MMORPG: Rebirth of the Mortal Online - Chapter 136

Chapter 136: The Old World
The commotion died down, but many hidden eyes saw this as a prelude to something bigger.

During the Gathering, there had been tension among the Seven Ancient Guilds and their allies.

Nothing had happened yet, but friends, who were part of different factions, cut their ties together, preparing for the inevitable conflict that loomed on the horizon.

It was only a matter of time.

A slight distance away, hidden behind a corner, Lady Yu observed everything with a blush on her cheeks. Her gaze followed behind the black-haired young man, who returned to his quarters with Digby.

“So he is Adam Palestar…”

It made her heart flutter. This was a person that Little God wanted her to investigate.

‘If he really has His power, how come he doesn’t have the power of holiness?’

At first, she thought that perhaps Little God was wrong, but she didn’t dare to think about that any further. It was near blasphemy to think that Little God could be wrong.

Those with the power of gods at their disposal should also have the power of holiness. However, Adam didn’t have it, as if it were completely erased.

‘Weird, I’ll have to investigate him… more thoroughly.’

Lady Yu cheekily smiled and vanished like a light in the darkness. The shadows of the night seemed to swallow her whole.

The Originals usually didn’t have any ways of gaining powers similar to the mercenaries, but Lady Yu was different because she was a servant of the gods.

They had granted her powers beyond comprehension—the Power of Holiness.

…

The night turned dark and deep.

Within the Crimson Hound’s living quarters, many were sleeping, snoring and muttering in their sleep.

Adam was sitting on his bed, the window curtains slightly ajar, letting in a faint sliver of moonlight.

He thought about returning to the real world, but it was already late, and everyone must be already asleep.

He decided to stay a little longer, enjoying the peacefulness of the night.

At that moment, as if someone just snapped his fingers to make him feel sleepy, his eyelids started to feel heavier and heavier, until he eventually drifted off into a deep and nightmarish sleep.

…

Adam found himself in a dark and twisted dreamscape, filled with shadows and eerie whispers.

The scenery continued to shift—from a dark forest to the back of an ancient castle to a desolate wasteland with no end in sight—and then finally ended at the edge of a cliff overlooking a vast, churning ocean.

However, the churning ocean was reddish, as if it were filled to the brim with blood.

At that moment, bones began to emerge from the crimson waves, floating eerily towards the edge of the cliff.

In that instant, the face of a person also emerged—dead—and its flesh started to peel off from its skull in long, thin strips.

“Where the hell am I?”

Adam had never seen a dream this vivid before. It was almost like he was there.

“You’re in the Old World.” A voice said.

Adam’s first instinct was to turn his head around to find out who said that, but then a figure appeared in front of him.

A black-haired, silver-eyed man stood before him, dressed in a flowing, baggy robe that seemed to be made of some kind of fabric he had never seen before.

He was just standing there, but for some odd reason, a noise came from his direction.

Ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump.

It sounded like a loud heartbeat, echoing through the Old World like a drum in the night.

“Who..?” Adam stood up hesitatingly.

“Name’s Alastor,” he said, and he pointed his finger around the nightmarish landscape. “And this is the Old World, a world destroyed so that the New World could be rebuilt from its ashes.”

“Am I dreaming?” Adam asked and then felt a headache, forcing him to grab his head. “Of course it is a dream… It can’t be anything else.”

“What isn’t a dream?” Alastor stood by the cliff, looking at the crimson sea. “This is the Blind Sea, but back in the Old World days, it was known as the Sea of Lost Souls.”

“How could anyone live in here?” Adam asked, looking at the drought-filled land and the dry and barren landscape stretching out before him.

“Different kinds of people lived back then.” Alastor said. “The Originals hadn’t yet existed back then. I think the name Originals is funny because they are far from being the original inhabitants.”

“Who are you, then?” Adam asked. “Who are you, really?”

He had never seen dreams or nightmares when he was sleeping in the Mortal Online—not even once during over a decade of being there.

Dreams and nightmares were foreign concepts in this world.

“The Dark God of Blackened Hearts,” Alastor turned to him. “That’s me.”

Adam’s eyes bulged wide, and then Alastor opened his robes to reveal a hole in his chest with a black, burned heart still beating inside.

“You… didn’t die?” Adam asked with a squeak.

“A foolish thought. A god can never truly die.” Alastor said and looked around the wretched place. “I was the creator of the Old World. When it was destroyed, I still didn’t die. I was just sealed away.”

“That’s why…” Adam felt his throat turn dry. “If you’re resurrected, the Old World will come back…”

“Exactly,” Alastor said with a chuckle, and he pointed at him. “You’re a smart fellow.”

“What do you exactly want with me?” Adam asked with a frown. “I destroyed your soul… So how…”

His eyes slowly widened with sudden realization.

“The curse that was mentioned!” Alastor chuckled. “I am that curse, per se. And you, Adam, are the vessel.”

Adam stepped back in shock and turned his gaze down at his chest. He ripped off his shirt and saw a small, intricate symbol etched into his skin.

It was a symbol of the black heart, located right above his heart.

“That’s why Blackheart did that…” Adam gulped. “I also have a black heart?”

“Our hearts fused together.” Alastor said. “Our lives are bound together.”

“No…” Adam gritted his teeth and shouted. “I’ll just kill myself and get rid of you!”

“You can do that, but I have a feeling you will regret that.” Alastor said. “You, and the others from that Other World, can come back alive as much as you want to. In that sense, all of you are very similar to us and the Chaosbeings.”

“Yeah, I can, so I’m not too worried about losing a couple of months of progress as I can get rid of you!” Adam said.

“That’s the thing.” Alastor laughed. “If you die, you’ll lose your ability to come back alive.”

“What?” Adam frowned. “You’re lying.”

“Am I?” Alastor chuckled. “Every player also has their own respawn crystal. It’s just very hidden, and it cannot be broken by ordinary means. Only God can do it, haha.”

“That’s…”

Alastor opened his hand and snapped his fingers—a strange, red crystal appeared in his hand—and it felt shockingly familiar to Adam, as if he had a deeper connection to it than he could explain.

“Your respawn crystal.” Alastor squeezed the crystal in his hand and destroyed it. “Is now gone. You only have one life left, so go ahead and kill yourself.”