Chapter 134 : Guan Yu’s Curiosity and the Fallen Twin Soul!
Chapter 134: Guan Yu’s Curiosity and the Fallen Twin Soul!
It was no wonder the Players reacted so strongly.
Woniu Mountain was a place Guan Yu had passed by during his legendary solo journey of crossing five passes and slaying six generals.
The Players had once suspected that the source of corruption on this map might be Guan Yu—or perhaps even Zhao Yun, who had also passed through here.
But that idea was far too bold. Not many truly believed it. Ever since their debut, the Three Kingdoms figures encountered by Players were merely people like Pei Yuanshao and Ma Yuanyi.
What level were those guys?
To put it bluntly, they weren’t even qualified to carry Guan Yu or Zhao Zilong’s shoes!
How could one go from dealing with such obscure characters to suddenly confronting one of the top figures of the Three Kingdoms?
At the very least, a few third- or fourth-rate Famous Generals of the Three Kingdoms should have been arranged for transition!
Following the usual design logic and planning of a game, characters of the highest tier shouldn't have appeared so early—and definitely not in such a careless manner. It completely lacked the grandeur that the Martial Saint Guan Gong deserved.
Yet at this very moment, the truth was hard to grasp. Twisted Three Kingdoms wasn’t an ordinary game. Even if it broke all conventions, such a possibility objectively existed.
If it was true—
This would be an explosive headline!
Could the final boss of the Woniu Mountain map truly be Guan Yu?
The Players immediately began discussing.
“There’s definitely a trick!”
“Don’t believe it, everyone!”
“He can’t possibly be Guan Yu!”
“Guan Yunchang is a peerless hero!”
“Exactly! How could he be sealed away in a place like this?”
“Right! If it really were Guan Yu making an appearance, it couldn’t possibly be this casual. He’s one of the most iconic characters in the Three Kingdoms, not one bit less than Kongming, Mengde, or Lü Bu!”
“But what if it’s true?”
“No way. Absolutely not!”
“……”
Guan Yu listened to their debate with a bit of confusion. On one hand, some of what they were saying made little sense; on the other, he had heard names like Zhuge Liang, Cao Cao, and Zhao Yun mentioned from their mouths.
These weaklings trapped in Woniu Mountain actually knew of such existences—some even knew their deeds in other timelines? This made Guan Yu feel that these people before him might not be as simple as they appeared.
“You need not harbor doubts!” Guan Yu’s dignified voice echoed again in everyone’s ears. “What stands before you now is merely one of the countless projections of this Guan!”
Upon hearing that—
The Players froze once more.
Chimera Wraith immediately asked, “So, your true body isn’t here? This is just one of your incarnations.”
Guan Yu replied calmly, “Correct!”
“What the hell?”
“Not the real body?”
“Phew, scared me!”
“What was I even expecting?”
“I really thought I might have a chance to recruit Guan Yu to my territory—or even battle a Demonized version of Guan Yu!”
“You’re crazy! We already struggle to deal with nobodies like Pei Yuanshao and Ma Yuanyi. A figure of Guan Gong’s level would easily be around level fifty or eighty—how could we possibly handle that kind of power right now?”
“……”
At that moment, everyone finally understood—this was Guan Yu, and yet not fully so!
At the very least, according to Guan Yu himself, the figure sealed within the crimson crystal wall was merely one of his countless avatar projections!
Though it sounded bizarre and hard to comprehend, a being of Guan Yu’s caliber likely possessed means beyond mortal understanding. After all, this was no longer a normal Three Kingdoms world.
Chimera Wraith immediately followed up, “How is this done? And where is your true self located?”
Guan Yu replied, “You ask too many questions. You still haven’t answered mine!”
“My apologies for being so rude!”
Chimera Wraith realized her questioning had crossed the line and quickly apologized.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge stepped forward at that moment to explain, “Junior Black-Eyed Rui Ge pays respects to Lord Guan. We are vassals under Lord Hang Yu, the Lord of the Stars, and we’ve come under orders to purify the source of corruption in the Woniu Mountain region!”
“The Stars?”
Guan Yu’s expression showed a hint of surprise. “This Guan has encountered many Lords of the Stars—if not a thousand, then at least eight hundred—yet I’ve rarely heard of a human Lord, and you seem quite different from the typical vassals of the Stars.”
What shocked him wasn’t their Star affiliation.
