Gu Zhan said, “There are people ahead.”
Garen immediately stopped, glancing down the empty corridor. Though he saw nothing, he chose to trust Gu Zhan. He grabbed Gu Zhan and turned, saying, “This way.”
He pried open a nearby floor tile and discovered a hidden room, pulling Gu Zhan inside.
Gu Zhan looked at Garen with a hint of surprise.
This NPC in the quest was quite useful.
Garen explained in a low voice, “I dislike the lord’s mansion. During the years I spent there, I wasted most of my time in these underground passages… But back then, the church’s tunnels were rarely used, and I was the only one wandering through them.”
As he spoke, they heard faint footsteps pass by the door.
There seemed to be a lot of people; they walked past the hidden room and quickly turned back, as if searching for someone.
The room where Garen had been imprisoned was not far from here, and they must have realized he was missing.
Gu Zhan said to Garen, “Look around and see if there are any other exits in this room.”
This hidden chamber was clearly not under the church’s control, and dust covered everything.
There was a good chance there were other exits.
Garen’s expression turned blank for a moment. “Other exits…”
He raised his eyes to survey the surroundings. “I don’t often come here; let me think…”
This labyrinthine tunnel system was too extensive for him to remember every route.
Garen only understood the patterns and could find exits and directions.
But to his credit, after observing carefully for a while, he indeed found a passage in this room.
“But I don’t know where this leads. We need to be cautious.”
When the hidden door opened, the passage inside was pitch black, and nothing could be seen.
Gu Zhan took out a lighting rune and waved it inside. The passage was level, and a faint breeze flowed through.
“Let’s take a look.”
The people outside crowded at the hidden room’s entrance, seemingly trying to figure out how to open the door.
Gu Zhan entered the passage and urged Garen, “Hurry up; they’re coming.”
The moment the two entered the secret passage, the hidden room's door burst open, and a swarm of church members in white robes surged in.
The chaotic sounds of footsteps and shouts echoed through the thick walls into the passage. Garen turned pale and gave Gu Zhan a thumbs up.
Impressive.
Garen looked at Gu Zhan with even more admiration. “Boss, I’ll follow you from now on!”
Gu Zhan: “…”
He disdainfully pushed Garen away. “Just focus on the path.”
The two walked down the narrow passage, and after an unknown period, a light suddenly appeared ahead, along with faint voices.
The voices were not loud, but due to the narrowness and emptiness of the passage, they echoed in their ears.
That voice was familiar!
At the beginning of the quest, he had encountered a sacrifice ceremony where a priest was about to use Garen as an offering.
It was that priest!
Garen also recalled and looked panicked.
Gu Zhan quickly covered his mouth and shook his head.
The boy, however, seemed to remember something, looking at Gu Zhan with a flushed face.
Unaware, Gu Zhan released him once he was sure he wouldn’t make noise, put a finger to his lips, and moved closer to the wall to peek toward the light.
There was a small hole in the wall, its origin unclear—whether natural or man-made. Looking through, he saw a familiar place.
It was the altar he had seen when he first arrived.
When he entered the quest, he hadn’t understood the situation, and there were too many people on the altar for him to see its full view.
Now he noticed that besides the central statue, the surrounding walls depicted the process of the Sun God enlightening mortals.
Essentially, without sunlight, plants would wither, crops would fail, and mortals would plead to the heavens, welcoming the Sun God. From then on, they offered grass and wood, and the Sun God would descend with divine grace.
This was a standard story of divine love for humanity, but certain areas of the mural were stained.
For instance, the face of the Sun God, or the offerings that people presented to him.
Gu Zhan felt a strong sense of déjà vu.
The sacrifices were indeed meant for a deity, but an unknown god had stolen everything that belonged to the Sun God.
He continued to survey the surroundings, and this time, due to the angle, he finally saw clearly the statue standing at the altar’s center.
The statue actually had facial features, and as Gu Zhan's gaze met its eyes, he suddenly heard a sigh.
“You’ve finally arrived…”
The voice was distant and lonely, seeming to echo in his ear, yet also coming from afar.
At the moment he heard the voice, Gu Zhan was plunged into a pitch-black space.
Above him was a void, beneath his feet were countless stars. Not far away, a beam of light shone down from above, where a figure stood.
He also wore a robe similar to those of the church, draped in a cloak.
The long white cloak trailed down to the ground, its ends transforming into countless threads that seemed to connect with the myriad stars.
Gu Zhan quickly understood this must be Kripper, the Sun God from the quest.
But upon seeing him, Gu Zhan realized that this was the actor portraying the boss from his previous quests.
In other words, the “Number Two” mentioned by Xiao Xiu.
Gu Zhan didn’t give him any chance to act and immediately called him out: “It’s you.”
Kripper: “…”
Even a monster showed a hint of collapse on the surface.
