Sanctuary Paradise

Chapter 639 The Promise of the Dead [5.9k words]

"Transformation"

This was not the first time Xin Lailai had come across this term.

When he was still at the first level, he had already learned the concept of "ascension" from 83203, and personally participated in a "ascension war" against the entire world.

To this day, that war still left an extremely deep impression on him. His pioneer status, the Transcendence suit, the qualification for the Trial of Transcendence, and even his current strength in the external echelon, can be said to have all been laid in that war world.

This includes the friendship with Chijia and others, the creation of the alias 'Xin Lai'er, and the little wild god Xiao Pu, who is now treated as a relative by them. If there had not been the battle of ascension in the world of God Eater, all this would probably be different now.

Although the final result of that war world ended with their victory, it also made Xin Lailai have an almost allergic reaction to the word "ascension".

This is also the reason why he felt a chill down his spine when he discovered in the Overlord world that Bone King was very likely to have "awakened" his self-awareness, because he knew very well that the cruelty of the Ascension War would depend entirely on the attitude of the first "awakener" or the world where the awakening occurred towards Paradise.

With Bone King's character that is full of contradictions between his appearance and his inner self, it can be said that he is completely jumping back and forth between extreme hostility and extreme allegiance. Once the opponent chooses to upgrade, it may turn into a brutal battle involving levels one to five, or it may turn into a small fight that ends in silence.

Although from a rational and logical point of view, Xin Lailai knew very well that the probability of the latter happening was actually much greater than the former, but from a personal perspective, let alone a 10% probability, even if it was only a 1% probability, for him who was only at the second level at the time, this was something he absolutely did not want to get involved in.

Fortunately, judging from the results, Ainz finally chose to "surrender" to Paradise, ending his journey of transformation in the most peaceful way.

"According to Fab's description, it is very likely that Bone King only told the core members of the Great Tomb of Nazarick about Paradise, so the Ascension War he launched was only aimed at the Great Tomb itself."

Xin Lailai spoke up, expressing his inferences.

Assuming that the Ascension War launched in Overlord is really the same as the "Ascension" of the entire world in the God Eater world at that time, then even if Paradise has relevant confidentiality regulations for the "Ascension War", it is impossible for him not to have received any information from Fiery Armor, and it also does not make sense of Fab's situation.

But if it was an upgrade war only targeting Bone King and a small number of Overlord characters, and it was just a formality, it would be understandable that Chijia had no news from his side. After all, when the upgrade was only targeting no more than 100 characters in the derivative world, even if a rebellious upgrade war broke out, the number of people affected would not be too large. Combined with the relevant confidentiality regulations of Paradise, it was normal to end everything quietly.

As for why only Bone King and a small number of members of the Great Tomb were upgraded, but this could not be found in the entire Overlord world where the other party was, this is actually a very normal situation. In other words, the fact that the derived world could not be found can only prove that the unit that obtained "uniqueness" appeared in this world. As for whether it is an individual or a world, this thing cannot be confirmed through search.

There is also the matter that the Death Keeper's perception of Bone King's image is different from that of him and Fab. This phenomenon is actually the proof of the 'uniqueness' of the units in the derivative world. From the moment Bone King successfully upgraded, all the records, memories, cognitions... and so on about the Overlord world in Paradise have changed at the causal level.

To put it more bluntly, even if the Overlord world where the other party is located is reopened in the future, the contractors will never encounter the old Bone King in their memories, but will only encounter a new individual named "Ainz Ooal Gown".

It's not just Bone King, it's also the case with Ling Yuzi. From the moment Ling Yuzi obtained the brand, the entire star realm's cause and effect regarding the concept of 'Zero Yuzi in the derived world' has changed.

Now, apart from them and some people who know the truth, the impression that other people in Paradise have about the word "Zero" is just some stereotyped labels like "Lower Moon Four", "Blood Demon Art is Shadow Control" and "Died in the first page of appearance". As for whether the "Lower Moon Four" those people meet will become a white-haired queen or a black-haired loli, or a burly man or a weak little Nan Liang, it all depends on the mood of Paradise when making the character.

As for whether it is too exaggerated to achieve uniqueness that directly affects everyone's cognition at the rule level, I can only say that if you look at the words "almost omnipotent" that Paradise has said to every contractor, you will understand that this kind of thing is really nothing to Paradise.

