Samsara Paradise: Dream Weaver of Connections.

Upon entering Edwin's domain, Lin Yi immediately felt a heavy pressure enveloping his entire body, as if he were in viscous seawater, making his movements somewhat sluggish.

Even more deadly is that every time Edwin's attack is blocked, it explodes into a dark red energy ripple that spreads like water.

While these splash damages are not high per hit, they cover a considerable area and also have the added effect of [Crimson Erosion].

This means that Lin Yi's room for maneuver is greatly compressed, and every contact with an attack could cause the erosion layer to rise rapidly.

"Troublesome." Lin Yi frowned slightly and immediately cast a [Purification] spell on himself.

With a shield of holy light enveloping his entire body, Lin Yi attempted to use offense as a form of defense to disrupt Edwin's attack frequency.

With the domain's enhancement, Edwin's speed and strength seemed to have been significantly amplified. He completely abandoned defense and transformed into a pure offensive machine.

The longsword, leaving afterimages, launched a fierce attack on Lin Yi, accompanied by ubiquitous splashing energy waves.

The sounds of clashing blades and exploding energy intertwined within the realm of Crimson Waltz, creating a brutal symphony of death.

Faced with splash attacks that were difficult to completely dodge, Lin Yi continuously cast small-scale Hercules Shields to offset some of the splash energy.

Relying on his strong regenerative abilities, Lin Yi forcibly withstood the splash damage and fought against Edwin.

The battle has entered its most brutal and fierce phase!

Edwin's health was dropping steadily under Lin Yi's attacks, and it had now fallen to around 15%.

If they keep fighting like this, Edwin will eventually fall here.

Although Lin Yi had recovery methods, the [Crimson Erosion] stacked up extremely quickly within Edwin's domain. Even with the purification spell, the number of layers once climbed to 25.

The square beneath their feet had long since become a witness to this battle.

The hard stone floor was covered with deep, crisscrossing sword marks, like scars on the earth.

Huge craters are everywhere, wounds blasted open by energy.

As Edwin looked at the wounds inside his body that were being eroded by the power of the abyss and whose healing speed was greatly reduced, his mind core, dominated by the power of the crimson, finally made a final decision—he could not delay any longer!

The opponent's regenerative abilities and that stubborn corrosive power will eventually exhaust his life.

We must change tactics and end this battle before the domain ends.

Edwin's attack rhythm changed, shifting from suppression to a more focused "hit" rather than "damage" entanglement.

He abandoned his sweeping, powerful moves, and his swordplay became extremely unpredictable and elusive.

His longsword was designed to target blind spots where Lin Yi could not completely avoid or block during high-speed movement and parrying. Every attack aimed to leave even the smallest wound on Lin Yi, just to add layers of erosion.

Lin Yi immediately noticed Edwin's change in tactics, but even if Lin Yi wanted to retreat, it wouldn't be so easy. He could only try to kill Edwin before the [Crimson Erosion] layers stacked up.

Lin Yi was well aware of the threat posed by Edwin's skill panel: [Crimson End - Noble Elegy].

Even with his health and resistance, the probability of triggering an instant death condition is extremely high once he is covered by more than 40 layers of the Erosion buff.

We must not let him succeed!
Lin Yi's footsteps became more erratic, using the [Dark Soul Silk] to guide himself through small-scale extreme displacements, weaving through sword light and splashing energy to minimize the number of times he was hit.

At the same time, his counterattacks became even more lethal.

Each move was aimed directly at the key points of Edwin's attack, attempting to disrupt the rhythm of its layered erosion.

Within the crimson domain, two figures rapidly intersected, separated, and collided!
The number of crimson erosion layers on Lin Yi's body fluctuated like a roller coaster. Under Edwin's relentless pursuit and Lin Yi's extreme dodging and purification, it struggled to fluctuate between layers 0 and 30, unable to break through the 30-layer mark. This made the crimson light in Edwin's eyes increasingly anxious.

Time ticked by, and the duration of the Crimson Waltz was about to end.

