45: Chapter 45 Upgrade: Six-Star Ghost King!

The moment the assessment ended, Su Bai ignored the gazes that fell upon him, ignored the looks of amazement, awe, and curiosity, and even ignored the meaningful pause when Elder Zhou announced the results.

He simply looked down at the silver crystal in his hand.

"Race Potential Enhancement Item"

The crystal was completely transparent, with a golden halo flowing inside. Those halos moved slowly within the crystal like living creatures. Holding it in his palm, he could feel a warm energy surging. That energy was different from any Power Of Faith he had come into contact with before.

It was purer.

It was deeper.

It was more mysterious.

"This is something that can change the essence of a race," Su Bai whispered to himself.

He raised his head and swept his gaze over the other nine platforms.

Lin Canglan was covered in blood, but his hand holding the crystal was as steady as a rock. His eyes were burning, as if he wasn't holding a crystal, but a key that could allow him to reach the pinnacle.

Murong Xue was pale, but a faint smile played on her lips. Her ice phoenix world was on the verge of collapse, but as long as she had this crystal, all the sacrifices were worth it.

Chu Tiange stood there silently, staring at the crystal in his hand, not knowing what he was thinking.

Chu Kuangren was the most disheveled, covered in wounds and lying on the ground panting heavily, but he clutched that crystal tightly in his palm, not letting anyone snatch it away.

Nine people, nine different expressions.

But Su Bai didn't look at them again.

He turned and walked off the platform, heading toward the arena exit.

Behind him, one hundred thousand gazes followed that slender back.

Until that figure disappeared at the exit.

...

Su Bai didn't return to the lounge, didn't return to the contestant area, and didn't even greet anyone.

He went straight to an empty corner, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes.

His consciousness sank into the Netherworld World.

Gray-white Yin Qi rushed toward him.

The Ghost King was still floating at the world core, its golden vertical pupils looking at Su Bai's conscious avatar, slightly bowing its head in greeting.

Black and White Impermanence stood side by side in front of Hall of Impermanence, one white and one black, one gentle and one fierce.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face stood on the other side, one burly and one slender, one blood-red and one pitch-black.

The Ghost Bride floated in mid-air, and as soon as she saw Su Bai, she started grumbling.

"Master! That assessment just now was so boring! Those spiders were so weak! We hadn't even exerted ourselves before they all died!"

Su Bai didn't speak.

His gaze swept over those hero units.

The Ghost King, Tier 4, Five-Star.

Black and White Impermanence, Tier 4, Six-Star.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face, Tier 1, Five-Star.

The Ghost Bride, Tier 3, Three-Star.

Sadako, Tier 3, Four-Star.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman, Tier 3, Three-Star.

The Mushroom King, Tier 3, Four-Star.

Shadow Blade, Tier 4, Four-Star.

The Frost King, Tier 3, Four-Star.

Nine hero units, five at Tier 4, four at Tier 3.

Potential ranged from three stars to six stars.

Su Bai lowered his head, looking at the silver crystal in his hand.

Who should this be given to?

The normal line of thought was equal distribution.

The crystal could be divided into nine parts, with each hero receiving a slight improvement. Although the boost would be small, the advantage was stability; everyone's potential could be raised a notch.

But Su Bai never followed the normal line of thought.

He thought of the Shadow Demon Abyss's five hundred years of evolution.

If Shadow Blade hadn't stepped forward back then, if there hadn't been that crazy idea, if there hadn't been the first pioneer to fuse with Yin Qi, those Shadow Demons would have gone extinct long ago.

The rise of a race often doesn't rely on averages, but on that one figure standing at the very front.

The Netherworld World was the same.

He needed a sharp blade.

A sharp blade that could pierce through everything at a critical moment.

And this candidate...

Su Bai's gaze fell on the pitch-black figure floating in mid-air.

The Ghost King.

The leader of the Ten Great Yin Marshals of the Netherworld World.

The supreme existence commanding all ghosts.

Tier 4, Five-Star, Five-Star potential.

If he could be promoted to six stars...

Su Bai didn't hesitate anymore.

He raised his hand, and the silver crystal flew from his palm, hovering in mid-air.

The golden halo surged violently inside the crystal, as if it had sensed something, excited, leaping, and longing.

"Ghost King."

The Ghost King raised his head, its golden vertical pupils landing on the crystal.

Its pupils contracted slightly.

It could feel what kind of terrifying energy was contained within that crystal. That kind of energy was enough to change its essence, enough to let its potential break through its limits.

Su Bai looked at it and softly said one word:

"Receive."

The Ghost King knelt on one knee, holding its hands above its head.

The crystal slowly descended and landed in its palm.

The moment the crystal touched its palm.

A golden light erupted.

The radiance was so intense that it illuminated the entire Netherworld World.

The gray-white Yin Qi was forcibly torn open, revealing the pitch-black void. All units on the five maps—the Yaksha Wasteland, Crimson Blood Scorched Earth, Mycelium Deep Forest, Shadow Demon Abyss, and Extreme Cold Ice Plains—looked up simultaneously, gazing at the golden pillar of light shooting into the sky.

The Mushroom King knelt down.

Shadow Blade knelt down.

The Frost King knelt down.

Twenty thousand Mushroom People knelt down.

Thirty thousand Shadow Demons knelt down.

Eight thousand Ice Crystals knelt down.

Over a thousand yin soldiers knelt down.

Two hundred Soul-Hooking Ghosts knelt down.

The Ghost Bride trembled slightly. She looked at the golden pillar of light, her eyes full of awe and envy, but no jealousy.

Black and White Impermanence knelt side by side, bowing their heads.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face also knelt down, bowing their heads.

Sadako slowly knelt down by the well, her long hair hanging down.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman gripped her scissors and knelt on one knee.

The entire Netherworld World, all units, knelt in submission.

Only Su Bai stood there, quietly watching the golden pillar of light.

Within the pillar of light, the Ghost King's figure was undergoing some kind of essential change.

Its body became more solid, deeper, and more elusive. Strange golden patterns began to appear on its pitch-black battle armor; those patterns moved slowly on the armor like living creatures, eventually condensing into ancient runes.

Its eyes were still golden vertical pupils, but the gold became purer and deeper, as if it could see through life and death, see through reincarnation.

Behind it, a huge phantom vaguely appeared.

It was a gate.

A pitch-black, ten-thousand-foot-tall giant gate.

The gate was closed, and it was covered with strange runes that flickered with a faint blue light, as if telling some kind of eternal truth.

Ghost Gate Pass.

The pillar of light finally dissipated.

The Ghost King floated quietly in mid-air, its golden vertical pupils slowly opening.

It looked down at its own hands, looked at the black phantom that had appeared in its palm, and then raised its head to look at Su Bai.

In those eyes, there was no excitement, no ecstasy, only deeper loyalty.

And a trace of imperceptible gratitude.

It descended from mid-air, landed in front of Su Bai, and knelt on one knee.

"Master."

The voice was still low and deep, but it had a bit more of an indescribable charm than before.

Su Bai looked down at it, and its new information appeared in his consciousness.