After a moment of silence, he resumed his act, speaking in a holy and solemn tone: “Mortal, this is your only chance to save the world. I have been waiting for you…”
Gu Zhan interrupted him, saying, “Why aren’t you playing the boss this time? Or is the Sun God the real mastermind behind this quest?”
Kripper: "..."
His holy smile grew somewhat stiff as he forced out a sentence through gritted teeth, "What are you talking about? I am the Sun God Kripper."
Gu Zhan fell silent, and an awkward tension filled the air between them.
Kripper continued, "Now, I offer you a chance to save the world. Do you want to—"
Before he could finish, he lost his composure, his voice suddenly shifting from cold and sacred to sarcastic and mocking: "I didn’t expect Xiao Xiu told you quite a bit."
The tone remained unchanged, but the emotional shift in his words gave off a completely different vibe.
Listening to him, Gu Zhan felt that this mocking tone suited this “Number Two” much better.
Or perhaps now he should just call him Kripper.
With Kripper's true nature revealed, he dropped the pretense entirely.
He stepped out of the holy light and approached Gu Zhan, studying him closely.
In their previous encounters throughout the quests, not only had Gu Zhan been curious about the actor playing the boss, but Kripper had also been intrigued by Gu Zhan.
He had never had the chance to look at Gu Zhan properly.
Now that he did, it was clear that this was the most ordinary of humans.
His body was so frail, his skin pale, as if a light scratch could leave a red mark... even his waist was so slender that Kripper couldn’t help but reach out, wanting to measure him with his fingers, only for Gu Zhan to dodge at the moment of contact.
Looking up, Gu Zhan frowned at him.
His expression was one of “Why is this Number Two such a creep?”
This expression greatly pleased Kripper, and he laughed.
His smile was tinged with coldness and indifference, completely resembling a monster.
Yet this display made Gu Zhan's heart race, leaving him uncertain about what was wrong with him, as if he had passed a shop and spotted a coveted item.
It was evident that this thing had no merits.
Perhaps it was the aggression in Gu Zhan’s gaze that startled the God, causing him to quickly distance himself from Gu Zhan, retreating back into the holy light, regarding him with indifference as his tone grew cold and calm.
"My dear believer, will you accept my task to save this world?"
This man, who had clearly exposed his true nature, was putting on an act of utmost benevolence like a god.
Amidst the absurdity and humor, there was a hint of mockery towards the world.
Gu Zhan asked him, “Will you tell me what they are really worshipping?”
Kripper replied with displeasure, "What right do you have to question a deity?"
Gu Zhan shot back, "If you entrust me with a task, you should reveal the truth."
Kripper said, "No."
Gu Zhan responded, "Then allow me to refuse."
Kripper immediately widened his eyes in disbelief: "Are you sure? In this quest, you’ll lose points for deaths."
He even knew that.
Gu Zhan said, "No."
“Why? Just because I won’t tell you the truth?” Kripper had never encountered such a stubborn player before.
He couldn’t maintain his stance under the holy light and stepped back to Gu Zhan, leaning close to his face and asking, “Are you really sure?”
The features of the Sun God were breathtakingly handsome.
With such a face close to Gu Zhan’s, it made his blood race even more.
Gu Zhan lowered his gaze, avoiding Kripper’s eyes and firmly stated, “No.”
Kripper confirmed that Gu Zhan was doing this on purpose.
He stood in front of Gu Zhan, looking frustrated like a clown that had failed to amuse his audience.
After a moment, he asked, “Are you trying to get my attention?”
Gu Zhan turned his head, “Let me out.”
“Not a chance.” Even monsters had KPIs; the plot had reached a point where Gu Zhan had to accept his task. “Help me, or I won’t let you go.”
Gu Zhan was resolute; he ignored Kripper and started wandering around the space.
Kripper was at his wit’s end. Could he just kill this guy?
But he couldn’t.
Perhaps no one knew that the name “Beyond the Rules” was meant for players.
Players could find a glimmer of hope outside the rules.
And monsters had to strictly follow the rules.
So, the two continued their stalemate, time ticking away.
In this independent space, they bantered back and forth, while time continued to flow outside.
—
Gu Zhan’s body didn’t disappear but rather froze in place.
He remained crouched at the wall’s hole, peering outside, and after a long time, there was no movement.
Garen had spoken to him twice without response, realizing something was amiss, and walked over to push him gently.
Gu Zhan still didn’t move.
Garen began to panic. Could it be that something was wrong? Did the hole in the wall have an issue? Did Gu Zhan appear to be there but was actually trapped and unable to move?
Though Garen was merely guessing, he had, to some extent, arrived at the correct answer.
Garen couldn't just watch his benefactor be “bewitched” like this; he rolled up his sleeves, preparing to forcibly pull Gu Zhan away from the wall.
From the moment he made that decision, even if Gu Zhan didn’t accept Kripper’s offer, Kripper had to let him go.
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