Samsara Paradise: Dream Weaver of Connections.

However, Lin Yi had already figured out what he wanted.

He looked at Anna, his deep eyes reflecting her pale and gentle face.

“Sister Anna,” Lin Yi said, his voice steady, “I want to know where the most crucial place of inheritance for the Abyss Physician is located.”

Lin Yi himself was somewhat surprised when he asked the question.

Having experienced so much in the House of the Dead, witnessed Anna's power, the eeriness of the Mist Keepers, and the ancient beings imprisoned for countless years, he could have asked for many more practical things.

For example, a helping hand at a crucial moment, rare materials or items, or some hidden information about the void.

With Anna's status and power, she could easily fulfill these promises.

But Lin Yi ultimately chose to ask that question anyway.

Because of Hill.

Martha knew her, the Keepers of the Mist knew her, and Anna had a very close relationship with her.

However, Lin Yi inherited the identity of the Abyss Physician.

When Anna heard the question, she didn't show the "you actually asked this?" expression that Lin Yi had expected.

Instead, she smiled.

That smile was gentler and more gratified than ever before.

She looked at Lin Yi, her deep purple eyes filled with admiration.

“That Hill guy,” she said softly, “would be so happy to know you’d ask that question.”

She paused, raised her hand, and gently tapped Lin Yi's forehead with her slender, pale fingers.

"Don't worry, I've already made all the arrangements."

Anna withdrew her hand and took something out of her bosom.

That was a key.

It is dark silver all over, about the size of an adult's palm, with a simple and antique design and no superfluous decorations.

The surface of the key has a very faint shimmering light, which is very weak but gives people an indescribable sense of profundity.

It was as if that faint light led not to a particular room or a particular door, but to a whole world.

Lin Yi reached out and took it.

The prompt from the Paradise of Reincarnation appeared before his eyes:
You have obtained the Key to the World Without Light (a special item).

Key to a World Without Light

Origin: Void - House of Death
Type: Special Item

Effect: After use, it will teleport the user to a "Land of Abyss Invasion".

Warning: This world has been deeply invaded by the power of the abyss; the danger level is unknown. It is recommended that users reach the seventh rank of strength before exploring.

Note: The coordinates of this world are locked. Using the key will forcibly trigger a causal chain quest related to this world. The difficulty of the quest is related to the user's rank and world exploration progress. Upon completion, you will obtain clues related to the Abyss Physician's legacy.

Synopsis: The abyss gazes, and waits.

Price: Not for sale.

Lin Yi's gaze lingered on this explanation for a long time.

The land invaded by the abyss.

These four words look simple, but Lin Yi knows very well what they mean.

His current abyssal power has reached a considerable level, and his understanding of the abyss is no longer the vague knowledge he had at a lower level.

The power of the abyss, to put it bluntly, is an extremely dangerous form of energy.

It is powerful, mysterious, and elusive, but precisely because of this, it poses a deadly threat to any world.

Once a world is invaded by the power of the abyss, no matter how safe or peaceful it was before, it will instantly become extremely dangerous.

For example, Food Wars!

The people in the story make a living by cooking, competing in culinary skills and exploring delicious food. The overall atmosphere of the world is warm and peaceful.

But what if such a world were invaded by the abyss?
Overnight, those knives that were originally just used to cut vegetables could become real murder weapons.

Those flames that were originally meant for cooking might turn into real fires of destruction.

Those who originally intended to simply enjoy the food might turn into real cannibals.

Those chefs' superpowers will change from "making delicious food" to "killing people with food".

The rules of the entire world will be distorted and rewritten into something completely different.

This is just an example Lin Yi casually gave.

The most terrifying aspect of the power of the abyss is its instability.

No one can predict in what direction a world invaded by the abyss will mutate.

It could be a distortion of the laws of physics, an alienation of biological forms, a disorder of time and space, or something even more bizarre and incomprehensible.

"I've never been to that world."

"However, I suggest you wait until you reach the seventh level. At that point, at least you'll be able to run away if you encounter danger."

Lin Yi nodded, put the World Key into his storage space, and looked at Anna.

"Thank you."

Anna shook her head, a faint smile appearing on her pale face.

"No need to thank me. Someone has to take over what Hill has to do."

She paused, raised her hand, and pointed to the depths of the corridor.

"Let's go. It's time to get down to business."