It was that this Star-aligned force consisted of humans.
From what Guan Yu knew, most vassals under the Lords of the Stars lacked proper souls and complete self-awareness. But the human vassals before him appeared to possess excess self-awareness.
This was highly abnormal!
Black-Eyed Rui Ge admitted frankly, “All of us were summoned from the future by our Lord. We are people of later generations, hoping to offer what little strength we have to this land consumed by the Abyss.”
Midnight Pig Slayer added, “Yes! I grew up hearing stories of Guan Yu. I’ve long admired your righteousness and unmatched valor. Could you lend us a helping hand?”
Little Bell chimed in, “We wish to eliminate this hidden threat once and for all for the people of Woniu Mountain! If you truly are the famed, righteous Guan Yu—Guan Yunchang—then surely you would not ignore the suffering of the common people, would you?”
Upon hearing their words—
Guan Yu revealed an intrigued expression.
His true body had lived through endless years in a chaotic and warped space-time, already a being comparable to a top-tier Abyssal Evil God and far beyond mortal comprehension. The experiences and sights he had accumulated far exceeded any human imagination. It could be said that very little in the world still interested him.
But these people before him—
Sparked a long-lost sense of curiosity in Guan Yu.
At least, in all his memories sealed deep within his true body for billions of years, he had never encountered a force quite like this. Though weak for now, perhaps they could become a variable in this chaotic world.
Guan Yu fell silent for a second before suddenly asking, “Can you guess why I sealed myself here?”
Toasting the Moon speculated, “Lord Guan, you possess great righteousness. Perhaps you sealed yourself here to block the Abyssal forces and prevent the corruption from spreading.”
Guan Yu responded mildly, “It’s a pity this projection of mine is too weak to fully seal the corruption here. Fortunately, I have Zhou Cang aiding me, allowing this place to be sustained for a few more decades at best.”
Upon hearing this—
All the Players felt the weight of the information sink in.
Chimera Wraith and Chenxi’s eyes lit up.
Because this might contain an extremely important core setting of Twisted Three Kingdoms.
Perhaps the true body of Guan Yu had cultivated for an unimaginably long time within some distorted space-time, and his cultivation had reached an inconceivable realm. He could even scatter countless projection avatars across endless dimensions—and the purpose of doing so was precisely to stop the Abyss from spreading.
Just what was going on with this process?
Could it be that when one’s cultivation reached a high enough realm, they would become unique?
Otherwise, why was the Guan Yu who appeared in the Woniu Mountain Region merely a projection avatar of his true self?
Right now, there was too little information.
These guesses were hard to verify.
However, one thing was certain: many heroic figures of the Three Kingdoms era had not succumbed to the Will of the Abyss. They were also resisting the spread and worsening of the Abyss in their own ways at various points in time.
Of course—
This was only speculation.
It was still difficult to say what the actual reason was.
And they couldn’t understand how Guan Yu could do something like this.
Guan Yu continued, “The power of this projection is nearly exhausted. My true self has also been polluted and has fallen into slumber in the process of resisting the various Evil Gods and the Will of the Abyss. The seal here at Woniu Mountain will not hold much longer.”
The players’ eyes lit up.
Salted Fish Thrust immediately said, “That’s great! Ah no, I mean, this is truly the will of the heavens! Since the source of corruption can no longer be sealed, why not open it now and let us enter the polluted zone to thoroughly purify the source of corruption!”
Guan Yu did not refuse and merely said, “I can allow you to enter the core polluted zone. But before that, there is one condition.”
Upon hearing this—
The players all perked up.
Midnight Pig Slayer said, “Just one? Even if there are ten, we’ll do it without question!”
Street Slayer smacked him on the forehead: “Damn! Shut the hell up! You’re looking for trouble for no reason! If you don’t know how to speak, then just don’t speak!”
Midnight Pig Slayer could only shut his mouth.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge quickly asked, “Please, give your orders!”
Guan Yu said, “Back then, when I was escorting my two sisters-in-law through this place, we encountered a catastrophic upheaval in heaven and earth. I used my fate to protect myself and reversed causality with divine power from my true self to escape calamity. However, Lady Gan and Lady Mi were unfortunately corrupted and transformed into Abyssal monsters!”
Though they didn’t fully understand,
They could roughly guess what he wanted them to do.
