lies a vast sea of ​​clouds, with faint lines of light connecting the islands.

This is the final unit of "Wilderness Elegy".

Here, the mournful songs that could only be faintly heard become crystal clear, giving one the illusion of being at a live concert.

As the mournful song echoed, the lines of light connecting the islands trembled according to a strange pattern, and with each tremor, the islands on either side of the line would instantly switch positions.

Each island is connected by more than one line. When the islands on both sides of a line are swapped, the other connected islands will also change.

As the mournful song echoed, the floating islands in the sky changed rapidly, making it difficult to perceive any pattern.

This is the [Zenith String].

These lines connecting the floating islands are like the strings that play a mournful song.

In just a few breaths, the floating island beneath Yu Zhun's feet had changed position three times in succession, and the other floating islands were also affected by the change, changing in the same way.

Even if he understood the rules hidden behind the changes, Yu Zhun still found it difficult to predict the specifics of the next change when faced with thousands of floating islands.

"The design of this [Zenith String] is actually the only highlight in the original design of this dungeon." Yu Zhun shook his head and chuckled. "It's just a pity that the requirements for clearing the dungeon have nothing to do with these floating islands."

As he spoke, he looked up at the palace at the end of the floating island. Reaching that palace and fighting the boss inside was the condition for clearing the game.

To achieve a perfect completion, players must move to other floating islands by following the strings of the zither, and the number of steps to reach the palace must not exceed five.

It's fair to say that achieving a perfect playthrough is somewhat difficult.

But if you study the patterns of this place more, it's not that difficult.

"This design is not worthy of the Lv90 level." Yu Zhun sighed softly, a look of eager anticipation appearing in his eyes.

"Let me make some adjustments."

As soon as he finished speaking, the palace, which was originally located at the end of the floating island, quickly floated towards Yu Zhun and finally landed above all the floating islands. With a flick of his finger, new threads extended from several key floating islands and connected to the palace.

In this way, the palace will also change position with each change of the floating island, resulting in more chaotic changes.

Immediately afterwards, Yu Zhun raised his hand and pointed, and a new palace appeared in mid-air, while the original palace transformed into the appearance of an ordinary floating island.

Immediately afterwards, new floating islands appeared one after another, intertwining with the original floating islands through strings and threads.

A closer look reveals that these newly appeared floating islands are smaller in overall size, as if they exist for a specific purpose.

And that purpose is...

“Let the players control the floating islands themselves.” Yu Zhun’s eyes held a hint of a smile. “Each small floating island has a [Metronome]. Mastering this [Metronome] will make the small floating island controllable.”

"Using the [Metronome] at the moment the strings vibrate allows the small floating island to swap positions with other floating islands according to its own needs."

"In this way, the entire [Zenith String] will truly enter a state of chaos. Whenever someone tries to enter the palace and complete the level, other players can disrupt their actions using the [Metronome]."

Even if someone eventually reaches the palace, they will find...

"That's fake."

“However, it’s not entirely fake.” Yu Zhun’s voice held a hint of strangeness. “I’ve added some little surprises to it.”

"Hopefully, those who come in will enjoy this surprise."

As he spoke, Yu Zhun's gaze fell on the floating island in the center of the arena, which was actually a real palace disguised as a palace. With a thought, he stood on the floating island.

"Add an unlock condition to this palace: the real palace will only be revealed after the ninth performance of the dirge."

“Then, add Boss-level monsters to all the floating islands.” Yu Zhun tapped the void, a smile appearing on his face. “The fact that Lv90 dungeons allow for multiple levels of Boss monsters makes the design process much easier.”

As his words fell, one ferocious figure after another appeared on the floating islands, letting out earth-shattering roars. They moved their positions constantly as the floating islands shifted, adding to the oppressive atmosphere.

“In this way, the aggro points gained by the players in the previous unit will also have a use.” Yu Zhun paused slightly. “The higher the aggro points a player has, the more likely they are to be attacked by the Boss monster.”

On the floating island where Yu Zhun was standing, there was also a boss monster with a huge, mountain-like body. However, it looked at Yu Zhun with extremely respectful eyes and bowed slightly to show its respect.

Yu Zhun strolled over its massive body and finally entered the real palace. Inside the palace, an elderly figure sat cross-legged, holding a lyre in his arms, gently plucking the strings.

This is the source of the lament that shrouds the entire instance.

As Yu Zhun entered, the elderly figure's movements came to an abrupt halt.

He slowly raised his head to look at Yu Zhun, and then said in a low voice, "I sense that the instance has undergone tremendous changes."

"Who are you?"

"What do you want to do with the instance?"

“It seems you still have some sanity left.” Yu Zhun crossed his arms. “If I’m not mistaken, you are the strongest player on server 67238.”

"You should know that your world theoretically cannot be transformed into a Lv90 instance. The fact that it has been transformed into a Lv90 instance now comes at a considerable cost. As compensation, it is reasonable for me to intervene in the instance."

“Besides, your design is really bad.” Yu Zhun shook his head slightly. “Even if you haven’t eaten pork, you’ve seen pigs run, haven’t you?” “Hehehe…” the old man let out a low, mocking laugh. “So, I should thank you?”

“No need for that.” Yu Zhun shook his head. “After all, it was me who turned your world into a copy.”

As Yu Zhun finished speaking, the room fell silent.

