Myriad Realms Gatekeeper
Chapter 10: Chapter 8 You're Insulting My Personality!

Shen Ye made his way across the dance floor, past the dining area, and all the way to the other side of the hall, leaping onto a table.

Now he was much further away from those three "conspirators" who had been monitoring him.

"Friends!"

He threw open his arms and announced loudly:

"Take a good look, although I am an Elf, I can turn into a human!"

At that moment, not only was Lannie watching him, not just the Elves nearby, even the three conspirators were staring at him.

They listened intently to Shen Ye's words and suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Turn into a human, do you know this technique?" a "conspirator" asked.

The other two "conspirators" shook their heads.

"Fei Lun loves to show off—let him be, let him make a fuss."

"Yes, his integration among the Elves will only make it easier for us to act tonight."

After this brief exchange, the three fell silent once again.

Shen Ye stood on the table, his back against the wall, and said with a smile:

"I just counted, and there are only 29 people here. For my magic to work, I need 33 people present."

The crowd jeered, disbelieving, laughing, clapping, and whistling.

The atmosphere heated up.

Lannie called out to a few girls, who quickly ran out and dragged several patrol Elves inside.

The patrol Elves had no choice but to look towards Shen Ye.

"We have enough people now!" Lannie shouted.

"Here I go—watch closely!" Shen Ye said.

He removed the Pale Shadow Crown.

In an instant, he had transformed from an Elf into a human youth.

First, the room went silent, then exploded with deafening cheers.

It was too spectacular.

Under the watchful eyes of all, this brave front-line soldier had turned into a human!

"For you, Lannie!"

Shen Ye waved to the Elf girl.

Lannie's face turned bright red as she clapped her hands joyfully.

"Wait a moment," Shen Ye shouted, "It's not over yet, I'm going to change back!"

"Of course!" Lannie shouted back, playing along.

Shen Ye placed his hand against the wall behind him.

An Elf wooden door appeared as a result.

"Here's the thing," he said, facing everyone's curious gaze with a smile, "I can turn into a human because I'm wearing this thing—"

He tossed the Pale Shadow Crown to a patrol Elf who looked quite capable.

"And my three brothers are wearing this thing as well. Once they take off the Crown, they will turn into the Undead!"

The word "Undead" lowered the spirited atmosphere in the room significantly.

The patrol Elf caught the Pale Shadow Crown, and his expression changed from mirth to solemnity.

The other patrol Elves gathered around, all eyeing the Pale Shadow Crown intently.

"Once my three brothers have transformed as well, I'll be right back, and I will change back into an Elf!"

Having said that, everyone immediately turned to look at the three "conspirators" on the other side of the room.

Taking advantage of the moment,

Shen Ye fell backward, entering the door on the wall.

The door closed.

The door vanished.

At the same time, the patrol Elf blew a sharp whistle.

"All hands, be on guard!"

The other patrol Elves drew their scimitars and rushed forward, surrounding the three "conspirators" in the middle.

"Is there some mistake, we are soldiers who have come back from the front lines for a rest," said one "conspirator," pointing to the badge on his chest with composed assurance.

In the void, a voice suddenly rang out:

"I had wanted to play with you a bit longer, what a pity—"

The Elf Leader appeared out of nowhere, a touch of regret on his face:

"You Undead wanted to infiltrate my village, but you didn't realize the Human Race had already infiltrated your ranks and even took charge of your mission."

"How ironic."

Thick vines burst from the ground, binding the three people tightly.

"My lord,"

The patrol Elf presented the Pale Shadow Crown.

"High-Level Shadow Technique from the Dark Abyss, ever constant, it is indeed beyond my expectation," the Elf Leader mused to himself.

"Murderers from the Undead Race have infiltrated every village... With this actual object, we can replace its weakness and counteract it."

"I owe a debt of gratitude this time."

A vine removed all the Pale Shadow Crowns from the three culprits.

In the blink of an eye,

They all turned into the Undead!

Lannie bit her lip, then suddenly turned her head to look at the other side of the room.

Seeing this, the Elves seemed to remember something and all looked towards the wall.

"Once my three brothers have transformed, I'll be right back, and I will again change back into an Elf,"

That human youth had said.

But the wall was blanketed in pure white.

He wasn't coming back.

...

Quietly, a door appeared on the snow-white wall.

The door opened.

Shen Ye landed in an empty classroom.

He took out his phone to check the time.

It was just past ten o'clock, still early.

But there was a message from Chen Haoyu:

"Why haven't you arrived yet, did you fall into the toilet?"

Shen Ye looked at the message and exhaled deeply.

He was back alive!

The situation just now had been too risky.

He must remember this lesson for the future and never be so reckless again.

Absolutely not!

That said—

Shen Ye turned back to face the wall, pressed his hand against it, and whispered "door".

The door reappeared.

Looking through the glass into the interior, the same eerie corridor lay within.

In other words, although Shen Ye had been to Elf Territory once, the spatial point connected by his "door" ability was still the place where the giant skeleton resided.

The giant skeleton had returned.

It squatted in the corridor, clutching a bizarrely shaped corpse, gnawing on it bite by bite.

