245: Chapter 246 Galya, doubting she's dreaming

Soon, Lin Muyang led the group of young ladies away from the main hall. Jialiya, who had just been summoned and remained highly vigilant, almost unconsciously kept close to his side. Apart from Lin Muyang, the one who summoned her and seemed to give her an inexplicable sense of security, she maintained obvious distance and distrust toward the other young ladies surrounding her, whose Auras ranged from holy to enchanting, from coldly mysterious to blazingly intense.

Although the overly enthusiastic Elf Maiden had earnestly assured her that simply following Lin Muyang to fight monsters would grant so-called experience points, allowing her to 'whoosh' up in levels and grow stronger rapidly, in Jialiya's deeply ingrained understanding, this kind of power gain—almost like a pie falling from the sky, effortless and unearned—was pure fantasy, something that could never happen to her. Power had always required sweat, wisdom, even blood and danger to obtain. Every experience in her past confirmed this.

The group passed through the winding corridors of the garden, crossed the arched bridge spanning the clear stream, and finally arrived at a relatively open and flat plaza area located in the northwest corner of the garden. This plaza was paved with smooth, gray-white stone slabs, its area large enough to encompass several football fields. Surrounding it were meticulously trimmed lawns and low ornamental shrubs, offering an unobstructed view. This was a place Lin Muyang had specifically instructed the Constructors to reserve during the garden's initial design, intended for safely opening secret realm portals.

At intervals along the edge of the plaza stood stone pillars engraved with complex runes. Atop each pillar, magic gems of various colors were embedded, currently emitting faint glows of different elemental magics. Together, these pillars formed a multi-layered, composite defensive and stabilization barrier covering the entire plaza. Its primary purpose was to prevent potential spatial turbulence, energy rampages, or accidentally summoned monsters from damaging the garden's interior environment when opening certain high-energy, unstable secret realm entrances. Although, given Lin Muyang's current control, such accidents were almost impossible, adhering to the principle of 'better safe than sorry, and since it's available, why not use it,' he had still asked those barrier masters to set it up.

Having such a fully functional, safe, and reliable dedicated secret realm activation platform certainly brought many conveniences. At the very least, there was no longer a need to run out into the wilderness each time to find a suitable spot and worry about being disturbed or spied on by unrelated parties.

'Having one's own territory certainly makes things much more convenient,' Lin Muyang thought to himself, surveying this plaza dedicated to his dungeon runs with satisfaction. Of course, everything has two sides. The daily operation of the garden consumed vast amounts of supplies. Although the Eternal Garden could achieve a high degree of self-sufficiency, many modern living necessities, special magical materials, and some luxury items still required regular procurement and replenishment from Zhongnan City.

Fortunately, modern society's freezing, storage, and spatial storage technologies were quite advanced. Regular large-scale purchases were enough to meet the living needs of dozens of people in the garden for extended periods. Moreover, regarding food, with the Angel Maid Elena present, she could even, to some extent, create top-tier ingredients rich in life energy out of thin air. Therefore, the Eternal Garden's actual external dependence was not high; even if cut off from the outside world for half a year, it could fully maintain normal operations, with living standards hardly declining.

Soon, Lin Muyang casually took out three scrolls emitting different energy fluctuations from his storage ring. After a brief sensing, he selected one of moderate level, relatively mild environment, and decent monster experience—an 80-level epic-grade secret realm scroll: [Shadowy Forest].

He tore open the scroll's seal and laid it flat on the guiding magic circle etched at the plaza's center. The next moment, the scroll spontaneously ignited without wind, turning into specks of dark blue light. Immediately after, a surge of immense spatial energy erupted from the magic circle's center. Accompanied by a blinding, heart-palpitating blood-red glow, it rapidly outlined and swirled in the air above the plaza, forming a dark red vortex over ten meters in diameter, constantly collapsing inward! At the vortex's edges, distorted tree shadows and flickering ghostly green flames were faintly visible. An intense Aura of death and shadow, along with the unique pressure characteristic of an epic-level secret realm, spread out like a tide!

The moment this blood-red glow and terrifying Aura appeared, Jialiya, standing behind Lin Muyang, felt her ice-blue pupils contract sharply. Her petite body instantly tensed up like a bristling cat! Her fingers gripping the pale Bone-wood Staff turned white from the force, while her other hand subconsciously clutched the hem of her forest-white robe. It was a primal warning of danger emanating from the depths of her soul! This bloody light, this Aura... seemed several times more sinister and dangerous than the most perilous undead region she had ever encountered! Whatever lurked inside could easily tear her apart in her current state!

