Chapter 456: Dancing on a Knife’s Edge

Buzz

The psychic shield materialized in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, Yenir’s vision blurred as Liang Lie, moving even faster than he, suddenly appeared right before him, instinctively shielding him.

A massive sense of impending doom surged through both of them.

Their hair bristled, as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

Run!!

Reacting more acutely than Yenir, Liang Lie roared in anger, his body erupting with a burst of tawny light as he urged him to flee.

Yet, Yenir—sheltered behind him—didn’t run. Instead, in a split second of clarity, he shouted and signaled Liang Lie to look ahead.

“Uncle Liang! Look ahead!”

As his words echoed, the massive door was pushed open to reveal, at the far end of their vision, an enormous ‘corpse’ bearing a striking human resemblance.

Rising over thirty meters tall, the giant, mummified corpse was brutally bound to a towering steel pillar.

Around it, twelve similarly shaped bodies stood arranged like sentinels—six on each side.

From afar, the scene evoked the imagery of a religious sacrificial rite, though the bound giant was no deity.

The overwhelming aura of terror they felt emanated straight from the central corpse.

“What kind of creature is this!?”

“Even dead, it exudes such overwhelming pressure!?”

Standing at the doorway, Yenir couldn’t help gulping as he sensed surges of pressure crashing at them like massive waves—albeit much weaker than that initial blast.

It seemed that the pressure had coalesced into a nearly tangible form within the room, and the moment they opened the door, it pounded down upon them.

“Fourth Stage…”

“Watch out—it’s still alive!”

In a rare moment of calm realization that immediate danger had passed, Uncle Liang slightly relaxed and spoke in a low voice.

Usually one not given to warnings, he nonetheless cautioned Yenir about the creature.

Nodding, Yenir stared at the enormous body before them and surmised, “This must be the Otherworldly Ghost Monarch…” though its appearance was far from what he had expected.

On closer inspection, it still appeared human…

Only its facial muscles and teeth were grotesquely swollen, giving it a monstrous look.

Treading cautiously inside, Yenir took a deep breath and began scrutinizing this suspected Otherworldly Ghost Monarch.

Even in its near-mummified state, its muscles bulged in exaggerated lines—as if it once possessed the perfect physique. One look was enough to imagine the terror it could unleash when alive.

“Is it in a state of slumber or sealed?”

“Does inserting the Stone trigger its awakening?”

“Will they all awaken at once, or one after the other?”

“In this state alone, I don’t think we stand a chance…”

After repeatedly examining the thirteen bodies, Yenir couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.

Things were only marginally better than he had feared—but not by much.

The palace was vast, with a wide-open central area that looked designed for combat, flanked by clusters of decorative structures that offered ample cover.

Spanning an area equivalent to over a dozen football fields, there was plenty of room for him and Liang Lie to hide until the end.

Yet, as the oppressive force pressed on relentlessly, he couldn’t shake the feeling that this was all too tricky.

Judging by the situation, the final layer of the Dungeon was brutally straightforward—trigger the awakening of the creature and then plunge into battle…

In such a sealed state, once awakened, it likely wouldn’t possess Fourth Stage abilities—and would probably be restrained in some way.

In his previous life, someone had seized the Legendary Suit from this Dungeon, proving that victory was achievable.

At least in terms of raw power, Yinglong had a solid chance of taking the enemy down.

With his eyes gleaming, Yenir quickly began analyzing all the information at hand.

Logically speaking, the one who carried off the Legendary Suit back then was most likely Yinglong. Only later did Yinglong fall, and the Suit ended up in someone else’s hands.

Half-jokingly, he mused that perhaps he could even get Yinglong to work for him!

But…

Now, the only uncertainty… no, it was actually certain.

Yinglong wasn’t alone—he had plenty of Otherworldly Ghost companions, and they weren’t likely to stay silent.

With his own schemes, the Otherworldly Ghosts’ plots, and even Blood Nightingale’s maneuvers—and amid all sorts of miscalculations—Yinglong’s situation was undoubtedly far tougher than before.

At that thought, a strange expression flickered across Yenir’s face.

He wasn’t sure if in his previous life Yinglong had fearlessly stormed the final layer with his band of traitorous ghosts.

