Night World Players

Chapter 152 Let’s Begin, the Final Ceremony (Two in One)

The calm voice echoed in Rast's ears.

He turned around and saw an old man wearing a plain white robe and with a gentle temperament standing in the center of this ancient bronze city.

There was no trace of breath, nor any strong fluctuations. Even in Last's mental perception, the land he stepped on was empty... But the gardener-like old man stood there, as if he was the center of the entire ancient city.

"Your Majesty Noah."

Rast spoke respectfully to the gardener-like old man.

For some reason, the appearance of this legendary gravekeeper at this moment is slightly different from his previous image.

On that old figure in a white robe, shrouded in abundant vitality, there was a distinct sense of illusion and haziness.

It doesn't look like a living human body, but more like a shell that carries the human soul.

"do not worry about it."

As if sensing Luster's confusion, Noah explained calmly.

"What you see in the abyss at this moment is not my real body."

He looked at his body, which was emitting a rich breath of life:
"Instead, I use the old gods from the First Age—"

"A bountiful half-body crafted from a single root leaf of the Primordial Ancient Tree."

An old god from the First Age, a root leaf of the "Original Ancient Tree"?
Luster was slightly startled.

Although I have never heard of the name of this old god, even just hearing the description is enough to understand his mysterious and powerful status.

This even involves the First Age... that mythological era when the mystery had not yet faded, and the gods had not hidden themselves in the threshold of the blazing sky, but still walked the earth.

The Tomb Keepers organization doesn't seem to be just a bunch of wealthy people—

Any member, just the raw materials to make an avatar, would be something as grand as an old sacred relic...

Of course, given Rast's limited understanding of gravekeepers, this was not incomprehensible.

After all, it originated from the first age of gods and spanned countless epochs of human civilization history.

As long as one lives long enough, even a pig can become a rich man, let alone a secret organization that has existed for endless years.

In this light, it’s no wonder that Noah called the first generation Morigishi a “despicable thief”—

If you pick up any garbage from the Age of Gods and put it in the future generations of several epochs, it might become a rare treasure, a holy relic of the Age of Gods... What's more, it is the inheritance of the fire that even the gravekeepers regard as the supreme existence.

Such thoughts flashed through his mind, but Rast restrained them deep within his personality and never revealed them to Noah.

Listening to Noah's explanation, Rast remained respectful on the surface, but in the depths of his eyes, he unconsciously revealed a hint of fear.

"Your Majesty Noah, are you saying... that only the fertile half of your body is in the abyss?"

Rast glanced at Noah in front of him and spoke hesitantly.

"However, when I have completely collected the three keys and revived the remains of the God of Death, and truly ascend to godhood... the ascension ceremony will undoubtedly be a huge event."

"I'm a little worried..."

He seemed to hesitate for a moment before speaking again.

"I'm worried that the movement of ascending to godhood will attract the covetousness of Cecil or other hidden legends in this world."

"And with Your Majesty Noah in your current half-body condition, I'm afraid you can't..."

Rast hadn't finished speaking, but there was no doubt that his meaning had been conveyed.

If it's just a clone, I'm a little worried that you can't protect me, Noah Laoden.

Looking at Rast's hesitant expression, the calm aura of the gardener-like old man fluctuated in a rare way at this moment.

But soon, he spoke again in a calm tone: "Being thoughtful and cautious, and considering the worst possible scenario, is indeed a good thing."

"It is precisely because of our sufficient caution that we grave keepers have been able to survive the judgment of heaven time and time again, and the end of the era has continued to this day."

"But you don't need to worry about that."

Noah said, "Although it is only the incarnation of abundance, it is based on the root leaf of the original ancient tree. This half body also carries half of my spiritual power."

"Even if it can't exist for long, according to the conditions I set, this incarnation of abundance will not activate until it senses your presence at the bottom of the Nether Abyss. Before that, it will remain dormant..."

"However, during its existence, this incarnation of abundance also possessed a status equivalent to that of a legend—"

He looked down at the young man in front of him and said, "This fertile half-body of the legendary rank is enough to protect you from all those who covet the throne of the God of Death and complete the entire ascension ceremony."