'Let's go,' Lin Muyang called out to the young ladies behind him, taking the lead and stepping without hesitation into the swirling, ominous dark red vortex. Lilia, Elabess, Gui Wanwan, Feng Ling, Ao Qingyan, and the others quickly followed. Their expressions were relaxed, even carrying a hint of eager excitement, as if the dangerous secret realm ahead were their own backyard.

Lin Muyang had already placed one foot into the vortex when he noticed Jialiya still frozen in place, her ice-blue eyes fixed on the secret realm entrance, her small face filled with struggle and hesitation. He stopped, turned around, and looked at her, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable edge. 'Come in. Didn't Lilia just explain the basics of secret realms to you?'

'B-but... you didn't tell me the secret realm inside... would be this dangerous!' Jialiya's voice held a barely perceptible tremor. She tried to maintain a calm facade, but the fear in her eyes was difficult to completely conceal. The malice and death Aura contained within that bloody light were so intense that even she, a Necromancer accustomed to dealing with death, felt her heart palpitate. 'Are the monsters inside incredibly powerful? So powerful that with my current strength, going in would be suicide?'

'For you in your current state, the monsters inside are indeed strong. Even a random elite monster could likely easily dispatch all the skeletons you summon,' Lin Muyang did not deny it but admitted frankly. However, his tone remained placid. 'But for us, they are merely a group of mobs that can be cleared with a casual wave. And...'

He paused, looking into Jialiya's ice-blue eyes, widened with shock and doubt, and slowly said, 'You will grow quickly, becoming as strong as we are. Perhaps even surpassing your former self.'

Jialiya pressed her pale pink lips together tightly. Lin Muyang's words sounded tempting, beautiful, but that was precisely what she found hardest to believe. Her values, her over-a-decade-long experience of struggling to survive, were screaming warnings at her: In this world, pies never fall from the sky for free! Power could never be obtained so easily, so rapidly! In the past, to increase a bit of mental power, she needed to sit meditating for days in cold, damp tombs. To master a new necromantic spell, she risked backlash, repeatedly experimenting and contemplating. To obtain a suitable corpse with strong death energy as material, she had to carefully infiltrate dangerous ancient battlefields or plague zones, maneuvering or even fighting against guardian monsters or other covetous individuals... Each step was accompanied by sweat, risk, even the shadow of death.

Now, this strange man was telling her that simply following them inside to 'watch' them fight monsters would allow her to grow stronger rapidly, even reaching the level of these 'monsters' themselves?

Absurd! Ridiculous! This must be some kind of trap! Or perhaps they wanted to use her for something dangerous, first dangling an impossible carrot before her?

If only... her life in her original world hadn't been so utterly turbulent.

Memories flooded back like a tide. Those hunters and mage guild members brandishing banners of holy light or nature had always pursued her like maggots clinging to bone. She had never actively harmed innocent people; she only wanted a quiet place to study necromancy without constantly fearing pursuit. She hunted magical beasts, collected materials, occasionally traded with other denizens of the shadows, exchanging bone artifacts or potions she crafted for daily necessities. She even tried to stay far from densely populated towns.

However, the identity of a Necromancer was an original sin. The lingering Aura of death, the desecration of corpses, the manipulation of undead creatures—in the eyes of most normal people, these were the embodiment of evil and misfortune. Every time she was forced to enter a town to buy necessities, or her whereabouts were accidentally exposed, it would invite endless pursuit. Hunters wanted her head for bounty and fame; mages wanted to purify her, a heretic defiling life; even ordinary villagers, driven by panic and rumors, would pick up pitchforks and torches...

She didn't want to kill, but to protect herself, she had to raise hundreds, thousands of skeletons, using bone blades and death magic to bury those 'champions of justice' driven by greed, prejudice, or fear. Then, she had to migrate again, find a new place, restart the cycle of hiding and vigilance. And new places often had new hunters who heard the news... An endless cycle, never a moment's peace. She was like a ghost that could never rest, wandering between the hostility of the living and the shadow of death.

'If... if this Blue Star is truly as safe as this Lin Muyang claims...' A thought suddenly flashed through Jialiya's mind, like a faint glimmer of light in the darkness. 'If I could stay here permanently, not go back...'

Her gaze swept over the breathtakingly beautiful garden scenery again. Exquisite pavilions and towers nestled among exotic flowers and trees, clear streams murmured, and the tranquility and sense of security brought by the magic barriers were something she had never experienced in her original world. It was quiet enough, close to nature, yet had comprehensive living facilities far beyond her imagination. If she could live here permanently, without worrying about pursuit, without constantly hiding... what an... extravagant dream would that be?

