Chapter 76: The King Who Fell into the Abyss

"Stop!"
Ying Zheng pointed from afar, and the Queen's indistinct figure immediately became clear.
At that moment, she was only ten meters from Ying Zheng.
Just a few meters more, and her blade could have reached Ying Zheng's throat.
But those few meters were an insurmountable chasm for her!
Two terracotta warriors materialized at her sides the instant she appeared.
Thud!
Thud!
Two spears stabbed mercilessly, piercing straight through the Queen's skull!
There was no struggle, no resistance.
With less than two hundred points in constitution, she possessed unparalleled speed.
But at the same time, she was almost entirely defenseless.
[Experience +640,000]
A white light rose above Song Qi's head in the distance.
The massive sum of 640,000 experience points propelled him from level 25 to 26 in an instant!
And after the bar refreshed, it climbed a little further.
"Absurd..."
Even Song Qi himself felt the speed of leveling up was almost exaggerated.
Bear in mind, Lü Bu hadn't finished his slaughter yet.
With another king's experience added, the bar would be half full the moment he leveled up.
Later, if he went out to hunt a few snow wolf packs, he could gain three levels today!
"Besides..."
"If I'm not mistaken, she must have a ring as well?"
Song Qi stepped forward and inspected the Queen's body.
Indeed, a silver-glinting ring lay quietly in her palm.
[Ring: The Vow Held Firm]
[Quality: Extraordinary]
[Applicable Level: None]
[Required Attributes: None]
[Strength: +0]
[Agility: +300]
[Constitution: +10]
[Spirit: +50]
[Effect 1: Summon two level 55 blade-wielding maids to fight for you.]
[Effect 2: Fusion.]
[Remark: The Queen admired the hero who saved her nation. She swore before the gods to accompany him for life, offering all she had. But she never expected that her hero would be corrupted by power beyond recognition.]
"As expected, fusion is indeed the effect."
Song Qi weighed the ring and slipped it into his backpack.
"If I was eighty percent sure before, now I'm certain—the hidden equipment in this instance is another of the Seven Deadly Sins."
"And the Seven Deadly Sins are the seven keys to the Abyss Gate."
"I wonder how many keys are needed to open it? Must they all be gathered, or will a certain number suffice?"

"Also, the remark is rather interesting."
From the Queen's previous introduction, she seemed to be a woman of exceptional virtue.
She once greatly admired the hero who saved the nation.
But what she hadn't anticipated was that, upon ascending the throne, the hero became entirely different from the person she imagined.
"So this is why the Queen and King live apart?"
"Idealist and realist, a clash of philosophies?"
"I don't quite understand your lovesick minds."
Song Qi shook his head and looked to the other side.
............
Inside the opulent palace.
Bang!
The halberd swept across!
A guard was struck by terrifying force, sent flying into the wall; his bones shattered and scattered upon impact.
Lü Bu exhaled deeply—the guard he'd just dispatched was the last one.
Around him, the floor was littered with broken limbs.
The bodies of the guards nearly covered the entire hall.
"The last one is dealt with. Next..."
"Only the final monster boss remains."
Lü Bu strode out of the hall and onto the plaza, alertly scanning his surroundings.
Yet after waiting a while, the opponent still did not appear.
"Strange, nothing?"
Just as Song Qi wondered...
Rumble!
The ground began to tremble.
The palace shook violently!
A deep, resonant voice emanated from underground.
As if echoing from the depths of hell!
Blood and scarlet liquid surged up from below, thick and endless!
"Blood... Sacrifice..."
"Eternal... Life..."
Rumble!!!
The earth was upheaved!
A giant humanoid monster, large enough to cover the palace, slowly sat up from beneath.
He was a rugged-faced male, crowned atop his head!
Even sitting, his torso alone rose hundreds of meters high!
Monster: The King Fallen into the Abyss
Level: 60
Strength: 4317
Constitution: 6431
Agility: 100
Spirit: 100

Skills: [Gigantification] [Smash] [Immortal Body]
Remark: At the brink of the kingdom's collapse, a hero emerged, crushing the decaying nobility single-handedly. Amidst the people's cheers, he ascended the throne, his beautiful young Queen at his side. He once governed diligently for the people's sake, until aging and death became inevitable.
....
"Goodness, over 6000 constitution? But agility and spirit are low, so it seems to be an immobile, stationary monster."
Song Qi looked afar.
He saw that the king, after sitting up, did not rise further.
There appeared to be some restriction, or perhaps his lower body was immobile.
Such a monster with obvious shortcomings was little more than a target for Lü Bu.
And as Song Qi expected...
"Flesh!!!"
The king roared in fury!
Both massive hands slammed toward Lü Bu!
Yet Lü Bu simply leapt, the demon's silhouette swiftly coalesced, the halberd pierced the air and crashed down!
Bang!
The king's head, like a gigantic watermelon, was smashed to pieces by the blow.
Dark red blood burst forth, splattering half the plaza!
Boom!
The colossal body, barely upright, collapsed again with a thunderous crash!
Dust billowed skyward.
[Experience +900,000]
The fallen king, plus the guards' experience, filled most of Song Qi's experience bar.
Thus, every monster in the instance was completely wiped out.
Afterward...
A crystalline gem emerged from underground, hovering before Song Qi.
[Congratulations! You have perfectly cleared this instance.]
[Please collect the instance core promptly.]
Song Qi looked at it, but did not take it yet.
He sighed.
"A special instance core worth ten million credits... Ah, if only I could keep this instance fixed and farm it for ten days or so."
"I'd gladly pay ten million."
This leveling speed was truly addictive!
Though only a few days remained till the Genius Tournament, if Song Qi could endlessly farm this instance,
He was confident he could reach level forty within days!
"Sadly... it's just wishful thinking."
"Wild instances have this flaw—their progress is saved, and once cleared, they vanish. Unlike city instances, which can be refreshed infinitely."
Song Qi shook his head.
A special instance core could be made into another special instance once brought back.
But its difficulty would revert to a normal intermediate level.
There was no way to encounter monsters of level sixty again.