Chapter 103: The Legendary Sword

Who was speaking? That spirit?

Ren Ye cautiously eyed the Nation-Stabilizing Sword and probed, “Hey… good brother, where should I look for the reason?”

The spirit ignored him.

“Say something.”

“If you don’t talk, I’ll piss on you.”

Ren Ye kept pushing, trying to figure out what kind of existence this spirit was.

Whoosh~

At that moment, the Nation-Stabilizing Sword, which had been embedded in the ground, suddenly transformed into a streak of light and shot straight into Ren Ye’s forehead, returning to his consciousness space.

[Congratulations! You have successfully found the lost “Sword Spirit,” awakening the Nation-Stabilizing Sword once more and uncovering its hidden secrets.]

[According to legend, long ago, Shenzhou was invaded by malevolent spirits. The Human Emperor ascended the Deer Terrace Pavilion and personally forged both a sword and a seal—one symbolizing the supreme martial power of the world, the other symbolizing the highest authority. The war between humanity and demons lasted for three years, ending in a bitter victory for the Human Emperor’s divine dynasty. The demons were purged, and peace returned to the mortal realm. Afterward, the Human Emperor led his remaining forces into the heavens, leaving behind the sword and the seal as a legacy to Shenzhou.]

[Ages passed, and during the waning years of the Jing Dynasty, Zhu Xun, who led an uprising in Qingzhou, stumbled upon the Human Emperor Sword. However, due to its immense weight, he found it difficult to wield properly. Unaware of the sword’s true origins, Zhu Xun bestowed it upon his second son, Zhu Kai, to be used as a weapon in battle.]

[As warlords vied for supremacy, the Zhu family ultimately seized control of the realm, establishing the Great Qian dynasty, with Zhu Xun crowning himself as the Martial Emperor. For his merits, his second son, Zhu Kai, was given the title as Prince Huai, and the sword in his hands was renamed the Nation-Stabilizing Sword.]

Sitting cross-legged on the mirror-like floor, Ren Ye muttered to himself, “Looks like I guessed right. This Nation-Stabilizing Sword must be part of a legendary inheritance set, along with the Human Emperor Seal that Princess Anping took into her tomb.”

[Congratulations, Prince Huai! You have temporarily obtained a growth-type divine artifact.]

[Human Emperor Sword – Divine Artifact (Sealed Stage)]

[Divine Ability – “Imperial Might”: Within a hundred-step radius of the sword, all demons, dark arts, and curses are suppressed by its overwhelming imperial aura.]

[Divine Ability – “The Sword Houses a Divine Kingdom”: Once the wielder of the Human Emperor Sword gains their own Star Gate, it will reside within the sword itself, allowing the wielder to summon it at will. The sword’s properties will also match those of the Star Gate.]

[Drawbacks: The Sword Spirit is currently in an extremely weakened state. It doesn’t even want to speak to you. It requires vast amounts of Stellar Essence and Fortune Energy to gradually recover. Furthermore, if it deems you too weak or incapable of sustaining it, it may seek a new master.]

[Special Notice: You must clear Qingliang Town, find the person waiting for you there, and receive a mysterious inheritance to earn the final approval of the Human Emperor Sword. If you fail, it will abandon you without hesitation, waiting for its next fated master.]

[Special Notice: The Human Emperor Sword cannot be used within Princess Anping’s Tomb. Additionally, only those blessed with Fortune Energy can wield it—ordinary people or those with insufficient fortune will be unable to lift it.]

A barrage of notifications nearly drove Ren Ye to madness.

At first, he was elated, feeling as though he’d finally risen to power, on the verge of invincibility. After all, both of the sword’s divine abilities sounded overwhelmingly strong.

But as he read further, his excitement quickly deflated.

First, the sword was completely useless inside the princess’s tomb. And even if he successfully cleared the area and obtained the mysterious inheritance, the sword wasn’t exactly loyal—it demanded resources.

In other words, it was a pay-to-win artifact, requiring a constant supply of Stellar Essence and Fortune Energy. Given how clear the Star Gate was about this, maintaining ownership of the sword was likely going to be very costly.

“Dammit, what do I even need you for?!”

Ren Ye scowled and grumbled inwardly, “Then again, it’s not totally useless. Now that I’ve recovered the Human Emperor Sword’s Spirit, I should be able to unlock the iron door inside the Hall of Tranquility’s secret chamber.”

At that thought, Ren Ye’s body stiffened as another realization struck him—”Mr. He’s letter!”

Li Yan had said that the contents of the letter must have been altered. And considering how accurate its information had been, it was unlikely that the Bell Society had tampered with it.

For one, if they had the real clues, they wouldn’t need to alter the contents of Li Yan’s letter.

For another, if Mr. He had discovered such vital information, he would have shared it with the Court Faction’s two players. But judging by their actions inside the tomb, they were completely unaware of the letter’s existence.

So who changed its contents?

The mystery was infuriating.

Ren Ye had no clue who the mysterious forger was, but he was deeply grateful to them. Without them, he likely wouldn’t have jumped into the pool. And without taking the plunge, he wouldn’t have recovered the Sword Spirit or reforged his body.

If he had missed the Sword Spirit, the Hall of Tranquility’s secret chamber would have remained sealed. And during the final phase, the Prince Huai faction would have lost a crucial, game-changing artifact.

