Chapter 110
Xi Jiangyuan had known for a long time that he was dead.
He remembered how he’d died, and how, unwilling to accept it, he had created this “dungeon,” clinging to it in the form of a lingering thought, surviving inside this dreamscape.
He’d hoped the Abyss Guild would send people to reclaim him, collect his legacy, and then erase this copy of the world—a final contribution on his part.
But no matter how long he waited, they never came.
Players arrived instead, but they couldn’t even find the true entrance to the dungeon, much less purge its anomalies. Expecting them to retrieve him was a fool’s dream.
At last, Xi Jiangyuan met Lu Chuan’s team.
They were different from the others—powerful. By their second day inside the dungeon, they had already grasped its rules and were preparing to break through.
Xi Jiangyuan even tried to alter their memories, to twist their perceptions, but he failed.
They were stronger than his former teammates.
For the first time, Xi Jiangyuan felt the desire to keep someone here with him forever.
If it were them, surely they wouldn’t die so easily inside the dungeon, not right in front of him.
If it were them, even if he couldn’t maintain this dream, they would find a way to end him cleanly.
***
Maybe, if it were them, they could carry his last words back to the Abyss Guild.
He had waited endlessly for his guildmates, but only Lu Chuan came—and with Executors.
If they had been of lower rank, Xi Jingyuan might have tried to resist.
But when he saw Number 9 and Number 18, he knew resistance was hopeless.
Even in life, at his peak, he might not have been able to stop them—especially that one.
Xi Jiangyuan stared at Number 9 for a long time, puzzled.
He was sure they’d never met, yet the man seemed strangely familiar. But someone with such a face—if he’d really met him—he wouldn’t have forgotten.
Xi Jingyuan shook his head, forcing the thought aside. Perhaps this was the Executor’s ability.
“Senior, can I eat him now?” Number 18 asked after Xi Jingyuan spoke, not offended in the slightest.
Why would he be angry at a thing?
“Wait,” Number 9 raised a hand to block Number 18, then looked toward Xi Jiangyuan and Lu Chuan.
He hadn’t expected the two to seem to get along.
If not for the widening cracks in the dungeon, one might not see they were enemies at all.
Lu Chuan, for his part, was surprised by his luck with Executors. He even waved cheerfully at them.
Number 18 laughed at Lu Chuan’s enthusiasm, pointing at him. “Wow, Senior, this human is smiling at me—does he want me to eat him?”
“Please don’t!” Lu Chuan almost broke into a cold sweat.
Number 9 seemed normal enough, but this Executor was… odd.
That smile was just politeness, not an invitation to be eaten!
“Ahem, you’re here for Xi Jiangyuan, right? Let me just ask one question, please,” Lu Chuan said, palms pressed together in appeal.
Number 9 nodded and stepped back, signaling him to go ahead.
“I don’t have many questions,” Lu Chuan rubbed his nose and turned to Xi. “Are my teammates still alive?”
“Lilus and Vivian are alive and well,” Xi Jingyuan sighed softly. “Before this dream shatters, I’ll send you all out. I did think of keeping you here with me until the end, but that’s no longer possible.”
Not only would they never agree to stay, but his dreamscape wouldn’t hold much longer.
And now the Executors were here—he knew the moment of his true dissolution was near.
“That’s good,” Lu Chuan said. His heart was small; most of it was filled with money, with only a sliver left for friends. Knowing they were alive was enough.
Guesswork was nothing compared to Xi Jingyuan’s confirmation.
“My question’s done. Go ahead,” Lu Chuan said courteously. Since Number 9 had given him time, he would return the favor and step aside, waiting for them to finish before taking his teammates out.
Pity about the S-rank item he’d sacrificed to get here—what a loss.
[Host, yes, yes, let’s just stay quiet.]
#888 trembled every time they met Executors.
Luckily, with its recent upgrade, it felt slightly calmer.
“System, you’re scared of them every time—it’s embarrassing,” Lu Chuan muttered. “Can’t you be brave just once?”
[Host, let me level up three or five more times, then I’ll be brave. Right now I’m still weak. I’m not scared of them, I’m scared of the Main God System behind them. Host, let’s not gawk—let’s leave.]
