Lancelot! Fallen Avenger!
Back in the London instance dungeon, they had killed off Lancelot during the Tower of London quest. However, he then transformed into a Fallen Avenger!
For Chen Xiaolian, this was the biggest hidden issue brought over from the London instance dungeon! Back then, he had used a scheme to trick Lancelot, causing him to fall from grace and lose the blessing of God… however, using this method caused Chen Xiaolian to become the subject of a curse!
According to the system, Chen Xiaolian will become the kill target of the incarnation of Lancelot, the Fallen Avenger for five instance dungeons.
Originally, Chen Xiaolian had assumed that this would only happen in normal instance dungeons.
Unexpectedly, it also happened inside a punishment instance dungeon!
It will start in five minutes?
Chen Xiaolian jumped up and quickly surveyed his surroundings. His mind raced as he thought.
This is a safe zone… if so, when this Fallen Avenger comes after me, will he directly appear here?
This was a critical question. Theoretically speaking, this safe zone was a place that restricted any forms of aggression. Thus, the system would also restrict any monsters from entering it, stopping them from harming the Players.
However… the Fallen Avenger was a program meant to seek and kill. Would it be restricted by the rules of this safe zone?
That was a key issue!
…
Seeing the look of anxiousness on Chen Xiaolian’s face, both Qimu Xi and Ta Wang became puzzled.
Ta Wang’s eyes darted about while Qimu Xi gingerly walked over and asked, “What is wrong with you? Did something happen?”
Chen Xiaolian took a deep breath and turned to face Qimu Xi. He frowned and said, “You… never mind. Don’t ask too much and listen properly to what I say next. Remember to obey my orders.”
After saying that, Chen Xiaolian pulled Qimu Xi toward the door of the safe zone.
There was a trace of fear in Qimu Xi’s face as she saw Chen Xiaolian open the door!
It was night outside and the little town was completely empty. A cold wind swept past the town. Although the wind was unable to make its way into the safe zone, the sight of the scenery alone sent a chill down their spines.
Additionally, they would occasionally hear vague howling sounds reverberating out from within the darkness.
“Listen up! Now is not the time to ask questions! Stand before the door and be ready at all times,” said Chen Xiaolian who then took a deep breath. He quickly continued, “Later on, if I tell you to run, you must run outside as fast as you can! Remember, never hesitate and never look back. Just run outside…”
“Run outside?” Qimu Xi’s face turned pale and she stared with widened eyes. “But, the outside… very dangerous…”
She wasn’t a complete fool after all. After having heard the conversation between Chen Xiaolian and Ta Wang, even an idiot would know that staying inside a safe zone would be much safer than heading outside. There were many monsters outside. Furthermore, there were also various kinds of dangers waiting outside.
“I said don’t ask anything!” Chen Xiaolian was in no mood to be patient with her. He quickly said, “I am only going to tell you once. It is up to you to listen to me or not. But if you refuse and die as a result, then don’t blame me.”
Chen Xiaolian hardened his heart and said coldly, “Maybe there won’t be a need for that. However, the moment I…. If I tell you to run, you had better not hesitate. Run outside and head left. Remember, head left through the main street and keep running. I will be right behind you… it is as simple as that. Do you understand?!”
Qimu Xi swallowed a mouthful of saliva and forced herself to nod her head.
“One more thing. Later, no matter what happens, do not be afraid and do not become shocked. No matter what you see, do not let your mind go blank from panic! When I tell you to run, you run! If I do not tell you to run, then just keep standing right there!”
“… I understand,” answered Qimu Xi whose heart was pounding fiercely as she stared nervously at Chen Xiaolian.
Chen Xiaolian checked the remaining time shown by the system.
Only one minute remained from the five minutes.
He patted Qimu Xi on the shoulder before quickly moving back.
Chen Xiaolian moved back to the centre of the room and cast a cold glance at Ta Wang. “What about you? It would be best for you to listen to me as well. Go to the door and run if I tell you to, get out of this safe zone.”
Ta Wang shook his head and shrunk his head back. “Don’t try to fool me! This is the safest place!”
“Do what you want.” Chen Xiaolian couldn’t be bothered to continue helping him – not killing him was already an act of kindness from Chen Xiaolian.
The countdown quickly ticked closer.
When the last few seconds drew near, Chen Xiaolian summoned out the Sword in the Stone and his Four-Eyed War Cats. Three Garfield doppelgangers were at the ready beside Chen Xiaolian, forming a ‘品’ formation.
Five, four, three, two, one…
The air before Chen Xiaolian suddenly distorted!
