Chapter 420: A Fateful Encounter in the Dungeon

Noticing that Yenir hadn’t replied and was instead daydreaming on the bed, the Little Girl frowned and reached out to feel his forehead.

“Are you so scared that you’ve lost your wits?”

“I told you not to go to the lower levels—did you run into a Core of the Otherworldly Ghost?”

Although her tone carried a note of frustration, a hint of worry flickered in the Young Girl’s eyes.

“I heard there have been sightings of that ghost in the Main City Area lately… over in Section C, they’ve even found bodies picked apart…”

“Yenir, I know you’re itching to take revenge on your parents, which is why you rushed into the lower levels early,”

“but it’s just too dangerous…”

“If it hadn’t been for me last time, did you even think about the consequences? If you die, you lose everything…”

She sighed and sat down beside Yenir, her eyes full of sorrow.

Meanwhile, after listening to the girl’s monologue, Yenir began to understand their true roles.

Clearly, those lines were arranged by the system to explain their backstories.

“Not a girlfriend? More like a partner?”

“Judging by that, this girl must be the guiding NPC for the copy.”

“According to the original backstory, her parents were killed by that ghost. When she was still weak, she ventured into the lower city early to get stronger and seek revenge.”

“While escaping, she accidentally encountered the girl, who ended up saving her…”

“Hmm, it seems that killing a ghost boosts power—this setup is almost realistic.”

“As for the girl’s strength…”

Yenir silently gauged the Young Girl’s power.

“Her energy is on par with Second-Stage fighters…”

“Beautiful, with a great figure and strong enough to fight; plus an orphaned protagonist bent on revenge… This setup screams hot-blooded anime, even if it’s a bit clichéd…”

“Hunter exam? Sounds like more of a preliminary quest…”

“After following her for the exam, it seems you’ll get assigned a task to head straight into the dungeon to grind monsters.”

“In the early stages, the girl serves as a guide and even provides some combat backup…”

“This copy is almost too considerate…”

A glimmer of calculation in his eyes, Yenir quickly pieced together the background and casually asked:

“How long does the exam take?”

“Do you have any family?”

“Hmm?”

Startled, the girl turned to him, her gaze filled with surprise.

“Didn’t I tell you long ago? My family was also killed by that ghost.”

“Yenir, you just seem really off today…”

“The exam should be over in a day. I’ll apply for the next level qualification. Once you secure the basic qualification, I can take you to a lower-difficulty area where the ghosts aren’t so tough.”

With that, the girl’s frown deepened.

For some reason, she felt that the Youth beside her had become a completely different person.

Nodding slightly, Yenir glanced at the open iron door after listening.

“A day?”

“Last question: do you want to sleep with me?”

Yenir’s tone turned serious as he fixed his gaze on her, as if the question were of utmost importance.

The girl sitting beside him suddenly widened her eyes, her face flushing with anger and embarrassment:

“What are you talking about, Yenir!”

“How could I ever think about sleeping with you! That’s something only lovers do—unless… unless…”

Before she could finish, Yenir interjected once more:

“Oh, my apologies.”

“If you don’t want to sleep with me, then you must be the ghost!”

Bang!

Swish!

In an instant, the iron door slammed shut.

A flash of white light streaked by, and with a razor-sharp gleam, Yenir drew the Elemental Blade and slashed. With overwhelming force, he instantly pierced the girl’s head, nailing it to the metal wall.

Blood spattered, spraying onto the ceiling.

With his Third-Stage strength, dispatching a Second-Stage was effortless.

He sighed darkly.

Looking at the girl’s expression of disbelief in her final moments, Yenir felt a twinge of remorse and murmured an apology.

Though the guiding NPC was merely a data construct, he normally wouldn’t slaughter innocents.

But he was pressed for time… Clearly, this girl was the guiding NPC, and following her scripted path meant he had no time to set up proper strategies.

So he skipped the copy’s “newbie tutorial.”

“Next time I get a chance to enter this copy, I swear I’ll fall in love with you… experience the whole storyline…”

“For now, please just die. I won’t trouble you any further…”

Shaking his head, Yenir flipped the Elemental Blade in one swift motion, preparing to leave.

As for his earlier offhand remark about her not wanting to sleep with him being proof she was a ghost, it was nothing more than a careless comment.

Just as Yenir drew the Elemental Blade, a system notification eerily sounded:

“Ding — Killed the ghost. Acquired a Core of the Otherworldly Ghost (Fragment).”

“Ding — For preemptively killing a key ghost, an extra 13% dungeon progress is awarded.”

Yenir: “???????”

………….

“Damn… does that really work?”

Stunned,

Yenir stared blankly at the girl nailed to the wall, utterly speechless.

It had all been an offhand remark… he never imagined she might actually be a ghost.

After all, who would have guessed that the guiding NPC at the start was a monster!?

Quickly stifling the eerie feeling rising within him, Yenir realized that this copy wasn’t as simple as it appeared.

“No wonder I felt something was off…”

“An A-level copy that starts by handing you a horde of teammates—plus a beautiful, sweet-voiced, and powerful fighter…”

“Damn, it’s been a trap from the start… having a ghost by your side leaves you clueless about how you’ll meet your end…”

“Key ghost? Ghost core fragment!?”

Taking a deep breath, Yenir instinctively looked at the red fragment in his hand. According to the system description, this item was required for the Sword God System!

“What a coincidence… could today be my lucky day?”

Seeing the copy’s title, he had suspected it might be linked to the ghost core he needed.

The Military’s records described the ghost core as a byproduct of paranormal events in the real world, with only vague documentation. Initially, he thought it was just a coincidence—unlikely to appear in the copy.

But…

“If ten fragments can be assembled into a ghost core… and if ghosts of this caliber always drop fragments, then if I clear this copy successfully, I could skyrocket right then!”

“It probably won’t be that simple…”

“A key ghost—this girl’s identity is definitely suspicious… not just any ghost can drop something like this…”

Squatting down, Yenir glared gravely at the decapitated girl.

With his keen logical mind, he quickly recognized the gravity of the situation.

“Lying in wait right by my side at the start. If I follow her, what comes next? Building trust? Then following her route? And striking against me at the crucial moment?”

“Double difficulty—from both within and without. One misstep and even the strongest Awakener would die here…”

Exhaling softly, with the unexpected completion of a hidden quest, Yenir realized that focusing solely on outsmarting his rival was extremely dangerous.

Under the Doomsday System, every copy harbors its own terrors; he wasn’t in a position to take any copy lightly.

“Is it because of Uncle Liang’s protection, along with the overly peaceful reality after my rebirth…?”

“Sure enough, without even realizing it, I’ve been influenced…”

At that thought, Yenir couldn’t help but offer a bitter smile.

He had always known that his greatest asset was never his talent or even the Sword God System…

but the harrowing memories from humanity’s final moments—lessons paid for in blood and tears.

After a deep breath and a brief self-reawakening, Yenir’s eyes fixed on the fallen ghost.

“The only difference between a ghost and a human… is that ghosts lack a reproductive system…”

“Don’t trust anyone…”

A strange glimmer flashed in his eyes. In the next moment, as if confirming his suspicion, Yenir immediately reached for the ghost’s trousers.