Chapter 399 Soul Cantor
"Soul Cantor…"
"Orestes."
Kai Xiusu spoke the name aloud.
In the Valley of Confusion, towering and twisted trees stretched endlessly into the sky, their dense canopies blotting out the light, casting the land beneath into perpetual shadow. Deep within this shadowed forest stood an ancient fortress—Castle of Weeping Souls—built from black stone, its walls worn by time and sorrow. The master of this cursed keep was a Lich known as Orestes.
Centuries ago, this place had not been called the Valley of Confusion. There was no Black Forest—only a solitary Wizard Tower. At that time, Orestes had been a revered mage, a man of great natural talent, respected across the Northern Regions. In this magical desert where mages held the highest status, a High-level Mage like Orestes was treated as a god. The nobles surrounding him offered him thousands of slaves, and he lived in opulent luxury, treating mortals as nothing more than insects beneath his feet.
After nearly a century drowning in decadence, Orestes finally discovered the truth: he was dying.
For all their arcane power, mages were still mortal beings. Death was inevitable—though not absolute. Determined to cheat fate, Orestes sought immortality at any cost. He unearthed a forbidden ritual from an ancient mausoleum, made a pact with the Lord of Bones, Milcor, and sacrificed his castle and thousands of slaves in a blood offering. Through the ritual, he imprisoned his soul within a Fate Chest, drank a potion forged from poison and sacrificial blood, and forced his spirit into the chest. His corpse rose again—reborn as a Lich.
He was dead.
Or rather, he had achieved immortality.
He existed now in a new form—eternal, unyielding.
The once-lush garden had become a nightmare realm of blackened trees. The grand castle, once a symbol of power and wealth, now stood as a crumbling ruin, its halls filled with whispers and sorrow. The vibrant, confident mage had become a wretched, undead specter.
Yet Orestes was not satisfied. His soul remained trapped in the Fate Chest. He craved true immortality. So he began inscribing Rune Arrays, summoning endless skeletons and undead, preparing to sacrifice the souls of an entire duchy—Carter’s—so that he might live forever.
This was the hidden side quest of the Northern Regions in the previous world: [Soul Cantor of the Valley of Confusion].
The quest chain was long and grueling. Players first had to accept a haunted basement quest from a household in Antonio City, tracking down a ghostly presence. Following its trail into the underground, they discovered the ruins of a forgotten sacrificial altar. Then, they traveled to the Northern Grand Library, sifting through tens of thousands of books to uncover the origins of the Rune Array, revealing the true name of the Soul Cantor—Orestes.
From there, they followed fragmented historical records, gathering clues from taverns, government offices, and the Adventurer’s Guild. Eventually, they found an ancient, mad beggar—driven mad by the horrors he’d witnessed.
The mad old man tested the players mercilessly, forcing them to complete absurd, grotesque tasks: retrieving fresh Chimera dung, pulling the filthiest tooth from a Hill Giant, snatching food straight from an Ogre’s mouth. These weren’t random challenges—they were trials to assess strength and trustworthiness.
Having seen too many fall to the Valley’s forbidden power, the beggar wanted to destroy the Lich. But he refused to let innocent lives be sacrificed. Only after all tasks were completed would he reveal the final clue—guiding them to the Ancient Mausoleum.
There, they would unravel the secrets buried within, survive deadly traps, battle endless hordes of the undead, and finally reach the inner sanctum—where the Lich’s Fate Chest lay hidden. Only then could they complete the final stage: destroying the Lich’s conspiracy in the Valley of Confusion.
The entire quest chain required hundreds of difficult steps, months of gameplay, and the collection of hundreds of scattered clues and quest items.
In the previous world, players affectionately mocked it as "Dog Planner’s Malice," "Plumbing Task King," or "Hidden Tasks Even Dogs Won’t Do."
It wasn’t until the 2.0 expansion, [The Age of Kings], that a player of unmatched will and power—Singo—finally cleared the entire side quest. Even then, he had to recruit fifty professional players, each averaging level eleven, just to barely defeat the Lich. They split the massive rewards, and nearly claimed a staff so powerful it bordered on artifact status—proof of how brutal and infuriating this quest truly was.
But Kai Xiusu was different.
He knew the story. He commanded absolute control over the region. And he possessed strength that could crush a Lich without effort.
He was determined to succeed.
He simply hesitated—on how to deal with the Lich.
"Orestes isn’t some madman chasing forbidden spells. He’s just a coward—terrified of death, obsessed with self-preservation. The only thing that sets him apart is his unmatched natural talent for magic."
"Greed, fear, selfishness… that’s the kind of man you can easily manipulate."
"Maybe… I can make him serve me."
Kai Xiusu narrowed his eyes. The pale gold of his pupils flickered with a faint, inner flame. Then, a soft shake of his head. A quiet, almost amused chuckle escaped him.
"Strange… Anzeta really does have a knack for suffering. Such a remote, forgotten corner of the world, yet it’s always producing wonders."
"Dragons. Devils. Demons. Shades. Giants. Vampires."
"And even a Lich."
This wasn’t just Kai Xiusu’s observation. Players from the past had often joked about it. On forums, there was even a meme: "The humble Northern Regions, where talent is as abundant as dust."
Even in Version 4.0, high-tier players from the Stellar Realm frequently unearthed rare treasures in Anzeta—the so-called "newbie zone"—proving that beneath its desolation lay ancient, forgotten secrets.
And it made sense.
Anzeta Great Wasteland had once been ruled by dragons, giants, and elves. It had known glory—civilizations that once towered over the land. But endless war had reduced it to ruin. The grand cities crumbled. The magic weave itself had frayed, becoming weak and unstable. The land became a cursed magical wasteland, shunned by the favor of Mistrala.
Yet beneath its cracked surface, countless ancient ruins still waited—buried beneath sand and shadow.
Now, the Empire of Ashen maintained a specialized archaeological team, composed of skilled players and scholars. They roamed the wasteland like grave robbers, digging through ruins, uncovering lost secrets, and bringing back knowledge and treasures to the empire.
Players online mocked them affectionately as the "Fantasy Tomb Raiders."
Kai Xiusu turned his gaze forward. Through the Heaven’s Judgment Dragon Eye and the All-Seeing Eye, his vision pierced the distance—seeing clearly hundreds of miles away, to the Ancient Mausoleum. The resting place of Milcor’s priests. The hidden vault where the Lich’s Fate Chest was kept.
To mortals, finding that ruin in the endless wasteland would be like searching for a needle in a sea of sand.
But Kai Xiusu was Emperor of the Empire of Ashen. Within his realm, he held absolute authority.
"Orestes."
"Have you prepared to welcome me?"
Kai Xiusu grinned—a cruel, jagged smile. To mortals, the Lich was a nightmare made flesh. To him, the creature was already a meal, barely worth the effort—like a duck about to be plucked, afraid it might fly away.
(End of Chapter)
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