Chapter 157 Chapter 156-Changes in Sunset Mountain, Side Quest Completed（2nd update, Cheer me with Power Stones!）
The barriers that originally sealed the secret realms in the Periphery of the Sunset Mountains had all vanished, leaving only the entrances.
Moreover, the monsters within had been swapped out.
No longer were they the terrifying Abyss Lords with chaotic auras; they'd been replaced by relatively normal Lord-level bosses.
The monsters' levels had dropped quite a bit.
Though the new lords that had appeared were still outrageously high-levelled and well beyond what human players could handle at the moment, they weren't as hopeless as those Abyss monsters who often had levels in the hundreds.
Additionally, now if someone accidentally wandered into these secret realms, as long as they didn't deliberately provoke the monsters and draw their aggro, they wouldn't be attacked and could still escape unscathed.
"No wonder part of Sunset Mountain was opened in the updated map after the system version upgrade. These must be those secret realms, right?"
Blue Sea couldn't help but exclaim on their way, "This is a more appropriate level, although it's still unexplorable for us given our current levels. At least we're not as hopeless as before. After a while, this place should become a mecca for major guilds to farm equipment and level up."
Adam, walking beside him, agreed deeply, "The environment has completely changed. The Abyss monsters we encountered on the way here have all disappeared. It seems the system has fundamentally altered the terrain of these secret realms..."
The other members of the team were also murmuring amongst themselves, "If we'd known the way back would have changed so much, we could have left on our own. Why did we have to wait for Galewind the whole day?"
"Dream on, even though the monster levels have dropped, they're still beyond our ability to handle."
"That's true. While the opened secret realms won't attack unless you provoke them, the unopened realms we went through earlier are not like that."
"You've got a point. It seems we're still not strong enough. When can we be as powerful as Galewind?"
"How did you manage to mess up something as simple as a few peanuts?"
"Who's got a golden stream? Time to wake this joker up."
"What the hell..."
Amid the chattering and laughter, they finally returned to Twisted Grove, only to be stunned by what they saw.
The Chaos Mist that had previously enveloped the entire woodland was completely gone.
The rotting skeletons on the ground were nowhere to be found.
The grove was filled with flowers and trees, with small monsters roaming around.
As they walked through Twisted Grove, John and his companions even found some players exploring, leveling up by fighting monsters.
It was clear that higher-level players had begun to explore this area.
Adam and the others were also tempted to explore this area.
After all, the monsters in the grove were high-levelled, and there were some elite wild monsters, making it an ideal place to level up and farm equipment.
However, they knew they had important tasks at hand and had to resist the temptation.
Werewolf Village was as quiet as when John and his companions had arrived, except for the noticeably increased foot traffic of players coming and going on the village road...
The venerable werewolf seer, Likexei, still stood at the village's entrance, recounting his twenty-year obsession to each passing player.
After leaving the Twisted Grove, John and his companions had fetched their mounts from the space and sped on their way...
Upon reaching Likexei, a system prompt surfaced in front of everyone.
[System Alert: The side quest "20 Years of Longing" has been completed. Do you choose to hand in the task?]
Blue Sea and Adam shared a knowing smile, leaving the task of handing in the quest to John.
After all, John was the one who had completed this side quest solo.
They were already lucky to mooch some experience rewards off him.
Although Adam and Blue Sea were very curious about the rewards from the werewolf seer's Blessing, they wouldn't stoop so low as to accept rewards for work they didn't do.
John didn't hesitate, dismounted, and approached the elder Likexei.
"Mr. Likexei, do you remember us?"
The elder werewolf Likexei lifted his head, his cloudy eyes full of wisdom, and after pondering for a moment, he exclaimed, "Ah, the honorable travelers! I remember you, you were here before the Twisted Grove changed..."
Suddenly, realization dawned on Likexei's face, and he exclaimed, "By the gods, you've actually managed to walk out of Sunset Mountain alive!"
The old werewolf's exclamation instantly attracted the attention of the passing players.
Many curious eyes turned to them.
A good number of players had accepted the "20 Years of Longing" side quest in the last few days.
But they'd searched the Twisted Grove for a long time without finding any clues related to the side quest.
Now, to see someone actually chatting with old man Likexei, had they completed this notoriously difficult side quest?
Suddenly, someone recognized the identities of these people.
"Wait, am I seeing things? Aren't they wearing the emblems of the Genesis Guild?"
"That's right! They're from the Genesis Guild, and the leader is Adam, the guild leader of Genesis Guild!"
"Wow, what are they doing in such a remote place?"
"They're probably doing some quest. I heard that a lot of the core big shots from Genesis Guild have appeared in Silverglow recently, seems like they're up to something big."
"That mage next to Adam looks familiar too."
"Are you blind? That's the guild leader of the Blue Sea Guild, Blue Sea, a top-notch big shot on par with Adam..."
"Holy moly, the leaders of the two top guilds gathered here, could it be they're exploring those high-level secret realms of Sunset Mountain?"
"Hard to say, they look pretty worn-out, like they've completed their quest..."
"Weren't the outskirts of Sunset Mountain just opened? They moved so fast?"
"Why don't you ask them yourself? How would I know so much about these two guilds..."
The passing players began chattering amongst themselves.
John smiled and said lightly, "Yes, we have returned from Twisted Grove alive and, as hoped, have fulfilled your request."
The old werewolf paused for a moment, then his eyes suddenly lit up with excitement.
"Really? Thank the ancestors for their blessings. At last, there's some good news. I've not waited these 20 years in vain. Tell me, how is my grandson doing?"
Seeing the excited spark in the old werewolf's eyes, John shook his head with a bitter smile.
He hesitated, wondering whether he should reveal the ashes of the werewolf Sylar from his bag...
This old man had waited here for 20 long years, making the sincerest of requests to every passerby, all just to find out about his grandson's whereabouts.
If he knew his grandson had already passed, could he bear such a heavy blow?
After pondering for a moment, under the hopeful gaze of the old werewolf, John still decided to take out the ashes from his bag.
A handful of gray particles appeared before the old man Likexei, with John saying solemnly, "This is... your grandson, Sylar. I'm sorry, but an evil abyss lord devoured his soul and made him a puppet. He died 20 years ago, and we've gone through a lot just to retrieve his ashes..."
John struggled with his words.
He saw how the old man's eyes, initially full of hope and excitement, gradually dimmed and eventually turned into a look of desolate despair...
"Sylar, my grandson..." The old werewolf murmured softly, his eyes full of tears.
"I've always warned you not to step foot in Twisted Grove, a place of chaos and danger. Why didn't you listen..."
The old werewolf's emotions quickly affected the surrounding people, each casting a sympathetic look his way.
After a while, the old werewolf managed to break free from his memories.
He composed his painful expression, took out a bottle from his pocket, and collected the ashes in front of him.
"No matter what, I'm very grateful to you, noble traveler. You've brought me closure. It's the tradition of our werewolf clan that, no matter where a person dies, if their body can be buried in their homeland, their soul can find eternal rest...
"Now, let me offer you my sincerest Blessing. Thank you for your help, this is the least I can do for you..."
[System Prompt: You have completed the side quest "20 Years of Longing". Would you like to accept the reward?]
Without hesitation, John nodded and accepted.
Unexpectedly, the old werewolf Likexei didn't immediately offer the reward. Instead, he waved at John and the others. "Honorable adventurers, please follow me..."
John looked up in confusion.
This reward seemed rather mysterious, requiring a specific location for its delivery?
Under the lead of the old werewolf Likexei, the group entered the werewolf village, eventually arriving at a building that resembled a church.
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