Lin Yi looked in the direction she was pointing.

The corridor stretched into the distance, with oil paintings hanging on the walls on both sides.

The oil painting depicts all sorts of people, men and women, with different expressions.

Some were gloomy, some were serious, some had a faint smile on their lips, while others had faces as stiff as death.

Each oil painting was roughly the same size, hung neatly as if waiting for someone to inspect them.

“As a reward for completing the death game,” Anna’s voice came from behind, her tone regaining its slightly languid calm, “you can choose any item from the final place.”

Lin Yi stepped into the corridor.

Anna's voice continued from behind, tinged with a mischievous smile.

"Pick whatever you like, don't try to save me money. Anyway, those things are just gathering dust."

Lin Yi didn't turn around, but simply raised his hand and waved as a response.

Footsteps echoed through the corridor.

Oil paintings flitted past him on either side, each depicting a person gazing at him with their own eyes.

Those gazes were complex.

Some seem to be scrutinizing, some seem to be anticipating, and some are as empty as lifeless objects.

Lin Yi's gaze lingered on the oil paintings for a moment, and he roughly understood what they were.

The owners of the House of Death throughout history.

Those beings who once ruled this eerie building, maintaining its rules and balance.

Some had gloomy expressions, their eyes revealing a cold indifference that kept strangers at bay.

Some had serious expressions and tightly pursed lips, as if they were pondering some important question.

Some had smiles on their lips, but those smiles carried a hint of unease.

Above each oil painting, a short knife is pierced.

The short swords were all the same style, exactly the same execution blade that Lin Yi had previously obtained and returned to Anna.

The blade pierced the picture frame, disappearing into the space between the eyebrows or the heart of the person in the painting, with the handle exposed, gleaming coldly under the wall lamp.

Some of the short knives were covered in rust, clearly indicating that they had been there for countless years.

Some are relatively new and clean, with the blade still retaining its proper luster.

Lin Yi's gaze swept over the short knives, and he understood.

They were all killed by the executioner's blade.

This knife truly hangs over the head of every owner of the House of Death.

As Lin Yi walked, he suddenly stopped.

In the oil painting in front of him was a familiar figure.

Anna.

Anna in the painting is younger than she is now. Her pale face has a genuine smile on it, and although her skin is fair, it doesn't have the sickly transparency it has now.

Lin Yi looked at the painting and remained silent for a few seconds.

He didn't know when Anna became the owner of the House of the Dead, nor how many years she had spent in this eerie house.

But he could see something in this painting.

Back then, Anna wasn't suffering from illness like she is now.

Lin Yi withdrew his gaze and continued walking forward.

At the end of the long corridor was a huge door.

The gate is about five meters high and three meters wide. It is made entirely of some kind of dark metal and has no decorations on its surface except for a huge symbol engraved in the middle.

That's the sign for the House of Death.

The door was ajar, leaving a gap large enough for one person to pass through.

Lin Yi reached out, placed his hand on the door, and gently pushed it open.

crunch--

The sound of the door hinges turning was particularly jarring in the silence, as if no one had opened the door for many years.

The scene behind the door was revealed to Lin Yi.

It was a huge space.

It covers an area of ​​at least a thousand square meters, and the dome is so high that you can't see the top.

The walls were covered with a dense grid that stretched from the ground to a height beyond the eye's reach, and each grid contained something.

As Lin Yi stepped into this space, the notification sound of the Reincarnation Paradise rang in his ears.

[Hint: The hunters have entered the final resting place.]

[The hunter can choose one item from their collection as a reward for the death game. Selection is done by approaching the target item and marking it with mental energy. Once marked, the item will automatically be transferred to the hunter's storage space.]

[Note: After selecting the death game reward, the hunter will immediately return to the Strongest Warriors' Rest Area.]

[If the hunter does not make a choice within half an hour, they will randomly obtain an item from the final location.]

half an hour.

Lin Yi's gaze swept across the enormous space, the densely packed grids, and the countless collections.

Choosing one item from these within half an hour does require a bit of decisiveness.

But he didn't rush to start choosing.

He stood there, his gaze slowly sweeping over the squares, pondering Anna's casual remark from earlier.

"It's been a long time since I went to the beach with Hill in a bikini."

When Anna said this, it seemed like just an ordinary remark, but Lin Yi remembered it.

Because Lord Rat said something similar.