“I’ve seen them work before—clean and efficient,” Lu Chuan stroked his chin. “But with Xi Jiangyuan, they’re not making a move? Interesting. Let’s watch.”
#888 was speechless.
Was this really worth watching?
Fortunately, neither the Executors nor Xi Jingyuan seemed to care about Lu Chuan anymore.
“Xi Jiangyuan, come with us,” Number 9 said calmly. “Bring what’s left of this dream and leave with us. If you stay, within an hour your dream will shatter completely, and you won’t be able to maintain this form.”
Xi Jingyuan was already dead, twisted into a mindless monster, but his memories lingered here as a projection. Once the dream collapsed, he’d no longer understand speech—Number 18 would simply devour him.
“How odd,” Xi Jingyuan chuckled. “Executors, you didn’t destroy me at first sight? Do you want to know something I know? I get it—you want information about the ‘God of Desire,’ don’t you? Too bad, I won’t tell you.”
“If you won’t talk, I’ll just eat you,” Number 18 wiped suspicious moisture from his lips and swallowed. “I once bit the Dream God—tasted amazing. A creature born from a dream like you? I’m tempted.”
This time, Number 9 didn’t stop him.
Xi Jingyuan’s face darkened.
“I can talk, but first find my teammates,” Xi Jingyuan said quickly, realizing they weren’t here to chat.
“I’ve been dead a long time. The only reason I cling to this dream with a shred of sanity is to see my real teammates again.” He looked at them earnestly. “I know he’ll come. Give me a little strength—help me hold this dream together. I know you can.”
“I must wait for him.” Xi Jingyuan took a deep breath, meeting their eyes. “He will come. I can feel it.”
“Who are you waiting for?” Lu Chuan couldn’t help asking. If Xi wanted someone, he could’ve just said so—Lu would’ve tied the man up and dragged him over if needed.
“The Abyss Guild—Wen Zhi.”
The name rang a bell.
Lu Chuan thought hard.
Ah yes, the old vice guildmaster in their guild had mentioned it once—Wen Zhi was one of the Abyss Guild’s vice-guildmasters.
Right… best not offend him, at least until Lu Chuan became guildmaster of the Star Guild.
Number 9 lifted his gaze, studying Xi Jingyuan.
From his perspective, Xi Jingyuan’s body was already translucent as mist, ready to disperse at any moment.
The dream truly was collapsing.
“Alright,” Number 9 nodded.
Threads of his power seeped into the entire dream world.
#888’s indicator lights flashed wildly.
[H-h-host… this divine power is so pure—it’s practically at true-god level!]
What was going on with the Main God System of this Evil World?
Hadn’t they already raised a deity?
Reality.
The vice-guildmaster of Ocean Heart Guild personally welcomed the current vice-guildmaster of the Abyss Guild.
Wen Zhi’s name had once been legendary. In recent years, though, he’d turned inward, cultivating himself; especially after reaching the Master ranking, he rarely appeared.
Even so, he remained the youngest vice-guildmaster among the five great Guilds.
He was only fifty years old this year.
For players, fifty was no different from being young. Their physical abilities far surpassed ordinary people, and with the development of their powers, a person in their fifties or sixties could look nearly the same as someone in their twenties.
If not for the restrictions of the game—where the stronger a player was, the harder it became to reproduce—the world would likely have been overrun by the offspring of these perpetually youthful people.
Wen Zhi had only become a vice guildmaster five years ago, but ever since he took the position, he was firmly of the iron-blooded faction: hating the Executors, hating the gods. Because he had killed so many gods, his ranking on the Master Rank Leaderboard had skyrocketed, shooting straight into the top thirty. He became the youngest vice guildmaster ever, and one of the strongest members of the Abyss Guild.
“So this is Wen Zhi, ranked twenty-fourth on the Master Rank Leaderboard?” Several members of Ocean’s Heart exchanged glances and gossiped wildly through their telepathic items. “Doesn’t look like it… I heard he’s the only iron-blooded among the Abyss Guild’s three vice guildmasters. He looks so refined though.”
“Don’t judge players by appearances—that’s the least reliable thing.” A younger executive sighed. “Wen Zhi is a legend. When he was young, his performance was mediocre, but later he threw himself into missions like he had no regard for his life, which pushed out his extreme side. This time, he came not under the guild’s banner, but in his own name.”