Enough to protect me and complete the ascension ceremony.

in other words……

Even under the threat of the legendary half-body, even if I wanted to do something during the ascension ceremony, Noah was absolutely sure to suppress it and make the ascension ceremony develop according to his preset process?
Luster sensed the hidden meaning in Noah's words.

"Of course, in reality—there won't be any powerful person to stop you from becoming a god."

Noah said indifferently, "At this moment, all the legendary warriors in this world who are still able to move freely, including my original body..."

"They all gathered along the Broken Coast."

His voice paused. "Today is the day that the despicable thief's successor, Cecil, will die."

boom--

As if in response to Noah's declaration, a huge roar came from afar.

Although it was across a long distance, the sound of thunder seemed to be right next to my ears, without weakening in the slightest.

Along with the roar came a shock wave that penetrated the heavens and the earth.

The ancient bronze city trembled... while in the abyss beyond the great void, the once calm, dim yellow sea was now surging with layers of waves.

There is no doubt that it is the power of legend.

Only the collision between legendary strongmen can create a man-made natural disaster of this scale.

It spans hundreds of miles without weakening at all, and can even permanently change the astronomical phenomena in a local area.

"It seems that the Broken Coast has already launched an attack."

"The name of the 'shore guard' will also be transformed into the dust of history today..."

Noah stared towards the outside of the abyss and spoke in a calm voice.

The Watchtower, the headquarters of the Shore Watchers, stands at the midpoint of the Broken Coast's defenses.

The royal city of Paradise also borders the Endless Sea... Therefore, it is not too far from the Watchtower, and both are located along the broken coastline.

The straight-line distance of nearly a thousand miles seemed far away—but considering the legendary status, it was only a journey of tens of minutes.

However, the underworld, which was the remains of the flesh and blood of the old god of death, also blocked the spiritual connection between Noah's incarnation of abundance and his original body, making him unable to perceive the situation on the Broken Coast in real time.

Of course, in reality, whether perceived or not—

When the Battle of the Broken Shore broke out, its outcome was already determined.

Taking advantage of the three years of preparation, Noah used the identity of the gravekeeper and the exchange of interests as bargaining chips to bring all the remaining legendary creatures in the entire continent under his control.

That was a war that only legendary and forbidden creatures were qualified to participate in.

And in the face of the absolute disparity in numbers, no matter how strong the last shore defender was—

All that awaited him was a miserable death.

"At this moment, even those old gods hiding on the threshold of the Blazing Sky, watching and living in shameful circumstances... their attention must be drawn to the legendary battle on the Broken Coast, and they have no time to look elsewhere."

"If you want to usurp the throne of the God of Death, then now is the best time."

"Don't waste any more time, get ready to start."

Noah's embodiment of abundance withdrew his gaze and spoke indifferently to Rast.

"Remember, there is no such thing as a free meal in this world—"

"Even though the old god of death has fallen, everything he left behind—"

"The Star Grail, the Holy Grail, even the remains of the gods that have transformed into the Netherworld... they are not gifts, but poison."

"How could the old God of Death, who came from the First Age and once sat high atop a throne in the clouds, overlooking all living things, so generously leave his legacy to the fortunate humans? He is the supreme god, and humans are as lowly as dust before him."

"Everything He did, the entire underworld kingdom above the abyss, and even the birth of Helen..."

"Their purpose is to abandon the inhuman bodies of the mythical races that have been completely abandoned by the laws of the world and the principles of nature with the decline of the Age of Gods—"

"Just to revive myself as a new human being in the distant future."

There was a hint of mockery in Noah's words.

"In the calculations of that old god of death."

"Even if there really were such a lucky human being, who, after untold hardships, obtained the power left behind by himself and the faith of the underworld, and reached the depths of the underworld... and collected all the keys to the bronze doors, and met the god at the end of the underworld road—"

"Then he wouldn't be so lucky as to inherit the power of the fallen ancient god. Instead, he would simply be used as a substitute... stripped of his consciousness, and his body would be used to help the god of death regain his life."

"Use the temptation of becoming a god to drive humans crazy, and in the end, all their efforts will be turned into their own wedding dress."

"It's just... unfortunately, He met me, the Gravekeeper."

Noah's voice lacked a trace of reverence for the ancient deity. "The heritage of us gravekeepers is as ancient as that of the old gods of the Age of Gods..."

"The God of Death's arrangements can deceive the ignorant new generation of humans, so how could they possibly work on us?"

