Chapter 318: Killing Intent, The Gaze of the Failures

A translucent blue system panel hovered right before his eyes.

[Ding!]

[Player level 30 detected.]

[Second Layer Ascension Quest triggered.]

[Loading quest details...]

A pale blue halo flickered faintly at the edges of the text. Zich was just about to focus and read the words materializing line by line when suddenly, the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

The atmosphere in the Players Association resting room had changed.

There should have been guards from the Players Association outside, but now, it was dead silent. No footsteps, no breathing, not even the usual hum of magic lights flowing through the corridor.

Click.

The sound of a lock clicking was heard, and the door was suddenly pushed open.

Three figures in gray hooded cloaks walked in. Their auras were as gloomy and foul as sludge that had fermented in a sewer for years.

It took only a glance to know who these people were.

...Failures.

The leader pushed back his hood, revealing a face covered in old scars. He looked at Zich, who was bedridden with wounds across his left shoulder and chest, and his mouth twisted into a hideous grin.

"Boss Silas was right. You really can’t even stand up looking like this."

Zich showed no panic. His right hand slowly emerged from under the covers, reaching for the bedside. Frostgrave lay there, just as Helen had instructed the staff to leave it within reach.

"How did you get in?" Zich’s voice was calm, without a single ripple of fear.

"From inside the Association? Don’t be stupid. This is the First Layer." The leader sneered, his eyes revealing greed and venom. "Someone opened the door for us. Zich, your road ends here. Your precious advancement is going nowhere."

A chill flashed in Zich’s eyes. The only way the Failures could have entered the Players Association headquarters without raising an alarm was if someone inside had helped them.

But now was not the time to think about who it might be. What mattered most to Zich was surviving.

"Our mission isn’t to kill you." The leader slowly drew two short daggers dripping with eerie green venom. "Kill you, and you’re just a dead man. Boss Silas’s order is to cripple you, trap your advancement, and turn you into a Failure just like us."

"Then you probably won’t get the chance to report back."

The moment Zich gripped Frostgrave, an azure frost aura erupted violently.

"Attack! He’s heavily wounded and can’t even stand! Cripple his limbs directly!"

The three Failures moved simultaneously. The leader turned into an afterimage, lunging straight for Zich’s right shoulder, while the other two flanked him from both sides, sealing off his escape routes.

In their eyes, a sixteen year old boy who had just been through a bloody battle and was now bedridden with serious injuries was an easy target, no matter how talented he was.

But they were wrong.

Zich had no intention of standing up at all. He stretched out his hand and reached directly into the Graveyard, where a black and blue Spirit Bomb materialized in his grasp.

BOOM!

In the cramped resting room, a fist sized black and blue sphere of undead energy detonated instantly beneath the leader’s feet.

The terrifying undead suppression, combined with the explosion’s shockwave, sent the leader flying. His protective battle mana shattered like paper, and his chest instantly caved in.

"What?!"

The two Failures lunging from the sides were shocked.

"He didn’t even make a casting motion?!"

Zich gave them no time to think. Enduring the tearing agony in his left shoulder, he swung Frostgrave with one hand.

[Spirit Exchange!]

A Level 1 skeleton soldier appeared in the shadows at the corner of the room. In the next instant, Zich exchanged places with it.

Pfft!

The left Failure’s venomous dagger plunged deep into the skeleton’s chest.

Meanwhile, the real Zich had already appeared in the blind spot of the right Failure’s vision.

[Blood Arc!]

[Spirit Flame!]

The crimson crescent shaped blade of mana was wrapped in ghastly white ghostly fire.

Zich had combined two of his skills!

With no wasted movement, Blood Arc precisely sliced through the Failure’s throat, and the pale fire instantly surged into his body, shredding every trace of vitality.

"Monster... he’s a monster!"

The last remaining Failure, seeing his companion instantly killed, completely collapsed psychologically. He turned and tried to flee through the door.

Zich’s eyes were icy cold. He reached into the Graveyard and summoned his second Spirit Bomb, hurling it straight at the fleeing man.

BOOM!

Black and blue light exploded at the doorway. The sealed corridor swallowed the blast’s deafening sound, and the Failure didn’t even have time to scream before the undead energy crushed him into minced meat.

Some time later, the resting room returned to dead silence. Only the strong stench of blood and the lingering chill of undead energy permeated the air.

Haa...

Zich leaned back against the headboard, breathing heavily. Cold sweat had soaked through his bandages, and the wounds across his left shoulder and chest throbbed from the exertion. Blood seeped through the bandages on his shoulder once more.

He looked down at his hands. They were still trembling slightly.

If he were at full strength, he wouldn’t have struggled nearly as much against these three veteran First Layer players. But now, even a brief fight against them had nearly drained all his remaining stamina.

"Silas..."

Zich wiped the trace of blood from the corner of his mouth, his gaze growing even colder.

’So that’s their boss.’

This was the first time Zich had heard the name Silas. The three Failures had been so confident in their mission that their leader had casually revealed it. Now, Zich had a name to investigate.

Since someone inside the Players Association had let them in, the corridor outside had likely been sealed off to prevent anyone from interfering.

Just then, dense and heavy footsteps echoed from the corridor outside.

Step! Step!

The steps were measured and deliberate, as though whoever was approaching had no intention of hiding their presence.

Zich tightened his grip on Frostgrave, preparing for the next wave of assault