Toasting the Moon immediately said, “Lord Guan wants us to purify the two madams?”
“Indeed. Though the two sisters-in-law are trapped nearby, after being corroded for so many years and enduring tens of cycles of reincarnation, their current state is something even I cannot discern.”
Guan Yu continued, “Since the Lord behind you all is an agent of the Will of the Stars, I trust he possesses the power to completely kill my two sisters-in-law and let them die in the correct manner. I ask that he personally act, to prove his strength!”
The players all suddenly understood.
“So that’s it!”
“A prerequisite quest?”
“Or a test for us!”
“There’s no need to bother the Lord for such a task.”
“Right, this isn’t anything major. How could we trouble the God Yu for this?”
“Why use a butcher’s knife to kill chickens? We can handle such a minor boss ourselves!”
“If we can’t even kill the fallen forms of Lady Gan and Lady Mi, then we probably aren’t qualified to unlock the seal and challenge the core source of corruption either!”
“The Calamity Army is determined to succeed!”
“Our target is the core boss, but we didn’t expect to be gifted two bosses along the way—what a buy-one-get-two deal!”
“Hahaha, I heard Lady Mi and Lady Gan were among the top beauties of the Three Kingdoms. I really want to see what they look like now!”
“……”
The Calamity Army readily accepted the commission.
But they clearly intended to act first and report later, without informing the Lord.
Although these guys who called themselves the Calamity Army didn’t seem serious, and often said things that others couldn’t understand—or even found offensive—
Guan Yu did not get angry.
On the contrary, he found them rather unique.
Right now, the state of his true body was deteriorating by the moment.
It likely wouldn’t be long before he, too, fell and became an Evil God, like many of his brothers and old comrades.
Perhaps this unique force of the Stars, and the unusual Lord behind them, could pull him back at a critical moment. Even if the hope was slim, it was worth trying.
“Then allow me to see,”
“What exactly makes this faction of the Stars so special!”
Guan Yu believed that the Stars Lord behind these people must also have seen him by now—and that he would continue to watch over this force closely.
……
An hour later.
The Calamity Army squad arrived at an inconspicuous valley.
“According to the clues, the two bosses should be here.” Black-Eyed Rui Ge stopped everyone and said, “Though they’re only minor bosses for a prerequisite task, we still shouldn’t let our guard down.”
Street Slayer said, “No need to tread so carefully, right? We’re not up against some Famous General. They’re just two women—how strong can they possibly be?”
Little Bell protested, “Uncle Slash, that’s not right. Why can’t women be strong!”
Chimera Wraith gave her opinion: “The strength of bosses in Twisted Three Kingdoms might not be tied to actual combat power. It could be related to the fate they bear. I think fame is one of the main manifestations of fate.”
Chenxi nodded and said, “Anyone who’s remembered in history surely bears fate. Lady Gan and Lady Mi are much more famous than Pei Yuanshao and Ma Yuanyi. If fame is one of the key metrics affecting power, then the bosses we’re about to face surely won’t be weak.”
That made sense!
Everyone nodded.
Even if this theory lacked proof and wasn’t necessarily correct—
Given their limited numbers, it was always safer to be cautious.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge was also an extremely cautious person, and immediately dispatched several Thunderhorn Eagles and Ranger players to scout ahead.
The valley was not large.
Signs of corruption were severe.
The players didn’t find the BOSS.
However, they quickly discovered a kind of monster they had never seen before.
This monster looked like a giant crow. Its body was two to three times larger than an average adult human, with two disproportionately large heads, and aside from its wings, its entire body was covered in black fur.
【Two-Headed Ghostflame Crow】, Level 10 Elite... Description: Once an ordinary bird, it fell into the Abyssal Nightmare and was eroded by a special source of corruption, thereby transformed into a brutal Abyssal creature.
“There seem to be a lot of these two-headed giant crows in this valley. Looks like this place contains a Lesser Source of Corruption!” Black-Eyed Rui Ge judged from the reconnaissance that they had come to the right place.
Street Slayer: “Why does the presence of many giant crows confirm there's a source of corruption?”
“Because based on our observations and research, when a particular group of monsters appears in clusters in a specific area, while the same type of monster is absent elsewhere nearby, then it is very likely that their appearance is the result of influence from a specific source of corruption.”