If an extremely powerful individual says that he can gather together the infinite possibilities and isotopes of a false life that are scattered in destiny and make it a unique existence in the star world, people will think he is bragging. However, when Paradise sends down a notarization to certify the "uniqueness" of an individual in a derivative world, people will only shout that Paradise is awesome and will not doubt its authenticity. This is the value of Paradise and the notarization.

-By the way, this is also the important reason why Fab can replace the summoner of the dead with 5 million Paradise Points.

Because, what the Death Master summoned at that time was not actually the 'derivative world version of Fab', but the 'notarized version of Fab' that indirectly existed in the theoretical concept because it had gained 'difference' through contact with them and the upgraded version of Bone King.

This is the truth behind Fabu's appearance in the Call of the Dead.

If we only consider the opponent's own value, a necromancer of Fabu's level, even if his value is multiplied by a thousand times, it is still not enough to cover the cost of summoning the Dead.

But if we take the paradise into account, the notarization of its 'uniqueness' is completely different.

Normally, if you really have to spend money to certify the uniqueness of a character in a derivative world, let alone 5 million Paradise Points, even if it is multiplied tenfold, it would not be enough to carry out a uniqueness notarization. After all, this is equivalent to buying all the Fabs in all possible Overlord worlds.

But if it is a derivative world character that has achieved "difference" or is even in a "semi-awakening" state and is only one step away from "transformation", then it is another matter.

The characters in the derivative world in this state are just one step away from obtaining their own "uniqueness". As long as they win the next battle of transformation witnessed by the contractors and Paradise, they can immediately "ascend on the spot" and transform from virtual characters created by Paradise to ascenders who control their own destiny and become unique beings like normal creatures.

This was also the case with Fab.

In other words, because of his contact with them + the fact that he happened to be in the Overlord world where the Ascension War started + having witnessed the Bone King who was about to complete his Ascension, the Fab at that time had actually become "different" from the Fab in other Overlord worlds on the information level. It can be said that as long as he could carry out... or even get involved in a Ascension War, it would be a natural thing for the other party to obtain "uniqueness".

——The problem is that Fabu did not participate in Bone King’s transformation battle.

Although the other party witnessed how Bone King's transformation battle began, although the other party had contact with those who were most likely the cause of Bone King's "awakening", and although the other party had already realized that the "Lord Black Sword" in his cognition actually had many things wrong with him, he did not participate in Bone King's "transformation battle".

This made Fab successfully become a peculiar object with the potential for "transformation" but not the qualifications for "transformation" in the judgment of the paradise at that time, which was a state between obtaining "difference" and obtaining "uniqueness".

Normally speaking, at this stage, Fab's value is still very cheap, but he is too close to being "unique" in the Paradise's judgment, so close that if someone is willing to spend a small amount of resources to fill the gap in the notarization fee, he can immediately obtain uniqueness.

To put it more bluntly, in the park's judgment at the time, there was a "derivative world version of Fabu" that only required 5 million park points to obtain its own 'uniqueness'. In other words, there was a "notarized version of Fabu" that was worth a combination of "5 million park points + derivative version of Fabu".

Just like the strange difference in value between the beads and the wooden box in the "Pearl in the Box", although the cheap wooden box named "Fab" in the "Notarized Version of Fab" is worth less than 50 Paradise Points, the gem named "Notarization" is actually worth 5 million or even more. Therefore, after combining the two together, the value of the "Notarized Version of Fab" in the judgment can reach an outrageous figure of 5 million Paradise Points.

Just like that, a wonderful coincidence...or a weird mistake just happened.

In Paradise's judgment, the underlying logic of the Death Keeper's summoning array is to target normal units with uniqueness, then the requirements set by the Death Keeper, and finally to find the object with the highest theoretical value among the targets that meet the requirements, and summon them one by one to see which object is willing to respond or cannot resist the summoning effect of the summoning array.

Logically speaking, there is no problem with this summoning logic. As long as nothing unexpected happens, with the Deathbringer's ridiculously high affinity for death and his own LV.MAX potential, and with the ritual worth 5 million Paradise Points as the basis, he can at least summon a powerful undead creature of the third-order super-top level.