“He probably still can’t let go of Xi Jiangyuan, his former captain.”
“After all, out of that whole team, he was the only survivor. Whatever dungeon Xi Jiangyuan died in, only Wen Zhi knows.”
“He forbade the Abyss Guild from coming, but came himself? Looks like the water here runs deep.”
“Doesn’t it just?”
The vice guildmaster of Ocean Heart Guild greeted Wen Zhi with a smiling face.
Wen Zhi requested to enter Xi Jiangyuan’s dungeon, but the executives of Ocean’s Heart could only shake their heads.
“We really can’t. The last dungeon still hasn’t ended, and we can’t send you in. Besides, this dungeon feels like it’s about to collapse completely. You’ve come too late, vice guildmaster Wen.”
“I’m not late.” Wen Zhi shook his head. “I know Xi Jiangyuan’s abilities very well. Any dungeon he leaves behind must manifest in reality as a medium. That’s how your guild master managed to bring it back here. Just take me to that medium. Nothing else is required—I can handle it myself.”
“This…”
The Ocean’s Heart executives were shocked. They had never revealed this to outsiders, yet Wen Zhi knew it all.
Clearly, he had truly been close to Xi Jiangyuan.
“Very well.” After some thought, the executives agreed. “If you enter the dungeon, please bring Vivian and the others back out.”
Though they wouldn’t sacrifice more players for Vivian’s sake, if there was a chance to save her, the upper echelon was willing to take action.
Wen Zhi nodded.
Soon, the Ocean’s Heart members led him to a crystal sphere that seemed dreamlike.
But unlike ordinary crystal spheres, this one truly had water flowing within, an otherworldly beauty.
“He still liked these strange things.” Wen Zhi smiled faintly, placing his hand on the sphere.
His aura resonated with the power inside, quickly forming a connection.
“Wait—don’t!” The executives tried to stop him.
No one could touch this sphere. Anyone who did was instantly blasted away and gravely injured.
Yet when Wen Zhi laid his hand upon it, nothing attacked him. Instead, his body twisted and in the next moment, he was drawn entirely into the sphere.
“He’s here. He’s here.” Xi Jiangyuan felt the power from Number 9 flowing into him, and also sensed Wen Zhi’s presence.
His eyes lit up, as if he’d come back to life. He looked much like when Lu Chuan first saw him in the Whistle dungeon.
“I knew it. He would definitely come.” Xi Jiangyuan’s voice carried joy.
“You wanted to know about the [God of Desire], right? I can’t tell you. I don’t even know. Only the real me who died could know. But if you can clear the dungeon created from the anomaly of ‘me,’ maybe then you’ll understand.”
He waved his hand, conjuring a door out of thin air, “If you want to know, go in yourselves. I’ll just wait here for Wen Zhi.”
He didn’t want anyone disturbing his reunion with Wen Zhi.
Wen Zhi hated the Executors.
“Number 18, stay here. Don’t let anyone approach.” Number 9 ordered, casting a glance at Lu Chuan before pushing open Xi Jiangyuan’s door and stepping inside.
Number 18 obediently sat cross-legged where he was.
“You’re not worried at all?” Lu Chuan asked him curiously.
“What’s there to worry about?” Number 18 tilted his head. “My senior won’t die. And if he does, I get to become Number 17.”
“And if he doesn’t die?”
“Then he’s still my senior.” Number 18 thought for a moment. “If I work hard, maybe I’ll be the one to kill him and devour him. Then I can break into the top five. At that time, I’m sure senior will be very proud of me.”
…Such deep devotion.
Lu Chuan was touched—so touched that he decided whenever he saw two Executors together in the future, he’d avoid them. Who knew when their infighting might spill over and drag him down?
[Host, why don’t we go in too?] #888 finally spoke after a long silence.
“What?” Lu Chuan was stunned. “System, did something possess you? You’ve always been such a coward, and now you’re telling me to follow them in? Our team almost got wiped out just from the Whistle dungeon. I’m the only one still clear-headed, and you want me to go? The Executors are already inside—what would I be if I followed? Cannon fodder?”
Better to live to fight another day. Lu Chuan had no intention of touching Xi Jiangyuan’s dungeon.
A person should know their limits.