"The old god of death did have a backup plan, but in the final analysis, it was just a wisp of lingering, indestructible divine consciousness..."

"As long as we use specific means to deceive him, provide him with a perfect vessel, and allow the consciousness of the old god of death to awaken in another vessel... then, we can use the method of transplantation to usurp the supreme throne."

"And that hybrid named Helen, with the blood of both humans and gods flowing through her veins, is the key prepared for this purpose, and also the perfect vessel."

He looked at Luster: "Go ahead and do as I say."

Luster nodded silently.

He did not hesitate any longer, but simply walked through the ancient bronze city where the altar stood majestically, and headed towards the Tower of Babel.

pat-

pat-

He walked up the stairs step by step, and both the Nether Abyss and the entire ancient bronze city kept getting smaller in his sight.

This experience was very similar to when Last was on a plane in his previous life, looking out the window at the ground - the bustling cities looked like miniature models, with thousands of points of light scattered in the night sky, as brilliant as a sea of ​​stars.

It is a very subtle feeling, as if you have arrived in the sky with the plane, and you really have the majesty of a god above the clouds overlooking all living beings.

This process lasted for a long time.

Until Rast stepped over the last step and reached the end of the towering tower.

On the high platform at the top of the tower, dusk solidified into substance, just like the ice coffin made of ten-thousand-year-old black ice in the martial arts novels that Last had read in his previous life.

However, this coffin is dim yellow, like amber solidified with the remains of an ancient creature.

And in the amber coffin, a girl with long ice-blue hair was curled up quietly, her beautiful eyes slightly closed, as if she had fallen into a deep sleep.

But I don’t know why.

The expression on Akshia's pretty white face was not as calm as that of a sleeping person, and there was still a hint of uneasiness between her eyebrows.

It was not until Rast approached the coffin frozen in solidified amber that the uneasiness on Akshia's delicate face slowly faded away, and her pretty face became calm and peaceful, just like a cat curled up in a cardboard box and sleeping.

Cats are only willing to sleep next to the people closest to them, because even when they are sleeping soundly, the smell of close people can give cats a sense of security.

Rast stood quietly beside the amber coffin, staring at the girl in the coffin.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment, and everything went back to three years ago...

In the palace shrouded in the setting sun, a girl in a long dress was lazily leaning on the throne, her long ice-blue hair softly draped behind the throne.

Behind her, Rast, who had just entered the royal city as a waiter, was reciting stories from a fairy tale book while combing Her Majesty the Queen's floor-length hair with a wooden comb.

The ice-blue hair reflects the crystal light in the sunset, and time is frozen here, engraved into a timeless photo.

Now three years have passed, and everything has changed dramatically... The once unknown servant has become the revered King of Paradise, while the girl with ice-blue hair is sleeping in the abyss, forgotten by the world.

At that time I thought it was just an ordinary thing, but there will never be another evening like that again.

Rast stood in front of the amber coffin for a long time.

After a long time, he looked away again.

Then, using his hand as a knife, he plunged it into his left chest.

Amidst the splattering blood and broken flesh, the crystal star cup and the illusory holy grail materialized at the same time.

In an instant, a trace of paleness appeared on Rast's face.

The heart was pierced, and the Holy Grail and the Star Grail, which were the source of Rast's power at the moment, were also stripped away.

If it weren't for the inherent skill of "Pale Body" that made the torso devoid of vital organs, Last would have lost the ability to move by now.

However, his hand movements remained steady.

He lifted up the Holy Grail and the Star Grail at the same time and placed them on the cold amber coffin.

The next moment.

The starlight shattered.

Then, it turned into a gentle warm current and merged into the coffin where the girl was sleeping without any hindrance.

This queen with long ice-blue hair was the perfect vessel chosen by the old god of death for herself.

At this moment, Rast returned the Star Cup, which he had collected with great difficulty and represented the authority of God, and the Holy Grail, which represented the crystallization of the power of faith and the prototype of the kingdom of God... to the girl sleeping in the coffin.

This was Noah's plan.

Using Helen as bait, the will of the old god of death was revived in her.

Then use the arrangements prepared in advance to usurp the power of the throne.

"Then, let's get started."

Rast's words vanished on the wind above.

"The final... ritual."

(End of this chapter)