A breeze.

Bikini.

These two keywords point to the same place.

The sea.

The next stage of the battle for supremacy will most likely be related to the sea. Lin Yi had a plan in mind.

Since the next stage is related to the sea, it would be best to choose a prop related to the sea for this trip.

Whether the item can assist in combat or provide some kind of convenience, it can at least be of use.

It's better than choosing a sword you can't use or a bundle of scrolls you can't understand.

Lin Yi began to walk slowly along the grid.

His gaze swept over the items, quickly filtering out potential targets.

A trident with an ancient design, emitting a faint blue light, looks like a weapon of the sea god.

But it's too conspicuous, and given his fighting style, he doesn't need such heavy weapons.

A yellowed nautical chart, marked with complex routes and some symbols whose meaning is not clear.

A fist-sized pearl, milky white in color, with fine, flowing patterns on its surface, faintly revealing the water-based energy within.

Lin Yi continued walking forward.

After walking for about ten minutes, he stopped in front of a checkpoint.

A compass was placed in the compartment.

It wasn't an ordinary nautical compass, but a palm-sized metal compass, dark bronze in color, with a surface covered in intricate and complex markings.

A pointer floats in the center of the compass. The pointer is not fixed, but slowly rotates like a living thing, sometimes pointing in a certain direction, and sometimes turning away on its own.

This compass is very similar to the one that the Mistkeeper took from Mopi, but not exactly the same.

Lin Yi reached out and touched the compass.

The notification sound of the Paradise of Reincarnation rang out:

You have obtained the Tide Compass.

Tide Compass

Origin: Void - House of Death
Type: Special Item

Effect 1: When holding this compass, one can sense tidal changes in the marine environment and predict the movement of natural phenomena such as waves, currents, and storms. The accuracy and range of prediction depend on the strength of the user's soul.

Effect 2: Upon active activation, the user gains the "Tidal Blessing" status. Under this status, the user can breathe and move freely underwater, their movement speed is increased by 30%, and they will not be attacked by marine life. After activation, the user can summon a marine creature as a temporary mount.

Synopsis: The ocean is both gentle and cruel. It can give you everything, and it can take everything away.

Price: Not for sale.

Lin Yi looked at the attribute description and was quite satisfied.

It possesses tidal awareness, underwater movement capabilities, and the ability to avoid being attacked by marine life, plus the ability to summon a mount.

These effects are all very useful in marine environments.

Lin Yi didn't hesitate for long and directly used his mental power to mark the compass.

The compass surface glowed slightly, then transformed into a stream of light and disappeared into his storage space.

[Hint: The hunter has completed the reward selection.]

The familiar teleportation fluctuations arrived.

Lin Yi's vision went black for a moment, then was replaced by a soft white light.

When the white light dissipated, he was already standing in the center of lounge number 1005.

Meanwhile, at the entrance to the corridor of the final resting place of the House of Death.

A dim oil lamp lit up in the darkness, illuminating the hunched figure carrying it.

A hunchbacked old woman.

She emerged from the shadows on the other side of the corridor, her steps slow and heavy, each step accompanied by a soft clattering sound from the wooden crate on her back.

She walked to the entrance, stopped, and looked up at the oil paintings hanging on the walls.

His gaze lingered on Anna's portrait for a long time.

A complex light flickered in those cloudy eyes—hatred, resentment, and some indescribable emotion.

Just then, another figure emerged from the churning gray mist.

The Fog Guardian.

His black robe was even more tattered than before, with several clearly newly torn rips revealing the skin beneath.

His breathing was unstable, as if he had just gone through a fierce battle.

The hunchbacked old woman turned her head and looked at him.

A hint of mockery flashed in those cloudy eyes.

The unstable aura emanating from the two men spoke volumes—they had a fierce fight before coming in.

The fog-keeper glanced at the oil paintings for a few seconds, then turned to the hunchbacked old woman, a slightly mocking smile appearing on his lips.

"What kind of relationship do they have? You expect the Abyss Doctor to betray you?" His voice was hoarse, with obvious sarcasm. "Have you gotten senile from spending too much time in the House of Death?"

The hunchbacked old woman's face instantly darkened.

A dangerous glint flashed in those cloudy eyes, but it was quickly concealed.

She didn't speak, but tightened her grip on the oil lamp, her knuckles turning white.