The old man's face flushed crimson at a visible speed, and a deep-seated hatred surfaced in his eyes. "It was you?!"

"Why? We've never met, we have no grudges against each other, yet you're going to ruin my world like this!"

"Those are billions of lives! I watched them fall in despair and wailing, displaced by natural disasters and chaos, you devil!"

“A devil…” Yu Zhun said softly, “From the moment you chose to curry favor with the Fifth God Zone and target server 98324, everything was already destined.”

"Your choice is to allow your world to climb the high branch of the Fifth Divine District, so that you can rest easy from now on," Yu Zhun said calmly. "My choice is to ensure that my world will not suffer what you have suffered."

So... rest in peace.

As Yu Zhun spoke softly, the last trace of the designer's intention, which was originally meant to be erased only after the first perfect clear of the dungeon, quietly turned to ashes.

The old man holding the lyre lost the light in his eyes and turned into a puppet. He will remain here forever, blocking the path of every conqueror.

After obliterating the other party's thoughts, Yu Zhun looked around the interior of the palace, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"After designing so much, we've finally got the level completion part sorted out."

"As for the part about achieving a perfect completion..."

"I plan to make further fine-tuning based on the existing foundation."

Want to achieve a perfect clear in the dungeon designed by Yu Zhun?

That will definitely not be an easy task.

With a snap of his fingers, Yu Zhun returned to the beginning of the instance, the first unit, "Elegy in the Wilderness".

With a flick of his wrist, a lyre even more magnificent than the one in the final boss's hand appeared, instantly shattering into countless pieces that scattered across every corner of the [Land of Lament] in the [Wilderness of Lament].

"Successfully completing a lament in the Land of Lamentation will grant you the Fragment of Lamentation, and you can also find hidden fragments."

“If you collect all the fragments, you can piece together a complete lyre, and this lyre is the key to unlocking the second form of the final boss.” Yu Zhun said softly, “The Tower of Eternal Sleep is irreversible; once you enter the upper level, you cannot return to the lower level.”

"Once players enter the Tower of Eternal Sleep, they can never return to the Wilderness of Lament. If they didn't collect all the items initially, they will never be able to collect them all."

"This design should be sufficient."

Yu Zhun smiled slightly.

"After all, the first segment is the most important stage."
-
Server 2, a place known to outsiders as the second god-tier server.

Xue Jiajia sat cross-legged in a quiet room, her beautiful face radiating a divine glow that made anyone who tried to look at her feel as if they were being desecrated.

With a slight thud, she slowly opened her eyes from her meditation, then got up and walked out of the quiet room.

Outside the quiet room, several figures were already waiting. When she came out, they all lowered their heads and said, "Divine Child."

"Hmm." Xue Jiajia nodded slightly and left their side. Only after seeing Xue Jiajia's departing figure did the group of people start whispering among themselves.

"The Divine Child is becoming more and more powerful."

"Yes, even though she hasn't reached the third stage yet, I can sense a trace of divinity from her. I think the Divine Child is not far from reaching the third stage."

"The strongest divine son of the First Divine District was defeated by a few guys from the Lower District more than 20 years ago, and has disappeared since then."

"Now, the strongest divine son in our Second Divine District is already recognized as the strongest divine son among the top three divine districts."

"Many people say that once the Divine Child reaches the third level, his future potential may rival that of the Divine Lord!"

"Ninth-stage Divine Transformation... We are truly incredibly fortunate to be able to follow such a great figure..."

"What if we get a chance to advance to the third rank someday...?"

Xue Jiajia paid no attention to the whispers of the attendants after she left. She walked straight into a magnificent hall after leaving the meditation room. Looking at the indistinct outline shrouded in divine radiance, her expression naturally became more lively.

"Teacher, did you call me?"

"Well, there's something I need you to do, but before that..." The figure inside the hall slowly turned to Xue Jiajia. Although she couldn't see into it, Xue Jiajia could clearly feel a pair of gentle eyes falling on her.

"How have you come to understand your path?"

"It's a bit of a problem." Xue Jiajia scratched her head, a troubled look on her face. "With your guidance last time, I did find the general direction, but it seems like I can't go any further."

"Don't rush," the figure inside the hall said calmly. "Your ability is too special; there are very few similar abilities in this vast world."

"Therefore, the path you pave ahead is destined to be difficult."

"But hard work can yield good results. I've said before that if your abilities reach the ninth level of divine transformation in the future..."

He paused slightly, then said, "His potential is even higher than mine."

"Even the most distant and unattainable gods are not beyond our comprehension."

"Yes!" Xue Jiajia's face flushed slightly with excitement, and she clenched her fists tightly. "Teacher, I understand!"

"You said you have something for me to do, what is it?"

"It's a newly added permanent instance," the figure inside the hall said softly. "Originally, I didn't intend to interrupt your enlightenment at this time."

"But it seems that destiny is giving me a revelation."

"This is a dungeon that shouldn't have been a Lv90 dungeon; it may contain some amazing secret."

"Go and achieve a perfect playthrough, and find that secret."

"You've been working in isolation for far too long trying to figure out your own path. Perhaps this guide can offer you some new insights."

"A new permanent instance..." Xue Jiajia looked expectant. "It's been quite a while since I've appeared in the Divine Revelation World."

"Teacher, please rest assured, I will definitely live up to your expectations."

(End of this chapter)