Edwin knew that once the domain disappeared, the difficulty of stacking erosion layers would increase exponentially, and his hope of turning the tide would become even slimmer.

He had to go all in before the field ended.

As the countdown reached its final ten seconds, Edwin ignored Lin Yi's deadly attack aimed straight at his heart, instead pouring all his crimson power into the longsword in his hand.

The sword emitted a groan of strain, and Edwin's body, like a burning meteor, moved at an incredible speed to meet Lin Yi's thrusting sword, striking out in kind! His target was Lin Yi's chest!

perish together?!
Do not!
Edwin's thrust had an extremely unpredictable trajectory.

The purpose of this sword strike is not to inflict damage, but to ensure a direct hit!
To ensure the accumulation of that crucial erosion layer, Edwin was risking his life for a guaranteed hit, forcibly stacking the erosion layers to the critical point that would trigger [Noble Elegy]!
There was no way to dodge! Edwin's speed reached its peak in this desperate gamble, and the spiraling, trembling sword tip locked onto every possible angle from which Lin Yi could evade.

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

Two muffled thuds of sharp weapons piercing flesh rang out almost simultaneously.

Edwin's longsword pierced through Lin Yi's holy light shield and penetrated deeply into his right chest.

The instantaneous increase in erosion layers caused Lin Yi's maximum health to plummet.

However, Edwin's health bar dropped significantly in an instant, and if calculated as a percentage, it should only have about 2% left.

Edwin won his gamble this time. If Lin Yi's attack had been any higher, Edwin's health bar would have been completely wiped out by this single blow.

However, at the very last moment, the scales of fate tipped in Edwin's favor by a tiny, almost imperceptible amount.

[Warning! You are under attack by 'Crimson Eroder - Edwin Heinrich'!]

[You have taken splash damage because you are within the Crimson Dance area.]

[You have been affected by 'Crimson Erosion', your maximum health has been reduced by 43%, current stack count: 43.]

43 floors! That's enough; this is his last chance to turn things around.

"It's over! Junior!" Edwin's hoarse voice carried a sense of relief. He ignored the black and white roses piercing his chest, ignored the rampant abyssal power within him, and ignored the life force that might be extinguished in the next second.

With his left hand, stained with his own "blood," he used the last of his strength to press firmly on the end of the sword hilt.

An indescribable aura of terror erupted from Edwin's body.

【Crimson End - Noble Elegy】! Activate!

"With my blood, I will burn my remaining body! With your lives, I will offer sacrifice to the departed souls! The end—will come!"

Edwin uttered his final whisper as his body burned, solely to unleash this ultimate power.

The instant death warning enveloped Lin Yi, and he felt as if a giant hand was gripping his heart tightly.

The crimson erosion acted like dozens of heavy shackles, tightly locking his life limit and providing the perfect "fuel" for this instant death judgment.

[Warning! You are being affected by the instant death effect of 'Crimson End: Noble Elegy'!]

[The judgment is based on a comprehensive calculation including: the number of erosion layers, the difference in attributes between the two sides, their health status, resistances, etc... Comprehensive calculation in progress...]

[Calculation complete! Base success rate for this instant-death judgment: 58.7%!]

[...Special skill 'Abyssal Body' detected.]

['Abyssal Body' triggered, instant-death resistance increased! Recalculating...]

[Final Result: This instant death assessment failed!]

[Based on the difference in judgment and the backlash from the number of erosion layers, the contractor will suffer a huge penalty in terms of health points.]

[The contractor has lost 65% of their current health.]

As a series of notification sounds appeared in Lin Yi's ears, Lin Yi's vision began to blur.

The loss of 65% of his life points at once made Lin Yi feel as if all his bones had been removed from his body. His vision blurred and his eyes went black.

Although the contractor's body was partially digitized after being affected by Paradise, this does not mean that the contractor can continue to fight back even when their health is only 1%, just like a game character.

On the contrary, contractors are just like normal people. Once their health drops below 50%, they will enter a weakened state, and if they are attacked severely, they will fall into a coma.

