Why are the magical girls in your area male?

That move just now was the same move I used.

Was that guy deliberately imitating me?

Or......

With a firm resolve, Yuan Qing gripped the hilt of his sword and lunged forward once more, the blade aimed straight at the skull's brow!

At the same time, just as his opponent was about to make a move, he seized the opportunity and used [Mind Control]!

"Crench."

The other party was indeed under control and remained frozen in place.

Yuan Qing's sword tip was less than a finger's width away from the opponent's brow!

But the next second, that strange scene reappeared!

Even though the opponent didn't move, and even though his sword was incredibly fast, the last finger's distance remained like an unreachable shore, impossible to touch!

One second later, the mind control was lifted.

Yuan Qing watched helplessly as the skeleton, which was only a finger's width away from his sword tip, turned into dozens of afterimages and disappeared from the spot!

This scene made his eyes widen in astonishment.

I rely on!

S.A.W.S.?!

Before he could react, the other person had already appeared behind him.

"Om-"

A soft sound, like a sword being drawn from its sheath, suddenly rang out.

The old king's greatsword pierced Yuan Qing's heart with effortless precision, as if it were piercing through a thin sheet of paper.

HP-9999!

Health points were instantly reduced to zero.

Yuan Qing felt a sudden darkness engulf him, his consciousness sinking into boundless darkness.

On his deathbed, he seemed to have grasped the secret of the King's Trial.

The old king did not bring him death.

It is teaching.

It used the most severe methods to pierce his heart and brand the course into his soul.

......

【ding~】

[Resurrection Coin - 1]

Yuan Qing opened his eyes, his consciousness returning barely, before he mentally uttered a complaint.

"Depend on......"

Why do I lose resurrection coins if I die during the trial?

I thought that participating in the trial would allow me to revive for free.

Yuan Qing silently gave the Tower of Delusion the middle finger.

He sat up, looked around, and found himself sitting by the campfire, just like before.

The difference is that this time the campfire is on the 10th floor.

In the 10th-floor lobby, apart from the three massive, shattered doors that remained broken, everything else seemed to have been refreshed and returned to its original state.

Even the "old king" has returned to the throne.

Yuan Qing looked up at the skeleton sitting on the throne and clenched his fists.

The next second, a system notification suddenly popped up:

[Number of failed trials increased by 1]

[Do you choose to surrender and reduce the difficulty of the next trial?]

[Yes or No]

==============

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Yellow, shot, fierce battle, insertion...

One post contains a bunch of sensitive words; it's hard to tell if I'm writing about Liu Bei or something else entirely...

Volume 1: Chapter 93 I tested, Jade died! Little Guild Master, do me a favor... 7000!

Yuan Qing frowned silently as he looked at the two options in front of him.

Is it my imagination?

Why does this lousy system seem to be subtly mocking me?

It was previously emphasized that lowering the difficulty would not affect the final rating.

Now they're popping up again, asking if they should lower the difficulty level.

It's as if it desperately wants to see itself choose to lower the difficulty.

But Yuanqing felt that as long as he actually chose "yes", it would give him the middle finger on the panel.

This reminded him of the Easter eggs that the designers created to mock players' lack of skill when he played games in his previous life.

For example, in Return of Castle Wolfenstein, if you choose the lowest difficulty, the protagonist's portrait will have a baby pacifier in his mouth, and the narrator will ask you in a cheeky tone, "Daddy, can I play this game?"

And in Metal Gear Solid 5, Hideo Kojima didn't even bother acting anymore.

If you die too many times, you'll get a "chicken hat," which forces enemies to become blind and won't even look at you, allowing you to fully "enjoy" the fun of sneak attacks.

The system before him gave Yuan Qing a feeling of superficial concern, but in reality, mockery.

He unconsciously touched his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face.

Immediately afterwards, he decisively chose no.

Based on my years of experience playing games, there's definitely something fishy going on when the difficulty is lowered.

Didn't we have a "hidden reward determination condition" mentioned earlier that wasn't explicitly stated?

It's definitely related to this thing, I bet it!

[Countdown to the end of the lunar etching: 1 minutes and 59 seconds]

The sudden pop-up notification interrupted Yuan Qing's thoughts.