If I get the chance, I really have to thank the person who altered the letter in person. If they’re willing, I wouldn’t mind treating them to a spa session—add an extra 10 minutes!

Ren Ye sat cross-legged on the ground, suddenly wondering what the Court Faction players and his beloved were up to at this moment.

Did they also choose someone for the sacrifice?

Logically, if they hadn’t died from infighting, and if they too selected someone to throw into the pool, they should have received an important item in this phase as well.

“Swish!”

Just as he was thinking and recovering his body, a sudden change occurred in this glasshouse-like space.

Beneath him, the mirror-like ground began to shimmer, initially distorting and blurring, but soon solidifying into a concrete image.

Ren Ye curiously looked down, and his heart sank in shock, because the image on the ground was none other than the scene in the princess’s tomb.

Looking at the environment, it didn’t appear to be from the tomb’s previous levels, it seemed unfamiliar.

Quickly, he confirmed this thought, as three familiar, foolish-looking figures appeared on the ground.

A coquettish woman, a burly and rough man, and a middle-aged man who looked clearly depressed.

That’s right, these three were Tang Feng, Li Yan, and Imperial Inspector Liu, who had just lost their teammate.

“Holy shit!”

Ren Ye immediately stood up, causing his little earthworm to shake wildly, signaling his excitement: “I’m on their heads?! Can they see me? Did these three enter the sixth level?”

“Hey, hey, can you hear me?”

“Hey, hey…!”

After several calls, the three in the image didn’t respond at all, yet Ren Ye could still hear their conversation.

In the dark tomb passage, Li Yan sat on a stone pillar, his expression dull, his gaze vacant, and his face showing a look of hopelessness…

Not far off, Tang Feng, holding a torch, was staring at the murals on the wall.

Three steps away from Li Yan, Imperial Inspector Liu, still as irritable as ever, spoke with exaggerated politeness: “What are you doing, hanging your dog’s head like that? You need to pull yourself together! You need to get up! We’ve finally entered the sixth level of the princess’s tomb, you can’t just give up!”

Li Yan didn’t move, mumbling, “It’s no use, I won’t struggle anymore. I still can’t figure it out… why did idiot just jump in without even a word? So stupid, so irresponsible.”

In the mirrored space, Ren Ye heard these words and immediately began to hold a grudge: “Talking behind the leader’s back, this guy can’t be kept around for long!”

He felt a strange sensation, as if he were sitting in a surveillance room, lecherously spying on others with a sense of shame.

“Have you ever thought about it, that No. 5’s great sacrifice was for us to move forward?” Imperial Inspector Liu clenched his fist, shouting excitedly, “You’re just giving up, you’re lying down, do you think you’re doing him justice?! If his spirit is looking at us from above… how heartbroken would he be?”

Ren Ye, upon hearing this, had a moment where he thought Imperial Inspector Liu might might have some divine perspective.

“This guy may not be cultured, but he’s quite suited for political work.” Ren Ye sat cross-legged, carefully observing his three teammates.

Li Yan, hearing Imperial Inspector Liu’s shout, slowly raised his head: “When I was brainwashing others, you were still drinking breastmilk! You guys don’t understand how important No. 5 was. The Star Gate even reminded us, that Prince Huai’s faction player count is down by one, so he’s definitely dead. After that, we can at most reach the eighth level, we’ll never even touch the final level’s door, understand?”

“Things aren’t over yet, who knows what’ll happen next?” Imperial Inspector Liu, with his simple thoughts, said, “We’ve come this far, we might as well go all the way.”

“Forget it, I’m too tired to talk to you.” Li Yan’s mental state completely collapsed. His body wasn’t even in the eighth level, so it didn’t matter whether he kept moving forward. Without Ren Ye activating the last hidden level, whether or not he continued didn’t matter.

Reaching the eighth level was meaningless, at best, they’d just watch others pick up the normal legacy of the princess’s tomb.

“If you guys want to go, just go. Pretend I’m dead.” Li Yan hesitated as he looked at the tomb passage. “Maybe… I’ll be buried here forever.”

At that moment, Tang Feng shouted: “Old Liu, over here, there’s a concentration of information, come over here!”

“I have to repeat it once again! No. 5’s death was heroic, moving, it could even be on CCTV!” Imperial Inspector Liu glanced at Li Yan, “…Maybe you’ve lost your drive, but don’t forget, we’re a team, and in critical moments, we didn’t kill each other, so…!”

“Enough with the speeches, get lost.” Li Yan waved his hand in despair.

Imperial Inspector Liu shook his head, took a step toward Tang Feng, and spread his hands: “He’s hanging his dog’s head, even I can’t get him to move.”

“We’ll talk later, come over here and take a look with me.” Tang Feng, holding a torch, directed it toward the mural.

At that moment, Ren Ye suddenly heard the reminder from the Star Gate.

[You died, but are your comrades still moving forward? Have they lost their fighting spirit, or perhaps… your sacrificial act have no impact on them at all?]

[Are you waiting to enter the next level?]

[Alright, then the task for your next level will be set by your teammates, and you’ll watch as they arrange the content to clear the level.]

[This is quite interesting, don’t you think?]