Lin Gui agreed to Shadow Blade Lynn’s commission.
But he put forward a condition.
He needed Shadow Blade Lynn to do him a favor first.
Hearing this request, a trace of displeasure flickered in Shadow Blade Lynn’s eyes.
To her, Lin Gui and Eve before her...
...Were merely prey to be toyed with at will in the palm of her hand.
She could crush them at any moment; they were in no position to negotiate conditions.
What was more, she had once been someone who stood at the apex.
Annoyance flashed through her eyes.
But when she heard Lin Gui’s condition was to "go to the Voiceless Abyss and help him rescue a few people"...
...Hearing those four words, her expression instantly changed.
It was a brief moment, yet it clearly reflected a trace of...
...Deeply hidden fear.
It then turned into a heavy look of strangeness.
She stared at Lin Gui and asked with great interest:
“Are you with those people who barged into the abyss to find ‘that thing’...”
“...Are you in the same group?”
Lin Gui frowned slightly.
“Those people? You’ve seen them?”
“Of course.”
Shadow Blade Lynn leaned back in her chair, her tone casual.
“In the years since my death, I have been lingering near the abyss.”
“The soul force there... is very abundant, suitable for me to rebuild my power.”
She paused, as if reminiscing.
“A few weeks ago, two groups went in one after the other.”
Her description pieced together a fragmented picture for Lin Gui and Eve.
A white-haired Demon King and a powerful knight.
To save a Demon Hunter, they fell into the abyss together with a "fearful fellow."
After some time, another group arrived.
They slaughtered their way through the "Undead Knight Order" and also charged in.
Leaving only an assassin and a female demon outside.
However, after they left, that "Death Knight Order"...
...Actually came back to "life."
The female demon was gravely injured, and the assassin drew away the pursuers to cover her evacuation.
Speaking up to this point, Shadow Blade Lynn shook her head gently.
“That assassin... doesn't have much of a chance of surviving.”
“People always say heavy-armored warriors are the natural enemies of assassins.”
“But the real natural enemy...”
She looked up at Lin Gui.
“...Is a soul mage who has mastered soul tracking.”
“That assassin has been completely marked.”
“All her concealment methods have failed.”
“And the ones pursuing her...”
Shadow Blade Lynn’s tone was flat, yet every word was cold as ice.
“...Is an entire undead knight order.”
“Plus a heavy-armored Mid-tier Legendary knight.”
She shook her head gently, her expression showing no ripples of emotion.
“The probability of surviving...”
“...Is infinitely small.”
She looked back at Lin Gui, a playful look rising in her eyes.
“So, which group... do you want to rescue?”
Lin Gui did not hesitate.
“The group being hunted down.”
“The assassin, and that female demon.”
Shadow Blade Lynn raised her eyebrow slightly, and then smiled.
“Fine.”
She agreed straightforwardly.
“However, if I help you rescue them...”
“...What can you give me in return?”
Lin Gui was slightly taken aback and asked in confusion:
“Haven't I already agreed... to help you resurrect?”
Shadow Blade Lynn laughed aloud and shook her head.
“No, no, no...”
She leaned forward slightly, her pale blue eyes staring intently at Lin Gui, speaking mockingly.
“Helping me resurrect is the 'compensation' for you two walking out of this post office alive.”
“And for me to make an extra move to rescue people...”
Her fingertip lightly tapped on the tabletop.
“...That is another deal.”
Eve’s brows knitted slightly, a flicker of anger flashing in her eyes.
Lin Gui’s expression did not change much.
Instead, he felt a... familiar sense of pressure.
Along the journey so far, the Legendary and Epic powerhouses he had encountered...
...Whether Freya, Balin, or Blackbeard, or the people of Avalon...
...Could all be considered approachable.
Yet Shadow Blade Lynn’s unhidden arrogance and desire for control...
...Actually felt somewhat "familiar" to him.
It reminded him that in this world, might made right.
He realized what kind of price he would have to pay to get this powerful assassin to act.
Whatever it was, it would be disadvantageous to him.
Lin Gui raised his eyes, his tone calm:
“If that’s the case...”
“...Then forget about it.”
“I will do it myself; there is no need to trouble Lord Shadow Blade Lynn to act.”
Originally, the rescue plan going north hadn't factored this woman in anyway.
Running into Shadow Blade Lynn was just bad luck eight lifetimes over for Lin Gui.
Shadow Blade Lynn was visibly taken aback.
Then she snorted coldly, the corners of her mouth curling into a sarcastic arch.
“What?”
Her voice dragged out with mockery.
“Don't tell me you intend to let this little girl...”
“...Block in front of you with her own life?”
Lin Gui replied indifferently:
“No need.”
“It’s just rescuing a few people; I’ll pick them up and run.”
Hearing this, Shadow Blade Lynn sneered even more.
“Things aren't as simple as you think.”
Her fingertip tapped the tabletop, her tone gradually turning solemn.
“On the surface, the demons pursuing that assassin aren't even Legendary Rank.”
“But do you know... what organization lies behind them?”
She looked up, a rare trace of gravity flickering in her eyes.
“That is an existence that even in my peak state...”
“...I was unwilling to easily provoke.”
Lin Gui looked at her, several terms flashing through his mind.
He spoke tentatively:
“Is it... the 'Church of the Final Reincarnation'?”
Shadow Blade Lynn’s expression visibly froze.
A wisp of surprise flashed in her eyes.
Although she quickly concealed it, that momentary pause...
...Was enough to explain everything.
Lin Gui sighed inwardly.
He had only made a casual guess; he hadn't expected...
...That he had actually hit the mark.
Now... things were truly troublesome.
Regarding the origin and trajectory of the Dark Tide, there had always been rumors...
...That the Demon Race was guiding it behind the scenes.
And the organization to which those demons belonged, who guided that irresistible natural calamity...
...Was precisely the entity that even the Dark Council, who constantly talked about the "demon threat,"...
...Did not dare to speak of lightly: a taboo.
An entity that spent all day putting "revival of the evil god" and "apocalypse reboot" into its doctrines...
...An extreme existence.
The mobile Dark Tide—the Church of the Final Reincarnation.
Rate on N.U.