“We’ve been in Woniu Mountain for so long—have you seen any of these two-headed giant crows anywhere else? Now they’re all concentrated here in this valley. The most likely reason is that they were directly spawned here.”
Street Slayer scratched his head.
His style had always been to charge straight in.
He didn’t like wasting effort on researching all this messy stuff.
Midnight Pig Slayer: “Strange. Since we’re sure the two Madams are here, why haven’t we seen any sign of them yet? I can’t wait to see what beauties of the Three Kingdoms look like.”
Salted Fish Thrust: “Old Pig, I suggest you lower your expectations. You really think beauties who’ve been demonized can still be considered beautiful? Don’t tell me you’re hoping for something like a succubus.”
“Stop wasting time!”
“If we can’t find the BOSS for now, let’s just enter the valley and clear out these elite monsters!”
Black-Eyed Rui Ge nodded, “Mm, that works too. These elite monsters are quite valuable—now that we’ve encountered them, we definitely shouldn’t waste the opportunity.”
The players began entering the valley.
They locked onto the first monster.
This Two-Headed Ghostflame Giant Crow was crouched on a withered, slanted tree in a bird-like posture. Even in this position, its height exceeded two meters.
Its sheer size—
Was easy to imagine.
Though this monster looked quite intimidating, it didn’t even have Tier-Two strength. With the players’ current power, surrounding and killing it was indeed like using a butcher’s knife to kill a chicken.
First, test the monster’s combat mechanics.
Then, based on real-time data, conduct group suppression.
Once everyone was ready, Black-Eyed Rui Ge nodded at Chimera Wraith.
Chimera Wraith raised her staff and launched the first Flame Blade. The other players followed suit, firing various arrows and spells rapidly at the giant crow.
301 (Critical Hit)!
74!
51
……
The Two-Headed Giant Crow took a heavy hit from the powerful Flame Blade and was instantly severely wounded. Before it could flap its wings and escape, the rest of the attacks followed in quick succession. Before long, it was gravely injured and left with only a sliver of health.
“What the—!”
“This Level 10 Elite is really weak!”
Seeing how easily they had suppressed the Two-Headed Giant Crow, the players all breathed a sigh of relief. It didn’t seem difficult to kill this kind of monster.
However—
At that moment—
The Two-Headed Giant Crow began to counterattack.
Its two heads activated simultaneously—one on the left let out a piercing screech that disrupted the players’ concentration and interrupted their spellcasting, while the other on the right spat out a jet of green flame.
“Watch out!”
Salted Fish Thrust quickly raised his shield and stood in front to block the green flame for the other players. But this flame had no heat at all—on the contrary, it gave a chilling sensation that pierced the body.
In the blink of an eye,
A layer of ice formed on the surface of his body.
There was a feeling of almost being frozen stiff.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge immediately activated Flashstep and charged forward, dual daggers in hand, stabbing directly into the two oversized bird heads.
A mournful screech—
The giant crow monster fell.
A piece of white loot burst from its body.
Black-Eyed Rui Ge casually picked it up and glanced at the details.
【You have looted: Abyssal Essence Points +1600, Abyssal Magic Stone Fragment +2400, Two-Headed Ghostflame Feather +85, Two-Headed Ghostflame Crow Blood +35, Ghostflame Gem +20!】
What a rich material drop!
This kind of monster didn’t drop equipment directly.
But it would explode with an astonishing quantity of materials all at once.
These materials were enough to craft dozens of pieces of equipment. From an economic standpoint, killing Level 10 beast-type monsters yielded far more profit than humanoid ones.
Rui Ge briefly examined the materials.
The blood should be for alchemy, while the feathers could be used to craft equipment or produce high-quality arrows.
The Ghostflame Gem was a quality-enhancement material. It could upgrade mid-lower Tier-One white-quality equipment to high-quality, and even had a small chance of breaking through the quality tier.
“This monster is insanely profitable!”
The other players got visibly excited seeing the loot drop.
No one knew how many of these giant crows there were in the valley. If there were a hundred or more, the twenty-man group was bound to make a massive fortune!
Before anyone could discuss it—
Accompanied by a harsh, unpleasant screech—
The light overhead seemed to be swallowed by dark clouds.
Everyone looked up, and all were shocked to discover that what had appeared above their heads wasn’t dark clouds at all, but dozens of Two-Headed Giant Crows.
“What the hell?”
“Did we stir up the crows’ nest?”
