Chapter 969 - Golden Rune
An enormous crack echoed as the crystal coffin shattered under the greatsword’s blow. The Undead King threw itself at Lingray’s body like a thing possessed, but Han Wu was closer and faster. He snatched the treasure the Desolation Manifestation had identified before the Undead King could reach it.
The Desolation Manifestation used precise perception to display the item’s full details before Han Wu’s eyes.
[Golden Rune (triple-sealed). A physical manifestation of the Golden Will. Capable of resisting any negative effect at or below the World rank.]
“Incredible!” Han Wu blurted out.
Resisting all negative effects was absurdly powerful! Leaving something like this as a burial offering for the Final King Lingray was honestly a waste.
It didn’t escape Han Wu's notice, however, that the description included the words “triple-sealed.” The Golden Rune couldn’t be used until the three seals were removed.
That was annoying, like someone finishing up in the bathroom only to lock the door on their way out. Han Wu tucked the Golden Rune into his Void Stone and turned his attention to the Undead King.
It was clutching Lingray’s body, skull pressed against the corpse’s forehead in a pose that looked disturbingly romantic. A chill ran through Han Wu. Did the Undead King have some sort of twisted fascination with corpses?
Then again, it was already undead. A fondness for corpses was almost understandable, in a morbid way.
The Desolation Manifestation detected something different, though. The Undead King had no such inclination. Rather, it was actually transferring its soul into Lingray’s body, stealing the nest and possessing the corpse.
As the Spiritual Contract prevented Han Wu from interfering, he busied himself rummaging through the surrounding burial treasures while he waited. Eventually, the Undead King finished transferring its soul, and its body collapsed. Crystal bones were strewn across the floor like a shattered work of art.
The Final King Lingray rose in an undead state. Blazing spiritual light erupted from his eyes as he gleefully shouted, “I, Daniel, have finally done it! Lingray, so what if you killed me and sealed me away in that dump near Galewind City? I’ve taken your body, and I’ll use your power to enslave your followers. You’re the ultimate loser in this war between us!”
It seemed the Undead King Daniel and the Final King Lingray had history. None of that concerned Han Wu, however. His eyes were glued to the crystal bones scattered on the ground. Those were top-tier materials.
“This might be bad timing, but I really want your bones,” Han Wu said bluntly.
“They’re yours,” Daniel said, in a generous mood. His eyes, brimming with spiritual light, were fixed firmly on Han Wu, but he found it impossible to parse the youth’s thoughts.
Han Wu wasted no time collecting the crystal bones. Then, he pulled out the Fourth Form Crystal Lich legacy. He finally had the materials that it required.
Without a moment’s hesitation, he began the fusion. His deep knowledge of the undead meant there wasn’t a single hiccup in the process. It took just three minutes to absorb completely.
Han Wu’s stats jumped again. Strength, Agility, and Constitution each gained +50, while Spirit gained +200. When he activated the Crystal Lich form, he’d also receive an additional +200 to Soul. The combined gains made him significantly stronger than before.
Daniel waited patiently for Han Wu to finish, then said. “My dear friend, thank you for helping me obtain this body.”
“We each got what we wanted.”
“In that case, shouldn’t you return that sword to me? You’re just returning it to its rightful owner.” Daniel finally revealed his true aim.
Han Wu had created his crystal greatsword not only by absorbing all the fragments of Lingray’s personal sword, but also with pure crystals and magical arrays that he had designed. Its overall quality rivaled the original sword when it was whole. It even retained perfect compatibility with Lingray’s body, making it the ideal weapon for Daniel in his new form.
Although Daniel’s argument seemed reasonable on the surface, any amount of logical thinking was enough for one to realize that it didn’t actually hold water. Han Wu had spent a massive amount of crystals, time, and effort forging this weapon. It was Rank 9, a top-tier armament in the White Soul Civilization, and his trump card. There was no way he’d just give it away.
As Han Wu was about to refuse, Daniel added, “The treasure you’re looking for is the Golden Rune, right? It has three seals on it. I can tell you how to break them. But on the condition that you hand the greatsword over to me.”
Han Wu went quiet. Daniel had him there.
Finding the Golden Rune meant nothing if he couldn’t unseal it. As he had no connections or contacts in the White Soul Civilization, figuring out how to remove the seals on his own would be next to impossible.
However, if he handed over the crystal greatsword, Daniel would tell him everything he needed to know. It was the best deal he was going to get.
After a moment of thought, Han Wu sighed. “Fine. You win.”
He unstrapped the crystal greatsword from his back and tossed it to Daniel. The instant Daniel caught it, dense black flames erupted along the blade. This was the greatsword’s true power, one Han Wu had been too weak to unlock.
Daniel admired the weapon. Han Wu pressed him to hurry up and explain how to remove the Golden Rune’s three seals.
Fortunately, Daniel kept his word. The first seal required washing the Golden Rune in the Purifying Spring Water of the Golden City. The second seal required bathing it in dragon’s blood from Volcano Valley. Finally, the third seal required a branch from the Golden Tree.
After memorizing these three steps, Han Wu made to leave.
A flicker of reluctance crossed Daniel’s face at Han Wu’s departure. The black flames on the crystal greatsword wavered. He didn’t want Han Wu to go, but he also recognized that keeping Han Wu around served no purpose at the moment.
Then, a thought occurred to him, and Daniel quickly composed himself as he watched Han Wu walk out of the tomb.
“Outsider of limitless potential, I’ll be waiting for you beneath the Golden Tree,” Daniel murmured.
As Han Wu departed, every being of Sixth Form and above across the tomb converged on the main burial chamber. These were the original followers of the Final King Lingray, and having sensed his revival, they headed there to worship him.