I can see experience bars after being transported to another world.

Several mentors followed behind her, carrying suitcases, and walked back the way they came.

The gray mist was still on their bodies, and the inscriptions spread around them. They didn't encounter any further problems along the way.

Selena paused as she stepped out of the area covered by the copper wall.

The four night watchmen were still leaning against the wall, unconscious, but their breathing was steady, and they wouldn't wake up anytime soon.

Selena glanced at them, smiled helplessly, and shook her head.

She didn't intend to do anything to them.

The contract was considered closed at this point, but the person on the other side called a halt, leaving her clean.

Nothing was accomplished, but at the same time, nothing was to be burdened.

"Hurry up, the shift changers are coming soon."

Selena picked up the suitcase and led the mentors into the darkness of the pipeline layer.

Top of the Tower of Learning.

The guard remained seated and did not move.

On that enormous skull, black threads were wrapped layer upon layer, so dense that the original color of the bone was almost invisible.

The black eyes that grew from the silk threads were all staring at the direction in which the person on the wall had lost consciousness.

The guardians waited there, and it didn't take long.

Deep within the skull, the grayish-white mist suddenly surged, and the consciousness of the person on the wall returned.

The mist re-condensed inside the skull, slowly rotating and gathering into the shape of a small head.

As soon as it took shape, all the black pupils turned around.

The misty face of the person on the wall froze.

It saw it: the silk threads wrapped around the skull, the eyeballs scattered all around, and the aura emanating from the guardian was pure killing intent.

A brief silence.

The small, grayish-white head emerged from the skull, hovering three steps in front of the guardian, at the same height as him.

The features formed by the condensed mist faced him, without uttering a word.

The guards didn't speak either.

He sat there, his white hair falling to his shoulders, his black eyes popping out from his shoulders, chest, and the back of his hands, one after another, all staring at the small head.

The air at the top of the tower was so heavy it was almost solidified.

The guardian's eyelids finally twitched and slowly lifted.

Where did you go?

The three words, spoken softly, conveyed their meaning perfectly.

If you can't give a reasonable explanation, then this is the end of it, and neither of us will be able to leave this tower alive.

The misty face of the person on the wall remained unchanged. It glanced at the guardian twice before speaking.

"I've noticed something."

Its voice came from the mist, as calm as before, but its pace was half a beat faster.

"Beneath the seal of this city lies something of the same origin as me."

The guard's eyes did not move, but his fingers curled slightly.

The person on the wall continued speaking.

"I am trapped in this body, growing weaker day by day. Since that thing originates from the same source as me, if I could obtain and use it, perhaps it could alleviate my current predicament."

It paused.

"Therefore, taking advantage of the opportunity just now, I sent my consciousness to investigate."

The guard didn't reply; his gaze remained fixed on the small head, waiting for what was behind him.

The misty face of the person on the wall slowly wrinkled a line.

"Upon approaching, I realized that this thing had developed its own consciousness. I cannot touch it; forcibly taking it will only backfire."

It looked at the guardian and lowered its voice.

Therefore, we withdrew and retreated.

The top of the tower fell silent again.

The guard tapped his fingers slowly on his knees, once every two breaths, once every two breaths.

Every word spoken by the person on the wall is perfectly accurate.

It did indeed go to a place that the Bronze City couldn't sense, it didn't show itself in any corner of the city, and it didn't become stronger after returning, so the explanation is plausible.

But the guards also knew that the person in front of them never said the whole story.

What exactly is meant by "things of the same origin"? When it says "cannot be touched," does it mean it truly cannot be touched, or that it cannot be touched even once? When it says "stop," does it mean stopping this time, or giving up completely?

The guardian's fingers stopped.

He stopped asking questions, because the guardian was indeed telling the truth on one point: there were only two places in Bronze City that could escape his full scrutiny: the bronze wall and the abyss.

The person on the wall seemed to realize that the guard did not intend to ask any more questions, and the misty face turned slightly to the side.

"I have something to discuss with you."

The guards did not comment.

"The seal on this city is about to collapse." The voice of the person on the wall was calm, presenting a fact that everyone already knew, "You and I are trapped here, our internal strife has lasted until now, and we will only perish together."

The guard remained silent. He listened.

"I can make a pact," said the man on the wall. "With war imminent, neither side will take advantage of the situation to attack. I will offer assistance when I am able, and will never start another conflict."

"And after the war?" the guardian finally asked.

"The aftermath of the war will be discussed after the war," the man on the wall answered decisively.

Another silence followed.

The guard lowered his head and looked at his hands resting on his knees.

If he continues to waste time with the person on the wall, he will only have one more chance to make a move.

