"Mountwell is long dead! It's a ghost!"
"In stories, ghosts often return to claim the lives of their relatives and friends. Mountwell has become one of them!"
"Mountwell was killed by a dragon; dying like that must have left him with a massive grudge!"
"Now that he sees Oakmoor has become the dragon's thrall, I can't imagine how much he hates him!"
"This is bad! Run!"
"Just get back to the dragon and you'll be safe!"
Seeing Ronan Mountwell's familiar face, various urban legends flooded the viewers' minds.
With all these factors combined, he'd be a vengeful spirit at the very least in any story!
"Mountwell, it's my fault. Please, don't make things hard for Oakmoor!"
Takeshi Sable pulled out three sticks of incense and couldn't help but start kowtowing to the screen.
He hadn't expected the Fire Dragon to strike so suddenly. He'd been too slow with the Totem of Undying, and now that only Kira Oakmoor was left, he couldn't afford any more accidents.
He kowtowed three times, hoping to ward off any misfortune.
Scratching his head, Ronan Mountwell floated in the air; no horrific scene played out.
Watching the fleeing Kira Oakmoor, he hurriedly called out.
"Don't run, Oakmoor! It's me!"
As the ethereal voice echoed, Kira Oakmoor's legs began to tremble slightly.
He knew exactly who it was, which was why he was terrified!
Relying on their years of friendship, he finally managed to ask.
"M-Mountwell... are you a person or a ghost?"
"Of course I'm... uh?"
Ronan Mountwell was stumped by the question.
He really didn't know what his current state was, but he was certainly far from being human.
"I'm in a very special state right now, but don't be afraid, Oakmoor. I won't hurt you!"
Communication was a good sign; once he was sure the other wouldn't harm him, Kira Oakmoor's courage grew.
"So, Mountwell, you didn't disappear!"
"I'm not entirely sure myself. All I know is that after I died, a wooden statue appeared, and then I became like this."
As he explained his situation, Takeshi Sable, watching from outside the screen, was surprised.
A wooden statue—wasn't that a Totem of Undying?!
He had used it too late and thought the top-tier item had been wasted, but it turned out it had actually worked in the end!
But even if it worked, look at Ronan Mountwell's current state.
His player perspective had vanished, and his connection with the Samurai Nation was severed. He clearly couldn't earn any more National Fortune rewards for them.
'At least we can still see him. He didn't vanish completely like the other players!'
It wasn't a total waste of a Totem of Undying. Takeshi Sable accepted the situation helplessly.
The viewers came to the same realization.
"When other players die, they just die. Nothing this strange has ever happened before!"
"A wooden statue? Does that mean Mountwell is in a state between life and death?"
"Did someone use a Totem of Undying? At least it saved Mountwell!"
"Even though he lost his player status, look on the bright side—being a ghost might actually be pretty good!"
"He doesn't have to worry about monster invasions, and maybe he can help gather intel!"
"Yeah, ghosts can phase through blocks. There's a lot he can do!"
Now that they knew Ronan Mountwell could communicate and wasn't a monster, everyone felt relieved.
Sure enough, after explaining his situation, Ronan Mountwell's expression shifted.
"Oakmoor, after I died, I found Galen Yu's chunk. Guess what I saw!"
First, he described the state of the chunk and the buildings.
"I see. The area around the Nether Portal needs to be hollowed out, the mob farm has a way to roast mobs, and there are details like trapdoors."
"Our defeat wasn't underserved!"
Thinking back to when he and Soren Park visited, they could only see the exterior. The slab-covered roof prevented them from seeing inside.
Missing those details... no wonder their conclusions were so off!
"All that is fine, but the most important thing is—guess what else I saw on Galen Yu's chunk!"
Having said this, Ronan Mountwell's tone grew heavy.
Realizing he was about to hear a major piece of intel, Kira Oakmoor perked up his ears.
"What?"
"A dragon! A Five-clawed Divine Dragon belonging to the Nine Provinces!"
"I didn't misinterpret it. They were undergoing a tribulation! A lightning tribulation!"
Being relatively close to the Nine Provinces geographically, they weren't ignorant of certain stories.
Like the legends of Earth Immortals, Divine Dragons, and lightning tribulations.
What is an immortal?
One who exists outside the Three Realms and the Five Elements is an immortal.
Tales of immortals say that Governor Yan achieved liberation through arms, and Young Protector Wen shed his mortal coil after attaining the Great Law of Light; in truth, they never died.
It refers to figures who have reached the highest divine realm attainable by humans.
It's a metaphor for someone who can predict or see through matters, or someone who is carefree and unburdened.
How can one be carefree and unburdened?
At the very least, one must be omnipotent, immortal, and possess numerous extraordinary supernatural abilities!
"Has Galen Yu started cultivating immortality?!"
He had read it in a book once: 'True immortals transform and ascend to the heavens.'
The ultimate name is nameless. Those with names have twenty-seven ranks. An immortal becomes 'true,' a true becomes 'divine,' or 'saintly,' each with nine ranks. At the peak, they enter the Void of Silence, effortless and nameless.
Kira Oakmoor didn't fully understand it, but he knew the power level involved was likely far beyond that of the Ice and Fire dragons!
"Based on my observations, no."
Hearing the response from Ronan Mountwell, Kira Oakmoor relaxed slightly.
"That's a relief. We can still use the dragons to keep him in check!"
"But... I also found other Ice and Fire dragons on his chunk. If those dragons can be tamed, what about the Eastern Divine Dragon?"
At this point, Kira Oakmoor understood the implication.
A true dragon that could summon wind and rain, and call down heavenly lightning!
Even if Galen Yu wasn't cultivating immortality, having such a thing on his chunk...
"This won't do. I need to get back to the Dragon Mother and Mark immediately. Something huge is happening!"