Right now, he was the only one left standing. Everyone else was either gone or had their memories warped. That was hard enough to deal with!
These monsters fighting each other—what did it have to do with him? He wasn’t getting paid!
[Host, the divine power inside Number 9 is extremely pure—even purer than many true gods. Yet he still came to find Xi Jiangyuan. That means Xi Jiangyuan is deeply tied to the gods.] #888 explained. [I don’t know how to put it, but entering this dungeon should greatly shorten your path to becoming a god.]
“Then I’ll just take my time. I’m not in a hurry.” Lu Chuan refused flatly.
What a joke. He wasn’t going in.
Becoming a god wasn’t something that had to be rushed. Sometimes moving slowly was safer.
Number 18 suddenly stood, frowning toward the direction he’d come from.
“Another one’s entering? This dream can’t handle any more big shots.”
The dream was fragile, only held together by Number 9’s strength. Now that it was being broken open from outside, it was on the verge of collapse.
But Xi Jiangyuan’s eyes only sparkled brighter.
“He’s finally here. Wen Zhi’s aura is so strong… he must have suffered a lot these years.”
Tch.
Number 18 glanced at Lu Chuan, then made a decision. Reaching out, he scooped Lu Chuan up in one hand.
“Sorry, I’m probably about to fight. Unlike my senior, I don’t have fine control. If you stay here, you’ll definitely die—and then my senior would kill me dozens of times for it.” Number 18 grinned, flashing his white teeth. “So you’d better hide.”
Hide? Where?
Lu Chuan had a bad feeling.
“Of course the safest place is by my senior’s side.” Number 18 laughed.
Lu Chuan struggled, but against Number 18’s monstrous strength, he was helpless.
As Number 18 rambled, Lu Chuan was just about to argue—when suddenly he was flung away.
Number 18 had thought it through. He knew Number 9 valued Lu Chuan. But once fighting broke out, he’d have to transform. At that time, Lu Chuan would either be warped by his power or crushed to death by his body.
Too dangerous.
He had promised his senior to guard this place, and he wouldn’t break his word. But he also had to ensure Lu Chuan’s safety.
There was only one solution.
“You go find senior first.” Number 18’s body began to morph as he hurled Lu Chuan into Xi Jiangyuan’s door. “If senior dies, remember to tell me. Send him my regards.”
Damn it!
Lu Chuan flipped him the middle finger.
“Executor!” Wen Zhi entered and immediately saw the defiant Number 18. His fighting spirit surged at once.
“Oh? Not bad.” Number 18 licked his lips. “You look delicious.”
Xi Jiangyuan watched them blankly, momentarily unsure of what to say.
“Wen Zhi, you finally came.” Xi Jiangyuan still greeted him.
“You’re just a shadow of his regret. Shut your mouth. Don’t use his tone to speak to me.” Wen Zhi’s face twisted with killing intent. “I hate you Executors most of all. And I hate this game even more—for making it so the dead can’t rest in peace, but instead creating abominations like you.”
Clearly, he was the one who had personally buried Xi Jiangyuan.
Before his death, Xi Jingyuan had suffered so much, yearning only for peace, hoping never again to be a player.
So why had such a Mutated Dungeon appeared after all? Was it because of Xi Jingyuan’s power? Or because he’d once been entangled with those gods, so that even in death the game system still turned him into this?
Was wanting peace after death such an unforgivable crime?
“My captain died thirty years ago,” Wen Zhi said, activating his ability.
“I came here only because I didn’t want anything wearing his name anymore.”
Wen Zhi’s gaze toward Xi Jiangyuan and Number 18 was cold. “Stop tormenting the dead. Let him go.”
[Player [Arrival of the God of Wealth] has been detected entering Mutated Dungeon: God of Desire. Please prepare.]
The Main System’s notification rang out.
Wait—what?!
Just me?
At least let me bring my teammates along so we can go in together!
Lu Chuan’s eyes went wide; he almost thought he’d misheard.
Main System, why are you popping up now?!
“I don’t even want to enter this dungeon—ahhhh, no—!”
His protest was swallowed up.
Author’s Note:
A new dungeon begins, hehe.
P.S. Xi Jiangyuan didn’t die in the Whistle dungeon. He died in some other instance after becoming a Master-Ranked player, so don’t get it wrong!
