The demonic laughter spread continuously throughout the village, the noise it produced was extremely piercing.

Just as Su Ran felt his head was about to explode, the laughter gradually ceased. Gazing down at the black-robed humans, who were as insignificant as ants on the ground, its eyes were icy cold, "Human, do you know that the price for my, a demon’s, intervention is not low?"

"Please enlighten me, my lord."

Su Ran knew this was a critical moment, so he stepped out from behind the Sky-reaching Vine, braving the pressure as he approached the demon. Under the terrifying force, Su Ran had almost no strength to resist; he couldn’t even lift his head, and his spine crackled. However, his gaze was unwaveringly firm, showing no sign of submission to the oppression.

"Haha, quite a backbone you have there, you’re quite the exception among humans, interesting," said the demon, looking at Su Ran with a hint of surprise before continuing, "Human, express your wish first."

"My lord, I wish to have a Dreamseeking Mirror that can cure the ’Gradual Corpse Stiffening’ disease," Su Ran stated with a trembling voice, filled with his strong will and hope to survive—an emotion only he could fully understand at such an exhilarating moment.

However.

The demon’s next words sent Su Ran’s spirits plummeting into an abyss.

"Human, what is Gradual Corpse Stiffening?"

The demon had lived for so long but had never heard of such a disease. It looked at the black-robed human in front of it, blankly, waiting for an explanation.

"This..."

Su Ran then realized that the diseases from reality were not the same as those in the game, and also, the disease he had was exceedingly rare, so it was understandable that the demon was not aware of it.

"My lord, I need a Dreamseeking Mirror that can heal the patient."

Su Ran changed his phrasing, hoping that this specific Dreamseeking Mirror, intended for curing illnesses, could heal his own disease...

Considering the particularity of Gradual Corpse Stiffening, even Su Ran himself felt his confidence waning.

"Human, you have quite the appetite. Such a Dreamseeking Mirror is extremely rare, and because of you, your race will pay a heavy price. Are you sure you want to proceed?"

The demon’s voice began to sound ethereal, like a demonic chant that clearly entered Su Ran’s ears.

"Certain, definitely, and without a doubt," Su Ran immediately affirmed his stance with unwavering tone. What did it matter if the Human Race had to pay a heavy price? I’m of the Undead. Isn’t it infuriating? Wahaha!

"If that is the case, then it shall be as you wish."

The demon entered a profound state; its eyes turned snow-white, the oppressive force it had unleashed was now drawn back into its body, its form compressing into a black orb of light. It spun incessantly in mid-air, like a black hole.

Su Ran knew that the demon had initiated the systematic process that had been set up, and the course of events from here on out was programmed and irreversible—regret was now too late.

It must be said that for the demon to fulfill Su Ran’s wish, sacrificing itself, was a greatly noble act. Yet, Su Ran felt sorrow for the character of the demon. A powerful demon, which only obtained a chance to appear after tens of thousands of years, had its time cut so short, not even a side character could compare; it was merely an extra...

"Shoo!"

As Su Ran watched anxiously, the black hole suddenly shrank, turning into a black beam that shot towards the distance. Its speed was so fast that Su Ran could not react, but one thing was certain—the Imperial City of the Human Race was located in that direction, and what consequences it would bring was beyond Su Ran’s speculation.

However.

This was Su Ran’s first encounter with such an unforeseen situation, and without any system notification, the demon had vanished. Who could tell him how to proceed next?

What about the promised Dreamseeking Mirror?

Su Ran turned his bladder inside out, but still no sign of the Dream-Seeking Mirror—what the hell was going on?

Could it be...

That these three ancient coins were counterfeit products?

Glancing at the ground where the coins had been, Su Ran now realized there was no trace of the ancient coins either.

Damn!

This was a massive loss!

Su Ran felt not only cheated by the system but also toyed with by the demon.

At that moment, a deep sense of defeat surged within Su Ran as hope instantly turned to despair. This tremendous emotional drop threw him into an abyss, leaving him in an utterly foul mood.

But just as Su Ran wallowed in his gloom, the long-lost system notification sound finally chimed in.

"Ding! Due to player Skeleton’s unauthorized initiation of the Demonic Prophecy, the beings of the Celestial Realm were enraged, resulting in divine punishment. All Human Race players lose 1,000,000 experience points, a random stat decreased by 10%, monster loot drop rates cut by 50%, and upon death, their own drop rate increased by 30%, with an experience loss of 10,000. The effect of the divine punishment will last for five days."

"Ding! Due to player Skeleton’s unauthorized initiation of the Demonic Prophecy, Human Race reputation -50,000, God Race reputation -10,000, Beast Clan reputation -10,000, and enmity with all three Celestial Realm races increased by 3."

"Ding! Due to player’s initiation of the Demonic Prophecy, the wished-for item is a Dream-Seeking Mirror that can heal the sick. The price to pay is to spark a war, resulting in the death of a million Human Race beings. Upon meeting the conditions, specific information about the Dream-Seeking Mirror will be obtained. The task must be completed within one month, or a failure penalty will be applied: player Skeleton’s level decreased by 10, a random stat decreased by 30%, and the title of Spilt Water Can’t Be Regained will be permanently revoked."

"Holy crap, this is too much of a joke!"

Su Ran never expected initiating the Demonic Prophecy would trigger such a massive chain reaction, significantly weakening the players’ strengths, not to mention killing a million players!

A million players?

Su Ran was dumbfounded. He never dreamt that the conditions needed to fulfill the task would be so stringent, practically leaving no chance to complete it!

Only then did Su Ran truly believe the merchant’s words, that the Demonic Prophecy represented bloodshed and brutal war!

But...

How in the world could such harsh conditions be met? Wasn’t this an impossible demand?

Damn, damn, damn!

This task is just too freaking sick!

What Su Ran could least accept was that even after successfully killing a million players, all he would get was the coordinates of the Dream-Seeking Mirror. This damn system was truly a scam with no care for consequences!

The thought of a million players needing to die made Su Ran even consider giving up.

But then...

The penalty upon failing the task was something Su Ran could hardly bear. Just the thought of dropping ten levels was enough to cripple him. For the sake of the Dream-Seeking Mirror that could save his life, he’d go to any lengths, even if it meant risking it all!

As for the decreased reputation with the three races of the Celestial Realm, Su Ran didn’t care much. After being declared an enemy, reputation could drop all it liked—it made no difference. This punishment was actually the lightest and easily ignored.

"Hm?"

Su Ran hadn’t even begun to curse the system’s relatives when suddenly, a thought struck him. The Bone Soul Ghost Fire ignited with excitement, and he muttered to himself, "Isn’t the Skeleton Saint’s invasion of the Dark Abyss an excellent opportunity? Haha, indeed, fate hasn’t forsaken me!"

With that thought, Su Ran couldn’t stay put any longer. Carrying his excitement, he dove into the teleportation array and activated it, heading straight for the Dark Abyss.