Chapter 118: Hidden Task

    "Nian—" Jin Jiuchi almost called out to the jade doll in reflex, but he stopped himself in the nick of time when he recalled the presence of the mummy minister and the soldiers around him.

    ’Remember, Jin Jiuchi, you are currently posing as Anubis! You must not expose your real identity to them!’

    Luckily, his little slip of the tongue went unnoticed amidst the loud clamor in the hall, as the soldiers pounded the hilt of their curved blades on the ground, chanting, "Punishment! Punishment! Punishment!"

    It was only through sheer willpower that Jin Jiuchi could remain poised on his throne despite the questions swirling in his mind. W–What the hell? Could someone tell him what was going on right now?! Was he not supposed to be swimming in the lake of afterlife, so how did he end up here?!

    He discreetly surveyed his surroundings and realized that he was no longer in the temple hall but in a grand castle-like setting.

    The vast hall stretched before him, adorned with towering marble columns etched with inscriptions which he could not fathom at all. The ceiling soared high above, painted with a celestial tableau of stars that represented the eternal cosmos and the divine realm. The throne he was sitting on was made of gilded ebony and inlaid with precious gemstones, shimmering and reflecting the light with an ethereal glow.

    Jin Jiuchi quickly abandoned any attempt to make sense of his current situation. After all, he was aware that analysis was not his forte. Just as he was about to turn to the mummy minister and demanded an explanation, as he always did before, a cryptic voice echoed in his mind — or more accurately, inside the minds of all players.

    [Congratulations on triggering the hidden task: ’Scene Re-enactment’! Starting now, all skill cards and props will be disabled. Completion of the hidden task will assist players in fulfilling the main task. Failure to do so will result in death.]

    "Scene re-enactment?!" Jiang Shun hissed in a low voice. He tried to struggle out of the ropes binding his arms to no avail. Though it looked worn-out at a glance, Jiang Shun found that he could not budge even a bit! He asked the other four in an urgent tone, "Does everyone receive the same task? Damn it, my skill card and props are really useless now! What kind of scene should we re-enact anyway?!"

    "Y–Yes, I have the same task too..." Lang Zhenya responded with a trembling voice, as the Nightmare’s last sentence was still echoing in her mind. "Failure means death? What kind of task is this...?!"

    "How did we end up triggering this damned task in the first place?!" Wind demanded with a furrowed brow. She was actually in the most disadvantageous position here, having recently fallen out with the other players. To make matters worse, her props and skill card were disabled. It meant her fighting capability was reduced by almost seventy percent should anything happen! "I haven’t heard of something like this happening in a low-level Cycle before!"

    "You!" Jiang Shun sharply turned his attention to Xinxin. "You are the one tasked with guarding the temple tonight. You must be the one who has triggered this hidden task! What have you done?!"

    "Mmm-mmhh!!" Xinxin’s mouth was still wrapped with foul-smelling bandages, leaving him unable to defend his innocence. He really wanted to cry right now. Why was his life so miserable?!

    Meanwhile, Shen Nianzu was not even paying attention to the hushed conversation around him, as he was busy looking around in search of a certain figure. This hidden task should be mandatory for all players, but where was Jin Jiuchi?

    It couldn’t be...

    Raising his head, he gazed upon the figure of God seated on the throne, who was resting his cheek on his palm with a nonchalant look. He wore elegantly tailored linen trousers that draped loosely over his legs, while his upper body remained bare, revealing a perfectly sculpted chest with solid abs and hard muscles. His belt, arm cuffs, and the metal collar around his neck were carved with intricate ancient symbols.

    There was no need for Shen Nianzu to think twice: he immediately knew that the figure before him was Anubis, the God of the afterlife and mummification.

    He recalled the last moment when Jin Jiuchi had placed the ancient headpiece on himself. Now, the same headpiece sat on Anubis’ head, though it obscured half of his face, making it difficult for Shen Nianzu to discern his appearance clearly.

    That man... was he Jin Jiuchi or not?

    No, he could not be. The deity before him exuded a regal and divine aura that could not possibly be possessed by a silly husky like Jin Jiuchi. Alas, just as this thought crossed his mind, Anubis let out a thunderous bellow that reverberated through the hall, commanding everyone’s attention.

    "SILENCE!"

    The once-boisterous hall instantly fell into complete stillness, so quiet that even a pin drop could be heard.

    Shen Nianzu: "..." That was Jin Jiuchi’s voice, alright.

    "...!!" Xinxin’s eyes also widened in realization, but Shen Nianzu shot him a meaningful glance, silently instructing him to keep mum for the time being. Fortunately, his mouth was sealed shut right now otherwise he would have jumped up in shock!

    Damn it, Da Shen really became a God! How cool!

    "M–My Lord," the mummy minister trembled under the weight of Jin Jiuchi’s (fake) fury. "Please quell your anger!"

    Jin Jiuchi crooked his finger and signaled for the mummy minister to approach. Filled with trepidation, the poor mummy could only resign to his fate and ascended the stairs leading to the throne.

    Seizing the opportunity while Anubis and his minister were engrossed in conversation, Jiang Shun turned to the others, cold sweat trickling down his back. "What kind of scene should we re-enact?! Why is there no clue from the Nightmare at all?! There’s no time limit to this task, but if we waste too much time here, we will miss the bus and get trapped in this Cycle forever!"

    Hearing those words, Lang Zhenya grew paler and started to panic. "I–I have no idea either. I thought low-level Cycles only needed us to do hard labor? What should we do? Will we really die if we fail to act out this scene?!"

    Shen Nianzu’s pupils trembled, but he quickly lowered his gaze to conceal the emotions within. It seemed like... he knew what kind of scene they should perform. The worshippers turning into rebels, the reign of terror and despair... was it not depicted on the murals he had studied previously?!

    But if that was the case, then to complete the hidden task, they had to...

    "I know what we are supposed to do," Wind suddenly said, causing Shen Nianzu’s heart to lurch in his chest. "It’s illustrated on the murals in the temple hall. To complete this task, we have to behead Anubis and seize his headpiece."

    .

    .

    A/N: JJ’s list of severed body parts:

    Arm - check

    Next head!! ^^