If so, then Yinglong could at least complete the mission even if pushed to the limit.

If not, it meant he’d uncovered the Otherworldly Ghost issue earlier, making things easier than they were now…

Emmm…

In that case, Yinglong might very well end up flipping out disastrously—a complete and utter downfall.

After all, at critical moments, if those so-called ‘companions’ suddenly turned on him, struck him, or sprung additional traps…

That would be downright fatal in battle.

It would trigger a domino effect—one small misstep could unleash a catastrophic chain reaction.

The latter possibility loomed large…

With Yinglong’s keen vigilance, he was bound to discover the Otherworldly Ghosts’ betrayal—especially during the final mission, when his nature would compel him to scrutinize his team.

But with so many players in the mix, and even Li Dafu inadvertently revealing that help was on the way…

Damn it—no matter how cautious one is, eventually even the most vigilant drop their guard.

“So…”

It was a bit awkward.

Yenir realized, in dumbfounded silence, that he’d been outplayed by his own schemes.

There was no way he and Liang Lie alone could take down the Otherworldly Ghost Monarch.

To secure the Legendary Suit, his only option was to wait until Yinglong and the Otherworldly Ghosts clashed in the final moment, then pounce to seize the treasure—something he was all too practiced at.

But if Yinglong were to fall halfway through the fight…

then he might as well forget about defeating the final boss.

“What do we do?”

Should he perhaps use Blood Nightingale to warn Yinglong—informing him that his entourage was problematic and, frankly, that he had no real backup?

If he could reset the timeline to mirror his previous life, Yinglong should be able to take down the Otherworldly Ghost Monarch.

Wearing a troubled expression, Yenir ultimately dismissed the idea after much deliberation.

It was already too late to change course.

Given Yinglong’s nature, once he realized he’d been duped, he’d recall every suspicious actor—a series of doubts that could make even a fool suspect someone in the Dungeon was scheming against him.

By then, not only would Blood Nightingale be in trouble, but Yenir himself wouldn’t be able to hide.

“Yenir, think this through.”

“It’s extremely dangerous.”

Standing by Yenir’s side, Liang Lie spoke in a low, deliberate tone; though he usually seemed unconcerned, now he was on high alert.

Having been privy to Yenir’s schemes, he naturally guessed what his friend intended to do.

If it weren’t for his own unflappable nature, anyone else would have urged Yenir to run by now.

He had to outmaneuver a Peak Third-Stage opponent, balance the power between Yinglong and the undead, then steal the kill and make a clean getaway.

It was as precarious as dancing on a knife’s edge.

Not to mention—any slight misstep from Yenir could be fatal!

The stakes were incredibly high…

This level of difficulty was beyond what Liang Lie alone could handle.

“Uncle Liang, I understand.”

He exhaled silently, closing his eyes gradually.

To be honest, it wasn’t that he wasn’t nervous.

In theory, his best move would have been to run—after all, what use is any profit if life is lost?

But…

In silence, Yenir fixed his gaze on the flickering Fusion Panel.

Without that device, he’d almost certainly have bolted—after witnessing the dungeon’s true difficulty, his chances were slim.

But since the system had granted him this ability, not giving it his all would feel like a betrayal to himself!

“The Legendary Suit… once I secure it, I’m 100% sure I can crush Lu Tianming. Even if he plays a hundred trump cards, he’s done for!”

“Even with just Third-Stage Mid-level power, my combat ability will soar to be the strongest below Peak levels! There are only a handful of Peak fighters in the world! With this strength, my plans will accelerate tenfold!”

“Combined with the Supernatural Plan, my speed in growing stronger will be terrifying!”

“Dominate the globe, consolidate all resources… and ascend to Fourth Stage!”

“And that’s not all…”

Almost instinctively, Yenir looked up at the distant creature that resembled a sleeping deity, his fists clenching tightly.

The allure of the Legendary Suit was irresistible—he wasn’t about to settle for a fake!

If Yinglong claimed the Legendary Suit, given his overwhelming strength, Yenir would no longer dare to dream of any plans for Far Frontier once he reached Peak Third-Stage.

“I’m betting everything!”

“And if there’s really no chance, then I won’t show up at all!”