Chapter 613: Artus, Entangled by Misfortune, Departs

“Why is he here?”

Yu Yuan frowned as he looked at Artus standing before the entrance to the Place of Divine Rest.

This guy sure had a keen nose, finding the most valuable part of the civilization relic in no time.

At the same time, a sense of urgency rose in his heart. Artus currently held three invitation letters as well, and Yu Yuan wasn’t sure if he had obtained admin privileges.

But back when Yu Yuan himself had held three invitation letters, there hadn’t been any unusual prompts or notifications. It was only by using the Celestial Phenomena Card to fuse those three letters together that he gained admin privileges.

He figured Artus probably didn’t have the ability to force a fusion!

However, previous intelligence had mentioned that gathering all eight invitation letters was necessary to obtain the civilization relic’s highest authority.

“Could it be that you need to collect all eight invitation letters to get the authority?”

Yu Yuan could only speculate, but soon, he froze for a moment.

“That mutated man.”

Yu Yuan realized something. If eight invitation letters were required, then what about the invitation letter on that player who had mutated right after entering? Who had taken it?

Or was it still in an unclaimed state?

That would be the biggest variable.

Yu Yuan subtly glanced at the werewolf hidden in the shadows ahead.

He had been the closest to the mutated player at the time. If anyone was most likely to have taken that invitation letter, it had to be him.

“This civilization relic is nothing but a winner-takes-all situation. Only the victor gets to enjoy all the spoils.”

Yu Yuan understood clearly now.

“If I can’t get all eight invitation letters, I won’t be able to enter any high-value material zones. This is damn cultivating a deadly contest!”

His gaze turned to Artus.

If his guess was right, Artus was about to be in trouble.

Without admin privileges, the consequences of approaching the core area were something Yu Yuan had already experienced firsthand.

Sure enough, Yu Yuan’s prediction came true.

From the moment Artus entered this civilization relic, he had spotted this tower and immediately understood it was the core of the relic.

It was undoubtedly the most valuable area. Now that the most powerful Demon Anta and the Vampire had been killed, their bodies under his control, and one player had mutated and died right at the start—

Even the Shadow Wolf had been forced back by him. He had already seized the greatest initiative.

As for the last three players hiding…

If they had any real ability, the previous battle was the perfect time to act—just like that Vampire, lurking in the shadows, waiting for the critical moment to take him down in one fell swoop.

But with such a golden opportunity, none of the three had shown up.

That meant either they had already been killed, or they were just Bronze-tier players who naturally wouldn’t dare show themselves.

Either way, to Artus, they were nothing to fear.

His only real threat now was that Shadow Wolf.

Artus stared at the towering doors before him, a gleam of eagerness flashing in his eyes.

“Mortarian’s nest, the living planet [Morphis], this existence that all the big shots are watching. I hope I can find what I need here!”

Despite his strong desire to enter, caution prevailed. Artus ordered Anta and the Vampire to open the door.

Their bodies moved under Artus’s control, approaching the door. But the moment they stepped within five meters of it, Artus felt an intense sense of danger.

His body instinctively retreated.

At the same time, four eyeballs appeared on the tower’s door. The instant they materialized, they launched an attack on Anta and the Vampire. Crimson rays shot out from the eyeballs.

Two rays pierced straight through Anta and the Vampire’s heads, annihilating them instantly.

The other two shot directly toward Artus. Just as he was about to dodge, his moving foot inexplicably tripped on something, causing his body to stagger and lose balance as he fell backward.

Artus reacted quickly, swinging his black staff to summon a bone shield in front of him. He pushed off the ground, intending to use the recoil to escape.

But, of all things, his foot caught in a gap between two bone fragments, getting stuck.

Artus was stunned.

Before he could react further, it was too late.

The two rays struck Artus’s wizard robe directly.

“Ah—”

A scream tore from Artus’s throat.

Only then did the virtual light screen flicker to life, flashing a few delayed warning messages.

[Crackle... crackle... Warning, player ID 'Artus’s Underground Cave', you do not have access permission. Please leave the current area immediately!]

[Crackle... crackle... Warning ignored! Activating 'Place of Divine Rest' defense mechanism. Initiating attack!]

Staring at the information on the virtual light screen, Artus nearly lost it.

"Huh? Why did this warning only appear after I got attacked?"

He looked at the gaping hole in his thigh, annihilated by the ray, his eyes flickering with uncertainty.

As a Silver-tier player who had weathered countless storms and a Silver Executor of 'Snake Kiss,'

Artus keenly sensed something off about these coincidences.

Fortunately, perhaps because he had already retreated to a safe zone, the rays did not attack again.

Artus injected himself with a potent healing potion.

He immediately checked all his statuses.

But he found no abnormal prompts.

He struck his staff on the ground, and a black halo enveloped him.

It scanned up and down his body several times.

Still, no anomalies were detected.

Yet Artus’s suspicion only deepened.

In the distance, the Shadow Wolf, hidden in the shadows, had witnessed everything that just happened to Artus. A glint of insight flashed in his eyes.

He keenly sensed that something was wrong with Artus, though he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what.

But his instincts told him that the situation seemed to be taking a turn.

Immediately, he concealed himself even more carefully, quietly waiting for an opportunity.

Behind the Shadow Wolf, Yu Yuan had already gotten the answer he wanted.

“Artus can’t get in. He doesn’t have the authority.”

Joy surged in Yu Yuan’s heart.

From Artus’s recent ordeal, Yu Yuan understood that the ‘Misfortune Plagued’ effect of that [Celestial Phenomenon — The Ancient Comet] card had started to take hold.

“Now Artus is stuck guarding the entrance to the ‘Place of Divine Rest,’ with the Shadow Wolf watching from behind. Maybe it’s time to change locations…”

Yu Yuan didn’t have time to waste on these two. He decided to use this chance to scavenge resources and boost his strength.

The virtual map appeared, and Yu Yuan began selecting his next exploration target.

Soon, his gaze settled on a building—[Microbial Modification Laboratory].

“Microbes! The Promiz Virus is a type of microbe, isn’t it?”

With an idea in mind, Yu Yuan immediately changed direction and used [Shadow Stride] to leave.

In just a few flickers, he was already far away.

Seconds after he left, the Shadow Wolf, as if sensing something, turned to glance back at Yu Yuan’s previous position.

But he saw nothing suspicious. Shaking his head slightly, he refocused his attention on Artus.

Just then, he noticed something in the distance rapidly approaching Artus.