Anger surged in Shen Ye's heart, and he couldn't help but slam the door hard, shouting loudly,

"I'm fighting for my life in Elf Territory, and you're here comfortably feasting?"

The giant skeleton turned its head abruptly.

Through the glass, it saw Shen Ye,

It dropped the corpse and charged over, pawing at the door, scrutinizing Shen Ye from top to bottom.

"You're still alive?"

The giant skeleton asked with a hoarse and dry voice.

—This was the first time it had initiated communication with Shen Ye.

"You damn thing, deliberately giving me that Pale Shadow Crown, you wanted me to go and get myself killed, huh." Shen Ye said, flipping it off through the glass window.

"How did you survive? Tell me the details," the giant skeleton demanded.

"You think I'm going to tell you that?" Shen Ye sneered.

"Tell me, and I will pay an equivalent reward," the giant skeleton said.

"It's not about the reward now; you almost had me killed. I'm not someone who forgives easily," Shen Ye replied.

"Tell me," the giant skeleton persisted.

Shen Ye lifted his hand, intending to take down the notebook nailed to the door.

—This was the contract between the two of them, and once destroyed, the contract would be null and void.

"Wait a moment!" The giant skeleton suddenly exclaimed.

The next instant.

The notebook nailed to the door opened, and glowing letters leaped out onto the paper:

"The other party has shown considerable sincerity. In keeping with the principle of 'equivalent exchange,' a powerful Necromancy has been prepared for you, the value of which—"

"You think you can buy me with just anything?"

Shen Ye clenched his fists, roaring,

"You're insulting my integrity!!!"

The giant skeleton stiffened.

Shen Ye reached out to tear up the contract.

"Wait a moment!" The giant skeleton suddenly spoke, "The reason I gave you the Pale Shadow Crown was that there was a chance you could survive. If it had been me, my only fate would have been death."

It pressed its bony claws against the door.

All the small letters in the notebook disappeared, replaced by several new lines:

"As an apology, surpassing the principle of 'equivalent exchange,' a Heritage Nightmare Crystal is being gifted to you."

"Heritage Nightmare Crystal: Stores three types of top-level evolutionary Necromantic Talents, from which you can choose one to meld into your soul, thus gaining its ability."

"Special note: This Heritage Nightmare Crystal is the cornerstone of the Undead Race, incredibly precious, and rare in the entire Nightmare World."

Then, a line of glowing letters quietly emerged before Shen Ye's eyes:

"The so-called 'Talent' refers to the ability to use individual characteristic powers without expending any strength."

Silence.

The silence lasted for quite a while.

"I am a man of principles," Shen Ye said, coughing lightly and speaking earnestly, "I only do business with partners who show sincerity."

"I have offered all my sincerity," the giant skeleton replied.

"...Fine, I'll forgive you this one time, but remember, there will not be a next time," Shen Ye said.

"There will be no next time," the giant skeleton assured.

Shen Ye pressed his hand onto the notebook.

The contract was instantly sealed!

A crystal ball emanating endless rays of light fell into his hands.

Crack.

Shen Ye crushed the crystal ball in his hand.

A golden mist expanded, swirling around him, then quickly sinking into his body.

Shen Ye felt a moment of dizziness.

Everything around him seemed to turn into nothingness.

In a haze, he seemed to have arrived at a gigantic palace completely made up of white bones.

On that high Skeleton Throne, a huge skeleton wearing a Crown sat peacefully, holding a sword, pointing at Shen Ye from afar.

Above Shen Ye's head, three swirling orbs of light appeared.

The first orb of green light revealed a crystal clear Frost Crystal.

The second orb of light was gray-white, containing a bone.

The third orb of light flickered with gold, but inside was a Metal Scepter.

"Choose, you may pick one from these most ancient heritages, affix it to your head, and you will gain the inherited Talent within!" A booming voice rang in Shen Ye's ears.

He looked up at the three hereditary objects, and immediately countless messages were transmitted into his mind through the air.

The Frost Crystal hidden in the green light contained a Necromantic Talent:

"Whispers of the Dark."

"Elementary (evolvable)."

"Upon corpses as a medium, the Deceased must answer your call, crawling up from Hell, to truthfully reveal what they know, so their spirits can rest."

"—Death is the deepest education."

The bone wreathed in gray-white light also contained a Necromantic Talent:

"Sacred Corpse Form."

"Elementary (evolvable)."

"Any force capable of killing you will force your body into Sacred Corpse Form, temporarily immune to all fates of death, lasts for 5 seconds, and can reactivate after one day."

"—Those who try to control your life and death will not end well."

As for the final object shrouded in golden light, the Scepter held the third Necromantic Talent:

"Undead Resurrection."

"Elementary (evolvable)"

"Create a Soulfire and place it on the body of a slain Undead; the Soulfire will merge with the corpse, reviving it."

"There are many kinds of resurrection magics, but this is one of the very profound mysteries of the source, that allows the Undead to come back to life."

"—The fundamental power of the Undead Race."

After taking in all the information, Shen Ye sank into thought.

Which one should he choose?