[part:gemini-3.0-flash]

Moreover, she observed that the other young ladies around Lin Muyang, despite their differing temperaments—some cold, some charming, some mysterious—seemed to get along quite harmoniously. The looks they exchanged with each other and Lin Muyang were mostly filled with sincere closeness and trust. Most importantly, every one of them wore a look of heartfelt ease and joy on their faces, something she rarely saw in herself or others of her kind in her original world. It was an expression of hope for the future and contentment with the present.

If living here with Lin Muyang meant being like them...

"Maybe I can give it a try?" Once this thought arose, it was hard to suppress. Even if there might be a trap or another form of exploitation ahead, compared to the endless pursuit and loneliness of her original world, this place at least looked like a home. Furthermore, the peculiar Aura radiating from Lin Muyang, which made her involuntarily want to draw closer and trust him, also caused the scales in her heart to tip slightly.

She took a deep breath, a flash of determination crossing her ice-blue eyes. At worst, the result would only be death. And she had long been accustomed to being accompanied by death.

"Then I'll give it a try," she said in a barely audible voice, as if to herself. Then, she hesitated no longer, gripped her Bone-wood Staff, and forced her leaden legs to follow behind Lin Muyang, stepping into the dark red vortex that emitted an ominous bloody light and a thick scent of death.

The familiar sensation of weightlessness and spatial transition came.

In the next moment, Jialiya found herself in an ancient forest with dim lighting and a sinister atmosphere. The branches and leaves of the towering ancient trees blotted out the sun, leaving only mottled, bleak moonlight to filter through the gaps. The air was filled with the smell of rotting leaves, damp earth, and an even colder, faint stench of decay and soul agitation unique to undead creatures. Shadows flickered all around, as if countless malicious eyes were peering from the dark corners.

Danger! Extreme danger! Every cell in Jialiya's body screamed in warning. She could feel that lurking in the shadows were a large number of undead creatures whose levels far exceeded her current state—Rotten Walking Corpses, Floating Ghosts, lurking Shadow Hunters, and possibly even more powerful Undead Lords! Any one of them could easily take her life.

However, before her fear could fully spread, Lin Muyang ahead didn't even stop his pace; he simply waved his hand casually.

In an instant, centered around him, several invisible and intangible Auras, yet containing terrifying power of rules, rippled out like water waves, covering an area of several kilometers! Jialiya could clearly feel that those undead monsters, which were originally stirring and emitting powerful Auras, had their energy fluctuations instantly wither and weaken as if being crushed by an invisible giant hand! Their movements became sluggish, their roars became weak, and even their malicious "gaze" was forcibly blurred and isolated!

Immediately after, the young ladies beside Lin Muyang moved.

Bat wings unfurled behind Elabess as she darted into the shadows like a phantom. Wherever she passed, shadow blades slashed silently, and rows of walking corpses and ghosts fell and dissipated like harvested wheat.

Feng Ling didn't even transform; she just flicked her fingers, and a few gold-red sparks drifted out, landing on several massive Plague Abominations that emitted a rotting stench. Those sparks seemed weak, but they were like maggots on a bone, instantly igniting the abominations' huge bodies. Within two or three seconds, they were burned into nothingness, not even leaving ashes behind!

Lilia stood in place, her scepter tapping lightly. Soft holy light spread like ripples. Wherever it passed, those ghosts filled with resentment toward the living let out silent screams and evaporated like dewdrops under the sun.

Gui Wanwan brandished her giant scythe like a dancer of death, weaving through the undead crowd as the scythe slashed.

The efficiency of the cleanup was outrageously high! Those epic-grade undead monsters that had felt like fatal threats to Jialiya fell and dissipated like paper under the suppression of Lin Muyang's Aura and the young ladies' terrifying attacks.

As for Jialiya, she just stood there blankly, not even needing to move a step. She could clearly feel surges of pure and massive strange energy, known as experience points, continuously pouring in from the direction of the slain monsters and injecting into her body! Her body was like parched land meeting sweet rain; every cell was greedily absorbing this energy, letting out a joyful hum.

Her level was soaring at a nearly insane speed she had never imagined!

Level 2, 5, 10, 20, 30...

On the attribute panel, her four-dimensional attribute numbers jumped wildly like runaway horses! Her originally suppressed Strength, Agility, Constitution, and Spirit not only quickly returned to their original levels but were also surpassing them by an astonishing margin!

What shocked her even more was that as her level rose, she felt the Necromancer skills deep in her soul—which had become obscure, blurred, or even sealed due to the suppression of world rules—begin to shine again like gems wiped of dust, becoming clear and usable!