“It’s the sound—that cry from the giant crow attracted all the others over!”
“……”
So it turned out—
The Two-Headed Ghostflame Crow’s strength was average, but its mechanics were rather troublesome.
The right head could spit frostfire, while the left could unleash psychic damage and call its kin.
If it wasn’t killed or silenced before it made a sound, one would be faced with an all-out assault by every other nearby of its kind.
If it were thirty or so standard Level 10 Elite monsters—
Rui Ge and the others might have found it troublesome but not enough to retreat. The problem was the monsters in front of them all had flight capabilities and extremely high mobility!
Monsters like these could easily bypass Warriors and Rangers to immediately target Warlocks or Monks at the start of combat, inflicting huge casualties on the Calamity Army.
“Fall back for now!”
Black-Eyed Rui Ge decisively gave the command.
This squad was too small and didn’t have the confidence to fight a battle of attrition, especially with two tough BOSSes lurking in the valley.
It was better to first retreat beyond the monsters’ range—
Then redeploy for battle.
There was nothing wrong with Black-Eyed Rui Ge’s thinking, but executing it wasn’t easy. On one hand, the players' mobility couldn’t compare to that of the giant crows. On the other, just as they were preparing to retreat—
A shrill, blood-curdling shriek echoed through the valley!
Everyone felt as if a steel needle had been driven into their skulls.
【You are affected by "Abyssal Wail": Strength -12, Agility -15, Spirit -20, Will -25!】
【You have taken 50 Spirit damage!】
【You are stunned for 4 seconds!】
Black-Eyed Rui Ge felt his vision go black and lost consciousness. Even with his level and attributes, he was stunned for 4 seconds. One could imagine the condition of the Tier-One players who had even lower stats.
“What happened?”
When Black-Eyed Rui Ge came to—
Dozens of massive Two-Headed Crows were already in front of them, spewing frostfire that instantly froze several players on the spot. Not only did it deal massive damage, it also further stripped them of their mobility!
That wasn’t the point!
Just these Tier-One monsters—
Absolutely could not launch an attack like that!
Black-Eyed Rui Ge immediately searched for and locked onto the source of the attack. When he saw the monster, an expression of disbelief instantly appeared on his face.
He had seen many twisted monsters.
But nothing like this.
This creature, at first glance, looked like two naked women forcibly fused together. The posture was one woman hugging another from behind, and their bodies were melted together like wax.
Their flesh had been grotesquely distorted. Their limbs folded across their chests and fused into the torso as if attempting to merge even further.
Although the two heads were disfigured beyond recognition—
One could barely tell they were once female.
On either side of their bodies grew numerous latticed tentacles, which wove into six irregular arms, each gripping a sharp bone spike. A tattered pair of flesh wings stretched from their backs, several times larger than their bodies when unfurled.
The creature’s four legs were equally deformed. Its front legs had become giant avian talons, while its hind legs had transformed into tentacles wrapped tightly around the front legs.
【Corrupted Twin Form】, Level 13 Commander Unit... Description: Lady Gan and Lady Mi, fused into a corrupted monster during a nightmare reincarnation cycle due to a strange coincidence. Possesses bizarre abilities and immense destructive power.
“What the hell is this?”
“Don’t tell me…”
“These are the two Madams we’re looking for?!”
“Heh… unfortunately, that’s exactly it—Lady Gan and Lady Mi!”
“Damn, that’s a massive sanity drain! What happened to make them become like this?!”
“Hell, I thought I’d see some beauties, but this design—can it get any more grotesque? Kids are gonna have nightmares!”
“Anyone played Magic: The Gathering? This thing kinda looks like that Eldrazi Angel called ‘Brisela, Voice of Nightmares’!”
“……”
Level 13 Commander!
No doubt about its strength!
Just the players present alone could hardly stand against it.
Surrounding this corrupted monster were still dozens of elite monsters!
【Player ‘Little Bell’ has died. Essence +5200!】
【Player ‘Toasting the Moon’ has died. Essence +2500!】
【Player ‘Black-Eyed Rui Ge’ has died. Essence +6400!】
【……】
Hang Yu was within the territory.
He had been monitoring the Calamity Army’s operations on all fronts.
Among them, the team led by Rui Ge had yielded the most substantial discovery. Though they had ultimately been wiped out—
There was no doubt their findings would shake the entire game community!