But with the variable of "Notarized Version of Fabu", everything became different. Because of the notarization value of more than 5 million, the Summoning Ritual of the Deathbringer directly selected the "Notarized Version of Fabu" with the highest theoretical value during the search. And with Fabu's strength that he would scream after being hit by two shots of Holy Light, it was impossible for him to resist the Summoning Ritual of the Deathbringer.

So, the final result became that the Death Master watched the summoning circle he had set up flash the light representing the highest value target, and then welcomed a weak skeleton undead in anticipation that could not even withstand his own deathly slash. He successfully experienced the magical feeling of disappointment when the colorful light representing SSR exploded after drawing a card, but in the end he only got an R card.

"puff!"

In the living room, Xin Lailai, who had figured out the logic behind this, couldn't hold back her smile for a moment, then looked at the increasingly cold aura on the body of the deceased, and quickly coughed lightly, raised her hand and said:
"Ahem, don't get me wrong, don't get me wrong. I just happened to think of something interesting."

Xin Lailai explained while trying to suppress the corners of his mouth. Although he knew very well that the Death Bearer had fallen into a big trap out of bad luck, but when he thought of the other party's expression when he saw Fab coming out of the summoning circle with dazzling summoning light, he always felt that his zygomatic major muscle + orbicularis oculi muscle + orbicularis oris muscle became somewhat out of control.

"Uh, so, what are you going to do now?"

"Throw this guy away and summon another one in a month."

The Death Keeper answered calmly, glancing at Fab with a cold gaze as if he were looking at a corpse, causing him to shrink instinctively.

Very good, it fits the other party’s style.

Xin Lailai nodded slightly when he heard the answer from the deceased. He did not think there was anything wrong with it, but he did not agree directly. Instead, he touched his chin like Yamu and 04296 often did, and said:

"Well, although I don't deny this suggestion, it may be that the many things I have encountered here have made me a little overthinking. I say... do you want to ask Silona to help you with divination first?"

Ask Luna for divination?
Hearing Xin Lailai's proposal, the Death Holder's eyes moved slightly, glanced at Fabu beside him, seemed to realize something, nodded slightly, and said:

"it is good."

As a pioneer and inheritor of the underworld, she has never been a stupid person. Although she was a little annoyed because Fabu was too useless just now, after Xin Lailai's reminder, she instantly realized that Fabu's appearance might not be an unlucky coincidence, but the fate of the underworld she carried on her body was guiding something in the dark.

——Otherwise, with her luck and fortune, she shouldn't have made such a mistake when making the decision on the Netherworld Mark, which is so important to the Netherworld Inheritor. "..."

"How is the result?"

"Lorna said that the divination results show that this guy is the most suitable summon for me."

"Uh……"

Well, it actually came true...

Hearing the answer from the executioner, Xin Lailai was suddenly speechless and didn't know how to continue the topic for a moment.

To be honest, he just said it casually. After all, just like what he said, their own experiences made them suspicious of all the coincidences that did not conform to common sense around them, such as the dangers they had experienced in the past, such as the extreme blade Yuanying who kept staring at them in the ruins of the Dead Sea, such as Yuanmo who inexplicably adapted after their return, and the three little guys at home who were obviously obtained by coincidence but happened to have top talents in certain aspects...

It can be said that what he just said was just a casual suggestion based on their own experiences. As for the fact that it happened to come true... maybe it was just a simple coincidence, or maybe the netherworld fortune of the deceased was really too great, which directly guided them to say the right words at the right time.

"Well, so, what are you going to do now?"

After a while, Xin Lailai looked at the silent executioner and spoke.

In response to Xin Lailai's question, the Death Bearer did not answer directly, but looked at Fabu who was held in the air by the magic chip and said:

"Put it down."

Pfft!
"Ouch!"

As soon as the words came out, the crystal arm holding Fab loosened, causing the Skeleton Necromancer, who was unable to react in time, to hit his pelvis on the ground. He could not help but cry out in pain, but in the next second he covered his mouth under the cold gaze of the Death Executioner, as if he dared not say a word.

"stand up."

“Yes…Yes! Arrest…arrest the deceased!”

Wow——! !

After hearing the cold words, Fab, who was sitting on the ground, shuddered and quickly jumped up from the ground. He put his two trembling skeleton legs together and held his head high, for fear of disobeying the one who was holding the dead.

