Adventure World Online (AWO)

"Uh-huh, and I already have all ten keys. What left is to figure out how to unlock those chains and remove the chest without getting killed by the traps,"

Chang Long said, standing up. This caused Brownie, who had been lounging on her lap with a full belly, to roll onto the ground, sprawled out.

"Traps?"

Siegfried asked as he approached the front of the room where the golden chest was located. When he stepped inside, the small spikes that were supposed to spring up from the floor did not activate. Seeing it was safe, everyone followed him inside, though no one dared approach the wooden table holding the golden chest.

An empty blood crystal jar was thrown in to test the area near the table. The result sent chills down everyone's spines. As soon as the glass jar entered the zone, countless pale hands emerged from every part of the old wooden table, scrambling to grab it. However, since the jar contained no soul, the hands quickly lost interest and retreated.

"Whoa...!"

"Holy..."

The duo exclaimed in disbelief as if they were playing a word game. Wet Trash Can, already pale, looked even more ghostly.

"What should we do? We can't get close to that table,"

Draco asked, clearly out of ideas.

"Let's take a look at the keys first. Maybe they need to match specific locks,"

Jane suggested. Chang Long then pulled out the ten keys for everyone to examine, and sure enough, each key had a symbol, just as Jane had suspected.

Devi-chan floated over to inspect the locks, which also bore matching symbols. The group began planning as Devi-chan called out the position of the matching lock and key pairs. However, the biggest challenge remained: how to insert the keys without being grabbed by the pale hands.

"Maybe we should give it a shot?"

Hero offered with a wide grin. Everyone had almost forgotten that Hero and Jane were the first two marksmen in the game.

"But shooting accurately and throwing keys to land in locks are two very different skills!"

Cat-Faced Angel exclaimed, astonished, unaware that both Hero and Jane had honed their skills with throwing weapons and bows before becoming snipers.

"Don't worry, Cat. These two aren't just good at shooting guns,"

Kimhant said with a mysterious smile, prompting even wider grins from Hero and Jane.

"Alright, leave it to us,"

Jane said confidently, taking five keys while Hero grabbed the remaining five. The others moved to the far side of the room, giving them enough space. Wet Trash Can, however, backed away to a corner without looking where he was going. The familiar chilling air suddenly crept on him from behind. When he turned, he found himself face-to-face with the grumpy aunty ghost NPC who clearly was not pleased to have been disturbed.

"Waaah. Mommy. The old ghost lady is scaring meeeee!"

Wet Trash Can screamed, leaping onto Oliang, who stood just a short distance away. He clung to him for dear life, as if he were drowning.

Crash!

"Hehe, good thing I didn't throw the key yet. I would've missed the mark for sure,"

Jane laughed. She stood up after falling forward in shock from Wet Trash Can's scream as she was focusing on throwing the first key. Oliang dragged the heavy weight of his panicked friend away from the ghost NPC, who was glaring at him like she wanted to tear him apart for calling her old lady, but she did not dare do much more, fearing another dose of Kitsune's fire.

In less than half an hour, Jane and Hero successfully threw all ten keys into their matching locks. When the final key clicked into place, the chains binding the golden chest on the ancient table slipped off with a soft clinking sound. Everyone clapped for the impeccable skills of the two sharpshooters. Even the ghost NPC could not help but watch in amazement.

"All that's left are the seals,"

Hero said, wiping sweat from his brow as he sat down, pulling out a water bottle. Jane did the same.

"Let me give it a try. I was thinking of doing this from the start if we hadn't been able to get the keys,"

Chang Long suggested. Everyone turned to her, then nodded, giving her the go-ahead. Without saying a word, she looked at Kitsune, who stepped forward to face the golden chest, which was still covered in multicolored seals. Kitsune opened its mouth and breathed intense big golden flames onto the chest and the large antique table.

Sobbbbbbb

A wailing sound echoed from the old table as the pale hands struggled to escape the heat of the flames, but they could not go anywhere. The table quickly turned to ash, and the hands seemed to finally rest in peace, as their wailing fell silent. The only thing left was the chest, still wrapped in seals, which had yet to catch fire.

"Even divine beast's fire couldn't destroy those seals!"

Peach Blossom exclaimed in shock.

"No, look—it's starting to burn,"

Siegfried said in his deep voice, prompting everyone to focus on the golden chest again. It sat amid the ashes and flames, and the seals began to burn slowly, like wet paper. The process of burning the seals took some time, but eventually, when the last of the seals turned to ash, the chest lid popped open on its own.

The group cautiously approached the chest, still feeling nervous. Inside, they found only a bloodstained white kimono and a single lock of hair. Nothing else happened. As everyone was puzzled, a pale blue light appeared in front of them once more. The beautiful bride in the white kimono floated toward them, smiling sweetly. She thanked Chang Long and her friends for freeing her, yet curiously, the system had still not declared the quest as complete.

The bride giggled with delight as she gazed at the items inside the chest. She floated around the room, and as her form became more solid, she also grew more grotesque. Everyone watched her intently, anticipating that she might turn into a boss they would have to fight again.

"Now this is what you must face after breaking that chest,"

the ghost NPC, who had been blending into the darkness of the room, floated toward Chang Long's group with a serious expression. Her demeanor confirmed what they had been suspecting. Chang Long glanced meaningfully at the ghost bride, and the ghost NPC nodded in response.

"That is the true task of freeing the bride's spirit,"

the ghost NPC explained. Everyone stood by, waiting for the bride's transformation to complete. By the time it did, she looked only slightly better than the grotesque Torn-mouth Maid Beast—mostly because her eyes did not pop out of their sockets.

