Chapter Seventy-Six: The Portal Opens

Half an hour later, while patrolling the great cemetery, Liu Zong suddenly sensed the presence of someone beside him. Turning his head, he saw a man in a mage’s robe smiling at him.

This mage’s robe was rather distinctive, covered in clockwork patterns, making it clear at a glance that he was a student from the School of Time and Space. Liu Zong had long heard at school that it was best not to provoke students from the Department of Time and Space, so he instinctively took a step back.

Before Liu Zong could retreat any further, the student spoke, “You’re Liu Zong, right? Don’t run. Only you can help me here.”

“Huh?” Liu Zong was completely baffled.

“It’s like this,” the student explained, “I’m here to open a portal. Setting the location and all that is no problem for me. Normally, I’d just need someone to stabilize the portal with their magic power. Turns out, only your magic is compatible right now.”

Realizing what was going on, Liu Zong immediately said, “No problem. Where should we set up the portal?”

“Come with me,” the other replied, clasping his hands behind his back as he walked toward the edge of the cemetery.

As they walked, Liu Zong noticed several metallic frames had been set up on the ground—an obvious departure from the style favored by those attuned to the powers of darkness. Near the metal frames, a few brawny players were standing in the field, looking quite miserable; it was clear they’d already been there for some time.

Seeing Liu Zong approach, these players quickly made way for him. The Time and Space student grabbed hold of one end of a metal frame, saying, “You take the other end and channel your magic in. That’s all you need to do.”

Liu Zong wasted no words, grasping the designated frame and pouring all his magic into it. As his power flowed into the frame, a blue radiance gradually emerged at its center. Soon, a massive portal, seven meters high and ten meters wide, appeared at the cemetery’s edge, anchored by the metal frames.

At this moment, the Time and Space student said to Liu Zong, “Hold on a little longer. When the other magic-attuned students arrive, you’ll be done.”

As he spoke, six students who clearly belonged to different disciplines emerged from the portal. They each took up a metal frame and began channeling their magic in as well. With their combined energy, the previously unstable portal immediately stabilized. The Time and Space student no longer needed to support it, so he stepped up to the portal and input new coordinates.

Once the destination was set, he reached into the blue glow at the portal’s heart and, with a sweeping motion, flung open the gateway.

Behind the portal, roughly two thousand players had already assembled. This was the reserve force that had been dispatched—previously, they would have needed to fight their way through wild monsters and clear a usable road. Now, with the portal, such efforts were unnecessary. In groups of forty, they crossed over; after about fifty trips, everyone had arrived.

Now at the scene, Li Shi, who was commanding the darkness-attuned players, finally breathed a sigh of relief. He found the commander of this operation and said, “Our task is complete. We need to head to the Underworld to deal with the Great Tomb Lord—three minor cemeteries still remain uncaptured.”

The other player was familiar with the situation and nodded. “No problem. I’ve got enough people here. Go take care of your business.”

After a brief handover, Li Shi led all the darkness-attuned players in drinking their potions and returning to the core of the great cemetery.

By now, the place had utterly transformed. Before the Great Tomb Lord, a new map had appeared. There were no buildings or topography—only five marked sites: one large cemetery and four smaller ones.

Seeing Li Shi and his party return, the Great Tomb Lord grinned. “You’re just in time. The remaining three cemeteries have been located. You can set out to claim them now.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a scroll of black mist appeared before everyone, inscribed with various tasks.

Each player’s scroll contained five missions of equal difficulty and two that exceeded the player’s current level. Everyone was free to choose a task, whether to enhance the Tomb Lord or the cemetery’s strength and rank.

For now, the main objective was still to capture the remaining cemeteries, but future assignments might include patrols, clearing wild undead, training with one’s own ghosts and undead, or retrieving lost souls from the wilds.

Even before entering the battlefield, Liu Zong and the others were aware of these tasks. Looking at his own list, Liu Zong first consulted Li Shi about the upcoming battle arrangements, then chose a task that could be completed along the way.

This time, there was no rush. With the great cemetery under control, paths to the other cemeteries had opened up. Although the others weren’t yet captured, the roads were now relatively safe. There were even designated spots for temporary camps, and along the way stood lanterns crafted from ghostly souls and undead remains. These lanterns served to attract wandering souls and repel malicious spirits. For now, none of the lanterns were lit, but with the materials provided by the Great Tomb Lord, they could be activated to ensure safe passage.

With such safeguards, the darkness-attuned players were in no hurry to act. They first rested for a full day, then formed a large party of 120. Following the map provided by the Great Tomb Lord, they set out from the east, attacking one cemetery after another.

At this point, it felt more like a spring outing than a battle; there was little danger. Everyone accepted ordinary tasks, and as long as time permitted, Li Shi didn’t insist they remain in camp while resting.

Soon, most players completed the Tomb Lord’s first mission, exchanging their black mist scrolls for a pale violet crystal.

Enclosed within the crystal was something resembling a spider. According to the scroll, it could be used to resurrect a player’s fallen undead minions and also enhance their power.

Thanks to this, by the time the players reached the next cemetery, their strength had largely recovered. Liu Zong’s fierce ghostly girl, who had perished earlier, was now revived, dragging along her stuffed bear as she followed him once more.