It was as though space itself had cracked! A dark sword blade stabbed out of the crack and swiftly proceeded to slash out, causing the crack to become bigger. Next… a hand encased in armour pushed out!
Metallic armour, gauntlets and gloves… however, the metal were dark black in colour!
Soon, a mighty looking body emerged from beyond the crack!
It had the appearance of a medieval knight. It was fully covered in black armour that was in turn shrouded by black coloured flames! This knight was the image of a legendary undead knight! His was the flames of Hell!
The knight’s face was covered by a metal helmet, which exposed only the area for his eyes – however, his eyes could not be seen through the crack. Instead of eyes, there was only a pair of blazing ghastly fire!
After a huge portion of his body had emerged, this Fallen Avenger directed a wretched and desolate howl toward Chen Xiaolian!
The sound coming from him resembled the wail of countless ghosts, causing Chen Xiaolian to feel as though some kind of strange power was tearing through his body!
Energy based attack?
Chen Xiaolian took the brunt of the attack head on and felt his body shudder from the attack. His body subconsciously took two steps backward.
An intense feeling of fear and terror… gushed forth from within his heart!
It was as though some power had gotten hold of his heart and was violently squeezing it. It was so hard to bear that Chen Xiaolian felt himself on the verge of coughing blood out. His body shuddered again and he nearly fell to his knees!
It was at that moment that the Sword in the Stone that he was holding suddenly emitted a dazzling radiance!
The feeling of fear and terror instantly faded away as a soft power flowed out from the Sword in the Stone’s hilt into Chen Xiaolian’s body. The earlier feeling that resembled how one would feel when falling into a pit of ice disappeared.
Chen Xiaolian breathed a sigh of relief and gasped frantically for air. At the same time, he quickly took another two steps backward!
He stared at the Fallen Avenger who was still in the middle of emerging from the spatial crack… his heart was in shock!
In that instant, Lancelot’s appearance dispelled the final hope in Chen Xiaolian’s heart.
First, Lancelot had appeared directly inside the safe zone!
Second, even though he was inside the safe zone, he was able to execute an attack at Chen Xiaolian! Just now, Chen Xiaolian had been the subject of a spiritual type of attack. That was why the Sword in the Stone’s blessing skill would activate!
Without hesitating, Chen Xiaolian roared loudly while raising the Sword in the Stone and slashed down at the Fallen Avenger with all his might!
The edge of his sword silently descended upon the Fallen Avenger’s helmet. The moment the silver coloured sword flash made contact with the Fallen Avenger’s helmet, a dazzling radiance erupted!
At the same time, the black coloured flames spouted outward from the Fallen Avenger’s helmet!
A loud boom rang out and Chen Xiaolian’s body was thrown back.
You m***!
Chen Xiaolian fell to the floor. As his body made contact with the hard floor, the huge impact caused his chest to tighten in pain and his throat to flush with heat. He clenched his teeth to force back the impulse to cough out blood. Then, he cursed out and flipped back up.
By then, Qimu Xi who was standing before the door had been rendered speechless by what she saw.
The girl watched the advent of the black coloured knight in fear, saw how Chen Xiaolian stepped forward to attack the knight only to be sent flying…
And she screamed.
Chen Xiaolian roared out in return, “Scream for what? Run!”
Qimu Xi continued to stand there, her mind blank. Chen Xiaolian got up, raised the Sword in the Stone and stabbed toward the Fallen Avenger’s chest!
This time, the sword tip pierced through the Fallen Avenger’s chest! It was as though the knight armour was incapable of enduring the power behind the Sword in the Stone! The sword pierced right through it.
Chen Xiaolian however, felt his heart sink!
Too easy!
The sensation he got from this action of his… it was as though he wasn’t stabbing anything at all…
As his sword stabbed forward through the Fallen Avenger, the Fallen Avenger moved even closer to Chen Xiaolian until they were nearly face-to-face!
Due to how small the distance between them was, Chen Xiaolian felt that he was able to see the resentment and hate swirling within the pair of ghastly fires burning at where the Fallen Avenger’s eyes should be.
A never-ending whirlpool of resentment and hate!
“Despicable liar! Come to Hell with me!”
A sharp and grating voice came out from the Fallen Avenger’s mouth.
Chen Xiaolian could vaguely identify the voice as belonging to Lancelot.
Then, the Fallen Avenger raised his own sword and hacked down!
Chen Xiaolian clenched his teeth and shouted, “Garfield!”
Three Garfield doppelgangers charged forward. Two of them charged from the right and left respectively and bit the Fallen Avenger’s arms while the third pounced toward his head.