"Good luck,"

Chang Long said, patting Siegfried on the shoulder, signaling him to handle the bride, who had transformed into something monstrous. Meanwhile, Chang Long turned her attention to the hidden trapdoor beneath the chest, where, according to the ghost NPC, Henrik's weapon—the last of the Four Reaper Guardians—would be found.

Walking to the trapdoor, Chang Long moved the golden chest aside and brushed away the ashes, revealing a small brass ring designed to pull the door open. As she reached out to touch it, the now fully transformed bride—identified by the system as a Level 86 Demon Bride Beast King—lunged at her in attack.

"Don't touch it!"

the Demon Bride roared. Her long, sharp black claws, as deadly as five razor blades, sliced toward Chang Long with shocking speed. However, she did not have to worry too much, as the Blood Ruby Sword intercepted the attack just in time.

"Please proceed, my lord. Murik will guide you. As for her, I will handle it,"

Cedric said. Only Chang Long and other spirits could see him. Nodding, Chang Long pulled the trapdoor open and dropped into the darkness below, followed closely by her companions.

The space where Chang Long landed was a small, two-meter-square space, dark, damp, and chillingly cold. She fumbled her way forward cautiously, avoiding using light to prevent any ice from melting and making her progress even more difficult. The path was narrow, straight, and gradually sloped downward until she finally saw a faint glow at the end. What she found was a large, person-sized oval mirror, bound by many chains—some placed out of fear by others, and others used by Henrik to seal himself. Inside the mirror stood the figure of a pale young man with short messy silver hair, his eyes closed in a deep slumber.

"He looks kind of arrogant, doesn't he?"

Chang Long mumbled to herself as she moved closer to the mirror. The man within seemed to react subtly, sensing that his master was approaching. His eyelids twitched, and his hand jerked slightly. Upon closer inspection, Henrik's stern appearance bore a strong resemblance to Kearick.

"That's him, my lord. Henrik doesn't talk much and is just as harsh as Kearick,"

Murik informed Chang Long. She nodded and walked closer, attempting to touch the mirror, only to feel a sharp shock that forced her to pull her hand back even before she could make contact.

"Why can't I touch it?"

Chang Long asked, confused. She inspected the mirror closely and assumed it was due to the chains binding it. However, she was not sure how to break those chains.

"You don't need to touch it, my lord. Just let your blood make contact with the mirror,"

Murik explained. Chang Long then cut her hand and flicked her blood onto the mirror that imprisoned Henrik, one of the Four Reaper Guardians. As soon as her blood hit the surface, Henrik began to stir. He stretched lazily as if just waking up and opened his cold, gray eyes, locking them on Chang Long.

"Your Majesty..."

Henrik rasped, raising a hand to lightly touch the mirror that was his confinement. Instantly, the mirror cracked and shattered effortlessly. The chains binding it also disintegrated. Henrik gazed at Chang Long for a moment before kneeling in reverence.

"Player Chang Long has completed the quest to find all Four Reaper Guardians. You have successfully freed Henrik, one of the Four Reaper Guardians, and have received a special rank, Guiding Halbred as a reward. The Guiding Halbred is a shapeshifting weapon. Since Player Chang Long holds the King of Death profession, you may now undertake the quest to open the Gate to the Land of the Dead. Would you like to accept this quest?"

The system's announcement confirmed the completion of the current quest and offered a new one, which Chang Long eagerly accepted without hesitation.

"Player Chang Long must find the Mirror of Truth and use the keys from the Four Reaper Guardians to unlock the Gate to the Land of the Dead,"

the system stated before falling silent. Chang Long was left stunned. What was the Mirror of Truth? What were the keys from the Four Reaper Guardians? And how was Kearick, still in the Land of the Dead, supposed to give her a key? Sighing, she realized she would have to figure it out on her own.

"Let's get out of here. This place is depressing,"

Chang Long suggested, turning back toward the way she came. The return trip was much faster. When she resurfaced in the room, the battle between her friends and the Demon Bride Beast King had already ended, as she expected. After all, her friends were high-level players. So, it would have been surprising if they had not finished by now.

"Where did you go, Master Chang?"

Peach Blossom asked curiously, watching Chang Long emerge from the trapdoor. The Blood Ruby Sword, floating nearby, immediately returned to its place at her side.

"Just took care of some business,"

Chang Long replied casually. But no one pressed her for details, especially when they saw the glowing silver halbred floating behind her.

"Gorgeous!"

The men exclaimed in unison when they saw The Guiding Halbred, Henrik's signature weapon.

"It's so impressive, master,"

Fluffy Head-chan admired the weapon. Of course, it was larger than most of the other weapons Chang Long had. Walking around with so many weapons on her might make people think she was a hoarder, although most players carried more than one weapon. However, no one carried as many rare items or special weapons as Chang Long.

"Henrik, do something about your weapon, will you?"

Chang Long addressed Henrik, who only she and her spirits could see. Henrik nodded and gave a simple command.

"Shrink."

The Guiding Halbred instantly shrunk down into a small silver dagger, leaving Chang Long's friends who had seen the morph even more astonished than before. They knew exactly what kind of weapon could do that—and how rare it was—but what they did not know was that Chang Long now had two shapeshifting weapons.

"Shapeshifting weapon!"

Everyone exclaimed in unison, their eyes fixed on the silver dagger in Chang Long's hand. Meanwhile, the system was still processing the completion of the Free the Bride's Spirit secret quest. Now, the system warned that if they did not reach the exit in time, they would end up landing in a pile of snow, as the mansion was about to disappear.

Panic set in, and everyone scrambled to find an exit. But they all knew the mansion's mechanisms would cause the paths to change every ten to fifteen minutes, making it feel like they were trapped in a maze full of ghostly creatures. Eventually, they heard the countdown begin, and everyone stopped running to find the exit. Instead, they spread out as much as possible so they would not fall on top of each other when the mansion vanished.

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