Chapter 968 - Inside the Tomb
The Dark Shade was only an appetizer. More dark creatures attacked as Han Wu and the Undead King pushed deeper. Fortunately, they were both powerful, and it didn’t take much effort for them to deal with the creatures.
Working together, they quickly navigated the maze of cave tunnels and arrived at the tomb’s entrance. The door was carved from a single, massive boulder. It was incredibly heavy and impossibly hard.
“This door is extremely heavy. Pushing it open will be very difficult,” the Undead King said, preparing to show off its skills. “Allow me to—”
Han Wu activated his Swordwind legacy, slashing furiously with his four greatsword-wielding arms and carving a hole in the boulder door large enough to walk through. Then, turning back to the Undead King, he asked, “Were you about to say something?”
“No, nothing,” the Undead King replied through its soul voice. It didn’t dare say anything.
The moment they stepped into the tomb, the air itself grew heavier with a looming sense of danger. Han Wu immediately had the Desolation Manifestation scan the surroundings. Without the barrier of authority blocking it from the outside, the Desolation Manifestation’s perception successfully spread through the tomb this time. Some sort of restriction inside still limited its range, though, so it could only survey a portion of the tomb’s layout.
Even that partial picture was enough to alarm Han Wu. The Desolation Manifestation detected more than one Sixth Form fighter inside, and this was just the entrance. There was no telling what they would find if they went deeper.
Han Wu grew worried. The Undead King was also using its senses to scout, but its range was far smaller. It couldn’t even detect where the Sixth Form fighters were.
As Han Wu was mulling over how to advance without alerting any Sixth Form enemies, the Undead King said calmly through its soul voice, “Follow me.”
It walked ahead, not bothering to wait for Han Wu. Nervous about running into a Sixth Form being, Han Wu deliberately hung back. He quietly told the Desolation Manifestation to keep scanning their surroundings and alert him the instant anything seemed off.
If things went south, he’d run. The Spiritual Contract he’d signed only covered not harming each other and splitting the loot. There was nothing about abandoning a partner. Han Wu had plenty of room to maneuver.
Shockingly, the path the Undead King chose bypassed all the Sixth Form enemies. They didn’t even see more than one Fifth Form opponent. It was practically a safe route.
The two of them made it all the way to the main burial chamber with absurd ease.
Han Wu started to wonder if the Desolation Manifestation had been mistaken... Or perhaps the Undead King simply wasn’t what it seemed.
The Desolation Manifestation was part of the Death God King, and Han Wu trusted it completely. That left only one explanation: the Undead King was highly suspicious. Han Wu quietly shifted into his Swift Shadow form just in case. This way, he could disengage the instant something went awry.
The first thing Han Wu noticed inside the main chamber were the treasures lining the walls: powerful weapons, precious gemstones, artifacts crafted from rare metals, and more. Every single piece would fetch a fortune in White Soul Coins.
This was the caliber of Lingray’s burial goods. The Undead King didn’t spare the treasures a single glance. Its spiritual fire was fixed on a crystal coffin in the center of the chamber.
Inside the coffin lay a man dressed in magnificent robes. He was tall and broad-shouldered. Despite being dead for over a century, the crystal coffin had perfectly preserved his body. There was no trace of decay whatsoever. He looked as though he could wake at any moment.
“The Final King Lingray,” the Undead King murmured, like awe and an introduction rolled into one. Then the Undead King turned to Han Wu, the spiritual fire in its sockets trembling. “There may be something you want inside his coffin.”
Han Wu was eager to see. Pressing against the coffin lid, he pushed with his considerable strength, but even after straining for a while, the lid didn’t budge a millimeter.
“Come, give me a hand,” Han Wu called out.
“It’s no use. The crystal coffin can’t be opened by normal means,” the Undead King explained. “There are only three ways to open it. We either need a king recognized by the Golden Will, a being of Ninth Form or above, or to shatter the coffin with Lingray’s personal sword.”
Han Wu reached behind him, fingers hesitantly brushing against the handle of the crystal greatsword.
Something had been bothering him. The Undead King had obviously known the path through the tomb intimately and could have easily reached the main chamber without his help. Despite this, it still went through the trouble of recruiting him.
Han Wu refused to believe there wasn’t some kind of ulterior motive behind that.
At this moment, everything fell into place. The Undead King was after his crystal greatsword, or more precisely, the shards of Lingray’s personal sword that were fused into it. The sword was the key to opening the coffin.
“Go on, use the greatsword on your back to smash this coffin open. There’s bound to be something you want inside!” the Undead King urged in a low voice, its words laced with a subtle, enchanting energy.
Han Wu’s soul was powerful, and the Desolation Manifestation was guarding him, meaning he could tell that the Undead King had just tried to use a charm skill on him. The coffin could contain something Han Wu needed, but it definitely held something the Undead King wanted.
“Hurry up and smash it!” the Undead King pressed, growing impatient at Han Wu’s hesitation.
Han Wu turned to face the Undead King, his eyes perfectly clear. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re annoying?”
The spiritual fire in the Undead King’s sockets flared when it noticed Han Wu’s clear gaze. Obviously, the charm had failed. Unsure whether Han Wu had actually detected it or was simply unaffected, it decided to maintain its cover.
“I just want to help you accomplish your goal as quickly as possible,” the Undead King replied.
Scoffing, Han Wu ignored it. Instead, he quietly asked the Desolation Manifestation to probe the crystal coffin and check whether the treasure the Death God King needed was inside.
The Desolation Manifestation pushed its perception into the coffin. After a thorough scan, it let out a gasp. It had found the treasure that the Death God King was looking for on Lingray’s body.
Han Wu’s face broke into a grin. It seemed the coffin had to be opened after all.
Drawing the crystal greatsword, he warned the Undead King behind him, “Step back. I don’t want you getting hurt.”
The Undead King quickly retreated several steps. The spiritual fire in its sockets danced wildly with barely concealed eagerness.
Han Wu was equally excited. What kind of treasure could the Death God King desire so badly? The answer was about to be revealed.