The Death Holder looked at this scene without any change on his expression. He just nodded indifferently, stretched out his right hand, and a strangely shaped black mark quickly condensed at his fingertips. He spoke in a cold tone:

"I don't think the so-called divination is very reliable, but I believe in the person who made the divination result."

"So, you're lucky."

"Originally, I planned to destroy you and then directly switch to another target to summon, but now, I can give you a chance."

"This mark contains a trace of the will of the former Lord of the Underworld. I don't ask you to defeat it, but I only ask you to ensure that you are not obliterated by it. As for whether you want me to help you absorb it or eliminate it, it's up to you. But I won't help you in the process of mastering the Netherworld Mark."

"If you make it, I can apologize for my rudeness today. If you can't make it, I will personally kill you for failing to stop the erosion of the Lord of the Underworld's will, and send you back to the underworld."

"Of course, if you feel scared, you can just give up. I don't need a guy who can't even resist a ray of will."

The Death Keeper said this calmly, and Fabu, who was standing in front of him, shrank his body twice when he heard that he would be killed if he failed. But when he heard the Death Keeper say that he was allowed to give up, the soul fire in his eyes suddenly became brighter.

"we……"

Almost at the moment when the Death Keeper finished speaking, Fabu opened his mouth and subconsciously wanted to give up. However, when he met the Death Keeper's dark blue eyes without any emotion, he felt a chill on his back. The words he was about to say were stuck in his throat, and he asked tremblingly:

"Well, then... Mr. Death Bearer, can I ask, what exactly can I get after using this?"

Fabu spoke hesitantly and made a swallowing motion, as if he mustered up the courage to ask this question. If you observe his soul fire, you will find that the somewhat frivolous soul fire is swaying back and forth. This is a unique expression when it is thinking about how to reject the other party without offending them.

It had already made up its mind that if the other party said that this Netherworld Mark could give it great power or something like that, it would act cowardly and have no ambition, and try its best to let the other party understand that it was just a fellow with no ambitions, who only wanted to find a place to live and was not worthy of mastering such a powerful force.

Anyway, for it, which has been living in hiding for hundreds of years, power is no longer its goal. Although it is not clear about the situation in front of it, it is very sure that the adult in front of it who exudes a strong breath of death is definitely a very dangerous big man. As a mere skeleton, it knows without thinking that it will be dangerous if it follows the other party.

However, this time, what greeted Fab was not a promise of power as bait, but a cold question:
"Are you afraid of death?"

"Uh… yeah."

Upon hearing this, Fabu was stunned for a moment, then glanced at the expression on the dead man's face. After confirming that the other party was just asking him, he carefully pointed at the skull.

Then, it saw that the Death Holder standing in front of it nodded slightly, his slightly frowned brows relaxed, and he looked down at it indifferently, and spoke in a cold voice:

"Really? Well, I can tell you something."

"My talent can ensure that I can achieve true immortality while the astral realm remains indestructible. If you don't believe this, you can ask him to verify it yourself."

As the Death Bearer spoke, he glanced calmly at Xin Lailai who was standing beside him. When Fabu heard what the other person said, the soul fire in his eyes suddenly spread greatly, his lower and upper jaws opened heavily, and he looked extremely shocked.

No…no no no immortality?

"Well, Mr. Deceased, you are talking about..."

"Don't worry, I can guarantee that what she just said is absolutely true."

Before Fabu could finish his hesitant question, Xin Lailai's words came directly from the side, causing the soul fire in Fabu's eyes to tremble violently. Not only that, he heard the Holder of the Dead continue:

"And you, I can promise that if you can successfully master the Netherworld Mark and follow me, then from now on...

"If I am immortal, then you are immortal."

As soon as the words fell, Fabu's swaying soul fire suddenly shook violently, and his jaw kept swallowing, as if he was engaged in some huge psychological struggle.

An immortal being promised it that if it became immortal, it would also become immortal. For it, who only wanted to live a miserable life, this temptation was too great. However...

"as well as--"

Hey, is there anything else?

The cold voice sounded again, causing a look of astonishment in Fabu's eyes. This time, after hearing the promise of the Death Holder, the whole skeleton froze there, and the soul fire that was struggling also stopped:

"As long as you follow me, you can live standing up or lying down..."

"It all depends on your wish."

……

(End of this chapter)