Another explosive sound erupted as the Fallen Avenger’s body shook, causing even more of the black coloured flames to explode forward. The explosion of the black coloured flames blasted the three Garfield doppelgangers away and they cried out miserably.
Chen Xiaolian took advantage of that moment to pull out the Sword in the Stone from the Fallen Avenger’s chest and he quickly dodged to the left.
The three Garfield doppelgangers fell to the floor and the black coloured flames spread through the surface of their bodies. It would appear that the black coloured flames were inflicting a great deal of damage toward them, leading to them being unable to even stand up. They could only howl in pain as they struggled against the black coloured flames.
Chen Xiaolian was helpless to do anything about it. He summoned Garfield back into the system and rushed toward the door.
“Do you want to die? RUN!”
Chen Xiaolian bellowed furiously and Qimu Xi finally regained her wits. She screamed out sharply and ran out of the safe zone. Then, she turned to the left and used every ounce of strength within her to sprint forward.
Chen Xiaolian was already running toward the door. However, the Fallen Avenger had already finished emerging from the spatial crack!
Chen Xiaolian caught the sound of wind approaching him from behind and he subconsciously turned around while raising his sword to block the incoming attack!
Boom!
The intense force behind the blow sent Chen Xiaolian flying once more. This time, his body slammed into the wall!
His mind was instantly filled with the sound of wailing ghosts, causing his eyes to darken.
Chen Xiaolian struggled to jump back up only to see the Fallen Avenger charging at him with a sword that was engulfed in black flames.
“Damn it! How could it be so strong?!” Chen Xiaolian dared not stay. The second he was up, he dashed toward the door leading out of the safe zone.
At the same time, Ta Wang who was standing not far away was utterly shell shocked. He trembled all over and curled up into the corner.
Everything that was happening right now was overturning everything he knew!
“Impossible! How can there be monsters inside the safe zone! Impossible! This is impossible!”
Chen Xiaolian dodged to the side and charged out of the safe zone with the Fallen Avenger hot on his heels!
Boom!
When the Fallen Avenger reached the doorway, the entire safe zone suddenly shook!
Next, a green coloured curtain of light appeared and pushed the Fallen Avenger back inside!
Chen Xiaolian who was standing right outside was able to observe that incident. Seeing that, he could not help but slow down his pace.
Eh? He cannot come out?
After considering it, Chen Xiaolian quickly understood why.
The safe zone was set up for Players.
Generally speaking, entering and exiting the safe zone would require going through the scanning process at the doorway.
The green curtain of light was the equivalent of the scanning of their identities!
Theoretically speaking, the green curtain of light can only differentiate between Players and Awakened ones.
This Fallen Avenger, Lancelot was neither. His attempt to move through the green curtain of light would be stopped by the system.
Chen Xiaolian thought to himself… perhaps there was no need for me to run far away. At any rate, he is unable to come out of the safe zone.
What happened next caused Chen Xiaolian to become shocked!
The Fallen Avenger roared out in rage before turning around and moving into the safe zone.
Ta Wang’s wretched scream could soon be heard echoing out of the safe zone…
Ta Wang shrank back into the corner as he watched the black coloured knight moving toward him. He screamed out in misery before attempting to run away.
The Fallen Avenger intercepted Ta Wang, his gauntlet-clad hand that was encased in the black coloured flames shot out, seizing Ta Wang by the neck. Then, he lifted Ta Wang up into the air!
Ta Wang cried out wretchedly. The area on his neck that was being gripped by the iron gauntlet shrank down at a noticeable speed!
The Fallen Avenger brought Ta Wang before him and placed their heads in contact with each other. Next, he inhaled deeply…
Ta Wang screamed wretchedly again as a green beam of light poured out from his mouth!
Once the green beam of light flowed out, Ta Wang’s body shrivelled up!
It seemed as though all the life force and water had been extracted out from his body!
In but moments, he had become a mummy that looked like a withered tree branch.
The green light swirled about before being sucked in by the Fallen Avenger. It then slipped into the pair of ghastly eyes.
A trace of green now swirled around the ghastly flames burning in his eyes.
When Chen Xiaolian saw what happened, he shouted to himself: This is bad!
As expected, the Fallen Avenger then turned around and once again strode toward the door of the safe zone!
This time, the green curtain of light was unable to stop the Fallen Avenger from stepping out of the room!
Due to his large body size, the entire doorframe was smashed outward. He forced his way out of the room and stood in the middle of the street.
Chen Xiaolian was shocked!
Son of a bitch! That worked?!
Isn’t that the equivalent of him snatching Ta Wang’s identity?
Seeing that the Fallen Avenger had reached the street, Chen Xiaolian dared not hesitate. He turned around and ran for his life!