Whether or not he manages to kill the other person, he will be dragged into it himself.

However, if this agreement is made so that neither side will fight during the battle, he can free up his energy to deal with external threats.

When the seal breaks, he can make a move more than once.

He looked up at the small, gray head hanging in front of him.

The person on the wall, shrouded in mist, had a calm and expressionless face, with blurred features that revealed no emotion. He simply hung there, waiting for the guardian's reply.

The guardian knew there was something hidden in this deal.

This man on the wall never did anything that resulted in a loss; behind every word he spoke was something he didn't say.

But the current situation doesn't allow him to change his mind.

"Only during wartime," the guard said, his voice deep and muffled. "After the war, everything will remain the same."

"Of course." The person on the wall slightly raised their misty face, then returned to calm.

The moment the two spoke, a faint, almost imperceptible force connected to them, clearly indicating that the contract had taken effect.

The air at the top of the tower finally loosened up a bit.

The black threads of the guardian slowly loosened from the skull several times, and the countless eyeballs closed one by one, shrinking back into his body.

The grayish-white head of the person on the wall slowly retreated and sank back into the huge skull.

Two entities that were originally locked together were forced onto the same line by a city on the verge of collapse.

The guardian closed his eyes again.

The top of the tower returned to silence, just as quiet as before, only the tension in the air, which had seemed ready to burst at any moment, had dissipated.

The guardians got what they wanted; after all, how bad could things get?

It's just death.

Meanwhile, in the deep underground abyss.

The figure was moving, and before Lu Yuan could even see its movements, the few lines of gray text in his mind had already popped up.

[Environmental Sensing: High-level pollution source detected. Please move away immediately.]

Immediately afterwards, a second one surfaced.

[Detection Target: ? (Alienation) (Contraindicated)]

[Something that evolved from an unknown object, perhaps the only unique individual in this world.]

Lu Yuan's gaze was fixed on the darkness ahead. The gray and white characters were still dancing.

[Weakness: Severing ties with Him.]

When he saw the word "He", his expression froze.

The gray text uses the word "He," referring to the thing deeper behind this enormous figure.

The thing in front of you is just a puppet on the outside; the real power comes from deeper within.

The weakness is clearly stated, but how do we put it into practice? Sever its connection with Him?

If he were capable enough to get to that thing, would he need to be here touching each bronze pillar one by one?

Lu Yuan suppressed the contents of that line of text in his mind, not having time to think about it in detail.

Because that huge figure had already rushed over.

It didn't get up quickly; in fact, it was quite slow.

But the moment it stood up straight, the overwhelming aura made everyone present gasp for breath.

It was holding something in its hand.

Adrian's holy light shone from behind the crowd, barely reaching the lower half of the figure.

Lu Yuan saw clearly that it was holding the remains of a large ghoul in its hand, with only half of its body remaining. The other half was nowhere to be found, but the flesh at the severed end was still fresh.

It just held onto the half-wrecked remains, tilted its head, and looked in the direction of the crowd.

The wreckage was casually tossed to the ground the next moment.

It let out a deep, muffled roar, completely different from the sharp howls of the ghouls before it, more like the roar of a giant beast.

The ground beneath my feet shook with a dull tremor.

It charged towards the crowd.

It crashed into the area covered by holy light, and only then could everyone see the whole picture.

This thing is incredibly big.

It was several times taller and dozens of times fatter than ordinary special ghouls, so bloated that it was unrecognizable.

A head resembling a human's is embedded at the top of the body, with two eyes misaligned on the face, one above the other, and no nose or ears.

A huge mouth was split open on its belly, with its lips curled up to reveal a dense array of teeth inside.

There are no other organs besides these.

Its entire body was covered by a thick, shiny, dark red membrane that adhered to the skin and wrapped around the whole body.

This thing is less of a ghoul and more of a clumsy imitation of a "human" by some other entity.

Klaus's gaze froze.

He glanced at the speed at which the thing was rushing towards him, and then at the impenetrable darkness behind it.

If you want to go deeper, you have to get past this hurdle first.

If we turn back, it will probably be much harder to come down again than it was this time.

The afterimage of Klaus reappeared.

"superior!"

It was a single word, not loud, but everyone heard it clearly. After all, they were already here, and asking them to leave would probably not be a good suggestion.

The Blue Knight did not hesitate.

She took the silver-white coffin off her shoulder and placed it on the ground at her feet.

The special individual had retreated deeper, and the thing in front of them was dozens of times larger than the coffin, so it couldn't fit inside. However, they could consider cutting off two pieces of flesh.

She drew her slender sword, and light blue threads spread out from the seams of her armor, instantly wrapping around her entire body and forming a set of azure armor.