"Do you really want me dead, Silent One?"

A soft voice came from deep within the corridor.

Anna appeared at the entrance at some point, still wearing that black dress, with a faint smile on her still pale face.

The hunchbacked old woman looked at her and remained silent for a few seconds.

“I hope,” she began, her voice hoarse and broken, “and I don’t hope.”

The answer was contradictory, but Anna understood it.

I wish she were dead because of that competition back then, because of the resentment of losing, and because she was stripped of her authority and turned into this state.

I don't want her to die because in these endless years, Anna is the only person she still has a connection with.

Do you know why you lost back then?

The hunchbacked old woman's lips twitched.

"Because I'm not as despicable as you."

Her voice was filled with undisguised hatred.

Anna smiled gently upon hearing this answer.

There was no sarcasm in that smile; it was simply a genuine feeling of amusement.

“Hmm…that’s part of it,” she said, her tone as gentle as if chatting with an old friend, “but more importantly…”

The hunchbacked old woman stared at her, a dangerous glint in her cloudy eyes.

"What is it?"

Anna looked at her and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Because I know you too well."

The hunchbacked old woman was stunned.

A hint of confusion flashed in those cloudy eyes, which then turned into even more complex emotions.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end said nothing.

The silence lasted for a few seconds.

Then, the hunchbacked old woman turned around, picked up the dim oil lamp, and walked into the black mist that had appeared out of nowhere beside her.

Her figure disappeared into the black mist, leaving only her words echoing in the air.

It turns out that women who are generally gentle-spoken, fair-skinned, beautiful, and powerful are often actually quite cunning inside.

Anna watched her leave, then turned to the Mist Keeper.

"I thought you were a troublemaker, but I didn't expect you to be so well-behaved this time."

Don't assume that just because the Keeper of the Mist is hostile to the old woman, he has no designs on Anna's position.

On the contrary, this old guy is also full of tricks up his sleeve.

The Fog Guardian met her gaze and chuckled softly.

He didn't refute, but simply tucked his hands into his sleeves, his posture as relaxed as if he were in his own backyard.

"This time, I only refrained from intervening because of Hill," he said, a hint of smugness in his voice.

Anna looked at him and remained silent for a second.

Then she raised her right hand and thrust it forward without warning.

puff-

The dull thud of a sharp weapon piercing flesh.

The Mistkeeper's body stiffened abruptly. Looking down, he saw that Anna's hand had already sunk into his abdomen at wrist level.

Blood flowed down her wrist and dripped onto the ground with a soft pattering sound.

The Fog Keeper looked up, and a look of astonishment finally appeared on his usually calm face.

"you……"

His voice was hoarse, filled with barely concealed shock.

Anna remained in that position, a gentle smile on her face.

“That guy Mopi,” her voice was as gentle as ever, “wasn’t it you who led him there?”

The fog guardian's pupils contracted sharply.

"Don't argue."

Anna's hand moved slightly inside his abdomen.

The fog guardian's body trembled violently, and large drops of cold sweat seeped from his forehead.

He opened his mouth, as if to explain something, but Anna didn't give him a chance.

The next second, the gentle smile on Anna's face vanished completely.

Instead, there was a cold, emotionless calm.

That's the true form of the Queen of Pain.

The Mistkeeper felt a terrifying force surge into his body from that hand, beginning to tear his body apart from the inside.

"I--"

He didn't finish his sentence.

boom!
A dull thud.

The guardian of the fog was torn apart as if by an invisible hand, turning into a puddle of mud that splashed on the ground.

Blood, bits of flesh, and fragments of internal organs were scattered all over the ground.

Anna stood there, her hand, still outstretched, stained with dark red blood.

She glanced down at the muddy puddle, her deep purple eyes devoid of any emotion.

"I gave you a chance."

She spoke softly, her tone as calm as if she were simply saying that the weather was nice today.

After saying this, she turned around and walked deeper into the corridor.

Behind them, the muddy mess gradually dissipated in the gray fog, eventually leaving only small fragments as proof that the fog guardians had once existed.

Just then, faint footsteps came from the other end of the corridor.

A wooden door appeared out of thin air and was pushed open from the inside.

Su Xiao walked out from behind the door.

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping across the corridor before finally settling on his feet.

A piece of broken internal organ landed right in front of his boot, its dark red surface still slightly warm. (End of Chapter)