However, since Lin Yi passed this time, it means that Edwin has failed in this battle.

Lin Yi gripped his longsword tightly and with a horizontal slash, sliced ​​Edwin's right chest and heart in two. "It seems... I didn't wait for the wrong person..." Edwin's voice was weak, like a sigh, yet it carried an indescribable complex emotion—relief, relief, and perhaps even a hint of liberation.

A series of fine cracking sounds, like ice breaking, rang out. Edwin's body, starting from the wound pierced by the black and white roses, spread rapidly with countless dark cracks, like porcelain being struck by a heavy blow.

There was no blood and flesh flying everywhere, only a silent disintegration.

Edwin's remaining body fragmented into countless tiny pieces, falling like ashes scattered by the wind.

"Be careful of the Mad King; he can no longer be considered human." Edwin seemed to have finally regained his senses before his death, smiling at Lin Yi with a look of relief in his eyes.

I thought it was just a casual move, but I never expected it to actually work.

As Edwin's body shattered, a thick gray fog surged back in, quickly engulfing the land that had just witnessed the battle.

[Hint: You have defeated the Otherworldly being "Crimson Eroder Edwin Heinrich" and obtained 1 Epic Treasure Chest.]

You have gained 6.8% of the World Source, bringing your total World Source to 9.7%.

You have obtained 'Crimson Crystal (Fragment)' x1

You have obtained 'Edwin's Noble Sword' (Epic, Max Rating) (with two Epic Gems socketed)

【Scarlet Crystal (Fragment)】

Origin: Whispering Forest

Quality: Legendary (The grade dropped due to damage and severe energy loss).

Type: Materials/Special Consumables
Effect 1: Crimson Essence (Passive): Contains a highly concentrated essence of crimson power, which can be used as a core material for forging/synthesizing certain powerful equipment, potions, or skills, or absorbed by specific professions/bloodlines to enhance related attributes (the absorption process requires resistance to mental corruption).

Effect 2: Blood Resonance (Active): Can detonate the remaining crimson power within the crystal in one go, instantly restoring 30% of the user's maximum health and removing all control effects.

Warning: This crystal is in a 'broken' state, its effects are greatly weakened and extremely unstable. Forced absorption or improper use carries an extremely high risk of causing irreversible mental pollution and profound physical alienation.

Rating: 530
Synopsis: The life, glory, despair, and ultimate downfall of a nobleman.

Edwin's Noble Sword

Origin: Sun Chaser Workshop

Quality: Epic
Category: Main Weapon - Longsword
Durability: 150/150
Attack power: 211~292 (fluctuates based on the user's strength and agility attributes)
Equipment requirements: 90 points of true strength, 90 points of true agility, 70 points of stamina, and mastery of 'Sword Mastery lv.30' or a similar technique.

Equipment Effect: Lightweight (Passive): Increases attack speed by 15% and parry/block success rate by 10%.

Gemstone setting effect:

Crimson Flame (Epic): When attacking, there is a 15% chance to inflict the 'Burning' effect, dealing true fire damage equal to 0.8 times the holder's Strength attribute per second for 5 seconds.

Ice Soul (Epic): When attacking, there is a 10% chance to inflict the 'Slow' effect, reducing the target's attack speed by 10% for 3 seconds (can stack up to 2 times).

Rating: 700
Description: This is an artistic blade belonging to a battlefield noble, a perfect blend of elegance and lethality. A tiny inscription is engraved at the end of the hilt: "For Quel'Thalas, Forever."
It's a good product, but it's also quite troublesome.

Lin Yi looked at the two newly acquired items, especially the [Crimson Crystal (Broken)], which had a powerful effect but equally terrifying side effects.

Just then, the sound of ropes scraping against the cliff face came from behind.

"My lord, how are you?" Leonard's slightly anxious voice rang out from the gray fog.

He nimbly slid down the rope to the square, and a look of shock flashed in his eyes when he saw the messy battle marks on the ground and Lin Yi standing in the center of the square with his imposing presence.