The maximum number of summons for [Summon Skeleton] increased exponentially as her Spirit attribute skyrocketed!

Attack and control skills like [Bone Spear], [Finger of Death], and [Curse of Aging] were unsealed!

Skills with greater tactical value, such as [Corpse Explosion] and [Raise Dead (Temporary)], emerged!

She even felt her deep connection with the rules of death and souls slowly but surely becoming clearer and tighter!

The entire process lasted only about ten minutes.

When Lin Muyang casually cleared all the monsters in the final area, including a Rotten Ancient Tree Guardian as large as a small mountain, with a shockwave mixed with frost and holy power, the entire "Shadow Forest" secret realm began to tremble slightly, emitting the hum of completion. Jialiya was wrapped in a soft spatial force and sent back to the secret realm square in the Eternal Garden.

With her feet back on solid ground, Jialiya still maintained the posture she had when entering the secret realm, standing rigidly in place. Her pretty and exquisite face, which usually lacked color, was now filled with an unbelievable, almost dull expression. Her ice-blue eyes were wide and round, her pupils losing focus, as if she were still immersed in the shock of those short ten minutes, which were enough to overturn her entire worldview.

She was completely dumbfounded.

Just ten minutes.

Due to the huge level gap between her and her summoner, Lin Muyang, she received a "Experience Catch-up" bonus of several times the normal amount granted by the system rules. Just by clearing this one Level 80 epic-level secret realm, her level was like a rocket, soaring from a pitiful Level 1 all the way past the Level 50 mark, reaching an astonishing Level 57!

Her original full attributes had not only completely recovered, no longer subject to any world rule suppression, but were nearly double her peak Level 47 attributes! Especially her Spirit attribute, which had broken through the 20,000 mark! This meant she could now casually summon over ten thousand basic skeletons! In her original world, this was a level that would have required years of hard cultivation and countless resources to achieve!

A sense of power, an unprecedentedly abundant sense of power, surged within her petite body. Those necromancy spells that once required careful execution now felt effortless. The world became clearer in her perception, especially those wandering death energies and soul fluctuations...

Unfortunately, after the initial ecstasy, Jialiya quickly noticed a practical problem. Her class was "Necromancer," which, although similar to the conventional mage classes on Blue Star, differed in the nature of power and equipment requirements. Whether it was a mage's cloth armor, robes, or those skill books recording knowledge of fire, frost, and arcane magic, she was completely unable to wear or learn them. Regarding skills, she could rely on her own talent [Dominion of the Dead] and class characteristics to automatically unlock or strengthen corresponding necromancy spells as she leveled up. But equipment... without suitable equipment, her attribute bonuses would be significantly lower, and her actual combat capability would take a hit.

"It seems I'll have to find an Equipment Modification Master..." Lin Muyang looked at the somewhat plain forest-white robe on Jialiya, lost in thought. He remembered Gu Shuanglin; the equipment for her summons was also modified from general equipment into special forms suitable for plant-type summons by top-tier Equipment Modification Masters.

Similarly, as long as he had top-tier mage-type equipment on hand, he could take Jialiya to a highly skilled Equipment Modification Master, pay enough rewards and materials, and transform those pieces into exclusive forms that a "Necromancer" could wear and utilize.

Of course, there was no rush. Lin Muyang had many spare legendary-grade mage equipment in his storage ring, and even two pieces of mythic grade equipment. However, the level requirements for those items were generally above Level 80. Even an Equipment Modification Master could only change the attributes and class compatibility, not lower the level requirement. Therefore, it was better to wait until Jialiya's level reached Level 80 or above.

At this moment, Jialiya finally regained some of her senses from the extreme shock. She slowly lowered her head, looking at her open hands, which were still slightly trembling, then looked up at the young ladies beside her who were chatting and laughing as if they had just been on a relaxing outing. Finally, her gaze fell on Lin Muyang, who looked calm as if he had done something insignificant.

In her ice-blue eyes, the remaining dullness was quickly replaced by a more complex emotion—a shock mixed with ecstasy, bewilderment, disbelief, and a sense of absurdity.

Did she... really just "follow along" in the secret realm for ten minutes, doing nothing, and gain power that surpassed over ten years of hard cultivation?

Were those monsters, so powerful they made her soul tremble, really like mere chickens and dogs before Lin Muyang and these young lady companions?

Did such a good thing as a "pie falling from the sky" really exist in this world?

And did this pie happen to hit her, a Necromancer who had always been seen as ominous and plagued by bad luck?

Could all of this be a ridiculous dream before her death?