Chapter 68: Passing and Rebirth

Chapter 68: Chapter 68: Passing and Rebirth

"A newborn... God of Light?"

Yu Zhun frowned slightly, looking at the little girl in front of him. "Whether you’re the original God of Light or a different god entirely, since you were already here, why did you let Teton’s remnant spirit run rampant?"

After all, before they arrived, this little girl had been in the exact same basement as that old man!

"Because..." The little girl showed a hint of helplessness. "I can’t beat it..."

Hearing this, both Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu froze. She couldn’t beat it? A god couldn’t even defeat the mere remnant spirit of an evil dragon?

"Before the previous God of Light fell, He used His last ounce of strength to conceive me," the little girl said softly. "He named me Yola, which means rebirth and hope.

"I slumbered for a long time before gaining a basic consciousness. The moment I awoke, I knew my mission.

"But I... am very weak."

"I have the divine status, but no divine power." Yola shook her head helplessly. "To defeat the remnant spirit and restore the Bright City to its former glory, I needed to find the God of Light’s Divine Power Core."

Saying this, she pointed at the Relic Gem in Yu Zhun’s hand.

"The Divine Power Core was controlled by the old man, who was the incarnation of the remnant spirit.

"Since I possess the divine status of the God of Light, I was also the remnant spirit’s target. If it managed to seize my status and combine it with the Divine Power Core, it could potentially be reborn and become a true god.

"Therefore, I could only pretend to be a surviving resident. While looking for an opportunity, I used my meager power to help the other survivors."

Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu looked at each other, suddenly recalling a specific detail.

The first time they met Yola, she had only taken a single bite of the cake before carrying the rest back to the basement, treating it like a precious treasure. Later, when Ji Xiaoyu brought out a large amount of food, Yola hadn’t eaten her share either. Instead, she had passed it to a starving child.

"Frankly speaking," Yola said with a smile, "I really waited a long time, but I never found a chance.

"Until...

"I heard your prayer."

"I understand." A look of realization dawned on Yu Zhun’s face, and he handed the Divine Power Core over to her. "Here you go."

"Thank you." Yola reached out and grasped the Divine Power Core. Amidst endless surges of warm light, the core rapidly melted away. Yola’s physical form began to grow at a visible speed, ultimately transforming into that of a mature adult.

"Please rest assured, I won’t take your item for nothing," Yola smiled. "If not for your arrival, this world might have headed towards a different ending—an ending no one would wish to see.

"Now, your mission is over.

"Thank you, visitors from the Otherworld."

As Yola’s voice faded, lines of text popped up before Yu Zhun’s eyes.

[Congratulations on achieving a Perfect Clearance for the Dungeon: Under the Dragon Burial City. Perfect Clearance Rewards: EXP +50,000, Lucky Talisman x5, Divine Protection Talisman x5, Level-retaining Talisman x5.]

[Congratulations on being the first player to achieve a Perfect Clearance for the Dungeon: Under the Dragon Burial City. Perfect First-Clear Reward: Legendary Fragment x1.]

[Dungeon rewards have been altered due to interference from a god.]

[The God of Light, Yola, highly praises your dungeon performance. Granted Reward: Elegy of Light (Epic).]

[The God of Light, Yola...]

[Congratulations on meeting the requirements. Obtained Title: Light of Salvation.]

[Light of Salvation (Red): All Attributes increased by 40%.]

Before Yu Zhun could even marvel at the notifications, he heard Yola let out a soft snort.

"So restrictive! There are far too many rules!"

Yola frowned slightly, then pressed a hand against the empty void. A terrifyingly boundless power descended in an instant, shattering some sort of restriction and binding.

[The God of Light, Yola, highly praises your dungeon performance. Granted Reward: Legendary Fragment x2.]

Yu Zhun was left speechless. Was this the power of a god? If he guessed correctly, the dungeon rewards were originally bound by some system limit that prevented it from giving out better items. This had displeased Yola, prompting her to personally shatter the rules and force-feed him two extra Legendary Fragments.

Seeing this, Yu Zhun just wanted to give her a standing ovation.

"Alright, it’s time for you to leave." Satisfied, Yola withdrew her hand. Her aura quickly retracted as she gave Yu Zhun a meaningful look. "Next, some highly unlikable fellows will be arriving.

"If you don’t leave now, your memories will end up being tampered with again.

"After all, you don’t yet have the qualifications to interact with Them."

Huh? What tampering with his memories? Yu Zhun opened his mouth to ask, but the Dragon’s Emblem—which had been kept with Ji Xiaoyu all this time—was forcibly activated, whisking the two of them away.

After sending Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu away, Yola turned her gaze to Zhanhar.

Zhanhar stood rooted to the spot like a stone statue, looking as though he had lost his soul. Ever since he heard Yola declare herself as "the newborn God," he had been stuck in this state.

Now, after Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu had departed, Zhanhar finally spoke with great difficulty.

"They aren’t from the outer city... They’re from the Otherworld...

"So... our world has already become a dungeon."

"No." Yola gently shook her head. "Zhanhar, do not be discouraged, and do not despair.

"You have already done very well."

"As long as I am still here, our world still has hope," she murmured softly. Her gaze suddenly sharpened, shooting towards a certain corner of the hall. "The gods have not completely perished. I demand a world restoration!"

An entity entirely veiled in a golden robe stood silently in a corner of the grand hall. It seemed as though they had just arrived, yet simultaneously as though they had been there all along. Surging around Them was a formidable power identical in nature to Yola’s, yet exponentially greater in magnitude.

They wore a heavily exaggerated golden mask that was split down the middle. One side featured a bizarre and twisted evil grin, while the other side displayed a holy and sublime smile of compassion.

***

"This Godslayer Guild has been in there for so long. Why haven’t they come out yet?"

Outside the Teleportation Gate for Under the Dragon Burial City, the waiting subjugation teams were starting to look impatient.

The clearance time for a Level 20 dungeon usually didn’t exceed two hours, and the Divine Revelation Hall scheduled exactly twelve subjugation runs per day based on this. However, Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu had been in the dungeon for well over two hours. By now, it was already time for the next subjugation team to enter.

Coincidentally, the team scheduled to enter right after the Godslayer Guild was led by the young man surnamed Song, who had mocked Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu before they entered the gate. The guild backing them was another top-ten Three-Star guild in Divine Strategy City, named Sword Qi Long River.

"Hmph!" With the delay dragging on, Mr. Song’s expression grew increasingly ugly. "Do they think such petty tricks are useful?

"No matter how long they stall, if they can’t clear it, they can’t clear it."

He was about to say more when the Teleportation Gate suddenly flickered to life. The next moment, Yu Zhun and Ji Xiaoyu stepped out together.