He had only managed to take a few steps forward before he heard a raging wind blowing from behind him.
Chen Xiaolian dared not ignore what was coming. He vigorously twisted his body and forcibly threw himself to the side of the street.
Boom!
A carriage descended from the sky and smashed down upon the street.
Tens of meters behind him, the Fallen Avenger strode forward. The earlier carriage had been parked beside the street and was used by the Fallen Avenger as a projectile.
Chen Xiaolian rolled himself forward a few times before jumping up. After that, he did not bother turning his head back and instead simply ran forward.
In the beginning, Chen Xiaolian may have considered confronting Lancelot for a bit to try and kill him off… but now, Chen Xiaolian had wisely decided to scrap the idea!
Lancelot’s strength was simply far superior when compared to his!
Especially when he took into consideration the fact that Lancelot was a spirit entity and that his strongest weapon, the Sword in the Stone could not actually damage him!
The Sword in the Stone could only help dispel all negative spiritual effects in this battle.
Mm, if it came down to it, it could also help restore health.
However, in terms of offensive powers, it could seemingly do nothing against Lancelot!
At a time like this, what else could he do but run?!
Chen Xiaolian bolted, pushing his legs to their very limit.
He charged through an entire street and suddenly caught sight of Qimu Xi.
The girl was standing alone at the end of the street with a mournful expression on her face. Tears could be seen on her cheeks. It appeared she had turned back.
“You fool! Why did you come back?” Chen Xiaolian shouted out furiously as he ran over.
“I, I am worried about you…” Qimu Xi’s eyes were filled with tears. “I am worried something might have happened to you… I, I wouldn’t know what to do by myself.”
Chen Xiaolian held back his desire to sigh. He stopped lecturing her and simply said in a low but harsh tone, “Don’t spout nonsense anymore, hurry up and run!”
He summoned out the SUV from his Storage Watch and swiftly tossed her in before jumping inside the SUV himself.
Looking at the rear-view mirror, he could see what was happening on the street behind the SUV. The knight whose whole body emitted black coloured flames strode forward toward them.
Chen Xiaolian slammed the throttle down to its very limit!
The SUV released a roaring sound and burst forward…
The figure of the Fallen Avenger within the rear-view mirror gradually became smaller. Just as Chen Xiaolian was letting out a sigh of relief…
His face abruptly contorted!
Still looking at the rear-view mirror, Chen Xiaolian watched as the Fallen Avenger suddenly stepped up his speed before entering a full-blown gallop!
Terrifyingly, it would appear that this fellow’s speed was quite fast!
Moreover…
When they came to a corner, Chen Xiaolian swerved the SUV into the other street. However, the Fallen Avenger did not bother to do so. He simply smashed into the house that was blocking his path!
A few seconds later, he smashed out of the house from the other side!
That one corner allowed him to lessen the distance between them by around five to six meters!
“Bloody Hell! That guy is simply a humanoid tank!” Chen Xiaolian swore and slammed down on the steering wheel. He kept slamming down on the throttle and had the SUV speed through the town…
The Fallen Avenger gradually gained even more speed and was hot on their heels!
…
A green beam of light flashed.
Two human silhouettes appeared inside the safe zone.
After appearing, Culkin went down on his knees for a while before forcing himself up.
Beside him was Lei Hu. His face was pale and bloodstains could be seen on his chest.
“How are you holding up?” There was a frown on Culkin’s face as he looked at Lei Hu.
Lei Hu replied with a bitter smile, “Thankfully, I’ll live… damn it, someone set us up! How could the members of Thorned Flower Guild be after us?”
Culkin’s face was ugly to behold and he replied, “I don’t know either. The other participants would instantly attack us the moment they see us. We don’t even have the chance to talk things out with them! Damn it! If it wasn’t because I know of this punishment instance dungeon’s secret, I fear we would not be able to survive this punishment instance dungeon.”
Lei Hu shook his head. He said, “Something is not right here. We have never offended Thorned Flower Guild…”
“Eh?”
Culkin suddenly made a gesture to stay silent. His eyes darted about as he surveyed the interior of the safe zone. “This… something is not right!”
Lying in the corner of the room was Ta Wang’s mummified corpse! The corpse itself appeared cracked and broken!
As for the walls, they had been smashed by something and innumerable cracks could be seen on its surface.
Even the door of the safe zone had been smashed apart. A huge portion of the doorframe had been utterly demolished!
“This isn’t right! There was a fight here! Someone even died!” Culkin’s face twisted up once more and he continued, “How is this possible? This is a safe zone! Fights can’t possibly occur here!”
…