The rest of the process was simple: Archangel transferred the money. Ethan received another large sum.
"Alright, now can I leave?" Archangel asked with an annoyed look.
This whole situation had been a disaster for him. Not only did he gain nothing, but he also lost his investment. To top it off, many of his guildmates were killed, and *Third Heaven*'s standing was at risk of dropping to a second-rate guild. Archangel was bitter and swore to investigate *Dustwalker* thoroughly once he returned. After learning all he could about him, he'd plot his revenge.
Forcing a smile, Archangel said, "We agreed, right? I sent you the money and the gold. You can't go back on your word."
Ethan chuckled at the sight of Archangel's forced smile and asked, "Hey, have you downloaded the anti-scam app?"
"Huh?" Archangel blinked, not understanding.
"Nothing. Just remember to download it when you get back."
With that, Ethan snapped his fingers, and flames engulfed Archangel.
"F**k you, Dustwalker! You lying bastard, I'll…"
Before Archangel could finish his sentence, the fire consumed him, leaving only ashes behind.
"Pfft! You think I'd let you go after all that? Dream on."
Ethan sneered and used *Flame Jump* to vanish from the spot.
Meanwhile, *King of Assassins* was finishing up his own slaughter. Equipped with the *Fanged Fish Dagger*, his strength was nearly equal to Ethan's, and taking down *Third Heaven* players was effortless. Apart from a few lucky ones who managed to escape back to Frostleaf Town, the rest were wiped out.
After this, *Third Heaven* would likely stay quiet for a while, but only for a short time. At these low levels, the penalty for dying wasn't severe. But later in the game, when levels reached the 100s, a single death would be truly devastating.
About ten minutes later, *King of Assassins* appeared.
"All done?" Ethan asked.
"Yeah," *King of Assassins* nodded, handing back Ethan's hat. "Here, the loot's inside. I'm keeping the dagger."
"Fine." Ethan took the hat, then glanced at his clone. "So…"
"Don't even think about recalling me," *King of Assassins* cut him off, giving Ethan a cold look before vanishing into the shadows.
"Uh..." Ethan was left speechless. This guy was even more defiant than No. 1. At least No. 1 had some respect, but this one was straight-up bossing him around—and he even took the *Fanged Fish Dagger* with him! Who was he supposed to complain to?
"Fine, fine. My clones are tougher than the original now, huh?" Ethan grumbled. He didn't linger and began making his way toward Frostleaf Town.
With his sled dogs dead, the sled was useless, so he had to rely on his own two legs. Fortunately, Frostleaf Town wasn't too far, and after about thirty minutes of walking, he arrived.
As soon as he got back to town, Ethan headed straight for Krokro's shop.
"Good morning, Krokro," Ethan greeted with a grin.
Krokro was busy attending to a player but froze when he saw Ethan. Forgetting about the other customer, he rushed over and asked eagerly, "You're back! Did you complete the quest?"
"Of course!" Ethan said confidently, removing the branch of the *Tree of Life* from his hat.
The moment Krokro laid eyes on the branch, his face lit up, and he reached out to grab it. But Ethan was quicker, pulling the branch back before Krokro could snatch it.
"What are you doing?" Krokro asked, bewildered. "That's the quest item! You have to give it to me!"
"I will, but this job cost me a lot. Don't you think I deserve some compensation?"
"What are you talking about? We had an agreement! Once you finished the task, I'd give you the *Phantom Card*. Why are you going back on your word?"
"Yep, I'm going back on my word." Ethan casually stuffed the branch back into his hat, clearly unfazed.
"Krokro, you know as well as I do that the *Phantom Card* is nowhere near as valuable as the *Tree of Life*, let alone the *Eternal Fire Seed*."
Krokro's brow furrowed. "What are you getting at? You're not thinking of keeping the *Eternal Fire Seed*, are you?"
"Why not?" Ethan crossed his arms, smiling.
"You…!" Krokro's face flushed with anger. He had never met such a brazen adventurer—someone even more shameless than himself!
"That branch from the *Tree of Life* is a dwarven treasure. Aren't you afraid of making the entire Dwarven race your enemy?" Krokro threatened.
"Afraid of what? Worst case, I'll disappear for a while. It's not like your dwarves rule the world."
Krokro was speechless for a moment. Ethan had a point. The dwarves, like elves, orcs, and dragons, had once been powerful races but were now in decline. This was the age of magic, and humanity was in control. Ever since the Goddess of Magic shared the secrets of magic with the world, humans had risen to dominance, and the ancient races had begun to fade away.
"So, what do you want? The *Tree of Life* branch is useless to you. It's the handle of the Dwarven King's warhammer—humans can't even use it."
"True," Ethan said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "How about this: I'll give you back the *Tree of Life*, but the *Eternal Fire Seed* is mine."
"Dream on!" Krokro rejected the offer immediately. The *Eternal Fire Seed* was an artifact left behind by the great hero Argoth, and it was an incredibly powerful item. There was no way he was handing it over to Ethan.
"Then I guess the quest is a failure. See you around." Ethan turned to leave, prompting Krokro to panic.
He rushed out of the shop and grabbed Ethan's arm, speaking rapidly, "You can't just leave! If you go, I'll be stuck here forever!"
"Not my problem."
"Wait, wait! I don't have the authority to make that decision."
"What do you mean?" Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"The *Eternal Fire Seed* isn't mine. It belongs to a Grand Mage. Even if I wanted to give it to you, you wouldn't be able to take it."
"A Grand Mage?" Ethan frowned.
A Grand Mage was someone at least level 50, possibly even legendary. Such figures often left their mental imprints on valuable items to prevent theft. Only legendary thieves or highly skilled pickpockets could remove such imprints.
"Who is this Grand Mage?" Ethan asked.
"Master Ghanil."
"F**k, why didn't you say so earlier?"
Ethan was stunned. Of all people, it had to be Ghanil—the *Flame Tyrant*, the legendary fire mage and guardian of Winterhold. He was known for burning a legendary black dragon to ash and descending into the Nine Hells to drive out a devil lord. His mage tower was connected to an entire plane of fire, and even the gods kept their distance from him.
Of course, the *Eternal Fire Seed* would belong to him.
"That's why I said I don't have the authority to give it to you," Krokro reiterated.
"Hmm…" Ethan pondered for a moment before saying, "No problem. I'll be heading to Winterhold soon anyway. I'll talk to him myself."
"You? Talk to Ghanil?!" Krokro stared at Ethan, sizing him up with disbelief before shaking his head dismissively. "You? A mere magician? What makes you think you can even meet him?"
"Don't worry about it."
"So, about the *Tree of Life*…" Krokro started.
"Hold on, the sled dogs I rented died. You'll be covering that expense, right?"
"Fine! I'll cover it!" Krokro grumbled through gritted teeth.
He swore to himself that he would never work with this guy again.