"Was that terrifying fluctuation just now...that from Earl Edwin?"

"Hmm, Edwin Heinrich, it's resolved." Lin Yi cast another healing and purification spell on himself to dispel the last trace of weakness.

Although the power of the abyss was greatly depleted, it no longer posed a significant obstacle to Lin Yi's actions.

Leonard opened his mouth, but ultimately swallowed his question.

Lin Yi's current strength and methods have repeatedly refreshed his understanding.

"That's good. So... shall we continue? According to those two, the core area shouldn't be far away."

"Let's go." Lin Yi determined the direction and walked towards the depths of the square.

Passing through the archway felt like entering another world.

The gray fog became thicker, and the ground beneath our feet was no longer slabs of stone, but covered with a black substance that looked like ash. It felt soft and spongy underfoot, making an unpleasant "plop" sound.

As far as the eye could see, there were the remains of countless enormous trees. They had long since lost their color and form, leaving only charred, twisted skeletons.

The thick trunk, like the spine of a giant beast broken by immense force, lay obliquely in the ashes.

The broken branches, like the desperate, withered claws of a dying man reaching for the sky, sketched a hideous and sorrowful silhouette in the thick, impenetrable gray fog.

Everything here has lost its vitality; there is only deathly silence and oppression.

The two walked for about half an hour, and the surrounding scenery became increasingly desolate and dilapidated.

Suddenly, Lin Yi stopped in his tracks.

The gray fog ahead seemed to have been dispersed by some invisible force, becoming relatively thinner.

An enormous, indescribable silhouette pierced through the fog and filled the entire field of vision.

That's a tree.

Or rather, it used to be a tree.

Its height is beyond description by mere visual estimation; even just looking at the exposed part at its base gives one a sense of insignificance when gazing up at a mountain.

The thick trunk makes it look more like a majestic mountain made of wood.

The enormous root system resembles a tangled dragon, with one part deeply embedded in the black earth and the other part exposed menacingly, dominating a large area.

The tree canopy that should have provided ample shade has long since vanished.

Instead, there were countless charred, broken, and twisted giant branches, like countless withered claws of despair pointing to the sky.

The entire giant tree was a deathly black, scarred by flames. The bark was cracked and peeling away, revealing the equally charred wood inside.

Even though it has been dead for countless ages, it still exudes a breathtaking grandeur and pathos.

This is the lifeblood of the elves, the symbol of nature, the legendary World Tree, Yggdrasil, which is said to have supported a glorious civilization.

The world-destroying fire of the dwarven and human allied forces consumed the World Tree.

“The World Tree, Yggdrasil.” Leonard’s voice carried a sense of pilgrimage-like awe and indescribable sorrow. Even as a human, he had heard of this legendary tree that supported the balance between elven civilization and nature.

"I never expected it to turn out like this."

Just as he was about to explore his surroundings, a voice, like a whisper in the wind, suddenly rang in his ears: "...Light...so warm...it feels so good...finally...finally, I've waited for this..."

This sound is not a sound wave that travels through the air, but a spiritual fluctuation that acts directly on the soul.

Lin Yi glanced at the source of the sound, and not far from him, next to a relatively short, withered tree, floated a small ball of faint but incredibly pure light.

The light was only the size of a thumb, and it was an almost transparent green, like the faintest firefly on a summer night. Against the backdrop of thick gray fog and deathly silence, it appeared so fragile.

It floated gently up and down, emanating a pure yet sorrowful pulse of life.

[Hint: A remnant of the spirit of the Whispering Forest has been discovered.]

This spirit is a unique being formed by a high elf forcibly splitting a portion of its pure soul essence using the lost, top-tier natural secret technique 'Soul Implantation,' and residing within a specially selected 'Tear of the World Tree.'

[Because you possess the special status 'Blessing of the World's Will,' your very existence radiates an aura that draws the world's essence in, attracting the attention of this spirit. It develops a natural trust and a strong sense of dependence on you.]

[This spirit is in an extremely weak state and may dissipate at any moment.] (End of Chapter)