He then realized that he had already wasted a lot of time inside the Tower of Delusion.

While there's still some time, let's organize the resources first.

Thinking this, Yuan Qing quickly opened the system and sold all the materials he had collected to the mall.

With the gold coins dropped by monsters along the way, his savings suddenly increased to 3.

The Guardian Statue seems to have dropped a decent piece of armor; Libra might want to have it crafted for her.

The materials needed to craft the Guardian's plate armor are exactly the items dropped by the Guardian.

Honestly, Yuan Qing really wanted to complain. Since the materials were just right for crafting plate armor, couldn't they just drop a piece of equipment for me?

It saves me from having to make an extra trip.

Yuan Qing took out the materials and design drawings and handed them to the mysterious Libra woman standing by the campfire.

Just like last time, the moment he handed over the materials, a black hole-like vortex appeared on the other person's chest and swallowed a piece of them.

As a series of clanging metallic sounds rang out and then ended, a gleaming, heavy silver plate armor was "spit out" by the Libra woman.

[Item: Guardian's Plate Armor]

【Level: 35】

[Quality: Rare]

[Attributes: Strength +100, Stamina +100, Spirit +20, HP +1000, MP +200]

[Guardian's Blessing: Reduces all damage taken by 5%, and restores 100 HP per second while standing still]

After reviewing the attributes of this plate armor, Yuan Qing couldn't help but give it a thumbs up.

Wow, no fancy stuff at all, just pure stat boosts.

Compared to the skeletal armor he was currently wearing, it was like heaven and earth.

He couldn't even imagine how easy it would be to kill the Goblin King if he wore this equipment and used his current attributes.

I just don't know if it can compete with the rock dragon.

Yuan Qing selected the equipment, and in the next second, the gleaming silver plate armor was on his body.

After a brief flash, the plate armor gradually became transparent and disappeared.

Yes, that's one of the most convenient things about the system. Wearable equipment can be made invisible, and there's no weight involved.

Although with my current strength, wearing equipment weighing dozens of kilograms is a piece of cake, this lump of plate armor restricts my arm movement too much. If I do any slightly complicated movements, my hands will hurt.

Therefore, being able to remain invisible is naturally the best.

After sighing, Yuan Qing couldn't help but sigh again.

Unfortunately, such a powerful attribute bonus cannot be used in the King's Trial.

All the bonuses from the equipment you wear will be nullified once the trial begins; wearing them will be as good as not wearing them at all.

However, he has more than just the old king as an enemy, so he still has to wear it.

As for passive buffs provided by equipment like "Guardian's Blessing," they will be disabled during trials.

If it works, Yuan Qing will simply stop wearing it.

Look at that stupid skeleton strolling around so leisurely. I can't say who will benefit from this buff if it takes effect.

After shutting down the system, Yuan Qing stretched and gave a daily summary of the day.

The gains from this tower climb were considerable; not only did my level soar to 35, but I also acquired a large amount of resources.

Most importantly, of course, is to unlock the job change quest and start the King's Trial.

Transform into a king and embark on the journey to become one.

It sounds so cringeworthy, so cool.

This profession cannot advance like the other three professions, so how far can it go?

This is really something to look forward to...

[Moon Etching Countdown: 3 seconds, 2 seconds, 1 second...]

As his vision suddenly blurred and then returned, Yuan Qing found himself in the back garden of the Shiori family manor.

A gentle night breeze carried the fragrance of roses, lavender, and neatly manicured lawns, and the vast estate appeared tranquil and mysterious under the moonlight.

Yuan Qing looked around, feeling somewhat lost for a moment.

This garden... is way too big!

The surrounding area was filled with flowerbeds taller than a person, making it feel like a small maze. I had no idea which corner I had been teleported to.

Fortunately, I have a special skill, and I can easily jump over this height.

If it were someone else, they might really be trapped for quite a while before they could get out.

After making a few complaints, Yuan Qing pushed off with both feet and lightly leaped onto a higher part of the wall.

Just as he was about to jump towards the exit—

"when!"

Just as he jumped, it was as if he had hit some invisible barrier and was forcefully "slapped" down.